After my dad passed away, I got a couple of his Ernest Hemingway books which he liked to read. In one of those books Hemingway wrote: “You know what a classic is, don’t you? A book that everyone mentions and no one reads.” (Ernest Hemingway, By-Line Ernest Hemingway, p. 173)     That’s too often true, isn’t it? Sometimes we have all these great books up on the bookshelf, but we don’t really read them, and gain the insight, or the glory, which is in them for us.

But if all the finest books in the world were put on a great bookshelf, there is one that should be on the top shelf, by itself: the Bible. Because the Bible is not just a “book,” it is the word of God Himself. If you want to hear from God, read the Bible. And if you come into some difficult times in your life, what you need more than anything else, is a word from God. Where can you find that word? Don’t just try to “imagine” something popping into your head; read the Bible, and listen as you read for the Spirit of God to speak to you. He will speak to you in those times, through His word.  

Last week, in our study of the Book of Habakkuk, we saw that we need to turn to the Lord in our difficult days. One of the most important ways we need to turn to Him, is in His word. That is what Habakkuk does in our passage for today. He was struggling with what what God told him was going to happen, but he didn’t give up on God. He was committed to seek Him in His word. Habakkuk is a great example for US to do the same thing in our own difficult days. Let’s look together at Habakkuk’s commitment to hear from God, and get “The Word That Sustains (us) in Difficult Days:

I. The SOURCE of the Word.

Habakkuk said in :1 that he would stand on his guard post and station himself on the rampart to see “what HE will speak to me” — “HE” there, of course, is God. Habakkuk was waiting to get a word from God. Then :2 says, “Then the LORD answered me and said…”. As you may see in your Bible, the word “LORD” there is in all capital letters; that means that in the Hebrew text, it is not the generic words, “Lord” or “God”, but “Yahweh”, the personal name God gave Moses when he asked Him, what he should tell the people of Israel that His name is. So Habakkuk wanted a message from Yahweh, not just from any God; from the One who was, and is, and always will be; from the Living GOD! That’s what he wanted, and that’s what he got: the words of the living God!

So God answered him, and He told Habakkuk in :2 “Record the vision, and inscribe it on tablets …”. Here we find a scriptural insight into the process of the inspiration and writing of the scriptures. God spoke to Habakkuk, and He specifically told him to record it; write it on tablets (the Hebrew word here is the same as is used to describe the tablets of the 10 Commandments) and He told him to make it plain. So God spoke to Habakkuk, and He told him to write down what He told him. This is just what we believe the Bible is: as II Peter 1:21 says: “men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” The words that we find in the Bible did just not originate from the human authors, but from God Himself. 

Habakkuk was in a difficult time in the land of Judah. He had a lot of questions about what was happening — and what was going to happen. So he said, I am going to stand here until I get a word from God, from the one, true, living God. That’s what you need in difficult days; you need a word from God. 

Unfortunately, this is what most people are NOT getting today; instead they get input from everybody BUT God. For example, during the debate on same-sex marriage in the New York legislature, one of the state senators (Mark Grisanti) who was “on the fence” ended up saying that “after I have done the research” and done interviews and talked with people from both sides, “I couldn’t think of a LEGAL argument against same-sex marriage.” 

This is what happens when you don’t have a word from God. Men’s opinions will sway you one way or the other, and vou end up just doing whatever seems right to you. In that New York debate, many of the senators ended up saying “it was just a vote on conscience”. I read that over and over: “it was a vote of conscience.” But your conscience has to be informed by something. What are your decisions based on? How are your judgments formed? For too many people in America today, they just base their decisions on popular opinion or whatever their own personal feelings happen to be. America today is eerily similar to the land of Israel during the days of the Judges; where the scripture says, “There was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 21:25) This is just what is happening in our country today; Every person just does whatever is right in their own eyes. And if our nation does not get a continent-shaking, culture-changing word from God very soon, we are heading right off the cliff morally, to our inevitable destruction as a nation. We do not need everyone’s opinion; we don’t need a “vote of conscience” — what America needs today is a word from GOD! And that word is found right here in this Book: the Bible! 

