The Big Picture

When we are hurting, it is very easy to presume that what hap-

pens to us is the only thing that matters. But there is a slightly

larger picture than just “me” (see Rev. 12:7, Rom. 8:22).

Read Habakkuk 1:1–4. What did Habakkuk face?

You might expect that God would say something like, “That’s really

terrible, Habakkuk; let Me come and help you immediately.” But God’s

answer is the opposite. He tells Habakkuk that it is going to get worse.

Read this in Habakkuk 1:5–11.

Israel had been taken into captivity by the Assyrians, but God prom-

ises that worse is coming: The Babylonians will now carry away the

people of Judah. Habakkuk cries out again in verses 12–17 and then

waits to see what God is going to say.

How does God’s introduction to the promised destruction of Babylon

in Habakkuk 2:2, 3 bring hope?

Habakkuk 2 is God’s promise of the destruction of the Babylonians.

Hebrews 10:37 quotes Habakkuk 2:3, hinting of a Messianic applica-

tion to this promise in the future. With the same certainty that the

destruction of Babylon was promised, so we also have the certainty of

the destruction of “ ‘Babylon the Great’ ” (Rev. 18:2, NIV).

Habakkuk was trapped between the great evil surrounding him and

God’s promise of worse to come. Yet, this is precisely where we find

ourselves in salvation history. Great evil is around us, but the Bible

predicts that much worse is to come. The key to Habakkuk’s survival is

that he is brought to see the whole picture. Therefore, in chapter 3 he

is able to pray an incredible prayer of praise because of what God will

do in the future.

Read Habakkuk 3:16–19. What does Habakkuk identify as his

reasons for hope? What is the hope of God’s people as we wait

for the last prophetic scenes to unfold? How can you make this

hope your own?

Read for This Week’s Study: Hab. 1:1–4, Job 38–41, Isa.

41:8–14, Jer. 29:1–10, Heb. 12:1–13.

Memory Text: “Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of

God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was

given to us” (Romans 5:5, NKJV).

When in church surrounded by smiling people, how easy it

is to talk and sing about hope. But when we find ourselves

within the crucible, hope does not always seem so easy. As

circumstances press in around us, we begin to question everything,

particularly the wisdom of God.

In one of his books, C. S. Lewis writes about a make-believe lion.

Wanting to meet this lion, someone asks if the lion is safe. The person

is told that he’s not safe, “but he’s good.”

Even though we don’t always understand God and He seems to do

unpredictable things, that doesn’t mean that God is against us. It sim-

ply means that we don’t have the full picture yet. But we struggle with

the idea that for us to have peace, confidence, and hope, God must be

understandable and predictable. He needs to be, in our thinking, “safe.”

As such, we set ourselves up for disappointment.

The Week at a Glance: How does our understanding of the

character of God help us maintain hope in the crucible?

Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “The Night of Wrestling,”

pp. 195–203, in Patriarchs and Prophets; “Consecration,” pp. 43–48, in

Steps to Christ.

“This will, that forms so important a factor in the character of man,

was at the Fall given into the control of Satan; and he has ever since

been working in man to will and to do of his own pleasure, but to the

utter ruin and misery of man.”—Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the

Church, vol. 5, p. 515.

“In order to receive God’s help, man must realize his weakness and

deficiency; he must apply his own mind to the great change to be

wrought in himself; he must be aroused to earnest and persevering

prayer and effort. Wrong habits and customs must be shaken off; and it

is only by determined endeavor to correct these errors and to conform

to right principles that the victory can be gained. Many never attain to

the position that they might occupy, because they wait for God to do

for them that which He has given them power to do for themselves. All

who are fitted for usefulness must be trained by the severest mental

and moral discipline, and God will assist them by uniting divine power

with human effort.”—Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 248.

Discussion Questions:

Ê To what extent do you think that we actually recognize that our

wills were “at the Fall given into the control of Satan”? How, by

focusing on the character of Jesus, can we better understand just

how fallen we are and how great God’s grace is toward us?

