Has God given you a
vision? Have you held on to that vision as you have gone through life? God told
Habakkuk to write on tablets so that everyone who walked among the Jews could
see. He reminded them the “vision is yet for an appointed hour” (Habakkuk 2:3). Do we walk through our lives trying just to get
by or do we walk knowing what the outcome will be? These are good questions to
ask ourselves. If we ask the first, then we struggle and often lose hope. We strive for greatness and amass a vault of
things in our lives as if that is the real purpose in life. God told Habakkuk
to remind the people and keep on reminding them that He has a plan for each of
their lives. He told them, “though it tarries, wait earnestly for it, because
it will surely come: it will not be late on its appointed day” (vs.3, NASB).
What does this mean for
us? Well consider it in a couple of ways. First, you can consider it as a
positive message of hope that God has a plan
for your life. It is true, He does. He has a plan to help us and not to harm
us, to give us a hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11). To whom is He speaking to here? He is speaking to
the children of God, the God-followers.
Another consideration is
that whatever may be happening in our life that is difficult, our hope is secure;
God is in control. He said He would return and do to the people who are harming
His children greater harm. Look at verses 5-12 in Habakkuk 3. God told the King of Babylon and each person who
oppresses His children they need to beware. He will give back to them more than
has been taken from His children. Habakkuk said, “The time is coming when the
earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the water
covers the sea.” (Habakkuk 2:14, AMP). The king and oppressor will be filled
with shame and contempt; the Lord’s wrath will come upon them. The violence
done to His children will cover and overwhelm the oppressors. This warning from
God is another positive facet to consider from Hosea. God will avenge His
children – hope is given for a better future.
Finally, another feature
of this from verse 3 is that only those He calls as His own will acquire this
hope. There will be people who read the tablets or listen to this word from God
who will not experience this hope because they did not experience the Lord
God’s work in their lives. These people are like the people of Jericho who had been
informed of the people of Yahweh, but who chose not to become one of those
people, unlike Rahab. People will know about Jesus Christ before He
returns, but not everyone will accept Him as their Lord and Savior. These who reject Jesus gain no hope of God
avenging them against their oppressors. There is no hope for a better future. They
are captives in their time on earth and in eternity.
These last people are to whom God is calling
us to go tell about Jesus, His love, and Lordship.
These are the ones to whom God sends us to not only tell, but show His love. Habakkuk
is not just a story of a vision to remind us and give us hope for when we face
difficult times. It should remind us to tell others of this hope so they, too,
may become children of God. They may possess
eternal life because of this and the strength to endure
trials. God is in control and will avenge them against
their oppressors.
These are just two aspects of God’s nature -
judge and avenger. He does not want to be avenger so He has provided a way to
wash away our sins. Jesus is that way. Jesus’ death and resurrection
removes our sins from us so we can be in the presence of God. That is from
where our hope comes, Yahweh. He can be our Provider, Sustainer, Savior, and Protector, if we will accept Him. It is our
choice. Do you want to have hope of eternal life and a better life? Then,
accept God’s gift, Jesus the Savior, and He will be the author of your
hope. For those who already believe, do not give up hope; God is true to His promises.
Remember He told Habakkuk, "though it tarries, wait for it; for it certainly
will come, it will not delay.” (Habakkuk 2:3, NASB). God will reign supreme at
the second coming of Christ. The victory is already His.
