When God's Plan Doesn't Make Sense

(Audio Version)

Introduction

            If you’re like me, you’ve seen the images of the protests in Ukraine over the last few weeks. I’m not qualified or smart enough to comment on the merits of the protests but I can’t seem to get some of the images out of my head. Specifically poignant are the images of religious leaders standing between protesters and riot police seeking a peaceful end to the violent protests. I was compelled to pray for all those affected by the riots as God reminded me of the many people from Ukraine that access my lessons every week. There are images of Ukranians kneeling in the streets praying at the feet of marching riot police and religious

leaders performing last rites over the dead bodies of those killed in the riots. The images are indeed stark—Christians in prayer with violence and death all around them. It can make a person wonder if God really is in control. It got me to thinking about the people in all the other countries who faithfully read my lessons on a weekly basis; places where Christians are killed daily for their faith; places where Christians languish in prisons for their faith; places where Christians break the law when they access my lessons because Christianity is illegal in their country. These people are our brothers and sisters in Christ! We are all bound together in Christ as members of His Church. Yet some of us are able to practice our faith with relatively little opposition while others risk their lives daily because of their faith—it can be hard to understand at times; it can be difficult to understand how God might be acting in or through any of these tragic events. Why do Christians around the world have to endure such painful, and at times, horrible trials? It’s a difficult question. Nevertheless, difficult trials are not isolated to the international community of believers, they occur daily in the lives of believers right here at home. A family member dies suddenly; a wife is diagnosed with cancer; a child relapses once again into drug abuse; a father walks out on his children; a marriage comes to a painful end. Believers have the benefit of looking to God for hope and comfort. However, as beings created in the image of God, we’re not necessarily suited to follow along like mindless robots. Even though we readily acknowledge God’s wisdom and sovereignty with respect to the affairs of His creation, when the pain in our lives reaches a certain point, we can’t help but question what God is doing in, through or around us. When we read the Bible we see that the entire story of God has a specific trajectory; history is moving in a specific direction and that direction is being guided by God. Most of us, when life is going smoothly, are ready to admit that God has a great and glorious plan. But when life falls apart, we begin to question that plan. What do we do? Where do we turn When God’s Plan Doesn’t Make Sense?

Subject Text

Habakkuk 1:2-17

            ²How long, O LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, “Violence!” but you do not save? ³Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. ⁴Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted. ⁵“Look at the nations and watch—and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told. ⁶I am raising up the Babylonians, that ruthless and impetuous people, who sweep across the whole earth to seize dwelling places not their own. ⁷They are a feared and dreaded people; they are a law to themselves and promote their own honor. ⁸Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves at dusk. Their cavalry gallops headlong; their horsemen come from afar. They fly like a vulture swooping to devour; ⁹they all come bent on violence. Their hordes advance like a desert wind and gather prisoners like sand. ¹⁰They deride kings and scoff at rulers. They laugh at all fortified cities; they build earthen ramps and capture them. ¹¹Then they sweep past like the wind and go on—guilty men, whose own strength is their god.” ¹²O LORD, are you not from everlasting? My God, my Holy One, we will not die. O LORD, you have appointed them to execute judgment; O Rock, you have ordained them to punish. ¹³Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong. Why then do you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves? ¹⁴You have made men like fish in the sea, like sea creatures that have no ruler. ¹⁵The wicked foe pulls all of them up with hooks, he catches them in his net, he gathers them up in his dragnet; and so he rejoices and is glad. ¹⁶Therefore he sacrifices to his net and burns incense to his dragnet, for by his net he lives in luxury and enjoys the choicest food. ¹⁷Is he to keep on emptying his net, destroying nations without mercy?

