From beginning to end the Bible tells of people who had to wait on the Lord. Noah and his family waited in the ark for about 370 days for the flood to come and go. Isaac and Rebekah waited about 20 years for the Lord to open Rebekah’s womb. Jacob and Rachel waited at least 10 years for the Lord to open Rachel’s womb. That means each of the patriarchs of Israel waited long for the child they wanted.
Israel waited 400 years in Egypt until God sent Moses to deliver them from cruel bondage. Moses waited as God sent plague after plague on Egypt before bringing Israel out with the Egyptian’s gold and silver in their hands. Israel’s youngest generation walked in the wilderness for 40 years before God allowed them to enter the Promised Land.
Hannah waited in barrenness for years, all the while with her rival Peninnah belittling her for it, before she gave birth to Samuel, one of Israel’s greatest prophets. Samson’s mother waited first in barrenness. Elizabeth and Zechariah could not have a child until old age, when they became parents of John the Baptist. From the time God spoke through the last Old Testament prophet until he sent John the Baptist to prepare for Jesus, Israel waited in silence for 400 years.
After Jesus ascended to heaven, the church waited together in prayer for 10 days until Jesus poured out the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Jesus had commanded them, “Wait for the promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4).
Paul waited in jail for at least two years before going to Rome for trial, and waited there under house arrest for two more years. Jesus hung on the cross for about 360 minutes, every minute was agonizing, and many were hell. The church has waited 2,000 years for his Second Coming, but he will most certainly come.
Over and over God has tested his chosen ones by calling them to wait on him. A delay, even when extremely long, is not a sign of God’s rejection, but of his favor. Some day you will see a light in the distance and hear the clanging of a bell. Your train will pull into the station.
Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)
Even if our faith falters, it can recover and grow much stronger.
Abraham did not waver through unbelief as the time drew near for God to fulfill his promise. The passage we explored in the previous posts—Romans 4:18–21—describes the state of Abraham’s faith as he neared the end of the journey with the time for Isaac to be conceived drawing near. We know this because Romans 4 describes his faith at “about a hundred years old” (Rom. 4:19). At that point he did not waver through unbelief.
But what was the state of his and Sarah’s faith 15 years earlier?
Leaning on their own understanding
When Abraham was 85 and Sarah 75, Sarah grew impatient with waiting to become pregnant. This was 10 years after God initially promised Abraham that he would be father of nations. Genesis 16:2 says, “Sarai said to Abram, ‘Behold now, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.’” By Sarah’s calculations, she and Abraham could not wait any longer.
In their culture it was acceptable for barren couples to get a child by the wife’s giving her servant to her husband as a surrogate mother. So what should the man of faith make of his wife’s idea? The situation was not clear, for the promises God had given Abraham never specifically said Sarah would birth his child. God had simply promised, “I will make of you a great nation” (Gen. 12:2) and “Your very own son shall be your heir” (Gen. 15:4). So Abraham could have felt he had leeway to lower his expectations and think the Lord would fulfill the promise, sort of, through Hagar.
When Abraham’s and Sarah’s faith falters
But until this moment, that had not been his hope. He and Sarah had assumed that God would give Sarah a child, and with good reason. For Abraham to have the child of promise by another woman was not the ideal revealed in creation, that a man have one wife. It is clear that Sarah came to this decision reluctantly. Having a child by Hagar was not worthy of the man who had received exalted promises from God. Everything about this seemed wrong.
Nevertheless they did it. They did it because they were confused; they were frustrated; they were leaning on their own understanding. It was easier than waiting on God. And the results were not good.
Faith that flickered, and reignited
But that misstep did not extinguish God’s promises. Their failure did not snuff out the promise because it did not snuff out their faith. Years ago for a birthday celebration my wife bought novelty candles that could not be blown out, at least not for long. When the candle was puffed out, the wick glowed for a moment and then popped into flame again. In a similar way, faith eventually reignited in Abraham as well as Sarah.
Abraham did not receive the miraculous birth of Isaac by his faith alone. Sarah’s faith also played a key role. Her faith returned as great faith. She even makes it into the faith chapter, Hebrews 11, which says, “By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised” (v. 11). Sarah’s faith enabled her to conceive. Abraham did not have Isaac apart from Sarah’s body or Sarah’s faith.
