Mercy and Wrath: Two Aspects of Spirituality

Introduction:
Habakkuk was a little known prophet who lived about 700 years before Christ during the same period as the prophet Jeremiah, who was more well-known. He served during a period of deterioration of religious principles and personal relationship with God had reached a new low in their culture. Our modern culture has a lot of similarities to Habakkuk’s day, which is why we should study this nearly forgotten small book.

Habakkuk 3:1-3, 12-13, 16-18
A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, according to Shigionoth. ² LORD, I have heard the report about You; LORD, I stand in awe of Your deeds. Revive Your work in these years; make it known in these years. In Your wrath remember mercy! ³ God comes from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. His splendor covers the heavens, and the earth is full of His praise. ⁴ His brilliance is like light; rays are flashing from His hand. This is where His power is hidden. ¹² You march across the earth with indignation; You trample down the nations in wrath. ¹³ You come out to save Your people, to save Your anointed. You crush the leader of the house of the wicked and strip him from foot to neck. ¹⁶ I heard, and I trembled within; my lips quivered at the sound. Rottenness entered my bones; I trembled where I stood. Now I must quietly wait for the day of distress to come against the people invading us. ¹⁷ Though the fig tree does not bud and there is no fruit on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, ¹⁸ yet I will triumph in Yahweh; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!

Verse 1 - A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, according to Shigionoth.

•             Through the painful situations he observed around him and through the exciting visions God had given him, Habakkuk remained committed to prayer.
•             Far too many of us neglect our prayer time. Sometimes we neglect it because things are so bad that we do not think God can help. Sometimes we neglect it because things are so good that we do not think we need prayer. Prayer must become part of the foundation of our daily lives, in both good times and bad.
•             The Hebrew word shigionoth is a musical term. Though scholars disagree on its exact meaning, it comes from a root word that means to err, to go astray, or to reel. Most scholars focus on the concept of reeling in joy and say it means this prayer should be sung or shouted out joyfully! Other scholars focus on the idea that that if we do not spend enough time in prayer, we can expect to err or go astray. Perhaps both apply and God is reminding us that if we do not pray enough we will constantly go astray but anytime we are willing to return to the Lord, we will be filled with joy once again.

Verse 2 - LORD, I have heard the report about You; LORD, I stand in awe of Your deeds. Revive Your work in these years; make it known in these years. In Your wrath remember mercy!

•             Though Habakkuk had witnessed great pain in the world around Him, he had also heard of amazing things that God had done.
•             When we go through difficult times, we tend to focus on our pain and forget that God is still doing many amazing things around us.
•             Despite all the pain around him, when Habakkuk thought about all that God had done, he stood in awe and amazement. Habakkuk asked God to do the same things again and spirituality revive his messed up society.
•             The Hebrew word for revive is chayah. It literally means to keep alive, to recover, to repair or to restore. Habakkuk was asking God to restore or repair the spirituality that his people once had. It is important to point out that it is impossible to restore or repair something that does not exist. Therefore, this prayer would only work because the people had been in relationship with the Lord in the past. That relationship needed to be renewed.
•             Think about how this relates to our own situation. Before a person, a church, or a culture can be re-vived, they must first be vived! We must first be born again and come alive spirituality. If that has not happened to us yet, God is not obligated to answer our prayers. Once we are born again through faith in Christ, then when we go through a challenging time or wander from our faith, we can return to the Lord and be revived immediately through prayer. If we fail to return, then at some point we must face the discipline of God, since God disciplines those He loves (Hebrews 12:6, Proverbs 3:12). Most of us prefer to think about all the great things God has done FOR us, not all the things God could do TO us if we continue to live in ways that displease Him. Though we do not need to dwell on it every day, sometimes it is good to consider the wrath of God. The wrath of God would be too terrible to even think about if it were not also for the mercy of God. Mercy is not getting the punishment that we rightly deserve. We have all received mercy, and for that we should be ever thankful. But we must not take God’s mercy for granted.

