Hinds Feet on My High Places
Hab 3:19 The LORD God [is] my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds’ [feet], and he will make me to walk upon mine high places.
This text speaks to me of spiritual mountain top experiences. Though God may not want us to live on the mountain top (cf. Mk 9), for that is what we get when we get to heaven, and we are not in heaven yet. Still, I believe that it is in the purpose and plan of God that His children experience many spiritual mountain tops. This text is full and running over with wonderful truths and with God’s help we will try to break it down for you today. Today I want to discuss the Divinity in pronouns, what are spiritual high places, and how can we get there.
1. The Divinity in pronouns.
Martin Luther was often heard to remark about divinity in pronouns, and what he meant was that there is a world of difference between the Lord is a shepherd, and the Lord is the shepherd, and the Lord is MY shepherd. That difference is of great spiritual benefit, hence what he calls a Divinity. It is the same difference in saying that is an amazing Corvette and that is MY corvette. One denotes a fact, the other denotes personal ownership or relationship. In the scripture we are looking at today you will notice the prophet uses personal pronouns 4 times. God is MY strength, He will make MY feet, He will make ME walk..., MINE high places
It is one thing as a believer when we recognize God is able to do certain things and quite another when we appropriate them for ourselves. Jesus is a savior, or Jesus is MY savior. I believe that even though the prophet was speaking about his personal relationship and expectations from God, that we can without any harm to the text, claim them as our own. In other words the me and my in the text apply to us as individuals, and are not something that relates to the prophet only. In much the same way we can say with Paul the following:
2Ti 1:12 For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.
Though there are many personal pronouns in the text, again we do it no harm if we appropriate for ourselves as individuals that we can trust God about our salvation. So having established that we can claim this verse as our own, what do we mean when we say that God will make me to walk about MY high places?
2. What are spiritual high places?
Some think the prophet is speaking of the physical return of the scattered Jewish people to hills of Israel. I don’t think that is what is intended, if so I think he would not have spoken in the singular, or described Israel by its high places, because the high places of Israel is where they were continually sinning and offering sacrifices to false Gods.
It makes more sense that the prophet is speaking of God bringing him to spiritual high places no matter what life may throw at him. Let me give a few examples of spiritual high places, but I want to first again, reiterate that you need to see this from a personal vantage point. What high places does God have for you personally. Paul speaks in Ephesians of standing in the evil day, I believe everyone has a day that will be the worst day in your life (I pray you have already passed that point), in like manner I think we have day(s) plural that will be the best day(s) plural of our life. The prophet says, "He will make me to walk upon mine high places." Notice that the high places is plural. I believe God plans many delightful days for His children. So let me quickly list a few spiritual high places in life.
High Places of Personal Communion with God:
Once you had a sin blackened heart, and were alienated from the presence of God. But there came a day when God took away your heart of stone, and in its place gave you a heart of flesh. He opened the treasury of heaven and placed within your bosom His only begotten Son and His precious Holy Spirit. On that day the angels of heaven sang , and your heart did leap for joy. Had you a trumpet, you would have blown it so loud all the world would have heard it, and joined in singing with you and the angels. You felt Him take away your filthy rags, put a royal robe on your back, and a ring on your finger, and you tasted of the fatted calf. What a day, glorious day that was. It was a high place in God. Since that time there have been many other glorious meetings with your wonderful Savior. Like the disciples on the road to Emmaus your heart has burned within you, like John you have fallen at his feet like a dead man, like Moses you have been permitted to see the hinder parts of His glory, and like Zacchaeus you have rejoiced that He has come to your house to fellowship with you. Thank God that He causes us to walk upon such wonderful high places of personal communion!
This should ever be the highest of our high places and that is why it is listed first. We must also ever be diligent lest we lose our first love. The high place of personal communion must always be in the forefront of our vision, calling us from a world of troubles to the sweet hour of prayer. When is the last time you had a high place of personal communion with God? The good news is that God never intended there to be one, two, or a hundred such meetings, if ever God intended there to be a plural spiritual high place it is high place(s!) of personal communion with God.
A High Place of Brokenness:
Revival is not the top blowing off, but the bottom falling out. We are never so high in God as when He brings a deep spirit of conviction and contrition to our hearts. Psalm 51 is probably one of the most glorious chapters of the Bible, and yet it describes David at one of the lowest places in his life. "Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence and take not thy Holy Spirit from me." (vs 10-11). Isaiah was in a high place of brokenness before God when he said, Isaiah 6:5 "Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts."
John the Baptist flew with God’s eagles when he said, Luke 3:16 "John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire:" Men look to enjoy the spotlight, God seeks to get us under His searchlight for, Psalms 51:17 "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise." And, Luke 14:11 "For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted." Brokenness is a high place in God.