Faithful
This verse describes the content of her faith. “She considered him faithful who had promised.” After Hagar gave birth to Ishmael, Sarah waited about 14 more years in barrenness, but those years did not diminish her belief in God’s faithfulness; rather, her faith increased. This is the delicious fruit of waiting on the Lord. After faltering at age 75, with each passing year her confidence grew that God’s nature is to be faithful to his promises, faithful to his covenants, faithful to his word, faithful to his nature, faithful to his people. He does not change; he does not fail. No one is as faithful as God. His faithfulness is holy, beyond our full comprehension. Nonetheless Sarah comprehended it enough to receive power to conceive and deliver a child at age 90.
Even if you who have faltered in faith, the test of waiting on the Lord can galvanize a deeper conviction that God is perfectly faithful.
This must be one reason he has you wait, and you are not alone.
In the next post—the conclusion of this series—we see that the Bible is a book full of people in waiting.
Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)
Faith can flourish even in the darkness when it stands on God’s greatness and glory.
For several posts we have been looking at five things that enabled Abraham to wait on God in the dark, based on Romans 4:18–21:
“Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.” (Rom. 4:18–21, NIV)
In this post we examine points 4 and 5.
4. How Abraham was strengthened in his faith
Fourth, Abraham could wait for the Lord because he “was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God.” Abraham was strengthened in his faith by filling his mind with believing thoughts. He chose to believe what God called him to believe. But we cannot choose that in our own power; rather, we must cooperate with God’s grace. The verse says he “was strengthened,” which is a passive verb. Something outside of Abraham helped him believe, and that of course was God’s Spirit and promise. Still, the passive verb, “was strengthened,” does not mean it happened automatically without Abraham’s cooperation. We respond to God’s grace by deciding to believe his word. Abraham chose the life of faith. He did it deliberately. He was strengthened in his faith.
With this choice “he gave glory to God.” This too is how Abraham was able to wait on the Lord and maintain hope and faith. God always works in us to show his glory, and he calls us always to have the same purpose: “Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). When God’s glory becomes our goal in believing the promise and waiting on him, we align ourselves with his purposes, and he helps us see as he sees, think as he thinks, feel as he feels. Instead of our struggling to move the hand of God, perhaps even feeling as though we are struggling against him because he does not seem to want to do what we want, we trust God’s ways because we love his glory. He is unsearchably great, has thoughts infinitely above our thoughts, and walks in ways inscrutable.
Our faith has its source, continuity, and purpose in God’s glory. Faith resembles a massive river whose fountainhead, length, and ocean destination is the glory of the Lord. A life of faith is from, through, and to his glory. He reveals his glory in our spirit, and we respond with faith. We worship God day by day, and as a result we know him more deeply, and faith increases. As faith increases, our sense of his reality, presence, and glory increases. Ultimately he rewards our faith by giving Isaac, and people, angels, and demons see how worthy God is of trust. A life like Abraham’s, tested by time, displaying God’s faithfulness, uniquely reveals divine glory.
5. Persuaded by God’s power
Abraham could wait for the Lord because he was “fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.” God’s power is persuasive. There is no promise he cannot keep.
Is the test of waiting wearing on you, wearing you out, wearing you down? Meditate on God’s power, his power in creating the universe with its 100 billion galaxies, each one averaging some 100 billion stars, each star named by God. Meditate on God’s power in creating and controlling each molecular, atomic, and subatomic particle. Meditate on God’s power in judging Egypt and its idols with ten plagues, parting the Red Sea for Israel’s escape, and closing the Sea on cue to destroy Egypt’s army. Meditate on God’s power revealed atop Mount Sinai in a consuming fire and mighty voice, accompanied by trumpet blast, earthquakes, thunder, and lightning.
Meditate on God’s power working through Jesus to give sight to blind eyes, strength to lame legs, flesh to withered arms, hearing to deaf ears, life to dead bodies, hope to broken hearts, cleansing to lepers, beauty for ashes, joy for sorrow. Meditate on God’s power in raising Jesus from the grave and seating him at his right hand with all creation, people, angels, and demons under his feet. Meditate on the power of Jesus, who by his Word upholds all. When you are fully persuaded of God’s power, you will know he can do whatever he promises, and when you know that, you can wait patiently, because the passing of time is no threat.
But Abraham was not always so fully persuaded.
