(So glad you are here! If you want to take full advantage of this study, I would suggest starting from the beginning and printing out the lessons or having a journal nearby to answer the questions. Would love feedback! I'm a first-timer at this!)
The weather was fitting.
A rainy, cold February day perfectly matched the mood in my heart.
My husband, Brett, and I went to Lowes.
We picked out two little rose bushes. No buds. Just the green leaves on the thorny stem.
We came home and began to dig in the dirt.
We planted the two bushes, then stood back and held hands.
He read a Psalm and then prayed. He asked if I wanted to say anything. I blubbered out some words, but for the most part, I just stared at the little green bushes behind tears.
The two rose bushes represented the two babies we had lost that year.
I had to do it.
There was something in my mama heart that wanted them to know I loved them.
I needed to do something to remember them, to honor them, and, at the same time, say goodbye to them.
So we planted the rose bushes that wintery day in hopes that one day they would bloom.
I had no idea how god would use those bushes to bring hope to my heart.
I would water those bushes, and as I watered, I would pray and cry. Pray and cry.
Allowing myself a place to mourn brought my heart a lot of healing.
In April, my husband and I went out of town.
We got back Easter weekend.
I went straight to the backyard to water my rose bushes, and lo and behold...
The first bloom had sprung!
One of the rose bushes had a single, pink rose.
Easter weekend.
I wept. Of course.
In a way, I felt like God was using that rose to remind me of His promise - the promise of life.
That through Him, I could find new life in spite of suffering. Through Him, I could entrust the lives of my babies. Through Him, I could look forward to eternal life to come.
The following month brought Mother’s Day weekend, a weekend that I was dreading.
That Mother’s Day, Sunday morning, I went to water my rose bushes, and lo and behold …
The second rose bush was blooming for the first time!
Can you believe it?
This one was yellow.
And yet again, I felt Him use that rose bush to whisper His promise to my heart.
This time, it was His simple, yet easily forgotten, promise of loving me.
He could have unfolded one of the rose buds on any day.
But Mother’s Day?
In that moment I felt so cared for by Him, so nurtured, seen, known and just … loved.
Since those days, I have not let those promises go. I still think about them when I see the rose bushes. The promise of new life through Him. The promise that He loves me and sees me.
While walking through suffering, what does holding onto God’s promises do to our hearts? They give us a rock to stand on, a safe place to hide in, a hope that everything’s going to be okay. They bring us healing.
We find Habakkuk waiting with a heavy, stone tablet and a hammer today.
He’s ready to etch God’s promise so deeply into that stone, that generation after generation will never forget the words of Yahweh. After all his complaining, He’s ready to listen and hope.
READ:
Read Habakkuk 2:2-4.
RESPOND:
I don’t know what Bible version you are using, but write down the first line of verse 2 (the first 5 words).
Now look at those words again.
My ESV version says “And the Lord answered me.”
Can we just acknowledge the obvious, yet miraculous, first?
God responds.
Just sit on that a second, let it sink in.
We will wrap back around to that thought later, but for now, continue in verse 2.
God commands Habakkuk to do something. What is it?
God asks Habakkuk to write down what He is about to say.
And don’t just write it in the sand.
Where is Habakkuk supposed to write down the words he is about to hear from God?
Your version could say “tables” or “tablets.” (Deut. 27:1-8)
Tables could refer to “boxwood tables covered with wax, on which national affairs were engraved with an iron pen, and then hung up in public” (quoting from biblehub.com - jameison)
Tablets would refer to tablets of stone.
What do you think of when you think of tablets of stone? (Read Deut. 27:1-4)
Was Hab. 2:2 a literal command? Maybe. But figuratively, by God commanding him to etch His words in stone or wood, what does that signify?
“Like the Lord’s revelation to Moses, this prophecy has a lasting relevance and is to be guarded accordingly.” (quoting from Expositors Bible)
This was an important message from the Lord.
So, don’t write it on papyrus!
Etch it in stone!
It’s a message the Lord wanted generation after generation to know.
God then says that Habakkuk is to etch these words so “he may run who reads it.”
Write down what you think that means?
This didn’t make much sense to me until I dove into some commentaries.
Most agree God is saying, “make these words so legible, so clear, that anyone can run with understanding” (quoting from Biblehub.com)
OR it could mean to read it, grasp it, then go run and share it with others.
I love the way Eugene Peterson translates this verse in the Message.
It says, “Write it out in big block letters so that it can be read on the run.”
So, if anything, we can safely conclude God is about to say something BIG, and He wants everyone to tell it and know it.
Now look at 2:3 written below. Circle or write down 5 assurances God gives regarding the revelation He is about to tell Habsters.
“For still the vision awaits its appointed time;
it hastens to the end—it will not lie.
If it seems slow, wait for it;
it will surely come; it will not delay.”
What God is about to say has not come to pass, but it will. And God’s people must wait on it, no matter how delayed it feels. It will come in His perfect timing.
Dr. Toussaint, a beloved professor from Dallas Theological Seminary, shares a beautiful sermon on Habakkuk. He says there are two ways God says His people will respond to this message. What are the two ways?
Look at 2:4 for your answer, then write it down.
The first half of verse 4 describes a man full of pride. This is the man who responds to God with no submission or humility. He is “puffed up” on himself. His head is so full of himself that there is no room for God’s truth.
Who is the man of pride God refers to?