Verses 3-4 - … His splendor covers the heavens, and the earth is full of His praise. His brilliance is like light; rays are flashing from His hand.

•             Having a healthy understanding of the nature of God is important for a balanced spirituality. When we first think of God we should think about his splendor and the beauty of His creation. That should cause us to want to praise Him. We should think about how God is light and how He is shining that light everywhere. Do not miss the subtle hint in this verse about why that light is so powerful, it flashes from His hands. It was the hands of Christ that were pierced for us and they are proof of God’s deep love for us.

Verse 12 - You march across the earth with indignation; You trample down the nations in wrath.

•             However, a healthy view of God is not just all sunshine and love, for God also knows how to dispense judgment when it is deserved. His mercy keeps most of His judgment at bay, for which we should be grateful. But we must not take His mercy for granted. There are times when His wrath falls.
•For those who are Christians, the best way to avoid God’s wrath is to keep a “short list” with God. We should confess our sins daily so that we can go to bed with a clean conscience each day. This will keep us from getting into situations in which God must display His wrath toward us. If we fail to have that daily time of confession, then at the very least we should confess our sins to the Lord before we take communion. Taking communion when we are not in right relationship with God is extremely dangerous.
•             For those who are not yet Christians, the ONLY way to avoid the wrath of God is to become a Christian. Observing all the religious rituals without having first been born again is of no spiritual value. It will only produce emptiness and spiritual disillusionment.

Verse 13 - You come out to save Your people, to save Your anointed. You crush the leader of the house of the wicked and strip him from foot to neck.

•             Though God can display His wrath for any particular sin, we see it most often when God moves to save His people from an oppressor. Many scholars believe this is specifically referring to the Jewish people. Other scholars say it also includes Christian believers. I think it applies to both.
•             Those of us who are parents understand that what happens inside of us when someone messes with our kids! The most mild mannered person who is full of compassion can come out swinging when their kids are in danger. God is the ultimate parent; do not mess with His kids! He will CRUSH those who do!

Verse 16 - I heard, and I trembled within; my lips quivered at the sound. Rottenness entered my bones; I trembled where I stood. Now I must quietly wait for the day of distress to come against the people invading us.

•             Habakkuk understood the wrath of God. Even while he called on God to show compassion to His own people, he trembled at the thought of wrath of God falling on God’s enemies. Habakkuk knew that the wrath of God would fall on those who deserved it, but he also realized it would come in God’s way and in God’s time.
•             One of the hardest parts of the Christian faith is waiting for God to do what needs to be done. Many of us want to help God out when it comes to judgment and punishment. But that is not our job. We must wait for the day of distress to come.

Verses 17-18 - Though the fig tree does not bud and there is no fruit on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will triumph in Yahweh; I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!

•             Habakkuk understood that it would get worse before it got better, but he was determined to see it through all the way to the end because in the end he knew God would win! God had to let evil run its course before His wrath fell. Why? Because God is compassionate even to evil people and gives them a chance to change. But when the Hitler’s of the world refuse to change, then God’s wrath falls and they are destroyed. We do not want to be in that category.
•             When God’s judgment falls, sometimes even good people feel the impact. Maybe God sends a storm to destroy the crops. Good people’s crops are destroyed along with the evil man’s crops. Those who believe in the Lord know to remain faithful during such times because in the end, the Lord triumphs over all the evil in this world. For that, we should rejoice! But we should be sure we are on the winning team so we do not experience the wrath of God.

Conclusion:

•             Prayer should be an important part of our lives in both good times and bad.
•             If we want our lives to be blessed, we must make sure we have been born again so that God can revive (renew) us again and again.
•             A healthy view of God begins with understanding He is love and light, but also includes a realization that He will punish those who deserve it (and that includes us!).
•             Those who mess with God’s kids, do so at their own peril.
•In the end, God ALWAYS wins!