Posted in Habakkuk

The Dividing Line of Faith

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Habakkuk 2:4 CEV

“I, the LORD, refuse to accept anyone who is proud. Only those who live by faith are acceptable to me.”

Photo by Cameron Yartz from Pexels

Many years ago, I watched an episode in the TV series, “Touched by an angel.”

For those of you who have not watched this series, a team of angels comprising Tess, Monica, Andrew and sometimes Raphael, feature in the stories. In the film which I’m referring to, as I remember the story, this team of four were ministering to a group of girls at a camp. Each of the girls at camp was there because she was an AIDS victim.

Within the group, there were four close friends who couldn’t take the uncertainty of not knowing how much longer they had to live. So they entered into a pact to die together rather than await their deaths as a result of the disease.

On the night of their planned suicide, Raphael sang a lullaby. It turned out to be one familiar to one of the girls. Her mother used to sing it to her when she was a child. That girl decided at that point that she did not want to commit suicide.

Monica and Andrew then turned to the other three. They tried to get them to choose life rather than death.

The dividing faith line

Eventually, Monica drew a line between the angels and the girl that had drawn close to them, and the other three remaining girls. She pointed out that to remain on their side of the line meant death, but that if they stepped over the line to the angel’s side, they would live.

To remain on their side of the line would entail taking things into their own hands, out of line with God’s appointed time for their death. They would deprive themselves of the future that God had mapped out for them.

One by one the three girls stepped over the line and chose God’s will for their future.

The need to live by faith

In Habakkuk 2:4, the Lord makes it clear to Habakkuk. Only those who live by faith are acceptable to Him.

It is a hard lesson to understand, but if we do not put our faith in God, if we choose to stand on the other side of His dividing line, we are choosing death. Eternal death.

All the inhabitants of planet earth are divided into two groups. We are either standing on the side that follows the ways of the world, and reject God’s gift of salvation through His Son Jesus Christ. Or we are on the side of God’s blessing, having put our faith in Jesus with the promise of eternal life.

Like those girls in the story, we ae given the opportunity to choose eternal life while we are still alive. Once we die, it is too late.

“…know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.”                             (Galatians 2:16)

We can base the meaning of life on what the politicians, poets, philosophers, and scientists promise us. Or we can base life on what God tells us in His Word, the need to live by faith. These are the only two choices open to us.

God tells us, “..the righteous will live by his faith.” Not “may live”; “can live” or even “should live” but “will live.”
Our relationship with God is based on faith. This does not mean we ignore what the scientists and governments are telling us. But ultimately, our faith is in He who controls life and death.

We enjoy saving faith by putting our trust in Jesus as our Saviour and Lord.

What is Faith?

  • How would you define ‘faith’?

Faith is simply taking God at His Word and relying on it. But it involves believing what God says, and acting upon it, simply because He said it.

  • What really governs the direction that your life is taking right now?
  • Are you perhaps relying on the learning, skills and abilities that you have gained through the years? God would not have you ignoring all these things. After all, He made it possible for you to gain them. He gave you the intellect and abilities to make wise decisions. Anything less than that will not bring honour to God. But do you continue to ask Him before making decisions? Do you step out in faith, to do what you believe is His will for your life.

What really matters is not what the world has to offer, but living out our lives according to the principles that God has outlined for us in His Word.

What he thinks is what he really is. Proverbs 23:7b Good News Bible Click To Tweet

Stepping out in faith

  • Do you need to step over the dividing line from the world’s side to God’s side?

The process is as simple as ABC:

ACCEPT that you are a sinner – “All of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.” (Romans 3:23 CEV)

BELIEVE that God sent His Son into this world to rescue you from the punishment of sin – “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:23 NIV)  Jesus made this astounding claim – “I am the way, the truth, and the life! Without me, no one can go to the Father.” (John 14:6 CEV)

CONFESS  that your life has not been committed to Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord. Ask for His forgiveness: “…if we confess our sins to God, he can always be trusted to forgive us and take our sins away.” (1 John 1:9 CEV)

DEDICATE the rest of your life to God as your Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord and to the Holy Spirit as your teacher, guide and the one who gives you power over our enemy the devil. Jesus said, “Anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He will not be found guilty. He has crossed over from death to life.” (John 5:24 NIrV)

If you’d like to chat about crossing the dividing line, I’d love to write to you and pray with you. Email me on this address, and I’ll get back to you.

Let the wonderful kindness and the understanding that come from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ help you to keep on growing. (2 Peter 3:18 CEV)

P.S.

If you haven’t yet read the background to the prophecy, please do. It will benefit you throughout this series of studies.

 

Posted in Habakkuk

God’s Time – never too early, never too late

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Habakkuk 2:3 CEV

‘At the time I have decided, my words will come true. You can trust what I say about the future. It may take a long time, but keep on waiting—it will happen!’

We are living in an age in which perfect timing is of the essence. God’s perfect timing is the basis of our verse.

