I had several people ask me for the message from Sunday....So here is most of it....
3 For the vision is
yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie.
Though it tarries, wait for it; Because it will surely come, It will not
tarry. 4 "Behold the proud, His soul is not upright in him; But the just
shall live by his faith.
In your bible
underline…. wait for it and live by faith
These two work
together. Patience and faith
Look at verse 3
the vision is for the appointed time….wait for it, it will surely come….
Habakkuk complained vigorously to God about the situation.
God's answer to Habakkuk is the same answer he would give us, "If it
seems slow in coming, wait patiently, watch for it…the promise is coming."
It isn’t easy being patient.
It is actually
downright hard to “wait for it”, being patient is actually an exercise in trusting God. Now the truth is the more practice the more patience you
develop!!
Patience is a fruit of the spirit
which we all have hidden in our God given DNA but it must be cultivated. As God told Habakkuk, "Wait patiently." We must trust God even when we don't understand the why….. Who can understand God???
Jesus HAD THIS TO SAY about patience…..
Luke 8:15 (NKJV)
15 But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who,
having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with
patience.
If bearing good fruit didn’t take patience than everyone
would be doing it! God’s way is not the
easy way….to bear fruit…to walk in His will and ways, takes patience.
WE all want things to move quickly, but God wants to see
patient, believing hearts that hold steady when things aren’t moving
quickly. When you seek God first, you get the
vision and then you don’t give up…..you are following the “no-failure” way.
And I think you would agree that it’s much more desirable to
be patient and hold out for God’s best
than to move quickly and wind up out of His will.
“For as the heavens
are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my
thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9).
God’s will is not just a good plan,
it’s the best plan. It’s a plan worth waiting for.
That is why Hebrews 10:36 says,
"For ye have
need of patience , that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive
the promise."
Other versions use the word endurance but they all start
with the same greek word….HUPOMENE
The word hupomene, a compound
of the words hupo and meno. The word meno is the primary root
of the word, and it means to stay, to remain, to continue, or to permanently
abide in one place. It is the same word that Jesus used in John 15:7, when he said, John 15:-7 (NKJV)
7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will
ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.
The word hupo means under, as
to be underneath something that is very heavy.But when it is connected to the word meno—becoming the word hupomene—
This is the word patience and it implies… completely committed to maintaining the
position, you will stay under that heavy load…..a vision is a heavy load….hard
work…you will stay under it as long as
it is necessary to achieve victory.
Now this doesn’t mean
wait idly by… Listen even if you are on the right track following the vision,
you’ll get run over if you just sit there.
No, this means unwavering, doing your part, sticking to the
plan, walking it out with determination…
Nothing can sway or
move you to change your mind. You are not going to relinquish the vision God
has called you to no matter how long it takes!
No devil in hell
is going to take you off course! You
will keep moving forward no matter what.
It is a faith that manifests as a tough, resistant,
persistent, obstinate, stubborn, tenacious spirit that refuses to
let go of what it wants or believes.
You must have patience if you intend to beat the devil at his game and
successfully do what God has called you to do
WE must Wait without
wavering…persevere for the appointed time….(Joseph)
Joseph had a vision for his future, called
to be a great ruler…. but it didn’t just happen it was a He started out a
young, punk kid that had to walk through a series of unfortunate events that would
teach him and grow him and then at the appointed time lead him to his
destiny. He traveled from the pit to
the palace but it was no easy journey…without a vision he would have given
up.
Moses had a vision to set his people free
then spent forty years in the desert and wilderness…he had to go from pampered
prince to hard working shepherd. He
needed that time of solitude and work to learn spiritual wisdom, it
wasn’t enough that he had the world’s wisdom but combined with seasoned
spiritual wisdom it would be just what God would use to deliver His people. Moses had a vision and he held unto it
and learned and grew under the guidance of the holy spirit until the appointed
time!
So in verse 3 we see an important key to victory, patience and then we move to Verse 4
4 "Behold the
proud, His soul is not upright in him; But the
just shall live by his faith.
Live by faith…not by
self-sufficiency….
The proud his soul is not upright, meaning he is not
saved…Here is a paradigm given…the lost and the found…the damned and the saved…
Live in your own
strength or live in faith!! Anything that is going to require faith is going to
require vision and vice versa any vision given is going to require faith. It motivates us, empowers us to move forward
into our destiny!! WE must choose to
live in faith!
