ROUND TWO WITH A HOLY GOD
Hab
1:12-17
James Boice said
“Habakkuk is a profound book that
explores deeply into the mysteries of God.” It’s
insightful because it raises deep questions about the workings of God in
History. Why God does what He does,
why He does it in the way He does it, and why He sometimes does nothing. The
summary statement to the mysteries of God for the Christian is found later on
in this letter “but the righteous shall
live by faith.” Hab 2:4. Habakkuk
had a problem, because he witness a time of renewal and revival followed by a
time of spiritual decline. And
it’s through his cry we see God answering his prayer, but not in the way
Habakkuk hoped. God
answers His prophet with news that is devastating to the ears to hear.
Why? God
is going to send a people group who exceed the wicked scale from 1 to 10 to and instant 11. This
is not what Habakkuk was hoping for when he prayed to God at the opening of His
letter. No
one, not even Habakkuk saw this coming. And
to top it off God is going to use these wicked people to discipline the people
of Judah for their own rebellious and sinful behavior. Habakkuk’s cry could
be considered the same cry that one might have over the state of the visible
church in Canada
and around the globe. The
lack of theology and bible teaching; watered down gospels and nominal
Christianity. The
narcissistic me-centered worship that seems to trump genuine worship for the
glory of God and His saving grace. We
know the church isn’t perfect, but this is happening in Canada. And
because this is happening around us, we pray and ask God to do something to renew
the church to be a light for His glory. So
you wait…..and God responds, He is going to destroy the
church by sending an invasion of unbelievers. We
would protest and argue that this isn’t right! We would interlock our arms with
Habakkuk. And say
“Why do you idly look at traitors and
remain silent when the wicked swallows up the man more righteous than he? (v13) We
all have asked or thought this question at one point in time in our lives.
We encounter this on a personal level as well. You lose your job
because a person “who has it in for you” misrepresents something you have done. Why did God allow this very
bad person to succeed? You are sick
and doctor misdiagnoses your care so that you get worse. Why has God allowed this to
happen? Your faced with great disappointment though a death in the family
of someone close, a breakup of a marriage or engagement, a failure to get into
the right graduate school. Doesn’t God care about my
future plans and why should someone who is not even a Christian have it good
while I lose out? This
is where Habakkuk is in his life. Are you there to this morning?
Is
Habakkuk or yourself lost and without any hope at all because you feel this
way? No,
he is a doubting prophet who cannot see “the
forest for the trees.” We
need to understand this is not the first time God had used such a method to correct
His people in spiritual discipline. We read in Isaiah 10:5
“Ah, Assyria, the rod of my anger; the
staff in their hands is my fury!” Do see that? The Assyrians is called the rod of God’s anger. God
used the Assyrians like a whip in order to discipline the Northern Kingdom. And
after God was done using the Assyrians He judged Assyria for her owns sins. The question remains though! How can a holy God use a
sinful nation to accomplish His purposes?
The simple answer is that
He
is God and we are not.
He
is sovereign and we are not.
He
is transcendent and we are not.
He
is holy and just and we are not
We need to understand with Habakkuk’s second question that he
is asking! (v12-v13) “Are you not” (v12) is not an indication that
leads us to believe that Habakkuk is denying the God of the bible. See
there is a huge difference between someone who doubts over someone who doesn’t
believe at all. The
person who has unbelief
is a person
who is rebellious against God. Unbelief
is a habitual refusal to accept what God says and does. Unbelief
is an act of the will, while doubt is born out of a troubled mind and broken
heart. We
saw that at the beginning of this letter “How
long shall I cry..” (v2)
See!Doubters question God and may even
debate Him, but he or she will never abandon the truth that is before them,
despite not liking what God says.
A prime example of this is found in the life of Thomas. Don’t
think for a second that he never loved the Lord, he might have doubt about
events and certain things, but he never stops loving the Lord. Unfortunately
like every human heart he had a natural tendency to doubt at times but he was
willing to die with Christ. We read in John 11: 16
“So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also
go, that we may die with him." Lazarus
is dead and they have to travel to Bethany a place they are not welcomed; and
that could lead to imminent death. But
none the less Thomas was willing to die with Jesus not because he gave up, but
because to be separated from Christ is far worse than dying alone. John MacArthur
said this about Thomas in how he felt for the Lord Jesus in his book “Twelve Ordinary Men”
“The thought of losing Christ
paralyzed him.”
