Raging Mercy

Habakkuk 3:2; Mark 7:6-8; Romans 15:7-13

Robert M Watkins

June 17, 2007

 

It is one of the most ironic statements I have ever found within the Bible:

          …in wrath may you remember mercy.

Habakkuk says it in a bold appeal to the Lord when he knows the Lord is furious with his people for not living up to the standards of being God’s people. The prophet says it as if he were clinging to the last possible hope that all might not be as dire as it appears. It is kind of like the neighbor who rolls the car into the driveway with a bucket and hose, whistling away as she begins to wash it, all the while, the black, bilious clouds of a summer storm roll across the horizon. “Oh, it’ll miss us, sure as thunder.” Crack, boom! The deluge begins. God has arrived in judgment, and the prophet makes one final appeal to God’s love as Father of Israel—your child has fallen away, but do not reject the child completely.

 

One of the earliest of childhood fears is that of losing one’s parents. Watch a toddler and you can see it. A toddler enjoys the newfound freedom of having a set of legs that can actually propel her through the world. She toddles away from dad in any direction they can find an avenue. But, invariably, there will come a sudden stop, a quick glance over her shoulder, and perhaps a quick dash back to dad’s knees—I can run away, but I want you right there! Independence is exciting, but it’s also scary.

 

All through childhood, the same scenario gets repeated, but the stakes and the context keep getting deeper. An elementary age child will begin to realize that parents are fallible, therefore, it is all right not to agree with every word they speak. A child will begin to experiment with making choices and decisions apart from mom and dad. Then as adolescence hits—all bets are off! Everything is open to question and there comes an increase in how independent a child can be. Soon enough, dad gingerly, fearfully hands off the keys to the car. But at each stage in the game, there is still that fear of losing touch with home base, no matter how vehemently it is denied. A young person desperately wants freedom, but at that same time wants to be sure there is a safe haven waiting.

 

As the situation evolves, there is an unspoken question that enters the consciousness of both parent and child, one we do not want to admit even exists, yet no matter how hard we try to shove it into the background, it remains—

          How far is too far?

Is there a breaking point where things are beyond repair? As we consider this human conundrum, we need to remember that it applies also to our relationship with God. Just as there are rules within every family about what is acceptable and not so; so, too, those rules exist within our relationship to God. Through Christ, we have come to embrace the idea of grace—even though there are rules, and we will break those rules, there is also the surety that God will never forsake us. With Habakkuk, however, the theology is slightly different. Grace was not a guarantee. The prophet is working completely within the confines of God’s Law—if a human being, or a human community, breaks God’s Law, then judgment is coming. Transgressions beget punishment. For us, there comes a profound question--Did Christ rescind the prophet’s view completely?

 

Before we answer that question, let’s state another point about human families—every family is different. Some families are stricter than others; some practice more of an open style with the young folk within them than others; some are more hands on while others pull back. Kids notice the difference in codes and buck up when they encounter the differences at home.

 

The Pharisees come from a strict household. The rules exist, therefore, the rules will be followed. No questions asked. They do not understand Jesus. He claims to be the Son of God, yet he seems to ignore everything his heavenly father ever said. God said what was expected and how it was to be done. It’s all there in Leviticus. Habakkuk preached doom because the household of God ignored the rules and the Eternal Papa was none too thrilled about it. The Pharisees understood that completely. How could Jesus say otherwise? And Jesus gets all riled up and fires off at them that they are nothing but two-faced hypocrites—they say one thing and do another! It begins to sound like a very familiar family fight.

 

The Pharisees are the older siblings who assume they’ve got the whole family dynamic worked out. The problem is that families rarely stay constant. They shift and change, they grow and develop—even God’s family. Jesus is the instrument of change. Where that change comes from is worth noting. In listening to the gospel of Jesus Christ closely, it becomes apparent that God actually listened to the prophet Habakkuk—in the midst of God’s wrath, God remembered mercy.

 

The hardest thing any parent ever faces is dealing with a child in trouble. It can be a minor infraction or a major failure—the consequence is the same. In a healthy family, there comes a problem. On the one hand, the parent is furious at the child for blowing it; but on the other hand, the parent wants nothing more than to make it right without undue pain.

 

The Pharisees demand adherence to keeping the rules without exception. A mistake requires recompense. The Pharisees—the best of them, at least—recognize the suffering and pain that comes with punishment, but the hope is that such suffering will act as a deterrent and everyone will be better for it. They were great practitioners of the concept of Tough Love—love that allows failure to be failure. Rules were broken, justice must prevail. If someone gets hurt, then they brought it on themselves.

 

At this spot, we need to understand what Habakkuk tries to say—Yes, but please remember to enforce the consequences in love. Judgment without love is no better than tyranny. What good does it do to destroy the lost child?

 

Christ now enters the discussion with the word “grace.” In its truest form, grace allows justice to prevail, but also allows the guilty to continue to exist, which is all Habakkuk wanted be sure of.

 

It gets kind of hard to follow, doesn’t it? But take it right back into the living room. It becomes a little clearer. Junior sits before Dad after having wrecked the car because he was going too fast. It was a $15000 mistake—the car is shot. Dad has already gone through the “I’ll kill him; thank God he’s all right; I’ll kill him” inner dialog. Now it is time to mete out justice. What would you do?

 

As you all ponder your answers, here is what God did. God’s people blew it and still do. No matter how lost they become, there is no recognition on their part that they have done a thing wrong, and the trouble keeps compounding. The world continues to sink more deeply into the mire of injustice, bloodshed, and apathy. God responded by sending his Son Jesus Christ into the world. Inevitably, the world rejected him and killed him. Now God is faced with a decision—just go ahead and blot the whole mess out with a flick of the divine thumb or do something else. God went with the something else—God offered us grace. Here’s the deal—God raised Jesus from the dead, ending the power of our own wickedness to control the fate of the earth. The choice is now ours to make—accept that gift and change the way we live, or reject it and face the consequences.

 

The Apostle Paul, as he winds up his letter to the Romans, sees a vision of what might be—

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

God still loves us and God is still there, but to see it, know it, and feel it, we have got to change directions.

 

Look at the situation in which Habakkuk preached. The Israelites were in exile—they were lost; they had fallen into non-being—God allowed them to fall away because that was the choice they made. Grace offers a way back home. We have to let go of our pride and our surety that we know exactly what we are doing, realizing that we have wound up lost. I am absolutely certain that Junior in the living room smashed up the car knowing he knew exactly what he was doing. Now comes the moment to admit otherwise. There will be a consequence, but honest confession ensures it will come in the form of raging mercy.

 

There is hope for us all.