Yet I will rejoice in the Lord

Q: What does the Bible say about rejoicing in difficult times?

The Bible encourages believers to rejoice in the Lord even amidst hardship, as seen in Habakkuk 3:17-19. In Habakkuk 3:17-19, the prophet illustrates a scene of desolation, stating that despite the barrenness of the land and the absence of essential provisions, he will choose to rejoice in the Lord. This 'yet' signifies a profound trust in God's promises and mercy, highlighting that even in our darkest moments, we can find joy through faith in the God of our salvation. It's a reminder that our rejoicing should not depend on our circumstances but on our relationship with God, who is our ultimate source of strength and hope.

Q: How do we know God is near during our trials?

God's promise to be our strength and deliverer reassures us of His presence during trials. The assurance of God's presence in our trials is crucial for believers. In Habakkuk 3:19, the prophet reflects on how the Lord is his strength and the source of his joy amidst challenges. This is a fundamental aspect of sovereign grace theology: understanding that God is aware of our struggles and has a plan to use them for our good and His glory. By recognizing that God is intimately involved in our lives, we are encouraged to trust His timing and continue praying, knowing that He is always listening. Our experience of His faithfulness becomes a testament to His grace and goodness.

Q: Why is having hope important for Christians?

Hope in God provides strength, perseverance, and joy amid challenges. For Christians, hope is not merely a wishful thought; it is an assured expectation grounded in God's promises. The prophet Habakkuk expresses a profound hope despite dire circumstances, stating that he will rejoice in the Lord. This hope is vital as it fosters resilience and enables believers to look beyond their immediate trials and trust in God's ultimate plan for salvation. In our spiritual lives, having hope helps to cultivate a heart that longs for God, pushing us to seek His presence and find joy in our relationship with Him. This anticipation also prepares us for the eternal glory that awaits when we are with our Savior.

May it please Almighty God to bless us as we meditate in his word. Let's turn to the prophecy of Habakkuk and the third chapter and we'll read the last three verses. Prophecy of Habakkuk, chapter three, and reading from verse 17. Although the fig tree shall not blossom, Neither shall fruit be in the vines, The labour of the olive shall fail, And the fields shall yield no meat, The flock shall be cut off from the fold, And there shall be no herd in the stalls. Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength and he will make my feet like hinds feet and he will make me to walk upon my high places to the chief singer on my stringed instruments.

Habakkuk is one of those short prophecies. We're not sure when it was written. Some thought it was written in the reign of Manasseh, but I don't think that's actually confirmed. But nonetheless, it's a necessary prophecy. And although part of it, or most of it, is really quite difficult to understand, these last three verses are a bit simpler. And we're thankful for that. And so the Prophet tells us about the situation which existed or would exist, and again that can apply really to many scenes, it can apply to The seen then, the seen now, the seen at time to come, and also we could take it as some reference to the end of all things. So here we have this statement given by the Prophet.

He tells us, although the fig tree shall not blossom, and the list of things here really shows to us a scene of desolation. We think of it, a fig tree, when it says blossom, of course, fig trees, in fact, don't blossom, but they have fruit. Although the fig tree shall not have fruit, neither shall fruit be in the vines, and the labor of the olive shall fail, and the field shall yield no meat. The flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls.

Well, all those items, especially in the days in when it was written, were essential for the health and the livelihood of the people. They weren't just things which were not necessary. They were all very necessary. And so how good it is to realise that we have a God who knows all about us, all about the situation.

And so as we think of this and how desperate it would be if we were living in the Middle East and this was the situation, there was no fruit on the fig trees, there was no fruit on the vines, there was no olives, And the fields were bare, there was no corn. And there were no animals in the fold or in the herds. A scene of complete destitution.

Well, we can think of that, of course, as a natural scene and we can understand it. But, you know, we can apply it also to our spiritual scene. We can apply it to our soul and recognise how these things can apply to us in a spiritual way. And of course if they do, what does it do?

It means that we are barren in the things of God. It means there's no fruit in our lives and we do not bring honour and glory to our God. And sometimes such a situation is very hard to bear. It's very hard to perhaps feel that God has, for a season anyway, turned his back upon us when there's no actual fruit being grown, nothing to eat. We can see how the Lord dealt with his ancient people. Well, it was a very barren time and a very barren situation.

So the Prophet's able to give us this vivid picture, but he doesn't stop there. What a mercy for us that our God doesn't stop there in our lives. Because he goes on to say very gloriously and very wonderfully, there's a very simple word, A very short word, and it's yet. Yet.

