Our church began a series through the book of Habakkuk this week where we are looking at questions regarding God’s justice and goodness in our world. It’s an age-old question to ask “if God is good and powerful, why does evil exist?” As we look around our world, we see evil, disease, natural disasters, and more around us that can cause us to wonder if God cares at all or if He is able to do anything about it.

But something struck me as I walked through the first 11 verses of the book of Habakkuk. The prophet’s first concern was not the evil out in the world, but the evil among God’s people. In the first 4 verses, as he pours out his first complaint before the Lord, his focus is on the evil within the people of Israel. He is going to eventually get to the evil in the world, but it seems his primary concern is the sin of God’s covenant people.

It got me thinking: do we really care about all evil? Often when we pour out our complaints to the Lord about the evil in our world, we are talking about the unsaved all around us who are committing terrible acts. But how often do we cry to the Lord about the sin among the people of God - or to make it more personal - the sin of the people in our local church. Better yet, how often are we grieved over the evil in our own hearts?

Habakkuk was grieved that the people of God were walking in constant sin and it didn’t seem that God was doing anything about it. When is the last time you cried out to the Lord over the sin in your own heart or the sin that you see in your brothers and sisters around you? When did you last add to your prayer list the sin that the people in your local church are struggling with?

If we are going to be a people who are truly concerned about the evil in the world, shouldn’t it start with an honest assessment of our own hearts and churches?

I’m not suggesting that we become judgemental and make our every prayer about the sin of the people around us. I am suggesting that we judge rightly with godly discernment and ask God to break our hearts over the sin that breaks His. Could it be that one of the reasons the Church seems to not take evil in the world seriously is because we don’t take the evil in our own hearts and homes seriously?

Here’s the good news - this conversation doesn’t end with guilt and shame. If we humble ourselves and truly repent before the Lord for the evil in our hearts and the sin in our lives, He always hears and forgives (1 John 1:9). When we get serious about dealing with sin in the camp, I believe the Lord honors those efforts. As a matter of fact, one of the purposes of the church is to help one another walk in holiness (Hebrews 10:24).

So let’s be grieved over the evil in our world around us, but let’s begin by grieving over the evil in our own hearts and in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ. And let us cry out to the Lord in repentance and ask Him to purge the evil from among us.