Hi, guys. I'm new to the boards, so I just want to start by saying thanks for having me.
I'm no academic, but I do enjoy and find it necessary to the maturing of my faith, to attempt to rightly divide the Word of God. So, with that in mind, I have a question.
My study group is currently studying through the minor prophets. We work through a guide book, which I don't always agree with, and being the biggest mouth in our group (something I'm working on ), I often say when I don't agree. I'm off to study in a couple of days, and while doing my homework, I've hit an idea put forth by the study guide that I'm having an issue with. One of the questions referring to Habakkuk's complaining to God is: Habakkuk openly complained to the Lord. Do you think he was right to question God?
My answer is no, it is never right to complain or question God. To complain is to suggest God is doing something wrong. To ask a question is fine, but to question God's actions in any given situation is to suggest that He needs to take counsel from us rather than the other way around.
There are review notes after the study, and the review notes suggest that it is fine to express doubts (presumably about God's decisions) to God. I suppose they take this view because many writers (Job, Jeremiah, Habakkuk) expressed doubts, so I guess the writers of the guide equate descriptions of complaining as prescriptions. They state that "even Jesus asked God 'Why, oh, why hast thou forsaken me?'", and in the context of the review, I believe they are intimating that like Habakkuk, Jesus also expressed doubt, complaint. Now, I know that there is a view out there that Christ's utterance of those words points to Psalm 22, the prophecy of His crucifixion, pointing to His position as the Messiah. That is what I tend to lean towards.
I guess my question is can anybody add their thoughts to this? I'm just trying to work through this. As Christ was sinless, and as I believe that complaining is a sin, I, therefore, cannot agree that it was a complaint. What say you guys?
Sorry for the long post. Thanks for any replies.
I'm no academic, but I do enjoy and find it necessary to the maturing of my faith, to attempt to rightly divide the Word of God. So, with that in mind, I have a question.
My study group is currently studying through the minor prophets. We work through a guide book, which I don't always agree with, and being the biggest mouth in our group (something I'm working on ), I often say when I don't agree. I'm off to study in a couple of days, and while doing my homework, I've hit an idea put forth by the study guide that I'm having an issue with. One of the questions referring to Habakkuk's complaining to God is: Habakkuk openly complained to the Lord. Do you think he was right to question God?
My answer is no, it is never right to complain or question God. To complain is to suggest God is doing something wrong. To ask a question is fine, but to question God's actions in any given situation is to suggest that He needs to take counsel from us rather than the other way around.
There are review notes after the study, and the review notes suggest that it is fine to express doubts (presumably about God's decisions) to God. I suppose they take this view because many writers (Job, Jeremiah, Habakkuk) expressed doubts, so I guess the writers of the guide equate descriptions of complaining as prescriptions. They state that "even Jesus asked God 'Why, oh, why hast thou forsaken me?'", and in the context of the review, I believe they are intimating that like Habakkuk, Jesus also expressed doubt, complaint. Now, I know that there is a view out there that Christ's utterance of those words points to Psalm 22, the prophecy of His crucifixion, pointing to His position as the Messiah. That is what I tend to lean towards.
I guess my question is can anybody add their thoughts to this? I'm just trying to work through this. As Christ was sinless, and as I believe that complaining is a sin, I, therefore, cannot agree that it was a complaint. What say you guys?
Sorry for the long post. Thanks for any replies.