When You Cannot see His Hand
Adapted from Treasures of Faith
Sharon and Chuck Betters
Today’s Treasure
These were all commended for their faith yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
Hebrews 11:39-40
The writer of Hebrews quotes the prophet of Habakkuk to remind us that faith is believing God even when we can neither see nor understand Him (Hebrews 10:38). Habakkuk records his confusion and dismay over God's apparent abandonment of Israel and exultation of Israel's enemy, Babylon. He cries out:
How long, oh Lord, must they call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, ‘violence’! But you do not save? Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. Therefore, the law is paralyzed and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.
Habakkuk 1:2-4
God’s shocking reply confused Habakkuh even further. God intended to use Israel's bitter enemies, the Babylonians, to bring judgment on His people. This caused the prophet to continue questioning God's wisdom and love (Habbakuk 1:12 – 2:1) but God's answer came swiftly. Babylon would eventually also be punished; in the meantime, the Israelites were to live by faith as they waited for God's deliverance (Habbakuk 2). Although fearful of what awaited the Israelites, Habakkuk chose emotional, intimate worship as his response, declaring:
I heard and my heart pounded. My lips quivered at the sound: decay crept into my bones and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us… I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
Habakkuk 3:16-18
Habakkuk exercised true faith by trusting God even when he could not see what God was doing. He trusted God to keep His promises regarding Babylon, Israel, and - something the prophet himself would never personally see - the full redemption of God’s people. Habakkuk’s beliefs about God's character dramatically changed his reaction to circumstances and gave him eyes to see beyond the physical realm. His decision to wait by faith deepened his intimacy with God:
The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer;
he enables me to go on the heights.
Habbakuk 3:19
Although the Hebrew Christians were not suffering because of their personal sin, the author of Hebrews borrows a direct quote from Habakkuk, where God says:
So do not throw away your confidence; It will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you'll receive what he is promised. For in just a very little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay. But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him. But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.
Hebrews 10: 35 - 39
In response, these young Hebrew believers might have said, “We know what you're saying is true but you just don't understand how hard this is. We need to hear from someone who's walked in similar circumstances.”
We understand this protest, and we have been so grateful for those bereaved parents who are farther ahead of us in this journey. Many have called back to us with the proclamation, “We know your struggle, but God is faithful. You can trust Him!” Similarly, it’s as though the writer of Hebrews knows their struggles so he gives them examples of ordinary people (Hebrews 11) who responded to extreme stress with extraordinary faith - people whose saving faith resulted in the eventual development of experiential faith. Faced with extraordinary testing, these people drew on a personal relationship with God that taught them He would do everything He promised. Their stories are valuable because the Old Testament hides nothing about their journeys. Hebrews 11 is a roadmap of our faith – we see God’s redemption story on every page. In the stories of these people, we see God progressively reveal His promises to:
Redeem His people
Build a covenant family
Give them His presence
Make them a blessing to others
Preserve their inheritance, and
Share with Him His glory for all eternity.
What is more, through their stories we see God accomplish this through ordinary people who sometimes faltered in their pilgrimages. God gave Old Testament believers eyes to see the reality of His promises:
A better and lasting possession (Hebrews 10:34),
A city with foundations (Hebrews 11: 10),
A country of their own (Hebrews 11: 14),
A better country - a heavenly one (Hebrews 11:16),
A better resurrection (Hebrews 11: 35), and
Numerous spiritual descendants even when there was no physical heir. Hebrews 11: 12, 18, 21.
God's promises gave them the courage to end their love affair with this world because they knew the best was yet to come. Knowing this freed them to respond by faith to difficult circumstances. Because they knew God intimately:
All these people were still living by faith when they died, they did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country - a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.
Hebrews 11: 13 – 16
And -
These were all commended for their faith yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
Hebrews 11:39-40
LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT
But the stories of these men and women are not about how strong they were. Rather, their lives and experiences showcase the long suffering, unconditional love of God. Biblical faith focuses on God's character and filters out all of our circumstances through the prism of His sovereignty. We demonstrate biblical faith when we intentionally choose to surrender to God's sovereign control and His plan for our lives - however different from our own plans His plan may be - in order to deepen our intimacy with Him. When we live by faith we trust that even the most difficult circumstances, those so often completely beyond our control, are still rich with possibilities and opportunities. We can have hope instead of despair because our lives and circumstances are always under God's control. (Excerpt from Treasures of Faith, pages 21-24)
May Habbakuk’s prayer be ours:
Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes 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 come yet I will rejoice in this I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.
Habakkuk 3: 17-19
If you would like to read the entire book, go to P&R is offering Treasures of Faith for a special price of $3.00 per book! And the Leader’s Guide for $2.00. Supplies are limited.
Are there other women in your life who could benefit from a daily dose of encouragement? Forward this email so they can click on this link to Subscribe to Daily Treasure to be better equipped to walk by faith on the pathway God has marked out for them.
Sharon W. Betters is the author of Treasures of Encouragement, Treasures in Darkness, co-author of Treasures of Faith. and co-author with Susan Hunt of Aging with Grace, Flourishing in an Anti-Aging Culture. She is Director of Resource Development and co-founder of MARKINC.org, a non-profit organization that offers help and hope to hurting people. Sharon enjoys quality time with her husband, children, fourteen grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
Contact Sharon with comments or questions at dailytreasure@markinc.org.