When
Jesus spoke of eternal things or future things Thomas, was where are you going? You
can’t leave us, we all stick together and if we stick together we will die
together.” There
are two occasions of Jesus appeared in the upper room after His
death and resurrection. The
first time Thomas is nowhere
to be found;
maybe it’s because after hearing Jesus died he felt helpless, confused,
rejected and forsaken. Exactly
how a pessimistic person feels about an undesirable outcome. This
was a man who was crushed for his love for Christ. Theologians
say that Thomas was side by side with John, in his love and devotion for Jesus. This
why Jesus appeared the second time to correct his broken and doubting disciple
because He loved Thomas with an everlasting grace. We
read “Now
Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So
the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to
them, "Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my
finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will
never believe." Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas
was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them
and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your
finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side.
Do not disbelieve, but believe." Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Have you
believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet
have believed." John 20:24-29
We
get to witness this wonderful account so that we can to can trust in God’s plan
despite the outcome. We
see the same thing with Habakkuk here in his letter, a confused man who has
moments of doubt because we are not God. Why does Habakkuk display moments
of doubt and not unbelief?
Habakkuk acknowledges that God is eternal. (v12)
Everlasting or eternal refers to endless past,
unending future.
See!
God
has no beginning and no ending and He knows both the beginning and the end.
God
is the creator and sustainer of the universe and beyond.
God
is the one who spoke everything into existence.
God
is the one who is self-sustaining and transcendent over everything.
God
is sovereign and in complete control.
Since
God is eternal, there has never been a time when He did not exist. Isaiah 44:6 says
"…I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god. God
is self-existent and the uncaused cause of all things Isaiah 43:13 we read
“Also henceforth I am he; there is none who can deliver from my hand; I work,
and who can turn it back?" The Bible says,
"In the beginning God." The
God we worship is the God who has always been.
Habakkuk is acknowledging that God is holy (v12)
“O LORD my God, my Holy One” is a personal response to
who God is in all His glory. “Holy” refers to God’s majesty and
perfections. There
is absolutely no sin or evil thought in God at all. His
holiness is the definition of that which is pure and righteous. As Hannah prayed in 1 Sam 2:2 “There is
no one holy like the LORD, indeed, there is no one besides thee.” R C Sproul said in his book “The
Holiness Of God”…”The bible says that God is holy, holy, holy. Not that He
is merely holy, or even holy, holy. He is holy, holy, holy. The Bible never
says that God is love, love, love; or mercy, mercy, mercy; or wrath, wrath,
wrath; or justice, justice, justice. It does say that He is holy, holy, holy
that the whole earth is full of His glory. That’s
why Habakkuk says in (v13) “you are purer
eyes than to behold evil,” What
Habakkuk is saying is that God is so HOLY, He cannot under any circumstance look upon sin
and not do anything about it. God’s
hatred towards sinning sinners is severe read Psalm 5
in its entirety. In Psalm 5 the bible says “You hate
all evil doers.”…“The Lord abhors (detests, find them repulsive) the
bloodthirsty.” (v5-v6).
Does God hate sinners? Yes…look to the cross!
Does God love sinners? Yes…look to the cross!
This is what the gospel is all about! That
a holy God who cannot look upon your evil sinful behavior and do nothing about
it. Sin
is cosmic treason against a holy and sovereign God. The
most violent expression of God's wrath and justice
is seen where? In
the Cross. Jesus
Christ became sin on our behalf so that God could look upon a repentant person
like you and me and declare us to be His beloved children. Saved
from the wrath we deserve through unmerited grace and love. See!
Habakkuk was confused to why God would allow such unholy sinners to overtake
His people. And
it’s through this confusion Habakkuk still acknowledges God as holy, holy,
holy.
