WHEN JESUS SAYS WAIT
Acts 1:4
(Antioch Baptist Church – Sunday February 9th, 2025)
Some of you may remember the old J.G Wentworth commercials where people who qualified to receive certain structured settlements would yell “It’s my money and I need it now!” If we are honest, there are many times in life when we feel that we are entitled to receive something and we have the mindset that “It is mine and I want it now!”
Concerning your secular life, you may be saying “I deserve a raise and I want it now!”; or “I deserve a promotion and I want it now!”. Maybe you are currently unemployed and you feel like screaming “I need that job and I want it now!”. Others may have a good paying job but there is some material possession that you are desperately craving; as a result you may be saying “I want that car now, or I want that house now”. Some of you young ladies may be saying “I want that engagement ring now!” We all have certain needs, ambitions, and desires and we do not want to wait for them to come to fruition.
Many of us have a similar mindset in our spiritual lives and our service to the Lord. There are things that we want, and even things that we feel that we deserve and sometimes we do not feel like waiting on the Lord to move. We feel as if the Lord owes us something, or maybe we are even convinced that we deserve to experience the blessings of God.
I have no doubt that there are several Christian servants in this assembly today who have been faithful in their service for an extended period of time and you are tired, weary, discouraged, and defeated. You may be at a point where you would give anything just to see some visible fruits from your labor. I have been there and I know what it is like to say “Lord, I need a blessing and I need it now!”
Genesis tells of an occasion when God confronted Jacob and after wrestling with Him until daybreak Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” (Genesis 32:26) Perhaps you are tempted to demand a certain “blessing” from God. If so, let me remind you that it was God who confronted Jacob. Furthermore, Jacob had to wrestle the Lord all night and when it was over he limped away from the battle and then for the rest of his life. The blessing was received but a Jacob paid a price. Moreover, He did not receive that blessing until the Lord decided that it was time.
Many of us have talents, abilities, desires, and even God given callings. We know the work that needs to be accomplished, and we know how to do it and where it is to be done. These are all essential aspects concerning the work of the ministry. However, there are two more factors that will determine our ministry success. I am referring to the Lord’s perfect timing and the power of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus informed the Apostles about the great work that He would use them to accomplish. He said, “you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth" (v8). But before this would be accomplished, Jesus “commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, "which," He said, "you have heard from Me”. Jesus didn’t simply suggest that they wait in Jerusalem, He “commanded them not to depart” and He commanded them to “wait for the Promise of the Father”. Church history would have been much different if these men had not waited on the Lord.
In the future, the miracles that they had seen Jesus perform; they would perform themselves. Through the ministry of the Lord’s Apostles the sick would be healed, demons would be cast out, and the dead would be raised to life. Even greater than these physical miracles was the fact that God used these men to spread the Gospel and advance His Kingdom. However, before these marvelous things would happen, the Lord prescribed a time of waiting. Waiting may not have been easy for the Apostles, but it was necessary.
- I would like for us to examine this period of waiting that the Apostles endured and consider the thought “When Jesus Says Wait”.
These men knew what needed to be done and they had been told where to do it. The followers of Christ had everything they needed to be fruitful in their ministry for the Lord; everything that is, except for receiving the promise of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was essential to the establishment and the growth of Christ’s Church. For this reason, Jesus commanded His people to wait until the Holy Spirit arrived.
It was the power of the Holy Spirit that enabled the Apostles to communicate the Gospel to those Jews who were assembled on the day of Pentecost. It was the power of the Holy Spirit that caused the lame man at the Beautiful Gate to rise up and “walk and leap and praise God”. It was the Holy Spirit that saved 3,000 people at Pentecost and then 2,000 more at Solomon’s Colonnade. It was the Holy Spirit that enabled Peter and John to boldly preach the Gospel to the members of the Sanhedrin even when threatened and beaten severely. It was the Holy Spirit moving through these men that reached the crowds in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and then to the ends of the earth.
