In the mid-sixties, a daring new portrait of Christ by Richard Hook began to circulate that was rugged, masculine and a little dirty from the road. It was just in time to become the image of Christ for the Jesus Movement. It was a refreshingly human portrayal after decades of familiarity with the Warner Sallman head of Christ from the 1940s. I was moved by it enough to write a song in 1968 called “Born to Die.”
“I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you…” Jesus says it to us. We say it to Him. We say it to each other. You say it to me. I say it to you. Randy Stonehill wrote it on a tablet and then sang it to the whole world. “I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you…” Not “I love you because,” or “I love you when,” or “I love you after,” but just “I love you.” That’s all. That’s everything. Everything starts and ends here.
She’s been called the First Lady of the Jesus Movement, and the fact that she came out of Fort Wayne, Indiana proves that in 1970, Jesus wasn’t only moving in southern California, He was moving all over. This was a global phenomenon.
In August of 1968, I arrived at my dorm room in Fisher Hall for my senior year at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, and the first thing my roommate had unpacked was his Kenmore turntable, amplifier and speakers. We didn’t know yet where we wanted to set up his system, but that didn’t matter; we had to have music. And the shrink wrap just came off the first vinyl that went down on the turntable — a brand new release from the folk group Peter, Paul & Mary that we couldn’t wait to hear, “Late Again.” Our excitement was heightened by the fact that we had just heard that Noel Paul Stookey, the “Paul” of the group, had just become a Christian and that there was a song about that on this new album. So it was that we first heard the song, “Hymn.”
Like all of the prophets in the Old Testament, Habakkuk was the bearer of mostly bad news. That’s because God called prophets up when the nation of Israel was not paying any attention to the Lord, and going after the pagan idols of the nations around them. God would tolerate their disobedience for a while, but if they refused to turn back, He would send a prophet to call them back, and if they still didn’t listen, He would turn them over to their enemies and their cities would be sacked and they would be carried off into captivity.
I will climb up to my watchtower
and stand at my guardpost.
There I will wait to see what the Lord says
and how He will answer my complaint. Habakkuk 1:1
The watchtower is the place for the prophet. As a prophet, Habakkuk is one who climbs to a high vantage point to see the danger in the distance before anyone at ground level is aware of it. He is the voice of God and the conscience of society, and a champion and guardian of the covenants. Habakkuk is a social critic mandated by God to speak truth to power and challenge corrupt leaders and influencers.
But this time, Habakkuk is simply trying to hear from God.
So how are things going with our Old Testament Jesus Freak prophet/musician, Habakkuk? Not too well, actually. He’s pretty depressed over the state of the church. He doesn’t see that Christians are much different than the pagan world they dwell in. They seem to exhibit all the same characteristics — they argue and fight among themselves, they engage in violence with society to get their way, and they paralyze the law by taking over the courts and perverting justice. So he complains about this to God and what does God say? “Look around at the nations; look and be amazed! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it” (Hab. 1:5).
Today we begin a study on the book of Habakkuk, one of the 12 minor prophetic books in the Old Testament. They are called “minor” not because they are of little importance, but because — unlike the much longer writings of Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jeremiah and Daniel — they are relatively short. Habakkuk is only three chapters — the first two are a dialogue between the prophet and God, and the last chapter is a song, because Habakkuk was a temple musician and a poet.
That’s why I’m calling Habakkuk a Jesus Freak; because he led a revolution, had a word from the Lord, spoke out against the wickedness and injustice in the world, and as a musician he sang his message to the people. We have a number of Jesus People we have reconnected with who fill that bill precisely. In fact, you will be hearing from them in the coming days and weeks.
Habakkuk is so timely and speaks so prophetically to our current situation. Just listen to this from the opening few verses of this book: (italics mine)
Wherever I look,
“I see destruction and violence.
I am surrounded by people
who love to argue and fight.
The law has become paralyzed,
and there is no justice in the courts.
The wicked far outnumber the righteous,
so that justice has become perverted.” Habakkuk 1:3-4
Think of this — “destruction and violence…” “people who love to argue and fight…” “no justice in the courts…” “the law has become paralyzed…” “justice has become perverted.” Wait a minute. Are we reading Habakkuk or the front page of today’s newspaper? This is too close to be a coincidence. This is prophecy that is true thousands of years later. I’m convinced that if we follow the message in Habakkuk, we will find out what God wants us to do today. Stick close with us over these next few days as we find out what God has to say to us through Habakkuk. Don’t miss a day!
Look at this picture. Don’t you want this moment? Don’t you want to be there right now? Doesn’t it seem kind of like you are? Can’t you feel the sun on your face, hear the river flow, smell the flowers, catch the warm breeze, feel the freedom in your bare feet, and the sun on the pages of a book?
I love the story of the young kindergartener who, when asked by her teacher what she was going to create for her art project, proudly announced she was going to draw a picture of God. To which the teacher announced, “But no one knows what God looks like.”
“They will in a minute,” came the bold reply.
John Fischer The Catch 