“Then the LORD answered me and said: ‘Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it’” (Habakkuk 2:2).
Recently I discovered an amazing bit of governmental trivia. I am told that it requires a tome of of 26,911 words to describe U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations concerning the sale of cabbage. No matter how you cut it, that is quite a mouthful.
Let’s put it in perspective. The Handbook of the World Mission Prayer League,
describing the principles and practices governing most every aspect of our organization, fits in a slender 12,040 words. The Spirit of God was Moving, telling the history of our organization through half-a-century, still requires fewer words than the cabbage regulations. The Ten Commandments require 179 words. The Great Commission fits in a mere 68.
I am reminded of a verse from the Prophet Habakkuk. “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it” (2:2). Cabbage may require a lot of words. But the really important stuff, apparently, should fit “plainly on tablets.” It should be plain as a billboard, that any who pass by may read and comprehend. Plain enough to understand at 60 mph. Plain enough to capture in a flash.
The Book of Habakkuk reads like an intimate dialogue between the prophet and his God. Habakkuk was pretty upset. The Northern Kingdom had been destroyed by the Assyrians. The Southern Kingdom was headed soon for Babylonian captivity. It was difficult to make sense of it all. God was using unbelieving nations – the Babylonians! – to effect his will, while his Chosen People languished.
But in the midst of the confusion, God assured Habakkuk of some very simple truths. “A work is being done in your days” (1:5). “The righteous shall live by their faith” (2:4). “There is still a vision for the appointed time; it speaks of the end, and does not lie. If it seems to tarry, wait for it” (2:3). Habakkuk didn’t need wordy theodicies, at the moment. He didn’t need long-winded political treatises, or theological meanderings, or some national apologetic. He needed only to hear the wonderfully simple promise. A work is being done in your days. Got it?
Jesus employed 68 words to commission his disciples to the mission of making disciples. In a few brief sentences, he explained the rationale, outlined the program, authorized its implementation, and assured his disciples of his ongoing presence and provision. No bloated treatises. No windy speeches. It was simple enough to capture in a flash. A runner might understand it, before passing quickly by. People need the Lord. You’ve got disciples to make.
Got it?
"The Way I See It", June 2002
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