Sermon Central
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The Blessing Of Waiting On God
Contributed by James Thomas on Oct 27, 2013 (message contributor)
Summary: God's Promises are true wait with expectancy and assurance
The blessing of waiting on God
1 I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.
waited -to expect :- gather (together), look, patiently, tarry, wait (for, on, upon
a.) He turned toward me
b.) He heard me while I was calling him he heard me
c.) While I was calling him
d.) Isaiah 30:18-19
e.) 18 And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.
19 For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee.
30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint
Yes, you read it correctly. "Blessed are all who wait for him
As I wait I position myself to be blessed
I must position my self in a position to be blessed
Wait 1. To look forward to eagerly. 2. To continue with expectation. 3. To be in the position of readiness or to be reserved for. All of those are actions we must have to receive from God.
DOES NOT MEAN TO DO NOTHING
WAITING INVOLVES AN
EXPECTATION BASED ON KNOWLEDGE AND TRUST
Without knowledge and trust, we simply won’t wait—at least not without a great deal of anxiety—and usually not without taking matters into our own hands.
Based on its past performance, we wait for the news to come on at six o’clock because we believe the TV station will be operating. For many years they have continued to do so, and so we trust the staff to give the news at six o’clock.
Or, we know that throughout our lives we have seen the sun rise every single day. It has never failed even once. We know or believe, therefore, we can count on it based on its past performance, so we wait for the light and the warmth. But above all, we are expecting God’s laws of creation to continue to work.
5.I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, And in His word do I hope. 6 My soul waits for the Lord More than the watchmen for the morning; Indeed, more than the watchmen for the morning. 7 O Israel, hope in the LORD; For with the LORD there is lovingkindness, And with Him is abundant redemption. 8 And He will redeem Israel From all his iniquities.
As the watchman waits for the sun because he knows it is reliable, so the Psalmist waits for the Lord even more because he knows the Lord is more reliable than the rising of the sun. In other words, waiting is fundamentally wrapped up with knowing, trusting, and believing in the Lord and His person (His character) and in His promises.
The ability to wait on the Lord stems from being confident and focused on who God is and in what God is doing.
It means confidence in God’s person: confidence in His wisdom, love, timing, understanding of our situation and that of the world. It means knowing and trusting in God’s principles, promises, purposes, and power.
WAITING INVOLVES SEEKING THE LORD
Lamentations 3:25 The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, To the person who seeks Him.
On the positive side, waiting always means seeking the Lord. When we enter God’s waiting room we are not to just sit as one might in the doctor’s chair. Rather, we need to spend time seeking Him. This means:
WAITING INVOLVES
TAKING ACTION AT THE RIGHT TIME
There is a time to plow, a time to sow, and a time to reap, but they are never done all together or at the same time.
WAITING INVOLVES
RESTING IN GOD’S TIMING
Psalm 145:15 The eyes of all look to Thee, And Thou dost give them their food in due time.
Galatians 6:9 And let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary.
Waiting means resting in God’s timing and activity while taking care of our responsibilities—the things we can do and should do as set forth in the Word of God.
On the one hand we are to rest and be still. This stands opposed to running ahead of the Lord and taking matters into our own hands and turning to our own human strategies. For instance, when one’s spouse is acting in disobedience to the Word (as it is perceived by the other spouse) the great temptation is to nag and brow beat the other partner with arguments and complaining, etc., but Peter’s direction to us in such situations is far different. Our responsibility is to seek to win them by Christlike behavior while we wait on the Lord to work in their lives, using our testimony if He sees fit to do so.