Context

            Habakkuk lived and ministered during Israel’s divided kingdom. He prophesied from the southern kingdom of Judah sometime during the ten year period between 608 BC ad 598 BC. We often focus on the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC and rightly so because the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar burned the Temple and every other significant building to the ground and carted off most of the remaining Jews back to Babylon as prisoners and slaves. However, nearly 20 years before that tragic event, around 605 BC, the Babylonians overran Judah. Israel’s history was familiar with war and the atrocities of war. However, they had never encountered a warring machine like the Babylonians. The Babylonians demoralized and crushed their opponents under a tidal wave of terror and brutality. The only thing that exceeded the tenacity of their warriors, whose relentless attack was like a storm that would never end, was the ferocity with which they fought. Few were able to hold off an attack from the Babylonians for any significant length of time. Eventually, their brutality proved to be no match for any kingdom that stood in the way of their insatiable desire to conquer the world. First Judah and then Israel where no match for the Babylonians. Yet God would use just this instrument of brutality to carry out his well designed plan to discipline the Jews for their continued disobedience.

Text Analysis

            Habakkuk’s plea in vv. 2-4 sounds familiar doesn’t it? Habakkuk was in the midst of a culture where God was once the center of the peoples’ focus and now they were behaving as though God was just a hobby that one could take or leave. Injustice, unnecessary suffering, destruction, violence, strife, and conflict were rampant among the people and no one seemed to be doing anything about it. To make matters worse, the verses imply that Habakkuk had been pleading with God for some time to intervene and set things right. Yet God remained silent—until now. My gosh, Habakkuk could have been talking about America! For decades, Christians have lamented the cultural drift in America. They’ve been pleading for renewal through God’s intervention to set things right. In a recent survey by LifeWay Research, 59% of Christians believe they are losing the culture war and 11% believe the war has already been lost. How can this be? In the midst of all the prayers for renewal and God’s divine intervention, things have only gotten worse! It doesn’t make sense. Well, it didn’t make sense to Habakkuk either. God insisted that His chosen people were to behave a certain way and if they didn’t, Habakkuk fully believed that God would do something about it. The only problem is that Habakkuk wanted God to intervene on his time-table and in the manner he thought would be best. Habakkuk grew impatient with God and he would soon find out what happens when God intervenes to set things right. “Habakkuk wonders how long he must wait for God’s help against violence. Judah’s problems with corruption are addressed in three matched pairs: injustice (Heb. ’āwen) and wrongful suffering (Heb. ‘āmāl); destruction (Heb. šōd) and violence (Heb. hāmās); strife (Heb. rîb) and conflict (Heb. mādôn). The latter two are legal terms marking the many lawsuits and legal quarrels in the courts. These six problems have four results, also presented in poetic pairs: the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails; the wicked hem in the righteous so that justice is perverted. In a few words Habakkuk describes a ruined society full of crime, violence, corruption, mock legal battles and the defeat of the righteous, and he wants to know why God tolerates it.”[1]

            Have you ever heard the saying, ‘Be careful what you ask for?’ The implication of the saying is that you should be careful what you ask for because you may not like it when you get it. Well Habakkuk was about to have just such a moment when God tells him how He intends to intervene to set things right. God makes it clear in v. 5 that when He acts, there’s no mistaking it; God doesn’t dabble in fixes or nibble around the edges and this case was no different. The Jews would witness the great nation of Egypt crushed nearly overnight; the Assyrian capital of Nineveh would be so devastated that the people would actually forget where it was—it was essentially wiped off the map; and their own independent nation would become a land of slaves and servants all at the hands of the mighty and brutal Babylonians. I’m guessing Habakkuk’s head was swimming at the mere mention of the Babylonians in v. 6, and he probably had a hard time focusing on anything after that as God described the efficient brutality of the Babylonians in vv. 7-11. The Babylonians weren’t like the Jews who looked to God for provision and protection. The Babylonians relied on themselves for what they needed and they simply took whatever they wanted. Their military strength and prowess was their god. Nevertheless, “The Lord agrees with the prophetic indictment against the behavior of the covenant people. Violence prevails. Strife, contention, plundering, and perversion of justice permeate the nation…The Lord himself is fully in sympathy with the prophet’s agony over the suffering righteous ones. Although having larger concerns as well, the Lord knows and sympathizes with those who have been surrounded by the wicked. The stunning character of the Lord’s revelation relates to the awesomeness of the divine response that hovers on the horizon of history. When this coming reality is appreciated, it becomes plain that the Lord perceives the problem even more deeply than does the prophet. His resolution of the problem therefore appears overwhelming…It is indeed remarkable to note the explicitness of the announcement concerning the designated instrument of God’s judgment. The Lord’s control of the nations is so great that he orders their rise and fall according to his own plans and purposes. He may choose to disperse his people among the heathen as a way of claiming for himself a populace from all the nations. Yet this dispersion will occur in perfect coordination with the time in which his own people are ripe for judgment because of their persistence in rebellion over centuries.”[2]