A High Place of Sucking Honey out of the Rock:
Deuteronomy 32:13 "He made him ride on the high places of the earth, that he might eat the increase of the fields; and he made him to suck honey out of the rock, and oil out of the flinty rock; " It is a truly remarkable spiritual high place in God, when He by His grace causes us to suck honey out of a rock, and oil out of a flinty rock. God brings us blessings in places that the devil intended for cursing, as when Joseph was sold as a slave into Egypt. We in the natural would never put our lips to a rock to attempt to suck out a blessing, but God has a way of forcing us to do it, and then we simply stand in awe of His majestic power. He makes even the wrath of man to praise Him (PS 76:10 KJV). They mean it for evil, He turns it to good, and we find the sweetest of honey in the hardest of rocks.
High Places of Sacrificial Giving:
Abraham had such an experience when he offered Isaac on the altar. Can you not also remember times of the Holy Spirit’s wooing when He challenged you to give sacrificially to a need. Perhaps a missionary, perhaps a neighbor was in need, God challenged and you gave, and it was wonderful. Most likely it was money you needed for your own needs, but you gave, and were perhaps a little fearful of how your own needs would be met, but God proved Himself faithful, and opened the windows of heaven and your need was met by a totally unexpected source. Do you remember when God dealt with you about tithing, and you finally surrendered to Him in that area. It was a high place of sacrificial giving. A high place because when God gets a hold of a person in the area of finances, it is a demonstration that the person is truly and genuinely saved. A high place of sacrifice, because it is a offering unto God of gratitude and thanksgiving.
When is the last time you gave over and above? When is the last time you had a high place of sacrificial giving? David walked in this kind of giving, he spoke of not offering to the Lord that which cost him nothing. In others words David said I will only give to the Lord that which has value, and is personally costly, because He is worthy.
Paul walked in a high place of sacrificial giving and so taught those under him. Philippians 4:16,17 "For even in Thessalonica ye sent once and again unto my necessity. Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account." Paul said he wasn’t looking for money but for the evidence of the grace of God in a persons life as evidenced in the area of giving. Be open to a financial challenge from the Lord, be willing to walk in a high place of sacrificial giving.
A High Place of Forgiveness/Mercy:
Luke 23:34 "Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots." When you as a believer have been wounded by another, and have been cut deep even unto the heart, and from your innermost being flows not the wrath of bitterness, but the forgiving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, this is a high place in God. Someone has said that forgiveness is the fragrance a flower gives off, after it has been crushed. May such sweet aroma’s flow from us!
There was a time when one of David’s sons rebelled against him, led an insurrection and even tried to have David killed. David’s response: 2 Samuel 18:5 "And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom." Those who have been shown mercy, know how to walk in the high places of offering mercy.
John Mark deserted the Apostle Paul during one of his missionary journeys, but it was Barnabas who restored John Mark. It is one of the hallmarks of the life of Barnabas that he was used of God to restore a fallen brother. satan is the accuser of the brethren, may we never be found to be on his side. May we have high places in our life, where we walk in forgiveness and restoration of the fallen.
A High Place of Praise and Worship:
Since God inhabits the praises of His people (Psalm 22:3), and the Father seeks people to worship God in spirit and in truth (John 4:23), it is easy to see that there are high places in God of worship and praise.
Paul and Silas were in a high place when they offered a sacrifice of praise, Acts 16:23-25 "And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them." They had been beaten mercilessly, they had been falsely accused, and yet instead of grumbling, praise so sweet was offered from their lips, that God sent an earthquake to free them from their bonds. Job also was on God’s highest mountains when after suffering great loss he was still able to praise God by saying, Job 1:21 "... Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD." Habakkuk offers one of the most profound sacrifices of praise found in all the bible when he says: Hab 3:17 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: Hab 3:18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.
There are also joyous times of praise and worship that are high places in God. After the parting of the Red Sea, and the destruction of Pharaoh’s army, the people of Israel had a glorious high time of praise and worship: Exodus 15:20,21 "And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea."
There are also solemn times of worship when the Glory of God so overshadows a person they may even be unable to stand or speak: 1 Kings 8:11 "So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD."
Though the greatest high places of praise of worship are still future for the church (The day of the rapture, the day the devil is cast into the lake of fire, the day of entering the joy of the Lord, the day of casting down of crowns at Jesus feet, the day of your one millionth birthday in heaven) still there are many high places like these that can be enjoyed on earth, for God is seeking such to worship Him in spirit and in truth. Get ye up unto the mount!
I could go on and talk about many other types of high places, perhaps I will in another message. But we need to go someplace else that is very important.
3. How can we get to spiritual high places.
It is one thing to stir up people to seek high places in God, it is another to give practical steps on how to get there. This we hope to do. I believe our text itself provides some very practical guidance.
