Habakkuk 2:1-3 English Standard Version

¹ I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint.

The Righteous Shall Live by His Faith

² And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it.
³ For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.

Each of us want to believe we are sound of faith, to do all that we can to obey God. We seek God, we hear God, we obey God and then that human thing happens, we want to see the results.

I have to think about these Old Testament prophets that were not used of God in instant moments as Elijah and Elisha had been used. Habakkuk delivered the vision and never got to see how it played out for his readers. Here it is thousands of years later and his work speaks to me because God is faithful and His Word does not fail.

Man has that seed planting desire to see the seed grow into something as if he has done something more just plant the seed. Germination is beyond his control, watering might be the task of another, weeding, cultivation and harvest will often be the work of others.

God tells us at the appointed time and we do not get to determine that time. Neither should our desire to see results cause us to doubt God no delay our next opportunity to obey God. God is always about doing kingdom business. Soundness is looking to God for the next opportunity and not to get delayed in that effort by worrying if our efforts have been fruitful.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a English Standard Version

⁴ Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant ⁵ or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; ⁶ it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

⁸ Love never ends.

The bible does not use the specific term law of love but does describe the attributes of agape love. That is God’s perfect love and while it should be noted that this list is not a law it does define how that love acts.

Everything in nature has constraints. Water is subject to temperature, gravity, air pressure, salinity, and solubility. It has a law of constraints which identifies how it will act with predictable results. That is a law unto itself.

If we do not measure up to the standards of agape love in 1 Corinthians 13, it does not mean His love is absent in us. It only means we have not obeyed the law of love. We can love in many different way. The Greek has multiple definitions for love and each has their own characteristics. None of them reach the standard of performance which is only defined as agape.

One of the characteristic of agape love not listed above is the ability to change the heart in which it resides. Often the resistance to obeying the law of love is mental. If we do not think we are worthy we will not act like we are worthy. That is allowing the psychological to overrule the heart.

Why is it we get irritated with the actions of others? Could it be that we have judged them as being unworthy of the love that abides in us? Jesus loved us while we were unworthy and called us into His glorious presence.

Why can’t we do the same?