In His time

The New International Version puts the first part of the verse in this way, “For the revelation awaits an appointed time.”

Although God gave Habakkuk the message it was not for that immediate time.

The message for Habakkuk was a specific message for a particular time in world history. A specific future time when the fall of Babylon would take place.

That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain, and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom, at the age of sixty-two.
(Daniel 5:30-31 NIV)

.

Image by congerdesign from Pixabay

Two things were definite about God’s plans for the future:

His plans would take place at exactly the right time.
And they would definitely take place.

  • Look again at the verse. What do you notice about God’s comment?
  • Did you notice that God does not scold Habakkuk for his complaints? Nor is He annoyed about His questions. God actually explains that sometimes the answers to our prayers do not necessarily come to pass immediately.

At the right time

  • Have you perhaps prayed to God about a particular issue, but the answer only came much later? Did you perhaps realise that the timing of the answer was perfect?
  • Do you remember a time when you believed God was actually telling you something, and at the time you did not understand what He meant?
    • Perhaps you waited in anticipation of an immediate explanation. A day. a week, a month, a year passed without receiving the answer. Just at the point that you were about to give up the answer came and God’s timing was perfect. 

In the early days of my life as a committed Christian, I received a dream of a sunken chapel. I don’t usually pay much attention to my dreams. I don’t remember them beyond a few minutes after waking up. However, I strongly believed that in some way that dream was a message from the Lord.

Years later, I attended a Renewal Conference of our denomination in Kwa-Zulu Natal. As it was my first attendance at that particular conference centre I was shown around the centre by one of my colleagues. He asked me ‘Rob have you seen the chapel?’ Immediately, within my spirit, I knew what I was about to see. Sure enough, it was the sunken chapel of my dream.

What then was the significance of the dream?

I had been going through a time of questioning whether I was meant to be in the Presbyterian Church ministry at all. What I learnt at that Renewal Conference brought about a transformation in my whole approach to the pastoral ministry and the focus of my preaching. Because of that dream, years earlier, I knew something significant was about to occur.

God’s appointed time

The vision Habakkuk received was for God’s appointed time. When God makes a promise, we can count on Him to carry out His promise when the time is right.

Wise King Solomon provided this reminder:

“Everything on earth has its own time and its own season.”

There is a time for birth and death, planting and reaping,
for killing and healing, destroying and building,
for crying and laughing, weeping and dancing,
for throwing stones and gathering stones, embracing and parting.
There is a time for finding and losing, keeping and giving,
for tearing and sewing, listening and speaking.
There is also a time for love and hate, for war and peace
(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 CEV)

Wait for the right time

God has his perfect timing. Habakkuk “was to patiently wait on the answers to come.”

This is where you and I have a problem. We are living in an age of instant answers. Instant coffee. Made-in-a-minute soup. Electronic banking. We expect things to happen immediately, in our timing. We find waiting to be frustrating. When we bring a need before the Lord in prayer, we expect an immediate answer. The Lord is the almighty God. All things are possible for Him. He could answer immediately. Yet for some unknown reason, He often chooses to delay His response.

The prophet Isaiah, like Habakkuk, knew what it is like to have to wait for God’s answer. He provides us with these encouraging words,

“…they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:31 ESV)

P.S.

If you haven’t yet read the background to the prophecy, please do. It will benefit you throughout this series of studies.

 

Posted in Habakkuk

And the Lord said, “Write!”

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Habakkuk 2:2 CEV

‘The LORD replies, “Write down the message I am showing you in a vision. Write it clearly on the tablets you use. Then a messenger can read it and run to announce it.

God’s instructions to write

Waiting and watching reaps its reward. In today’s verse, we read of God’s instructions to Habakkuk:

“Then the Lord told me.” The Lord actually spoke to Habakkuk. And look at what He said:

“I will give you my message in the form of a vision. Write it clearly enough to be read at a glance. 

The Lord’s reply contains a very important principle: “Write down the message.” (NIrV)

“Habakkuk I am about to answer your question, but I want you to share my answer with others, so that a herald may run with it.” (Today’s New International Version —The footnote in my Bible reads, “So that whoever reads it may run with it.”)

This instruction is by no means unique

In researching these words I found at least thirteen verses in the Bible containing these or similar words:

Take a look and see for yourself who wrote the ten commandments:

When the LORD finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the covenant law, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God. (Exodus 31:18 NIV)

God Himself wrote those all-important commandments onto two tablets of stone which he gave to Moses to share with the Israelites. That tells us just how important God considers writing to be!

Moses subsequently told the people,

“So love the LORD your God with all your heart, soul, and strength. Memorize his laws and tell them to your children over and over again. Talk about them all the time, whether you’re at home or walking along the road or going to bed at night, or getting up in the morning.  Write down copies and tie them to your wrists and foreheads to help you obey them. Write these laws on the door frames of your homes and on your town gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:5-9 CEV)

As the children of Israel drew near to the Promised Land and Joshua was about to take over leadership from Moses,  see what Scripture tells us:

“Moses and Joshua, I am going to give you the words to a new song. Write them down and teach the song to the Israelites.” (Deuteronomy 31:19 CEV)

So it wasn’t just instructions. God gave them songs to write down too!