In next week’s post, we will see that even Abraham’s and Sarah’s faith faltered for a season, but then recovered.
Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)
In the previous post we began looking at five things that enabled Abraham to wait on God in the dark, based on Romans 4:18–21:
“Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.” (Rom. 4:18–21, NIV)
In this post we examine points 2 and 3.
2. Abraham faced reality
Romans 4 says about Abraham that “without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead.”
Abraham was able to wait because he faced the facts about his current reality. He was not living in false denial, but rather was living by the truth, which is the only place of strength. He knew that in the natural he and Sarah were too old to conceive a child, but he faced that fact in a way that did not weaken his faith. He faced the facts without letting them change his understanding of God.
He knew the rules of the natural world do not have the final say. He was “fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.” God created the world, and he upholds the rules of the natural world and can override them at will. The sovereign God can recreate as easily as he can create.
This too is the truth and therefore the only place of strength. Without strength that comes from the complete truth, you cannot wait on the Lord as long as necessary.
3. Abraham believed God’s promise
Abraham could wait because “he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God.” Abraham’s faith rested specifically on God’s promise, not only on general truths about his nature. God’s Word has unique, spiritual power to create and sustain hope and faith. “Faith comes from hearing” (Rom. 10:17). God’s promise is not just an idea, a string of words, a natural tool of communication. Rather his promises have a spiritual nature. Jesus said, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is of no avail. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life” (John 6:63). The Holy Spirit uses God’s words to create hope and faith. His promises feed faith as food feeds the body.
But for that to happen we must not quench the Spirit’s work by responding to God’s promise with unbelief. In that case we would “waver through unbelief” and find it even harder to wait for the Lord. Abraham did not allow thoughts of unbelief to linger in his mind. He rejected such thoughts when they came.
In the next post we look at the final two lessons from Abraham about how to wait on God in the dark.
Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)
Last week’s post was about the frustration of waiting on God. This week we see in the life of Joseph that our waiting is not in vain.
The Word of the Lord tests Joseph
Psalm 105:19 says of Joseph, “Until what he had said came to pass, the word of the LORD tested him.”
“What he had said” refers to what Joseph told his family: his two prophetic dreams that foretold his rise to power in Egypt (see Genesis 37). Psalm 105:19 calls these dreams “the word of the LORD” because they were a prophetic revelation from God.
Joseph told the first dream to his eleven brothers: “Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and stood upright. And behold, your sheaves gathered around it and bowed down to my sheaf” (Genesis 37:7). His brothers interpreted the dream correctly: “Are you indeed to reign over us? Or are you indeed to rule over us?”
Another dream
He told the second dream to his brothers and father: “Behold, I have dreamed another dream. Behold, the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me” (v. 9). Jacob likewise interpreted the dream correctly: “Shall I and your mother and your brothers indeed come to bow ourselves to the ground before you?” (v. 10)
Through these two dreams from God Joseph prophesied about the future, and as he waited for them to be fulfilled, the dreams tested him.
The dreams tested Joseph because of the stark contrast between what they foretold and what he experienced for 13 years. They said he would rule; meanwhile, his brothers sold him into slavery, and he lived first as a slave in Potiphar’s house and then as a prisoner in a dungeon after being falsely accused of rape.
Once he had his prophetic dreams at age 17 his situation turned for the worse—and then worse and worse. He suffered severe hardship and pain. He was in a low position. And he was far from the family members who the dreams said would bow before him.
Questions that burn like fire
What is going on? he must have thought. The dreams I thought were from God promised me a position of authority. They promised me honor from the brothers who hate me and even from my father and mother. How can that possibly happen now? They don’t even know where I am. I’m a slave in a foreign land.
Such thoughts tested his faith. They tested his confidence that he could interpret God’s communication. At times he did not know what to think. The stark contrast between the dreams and his situation, mixed with pain and disappointment, tested his beliefs like fire.
In fact the Hebrew word for “tested” in Psalm 105:19, tsaraph, is the word for refining metal in fire. Waiting for the word of the Lord to be fulfilled tested Joseph like a furnace refining gold.
A heart of gold
But Joseph passed this trial. He did not lose faith or turn against God in bitterness because life had not gone as hoped. When Potiphar’s wife tempted him to commit adultery, he said, “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (Gen. 39:9). He feared the Lord, kept a good conscience, and would not sin against him. In all his work for Potiphar and then the ruler of the dungeon, he performed well (see Genesis 39 and 40). Joseph had a heart of gold.
