Thought for the Morning
Habakkuk 2:1 I will stand my watch And set myself on the rampart, And watch to see what He will say to me, And what I will answer when I am corrected.
There are two times in this verse that the prophet Habakkuk uses the word “watch”. He is watching to see what the Lord has for him.
In the next series of verses the Lord answers Habakkuk. Included in His answer is the phrase in verse 4: “Behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him; but the just shall live by his faith”. This phrase is repeated three times in the New Testament (Rom.1.17, Gal. 3.11, Heb.10.38). Faith is a concept that is somewhat difficult to understand. In Hebrews 11.1 we are told that faith is a thing hope for, and the evidence of things not seen. We have not seen God, but we are to believe, or have faith that He is. Those who have gone before us have demonstrated their faith, and the evidence of their faith was seen in their actions. We are to have such faith. Our faith is to result in actions honoring our Lord.
The prophet Habakkuk, by his faith watched. When we watch we are to wait for the Lord to answer. Our rampart can be any place, but I picture a place of battle, struggle, and deep need. When the enemy is before us, whatever it may be, we are to watch in faith as the Lord deals with it. There is nothing too small, or too large that He cannot handle.
We also have the phrase, “And what I will answer when I am corrected”. How do we answer God? If we are to be corrected, it seems that we might be of limited faith. When the Lord directs us, it is by our faith that we respond to that direction. His will is that we might walk according to His precepts and it is our faith that puts us on the path.
1 Corinthians 16:13-14 Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong.
14 Let all that you do be done with love.
Habakkuk did not rush off and deal with what was before him, he waited for the Lord’s direction. He waited to see “what He will say to me”. We are to do the same. Just a thought for the morning
Carl