'Write it down. . . Write it clearly!' Is the Lord speaking to you today? Click To Tweet

The Lord speaks to a number of his prophets:

Then Isaiah received this instruction:

“Write down his (the Lord’s) message for his people, so that it would be there forever.” (Isaiah 30:8 CEV)

The Lord instructed Jeremiah in a similar fashion:

“Jeremiah, get a scroll and write down everything I have told you.” (Jeremiah 30:1; 36:2,28 CEV)

On two occasions, the Lord spoke to Ezekiel as follows:

“write down today’s date, because the king of Babylonia has just begun attacking the city of Jerusalem.” (Ezekiel 24:2 CEV)

And

Explain the regulations about worshiping there, then write down these things, so they can study and obey them. (Ezekiel 43:11)

And in the New Testament:

In Revelation we find God’s instruction to the Apostle John:

Everyone who wins the victory will be made into a pillar in the temple of my God, and they will stay there forever. I will write on each of them the name of my God and the name of his city. It is the new Jerusalem that my God will send down from heaven. I will also write on them my own new name.
(Revelation 3:12 CEV)

Do you write notes?

The whole book of Habakkuk is the story of a man who wrote down his feelings, his prayers, and God’s answers.

  • Can you recall an occasion when God spoke to you specifically through your daily devotions?
  • Did you make a record of it? Did you write it down?
  • As you have been journeying along with me through the prophecy of Habakkuk what have you done to enable you to remember what you have been learning? Have you taken notes?

If you are anything like me you have a pretty shaky memory. Unfortunately, I am not very diligent about taking time to write down what I believe the Lord is saying to me. Inevitably, within a short period of time, I have forgotten what I have learned.

Times we failed to write something down

There have been at least two significant occasions when God spoke to both Shirley and me through a fellow believer, where we didn’t write them down.

1. The first was in Kimberley, South Africa, when God brought a prophetic message for each of us individually through an evangelist. Just a few hours later, we marvelled at the words and wondered with excitement what they meant for us. A few days later, we began to see the message coming to fruition. But we hadn’t written it down! So we couldn’t remember it clearly.

2. The second came at a seminar we attended in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). This came in the form of a word of knowledge through a Bible Teacher from New Zealand. The speaker did not know either of us. He had never met us, even at the seminar. Yet he singled us out in a crowded auditorium and pinpointed an area of concern we each had. He gave us God’s assurance that God would sort out our problems. We were blown away by everything he said, and the sure and certain knowledge we had that the words must have come from God. No one, not even our closest family members, knew the situations the man addressed. The next day, we phoned the director of the seminar to see if the words had been recorded. They hadn’t. And with our fallible memories, we forgot many of them. How sad we hadn’t written them down the moment we had the chance. 

“I will give you my message…. Write it clearly enough to be read at a glance.” (Habakkuk 2:2 CEV)

  • Do you perhaps keep a journal of what you learn during your daily quiet time?
  • If you don’t, maybe it’s time you started!

She did write it down

In November 1997, my wife, Shirley, was diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer which had already started to spread. The surgeon who operated on her later admitted that he did not expect her to last a year. (She’s still going strong – praise God!)

At one stage Shirley herself felt that she was not going to make it. But on consecutive days, while reading Scripture, the Lord spoke to her.

I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the LORD has done (Psalms 118:17 NIV).

She didn’t fully understand what God was saying, except that she had a future—and in that future, she was to tell others what the Lord had done in her life.

And the Lord had more to say:

The next verse was this very verse we’re looking at today!

“Write down the message . . . Write it clearly” (Habakkuk 2:2)

That caused us a chuckle. For those who know my wife, her handwriting is not the neatest! She was always in trouble at school for her untidy writing. So the Lord reminded her to write it clearly!

So, she obeyed. She was too ill to write very much at a time, but she began to jot down notes, sometimes just one or two words. She wrote through the radiotherapy and two courses of chemotherapy that followed her surgery. And five years later, she started to create a full journal. Those journal notes subsequently were the foundation for her first book, ninety days of devotions for people facing cancer, Strength Renewed – Meditations for Your Journey through Breast Cancer.

That book was published in 2012—nine years ago. And it is still selling. (By the way, if you’re interested in getting a copy, it is available on Amazon world-wide, or here in South Africa direct from Shirley.) By sharing what the Lord had done through the cancer valley, Shirley has been a source of courage for numerous other cancer sufferers. But it was only possible because she listened to the Lord and wrote down events as they happened.