Ë Read the story of Jesus in Gethsemane (Matt. 26:36–42). What

were Jesus’ own feelings and desires, as opposed to God’s will?

What can we learn from this example?

Ì As a class, talk about the distinct things in your own culture

that can work to break down our defenses and leave us more vul-

nerable to Satan’s attacks. What can we do to help other church

members be aware of these dangers, as well as help those who feel

the need for help?

Í Do you know someone in your church who hasn’t been there

for quite a long time, who might be getting ready to give up or

already has given up? What can you do as a group to encourage

this person, to help him or her not turn away from Jesus? What

practical things can you do to help?

The Need to Persevere

Read the story of Jacob wrestling with God (Genesis 32). What does

this story say to us about perseverance, even amid great discourage-

ment? (Keep the whole context of Jacob’s situation in mind before

you answer.)

We can know what is right and exercise our wills to do the right

thing; but when we are under pressure, it can be very difficult to keep

holding on to God and His promises. That’s because we are weak and

fearful. Therefore, one of the important strengths of the Christian is

perseverance, the ability to keep going despite wanting to give up.

One of the greatest examples of perseverance in the Bible is Jacob.

Many years before, Jacob had tricked his brother, Esau, and his father

into giving him the birthright (Genesis 27), and ever since, he had been

running in fear of Esau’s desire to kill him. Even though he had been

given wonderful promises of God’s guidance and blessing in his dream

of a ladder reaching to heaven (Genesis 28), he was still scared. Jacob

was desperate for God’s assurance that he was accepted and that the

promises made to him many years before were still true. As he fought

someone who was actually Jesus, Jacob had his hip dislocated. From

that point on, it could not have been possible to fight, as the pain would

have been too excruciating. There must have been a subtle shift from

fighting to hanging on. Jacob is hanging on to Jesus through unbearable

pain until he receives an assurance of His blessing. So, Jesus says to

him, “ ‘Let me go, for it is daybreak’ ” (Gen. 32:26, NIV).

Jacob’s blessing came because he held on through the pain. So it

is with us. God also may dislocate our “hip” and then call us to hang

on to Him through our pain. Indeed, God allowed the painful scars to

continue—Jacob was still limping when he met his brother. To outside

appearances it was a weakness, but for Jacob it was an indication of

his strength.

What are some practical choices you can make (associations,

lifestyle, reading material, health habits, spiritual life) that will

help you better persevere with the Lord amid discouragement

and temptation?

Radical Commitment

“If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it

away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your

whole body to be thrown into hell” (Matt. 5:29, NIV).

Dwell on the words of Jesus in the above text. Would you call them

radical? If so, why?

Radical action is necessary not because God has made the Christian

life difficult, but because we and our culture have drifted so far away

from God’s plans for us. People often wake up and wonder to them-

selves, How could I have gone so far away from God? The answer is

always the same: just one step at a time.

Read Matthew 5:29, 30. Jesus is speaking in the context of sexual

sin. However, the underlying principles apply to dealing with other

sin, as well. Indeed, the principles can apply to our growth in Christ

in general.

What crucial point is Jesus making with those words? Are we really

called literally to maim ourselves?

Jesus isn’t calling us to harm our bodies physically—not at all!

Rather, He is calling us to control our minds and therefore our bodies,

no matter the cost. Notice that the text does not say that we should

pray and that God will instantly remove the sinful tendencies from our

lives. Sometimes God may graciously do this for us, but often He calls

us to make a radical commitment to give up something, or start doing

something, that we may not feel like doing at all. What a crucible that

can be! The more often we make the right choices, the stronger we will

become, and the weaker the power of temptation in our lives.

God sometimes uses crucibles to catch our attention when there are

so many noisy distractions around us. It is in the crucible that we real-

ize how far we have drifted from God. The crucible may be God’s call

for us to make a radical decision to return to our Father’s plan for us.

The Disciplined Will

One of the greatest enemies of our wills is our own feelings. We are

increasingly living in a culture bombarded with pictures and music that

can appeal directly to our senses, triggering our emotions—anger, fear,

or lust—without our realizing it. How often do we think such things as

What do I feel like eating for supper? What do I feel like doing today?

