For years, I have had a system for reading my Bible. I typically read in this order: an Old Testament chapter or two, a portion of the gospel story in the life of Jesus, then a New Testament chapter. Sometimes I will work my way through the Psalms to end in worship.
In recent days, I have been reading through the Prophets, and I have been hit in the face with the relevant and current message that comes from the ancient prophets to our time now. Maybe for the first time in my life, those prophets are speaking to me in a real way and in real time. In my personal reading, having just gone through Isaiah, Jeremiah (and Lamentations), and now Ezekiel, it amazes me how these prophets were relentless in their message to God’s people to not get carried away into idolatry. The plea from the prophets was for the people to return to a singular devotion to God. For so long I looked as these messages as ancient history. But this is just not true.
In the current world situation, now that all the “normal” entertainment has been stripped away, I can look with embarrassment and even shame at how many things we put in our culture that are essentially gods, while the Sovereign God has continued to say, “Have no other gods but me.” I have said recently that even though this is a time of unprecedented personal change, it can also be the perfect time to reset our lives and lifestyles in a way that grows our singular devotion to God.
This coming Sunday, April 5, is Palm Sunday. During our Sunday morning streaming service, we will certainly highlight this fact. But the focus of my message this week will come from the small Old Testament prophecy book of Habakkuk. It is only three chapters long, an easy read. Read it for yourself a few times this week. It is a stark reminder of how much confidence we normally put in a world we personally build up for ourselves, and how easily that world falls away. My message will concentrate on Habakkuk 3:17-19. The book ends on a positive, with the image of a mountain goat with sure-footed balance on the most uncertain of steep cliffs. Let’s remember as we consider the metaphor: the sure-footedness of the goat (that’s us) is not because it trusts in the world, but because it is confident in its security; likewise, God’s people can be, and should rightly be, secure in their faith in the Almighty God.
It seems like the one other scripture I point you to each week is Romans 8. I can never tire of reading this chapter. I can never seem to dig deep enough in the riches of its truths. Romans 8 echoes the ancient prophet Habakkuk and our singular faith: Jesus Christ is our only hope. Jesus Christ is the only security. When our trust in Christ is there, nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Prepare for Sunday by reading the passages above and meditating on what God is saying to you. See you online — Sunday morning at 10:00!
Love you all,