But listen: it’s not just our country; the same thing is true for you as an individual. If you are in the middle of some difficult days in your life, the thing you need more than anything else right now, is a word from God to guide and sustain you through this time. Your greatest need is not to hear what CNN or Fox News says; your greatest need is not to get the counsel of Oprah or Dr. Phil; your greatest need is not the advice of your Aunt Edna or your best friends — you need a word from God! 

And thank God, that is just what we have in this book: this is a word from the Living God Himself! The word that will sustain you in difficult days is the word of God! 

II. The CERTAINTY of the Word:

Look at what a strong and certain word Habakkuk did receive from the Lord. God said in :3, “It hastens toward the goal and it will not fail, though it tarries, wait for it; for it WILL certainly come ….”. The Hebrew for “it will not fail” literally means, “It will not lie”! God said, My word which I have spoken is sure. It may seem to be delayed to you, but it WILL happen; it WILL come to pass; it WILL be exactly as I have said. His word is certain. 

This is just what God had said about His word to Isaiah just a few years earlier: 

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven 

And do not return there without watering the earth 

And making it bear and sprout, and furnishing 

seed to the sower and bread to the Eater; 

So shall my Word be which goes forth from My mouth; 

it will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, 

and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:10-11) 

Isaiah later wrote: “The grass withers, and the flower fades, but the word of God endures forever”. (Isaiah 40:8) 

Psalm 19 says “The Law of the Lord is perfect …” 

II Timothy 3:16 says “All scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for doctrine, reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness …”.

—Jesus said in Matthew 5:18, “Truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke will pass away from the Law until all is accomplished.”  

God’s word is certain. I love our Baptist Faith & Message doctrinal statement about the Bible: “It has God for its Author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter.” You can be absolutely confident in what you read in the word of God!

So … when God says that judgment is coming upon a nation; you can be certain that it’s coming:

— That’s the context of this passage. God had proclaimed to Habakkuk that the Chaldeans (or Babylonians) would come and ravage Judah — this is what troubled Habakkuk: why would God use these wicked people to judge his land?  But history tells us this is exactly what happened. In 587 Babylon invaded Judah, broke down the walls of the city, and took thousands of their people into captivity into Babylon. The word that God spoke through Habakkuk in this book regarding the judgment of Judah did come to pass, exactly as He said. His word did not return void. 

— Again, this is why we can be confident that God’s judgment will come upon our nation, unless we repent. If our nation’s sins are just like Judah’s in Habakkuk’s day, and His judgment came upon them, then we can be certain that America too will be judged – unless we repent. God’s word is sure! 

And this is true not just about nations, but about our individual lives, too. God’s word says, “The wages of sin is death.” If you continue to live your own way, sinning against God and His word, you will receive God’s righteous punishment for your sins. Hebrews says, “It is appointed unto man once to die and then the judgment.” His word says it, and you can count on it. It is absolutely reliable. That is why it’s imperative for you to turn from your sins today and trust Jesus as your Savior. 

And the good news is, you can also trust what God’s word says about His forgiveness. If you will admit your sins to God, and trust Jesus as your Savior, you WILL be saved. You can count on the promises of His word.

When we lived in Louisiana I visited a husband and wife in their home, and after talking with them for a while, I ended up leading them to pray to ask Jesus to forgive their sins, and come into their lives. After they did that, I showed them Romans 10:13, which says, “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Then I asked them: “Did you just call on the Lord?” They said, “Yes!” I said, “Then what does this word say about you?” They said. “We shall be saved!” I encouraged them: trust what that word says! God won’t lie; if you called on Him with a sincere heart, you will be saved. And YOU can trust that same promise that they did too. 

See, this is our hope for salvation: that God’s word is certain; that what He says He will do. I John 5:13 says, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may KNOW that you have eternal life.” God wants us to know. He wants us to stand on His promise, and believe what He says in His word. God’s faithfulness to His word is what gives us confidence of our salvation. Our assurance is not based on our own lives or our “feelings.” After you ask the Lord to save you, you are going to let God down sometimes; you are going to sin sometimes; there will be times that you will be so discouraged — and so you will not always “feel” like you’re saved. If you’re looking for feelings for the assurance of your salvation, you will often be disappointed. Don’t trust your feelings; trust the word of God! Call on His name; ask Him to save you — and believe He has done it. Whenever Satan tempts you to doubt your salvation, say, “NO! I called on the name of the Lord: I know I am saved.” Trust what God’s word says for your salvation; His word is certain. 

