I WILL WAIT
Habakkuk 2:1
INTRODUCTION:
Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance – you may be seated. (Video)
If you have served in the Armed forces of our country, law enforcement or fire department please stand and be recognized (applause)
A. Who here likes to wait?
1. Not many of us do, nevertheless we find ourselves doing it quite a bit
2. Frequently throughout the day and countless times throughout the week we find ourselves in a position where we have to wait
a. We wait for traffic lights to turn green or trains to pass by
b. We wait for the water to boil, bread to toast, and microwave dinners to heat
c. We wait in lines of all sorts: banks, stores, county and state offices
d. We wait for phone calls or people to show up for appointments
e. We wait for our turn at doctor’s offices, dentist offices, barber shops
f. We wait for summer (or winter) and vacations
3. Have you ever thought about how much you wait? It sort of depressed me when I did!
B. And if this is not bad enough, we live in a culture that says – you don’t have to wait – You have a right to get what you want NOW!
1. Think about commercials
a. What is the number one sales pitch for a credit card – you don’t have to wait
b. What is the fast food business all about – you don’t have to wait (if you don’t believe me, see how you react when you do have to wait)
c. Listen to the next car commercial – they are trying to tell you, you don’t have to wait – in fact, you don’t want too (according to them) because you might miss out!
2. Then there is the credit industry:
a. Credit cards – you don’t have to wait
b. Easy checks – from your credit card company – you don’t have to wait
3. With all this pressure is it any wonder we have a don’t wait attitude when it comes to spiritual things?
C. When it comes to spiritual things it is probably hardest to wait when it comes to prayer – more specifically – answered prayer.
1. Even the great ones have problems: Daniel, Jeremiah, the disciples
2. And, of course, you and me!
3. And this is where our message for this morning comes into play.
D. If you remember, Habakkuk, had been praying a long time for God to do something in Israel – he wanted revival in the worst way
1. He waited and waited and waited so long that the first words we read in the small book are: O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save! Habakkuk 1:2
2. Well God does answer, but the prophet does not like the answer God gives him, so he cries out again – this time in response to what God had told him
3. Follow me here – His first answer form God was a long time coming, so Habakkuk digs in for another long haul – a good example for us this morning.
4. Listen to the words recorded in Habakkuk 2:1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.
5. This morning I want us to consider how we should approach the Lord in prayer, by looking at
a. A Commitment to Perseverance
b. A Commitment to Watch
c. A Commitment to Act
6. May God grant us a listening heart and a will to wait on His answers to our prayers – may we determine: I will wait!
PRAYER
We can learn a lot from this passage in Habakkuk. When the answer to our prayers do not come quickly there are a number of things we need to commit ourselves to do. The first is
I. A COMMITMENT TO PERSEVERANCE, Hab 2:1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower,….
A. Habakkuk here uses some imagery that is lost to us.
1. In ancient times there was no early detection systems of an advancing army or enemy – At least none other than the human eye
2. Cities were often surrounded by a defensive wall upon which centuries would be stationed and keep watch – their purpose was to keep a watchful eye upon the surrounding landscape
a. They were looking for intruders
b. Or they might be looking for travelers who needed access through a gated part of the city and would summons the gate keeper to open up.
3. Some cities had watch towers as an additional defensive measure.
a. These towers stood high above the surrounding structures and trees
b. From the towers one could look further toward the horizon to see what was coming and provide an earlier warning.
4. In both cases the individuals who were doing the watching had to preserve the time on their watch, no matter what the weather or other conditions might be.
B. Here is the application:
1. For Habakkuk
a. Habakkuk was determined to wait on God.
b. He was not going to stand on the wall, necessarily or climb into a tower – it was a way of saying that he was in it for the long haul, if necessary.
c. Concerning this passage, Elizabeth Achtemeier writes in her commentary on Habakkuk, here the watchtower indicates the concentrated openness, the unwearied waiting of the prophet for the divine word.
