Audio What do you do with old newspapers? I read an article recently that said that you can stuff them into your wet shoes to soak up the moisture. And of course, they can be used to wrap breakable objects when packing them away, and they can be used to housebreak your pets or to line their cages. But the one thing hardly anyone does with an old newspaper is read it. The current woes of the printed news industry suggest that people hardly read “new” newspapers anymore, much less old ones. Our age has been called “the information age,” and thanks to the internet and smartphones, news is pushed to us in real time as events unfold. By the time the newspaper rolls off the press tomorrow morning, we’ve already heard it. Now, from time to time, I find myself perusing stacks of old books in an antique store and come across an old newspaper that is decades old. That is of more interest than a newspaper that is days old. A very old newspaper is something of a historical curiosity. It answers the question, “What happened on this day in history?”, and it tells of events of a bygone era. But beyond the historical trivia, what use do we have for old news? Not much. So, the question may be on the minds of some here today, as we embark on a protracted study of the book of Habakkuk, “Why should we care, in 21st Century America, about a writing that is some 2,700 years old?” Well, I’m glad you asked. Suppose that we were to find ourselves in a culture that has discarded all standards of morality? Suppose that our day and age was characterized by wicked and corrupt rulers who perverted and distorted justice to suit their own agendas? Suppose that you and I lived in a day in which our concerns for the decay of our own country’s philosophical and moral foundations was surpassed only by the fear and outrage of a world filled with violent terror? I’m not saying that is the case, I’m just inviting you to imagine it, if you can, hard as it may be. I wonder, if that were the case, where could we turn for a word from God that would address such circumstances? You may be surprised to know that you find all of those matters under consideration here in the little book of Habakkuk. It is three chapters in length, just 56 verses, but its message is as relevant – no, it is more relevant than today’s newspaper. Walter Kaiser has pointed out that “there are a number of reasons why Habakkuk, obscure and small as it may be, should be lifted up to the attention of the Church at this time. The reasons are: pastoral, theological, apologetical, and spiritual.” The pastoral reasons, Kaiser suggests, “take us in to … the prayer closet where we ask over and over again, ‘How long, O Lord? How long? Why? O Why?’” Surely all of us have had, or wanted to have, those times of tear-filled prayer before the throne of grace. Habakkuk has them here in this book, and he becomes an example to us in so doing. The theological reasons for continued study of this book are found in the central theme of the book, found in Habakkuk 2:4 – “The just (or, righteous) shall live by faith (or, will live by his faith).” Kaiser writes, “Habakkuk has much to teach us about the meaning of faith and righteousness, and about how, in the face of great difficulties, one can get on with the task of living now, enjoying the deep satisfaction of knowing who God is and that He is able to handle things, come what may!” Then, Kaiser points out that Habakkuk “wrestles with … the apologetical problem of squaring the goodness and justice of God with the presence of what seems like unbridled evil and wickedness among men and nations.” Surely this problem is as relevant in our own day as it has ever been, and the so-called “problem of evil” is the most frequently cited objection to faith in God heard from skeptics and cynics today. Finally, Kaiser points to the spiritual reason for the modern study of Habakkuk, noting that “it places God in the center of history and of personal consciousness.” When we know this