And you can be equally certain of every promise He makes you in His word. In your times of trial, you can count on His promises: 

• When He says He will be your “refuge and strength; a very present help in times of trouble.” He will be! 
• When He says: “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” – He will be! 
• When He says: “no one will snatch (you) out of My hand” – they will not! 
• When He says “All things work together for good to those who love God…” They will work together! 

All of God’s promises are true. The Bible says, “It is impossible for God to lie.” Put your trust in His promises; trust them to the end. Maybe you’re in a difficult spot  today — but trust God; trust what He says in His word to you. God’s word is absolutely certain and reliable. 

III. Your COMMITMENT to the Word

As we’ve talked about, Habakkuk had all of these questions that he wrestled with God about: 

–why would God use the wicked Babylonians to judge Judah? 

—Why did it seem like God approved evil, when He was supposed to be so holy? 

— Why did Habakkuk cry out to God in prayer, and it seemed like He wasn’t listening? 

Habakkuk wrestled with all these things. So what did he do? He is a great example to us here:  In :1 he says “I will stand on my guard post and station myself on the rampart; and I will keep watch to see what He will speak to me.” In all of his searching and questioning in those difficult days, Habakkuk said he was going to stand and wait on a word from God. He knew he must have a word from God. He didn’t want his own thoughts; he didn’t want the ideas the philosophers of his day had about their current events; he didn’t want to know what all his friends thought. He wanted a word from God, and he was committed to stand there until he got it! 

And what Habakkuk did in his difficult day is exactly what you and I need to do in ours. As you experience personal trials, and as you may see difficult times come upon our nation, it is imperative for you to wait on a word from the Lord. You must have a word from God for your situation. 

How will you get that word? How did Habakkuk get his? He had to be committed to wait for it. He said “I’m going to stand on my guard post”; he said “I”m going to keep watch until I see what God is going to say to me. And with that kind of commitment, God DID give him an answer.  

And the same thing is true for us. We need a word from God. But we also need to know His word is not just going to miraculously “float down” from heaven while we’re watching “Wheel of Fortune” or scrolling through the internet. We have to do what Habakkuk did: stand watch; wait before God for His word. That means spending TIME reading and meditating and praying over God’s word, while you are watching for an answer from Him. 

We don’t need to listen for a voice; we have the 66 books of the Bible as the complete word of God. But when you seek the Lord, His Holy Spirit, (who lives inside of you if you are a genuine Christian) will take His  word, and as you read it, in your heart you will sense something, as if He is saying, “This is for YOU! I am speaking this to YOU!!” He will take that word you are reading and make it personal. THAT is what you should be looking for in your difficult days. Don’t “just read” the Bible; read it, study it, and watch for the specific thing that God will show you about your life and your situation. 

Where should you read? I would NOT just start “flipping through” the Bible looking for some “magic scripture” to jump out. It does rarely happen; but what God generally blesses is just daily, consistently reading His word, waiting for what He shows you there. I’ve shared before, that when we aren’t doing a special Bible reading together as a church, I generally just read through different books of the Bible, one at a time, just reading every day “until God speaks” some word that impacts me: it might be a verse if I “camp out” there; or it could be a chapter, or more. The “quantity” of what you read isn’t as important as the “quality”: make sure you are reading until you get something from the Lord. And give Him more than a minute or two. Stay there until you hear from Him. 

This is doubly important when you’re in the middle of some kind of trial, or if you’re seeking an answer from God for something. When you’re in those times, what you need most is not my advice as a pastor; or your friends’ opinions — and you certainly don’t need what the world’s media has to say to you — you need a personal word from God Himself! 

But you need to know that this involves commitment on your part to say, I am going to get into His word, and I am not going to leave it until I get a word from Him that applies to my life. God WILL speak to you in His word (if you are a Christian); He will guide and direct your life. But you must be committed like Habakkuk was, to stand and wait for His word to you. That means spending time in His word daily — and if you need a special word, then give it whatever time it takes. 

