Wait on the Lord

Waiting . . . Wait on . . .

Question: What types of things do you typically “wait for”?

- Wait for the bus?

- Wait at the doctor’s office?

- Wait in line at the bank?

- Wait in line at the fast food restaurant?

- Wait for a letter coming in the mail?

Question: What is meant by “wait on the Lord”?

Waiting on the Lord By: J. Hampton Keathley, III , Th.M.:

Let’s take a look at what J. Hampton Keathley III, Th.M. a 1966 graduate of Dallas
Theological Seminary and a former pastor of 28 years said in his article:

http://www.bible.org/page.php?page_id=777

“The Old Testament emphasis is clearly on the daily walk and the need to wait on the
Lord and His providential care in the pressures of life. As we will see, in the New
Testament, the focus is on the promise of Christ’s return. The emphasis, however, in most
contexts where the words for waiting occur, is on the impact waiting on the Lord’s return
should have on our daily walk.”

Additional points from Keathley’s article:

- Waiting Necessitates the Passage of Time
- Waiting Means Confident Expectation

- Waiting Involves Seeking the Lord
- Waiting Involves Taking Action at the Right Time (. . . There is a time . . .)
- Waiting Involves Resting in God’s Timing
- Waiting Means Trusting in God and His Goodness
- Waiting Involves Taking the Right Action
- Waiting Involves Learning to be Content with God’s Provision and Timing
- Because of Who God is and what He is able to do
- Waiting Straightens and Builds Character

Now let’s take a look at what Scripture states about
“waiting on the Lord”:

Isaiah 30:17-19 (NIV):

17 A thousand will flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five you will all flee away,
       till you are left like a flagstaff on a mountaintop, like a banner on a hill."
18 Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion.
       For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!
19 O people of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. How gracious he
      will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you.

Isaiah 8:16-18 (NIV):

16 Bind up the testimony and seal up the law among my disciples.
17 I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob.
I will put my trust in him.
18 Here am I, and the children the LORD has given me. We are signs and symbols in
Israel from the LORD Almighty, who dwells on Mount Zion.

Psalm 38:14-16 (NIV):

14 I have become like a man who does not hear,
whose mouth can offer no reply.
15 I wait for you, O LORD; you will answer, O Lord my God.
16 For I said, "Do not let them gloat or exalt themselves over me
when my foot slips."

Psalm 40:1-2 (NIV) For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1 I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.

Psalm 106:12-14 (NIV):

12 Then they believed his promises and sang his praise.
13 But they soon forgot what he had done and did not wait for his counsel.
14 In the desert they gave in to their craving; in the wasteland they put God to the test.

Psalm 27:13-14 (NIV):

13 I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

Psalm 62:4-6 (NIV):

4 They fully intend to topple him from his lofty place; they take delight in lies.
With their mouths they bless, but in their hearts they curse. Selah
5 Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.
6 He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.

Questions:

- How well do you wait on the Lord?

- How could you wait on the Lord better?

Reference:

The following websites were referenced on May 10, 2007:

http://www.biblegateway.com

http://jesus-is-the-way.com/Wait.html