            You can almost imagine Habakkuk backpedaling in vv. 12-17 saying, ‘Wait, wait, wait let’s think about this for a minute. How exactly will you deal with Israel’s evil ways by using the greatest and most brutal evil of our time to discipline them?’ Habakkuk wants to know how it could be possible for God to partner with the evil and treachery of the Babylonians. Habakkuk itemizes the unrighteousness of the Babylonians as though God is somehow unfamiliar with them. Does this sound familiar to you? When God’s Plan Doesn’t Make Sense, we try to explain the situation to God thinking he must be misinformed somehow. We seem to think that God somehow relies on us to keep Him not only informed on problems we face but to recommend appropriate solutions for Him to adopt and implement. We treat God like He’s some old man wringing His hands and pacing the floor because He’s run out of ideas on how to fix the problems of the world. However, nothing could be farther from the truth! God has foreseen all the events of the world long before they have occurred. As a result, His judgments and solutions are always timely and efficacious. “Habakkuk was well aware of Judah’s faults, but by any standards his countrymen, particularly the righteous nucleus, were no match for the wickedness of the Babylonians. Apparently the fate of Babylon’s enemies was common knowledge, and Habakkuk recoils at the thought that the Babylonians would ruthlessly ravage Judah and Jerusalem. The sustained figure of speech, which compares the invaders to an unconscionable angler who fishes for the delight of killing the catch, is as impassioned a plea against inhumanity as the Old Testament contains. Habakkuk did not doubt God’s sovereignty over the enemy nation, but this sharpened the problem. How could a righteous God refrain from intervening?”[3] This time not to deal with sins of his countrymen but to restrain the brutality of the Babylonians.

            In the chapters that follow our Subject Text, God assures Habakkuk that He will honor his promise to raise up and sustain a faithful group from among the people. “God showed Habakkuk that the judgment of Judah, though sweeping, would not be total. He reaffirmed the promise that a remnant would be spared to carry on the redemptive mission and to serve as a foundation for the renewed nation. Habakkuk’s despair over the fate of the righteous evoked God’s promise that they would survive the awful day. The basis of their faithfulness, their total dependence and dependability…Habakkuk used his questions neither to shield himself from moral responsibilities nor to shun God’s claims upon his life. He was genuinely perplexed by the unpredictable nature of God’s dealings. He raised his protests because he hungered and thirsted to see God’s righteousness vindicated. God’s self-revelation laid to rest the ghost of the prophet’s doubts and gave birth to a finer faith. The redeeming God had used the questions as a means of grace to fortify Habakkuk’s faith.”[4] And isn’t faith, or a greater faith, God’s ultimate objective in all His dealings with humanity?

