Cover the Earth (In the Word, on the Go: Habakkuk 2:14)

This is In the Word, on the Go, the podcast where we look at one verse from God's word for 10 minutes of your day.

Champ Thornton:
I'm Champ Thornton, your host. Whether you're listening by yourself or with family, this podcast is here for you to spend 10 more minutes in God's Word while you go about your day. In each episode, I get to interview one person about a favorite verse from the Bible. And today I get to welcome back. Jared Kennedy. Jared is the author of several books, including a fantastic preschool story Bible called The Beginner's Gospel Story Bible and a new one, Jesus Rose for Me, a preschool storybook for Easter. He's also written several VBS programs, including Proof Pirates and Clap Your Hands, Stomp Your Feet. Jared is the husband to Megan and they are the parents of three girls, Rachael, Lucy, and Elizabeth. Jared, it's always good to have you on the program. So what passage do you have for us today?

Jared Kennedy: (01:02)
I have Habakkuk 2:14 and it says this, "For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea."

Champ Thornton: (01:12)
Okay. So before we even get to the verse, tell us about Habakkuk. That's a long name. It's hard to say, and where's it located? And what's going on in this book?

Jared Kennedy: (01:21)
Habakkuk is one of the twelve minor prophets and in this portion

Champ Thornton: (01:29)
And they're minor because they're shorter. Not because they're not important.

Jared Kennedy: (01:32)
That's right, they're important guys, but they didn't write a ton. They wrote short little books and so Habakkuk is one of those 12 guys, and in this part of his prophecy, he's actually writing to rebuke worldly rulers who were coming against God's people—rulers who were setting themselves up against God. And Habakkuk's saying to them: There's a glory that's greater than the glory that you are setting up for yourselves—a glory that will fill the whole earth.

Champ Thornton: (02:07)
So he's rebuking them, but he's doing it in the form of a promise. This is what I'm going to do. I'm going to read it again. I'm reading out of the Christian Standard Bible. This is Habakkuk chapter two, verse 14, and it says this : "For the earth (and that is the dry land of the earth) will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord's glory as the waters cover the sea." So there's an analogy going on here—a comparison. Can you help us think through what Habakkuk is saying?

Jared Kennedy: (02:35)
Yes. So if you've ever been to the ocean, it's really wet. And you go out in the midst of it and it's basically impossible to stay dry. The waves just cover over you. And what Habakkuk is saying is that there's a day coming when God's glory—his character, his goodness, his greatness will shine out to the whole world and everyone will know it. It'll cover the whole world, no exceptions.

Jared Kennedy: (03:12)
When I was a little kid, my dad had two jobs. Most of the time he was a high school math teacher, but for four or five years, he managed our local Sherwin-Williams paint store. And the Sherwin Williams company has this logo that looks like an environmental disaster with a paint can that's pouring paint out and covering the globe.

Champ Thornton: (03:36)
I remember seeing this as a kid and being intrigued by it. So yeah, totally. I know exactly what you're talking about.

Jared Kennedy: (03:43)
On the paint can, it says: "Cover the earth." It relates to their mission to sell a bunch of paint that that will be sold all over the world, and paint covers things. And so it's a clever play on that. Well, fast forward a number of years, and I'm sitting with a group of pastors, and one of our pastors, Chad Lewis, was leading us, and he read this verse. He said, "Close your eyes and imagine. What image comes to your mind? And the first thing that pops back in my mind is that logo that was on the side of my dad's truck for so many years—the paint can pouring out the paint over the whole globe. It's a beautiful picture that God is King of everything, no exceptions, and that his goodness and greatness will shine out and cover all so that everyone will know him. We will all glimpse his beauty, his glory, his goodness, his greatness; we'll all see it.

Champ Thornton: (04:42)
Jared, how has this verse affected you on a heart level personally?

Jared Kennedy: (04:46)
I was thinking about how in the midst of some of the worst rulers in history—rulers who were setting up their own kingdoms through murder and corruption and standing harshly against God's people—Habakkuk is able to make this promise that God is King and that he's in control. And that he's got this, even in the face of these kings who are standing against God's people, he promised that everything would be all right. The earth would be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. God would still show himself to be king. And so that's one thing I was thinking about. I think the other is just thinking about myself as the person who often thinks about his own glory instead of thinking about God's glory.

Jared Kennedy: (05:37)
As a writer, as someone who has written books and wants to sell them, sometimes that's good. I want to take care of my family. But I worry about what people think about what I've written on a blog post or how many likes or shares or sales I've had. Building a platform like that can be consuming. You post something then you go back and check how many little hearts it has. And this verse is a reminder that in whatever little ways we're given fame or followers, that we need to be humble signposts that point to him because our God is coming and he's revealing himself in such a way that his goodness and greatness will be shown all over the earth and like playing out in the waves with the waters covering us, he will cover us. And ultimately at the end of time, the new heavens and the new earth will belong to Jesus Christ. It will not belong to us. The glory will belong to our Lord and Savior and not to us. And so I just want to have a heart that's attuned to that truth as I'm living a life beforehand, I want to be shaped toward him.

Champ Thornton: (06:53)
So in our lives, whether as an adult or our kids, if our lives pursue priorities and choices and pathways that are not pursuing the glory of Christ, then they're really not going to come to a good conclusion, because we know how the story is going to end. It's going to all be about the glory of Christ. But on the other hand, if we're giving our lives and our choices and our priorities and our pursuits to further the glory of Christ, then we are working with the grain of the universe. This is where it's all headed and we know how it's going to end, and that's going to be a life well spent.

Jared Kennedy: (07:34)
You know, if you go far enough out in the ocean, fighting against the waves becomes sort of futile. You may be trying to stand up, but they're just bigger than you. And it should be humbling for us. God has a direction he's taking this world. It's what we've been made for—to love him, to enjoy him, to glorify him. And we want to stand with him and not against him. That's a great reminder. And I think maybe one question your listeners could ask themselves is, What do I worry about? Am I worried more about what other people think of me or about whether my choices and actions are pleasing to God and in accordance with his Word, in accordance with his will? Or am I more concerned with fitting in and getting approval from the friends that are around me?

Champ Thornton: (08:30)
So as we get ready to discuss that and think about that further, Jared, would you close our time by praying this verse for us?

Jared Kennedy: (08:37)
Sure. Father, thank you for the fact that you have made us for a purpose. Thank you for making us for yourself to know you, to love you, and to glorify you. One day that glory will cover our whole lives. And we can't wait for that because that is the day when, who we truly are will be revealed. And so, Lord, we pray that you would make us more and more into people who live for your glory and not for our own. We pray this for Christ's sake. Amen.

Champ Thornton: (09:14)
Thanks for listening to In the Word, on the Go for more information about this podcast or to listen to past episodes, visit wordonthego.net.