So we see the barren state, we see the scene of destitution, and then the Prophet, under the influence of the Spirit of God, is able to say yet. That means that there will be a change, and there will be a situation which is different. And that's why the Apostle, the Prophet rather than, is able to declare, yet I will rejoice in the Lord. So when everything appeared to be dark and dismal and without any benefit, yet he's given that faith to say yet, there will be a time, yet, when I will rejoice in the Lord. Once again, he will come. Once again, he will bless me. And he gains the picture by saying, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

Well, we look in our lives. We may see barrenness. We may see hardness of heart. We may see rebellion. We may not see any sign of any spiritual fruit, but does God give us faith to look beyond, faith to believe, yet a time will come, a time will come, yet I will rejoice in the Lord. That's a wonderful blessing, it's a wonderful promise. to understand that in our lives. Perhaps we wonder, will the Lord ever look upon me? I prayed so much. My prayers haven't been answered. And I feel just like this description, which is given in a natural sense. I just seem far off. There seems to be no evidence of any fruit at all in my life.

And yet, what a wonderful thing if God gives us faith to believe that we will rejoice, not in what we've done, we will rejoice in the Lord. Well, I wonder if that touches our heart with a hope, a good hope, not a false hope, a real hope, that God will visit us, that God will come to us, that God will hear our prayers.

Because God knows how to deal with us. God knows all about us. And so what a blessing it is to have a position set before us like this. Yet, I will rejoice in the Lord. It's a blessing, isn't it, to have a situation develop where you and I can rejoice in the Lord.

Not turn away, not give up. Although the scene looks very dark, everything appears to be against us. You see, the Prophet runs through a whole number of different fruit-bearing things, trees and grain, etc. and even the animals were cut off. Nothing at all. But he didn't give up hope. He didn't give up hope, yet he looked forward. Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.

What a mercy it is to have a God who does not deal with us as our sins deserve. A God who is long-suffering. A God who is gracious. A God who knows all about us better than we know ourselves. And God brings us sometimes into these situations to make us appreciate that which He gives to us and that which He favours us with.

Sometimes we tend to take things for granted. Well, God deals with us in love to our souls and sometimes He brings us into these situations when we begin to be in want. We may have carried on fairly aimlessly, not too worried about our spiritual state. And then this occurs and we begin to be in want because all the things that we thought we had and looked forward to have vanished away. and we were in want.

What a mercy if God then comes and shows us, yet, yet, a time will come, a time will come when we will rejoice in the Lord. We can rejoice in the Lord in so many ways and to think that our God remembers us with that favor he bears unto his people. But he does come and visit our soul with his salvation. That's why the prophet goes on to say, I will joy in the God of my salvation. He will joy in the God of his salvation. What a wonderful mercy. What a wonderful blessing that is. And you see how the Prophet comes in that personal way. He says, I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

There are two wills here. Two wills which God gives. The first is a will to rejoice, and the second is, I will joy in the God of my salvation. Well, I wonder this evening, if as we look into our own little lives, and perhaps we may see hardness and far-offness, wandering away from God, and yet to think there is hope. There is hope. that we can look unto the Lord. The psalmist says, I will look unto the Lord. And here we have, I will rejoice in the Lord.

No reason to give up hope. God is ever alert to hear and answer prayer. And yet he tells us that he will be inquired of by the house of Israel to do these things. We should not just assume Everything is going to happen. There's going to be a complete turnaround for our benefit. He will be inquired of.

We are to pray. You may say, well I have prayed and there's been no answer. We're to press on. We're to pray again and again. We're not to give up. No, the Lord tests our faith. And in testing our faith, he doesn't always answer in accordance with our timetable.

We may think we've got a good timetable. We may think we've got a good case. We may think God will surely answer my cry, answer my prayer. Well, God has a time. We have a time. God's time is better than our time. And the great reason is very simply that God's time will bring honor and glory to himself.

Sometimes if we analyze our life and we may be praying for things, and we might think we're praying for things in a right way, and yet there may be that undercurrent that perhaps we will, we want to boast that God's heard our prayers. And is that for his honour and glory, or is it for our honour and glory? Sometimes we perhaps forget that our God is a jealous God.

He will have the honour and glory. He won't allow you and me to claim it for ourselves. We will be as nothing that the Lord Jesus might be all and in all. And that's not Comfortable for our flesh, but it is comfortable for our spirit. When we realize that God is dealing with us in love to our souls. He's teaching us. He's instructing us. The 107th Psalm tells us so very beautifully.

