Is it okay for us to question God? This may be a question we have never thought about before. If you’re like me, there might be times where you feel we shouldn’t even think about questioning God because we simply need to have faith in Him. Though we might have this thought at times, do we know of anywhere in Scripture where we see people questioning God? Of course, we could probably think of some different people (Job, Jeremiah, etc.). Still, there might be one we tend to overlook—the example of Habakkuk.
At the beginning of Habakkuk, the prophet calls out to God with a question—“How long, O Lord, will I call for help, and you will not hear?” (1:1). Right away, this question might have some of us wincing and gritting our teeth, thinking something like, “He’s going to be in big trouble for that! How could he question God like that?” To make matters worse, Habakkuk continues on in his questioning, seeming as though he is almost rebuking God for not doing anything about the wickedness of his people (1:2-4). After this, he begins to complain and question God as to why He is going to use the wicked Chaldeans as a tool of judgment against Judah (1:12-2:1). But note this—he is never punished for his asking. God never tells the prophet to stop complaining and questioning what He is doing; He never rebukes Habakkuk for not having enough faith. Instead, God listens to Habakkuk and answers him throughout the book of what He is doing and why He is doing it (1:5-11; 2:2-20).
While we might think Habakkuk was doing wrong or had a lack of faith in questioning God on these various topics and ideas, the truth of the matter is just the opposite. Think of the faith Habakkuk must have had to feel as though he could ask God these difficult and challenging things! Do we have that level of faith? God answered Habakkuk every time he asked, which eventually changed Habakkuk’s nature entirely (3:1-19). God wants us to ask Him tough questions! He has told us to come to him with our challenges and concerns (Matthew 7:7). The more we come to Him with the problems and concerns in our lives, the greater our relationship with Him will become. We might not always get the response we want, but He will respond to what we ask of Him if we continually rely on Him with faith. So, the next time you are facing some significant challenges in life, go to the Lord and ask. He will listen, and He will answer.
-Matthew Hite