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Please open your Bible to the place where it is written: "Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD." This text in Psalms 27:14 is
repeated encouragement to wait on the Lord. What does it mean to wait on the Lord? Why should one wait on the Lord? What are the fruits of waiting on the Lord?
To wait on the Lord is to stop all activity, quiet yourself, and focus your attention on Him. One can see this definition by the context of the word wait. Consider John 5:3: "In these lay a great multitude of
impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting
for the moving of the water." Imagine the painful, desperate, sickly crowd, longing for healing. They stare breathlessly down into the pool of Bethesda, scanning its smooth quiet surface, straining, focused, waiting
for the angelic disturbance. It gives the idea of undistracted focus, total concentration, undivided attention, quiet enduring patience. When
one waits on the Lord one looks intently for communication from Him: "Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors." Proverbs 8:34. Position yourself in spirit so that you can
hear God's communication to you. Sanctify yourself, get into His courts, turn from the din and clamor of the world, submerge in His holy presence, and then… wait. Search for, look for, seek the face of God in
spirit, "When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek" (Ps 27:8) It is in the face of God that one finds communication, direction: "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which
thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye." (Ps 32:8) God's communication is real, though it may be subtle. Only those focused on His face, seeking Him, waiting on Him, will find it. As you wait on the Lord, as
you seek Him, be mindful of the manner in which God will lead you. Do not expect God to have every little task written down for you, or even for Him to whisper to your heart by His Spirit. God's leading and direction takes many
forms. God leads though His written Word, through wisdom, through godly counsel, through circumstance, and by direct communication from His Spirit. As you wait on God, be mindful of the written Word of God, and of
His spoken word revealed to you in time past: "I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope." (Ps 130:5) This will be your protection from the deceit of the enemy: "the sword of the Spirit, which is the
Word of God." (Eph 6:17) You are to test any revelation you receive from any source with the Word of God; God will never be inconsistent with His written Word. Whether it be counsel from a trusted authority (Acts
17:11), your own strong feelings in a matter (Pr 28:26), impessions from the spiritual realm (1 John 4:1), or direct revelation from God, never choose a course of action or a disposition that will violate any portion of God's
written revelation to you, so far as you understand it. Peter even challenged God, three times in succession, based on his own incomplete understanding of divine law, until he was enlightened by the Spirit of God and understood.
(Acts 10) It was appropriate for him to do so. You are to do the same. Also, there are some things that you need not pray about. If God has already spoken in His written Word concerning your matter, you have your
direction from Him and there can be no holy motivation for continued delay, even in prayer, once your direction is clear. For example, it is not necessary to wait on the Lord for direction to discern whether you should help a
neighbor who is naked and starving (James 2:16), or whether you should flee from fornication (1 Cor 6:18) or from idolatry. (1 Cor 10:14) In addition to the Word, there are many things that you must be about in the
course of daily life which require wisdom. The fact that you are directed to request wisdom from God is evidence of this. "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it
shall be given him." (James 1:5) You need wisdom because you are expected to discern between good and evil, between what is prudent and foolish, between what is appropriate and inappropriate. If God intended to tell us every little
step we are to take, tell us every word we are to speak, precisely and explicitly, there would be no need for wisdom. Godly counsel, as from our parents and our mentors in the faith, is also part of God's direction.
We are instructed to carefully weigh the advice of a father and a of a mother: "My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother. For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains
about thy neck." (Pr 1:8-9) We are also to submit to our brothers and sisters in the community of the saints (Eph 5:21), as well as give careful heed to those in spiritual authority, considering their manner of life, their advice,
and their instruction in Christ: "Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.... Obey them that have the rule over you, and
submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is
unprofitable for you." (Heb 13:7,17) This counsel is not always perfect, but when coming from those that love us, is clearly part of God's plan for giving us direction in our lives. The fact that God directs us to receive directional input in these ways is evidence that He does not intend for us to always listen for a "voice within" as we wait on Him.