Habakkuk is acknowledging that God is unchanging. (v12)
“O
Rock” this
literally means “Mighty Rock” This
is a great picture that describes God as an unchanging rock that is stable,
strong, large and unmovable. Moses penned these words “He is our Rock, His work is perfect; For all
His ways are justice, a God of truth and without injustice; righteous and
upright is He.” Deut 32:4. This
is a beautiful description of our unshakable God who is sovereign over the universe. God
is in complete control; and He is not biting His fingers out of nervousness
wondering what’s going to happen next. God is a God of order, not
chaos, and
through all the loud noise and things happening around us God is doing His
will. Despite
how Habakkuk and how we might see our present day situation. We
need to embrace that truth because this is where we find our comfort in the
middle of the storm. Realizing
that God is allowing things and doing things for our edification and ultimately
for His glory. Again Paul reminds us of this truth “And we know that all things
work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according
to His purpose.” Rom 8:28
What are we supposed to glean from this letter so far as we
live in trying times of today’s present world system? God
is a God of promises and truth and He has “Appointed” this
time for Habakkuk as He has appointed this in our lives today. (v12) “Appointed” means “found, fix, establish, lay
foundation” this was all part of God’s perfect plan for the people of Judah as
it is for me and you today. It’s through the chaos
and all the business of life that we need to rest in a holy God who is
everlasting and unchanging and from eternity past becuase He has ordained this
in your life. God
promised from the beginning that He would send a Savior, a Sacrifice for
sinners….He did! God
promised that we could have eternal life through repentance and faith in His
Son….He did! God
promised He would come back again and reclaim what is rightfully His one day….He
will! Why do we know this to be true? His
word is truth! For the bible told me so. And
the promise God made with Jeremiah would apply to Habakkuk if the nation would
listen. Jeremiah penned these words “For this is the covenant that I will make with
the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law
within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and
they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and
each his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the
least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their
iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." Jer 31:33-34. All
God asks of the Nation is to repent of their disobedience and wickedness and
embrace the love and truth found in the promises of God. That
simple principle still applies today for our generation and the next.
Habakkuk
is really struggling with this plan that God has ordained for the people of
Judah. And
we do
at times in our Christian walk! Why? Sin
is a universal problem….Rom 3:23 “All have
sinned.” God
is transcendently holy and He hates sin with flaming passion. God
is eternal and unchanging and will never turn a blind eye to sin…..Heb
4:12 says we
will “stand naked” God
is just and He will judge sin according to His perfect will and timing.
Understand! Sometimes
it’s present as
we see in this letter of Habakkuk. Sometimes
it’s post-poned. Peter said this
“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is
patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should
reach repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9. Sometimes
it’s final. John said
“And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown
into the lake of fire.” Rev 20:12-15
God is not unaware of your shortcomings
and He surely isn’t unaware of your weaknesses. Look
at (v14-v15)
Habakkuk uses the analogy of the fishing
industry. The
Babylonians are the fishermen who entice and lure their prey to grab hold of
what they are offering, and then they take their prey captive. Just
like today with the technological and entertainment persuasions of this
postmodern world keeping people occupied and busy so that they don’t focus on
Christ. If you don’t believe me! Look
back on this past week the time you spent studying God’s word, prayer and
fellowshipping with the saints. Not saying
doing other things is wrong, but they are, if we are spending more time in them
instead of God’s word and being with God’s people. If
our lives are not a daily pursuit after
God’s own heart then we are susceptible to allure away by the bait of this
world.
Sin is
an accuser and enticer to fallen people of any age. The
nation of Judah was trapped by habitual sin and wickedness. And
Lord used the Babylonians to chasten God’s people back to His caring, merciful
and sovereign arms. Despite the doubt we all feel from time to time! We
always need to come back to this moment (this portion of Habakkuk’s letter) and recognize that God is
God and we are not. Recognizing
that God is holy, eternal and unchanging and He knows exactly what He is doing
in the life of the nation and in your life.
How do we know this to be true in our lives? When
God withholds His
justice and wrath we are receiving something amazing and undeserved.We
are receiving grace.
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