Do I feel good about buying this? Feelings have thus become intimately

involved in our decision-making. Feelings are not necessarily bad, but

how I feel about something may have little to do with what is right or

best. Indeed, our feelings can lie to us (“The heart is deceitful above all

things” [Jer. 17:9]) and can create a false picture of reality, causing us

to make bad choices, setting us up for a crucible of our own making.

What examples can you find from the Bible where people made choices

based on feelings rather than on God’s Word? What were the conse-

quences? (See, for example, Gen. 3:6; 2 Sam. 11:2–4; and Gal. 2:11, 12.)

Read 1 Peter 1:13. What is Peter concerned about, and what does he

want his readers actually to do?

Peter understood that the mind is the rudder for the body that we

control. Take away the control of the mind, and we will be controlled

by whatever feelings blow our way.

Imagine walking along a narrow path to the Shepherd’s home. Along

the way there are many paths leading in different directions. Some of

these paths go to places that we would not want to visit. Others look

tempting; they appeal to our feelings, our emotions, our desires. If,

though, we take any one of them, we get off the right path and go in a

way that might be exceedingly difficult to get off.

What important decisions are you facing? Ask yourself honestly,

How can I know if I am basing my choices on feeling, emotion, or

desire, as opposed to the Word of God?

The Divine-Human Combination

What is your greatest accomplishment ever? Chances are, whatever

you achieved did not happen simply by rolling out of bed in the morn-

ing. If we want to achieve something worthwhile in this life, it takes

time and effort. Our discipleship to Christ is no different.

Read Colossians 1:28, 29. Though Paul talks about God working in

him, in what ways does he show the human effort also involved?

(See also Deut. 4:4, Luke 13:24, 1 Cor. 9:25, and Heb. 12:4.)

In Colossians 1:29, there is a very interesting insight into the way

Paul sees his relationship with God in this work. He says that he is

struggling—but with the power of God.

The Greek word translated “labor” means to “grow weary,” to “work

to the point of exhaustion.” This word was used particularly of athletes

as they trained. The word for “struggle,” which comes next, can mean

in some languages “to agonize.” So, we have the word picture of an

athlete straining with everything to win. But then Paul adds a twist to

the idea, because Paul is straining, not with everything he has, but with

everything that God gives him. So, we are left with a simple conclusion

about Paul’s ministry—it was a ministry done with great personal effort

and discipline but done with God’s power. This relationship works in

exactly the same way as we pursue the development of Christ’s char-

acter in us.

This is important to remember, because we live in a world in which

we want more and more with less and less effort. That idea has crept

into Christianity, too. Some Christian evangelists promise that if you

just believe, the Holy Spirit will fall upon you with amazing super-

natural power and perform great miracles. But this can be a dangerous

half-truth, because it can lead people to the conclusion that we just

need to wait for God’s power to come while sitting comfortably in

our seats!

What is your own experience with the kind of striving Paul talked

about? What things has God laid upon your heart that you are

struggling with? How can you learn to surrender to God’s will?

The Spirit of Truth

Have you ever prayed “Please, God, make me good!” but little seems

to change? How is it possible that we can pray for God’s great trans-

forming power to work within us, but our lives seem to remain the

same? We know that God has unlimited supernatural resources that He

so eagerly and freely offers us. We really want to take advantage of it

all, and yet, our lives don’t seem to change in a way that matches what

God is offering.

Why? One reason is disturbingly simple: while the Spirit has unlim-

ited power to transform us, it is possible by our own choices to restrict

what God can do.

Read John 16:5–15. In this passage, Jesus calls the Holy Spirit the

“Spirit of truth” (John 16:13, NIV). What does this imply that the

Holy Spirit does for us?

While the Holy Spirit can bring us the truth about our sinfulness,

He cannot make us repent. He also can show us the greatest truth

about God, but He cannot force us to believe or obey it. If God did

compel us in even the slightest way, we would lose our free will, and

Satan would accuse God of manipulating our minds and hearts and

would thus be able to accuse God of cheating in the great controversy.

