Rejoice in the LORD

Habakkuk 3:18 ~ "Yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation."

There is a great need for every believer to have their joy anchored upon the LORD. When circumstances fail and the conditions of our world show themselves to be completely fractured and unstable, shall we then try to hold on to those things that cannot sustain? Many do--and suffer in their lives with a dreadful instability.

But the prophet Habakkuk looks at the circumstances around him and says a tremendous word that shifts his focus... and that word is: "yet."

Consider the failing circumstances that Habakkuk described in the verse previous to our text for today: "Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls..." (Habakkuk 3:17). Then, in the face of all that, the prophet says: "yet."

When your surroundings fail and your situation falls into the depths of anguish, do you have a "YET" statement in your life? Where do you look when the storms of life assail you? 

For many, their "YET" is to look to some worldly solution. Some false teachings will tell you that you need to "look to yourself" to find the hope that you need. Governments will insist that if you look to them, they can sustain you. Scientists will proclaim that you must trust their wisdom to lead you away from the fractured conditions you've experienced. Economists will entreat you to trust that they can provide you with the means of providing for yourself. And, my friends, the list goes on and on and on. 

But for those who have put their faith in Christ, when we find ourselves in the dire throws of untenable circumstances, we must look to the LORD for our support. Our focus when we see the ravages of life must be Jesus.

Two things the prophet says when he faces the condition of his world: he will rejoice in the LORD and he will take joy in the God of his salvation. 

Can you "rejoice in the LORD?" Can you trust that, despite the circumstances that are swirling around in this world, God Almighty has not lost one moment to chance or allowed one circumstance to escape His governing power? To rejoice in the LORD is to look to Him and know that all He does is right, that He is sovereign, just and good. To rejoice in the LORD is to rejoice in the character and conduct of the Almighty even when you might not understand His work.

Can you "take joy in the God of your salvation?" The wrath of God Almighty will never touch those who belong to Christ. His salvation is as secure as He is, and all who have come to Christ for the salvation of their souls will discover that He has lost none of all that belong to Him (see John 6:39). To "take joy" is to look to what God has promised in salvation and receive it for yourself. We may suffer in this world, but we will never lose the next one if we belong to the LORD Jesus.

Is that your "YET" point of view? When troubles mount and hardships come, can you say as the prophet Habakkuk that your view is focused elsewhere--that it is set upon the LORD who saves. Concerning God's judgment and wrath that will fall upon the earth, Jesus told us in Luke 21:28, "Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." 

Beloved, if circumstances should rise or fall and the conditions become a blessing or a burden, let none of that shift your focus away from the LORD. Find your rejoicing in Him, and draw up all your joy from the infinite well of salvation. 

In His Grace,
​Pastor Michael

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