He led them forth by the right way that they might go to a city of habitation. That was Israel. It wasn't an easy path, was it? They had many obstacles, but God was with them. And God was showing them His power, His strength, and what He would do. And He was causing them to look to Him and to be dependent upon Him for everything. For food, for water, for direction. And God never failed them. You think of Israel. You think of what He did for them in their journeys.

There they were in the wilderness. What was the direction they should go in? Had no idea. But God sent that clear direction through that pillar of fire by night and that pillar of cloud by day. When that moved, Israel moved. They couldn't mistake it, could they? That it was God's hand.

And what a blessing in your life and my life when God condescends, as it were, and takes us by our hand and leads us on safely. He doesn't leave us to just wander on aimlessly. He didn't leave Israel to wander on aimlessly, but he told them what they must do. And sometimes God tells us what we must do. We don't always like it. It doesn't always agree with our plans. But don't forget, he led them forth by the right way. And today, he leads his people still by the right way.

And what's the purpose of that? As it was in Israel's case, that they might go to a city of habitation. That they might end in Canaan at last. And that's so true of the people of God. They might get home to glory. It's a wonderful blessing, isn't it? And that's why we can believe this great truth.

Although things may appear dark and difficult, yet I will rejoice in the Lord. There is a good end. There is a good prospect. And what a blessing if God gives you and me patience to wait for his appearing. And so he says here, yet I will rejoice. It's a very confident statement, isn't it? I will rejoice in the Lord. And so it's a mercy if you and I are blessed with like faith.

Because if we rejoice in the Lord, we will also joy in the God of my salvation. Again, as I've said, it's a personal statement, my salvation. Each one of us need God to speak to our hearts and show us his salvation so that we can then by his grace claim it as my salvation.

The Lord's looked upon me He's remembered me in my lowest state. He hasn't cast me aside as a comrade of the ground, as somebody of no value. He waits to be gracious. He waits to be gracious. He tests us. He tests our patience. We have need of patience. But God never leaves us. nor forsakes us. What a mercy that is to have a God who is gracious. We don't deserve it, do we? How often have we turned our back upon God? How often have we said perhaps in our heart, I'm not going to do that. That doesn't suit me. I think it's the wrong timing.

Well, it's a good and wonderful favour if God gives us grace to submit ourselves under the mighty hand of God. God gives grace to submit to God's will, to submit to God's guidance, to submit to His good hand, taking us and leading us on safely. Yet then, he says, I think it's a wonderful word, having given that list of difficulties, then to be able to say yet. Remember, this is the Prophet. speaking, yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I wonder, have we rejoiced in the Lord? Have you rejoiced in the Lord? Have you rejoiced in his leading? Have you rejoiced in his goodness? Have you rejoiced in his mercy? Well, it says the prophet, yet I will rejoice in the Lord.

And sometimes the Lord gives us faith to believe that although things appear very contrary at the moment, yet to believe that we will rejoice in the Lord. That's a humble and a holy confidence which God gives to his people, so that we are found in waiting on the Lord. waiting and watching for His appearing. Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation. There's only one God who can give us salvation, and that's the Lord God Almighty. Salvation, of course, means the saving of our soul.

How necessary that is. how vital it is to have the evidence that Almighty God, none less, has looked upon us in order to save us, save us from destruction, to set our feet upon a rock. We may perhaps sometimes have felt like David when he tells us in the 40th Psalm, I waited patiently for the Lord. And he inclined unto me, and heard my cry, and brought me up out of a horrible pit, set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings, and hath put a new song in my heart, even praise unto our God. David knew the path. He knew the difficulty. There he was in this pit. He couldn't get out. You had to wait patiently. It's not easy, is it? If we've got ourselves into a pit, we can't get out. It's just too slippery. It's just too difficult. We have to wait for God.

Well, what a mercy then to be able to come with that humble confidence to realise, yet, while I'm in this state, yet, I will rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation. Because David was brought up and he was put on that rock. And what is that rock? The rock is Christ. What a wonderful blessing then, if God comes to you and me, lifts us out perhaps of that situation, when we can't see our way, everything seems to be lost, to be negative, like this list, and yet our God is with us. I will joy in the God of my salvation.

You know that God gives us faith to believe. Faith to believe. Although the path may seem dark, yet to believe that he will shine light upon us. And that glorious light of the gospel, that glorious light which shows us our salvation, that brings us to that position where we're able to say, by the grace of God, it is well with my soul. And my friends, we can say that when God shows us himself. When he shows us that he, the almighty God, gave his life in order to procure our salvation.

