Habakkuk's Journeyಮಾದರಿ
"Trusting God"
Devotion:
As Christians we often dwell on the love of God and look at His mercy. We often forget that in His love there is also wrath, but the question is why do we forget this? The sacrifice He made for us was such a great gift of love that it easily overpowers the image of His wrath. One simple truth stands out; God is a just God and He will not pour out His wrath on the undeserving world and God is not consumed with spite. His love for mankind is so great that it often leads Him to going against what He even wants.
I once heard an apologist get asked, “If God is so loving, why does He send people to hell?” His answer to this had a transforming affect on the way I thought about it. To paraphrase the quote, “The act of being in hell is to be separated from God and in that God is actually being loving by respecting freedom of choice. If a person chooses to stay away from Him in life, He will not force them to be with Him in death.” The implications of this are astounding since 2 Peter 3:9 tells us:
The Lord does not delay His promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.
Personal Reflection Questions:
Take some time to think through these questions before you move on. Answer them as honestly and detailed as possible and be prepared for the author's thoughts tomorrow.
1. What is the overarching theme of this chapter?
2. What is the significance of “selah” and how should we respond to it?
3. Thinking back to the overarching theme: What is Habakkuk trying to communicate to the reader?
4. How do we take this into our present world and apply it to our daily lives?