It is the same Holy Spirit who indwells us and enables us to be fruitful in our service to the Lord. When we are filled with the Spirit and seek to advance God’s Kingdom and bring Him glory, we will see amazing things happen. It is only when the Spirit moves in and through us that we will see lives changed, souls saved, backsliders restored, and Christians grow and mature in their faith.
Whether we like it or not, sometimes this process involves waiting. If the Apostles had not waited until the Holy Spirit descended, they would not have been successful in their ministry. In fact, they would have probably done more harm than good.
These men were not told how long they would have to wait, they were just told to wait. All they knew was that Jesus said, “don’t leave Jerusalem” and He instructed them to “wait for the promise”.
I fully understand that waiting is not easy. In fact, I would like to share a few truths about the difficulty of waiting on God to move:
WAITING IS NOT EASY WHEN YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED GREAT VICTORY IN THE PAST
The Disciples had already experienced the great joy and excitement that comes when you are involved in fruitful Gospel ministry. In Mark 6, Jesus equipped His men and sent them out in pairs to preach the Gospel. Mark 6:12 they went out and preached that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.
We are not told how long these men were on this mission. But we do know that they experienced some amazing things; for Jesus had given them the power to heal the sick, cast out demons, and even raise the dead. Most importantly, the Disciples preached the Gospel of the Kingdom and many people heard and believed. Not only were multitudes healed physically, many were transformed spiritually.
We would all testify that the greatest joy in Christian ministry is seeing people transformed by the mighty hand of God. Once you have experienced this, there is an intense desire to see it happen again. We don’t want to wait; we want to do whatever is necessary to see lives changed. However, we must remember that the Disciples did not have the ability to heal the sick, cleanse lepers, or cast out demons; it was God who performed those miracles, the Disciples were merely the vessels that He chose to use to accomplish these things.
We do not possess the power to grow a church, or to revitalize one. We do not have the ability to save a single soul or rescue a fallen brother or sister; we are merely vessels that God chooses to use to accomplish these tasks. The Lord is the one who decides when and where this will happen.
If you have ever experienced a great move of God and then gone through a season where it seems that your labor is in vain, then you know that it is not easy to wait. But sometimes waiting is necessary.
- As we move further, I would also submit to you that:
WAITING IS NOT EASY WHEN YOU KNOW WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE
These men knew what Jesus expected them to do. They knew that they had been called to “be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth”. Keep in mind that we are talking about eyewitnesses of the risen Savior. They knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus was the Messiah and they certainly wanted their fellow Israelites to know what they knew. They wanted to see the Kingdom advanced and they knew that they would spend the rest of their lives proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ. But it was not yet time for this mission to commence, Jesus told them to wait.
We know exactly what needs to be done; we know this because God has given us clear instructions in His Word. There is no question that we must be actively involved in the Gospel ministry. We should spend each day faithfully serving our Savior. We should never cease our labor and we should seize every opportunity to share Christ with others. But there are times when we have to wait to see the fruits of our labor.
There will be seasons when we do not see much (if any) progress. In these times we will be tempted to “take the bull by the horns” and “make something happen”. It is in these times that we must remember that we do not possess the power to save anyone. We cannot force a prodigal to return to the Fathers’ house. We cannot make professing Christians live devoted lives. We cannot coerce them to attend church, read their Bible, spend time in prayer, give tithes and offerings, share their faith, or serve in the church. Understanding that we cannot make these things happen, we should be content to be faithful to our calling and leave the results up to God.
- Waiting is not easy when you have experienced victory in the past;
it is not easy to wait when you know what needs to be done; furthermore:
WAITING IS NOT EASY WHEN YOU COMPREHEND THE URGENCY OF THE MESSAGE
The Apostles had a preoccupation with the establishment of the Kingdom. They had asked Jesus about this subject many times. In fact, it was part of their final conversation with the Savior. (v6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, "Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?")
