Friday, May 03, 2013,
8:30 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with the song “In Faithfulness He Leads Me” playing through my mind. Speak, Lord,
for your servant is listening. I read Habakkuk
3 (NIV): http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Habakkuk%203&version=NIV
A
prayer of Habakkuk the prophet. On shigionoth.
Lord,
I have heard of your fame;
I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord.
Repeat
them in our day,
in our time make them known;
in wrath remember mercy…
In
wrath you strode through the earth
and in anger you threshed the nations.
You
came out to deliver your people,
to save your anointed one.
You
crushed the leader of the land of wickedness,
you stripped him from head to foot.
With
his own spear you pierced his head
when his warriors stormed out to scatter
us,
gloating
as though about to devour
the wretched who were in hiding.
You
trampled the sea with your horses,
churning the great waters.
I
heard and my heart pounded,
my lips quivered at the sound;
decay
crept into my bones,
and my legs trembled.
Yet
I will wait patiently for the day of calamity
to come on the nation invading us.
Though
the fig tree does not bud
and there are no grapes on the vines,
though
the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though
there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,
yet
I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will be joyful in God my Savior.
The
Sovereign Lord is my strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
he enables me to tread on the heights.
I Stand in Awe
Habakkuk recounted what he knew of God from of old, and also
what he had heard from God in this dialogue between him and God. Habakkuk had
just complained to God concerning the wickedness and the injustice he saw going
on in the land of Judah and how it seemed God was not answering prayer. Then
God answered him by telling him he was sending the Babylonians to invade Judah,
as God’s judgments against her for her sins of idolatry and spiritual adultery.
Habakkuk struggled with the idea of the wicked Babylonians being used as God’s
divine instrument of judgment against God’s people, yet he finally reconciled
himself to the fact that this must take place.
Habakkuk, having reconciled himself to the fact of what must
surely take place agreed with God, and basically said, “So be it. Let it
happen, yet in judgment show mercy.” I have prayed that prayer to God many
times concerning what I know is about to hit this world of ours. He accepted
that this was the only way in which God’s people would get their hearts right
with God. It pained him so that these things must take place, yet he accepted
God’s sovereign will. I empathize with him. And, I also agree with God.
To Deliver the People
The purpose of God’s judgments on Egypt was to deliver God’s
people from slavery to Egypt. God’s purpose of judgment on Judah was to deliver
God’s people from slavery to sin, because they had become so idolatrous and
adulterous, rebellious and unrepentant, although he had warned them time and
time again. Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins, having taken our
punishment for sin upon himself so that we can be free from slavery to sin and
eternal punishment. Yet, many professing Christians today are not following the
Lord, and are not exercising their freedom in Christ from slavery to sin. They
have become lukewarm, complacent, rebellious, idolatrous and spiritually
adulterous (See Rev. 2-3). So, God’s purpose in judgment in these final days
will again be to deliver his people out of slavery to sin. When judgment comes,
he will have his people’s attention, they will cry out to God in humility and
repentance, and God will revive their hearts and renew their faith in him. Yet,
he will deliver them also from the influences of false teachers, of our
government and media, and from the influences of our society, for their eyes
will now be opened and they will see clearly the times in which we now live and
how they had been so deceived.
I Will Wait Patiently
Habakkuk was distraught that his people would have to endure
such suffering at the hands of the wicked Babylonians, yet he resolved in his
mind and heart to put his trust in Almighty God and in his sovereign will and to
wait patiently for the time in which God would then judge his divine instruments
of judgment. He resolved also to endure the time of testing that would come
upon his people and their land, and to rejoice in the Lord and to be joyful in
God, his Savior, despite how bleak things would become.
The Bible says that such a time is yet coming upon this
earth. I believe the signs are there pointing to the fact that this time is
very near, i.e. it is at the door. Yet, we are not to be afraid nor are we to
doubt God when all hell begins to break loose, literally. God will allow this
evil trio of the dragon, the beast and the false prophet to reign and to rule
the whole earth for a short period of time – a time in which God will also
visit this earth with his wrath. Yet, I believe that through this time the eyes
of the blind will be opened and that people will flock to Jesus Christ and to
his gospel, that the church will be revived, and that we will be delivered from
the control of deception that has been over us as a people, particularly here
in America. In other nations their eyes may have already been opened.
Though this will be a time of great hardship, persecution
and death to those who hold to the testimony of Jesus Christ, I believe there
will be great rejoicing that the church has now been set free of her captivity
to man’s influences and she will now become what God intended her to be all
along. And, God will be our strength and our shield to see us through these
difficult days that lie ahead, and he will give us the victory over our enemy
Satan so that we can endure, be victorious, and overcome all that Satan throws
our way. Amen!
In Faithfulness He
Leads Me / An Original Work / March 20, 2013
Based off Various
Scriptures
(Ps. 26:3; 86:11; 91:4-5; 111:7-8; 119:73-76;
Is. 25:1,4&9; 42:6-7; Hos. 2:16-20)
Teach me Your ways,
Lord, and I’ll walk in them.
Give me a pure heart.
I’ll fear Your name.
Your love is always,
ever before me.
Continually I’ll walk
in Your truth.
You will cover me with
feathers.
Under Your wings I’ll
find refuge.
My Lord’s faithfulness
will be my
Comfort and my shield.
The works of His hands
are faithful and just.
Trustworthy are all of
His precepts.
Your hands have made
me, and they have formed me.
Give understanding of
Your commands.
I have put my hope, O
Lord, in Your word.
Your teachings, O Lord,
are righteousness.
Lord, in faithfulness
You have
Afflicted me so I may
learn of
Your unfailing love
and comfort
And Your truthfulness.
You are my husband;
You have betrothed me
In love, compassion
and faithfulness.
O Lord, You are my
God, I’ll exalt You.
In faithfulness You’ve
done wondrous things.
You’ve been a refuge
for those who’re needy;
A shelter in storms;
shade from the heat.
This is the Lord, we
trusted in Him,
Let us be glad and
rejoice
In His salvation which
He
Provided through the
Lamb.
Open the blind eyes;
free all the captives.
Tell them of Jesus:
“Be born again!”
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