When You Cannot See His Hand - Treasures of Faith - Week 1 Day 7

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

Transcript

When You Cannot See His Hand

Chuck and Sharon 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 Habakkuk to remind us that faith is believing in 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 Habakkuk 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 (Habakkuk 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 (Habakkuk 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.” Habakkuk 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 has 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 Hebrew believers, young in their faith, 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
• Share with them 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 to come (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) 
• Numerous spiritual descendants, even when there was no physical heir (Hebrews 11:12, 18)

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're looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had the 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 Habakkuk’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, yet 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 tread on the heights. Habakkuk 3: 17-19

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Adapted from Treasures of Faith by Chuck and Sharon Betters with permission from P&R Publishing

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