Rather than giving them a detailed timeline of future events, Jesus sought to turn their attention to the present. In verse 7-8 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
When you read the gospels & the epistles, it is clear that these men expected to see the return of Christ in their lifetime. I think that knowing about Jesus’ imminent return was a major motivating factor in their devotion to their calling. They knew that time was short and they wanted to reach as many people as they could with the life changing gospel of Jesus Christ.
In the same way, we know that time is short; we know that His return is imminent and we have an intense burden to reach people while there is time. The reality is, it may be thousands of years before Christ returns, but we only have a few decades at best to do our part to advance His Kingdom. Because of this, it is extremely difficult to endure those seasons where it seems that our labor is in vain. But we must always remember that we are called to “plant” and “water”, but it is “God who gives the increase”.
When I speak of the importance of waiting, I am not promoting being inactive. There is no excuse for us to be complacent, apathetic, or lethargic. We have been called, the task has been assigned, and we are expected to be active in the work of the ministry.
These Apostles were instructed to wait on the Promise of the Holy Spirit before their mission was to commence. We have already received the Holy Spirit, therefore we can (and should) be “about the Father’s business”. But we must do so while knowing that there are times when we have to wait and trust that the Spirit will move and that our labor is not in vain.
What should we do in those difficult seasons of waiting? We should do exactly what the Apostles did. Those men obediently waited for the promised Holy Spirit. In the same way:
WE MUST WAIT OBEDIENTLY.
The followers of Jesus stayed in Jerusalem and waited on the promise just as the Savior had instructed them to. (v12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey.)
As we analyze the actions of the Apostles at this point in time we see that they were humble as they waited upon the Lord. Again, following their example:
WE MUST WAIT HUMBLY
v13 And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James.
These men listened to their Master’s command. None of them went out on their own and began the work before it was time. They did not swell up with pride and say, “I’m not waiting any longer; I am going out to make something happen”.
They knew that Jesus had a plan and they obediently and humbly waited until they received the promised Holy Spirit. We know the plan and we must be active in our service to the Lord, but there will be times when we must humbly wait for Him to move.
- If we seek to follow the example of the Apostles then:
WE MUST WAIT PRAYERFULLY
v14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.
The entire ten days between the Ascension and Pentecost, the Believers were assembled together and they spent their time in prayer. It is because of this that they were prepared when the Spirit descended.
If we seek to be used of God, if we desire to be prepared for Him to do a mighty work in and through us then we must wait for Him prayerfully! Collectively and individually, everything we do as a body of Believers must be bathed in prayer.
- The Apostles show us that we must wait for the Lord obediently, humbly, prayerfully, and finally we will see that:
WE MUST WAIT STEADFASTLY
The Apostles didn’t know it, but it would be ten days before the Spirt arrived. On the day of Pentecost, they were all still gathered together waiting on God, just as Jesus had commanded them. Acts 2:1 says that “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place”. Because of their obedience, this small group of Christ followers were in a position to be used by God to turn the world upside down in Jesus name.
Sometimes we want to quit and at other times we are tempted to get ahead of God. It is imperative that we wait for the Lord.
Many of you have wonderful ideas about various current and potential ministry opportunities within this church. Some of these ideas will be implemented and accomplished sooner rather than later. However, there will probably be some things that we want to happen immediately and God would tell us that waiting is necessary.
We have the same opportunity to have a tremendous impact for Christ as those in the early Church. If this is our desire, then we must trust God and wait on Him to move. Like the Apostles, we must be obedient, humble, prayerful and steadfast. In His perfect timing, God will move and you will have the opportunity to see Him glorified and His Kingdom advanced. It is important for us to listen, “When Jesus Says Wait”.
Though the primary subject today has been the importance of waiting, there is one group of people who should not wait. I am referring to those of you who have never surrendered your heart and life to Jesus Christ. You are lost and the Bible says that you are “dead in trespasses and sins”. You have the opportunity to be delivered from the wrath of God and born into His eternal family. I plead with you, do not delay! Surrender to Jesus while there is time.
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