Impatience With God Series

But they do it – quietly – burying their actions so that they won’t be caught. And the more that their will is thwarted the angrier they become.

I’ve been a preacher long enough to know that this happens in even the best churches. In fact, this kind of behavior is as old as the earliest churches.

Paul wrote the Galatians:

“The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.” (Galatians 5:14-15)

This kind of mindset had settled into the church at Galatia. They were biting and devouring one another… destroying each other to get their way.

And then Paul goes on to say: “The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:19-21)

Notice, among the sinful actions God condemned were:

Hatred, discord, fits of rage, dissensions, and factions.

And Paul says: I’ve warned you before… don’t do that - it could rob you of your very salvation.

“…those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:21)

When we do things that aren’t according to God’s will, we can get ourselves in trouble. And because Moses was impatient with God’s timing he spent 40 years in the wilderness. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but his rashness cost him.

Impatience with God will do that to us as well.

SO the thing to remember is this: impatience with God will cause us to do foolish things.

2. Impatience is often caused by believing God isn’t going to do anything. That He doesn’t care.

And so we may come to believe – God needs MY help.

ILLUS: I recently ran across the following “e-mail from God”

“I am God.

Today I will be handling all of your problems.

Please remember that I do not need your help.

If life happens to deliver a situation to you that you cannot handle, do not attempt to resolve it on your own. Kindly put it in the SFGTD box (something for God to do). It will be addressed in My time, not yours.”

Now, of course, we know God didn’t send that e-mail.

But it perfectly captures the problem so many of us have with waiting on God.

You see, Moses’ problem was that he made the mistake of believing God wasn’t going to act and so HE had to.

You know the old phrase “God helps those who help themselves”?

Not only is that NOT in the Bible… it’s pure heresy.

If God helped those who helped themselves… He’d have helped

· Cain (he helped himself to vengence on his brother Abel)

· Delilah (she wanted to help herself to Samson’s hair)

· Judas (he wanted to help himself to 30 pcs of silver)

God doesn’t help those who help themselves.

He helps those who obey Him and listen to Him and wait upon Him.

Granted, God wants to use you or I for His purposes.

But make no mistake - He doesn’t NEED for us to step in and save Him when things get a little dicey.