The Promise of Waiting

Isaiah 40:28-31

Testimony by Cindy Sheffer

Scripture reading:

 “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”

Let’s face it, being told to wait tends to automatically set us up for a negative attitude. We don’t like to wait in the drive thru line (which is happening a lot more lately). We don’t like to have to wait in the doctor’s office (don’t you find it funny they call us ‘patients’, especially since it tests our patience most of the time.) And we don’t like to have to wait on someone to show up when we said we were meeting at a certain time, and they are late…again!

In these cases, the wait (W A I T) becomes a weight (W E I G H T) that weighs us down, causing us to be more concerned about how we feel and missing out on what God has for us. (REPEAT) We all know that God wants only the best for us. So why are we settling for something good or better when we can have the best.

First, did you realize that God wants to prosper you while you wait?

Don’t we have that backwards? We heard a few weeks ago that we are to serve one another in love; that the world will know we are Christians by our love for one another in how we serve one another; and that we are to do everything for the glory of the One we serve …GOD! Rather than being impulsive in our actions, we need to learn to be mindful of what God is leading us to do. Love comes first in all of these. Don’t believe me? Look at 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a

“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth.  Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  Love never ends…”

Love must be the center of all we do. We are to Love God with all our heart, soul, mind & strength and to love our neighbors as ourselves. We see in the above verses what love is and what love is not. And the first thing it says is that love is patient and kind. That means willing to wait.

Our memory verse tells us the benefit of those who wait, Isaiah 40:31:

“but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”                                                                        

When we do things under our own strength, we find we will ‘run out of gas’ sooner. In the previous verse, it reminds us that even the youth will grow tired (how many of us have seen a child play and wish we could bottle up some of that energy?) And the young adults will eventually fail. (For us “older folks”, we tell others to ‘enjoy it while you are still young’). But not so for those who wait on the Lord. Why? Because He is the everlasting God, Creator of all things and promises to provide all of our needs. Our God is the everlasting source! He never grows tired or weary. He gives power to those who are struggling and strength to the weak! And this is not just a one-time thing. Last week, we were reminded that we need to fully trust and fully obey. This includes when we are told to wait! In the waiting, He wants to prosper you, recharge you, rejuvenate you!

Waiting requires us to rest.

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”                                                                                 

Pastor Jerry preached a whole series on these verses. But how many of us truly listened and have put this into practice? That is why the Lord had me put this verse back in front of us. There is a benefit in waiting! Not only do you get to rest, but you also get to dump off the heavy load that is causing you to grow tired! It is wonderful when you have a friend or family member who helps you carry or move heavy items (many hands make a load light). But all too often, we are bull headed like me, thinking that we can get it done by myself. And that may have been true when we were younger, but not so much anymore. The body reminds us of just how much we have abused it, when we should have been asking for help all along.

My Life Lesson: Moving dirt

We need to wait upon God with an expectation.

          “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”   Hebrews 11:1

When we choose to wait on God, we’re assured that what we are waiting for will surely come. Remember, hope is when we truly trust in God. While we may not be able to visibly see it, God is at work, working all things together for our good! Our faith in God is demonstrated as we cooperate and depend on Him, waiting for His timing, and letting Him do things according to His will. Too many times, we do something and then ask God to bless it. In reality, we need to ask God first what He would have us do, follow His lead and then see Him bless it. We will find that God will strengthen us in the waiting and make us grow according to His plans for us.

Yes, we may be waiting for an answer to prayer, or for renewed strength, or for spiritual healing, but the question is HOW are you waiting? Are you patiently waiting in His presence to hear His voice? Or are you growing impatient and trying to do things on your own, like a hungry person who is angry as well? We need to calm the hangry feelings and rest in the waiting. We are told to wait on the Lord! This includes tarrying in His presence AND serving our Lord and Savior.

Did you also realize that we, all Christians, are waiting for something? The Day of His return! He promised that He would return some day to take us all home to the place He has prepared for us. So, while we are waiting, how are we doing this? Are we spending daily time with God? When we come and gather together as a church, are we encouraging each other with our testimonies and our worship? Finally, are we giving God time to talk to us in response to the worship service, which includes the songs and the message?

I kept this message short today because I wanted to allow time for you to respond. I grew up in church and there was always a time to call people to the altar. There were always certain songs that were sung and the pastor would pray and the Holy Spirit revealed to him special needs. I remember hearing people say that someone must have told him or that the songs were just done to play with their emotions. But I always knew that it was God, calling and wanting His children to know that He loved us and He was waiting on us to spend some time with Him. That same God is here today and wants to spend some time with those He loves.

