The sermon focuses on Habakkuk 1 and addresses the timeless question: If God is good, why does He allow evil? This tension—known historically as the “problem of evil”—has challenged believers and skeptics alike. The preacher uses Habakkuk’s dialogue with God to illustrate how a believer should approach this struggle, how God responds, and why He allows such events.

Context and Habakkuk’s Struggle

Habakkuk ministered shortly after King Josiah’s reforms in Judah. Although Josiah had restored the worship of God, his successors quickly returned to corruption and injustice. Habakkuk sees rampant wickedness—violence, perverted justice, and moral decay—among God’s people. In Habakkuk 1:2–4, the prophet cries out in frustration, questioning why God tolerates evil and injustice within the very nation meant to be a light to others.

God’s answer shocks him (v. 5–11): He will send the Babylonians (Chaldeans), a nation even more wicked than Judah, to execute judgment. This deepens Habakkuk’s confusion—how could a holy God use an even more corrupt people as an instrument of justice? In v. 12–17, Habakkuk wrestles with God’s plan, coming dangerously close to accusing God of unrighteousness, yet never abandoning his faith.

Three Guiding Questions

The sermon unpacks the text by asking:

1. What did Habakkuk do?
2. What did God do?
3. Why did God do it?

1. What Did Habakkuk Do? – Faithfully Wrestle

Habakkuk exemplifies faithful wrestling—he questions God honestly without abandoning Him.

• Avoiding two extremes:
  • Secular rejection – “I don’t understand God, so I won’t believe in Him.”
  • Legalistic fear – “We can’t question God.”
• Habakkuk doesn’t understand God’s ways but recognizes that walking away would leave him more lost. He refuses to pretend everything makes sense, but he also refuses to let go of the One who holds eternal life.

2. What Did God Do? – Understand His Creation

God’s response reveals His deep understanding of human limitations and emotions.

• God accommodates human weakness: Scripture contains raw prayers of anguish (e.g., Psalms, Job, Elijah), showing that God allows His people to bring their full emotional reality before Him.
• Limited human understanding: God warns Habakkuk that His plan is so vast he won’t comprehend it even if explained.
• The sermon likens this to a parent explaining something complex to a child—the gap in knowledge is too great. Ultimately, the child must trust the parent’s love and wisdom, just as believers must trust God’s.
• God is not our God because we are faithful, holy, or righteous; He is our God because He is faithful, holy, and gracious.

3. Why Did God Do It? – To Bring Forth the Gospel

Though Habakkuk could not see it, God’s plan was not merely about Babylon’s conquest—it was part of a centuries-long chain of events leading to the spread of the gospel.

• Historical sequence: Babylon conquers Judah → Persia conquers Babylon → Greece conquers Persia → Rome conquers Greece.
• Under Rome, Jewish synagogues were spread throughout the empire, paving the way for rapid gospel expansion after Christ’s resurrection.
• The early church also transformed societal norms—ending infanticide, promoting charity, orphan care, and social justice.
• Paul later quotes Habakkuk 1:5 in Acts 13:41, applying God’s “work you will not believe” to the coming of the gospel itself.

Thus, what seemed like judgment and chaos to Habakkuk was, in God’s eternal view, the unfolding of redemptive history that would culminate in Christ and His salvation for the world.

Theological Application – Why Evil Exists

The preacher addresses the philosophical tension: If God is all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-good, why does evil exist?

• Rejected answers: God is not ignorant of evil, not powerless to stop it, and not indifferent to human suffering.
• Purpose of allowing evil: Without evil, virtues such as forgiveness, grace, compassion, and self-control could not exist in their fullness. Evil provides the backdrop against which God’s justice, mercy, and redemptive power shine most clearly.
• The Cross as the ultimate example: The crucifixion appeared as the ultimate injustice but became the greatest good—the redemption of mankind.

Practical Response for Believers

From Habakkuk’s example and God’s response, the preacher calls believers to:

1. Faithfully wrestle – Bring questions to God honestly, without turning away.
2. Trust God’s wisdom – Acknowledge the vast gap between our understanding and His.
3. Reject premature judgment – God works on an eternal timetable; what seems senseless now may prove essential in His plan.
4. Hold to God’s promises – Even in seasons of apparent silence, God has not abandoned His people.

Closing Challenge

Believers are urged to trust the God who:

• Commands the seas, raises the dead, and heals with a touch.
• Orchestrates history to bring the gospel to all nations.
• Bore the ultimate injustice at the cross so that His people could be made righteous.

When faced with suffering, injustice, or confusion, the faithful response is not to demand that God meet our timetable or expectations, but to rest in the assurance that His plan is perfect, even when we cannot yet see how.

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