The just shall live by faith …key verse throughout scripture…we see it repeated again and again
Hebrews 10:38-39 (NKJV)
38 Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws
back, My soul has no pleasure in
him."
39 But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but
of those who believe to the saving of the soul.Romans 1:16-17 (NKJV)
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
Galatians 3:11 (NKJV)
11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for "the just shall live by faith."
God is a faith being. WE are born of HIM. WE are faith beings. The measure of faith that was imparted to us at when we
became born again is powerful. .. but it must be nurtured and cultivated
by God's Word.As we grow in our
knowledge of God, we are developing our faith; Making ourselves stronger in the
Word of God.
Releasing our faith in
the promises of God and activating them in our lives.
·
Then we will see the vision come to pass. It is
a fact. God's
Word will work for us, but we must be in Faith.
Hebrews 11:6 says,
“But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God
must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek
him.”
·
WE must live in the faith and confidence that God has called us to the
vision, is equipping us for the vision and that as we put our faith into action
He will accomplish His purposes.
Now, here is the really cool part
about faith and patience….
Almost everywhere you find faith mentioned in the Bible, you
will also find patience. Why you may
ask??
·
Without faith, patience has no power
to call into reality the thing desired.
·
Without patience, faith many times
will fail to stand firm on God's Word and see the vision become REALITY.
How many people have you met with great vision, great faith but when
suddenly something doesn’t seem to be happening the way they thought it should,
they hit obstacles, etc…instead of persevering and waiting for the Lord
to bring it to fulfillment they give up….fits
and starts…
You know what I am
talking about right? God tells
someone to do something they tell everyone all about it (like Joseph)….then
because they have to work at it….because God is working something out in
them….because they aren’t promoted right when they think they should be, used
when they think they should be, successful when they first start, they
quit…they abort the vision…
If God gave me a vision to be a great musician but I didn’t
have the patience and endurance to study and practice would the vision come to
pass?
I have had people tell me I have a vision to start a church
but they are not willing to serve in a church right now….That vision will die
because they are not willing to persevere through the process to get to the
destiny! Are you getting this???
God gave Pastor and I a vision that we would write a book…20
years ago. Have we written a book? No.
Have we been faithful to that vision, yes. We write, we practice writing every
week. WE share our stories with you and
at the appointed time we will see it come to pass. We have the faith and the patience to see it
happen.
Don’t abort the
vision and move onto something else….the vision is the preview to get you
to your destiny the journey along the way is the equipping to prepare you for
the promise delivered!
Hebrews 10:35-36 (NKJV)
35 Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has
great reward. 36 For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done
the will of God, you may receive the promise!
You can have the faith to believe for
the vision but then you must have the patience to see it come to pass…. You
have to give faith time to work!
Faith
and patience are partners for the promise!
I want to give you an example….so that you
are really getting it…
if you need healing,
you go to God's Word and find out that it is His will for you to be healed.
Then you follow Jesus' instructions in Mark 11:22-24:
1. You
speak to the sickness and command it in Jesus' Name to leave your body.
2. You
have faith and believe it will come to pass.
3. You
receive your healing by faith
Now, you have put your faith in action and it is time for patience to get involved. Patience will cause
you to stand on God's Word until the healing comes. Waiting to see it come to pass at the
appointed time!!
·
Patience is the force that keeps you
operating in faith, standing strong until the manifestation comes, without acting or speaking in doubt or unbelief. (Watch your confession)
WE must learn to act the same way in every circumstance of
life.That comes only as a result of being single-minded on God's
Word—doing what the Word says, not what feelings or circumstances
tell you.
Jesus always responded in faith, giving no
thought to feelings or the things around Him.
Practice responding in faith statements…God said it, I believe it and
that settles it!!
Faith and patience turn vision into
destiny!!
By having the fruit of patience, we will be able to stand
against every doubt or fear that may come, regardless of how we feel or what we
see. Understanding that we are waiting for the appointed time
will enable us to say ….
My Father's Word is true. No matter what storm comes my way,
I stand stable and fixed on the Word of God. Nothing Satan brings against me
will be successful.
By operating in that
level of patience, your faith will be able to stand. No matter what the circumstances are telling you!
Patience and faith are two keys to having
victory…. Faith to believe the Vision and Patience to see it come to pass….
If patience is
working in your life, it's just a matter of time until your victory comes to
you.
It's not a question of if your victory will
come—it's only a question of when it will come.
But for us to reach that glorious and long-awaited place of
victory, it is essential that we have hupomene (patience and endurance) in
our lives!
Good word!
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