This passage reminds us that God judges evil, God’s glory fills the earth, and God’s sovereignty calls us to silence. Though evil may seem to prosper and God may seem silent, His perfect justice will go forth, the glory of evil men will be made empty, and the earth will ultimately be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD. Because God is still on His throne, we can keep living by faith, continue spreading His glory, and rejoice that our labor is not in vain. In the end, God’s sovereignty brings dread and silence to unbelievers, but awe, worship, and wonder to believers, so we can “Be still, and know that I am God.”

God’s people are those who live by faith in evil times, awaiting the fulfillment of His Word. God’s Word is sure, even when His timeline seems slow, so we wait because He has spoken and His Word grounds us in hope. While the wicked may appear to prosper, we trust that their prosperity is only a facade and that God will ultimately judge evil. We keep going not because we are strong or have all the answers, but because by faith we have cast ourselves upon the Rock—we pray, trust His Word, gather with His people, and live each day dependent upon Him.

Habakkuk reminds us that we do not always know what God is doing, but we do know He is always doing something, because God’s plans are beyond our understanding. Though men intend evil, God is Sovereign over it and directs it for our good and His glory, and not one act of evil will ultimately go unpunished. When life doesn’t make sense, we must trust God’s Sovereignty and His Goodness, approaching Him with the humility to say, “I’ll shut my mouth and listen,” knowing that He is working even when we cannot see how. Habakkuk stood at the watchpost awaiting an answer, but we stand at the cross, where God has already spoken Salvation—and because of the cross, we know the end of the story.

Habakkuk shows us that even the righteous sometimes cry out to and question the Lord when evil surrounds them and God seems silent. We should be honest about evil and how it affects us, but our questions should lead us to cry out to the Lord rather than allowing our experience to dictate absolute truth. The righteous are comfortable with lament because lament shows that we are honest about evil while knowing who to run to for justice, and we can mourn without mourning “like the world” because we have hope. Even when we are weak, confused, and without answers, we keep crying out to Jesus because He is strong, His grace is sufficient, and He is the Savior who brings redemption.

Godly giving is cheerful giving to the God who supplies our every need. The amount of our giving matters less than whether we are giving with a mind toward generosity and a heart that delights to give “unto the Lord” as an act of joyful worship. God’s generosity to us is meant to overflow into our own personal generosity, because everything we have comes from Him and “of your own have we given you.” So we should honor the Lord with what He has entrusted to us, trusting that He will supply what we need so that we may “abound in every good work.”

Believers who persistently sow good into their local church will reap a good harvest in due time. God has designed His Church so that every member shares all good things, sows to the Spirit through their time, talents, and treasure, and does good, especially to those who are of the household of faith. Because God is not mocked, whatever we sow we will also reap, so we must not grow weary of doing good, trusting that He will reward faithful service in His perfect timing. Let us continue sharing the good things God has entrusted to us as we equip one another to reach the lost, strengthen the weak, and encourage the faithful with the Gospel.

Earthly riches are uncertain and can never provide what only God can supply, so we must not set our hope on wealth but on the God who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. As our hope and satisfaction are found in Him, we receive His blessings with thanksgiving, become generous and ready to share, and store up treasures for the life to come. True generosity flows from hope and satisfaction in God, not obligation, because those who have received His grace freely desire to reflect His generosity. God richly provides for us what earthly riches never could, and in Christ we have a living hope and the true riches of eternal life.

In the first message of our True Giving series, we begin by addressing the heart behind our giving, because true generosity starts with true contentment. From 1 Timothy 6:6-10, we see that those who believe God is enough find great gain, while those who are never satisfied are led toward destruction. Since we can't take our possessions with us, all we truly need is Christ, who faithfully provides for our needs and teaches us to be content. Rather than chasing riches that can never satisfy, we're called to treasure Christ above all, knowing that in Him we already have everything we truly need.

The Resurrection changes everything, and the risen King now gives His people their marching orders. Disciples of Jesus are disciple-makers for Jesus. In the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16–20), Jesus declares that all authority in heaven and on earth belongs to Him and commands every disciple to go and make disciples by proclaiming the gospel, baptizing believers, and teaching them to observe all He has commanded. We make disciples because He commanded us, we go in His authority, and we do so with confidence because He has promised, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

The Resurrection of Jesus demands a response. In Matthew 28:11–15, we'll examine the first lie ever told about the empty tomb and discover that unbelief is not ultimately caused by a lack of evidence, but by a lack of faith. While the historical evidence for Christ's resurrection is compelling, Scripture teaches that saving faith comes through hearing the Word of God. Join us as we see why proclaiming the risen Christ is still God's primary means of bringing people to faith, and why the truth that Jesus is alive changes everything.