God’s sudden action
As Joseph waited in Egypt, God did not reveal anything further to reassure him the dreams would be fulfilled. God did not give an annual dream saying, “Everything is okay, Joseph. Just hang in there, and eventually you will see my word prove true.” Joseph had his initial dreams, and that was it. The Lord’s silence did not mean the promises expired, nor did the 13-year string of woes. Joseph held those prophetic dreams. We know he did not forget them, for Psalm 105:19 says they continued to test him. All he could do was clutch them in faith and wait for God.
But when the test ended, Joseph’s life suddenly, dramatically changed. “God acts on behalf of those who wait for him,” Isaiah 64:4 says, and Joseph’s life shows how true that is. God acts. Joseph awoke one morning as a prisoner in a dungeon and went to bed that night as the second most powerful man in Egypt (see Genesis 40–41). As God says, “I am the LORD; in its time I will hasten it” (Isa. 60:22, italics added). The God who works as slowly as glaciers move, for whom a thousand years are like a day, can also act quickly. God acts.
The pattern
But he has a time for your train to pull into the station, and a wise reason for the schedule. He knows what the test of waiting—with its refining fires—must accomplish. As you read Scripture, he might cause certain words to come alive, breathing hope and faith into your spirit. He might fulfill those words one week later, and each day leading up to it he might reassure you the answer is coming. Or he might not fulfill those words for 50 years, and you might not receive another extraordinary reassurance that the promise still stands, but then the answer dawns as quickly as the morning sun.
God has a unique time and way for each person, but there is a pattern. There is longing and promise, hope and faith, waiting on God, and finally fulfillment. The test requires that you persevere with trust in whatever way he works in you.
More to learn from Abraham
Joseph and his great-grandfather Abraham had to wait on God following that pattern, but their paths also differed. Abraham has much more to teach us about waiting on God through frustrating, unfulfilled desire.
See you here next week to learn from Abraham’s life.
Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)
For years I commuted to work by train, and given that I live in Chicago several difficult trips will not be forgotten. During one blizzard I had to take a late-evening train. I parked my car at the station 10 minutes before the scheduled arrival. With the wind blowing hard, my walk from car to station was bitterly cold, so with relief I reached out my hand to the door of the station and pulled. The door was locked.
I walked over to a brick wall that broke the wind and huddled there shaking and counting the minutes. I was wearing a decent winter coat, but dress slacks and dress shoes. The arrival time came and went without a train, and my heart sank. What should I do? I could not wait in my car because the train could arrive and leave before I could run to catch it. Driving home in the blizzard would be hazardous and long. So I kept waiting, not knowing how long that wait might last. I was alone except for one couple on the other side of the building. The wind howled, the snow fell thickly, my hands and feet and face were numb.
Mixed news
After about 10 minutes an automated announcement came over the station’s loudspeakers, and what a relief it was to get information. The news, however, was mixed. The train was rolling but had been delayed by mechanical problems and would arrive in approximately twenty-five minutes. Twenty-five minutes sounded like forever, but at least I knew I was not waiting in vain.
I was now in survival mode. My nose was running, and I was out of tissue. I still did not want to chance waiting in my car because I was not sure I could trust the time given on the announcement. I walked up and down the stairs of the station to generate heat. I moaned. I wondered what homeless people do in times like these. I peered down the tracks again and again looking for a glow in the distance.
Hope
After about 30 minutes the automated voice began another announcement: “Attention Metra customers, a train will soon be arriving in your station.” Oh, thank you, Lord! Three more frigid minutes passed. Finally a growing light appeared in the west. The locomotive’s horn blared, and its warning bell clanged louder and louder as the train pushed through the accumulated snow and crept into the station. It stopped, the doors opened, and the conductor jumped out. I mounted the stairs and walked numbly into another world of light and warmth, where a few commuters were calmly reading their cell phones. I walked the aisle and found a seat, doing my best to act similarly calm, though I felt the raw emotion of someone just rescued. My wait was over. My train had come.
Many people are waiting for trains. They long for financial relief. Or they pray daily that God will give a spouse, child, or new job. Some hope finally to succeed in business or ministry. Others need healing. Some intercede for loved ones in trouble. What they have in common is the waiting, longing, hope, and need. How long until the Lord acts?
