Good morning, all!
Father, we know that what is seen is not necessarily all there is because that would leave You out of the picture. May it never be Lord, let our eyes fail until we find You, see You and trust You alone. Help us Lord to live by faith when anything else is contrary to Your love and Your grace, Amen.
Habakkuk 2
1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.
I will not get lazy as I watch, I will get higher and not be affected by things of the world, I will wait to see what God will say to me when I get my act together.
2 And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make [it] plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
That’s when God answered ME, and said, write down the vision and make so it’s easy to understand so the one who reads will not hesitate and run.
3 For the vision [is] yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.
This vision has a set time to come to pass but when it comes it will be speak truth, it might take a while but it’s worth waiting for because it’s a SURE thing, it won’t be late.
4 Behold, his soul [which] is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
Look, the soul which exalts itself is NOT righteous in His eyes, instead the just will live their life by His faith for it can NOT be earned or accomplished.
Bottom line
God gave Habakkuk a vision to share with the world, it was so great that anyone that read it would be motivated to run with joy and enthusiasm…so it must be good news. Notice Habakkuk didn’t move from his post until God spoke, he waited high above all that might try to influence him until he heard from God…doesn’t the bible say they that wait upon the Lord He will renew their strength so when I don’t wait for God I move forward in my own strength, my own will…destined to fail…it’s like entering a canoe race without a paddle. Ha! So why are we running?
[Heb 12:1 KJV] Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset [us], and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. The race is called our life, do we shuffle our feet or perhaps limp along? Guess it just depends on what we’re carrying on any given day. The verse does say to take OFF every weight that is weighing us down, makes sense hard to run with a backpack full of weights, right? What weight are you carrying today? Worry, fear, guilt, condemnation, sorrow…all kinds of weights that keep us from running the race, did you notice how we are to run? PATIENTLY, seems like that is the opposite of running but it’s not. It says I will run even when things aren’t perfect, not as I expect, I will run even when I don’t understand the race, I’m in but I will still run. Running is a forward motion, it speaks volumes about living by faith, it shows purpose…passion…conviction…destination…heart…it is the witness of a life lived with God and for God…it’s plain for all to see. We have to make it plain as day for the world to see, they should see us running and say we can live no other way and run the race of faith. Two powerful truths in verse 4, the first is this life doesn’t require us to lift up our soul…we’re NOT looking to accomplish anything, seek God’s approval or make ourselves good enough for God, He actually considers that to be unjust or unrighteous. In that state of mind, we take the power of judgment from God, and we determine what is or is not worthy. The righteous just live by HIS faith, we all have faith which really belongs to God, and it is given to us. So, when is the appointed time Habakkuk speaks about? Well, I believe the appointed time was Calvary, Jesus did not lift up His soul. What were His final words on the cross? Into Your hands I commit my spirit. Jesus was committed to live by faith NOT flesh, He loved us enough to cover all our sins…NO other way to forgive like that unless we live by faith. Why do you think He had to crucify the flesh? Yeah, because your flesh doesn’t forgive, it’s NOT righteous and definitely don’t see anyone just…NOT by might, nor by power but by the spirit says the Lord, this is how we live.
Point to Ponder
Are you living by faith? [2Co 4:18 NIV] So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. You are if your eyes only look to heaven and God, everything else will fade away anyway.
Let’s all live by faith, In Him Phil
Faith – Family – Friends