God’s purpose

Praise God for the wonderful assurance that we have that our lives are not purposeless. God has a purpose for each of our lives.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV)

So may I end today with a challenge? Maybe you already write down what the Lord is doing in your life. Then ask yourself, what does He want you to do with those notes? And if you don’t make notes? Reread God’s words to so many people in Scripture, and get yourself a notebook, today. Start to write it down—and make it clear!

P.S. If you haven’t yet read the background to the prophecy, please do. It will benefit you throughout this series of studies.

Posted in Habakkuk

Waiting for God’s Answer.

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Habakkuk 2:1 NIV

 I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer I am to give to this complaint.

Photo by Maria Camila Castaño from Pexels

 

Waiting an answer

In the last session, I referred to the phone calls we often make. When we are waiting for an answer to our call only to be told, “Be patient your call will be answered” is frustrating. When your call has been placed in an automatic answering system there is very little you can do to get a speedy answer. You have a choice to make. Impatiently put down the phone and try again later – or patiently await your turn in the queue.

  • When God appears to place you ‘on hold’ what is your usual reaction? Do you hang up on Him? Or do you, like Habakkuk, spend time waiting for Him and watching? Perhaps you phone a Christian friend. What do you do?
  • Habakkuk placed himself in a position where God could answer his call. How about you? Do you have a special place where you can listen for God? If not, can you think of one? Preferably a place you can be quiet, perhaps read Scripture, and pray. Try to develop such a place so that when you go there, your mind automatically begins to seek God.

We all need to discover that quiet place, a place where, if possible, we will not be disturbed. Where God has an opportunity to speak into our hearts. Somewhere we can deliberately switch off our own rational thoughts and invite God to speak to us.

Those special waiting-upon God places

Although we ideally want to be open to God at all times, I know have a variety of places where I am more likely to hear from Him.

A fellow Bible College student used to take a long run each morning. He communicated with God while running.

One of Shirley’s author friends has a hammock in her garden. As she enjoys nature, she is more open to the voice of God.

I can identify with her sentiments. My elder son has a lovely home with a large beautiful garden. When we visit them for a few days I often go and sit at some spot in their garden each morning for my quiet time. With the sound of the birds in the trees and soft running water from a small fountain, it is a great place to meet with God, waiting for a message from Him.

  • Can you identify a spot where you can go to, possibly not every day, that will supplement that time we spoke of earlier—the regular daily location.?

Awaiting God’s answer

The second part of Habakkuk 2 verse 1 is very interesting.

Most translations have ‘wait to see’, ‘wait and see’ or ‘watch to see’. The NIV and a couple of others have – “I will look to see what He will say to me.” I like that.

Notice Habakkuk didn’t say, “I will listen for His voice.” The clear picture here is of Habakkuk taking up a position where he could actually see how God would respond to his question. Perhaps through a vision, angelic visitation, dream, supernatural event, a change in circumstances, whatever . . . He is looking for a very definite sign of God’s response.

Jesus’ communication with God.

I am sure you know how some of the great Christian leaders of the past spent time with God. Their example is certainly an inspiration to us. But surely our greatest example is our Lord Himself? Scripture does not record all the times that Jesus communicated with His Father in Heaven, but a number of significant occasions are recorded for us.

Jesus prayed:

  • at His baptism by John the Baptist—Luke 3:21
  • before choosing the twelve apostles—Luke 6:12-15
  • at the raising of Lazarus from the dead—John11:41
  • at the Last Supper—John 17:1
  • in the Garden of Gethsemane—Matthew 26;39ff; Mark 14:35ff; Luke 22:41ff

In addition, during His three-year ministry, Jesus often withdrew from the crowds and even the twelve, in order to meet with God. Scripture records that He often went up a mountainside to pray. Could that have been a daily event? Definitely not. It was His special place to commune with His Father.

Awaiting signs of God’s answer

Just as the watchmen on the city walls or in the vineyard placed themselves in a position where they could see clear signs of approaching danger, so too the prophet was taking up a position where he could see signs of an answer to his complaint.

  • When you are praying for a specific situation, what signs do you expect to see of God’s answer?
  • How do you ‘look to see’ how He will answer?

God may delay His answer to your prayers but be assured of this one thing, God does want to answer your prayers.  He will answer your prayer in due course.

Our responsibility lies in waiting for that answer. That doesn’t mean that we stop praying for the answer, but our prayer can take on a note of assurance because we know He will answer. So we watch in anticipation for the answer. And of course, we acknowledge it when it does come. We continue to pray, regardless of any negative vibes, until we receive a clear answer.

It's amazing what you don't get when you don't ask - attributed to Berney Neufield Click To Tweet

Phillips Brooks has this to say about prayer.

Rather than praying for an easier lfe, pray for a stronger person.   Rather than praying for challenges equal to your abilities, pray for abilities equal to your challenges. Then the miracle will not be what you have done, your work—but you shall be the miracle. Then every day you will wonder at yourself and the richness of life that God in His grace has given you. (Phillips Brooks)

What have you learned today? What action are you going to take? How about finding that special place? Or identifying a spot for your daily quiet time.

