This week I’m going to be speaking about a form of
spiritual discipline which is mentioned many times in the Bible, but is very little understood—or
practiced—by contemporary Christians. The form of discipline that I have in mind
is waiting for God, or Waiting on God. The older versions usually say, waiting on God
— the newer versions say waiting for God, but essentially it’s the same thing. It’s a form
of waiting that is specifically related to God. There are many passages in the Bible that
speak about waiting for God. We’ll glance at just a few to begin with. First
of all, in Psalm 25, verses 1-5: “To Thee, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God,
in Thee I trust, Do not let me be ashamed; Do not let my enemies exult over me. Indeed,
none of those who wait for Thee will be ashamed; Those who deal treacherously without cause
will be ashamed. Make me know Thy ways, O Lord; Teach me Thy paths. Lead
me in Thy truth and teach me, For Thou art the God of my salvation;
For Thee I wait all the day.” (NASB) Notice, waiting for God is mentioned twice
in those verses. In verse 3, David says: “Let none of those who wait for Thee be
ashamed.” And then at the end he says, “For Thee I wait all the day.” And
just before that he says, “Thou art the God of my salvation.” I think there’s a
connection. If God is the God of our salvation, then one of the ways we relate to Him as
such, is by waiting for Him, if necessary, all the day. And it’s connected with that prayer,
“Make me know thy ways, O Lord, teach me Thy paths.” I believe one of the ways in which we
come to know God’s ways and God’s power is by waiting for Him. If we’re not prepared to wait for
Him, there will be some things we’ll never learn. Then we look again in Psalm 27, verses 11-14: “Teach me Thy way, O Lord, And lead me in a
level path, Because of my foes. Do not deliver me over to the desire of my adversaries;
For false witnesses have risen against me, And such as breathe out violence. I would
have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land
of the living. Wait for the Lord; Be strong, and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for the Lord.” (NASB) We see there in the closing verse, David twice
says, “Wait for the Lord, yes, wait for the Lord.” Again we see that it’s connected with
his prayer a little earlier, “Teach me Thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a level path.” It’s also
connected with his prayer for deliverance from his enemies. So I believe that waiting for God is
the key to learning His way and also it’s one of the steps that are sometimes necessary in seeking
deliverance from our enemies and from opposition. And then there’s another beautiful
passage in Isaiah chapter 64, verse 4, which the prophet addresses to the
Lord. He says there are certain things that distinguishes the true God
and one of the things he says is: “Since ancient times no one has
heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts
on behalf of those who wait for him.” (NIV) So there is one of the distinctive marks
of the One true God, that He acts on behalf of those who wait for Him. One of the ways in
which we need to relate to this wonderful God, the God of the whole universe, one
of the ways in which we will come to the place where He will act on
our behalf is by waiting for Him. What is the essence of waiting for God? What is
really involved in it? Why is it so important? Why is there so much emphasis on it in the Scriptures?
I would like to suggest to you that there’s a passage in Psalm 62 which probably contains the
essence of this wonderful secret of waiting for God. Psalm 62, verses 1 and 2, and then verses
5 and 6. In verses 1 and 2 the Psalmist says: “My soul waits in silence for God only; From
Him is my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be
greatly shaken. [And then in verses 5 and 6, he returns to similar language but there
are some significant differences.] My soul, wait in silence for God only, For my hope is
from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be shaken.” (NIV) One important thing to see in those verses is
that the word “only” occurs four times. Every time that the Psalmist speaks about “Waiting for
God,” he adds, “Wait for God only.” And he also speaks about, “Waiting in silence for God,”
or “Being silent toward God.” In other words, it’s focusing our total attention upon God.
It’s looking to Him and continuing to look to Him. Not taking hasty or unwise action,
not yielding to our carnal pressures, but focusing our attention upon
God, waiting in silence for Him.
