“God, Where Are You?”
The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet saw.
O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear?
Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save?
Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise.
So the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth.
For the wicked surround the righteous; so justice goes forth perverted. “
Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.
For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not their own. Habbakkuk 1:1-6 (ESV)
Whenever I teach through the book of Habakkuk the comment is made: “This sounds like my prayers” or “This reminds me of how I feel today.” One of the reasons I try to teach through the minor prophets often is because of the startling similarities between their time and ours This is especially true of Habakkuk. Throughout the book the question that is raised is whether or not God is just.
When Habakkuk looked around at the world and the society he lived in, his only response was “God, where are you?” He complains of violence, of trouble, of wickedness, of corrupt leadership, of desolation, and of courtroom injustice. He goes so far as to say that the Law (God’s commandments of what is righteous and what is wicked) is paralyzed! The Hebrew term speaks of being numbed or incapable of action.
The prophet looked around his city, his nation, his people, and cried out “God, where are you?” The God who gave the Law was not enforcing it! The people belonging to the God of justice were unjust. Instead of being punished, the more wicked you were in Israel, the greater the reward! It doesn’t take much to identify with Habakkuk in this passage; just turn on the news!
How does God explain himself? Where has he been? Where is God when the vicious oppress the innocent? When the good guys don’t win? When the only way to get ahead is to cross lines you never imagined? Where is God when the wicked prosper?
God’s answer is simple. God is where He’s always been, at work. “Behold, I am working a work in the midst of you!” (My translation). God emphatically asserts that he has not been inactive, in fact he is at work in the nations! This leaves us with a few invaluable conclusions to hold onto when the world around us grows dark.
1.) God is active. Habakkuk’s assumption that God was inactive proved to be untrue. Not only had God heard Habakkuk’s cry, but he had been at work to answer for years! The saying “Rome wasn’t built in a day” goes double for a massive, imperialistic ancient empire! God was at work over the course of hundreds of years to accomplish his will! This is an important lesson for us, especially when we struggle or when we experience suffering. Your inability to see God’s hand does not prove that God is not at work. Nor does it prevent God from working. I wonder how many times we have complained that God is inactive in the midst of God’s work in our lives!
2.) God is not tame. It is tempting to dismiss what we don’t understand. The work that God was doing to answer Habakkuk’s complaints took on the form of the Exile. One of the greatest biblical tragedies where the Israelites were taken from the land God has promised them and delivered as slaves to a vicious and bloodthirsty nation. It is OK to not understand what God is doing. I find myself drawn to the often-repeated phrase “Your ways are not my ways. You thoughts are not my thoughts.” The message is this: often in this life we will not see the big picture. We won’t see how the work is for us or for our good. But we will see by faith the God who is working.
3.) God is sovereign. When sorrows come, it can be easy to distance them from God. It is easy to pretend that this has nothing to do with God’s will for our lives. The truth is that God is not weak. He does not strain to save us from suffering but can’t due to some unforeseen limitation. He is not unwilling. He does not see our suffering coming and passively allow it. God revealed to Habakkuk a valuable truth. He is working! In this world of injustice God is not passive. He isn’t weak. He isn’t out for lunch. He isn’t unwilling. He is at work.
When dark clouds obscure the mighty hand of God, it is far too easy to make rash conclusions about God. My prayer is that the Church will suffer with confidence. That when struck with grief, it will be filled with faith. That when you, Christian, are blinded by pain, you will cling to the words of your God: I will never leave you nor forsake you.” “Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.” When the wicked prosper and the world seems dark, He is at work!