Some of you know how after I had graduated from seminary, we’d just had our first child, Paul, but I had not been called to a church for a year after graduation. All I could get was part-time work, and we experienced some difficult days that we used to call our “dark year” (until we had some others!)  As you can imagine, during that “dark year” I sought the Lord in many ways: I made sure to pray, we made sure to tithe, I did my best to keep my life pure from sin — and importantly, I made sure to look to His word for direction, for encouragement, for insight as to what was going on, and what He wanted to do in my life.  I was really wrestling with God: what was going on? Why didn’t I have a church? Why had He called me to ministry but I had no place to serve? What was going on?  One particular night I was reading and studying my Bible up in the front room of our little house. And God just started showing me all these things, and I was writing and writing, and just getting so much: about how God’s purpose was to make me more like Christ, and He was using this time to mold me, to change me, to make me more like Him — and that the Beatitudes of Matthew 5:1-12 are the picture of that character God was building in me — and everything I was going through was being used by Him to build those things in me. It was one of the richest studies of my life!  

Well, our best friends from seminary lived next door to us, and unbeknownst to me, this friend of mine, who had a mischievous spirit, saw me through our front window, sitting there with the lamp on, reading the Bible and taking notes. He told me that this fiendish idea for a practical joke popped into his head — he never told me what it was — but he said he was going to do it as soon as I had turned off the light and left the room. He said he came back at 9:00, and I was still there; he came back at 10:00 and I was still there. He came back at 11:00 and I was still writing … he said the last time he came back by it was 12:00 or 1:00 a.m., and he said by that time he had lost that mischievous feeling. He said, now I was convicted that I should have been studying God’s word instead of looking to play a prank. He said, “When did you finally stop, anyway?” I told him I thought it was something like 2 a.m. and he just shook his head. 

Now, I wish that I studying God’s word like that, is all I ever did all of the time; I wish that what I did that night is what I do every night. It isn’t. But the reason I’m sharing this, is that I want you to see that I was at a crisis time in my life right then; I didn’t understand why God had called me to ministry, and put me } through seminary, and hadn’t given me a place to pastor. I wanted to know why, when it seemed like we were doing everything right, that it didn’t seem like God was providing for us. I wanted to learn what He was trying to tell me through all of this. So like Habakkuk I was going to stand watch until He spoke to me. I was not going to leave without finding a word from Him. And He did show me rich treasures in His word that have benefitted me my whole life since. 

So my point, and what I pray that God helps you understand today, is this: if you are going through difficult days, this is the time that you need to seek the Lord in His word, like you never have before. This is the time that you need to say like Habakkuk, “I will keep watch until I see what the Lord will speak to me” — And then plunge into His word and do not stop until He shows you all that He has for you! 

— Start every day with some time in His word.

— Look specifically for what He will tell you about your situation.

— Make sure you spend more time in His word than you do watching tv or movies, or scrolling down Facebook or the internet.

Really seek Him; remember in this crucial time that you “do not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. 

It’s ALWAYS important for us to spend time in God’s word every day; it is vital every day. But it is even MORE vital when you are experiencing a time of trial and you are seeking God. Spend even more time: “keep watch and see what the Lord will speak to you.” He WILL speak to you, if you will really seek Him. He said in Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek for Me, and you will find Me, when you search for Me with all Your heart.”  “With all your heart” means giving Him all the time you need to in His word, because you desperately need to hear from Him now. 

In HIS crisis time, Habakkuk had the commitment: “I will keep watch to see what He will say to me.”  In YOUR time of crisis, may YOUR commitment be: “I will keep watch and see what He will say to me” in His word!  

INVITATION:

Some of us would admit today that we are in a time when we need to seek God. How do you need to do that?

— Maybe you’d admit: honestly, I’m not even spending any time with God in His word right now. So your first step might have to begin a daily time of reading God’s word. Pray and ask God to show you a book of the Bible to read, and keep notes as you read, and watch for what God will show you about your life. Every one of us should be doing that every day.

— Maybe you have been reading, but you haven’t really been looking for anything specific from God. Ask Him to show you what you need — and then WATCH to see what He shows you — and be ready to write it down!

— One important thing: you are not going to be able to hear from God while you have unconfessed sin in your life; so make sure you are confessed up so that you CAN hear from Him in His word.

— And if you are in a time when you need to seek answers from God, then give His word the time you need to; however many hours, days, weeks it takes. Seek Him with all your heart; seek Him until He shows you what He will say to you.

— And then finally: Are you able to hear from God? DO YOU REALLY KNOW HIM as your Lord & Savior? If not, you need to be saved today …