Later in the chapter we see that the prideful ones are the Babylonians. And what is their fate? Judgment by God, utter destruction.
The second half of verse 4 describes a different kind of guy.
How does this man respond to the Lord?
This man responds with faith.
Habakkuk 2:4 is the BIG MAMA verse I want us to sit on today.
In fact, will you do me a favor? Will you just go ahead and write out Habakkuk 2:4(b)?
Then, sit on it for a bit.
WARNING: I’m about to write a lot about this, because this is a crucial verse from our boy, Habakkuk. So grab a mug of coffee and get comfy.
If you are familiar with God’s Word, you’ve seen these words from Hab. 2:4 before.
For example, Paul quotes it in Romans 1:17 and Galatians 3:11.
When you read those verses and the ones surrounding them, you’ll see Paul talking about this thing called “justification by faith.”
This means that we are made right with God (justified) through our faith in God.
We are seen as righteous (upstanding in the eyes of God) through faith in God.
Paul’s emphasis was on salvation.
How are we saved? Faith.
Faith is IT.
It’s not our perfection, our obedience, our good looks that save us (justify us).
It’s faith. Faith in Jesus Christ.
Faith that Jesus is who He said He is - the son of God.
Faith that Jesus did what He said He would do - die on a cross and raise Himself from the dead.
Faith that Jesus promises what He said He would promise - through faith in Him, our sins are forgiven, and we enter into this beautiful forever relationship with God.
In Hab. 2:4, this same truth stands.
The righteous person is the one who has faith.
You can react to God and his message with pride, not believing in God.
Or you can react to God and his message with faith and be saved by God.
BUT … it seems that Habakkuk’s emphasis is slightly different than Paul’s.
As Dr. Toussaint taught me - Paul uses these words to focus on how a sinful person is saved; Habakkuk uses these words to focus on how a saved person lives.
Look at those words again - “The righteous shall live by faith.”
“The righteous” refers to a person already saved. And how does a saved person live?
By faith.
Faith is IT!
It’s the way we are saved and it’s the way we find true life.
I love the way the Message translates Habakkuk 2:4.
“The person who is right standing before God through loyal and steadfast believing is fully alive, REALLY alive.”
The people of Judah who chose to believe God and His message would truly live.
Let’s talk about this "truly living" thing.
RESPOND:
Life. We all have it … or do we?
I mean we’re all breathing. But does that mean we all have life?
Well, to some extent, yes. From a physical sense, yes.
But there is more to life than breathing.
Read the Message version of Habakkuk 2:4 again.
“The person who is right standing before God through loyal and steadfast believing is fully alive, REALLY alive.”
What does it mean to be “fully alive”? Write down your thoughts.
Read John 10:10, John 14:6 and John 17:3. Where do you find true life?
There is life. And there is LIFE.
Through faith in Jesus, we experience life beyond breathing. We experience fullness. We experience abundance - abundance of joy, peace, goodness … every spiritual blessing promised.
So how does this apply in our suffering?
When we are hurting, confused, lost … how does God say we live, find true life?
Through faith.
Write down your definition of faith.
Now read Hebrews’ definition of faith in Hebrews 11:1.
Hebrews 11 makes a list of men who had devout faith. What are some of the big names you see?
Moses knew suffering well.
He was disowned by his own family, saw death after death, wandered in the desert for 40 years. In the end, did he ever experience God’s deliverance into the Promised Land?
Nope.
Joseph knew suffering well.
Abused by his family, thrown into prison.
Did he ever see his own people thrive in their own land, outside of Egypt’s care?
Nope.
In fact, read Hebrews 11:13. What does it say? And how do these words encourage your faith?
The patriarchs never saw the fulfillment of God’s plan, yet they chose to believe.
You and I may not ever know why God allows pain in our life.
We may never witness the purpose behind having an illness, losing a loved one, seeing an enemy prosper while a friend suffers.
But will we, along with the Patriarchs, believe even when we cannot see?
If we choose to have faith, what’s the hope? Life. True life.
Write down some ways to strengthen our faith during painful life seasons?
I think the first thing we do is admit we don't got it.
God, my faith is weak. Help me. Fill me with faith, not of my own but from you.
Even faith is a gift from Him.
That's first.
Then...I've got another idea.
What if we did what Habakkuk does at the beginning of our reading today?
God tells Habakkuk to write down His words, etch them in stone.
What if you and I wrote some of God’s promises down today?
I know we aren’t Habakkuk. I know God’s intent behind Hab. 2:2 was much bigger than us writing down some verses on sticky notes.
But I think the heart behind God’s command to write down His words was so that the world would know them, not forget them, live by them.
We lose faith when we lose sight of God’s word.
So let’s write some promises down today.
And may His words take root in your heart, blooming just like those precious little rose bushes, giving you hope for the future, hope that God is good and is in control.
PRAY/ACTIVITY:
Ask God to give you the faith you need. Tell him you are helpless without Him.
Spend some time asking Him for faith, talking to Him about it.
Then, take a little time to write out some of your favorite promises of God.
Spend some time asking Him for faith, talking to Him about it.
Then, take a little time to write out some of your favorite promises of God.
Here are some promises that you may want to write.
Philippians 4:19
2 Corinthians 12:9
Romans 8:28
Matthew 11:28-29
John 14:27
LOOKING AHEAD:
Just finish chapter 2 if you haven’t already! We will look at the actual promise God gives Habakkuk to write down on Friday.