What do we say? What a saviour, what a saviour. I'm utterly unworthy of any notice and yet this great God has looked upon me, he's remembered me and so what a mercy it is to then come and recognise I will joy in the God of my salvation. They're two lovely words, aren't they? Rejoice and joy. And what a blessing when they relate to our spiritual life. We rejoice in what God is doing with us. And joy and the end result in the God of my salvation. And therefore he goes on and he tells us, the Lord God is My strength. No one else. The Lord God is my strength. I wonder whether you and I have that confidence from God. You won't have it yourself.

But if the Lord has looked upon you perhaps and just touched your heart, just drawn near and given you a hope in his mercy. Well, God knows whether you're there, whether you have a hope. Perhaps it's not as strong as you wanted, but it's a little hope. What a mercy if God gives us a little hope so that we don't give up. We hold on by God's grace. We hold on our way. And to realize then that I have no strength myself. Left to myself, I'll fall. Left to myself, I'll give up. The Lord is my strength. Oh, God is a tremendous strength. To think that if God is on our side, we cannot fail. We cannot fail. Because there are no failures with God. No failures. And so be able to say, the Lord God is my strength. You know, these statements are very positive and very strong.

Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord is my strength. Wonderful, isn't it, when God enables us to believe, to believe that He has heard our prayers, He has heard our cries, and we realise it's not us, it's that which God has given us. The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man or a righteous woman availeth much. What a blessing it is. The Lord God is my strength.

We feel weak perhaps, we feel frail, and yet God gives us strength. Strength in our inner man to believe that this great and glorious Saviour has not cast us off. to realise the door of His mercy stands open all day to the poor and the needy, that knock by the way. You and I won't get through if we're self-confident, but if we feel poor and needy, we can come to the Saviour. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and humble of spirit, and you shall find rest. for your soul.

That's a wonderful truth, a wonderful word. And the Lord spoke, may we lay faith, lay hold of it by faith. And so the Lord is my strength. And then he goes on to say, and he will make my feet like hind's feet. A hind is a very nimble animal. can spring from one rock to another. Very firm in the progress they make. And that's why we have this example. He will make. We may not have it at the moment. We may be very timid. We may fear. And yet, this was the truth. He will make my feet like Heinz' feet. and he will make me to walk upon my high places.

What a great blessing it is to have a God like this. A God who leads us, a God who directs us, who doesn't cast us off. He's gracious to us and he deals with us in love to our souls. How wonderful it is to think that almighty God has a love toward us. And the love which we read of in the Word of God, that everlasting love, a love which doesn't fade away. It's the same yesterday and today and forever. Why is that? Because God is faithful. God is faithful.

You and I can come to him. We can claim his promises. We can come to him and say, Lord, thou hast said, and plead that he will remember us for good. Remember us with that favour that he bears unto his people. So, by his favour, we shall be able to come and say, although everything may appear black, everything appear impossible, the things which are impossible with men are possible with God, and be able to believe yet. Yet, don't forget that little word, yet, although things look black, yet I will, by God's grace, rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. be able to say with humble confidence, the Lord God, none less, the Lord God is my strength and he will make my feet like hinds feet, firm, firm in walking, firm in running and he will make me to walk upon my high places. Yes, so that there will be that evidence that God is with us, that God has led us, that God is directing us, that God's taken us in hand and he's gracious to us. He will make me to walk upon my high places.

This is the great God, my friends, that Habakkuk had. This is the great God. that the Church of God has. This is the great God that by his grace you and I have today. May we therefore come and thank God that he is faithful, that he is a God who does not deal with us as our sins deserve, but because of his love and compassion He remembers us in our lowest state.

And finally, the prophet says to the chief singer on my stringed instruments, clearly, he wants people to know what God has promised. He wants people to know what God has done. And that's good for you and me to realize, because we owe our God such a great debt. Such a great debt you and I can never repay, but it's good to desire that we may indeed sing praises unto God and to truly thank Him for every blessing and every mercy.

Well, I trust we're thankful tonight that we have such a clear statement really in a difficult prophecy. to realise, as Habakkuk says, although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines, the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat, the flock shall be cut off from the stall, and there shall be no herd in the stalls, a very barren and dark scene. Yet, don't forget, yet, I will rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength and he will make my feet like hind's feet. and he will make me to walk upon my high places to the chief singer on my stringed instruments. Amen.

Yet I will rejoice in the Lord

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about rejoicing in difficult times?

How do we know God is near during our trials?

Why is having hope important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

Comments

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Yet I will rejoice in the Lord

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about rejoicing in difficult times?

How do we know God is near during our trials?

Why is having hope important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

Comments

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