2. For us there are a couple of applications
a. The first is in relationship to prayer
1) For some reason we think that God is obligated to answer our prayers when we want and how we want – it is that “I should not have to wait syndrome”
2) But we must be willing to be persistent and persevere for as long as it takes
3) There are many good reasons for this to be our attitude, two of which I want to place before you now (reasons the answer might be delayed)
a) Prayer involves spiritual warfare – Daniel
b) Prayer involves divine purpose – Abraham and Sarah
4) The words of Andrew Murray can help us here, he writes, When the answers to our prayers do not come at once, we should combine quiet patience and joyful confidence in our persevering prayer.
b. The second is in our daily walk
1) We need to be able to go about our daily routines with a peace of mind that God is working – even if we cannot see him doing so (Habakkuk is learning this point)
2) We do not need to grow weary, but rather grow more committed to the Lord and His will
c. In both our prayer life and walk it is a matter of trust – faith in God.
This brings us to the second major point of this message concerning waiting on God. We need
II. A COMMITMENT TO WATCH, Hab 2:1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me,….
A. The prophet not only made a commitment to wait on God but to look for His will – His answer.
1. There is an idea of staying alert, an active reconnaissance
2. He was not just having an exercise in patience, but rather his patience was focused toward an end – to hear from God
3. And it must be noted, I believe, he was now open to whatever God had to say – not just what he wanted to hear.
B. And this is where the rubber meets the road, so to speak, for us.
1. Are we willing to hear from God even if the answer is not what we imagined or wanted?
2. Quite often I don’t think we are – we are looking for a specific answer to a need, problem or direction and so we are not alert to all that God might be saying
3. Are we willing to wait on God to show us the “real” answer and are we looking for what God wants verses what we want?
4. Now don’t get me wrong sometimes they are one in the same – that is what we want: our will and God’s will to coincide- but if not, we need to be ready to change.
5. Just as a side bar to this: one of the things I have learned over the years is if it seems to be a long period of time waiting for God’s answer, I need to make sure I’m really looking for His will and not mine!
6. The key to this point is found in the phrase, …will watch to see what he will say unto me….
7. One last though on this area – God will never lead us in a way that is in contradiction to His word – no matter how we feel! (He makes no exceptions for any of us)
So we find in this one verse the necessity to persevere and look for God’s answers but there is one more thing we need to have and that is
III. A COMMITMENT TO ACT, Hab 2:1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.
A. What Does Habakkuk mean with this statement?
1. We must remember two things:
a. First and foremost he is a prophet for Yahweh – his ministry is to speak to Judah the words that God gives him
b. Secondly he has not been thrilled with what the Lord has given to him so far and is probably not sure what God’s answer will be to this latest petition.
2. With that said we might be able to understand the phrase when I am reproved – he is probably expecting God to speak to him about his questioning, but as we will soon see God does not.
3. As far as the whole text goes, may be reading it in another version will help clarify the essence of the message
a. I will stand at my guard post and station myself on the lookout tower. I will watch to see what He will say to me and what I should reply about my complaint. (NRSV)
b. I believe Habakkuk was waiting on God’s message to give to the people
c. He was a prophet speaking for Judah and needing a reply for Judah
4. In other words, he was looking to act upon what God told him.
B. The application is probably self evident in light of this knowledge
1. Waiting and hearing is not enough – we must be willing to act and do so when God informs us of His will.
2. Whether we are praying about a personal problem, a family need or a church ministry direction we need to be ready to do ANYTHING God directs us to do.
3. We are to wait on God to give us direction but while we are waiting we must prepare ourselves to act and do so when directed!
CONCLUSION: So as we close
A. Though none of us really like to wait, it is a part of life – even our spiritual life
B. In spiritual things we have learned this morning: we need to be ready to persevere in our waiting on God to give an answer to our prayers, be watching for God’s answer and be ready to follow God’s direction when He does give it to us.
C. Can we commit to doing this? In our personal life, family life and church life.
D. May God grant us the mentality of a prophet in this regard – on ward and forward in the Cause of Christ.
