It’s incredible how the last chapters of John go so well with Habakkuk. John ends his writing with the resurrection and the appearance of Jesus to his disciples. It’s an unexpected and amazing ending to the story that could have ended much worse. But the disappointment, confusion, and disbelief from the crucifixion still lingers. Although Jesus is back from the dead and appears to His disciples, they still find it hard to believe. Thomas needed to touch Jesus. The disciples still found it hard to believe it was really Jesus when He had breakfast with them on the beach even though they recognized Him.
Habakkuk is written during an interesting time. The people of Judah were in captivity and suffering at the hands of their enemies. The prophet Habakkuk cried out to God at the injustice and wanted answers to difficult questions. It was hard to see God’s faithfulness and goodness when everything was going so wrong. If only Habakkuk and the people of Judah could have seen the end of the story! But they didn’t need to see the end. Habakkuk decided to look back into the past in order to remember who God was. And even more, Habakkuk went straight to the One who had the answers.
Here we are, 2000 years after the life of Jesus. We know Jesus rose from the dead. We also know how the story of God’s people will end with the defeat of Satan and the triumphing of Jesus as King on earth as it is in Heaven. And yet, we still are plagued with doubts, worries, concerns, and disbelief. I know I am. We have the past to look back to and now we also have the future to look forward to in order to know God is and will be faithful. Yet, we still struggle. And for good reasons.
The struggle of doubts and disbelief are the invitation to engage with God personally. Yes, we have the Bible to inform us of information that is helpful, but it’s the actual personal relationship with God where we find true reassurance, confidence, and the answers we’re looking for. God may not always give us the answers we’re looking for, but He will always answer us. The disciples needed the personal interaction with Jesus to reassure them that things were going to turn out. Habakkuk needed the personal interaction with God through lament and crying out in order to be reminded that things were going to turn out. And we as 21st century Christians also need personal interaction with God to be reminded that, when life doesn’t make sense, when life isn’t the going the way we think it should, when life is confusing and unjust, we have a God who we can go to, who will remind us that the story, our story, isn’t finished yet. Although life may cause us to doubt and question our faith, God is always there to remind us that His presence is all we need.