Application

            Does Habakkuk’s confusion and doubt describe your own? The grief of death has found its way to your doorstep too many times over the last few years. You believe you’ve been prepared for a significant relationship that would hopefully lead to marriage but God just won’t arrange for you to meet the right man or woman. You spend your days walking the war-torn streets of your city wondering when the destruction and bloodshed will end. You spend your days staring at the world through iron bars or eyes blurred by sweat and tears because you’ve been deprived of your freedom for the sake of Christ. You spend your days on the move from place to place trying to avoid those who seek to take your life or the lives of your family because of your Christian faith. You poured the best years of your life into your marriage according to God’s instruction on marriage just to watch your husband or wife leave you for someone else. You’ll admit that you’re certainly not without sin but you’ve confessed your sin and done your best to be a faithful follower of Christ yet your life doesn’t seem to make sense—You struggle to do well in school even though you study diligently; you can’t find a job even though you search tirelessly for work; you can’t make ends meet financially even though you work long, hard hours; the doctors still can’t do anything for your sick child even though countless people are have been praying; or your mother or father just won’t deal with their addiction to drugs or alcohol. I can go on but you know your own struggle very well and how you have pleaded with God for answers; for intervention; for relief. You don’t doubt God exists, but as the days, months, and maybe even years grind on, it becomes more and more difficult to see God’s “good” plan at work. You might recall that I mentioned in an earlier lesson that I grew up in the home with an abusive, alcoholic father. I haven’t always been an obedient follower of Christ and there was a time in my life when you could legitimately question whether I was follower at all. However, when I was young, I had no choice but to turn to God because I was trapped in a life I did not choose and could not escape from. I prayed constantly for God to stop the rage that was fueled by the alcohol, but He didn’t. I stopped asking “why?” a long time ago. I have come to realize that God has used all the events of my life to make me the person I am today so I can be equipped to do all the things He has planned for me to do. Some would insist that God could have chosen a less painful path for me and I suppose He could have. I didn’t understand it then and I still don’t understand why God does or allows some things, but I trust more and more each day that His plan is perfect even if I don’t understand it or like it. Trusting God when life is painful can seem impossible. Letting go of our need to control the circumstances of our lives or having answers to the questions that arise in our hearts during those painful days can be especially difficult when God’s Plan Doesn’t Make Sense. A number of years ago when I was going through another very difficult time in my life, a friend gave me something that I would like to share with you. It’s a summary of the lesson from the Book of Habakkuk and what God is trying to tell us through the Old Testament prophet. If God were to speak to you, this is what he might say: “Habakkuk prayed for brokenness in his people and revival through My Spirit. He saw neither. Now hear Me well as I unfold the dialogue I entered into with My frustrated servant. It’s the dialogue I long to have with you. I permitted Habakkuk to continue in the mystery of My silence until he was worn out. Only when false hope is abandoned will My strange but true hope be embraced. I shattered his false hope by revealing My plan for Babylon, a nation more evil than Judah, to rise up and discipline My people. And I made it clear it would all happen under my direction. I want you and all my people to know that nothing catches Me off guard—not Adolf Hitler or Osama bin Laden. Nothing has happened or ever will happen that I am not using for My purposes. But what I allow seems to contradict My holy and pure character. I required Habakkuk, as I require you, to live in the tension between the evil that prospers, whether in the church or in secular society, and My plan to restore the beauty of My character in this world. It is that tension that shifted Habakkuk’s focus away from frustration with what he saw in the world toward the mystery of how I execute My plan. With that shift, Habakkuk was silenced and I spoke. It was then I revealed My plan that everyone must wait to see unfold. People respond in one of only two ways to My requirement to wait. Either they refuse to wait and instead try to manage life according to their desires; or they live by faith in My character, confessing their own selfish ways and yielding to My plan and to My timetable to get them to My party. Know this: those who live by faith will struggle in ways that those who live to make their lives work will never know. It is that struggle, to believe despite desperate pain and confusion that a good plan is unfolding, that will open your eyes to see Me more clearly. Is that what you want? Will you pay the price? The price is this: you will tremble in agony as you live in a sinful, self-prioritizing world as a sinful, self-prioritizing person, knowing that no sin will go unpunished even though, for a time, I will appear to be doing nothing. You will learn to wait in emptiness and frustrated desire for My plan of love to reveal itself. With confidence in Me and hope in My plan, you will not only feel the pain of living in the valley but also see My glory from the mountaintop of faith. Only those who struggle in confusion and wait in hope will be strengthened to struggle well and to wait with confidence.”[5]

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[1] Mark J. Boda and J. Gordon McConville, eds., Dictionary of the Old Testament Prophets, (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2012), p. 296.

[2] O. Palmer Rebertson, The Books of Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah—The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1990), pp. 141; 149.

[3] William Sanford LaSor, David Allan Hubbard, and Frederic William Bush, Old Testament Survey: The Message, Form, and Background of the Old Testament, (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1996), p. 324.

[4] Ibid., p. 327.

[5] Dr. Larry Crabb, 66 Love Letters: A Conversation With God That Invites You Into His Story, (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2009), pp. 171-172.