“Never give up praying. And when you pray, keep alert and be thankful.” (Colossians 4:2 CEV)

P.S. If you haven’t yet read the background to the prophecy, please do. It will benefit you throughout this series of studies.

 

Posted in Habakkuk

Watching and waiting

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Habakkuk 2:1 NIrV

‘I will go up to the lookout tower. I’ll station myself on the city wall. I’ll wait to see how the LORD will reply to me. Then I’ll try to figure out how to answer him.’

Patiently Waiting and watching

Image by Jan Vašek from Pixabay   [spacer height="20px"]

  • How good are you at watching and waiting for someone to arrive? Or for a meeting to commence?
  • What is your reaction, when the date and time have been set, and an important person arrives late or perhaps does not pitch up at all?Of recent years, South Africans have become well used to waiting, albeit often not patiently, for politicians to arrive to address us on television.  

We’ve all had the experience of making a phone call only to have a recorded voice tell you, “Please be patient. Your call will be answered.” There is not much you can do, apart from drumming your fingers on the desk, doodling on your desk pad, listening to or humming along with the music, while you wait for a consultant to become available. Sometimes they even add insult to injury as the robotic voice assures us, “You call is important to us!” 

In 1952 Pee Wee King and his Golden West Cowboys brought out the hit song ‘Slow Poke’. The lyrics describe someone waiting for their date, who failed to arrive at the appointed time. The date seems to have had no concept of the passing of time, or the extreme concern engendered in the waiting party. The hours go by and still there is no appearance of the date. Eventually the waiting person decides that the only thing to do is become a slow poke too.

Waiting patiently?

  • Can you think of a specific occasion when God appeared to have put you ‘on hold’? What were the circumstances?

We may often feel that God has put us ‘on hold’.

  • What do you suggest we do when this happens?
  • Take another look at our text for this week. What did Habakkuk do when God appeared to put him ‘on hold’?

Having expressed his concerns, Habakkuk didn’t just hang up. He placed himself in a position to receive God’s answer (Habakkuk 2:1).

Watchtowers and watchmen

As I pointed out in our last session, in Bible times, stone watchtowers were built on city walls so that the watchmen could see enemies or messengers approaching while they were still quite a distance away.

Jesus referred to a watchtower in one of the parables: “Listen to another parable,” Jesus said. “There was once a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a hole for the wine press, and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to tenants and left home on a trip.” (Matthew 21:33 GNB)

In this case the watchtower was built so that the tenant farmers could appoint a watchman, to take up his position in the tower, to safeguard the grape harvest.

Watchmen and watchtowers were also words used by the prophets to show an attitude of expectation. (Isaiah 21:8; Jeremiah 6:17; Ezekiel 3:17) “Then a guard said, “I have stood day and night on this watchtower, Lord.” (Isaiah 21:8 CEV)

Waiting for our ship to come in

I wonder if our problem as Christians is not that we often lack expectations. We pray about situations, health problems, the salvation of family or friends etc., but do we really expect God to answer our prayers? Are we waiting for His answer? What are we doing while we are waiting?

Waiting and watching for God’s answer does not mean that we should be idle. “Many people wait for their ‘ship to come in’ but forget  that they  must first dredge the harbour, build a lighthouse and a pier so the ship can find them and dock. If they don’t, ‘their’ ship will find another port.” (attributed to John Columbus)

My friends, while you are waiting, you should make certain that the Lord finds you pure, spotless, and living at peace. 2 Peter 3:14 CEV Click To Tweet

Patient watching and waiting for the Lord’s answer

The prophet Micah declared, “I trust the LORD God to save me, and I will wait for him to answer my prayer.” (Micah 7:7CEV)

After leaving school, I joined a bank. A few years later, in January 1959, I opened my life to Jesus. I soon became involved in Wayside Sunday School work. Gradually, over a period of time, I began to sense the Lord wanted me in full time ministry. I spoke to my pastor about this. He wisely advised me to keep serving the Lord as I was already doing, and that the Lord would make His will for my life abundantly clear. Over the next year, the Lord used a speaker at a Youth for Christ meeting, and my daily quiet time readings, to give me a clear call. And in 1965, I attended the Bible Institute of South Africa which was the first step towards a pastoral ministry in the Presbyterian Church of Southern Africa.

As Christians we have a major means of hearing from God—through His Word.

Often, we may come across a passage that we may have read numerous times before, but suddenly the words almost leap out of the page. You know that God put it there just for you.

Have you ever experienced this? I have, on many occasions. 

In Psalm 5:3 David wrote, “In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.” (Psalm 5;3 NIV)

So what have we learned today? I believe the above verse shows us that God doesn’t always leap to answer our prayers the moment we utter them. (If He did, we wouldn’t have to wait or watch, right?) You see, what seems urgent to us, may not in fact be at all urgent in the large scheme of life. It could be extremely important for there to be a delay. It could even be that God plans to bring other things into play before He answers. 

