Tag Archives: Grapes

1 BY THE WAY…MESSENGERS AND MESSAGE

Christian Life, ,

Philippians is done. In the interim, while I wait for the next series to take shape, there are some random thoughts that have captured my attention as we have meandered through Paul’s letter to the Philippians. Following Paul’s unwitting disclosure of his own life and character in his writings, I have gleaned some valuable insights into this life of faith and obedience to which we have also been called.

Did you know that everyone is s messenger? 

There can be absolutely no doubt that we belong to Jesus. We are bound to Him by faith. He has received us. We are forever His and joined to Him for now, in this life, and in the life to come. Whatever we face and experience in this life, Jesus has accepted full responsibility for every detail of who we are, what we need, and why we are here. We are unconditionally loved and treasured, far beyond what we can fully understand or appreciate. 

This close and unbreakable union with Jesus has some spinoffs for us. One that I am recognising with increasing understanding is that we are His messengers and His message. 

 What do I mean? 

Whether we like it or not, whether we are aware of it or not, in every circumstance or situation we face, we are unwittingly saying something to those around us. Yes, we testify to Jesus by our words but…what we don’t say…or what we say by implication…often says much more than our words convey. 

I am realising that I am a walking message about the one in whom I believe. This means that my union by faith in Jesus has moment-by-moment evidence in the nitty-gritty of my life…whether my faith in Jesus translates into a character being transformed or whether my witness is only cosmetic. 

Jesus spoke some sobering words to those who pretended to follow Him. 

“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭6‬:‭46‬ ‭NIV‬‬

This question has no answer except in the conscience of those who want to get what they can get from Jesus without the intimacy and fruit of true union with Him. 

Jesus spoke of fruit that identifies the nature of the tree. 

“By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7‬:‭16‬-‭17‬ ‭NIV‬‬

So, I ask myself as I journey through each day, “What message am I passing on to the people I meet? Does the way I conduct my life…what I say and how I say it, what I do when I’m alone or in company, meet someone I consider beneath or above me…speak of Jesus or of myself…I, me, and mine? 

Being a witness to Jesus is so much more than preaching to an unbeliever. Being a witness means being both a messenger and the message…every moment of every hour of every day…being aware that Jesus and I are one. 

HABAKKUK’S SECOND RESPONSE – 6

Bible Study, ,

The prophet turns from reflecting on God’s mighty power to inflict vengeance on the nations that had terrorised His people to his own personal response to God’s disclosures.

First…dread for what was about to happen.

Habakkuk 3:16 NLT
[16] “I trembled inside when I heard this; my lips quivered with fear. My legs gave way beneath me, and I shook in terror…”

In the face of what God had done to other nations, was Habakkuk’s dread for Babylon or for Israel? It seems that he felt for the horror that was to come upon God’s enemies. At the same time, he was comforted to know that Babylon would not get away with their cruelty towards God’s people.

“…I will wait quietly for the coming day when disaster will strike the people who invade us.”

Despite the terrible things that would happen to the invaders…and the prophet expresses his dread for what God would do to them…he was confident of God’s vengeance that would rescue His people from the suffering the Babylonian army would inflict on them.

He knew what the horrors of invasion, brutal treatment, displacement and exile, and the day-to-day pain of slavery in a foreign land would mean. As a native of Judah, the prophet was surely no stranger to the horrors of war. The vicious and cruel Assyrians had already made inroads into his people’s lives. The northern kingdom of Israel had vanished and been replaced by foreigners conquered by Assyria. Now the threat of Babylonian invasion was even worse to contemplate.

However, in the midst of all that was to come, Habakkuk has a new song to sing.

Habakkuk 3:17-18 NLT
[17] “Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, [18] yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!”

Comforted by God’s absolute authority over the nations, the assurance of His perfect righteousness and justice in His ways, and His use of nations to fulfil His purposes for His people, the prophet could face the future with faith in God. Regardless of his circumstances, despite the total collapse of Judah’s resources, Habakkuk’s song expresses his delight in his almighty and infallible God.

What if there was nothing left of Judah after the invasion! God was still there, and God was still his God. Habakkuk concludes his wild dance and song of celebration with a quote from his ancestor David…

Psalms 18:33 NLT
[33] “He makes me as surefooted as a deer, enabling me to stand on mountain heights.”

…who knew how to navigate the stresses and distresses of being a fugitive from Saul’s murderous hatred with God’s grace and help.

There were still mountains ahead for Habakkuk to climb, the steep heights of uncharted terrain that the Babylonian invasion would bring, but the prophet was confident that God would give him all the equipment he needed, “the feet of a deer”, to make it safely to the top. From those heights of sometimes difficult and painful experience, Habakkuk would have a panoramic view of God’s dealings with His people. He would see God’s mighty hand at work, guiding and disciplining Israel towards His goal…a people prepared to receive His Messiah.

Although this prophecy is expressed in poetic language as a song to be accompanied by stringed instruments, Habakkuk wrote it to make a strong and surprising point. Beginning with despair and lamentation over the conditions in his nation, he progresses through disclosure and understanding to a new stance of celebration and joy. God’s got the whole situation in hand and He will work it out for the good of His people and the glory of His name. From this perspective, Habakkuk could express his faith in God with a powerful, celebratory song… a song worth singing in the midst of our similar circumstances that caused the prophet so much distress but brought him to new confidence in the God of his ancestors.

Habakkuk ends his story with a declaration of faith that puts him in the category of those who, righteous by faith and faithful to the Lord, will live in and through the midst of war and destruction.