"The Lord God is my strength..." - this is spoken in direct connection to climbing high places. What is Habakkuk saying, and what does he mean by this? All false religions try to climb the mountain to get to God, not so the child of God. Salvation in the scriptures begins and ends with God. The bible describes our condition prior to salvation as dead in trespass and sins. In another place it says: Ro 5:6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Christianity is not about man’s search for God, but God’s search for man. If God doesn’t help us, we would never be interested in the things of God. 1Co 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know [them], because they are spiritually discerned. So first we understand that getting to high places in God is rooted in the fact that the only way that can be accomplished is through the grace of God. We who would climb high places in God, should be greatly encouraged that God desires this for us more than we do! Habakkuk is saying that God will give me the strength and grace to climb high places in Him. This is proved by the next phrase which says, ...He will make my feet like hinds feet.
Secondly there is a cooperation that needs to take place between us and God, for us to go to high places in Him. I will be very honest, a straightforward reading of our passage here in Habakkuk it seems to place 100% of the job on God, He will make my feet, He will make me walk. On the surface there is no, "what we will do," in the passage, God is the one doing it all. While there are some things that are wrapped up in the sovereignty of God, there are other things that our response to God plays a pivotal role in how things flesh out. That is a very hard to see in a passage where we read God gives us hinds feet and makes us walk on high places.
As a help to understanding the role we have to play (though it is a very small one, for God is the one who does all the heavy lifting, for example He tore down the veil of separation by dying on the cross - that was the heavy lifting) let me just ask you a question. Earlier I talked about high places of personal communion, does anyone here want to say that God makes us have personal communion, or makes us give sacrificially, or makes us forgive others? No, we know from personal experience God doesn’t make us pray, or make us forgive, but he prods in that direction, and sometimes the prodding can be very strong, but He doesn’t force us. It is our yielding to these prompts that causes us to grow in God. Earlier I said God gives us hinds feet, I purposely misquoted the sentence to make the point that it is incorrect to say that God would give us hinds feet, the text is clear, it doesn’t say God would give us hinds feet, but will make our feet like hinds feet. There is a vast difference between the two, the gift of hinds feet requires no effort but that of receiving the gift. Making feet into hinds feet requires that we cooperate with the Holy Spirit in this endeavor. For you see, feet have to do with our walk in God, and though God greatly helps us in our Christian walk, He doesn’t do the walking for us.
I have been quoting from the KJV, if we look at some of the other versions we get a slightly different picture of what the prophet is saying, and while the bulk of the responsibility to walk on high places remains with the grace of God, the other texts give a little better picture of our involvement with that process.
When we read the text in the NAS version we get the idea of a PROCESS that has been completed:
Hab 3:19 The Lord GOD is my strength, And He has made my feet like hinds’ [feet,] And makes me walk on my high places. For the choir director, on my stringed instruments. Do you see the difference in the wording? KJV He will make..., NAS He has made. When you put them side by side you get the picture of a process that involves cooperation between us and God, rather than a total work by the sovereignty of God. In the Hebrew the word translated, "He will make," is "soom" (transliteration), and it is defined as: to make, make for, transform into, constitute, fashion, work, bring to pass, appoint, give. I believe God is always at work trying to sculpt us into a masterpiece for Himself, and that always involves Him doing the lions share of the work, but our cooperation also. If we don’t pray when He woos, our prayer life will be stilted, and will resemble a valley far more than a mountain of God.
The NIV translates the verse in a slightly different way and says, ..."He enables me to go on the heights." In other words God gives us the grace to walk on high spiritual places, but doesn’t force us to go there.
Now let’s get more practical, how does God make our feet like hinds feet? I think it is simple, the Spirit woos us and as we seek after Him, He enables us to climb higher in Him. To him that hath will even more be given. What we are saying is this, even as a weight trainer begins with a small amount, but develops a habit and pattern of exercise, his muscles develop and more and more can be lifted. What used to be tiresome, is now child’s play. Even so it is with our walk in God, consistent daily prayer, and devotions will enable us to build up our hinds feet to climb higher and higher places in God. This is exactly what the writer of Hebrews is intimating when he says: Heb 5:14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, [even] those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Though spoken in the context of understanding spiritual truths (which is another high place in God) what the writer says applies perfectly to what we are talking about. Through practice we can easily tell the difference between right and wrong, and when we have mastered that lesson God will give us more meaty things to chew on.
God wants us to have high places in Him, if we cooperate with Him, He will fashion our feet to climb the mountains of God. For those of you who live in past experiences, while we should ever be thankful for them, as I close this morning, I simply want to say that God has new experiences for us, and that we shouldn’t live in what was. It is as if God is always saying to us, "behold I stand at the door and knock..."
Close: Have you ever had a high place of personal communion with God, can you say with full assurance, the Lord is MY shepherd...
Is there a desire in your life for God to help develop your spiritual hinds feet....
Are you feeling challenged in any of the areas we talked about as spiritual high places, places of brokenness, sacrificial giving, forgiveness extending mercy...
