Waiting in the bible is an action. At the same time, waiting is passive – to be still. So how is it that the same word can both mean to be still and to act? As much as God wants to be the one to get the glory for what He accomplishes in your life, He still wants you to participate in that. To play your part, to be an instrument of His will and promises in your life. This afternoon, I want to do my best at explaining what active waiting and participation in the enactment of God’s promises mean by drawing on examples from the bible of people that have waited actively and enacted the promises of God for their life, their nation and the world.
The story of Israel’s redemption is a magnificent one. It is one that highlights very well the concept of actively waiting while enacting God’s promises. Before the Israelites marched out of Egypt, before Moses came in the picture, God had already declared that He would save His people from slavery, that He would set them free (Genesis 15: 13-15). Similarly, before Israel conquered the land of Canaan where milk and honey flowed, God had already promised He would give them that land. Yet, it took the nation of Israel action – going into battle and conquering the land through Joshua’s lead to fulfill that promise of God. Does that mean God needed the people of Israel to do that? Does that mean God could not fulfill his promise without the help of his people the Israelites? Of course not, what it simply means is that God delights in using us, sinners, to carry out his plans and purposes. It also shows the depth of the love of God and care. That a God so holy and powerful would care to let lowly men accomplish his grand purposes is mind-blowing. This wonder and amazement should only lead us to worship and recognize that we are men and that God is God.
In the same way, when God promised David that Solomon would become heir of the throne after him (2 Samuel 7), it took action from David to fulfill the promise of God. In fact, the story of Solomon becoming king is very interesting especially when you see how he might not have become king of Israel. We are told in 1 Kings 1 that Solomon’s older brother Adonijah joined forces with Joab – David’s commander in chief, and the priest Abiathar to usurp the throne of his father by declaring himself king. What did Adonijah needed to make this happen? A priest for the anointing, and a commander in chief – someone who could defend him and ensure his authority over the land. And who better suited for this job than Joab the right hand of the king himself? What I love about this story is that it shows how God acts and honours established rules and principles. Had Nathan, the prophet not advised Bathesheba to speak to her husband the king about the complot happening, and had he himself not come to meet the king to warn him of the act his son Adonijah was scheming, Adonijah would have become king in the place of Solomon and it would have been accepted as such. But God, through the voice of Nathan and Bathesheba spoke to David to push him to action in order to make His promise pass. That is how Solomon was finally proclaimed king by his father. Something to notice here is the fact that often times we are the ones delaying the fulfilment of God’s promises unto us. I wonder why it took so much time for David to do this when he already knew that he was going to do it and also that he was old in age (1 Kings 1:1)? Why did he have to wait for one of his sons to plot to take his kingship by force before he could act? What was it that made David delay doing what he had said he would? May we be sensible to the prompting of the Holy Spirit to push us to act at the right time to enact the promises of God in our lives. I believe that is why in the bible it often speaks of how Jesus came just at the right time to save sinners (Romans 5:6); of how Jesus did what he was supposed to do just at the right time – not before, not after, but at the right time. Jesus would often say, “my time has not yet come” and when it was time for him to fulfill the promise that God would make way for sinners, he did just that by dying on the cross. It is marvelous when you think about it. We should seek to obey and not delay in enacting God’s promises in our lives. As Joshua says in chapter 18 verse 3 “How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you?”. May we realize that we are given a timeframe to work alongside God to see his beautiful promises accomplished in our lives, in our city, in our nation. Let us ask the grace to wait upon the Lord and wait for the right time; the grace to know the right time to act and the courage to obey when the right time comes. I pray you are used by the Lord to fulfill His promises in your life, the life of others and for the world.
A Word Aptly Spoken 