Waiting On God Series

SERMON OUTLINE:

God Alone Saves Us (vs 1-4).

God Alone Encourages Us (vs 5-8).

God Alone Rewards Us (vs 9-12).

SERMON BODY:

I

Ill:

• A little boy was standing at the end of an escalator looking up.

• The shop assistant asked, “Son are you lost?”

• He replied, “No, I’m waiting for my chewing gum to come back.”

• TRANSITION: I would probably be correct in saying.

• That most people do not like waiting.

• Even in our modern age of conveniences, waiting is still a big part of life.

• When we think of waiting, what comes to mind?

• e.g., We wait at least two hours when checking in at an airport terminal,

• e.g., We wait in a doctor’s & dentists waiting room,

• e.g., We wait in line at the supermarket,

• e.g., We wait stuck in rush hour traffic.

• The facts are most of us are waiting for something most of the time:

• And if we are honest, we do not like waiting!

A key feature of this psalm is to “wait on the Lord.”

• But notice he is waiting purposefully,

• Verse 1&5: tell us that the psalmist finds ‘rest’ because he is “waiting on the Lord”.

• And the psalmist mentions some additional rewards of ‘waiting,’

• Verse 1; “Salvation” in the psalms this word often means: “help in distress”.

• And verse 5: He finds, “Hope”.

• And verse 8 takes the idea one step further,

• By telling us to wait on him continuously: “Trust in him at all times”.

• That is the secret to knowing his ‘help in distress’ & ‘hope’ for the future.

Yet, waiting is one of the most difficult pieces of advice in the Bible.

• It runs against human nature.

• Because, as a part of fallen humanity,

• We are so prone to take matters into our own hands, to follow our own schemes.

• Yet over and over again we are told in Bible “wait on the Lord.”

Ill:

• There is a pun that says:

• “Wait? That’s what made the bridge collapse!”

• TRANSITION: Of course, that’s weight: W-E-I-G-H-T, not wait: W-A-I-T.

• But then these two words, weight and wait are not always unrelated.

• Because one of our needs in waiting on the Lord.

• Is the need to cast the weighty (heavy) burdens of life on Him.

Ill:

• A missionary was driving his pick-up truck along a long, dry, dirt track.

• As he drove down the road, he noticed an old man walking down road.

• This old man was weighed down by a huge backpack full of crops to sell at the market.

• The missionary pulled up in a pickup truck and pointed to the man with the heavy load.

• To jump on the back.

• The man raised a hand in appreciation and climbed on board.

• As the missionary drove away, he looked in his rear-view mirror to check the man was ok.

• To his surprise the man was sitting on the back of the truck.

• But had not unhitched his heavy load.

• So, despite the perfect opportunity to find rest and relief he was still carrying his burden.

• TRANSITION:

• Too many of us carry around burdens that we can actually cast off.

• But for that to happen we need to ‘wait on the Lord’.

• Those people who learn to wait on the Lord’.

• According to this Psalm will experience his ‘help in distress’ & ‘hope’ for the future,

Note:

• The main theme of the psalm is the right and wrong objects of faith.

• If we trust in God, we’re secure – he is ‘a rock’ ‘a fortress’.

• If we trust in men or in things,

• We are in deep trouble because we are depending on that which (vs 9),

• Is lighter than breath.

This psalm falls into three stanzas.

• Verses 1-4,

• Verses 5-8,

• Verses 9-12.

• The first two stanzas end with “Selah.”

• Which most Bible scholars understand as time to ‘pause, to stop and reflect’.

(1). God Alone Saves Us (vs 1-4).

“Truly my soul finds rest in God;

my salvation comes from him.

2 Truly he is my rock and my salvation;

he is my fortress; I shall never be shaken.

3 How long will you assault me?

Would all of you throw me down –

this leaning wall, this tottering fence?

4 Surely they intend to topple me

from my lofty place;

they take delight in lies.

With their mouths they bless,

but in their hearts they curse”

Many English translation of the Bible,

• Miss something helpful with this Psalm.

• It is the word ‘Alone’ or, ‘Only.’