When the great controversy broke out in heaven, our Father did not

compel Satan or any of the angels to believe that He was good and

just or compel them to repent. And in the Garden of Eden, when so

much was at stake again, God made the truth about the tree in the

middle of the garden very clear but did not prevent Eve and Adam

from exercising their free will to disobey. God will not act any dif-

ferently with us today. So, the Spirit presents the truth about God and

sin and then says, “In view of what I have shown you, what will you

do now?”

It is the same when we are in the crucible. Sometimes the crucible is

there precisely because we have not obeyed or repented of our sins. For

our Father to work in such cases, we must consciously choose to open

the doors of repentance and obedience in order for God’s power to enter

in and transform us.

What convictions has the “Spirit of truth” brought to you

recently? How well are you listening to His voice? And, most

important, what choices are you making with your free will?

Read for This Week’s Study: John 16:5–15; Col. 1:28,

29; 1 Pet. 1:13; Matt. 5:29; Genesis 32.

Memory Text: “To this end I strenuously contend, struggling with

all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me” (Colossians 1:29, NIV).

A man and woman sat together on a talk show. Both had expe-

rienced the murder of a child. The woman’s son had been

murdered 20 years before, and her anger and bitterness were

as great as ever. The man was totally different. His daughter had been

murdered by terrorists a few years earlier. He spoke about forgive-

ness toward the killers and about how God had transformed his hurt.

However terrible the pain, this man had become an illustration of how

God can bring healing to the darkest moments of our lives.

How can two people respond so differently? How does spiritual

change occur in the life of a Christian, enabling that individual to

mature through life’s crucibles rather than being completely over-

whelmed by them?

The Week at a Glance: What is the role of our wills, and

willpower, in the battle with self and sin? How can we avoid the

mistake of letting our feelings rule the decisions we make? Why

must we persevere and not give up when in the crucible?

Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “The Test of Faith,”

pp. 145–155, in Patriarchs and Prophets; “Praise Ye the Lord,” pp.

315–319, in Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5.

“God has always tried His people in the furnace of affliction. It is in

the heat of the furnace that the dross is separated from the true gold of

the Christian character. Jesus watches the test; He knows what is needed

to purify the precious metal, that it may reflect the radiance of His love.

It is by close, testing trials that God disciplines His servants. He sees

that some have powers which may be used in the advancement of His

work, and He puts these persons upon trial; in His providence He brings

them into positions that test their character. . . . He shows them their own

weakness, and teaches them to lean upon Him. . . . Thus His object is

attained. They are educated, trained, and disciplined, prepared to fulfill

the grand purpose for which their powers were given them.”—Ellen

G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 129, 130.

“If in the providence of God we are called upon to endure trials, let

us accept the cross and drink the bitter cup, remembering that it is a

Father’s hand that holds it to our lips. Let us trust Him in the darkness

as well as in the day. Can we not believe that He will give us every-

thing that is for our good? . . . Even in the night of affliction how can

we refuse to lift heart and voice in grateful praise, when we remember

the love to us expressed by the cross of Calvary?”—Ellen G. White,

Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 316.

Discussion Questions:

Ê In class, have someone recount his or her own test of faith that,

if not quite as intense as Abraham’s, was still hard enough. What

can you learn from that person’s experience, from his or her suc-

cesses or failures?

Ë Review the last 24 hours of Christ’s life before His crucifixion.

What extremes did He face? How did He endure? What principles

can we take from His example and apply for ourselves when we

are in the midst of our own crucibles?

Ì Discuss the idea, touched on this week, about how through our

own suffering we can minister to others who are suffering. No

matter how true it might be, what are some of the problems we

might encounter with this idea?

Í Ellen G. White wrote above: “Let us trust Him in the darkness

as well as in the day.” That’s easier said than done. How can we

help each other develop the kind of faith that will enable us to do

just that? Why is it important to trust God in the bad times?