So we need to learn the difficult lesson of waiting on Him and watching for His answer.

In closing, let’s have some fun. Join me and listen to the song I referred to at the beginning of today’s study by clicking on the link. And where I would never call God a slow-poke, perhaps there is some meaning in the words for us. If we really want to follow God’s plan for our lives, maybe we do need to learn how to watch and wait, and be prepared to move at His pace.

If there is any specific prayer I can pray for you, please leave it in a comment section below. Have a blessed week.

P.S.

If you haven’t yet read the background to the prophecy, please do. It will benefit you throughout this series of studies.

Posted in Habakkuk

On the Lookout for God

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Habakkuk 2:1 MSG

‘What’s God going to say to my questions? I’m braced for the worst. I’ll climb to the lookout tower and scan the horizon. I’ll wait to see what God says, how he’ll answer my complaint.’

Image by Siggy Nowak from Pixabay

 A Lookout tower

In Old Testament times lookout towers played a major role in a city’s defence system. Inevitably, most cities had one or more of these towers built at a strategic point on the city’s walls. Men were appointed to be on regular watch duty in order to warn the residents and its leaders of any approaching danger  (See Judges 8:9,17; Judges 9:46-52; 2 Kings 9:17; plus many more).

The book of Nehemiah describes the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem and refers to several towers located along those walls.

We also read in Scripture of towers that were built in vineyards so that someone could be positioned in the tower to prevent the theft of the grape harvest (Isaiah 5:2; Matthew 21:3).

David was the author of many of the psalms in the book of Psalms. In Psalm 61:3 he wrote,“You are a strong tower, where I am safe from my enemies.”

“You are a strong tower, where I am safe from my enemies.” David in Psalm 61:3 Click To Tweet
  • In all honesty, to whom do you first turn when things become too stressful for you?
    • Would that be God (obviously ideal, but do you really?) or your partner? Or even yourself?

Waiting and watching for God

We noted in the last session that the final verse of Habakkuk chapter 1 is in the form of a question. Today, we see the prophet say that he will watch for the answer. He will stand on something high, like the walls of the city of Jerusalem or one of its (lookout) towers. (adapted from Easy English Commentary)

Jeremy Collier in his book by the same title says, “Patient waiting is often the highest way of doing God’s will.”

“Patient waiting is often the highest way of doing God’s will.” (– Jeremy Collier) Click To Tweet
  • What is your reaction when you have an appointment with someone and they keep you waiting? This is a very common challenge in South Africa.
    • What about your country?

Time waits for no man

Many of us find it difficult to just hang around waiting for something to happen or for someone who’s running late, to arrive. We are often in bondage to time.

  • Are you a time fanatic, things must happen when you have decided they should?
  • Are you a clock watcher, more concerned about time than getting the job done? Perhaps you’re anxious to get away from work on the dot of 5, or whatever time you’re due to knock-off. Or do you first get the job done?

Scripture reveals that God is not bound by time. In fact, He often keeps us waiting.

The prophecy of Habakkuk reveals that our God cannot be pressurized into falling in line with our timetable. He may well choose to keep us waiting.

  • When God appears to delay His answer to your prayer, are you inclined to carry on regardless? That’s a temptation I often face. Instead of waiting, I feel I need to just move on. 

Jesus’ tells us to “Watch and pray. Then you won’t fall into sin when you are tempted. The spirit is willing. But the body is weak.” (Mark 14:38 NIrV)

Waiting patiently

Learning to wait patiently for God to answer our prayers is one of the most difficult lessons we have to learn as Christians. We live in an instant age – instant coffee, instant meals, instant digital cameras, instant SMS messages, to name but a few.

  • In what current situations are you under pressure to get things done today – yesterday would have been better?

God is not under that same pressure.

Learning to wait upon the Lord can make the difference between peace and panic in our lives.

The Lord as our lookout tower

In his commentary on this verse, Matthew Henry wrote“The Divine power, made known in and through our Lord Jesus Christ, forms a strong tower for the believer, who relies on the Lord.” (Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary)

Max Lucado commenting on this verse, suggests the following:

    • When we are in a state of confusion we can turn to our shepherd, Jehovah-Raah.
    • If we’re concerned about material needs, we can talk to Jehovah-jireh – God our provider.
    • If life’s circumstances have us in turmoil, we can seek help from Jehovah-shalom – the Lord our peace.
    • Should we be in need of physical or emotional healing Jehovah-rophe, the Lord who heals you, is always available.
    • And if we feel the battle against the forces of evil is becoming too much for us, it is then that we can take refuge in Jehovah-nissi, the Lord my banner.