Still, the way of God may not be clear to you from divine law, holy wisdom and godly counsel. There are many things that are not yet clear to us simply from Scripture, wisdom, and godly counsel alone. You may not
know the Scriptures well enough yet, apparently godly counsel may differ from one person to the next, and you may not have any personal experience and/or wisdom in your matter. It is then that the face of God should be sought with
all diligence; it is then that you should wait purposefully on Him. Even with the other forms of God's direction available to us, still, this effort is often daily, hourly. It may be that He will direct you by enlightenting your
understanding of His Word, by granting you additional wisdom, or by the timely and appropriate counsel of another to whom you have not mentioned your concern. However, it may be that He will guide you explicitly by His Spirit. Evidences of this type of explicit leading are common in the Word. Philip was lead out into the desert by the Holy Spirit, and instructed to join himself to a particular chariot in a large company traveling from
Jerusalem. (Acts 8:26-29) Once Philip heard the eunuch reading Isaiah, he moved in wisdom and direction from God's written Word to share Christ with him. God's direct revelation were not necessary beyond the explicit guidance to
get him to the particular chariot in which the eunuch sat. Peter was instructed of the Holy Spirit that three men sought him and that he should go with them. (Acts 10:19-20) The church of Antioch, as they ministered to the
Lord and fasted, was collectively informed by the Holy Spirit that He had called Barnabas and Saul for a special evangelistic mission and that the saints were to separate them for that purpose. (Acts 13:2) Joseph was instructed by
an angel to keep Mary as his wife, even though she was pregnant from Someone else. (Matt 1:20) Each of these were instances of righteous men, diligently seeking the will of God in His Word, and in godly counsel and wisdom. In each
case, believers were instructed in matters beyond the scope of this level of revelation and God moved especially to give them direction as they needed it. This waiting on the Lord is a matter of continuity,
something that one is regularly doing without extended interruption or lapse. "Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment, and wait on thy God continually." (Hosea 12:6) It is not a seasonal, sporadic, or spasmodic
thing, neither is it unique. Waiting on the Lord is to be as embedded in the life as breathing. The duration of time spent in waiting quietly is generally significant, even in times of intense trouble: "I am weary
of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God." (Ps 69:3) Though God may respond to you quickly, do not expect this, "Shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear
long with them?" (Luke 18:7) Why should one wait on the Lord with an obedient heart? Because it is commanded, "Wait on the LORD, and keep his way." (Ps 37:34a) Wait on the Lord because nothing is of
faith that is not directed by the Lord. Self-will is your own way, the only alternative to waiting on God, "and whatsoever is not of faith is sin." (Rom 14:23) Your only option, rather than waiting on the Lord, is to do what is
right in your own eyes, to serve your own interests, and to pursue your own agenda. Your way is not generally God's way, but an abomination to God, even though you convince yourself that you are seeking His kingdom
and are doing great things for Him. Many there are who sincerely think, "Have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?" (Matt 7:22), only to find God grieved
and angered by their self-will: "And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Matt 7:23) If He himself has not clearly bidden you in the way you take, if it is not according to His
Word, if it is not according to holy wisdom... it is self-will. Self-will is sin. Instead, seek His face, and prepare your heart to obey Him once He makes His will known unto you. If you do not know what He bids you
do, and when, do nothing. Wait on Him. Wait on the Lord until you know what to do. Refuse to walk in foolish ignorance of the Lord's will. "Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is." (Eph 5:17) "I
am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." (John 15:5) As our example, this was even the manner of our Lord Jesus.
He did not work in His own initiative and for His own ends: "The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise." John 5:19. "I can of mine own
self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me." (John 5:30) "I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent
me." (John 8:42) What are the fruits of this, this waiting on the Lord? You will be preserved from shame and confounding: "Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord GOD of hosts, be ashamed for my
sake: let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel." (Ps 69:6) "Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed." (Ps 25:3) You are preserved in integrity and uprightness: "Let integrity and
uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee." (Ps 25:21) Your heart will be strengthened, "Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD." (Ps 27:14) You will be exalted: "Wait on the LORD, and keep his way, and he shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it" (Ps 37:34) The Lord will be good to you that wait
on Him: "The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him." (Lam 3:25) When you are oppressed and you wait on Him, God will deliver you. David reminds us, "Say not thou, I will recompense
evil; but wait on the LORD, and he shall save thee." (Pr 20:22) David is able to say this with integrity borne of experience: he had been there, done that, and it worked. Do not despair when God tarries long in His
response, but continue to patiently wait on Him to work on your behalf. The reason that God sometimes waits a long time to deliver and justify one that waits on Him is to extend the goodness of the final outcome. "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." (Is 30:18) Finally,
waiting on the Lord is simply good to do: "It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD." (Lam 3:26)
Be persistent and faithful in this, daily. Your Lord comes at a time that you think not. Be |
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