Feasting on God's Word (One Year Bible)

"A prayer of the prophet Habakkuk" (Habakkuk  3:1) - Prayer and prophecy go together. Pray before preaching God's Word. Let the prayers go up to the Lord. May the power come down from the Lord. Keep on praying after the Word's been preached. Pray that the Lord will follow His Word with His blessing. "... renew... reveal... remember... " (Habakkuk 3:2). Pray that God will remember us - "remember to be merciful." Pray that He will reveal Himself to us as the living God, the God who works in our lives to change us and make us more like Himself. Pray that He will renew our life so that we are no  longer walking in our own weakness. Now, we are living in His strength. "Praise... power... paths... " (Habakkuk 3:3-6), "His praise fills the earth, His brightness as the sunlight. Rays of light stream from His hand. That is where His power is hidden." We need to go to His Word. We need to let His Word shine upon us. We need ...

Habakkuk 1:1-2:14 ‘How long, O Lord, must I call for help, but You do not listen?’(1:2). There are times when it seems that God is not listening to us. What are we to do when we feel like this? Are we to give up on God? Are we to stop praying? No! We must wait patiently for the Lord’s answer - ‘I will look to see what He will say to me’. We must not forget His promise: ‘The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul that seeks Him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord’(2:1; Lamentations 3:25-26). ‘The vision awaits its time... If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay’. Let us ‘live by faith’, awaiting the Day when ‘the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea’(2:3-4,14).

“The divine revelation that the prophet Habakkuk saw” (Habakkuk 1:1) – This is a Word from the Lord. It is given to Habakkuk. It is given to God’s people, Israel. It is given to His Church in every nation and every generation. God’s Word is to be received by God’s people. God’s Word is to be passed on to God’s people. “Didn’t You exist before time began, O Lord my God, my Holy One?” (Habakkuk 1:12). God does not speak to us from the standpoint of a human observer. He’s more than someone who belongs to time alone. He is the eternal God. When we listen to the voice of God, we are listening to the voice of the One who is eternal, the One who is calling us on to eternal life. “I will stand at my guard  post. I will station myself on the wall. I will watch to see what He will say to me…” (Habakkuk 2:1). When we speak about God’s revelation, we’re emphasizing that God speaks to us. Here, we’re emphasizing our response to God’s revelation. God’s Word is heard by us when w...

HABAKKUK 1:1-2:14 ‘How long, O Lord, must I call for help, but You do not listen?’ (Habakkuk 1:2). Lord, there are times when it seems that You are not listening to us. What are we to do when we feel like this? Are we to give up on You? Are we to stop praying? No! Teach us to wait patiently for Your answer – ‘I will look to see what He will say to me.’ May we never forget Your promise: ‘The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul that s eeks Him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord’ (Habakkuk 2:1; Lamentations 3:25-26). ‘The vision awaits its time… If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay’. Teach us, Lord, to ‘live by faith’, awaiting the Day when ‘the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea’ (Habakkuk 2:3-4,14). 2:15-3:19 Teach us, Lord, to ‘be silent’ before You. Help us to ‘stand in awe’ of You. In Your holy presence, we become deepl...

Habakkuk 2:15-3:19 We are to ‘be silent before God. We are to ‘stand in awe’ of Him. In His holy presence, we become deeply conscious of our sin which separates us from Him: ‘Your eyes are too pure to look on evil’. Confessing our sin to God, we pray that ‘in wrath’ He will ‘remember mercy’. We pray that He will ‘renew’ us with His blessing. God answers our prayer. He sends His ‘glory’ into our lives. He fills our hearts with His ‘praise’: ‘I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Saviour. The Lord God is my Strength. He makes my feet like the feet of the deer. He enables me to go on the heights’. ‘Those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles...’(2:20; 3:2; 1:13; 3:18-19; Isaiah 40:31).

“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” (Habakkuk 2:1). Habakkuk doesn’t say to God, “Let me hear what you have to say to me – and I’ll go away and think about it and see if I agree with what you have said.” No! He says something very different. He says, “Let me hear what you have to say to me – and I will be corrected by Your Word to me.” It’s our thinking that needs to be corrected by God’s Word – not God’s Word that needs to be corrected by us. The moment we speak about our thinking being corrected by God’s Word, we hear voices being raised – “The Bible was written such a long time ago. The world is very different now.” Yes! The world is very different now – but we must ask the awkward question, “How many of the changes have come from the fact that we have stopped listening to what the Bible has to say to us?” Have we stopped listening to what the Bible has to say ...

“The Sovereign Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, He enables me to go on the heights” - These are the last words of Habakkuk ( Habakkuk 3:19 ). “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age ...” ( Titus 2:11-12 ). Where does the strength come from - the strength we need for rising from the depths of ungodliness to the heights of godliness? The strength comes from the Lord, the God of grace, the God of our salvation. The Proverbs speak of wisdom. True wisdom is to know that our real strength comes not from within ourselves, but from above, from the Lord.

Day 29 8 Jeremiah 52:1-34 ; Titus 1:1-16 ; Psalm 119:105-112 The final chapter of Jeremiah speaks of the fall of Jerusalem , followed by captivity in Babylon . Difficulties face God’s people in every generation: “There are many rebellious people ... “ ( Titus 1:10 ). The Lord’s people must not be afraid to stand up for Him ( Titus 1:11 ). Whatever others may say and do, this is what we must say and do: “I have taken an oath and confirmed it, that I will follow Your righteous laws” ( Psalm 119:106 ).  Day 299 Habakkuk 1:1-3:19 ; Titus 2:1-15 ; Proverbs 26:3-12 “The Sovereign Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, He enables me to go on the heights” - These are the last words of Habakkuk ( Habakkuk 3:19 ). “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age ...” ( Titus 2:11-12 ). ...