Waiting on God can feel pointless
One frustrating thing about waiting is, it seems pointless. We see every good reason for God to fulfill our desires immediately. Pain or hardship could end. Happiness could begin. Many could praise God as his glory is displayed. The Bible says many things to affirm such hopes, yet despite our efforts nothing happens. Why the wait?
This is a situation where at least part of the answer is that God is testing us. The trial has a pattern. It begins with our desire. Then the Lord awakens faith through his Word that he can fulfill that desire. Then he waits, and we must keep believing the promise, sometimes despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, perhaps for an unbearably long while. Then God acts. The test ends in joy, in gratitude to God, in a life transformed by the process. Indeed, the test is a defining experience.
A spiritual passage
The test of waiting is a spiritual passage. Although it feels as though little is happening, in reality huge spiritual things are getting done. We are crossing a long bridge to a wonderful place. We are moving into God’s highest purposes, which are always bigger than we imagine. We are in the process of promotion. Equally important, God is working through our wait for the good of others, and most important, he is working for his kingdom purposes. He is doing something much bigger than what you have in mind.
Two people in the Bible illustrate this trial and its rewards especially well: Joseph, the favorite son of the patriarch Jacob, and Abraham. Both lives teach principles that help us pass our own test of waiting on God.
We will resume next week in part 2 with a focus on Joseph’s experience in waiting on God and what we can learn from him for our own frustrating wait.
Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)
Without both faith and patience, we will have neither patience nor faith.
If you intend to be a person of strong faith, who receives answers to prayers—a person established in faith—then you must carefully monitor your expectations about when God will answer.
You do have expectations, of course, and they determine whether you will easily become discouraged or even disillusioned, whether you will give up when the answer is delayed and collapse into a malaise of unbelief, or instead persevere in confident faith.
God tells us what our expectations should be regarding the time frame of the answer we seek.
Hebrews 6:12 and 15 says we should be “imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises…. And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise.”
Faith and patience
A person of strong faith must be one of great patience. We must be willing to wait for God. It is through faith and patience we inherit the promises.
This is so because from our perspective, God usually is slow in answering prayer. Abraham’s life is exhibit A in this regard, and he is called the father of all who believe. In many ways his life is the model of the faith life. So our expectation should be that patience will probably be required.
Psalm 27:14 says, “Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!”
Hebrews 10:36 says, “You have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.”
So God’s Word itself, which urges us to believe God and stand on his promises, tells us that God often requires those who believe his promises to wait much longer than expected for their fulfillment.
Proficient at patience
This is not a failing on God’s part, of course. He has wise and good reasons for his timing in all things. He has a plan for us that is vast in scope and literally stretches into eternity, while we have one situation in view.
Naturally the greater our pain, need, and desire, and the louder the clock ticks its reminder that we seemingly are running out of time, the harder it is to wait for God. But that is what faith requires. Faith keeps waiting for God even when it is too late, even when it seems our faith has been futile. The trademark of successful faith is patience.
So get good at patience. Be a master at waiting for God. As time passes and the answer delays, become proficient at growing stronger in faith over time rather than dwindling in faith over time. Never forget or abandon your requests of God.
It is natural to think that the longer the answer takes to appear, the less likely it is that your faith will be answered. Reject that notion! The likelihood that God will answer depends on his Word and your confidence in it, not how much time has passed!
On the road
My approach to long road trips has changed dramatically from what it was when I was young. Then I approached a five-hour trip as though I could somehow turn it into a two-hour trip by pushing the speed limit, urgently passing anyone going slower than I, limiting rest stops and keeping them as short as possible, and maintaining a hurried mindset.
Now I google to see the expected travel time and embark on the trip with that time frame in mind—with minimal stress. My expectation is that the trip will take some time, and I set my mind to patiently drive that long.
When I pray for something, I generally believe the prayer will be answered in the short term, and I think that is the right approach. But when that does not happen, I reset my expectations and settle in for the long haul. I make up my mind to wait for God patiently. I approach that faith situation like a long road trip.
Takeaway
So stand firm. Have biblical expectations about God’s time frame. The Lord is often slow and long. He is patient, and expects you to be patient. He often requires those who believe his promises to wait much longer than expected for their fulfillment.
Jeremiah 9:23–24: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.’” (ESV)