And in “The Great House of God”, he says:

    • Indeed the Lord is the Good Shepherd who guides us;
    • the One who provides;
    • the quiet voice that brings peace of mind;
    • the doctor or specialist who heals our aches and pains and
    • the one who goes ahead of us like a banner bearer. (adapted fom ‘The Great House of God , by Max Lucado)

Blessed are those who wait

“Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; therefore he will rise up to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” (Isaiah 30:18)

Like the prophet, when we are becoming overwhelmed by life’s trying circumstances we should draw aside to our tower – that special place where we can commune with God without distraction.

There we can be open with the Lord, tell Him all our troubles. We can ask for His guidance. But we do need to be prepared to watch and wait for His answer. This may eventually come to us through the Word, through a podcast, or even through the Holy Spirit impressing the solution to the problem upon our minds. But we need to listen. And watch. And stay on the lookout for His answer!

Share with me in a comment how you are using these messages. I’d love to hear from you, and I will respond. Do you need prayer? I’m happy to pray for you.

Have a blessed week!

P.S.

If you haven’t yet read the background to the prophecy, please do. It will benefit you throughout this series of studies.

 

Posted in Habakkuk

What is caught in the net?

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Habakkuk 1:17 NIV

‘Is he to keep on emptying his net, destroying nations without mercy?’

Pexels – Cassiano Psomas

The Chaldeans (Babylonians) cast their nets

Our text is in the form of a question, “Is he to keep on emptying his net, destroying nations without mercy?” 

We will only look at the answer in the next post.

In the meantime, Habakkuk was baffled by God not dealing with Babylon’s wickedness. God’ appeared to be using this violent nation to judge the sins of His people. This had Habakkuk bewildered.

Habakkuk questions how long these aggressive Chaldeans would get away with such blatant wickedness.

  • Do you think there are any similarities between events across our world today, and those of Habakkuk’s day?
  • What concerns you most about God permitting the destruction of nations and individuals?

Don't be discouraged. It took Noah six months to find a parking place after the rain stopped! Click To Tweet

Persistence in the use of nets

Habakkuk continues to liken the Chaldean campaigns to local fishing practices. When the fishermen made a successful cast and caught a large haul of fish, they spread out their nets. They then removed the fish and hurled the net back into the sea for the next catch.

This is symbolic of how the Chaldeans conquered a nation. They immediately went out with their net again to conquer yet another nation.

Just as the fishermen sorted through their catch and discarded the fish that were of no value, so the Chaldeans took many captives— and killed those who were not useful to them.

Their aim appeared to be to conquer the Middle Eastern world. Habakkuk puzzled over why God allowed the Chaldean king to despatch his armies time and time again to conquer nations.

  • How do you feel about the possibility that God allows the ungodly to persecute the godly?

At times, it does appear that God permits evil forces to attack the children of God. 

Think of some examples.(Think Iraq….)

Satan attempts to destroy Job

Think of the time when God permitted Satan to oppress Job. Isn’t that a perfect example? Scripture says, “he (Job) was a truly good person, who respected God and refused to do evil.” (Job 1:1 CEV)

In that first chapter of Job there is an interesting dialogue between God and His arch-enemy, Satan.

God asked Satan,“What do you think of my servant Job? No one on earth is like him–he is a truly good person, who respects me and refuses to do evil.” (Job 1:8 CEV)

Satan’s retort is, “Why shouldn’t he respect you? You are like a wall protecting not only him, but his entire family and all his property. You make him successful in whatever he does, and his flocks and herds are everywhere. Try taking away everything he owns, and he will curse you to your face.” (Job 1:9-11 CEV)

God then permitted Satan to attack Job in whatever way he wished with this one condition, “Make Job suffer as much as you want, but just don’t kill him.” (Job 2:6 CEV)

Despite Satan’s every effort to destroy Job’s faith in God, by robbing him of possessions, destroying his family members, undermining the support of his wife, and even using the criticism of his so-called friends, Job’s faith remained strong.

Limitations to Satan’s net

  • Do you know of someone right now who is undergoing a severe test of their faith? Ask the Lord to show you how you can help to bolster their faith.
  • Are you currently the victim of a blatant attack? In what ways are you under stress? Speak to the Lord about it.

We are constantly fighting an adversary who is determined to keep us trapped in his net. He uses situations, people, circumstances, even our family and friends sometimes. He has no qualms about “destroying nations (and people) without mercy.” (Habakkuk 1:17)

But the good news is that, as with Job, God limits his power.

No net is too powerful for God

No matter what we may be going through right now, we can hold fast to the knowledge that God is still on His throne. He is still Lord.

We may not understand what God is doing. We may not like what is happening. But hold on to the thought that our mighty God loves us more than we can comprehend. In some strange way that we cannot understand, He is still in control.

Praise God the evil one only has limited power. Jesus came into our world to set us free from his bondage.

“The blood of Christ set you free from an empty way of life…. You know that you were not bought with things that can pass away, like silver or gold. Instead, you were bought by the priceless blood of Christ. He is a perfect lamb. He doesn’t have any flaws at all.” (1 Peter 1:18,19 NIrV)

How can I pray for you today? Leave a comment for me. 