You can listen to Pastor Ken’s message by clicking below:

You can watch the message by clicking HERE.

“The Promise of Church Family!

Matthew 19:29 (NAS95)

Let’s listen to it in its full context found in Matthew 19:27-30,

Then Peter said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?” And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name’s sake, will receive many times as much, and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.”

Jesus is answering Peter’s question when He gives the promise of increase, which includes church family. But what motivated Peter to ask this question? To answer that question, we need to listen to how Jesus responded to the rich young ruler in Matthew 19:16-26,

And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.” Then he said to Him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not commit murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; Honor your father and mother; and You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The young man said to Him, “All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?” Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property. And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?” And looking at them Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

As we now see, it was Jesus’ response to the rich young ruler who was following the commandments of God that caused Peter to first ask, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus essentially says, “You can’t save yourself, but God can save you.”

Seemingly, Peter started feeling a little insecure and needed further clarification after hearing Jesus tell the rich young ruler that if he wanted to be perfect, he had to sell everything he had and give it to the poor.

Was this a bridge too far for Peter? Peter had recently left his business as a local fisherman to follow Jesus as Matthew 4:18-20 recorded:

Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.

In our scripture lesson for today (Matthew 19:27), Peter seems to be reminding Jesus of this: “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?”

Jesus then gave the promise of church family for all who do the same in 28-30:

“Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name’s sake, will receive many times as much, and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.”

The best way for me to explain this teaching is through stories:

During the summer and into the fall of 2003, I resigned my commission as an officer in the US Army to enter seminary and full-time pastoral ministry. We left behind the security and support of being a part of the military community and received many times as much from our local church in family and support. We were blessed and loved and cared for those next 6 ½ years.  

While it was difficult and sad to leave that church family, the LORD’s promise was proven true again as He called us to leave that to answer His call again. As we entered the winter of 2009-10, we drove to New Castle, Indiana to begin my service as the Senior Pastor of this congregation. Again, the LORD provided through the promise of church family with an abundance of love and support as we moved 2,500 miles to a new home where we had no biological family or existing friend group but received many times as much.

Kimberly and I know the truth of the Lord’s promise as a pastor’s family and can tell you from experience that the practice of this truth is “TRUST and OBEY!” Trust that God’s calling is right and true! Trust that God will provide for you when you are obedient to the next step of faith!

This is such a challenge among our culture, even for Christ followers. The need for prosperity and control that governs our society creeps in to govern our minds and hearts and decisions. God calls us to something that is “more” in the sense of the Kingdom, but “less” in the eyes of the world. Jesus promised in verse 30, the “first will be last; and the last, first.”

Listen to some amazing truths about this principle:

The next story is that of the Apostle Paul found in Acts 9:19b-31, the second part of his story:

Now for several days he was with the disciples who were at Damascus, and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” All those hearing him continued to be amazed, and were saying, “Is this not he who in Jerusalem destroyed those who called on this name, and who had come here for the purpose of bringing them bound before the chief priests?” But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ. When many days had elapsed, the Jews plotted together to do away with him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were also watching the gates day and night so that they might put him to death; but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a large basket. When he came to Jerusalem, he was trying to associate with the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took hold of him and brought him to the apostles and described to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had talked to him, and how at Damascus he had spoken out boldly in the name of Jesus. And he was with them, moving about freely in Jerusalem, speaking out boldly in the name of the Lord. And he was talking and arguing with the Hellenistic Jews; but they were attempting to put him to death. But when the brethren learned of it, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him away to Tarsus. So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase.

When telling Paul’s story, we usually tell the first part of the story as that is the supernatural part of it, but it is in this second half and throughout the rest of Paul’s letters that we read about the promise of church family. Paul lost everything he had built in his old life when he followed the Way of Jesus Christ. That is why he wrote in Philippians 3:4b-7,

If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more: circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless. But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

Paul’s heritage, his station, his status, his reputation—none of those things were worth keeping if it meant forsaking Christ. These are not empty words, as Paul is referencing the much that he gave up! When Paul answered God’s call upon his life, God brought the promise of increase to his life through the Church and in the Kingdom of God, but from the eyes of the world he fell from his pedestal to lose everything he had built towards. But He no longer found them worthwhile because the first had become last and the last had become first!

This can be your testimony too because when you trust the promise of church family, you will trust God enough to be willing to listen and obey to what your next step of faith is to walk closely with Jesus.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way. To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

You can listen to Pastor Jerry’s message by clicking the link below:

You can watch the service by clicking HERE.