P.S.

If you haven’t yet read the background to the prophecy, please do. It will benefit you throughout this series of studies.

Posted in Habakkuk

Nets full of fish

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Habakkuk 1:16 GNB

‘They even worship their nets and offer sacrifices to them, because their nets provide them with the best of everything.’

Image by Quang Nguyen vinh from Pixabay

Continuing with the theme of fishing, Habakkuk adds that the Chaldeans attributed their gain (their netted catch) to their own military strength, their weapons of warfare and their false gods, rather than to the true God.

They Idolised their nets.

The picture of the net in Habakkuk 1:16  is related to what we saw in the previous two verses—the idea that men were reduced to the level of fishes and creeping things. So the net then speaks of the instruments used by the Chaldeans by which they subdued the opposition. Because these were the means of their success, they also became a focus of their worship. 

Matthew Henry comments, “They admire their own cleverness and contrivance” (Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary)

Whatever we place our trust in becomes a god—power, popularity, prosperity, performance, etc.

  • By this standard, is there anything in your life that might be catagorised as a god?
  • Where might you be tempted to take the glory for some outward success,  when in fact it is God who enabled you to obtain the achievement in the first place?

We find numerous illustrations of this attitude in the workplace. Intoxicated by pride, the worldly see the increase of their wealth and power as evidence of their own personal skill and strength. They couldn’t be more wrong.

Taking precautions

Unfortunately, even among those who claim to be Christians, there are people who forget God’s encouragement in His Word: “In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” (Proverbs 3:6 ESV) when it comes to secular matters. 

  • In what types of situations are you tempted to rely on your own resources, rather than seeking the help of the Holy Spirit?

Self-reliance, self-conceit, self-exaltation, self-seeking, self-worship, are evils that intrude— even into the church and our Christian lives.

We all need a deeper awareness of God’s presence, and to allow Him to permeate our lives.

Let’s move away from the Chaldean problem for a moment.

  • Take a look at the above picture of fishermen drawing in their nets.What thoughts come to mind?

An Amazing Life-changing Catch.

Can you think of two occasions in Scripture when Jesus blessed those fishermen-disciples who had toiled all night and yet caught no fish (Luke 5:5-10; John 21:3-11)?

The first occasion was in the early days of Jesus’ ministry. Following Jesus’ instructions, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break (Luke 5:6 NIV). This had an amazing effect on the disciples. (Did you get that one?)

Jesus followed that miraculous catch with their new calling: “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people” (Luke 5:10 NIV). 

A Miraculous Catch

The second occasion came at the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry, after His resurrection from the dead. Jesus had instructed His followers to meet with Him in Galilee. They waited, but Jesus delayed His arrival. Impatient Peter could not bear being idle, so he announced that he was going fishing, and six others decided to join him. They went out in a boat. Although they fished all night, they did not catch even one single minnow.

Jesus appeared on the shoreline and asked, “Friends, have you caught anything?” ( John 21:5 CEV). When they admitted their failure, Jesus instructed them to “Let your net down on the right side of your boat, and you will catch some fish” (John 21:6 CEV).

Their catch was enormous. “The net was so full of fish that they could not drag it up into the boat”(John 21:6 CEV). When they finally beached their boat on the shore, Jesus instructed them to bring some of their fish so they could have a fish braai (barbecue). “Simon Peter got back into the boat and dragged the net to shore. In it were one hundred fifty-three large fish, but still the net did not rip” (John 21:11 CEV). (How did you do? Did you get both occasions?)

Like the early disciples we still have a job to do - continue fishing for people for the kingdom. Click To Tweet

A full net of fish.

F C Payne has written a fascinating book entitled ‘Seal of God’, in which he teaches about Bible numerics. His comments relating to John 21:11 are extremely enlightening. He points out that the Greek word for ‘fishes’ is ICHTHES with a numerical value of 1,224 (8 x 153). While the Greek word for ‘net’ is DIKTOUN which has the identical value 1224 (8 x 153).

Now then what is the significance of the numbers 8 and 153? Payne points out that the number 8 symbolises ‘reurrection or new begining’ while 153 symbolises the ‘completed church’. So if there had been one fish less in the net, the picture would not have been complete. Once the completed catch had been drawn up on the shore, Jesus said, “Come and dine,” which Payne associates with the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. (Adapted from ‘Seal of God’ by F C Payne)

So then, until God’s appointed number of Christ’s followers has been reached, like the early disciples we still have a job to do— to continue fishing for new additions to the kingdom. 

Praise the Lord, we who have opened our lives to Jesus are already in His net. Let us not idolise anything, or anyone, above Him. 

If you are not sure that you are in His net, please contact your pastor or someone you know to be a committed Christian, who will be able to help you.

Will you share the significance of the number 153 with someone in the next 24 hours? Please share with me in the comment section.

P.S. If you haven’t yet read the background to the prophecy, please do. It will benefit you throughout this series of studies.