Welcome
Today we continue our study into the New Testament, and move onto 2nd Peter, and it is amazing that we will cover similar ground to that of Paul in Thessalonians.
The theme of today’s service is on waiting, … that is waiting on answered prayer or the promises of God; and again it is one of those services where the deliverer of the sermon needs to listen and take action more than the congregation whom it is being addressed to. I know that what I will be talking about is true, but don’t ask me to show you how it is done. It is difficult subject but you will see that I am only skimming the surface of it.
And now that your have complete confidence in me, we will start with the peace. We meet in Christ’s name, Let us share his peace.
Today’s reading 2 Peter 3:8-15a
Do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a loud noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fire, and the earth and everything that is done on it will be disclosed.
Since all these things are to be dissolved in this way, what sort of persons ought you to be in leading lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved, and the elements will melt with fire? But, in accordance with his promise, we wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home.
Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish; and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation.
Please be seated, and join me in a short prayer. "Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord our strength and our redeemer". Amen. (Psalms. 19:14)
Introduction
I hate waiting, and so does everyone else: I don’t like waiting for food to be served when I’m hungry, so I tend to have a nibble to keep me going. I hate waiting on television adverts, so we usually record a good program first so that I can fast forward them. And I hate temporary traffic lights when there are no cars or pedestrians in sight; and I won’t tell you how I get round that one. … I just have no patience, … everybody knows it, and my short fixes are never ideal, nor do I encourage them, … but I am sure you all, have your pet hates on waiting on something, … and little private solutions that you do not want to share.
Today's society as a whole, is an instant society where everything must be done now; yet, ... if we are to receive a miracle from God we cannot seek and instantly demand, ... we cannot take a short cut, ... we have to wait, and believe that it will materialise, ... in a time that suit's God.
That for most Christians, (even the most devout and sincere), is a very difficult thing to do, don't let anybody fool you, they have to wait the same as us, because there is a season of waiting before a miracle happens; ... in fact and unfortunately, ... many miracles are forfeited because we give up too soon, ... and we add our own little remedy.
Learning to wait therefore is as important, ... and more difficult, than learning to believe in the first place, because we have to wait and believe at the same time, ... even when circumstances tell us that our prayer will never be answered.
2nd Peter 3 verse 8 says, “Do not forget this one thing, dear friends: with the Lord a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years, are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promises as some understand slowness”. I am sure you have heard the story about the wee man who was having a conversation with God and where the man said, “God, how long is a million years to you”? And God said, “A million years is like a second." The man asked, “How much is a million pounds to you?” And God said, “A million pounds is like a penny”. So the man said, “could you spare a penny?” and God said, ... “sure, just wait a second”. That is exactly how God answers my prayers.
Yes I am being cynical, but I feel that when God says soon, he is referring to soon in his time, ... not soon in my time, which is seams to last forever. This is because we live in a different time frame, and also a different space frame, where we do not see all the variables that God sees.
Another reason for waiting is because easy answers and simple solutions produce shallow conviction, ... that is conviction without character, ... and I am well aware that waiting in faith is so much easier to say than do, but in waiting, ... we grow and develop in faith, and that is what God is developing in us, … faith with results, ... maybe not for this world, but for the world to come.
I suppose if you think about it, if God snapped his fingers every time we prayed, and gave us what we want, what would we turn into? It would certainly be something horrible, something out of a horror film. Look at the things in this church that we all do not agree on, and they are minor. Just how could God for example answer all our prayers on say, on the chairs for example and that was minor? We had opposing views, but we learned to reach a compromise. ... No God is in control, and he knows what he is doing with us, even though we disagree, ... and that is a lesson in itself.
Instant answers, or instant solutions are quickly forgotten, ... but the longer we have to wait, ... and mature with faith, the stronger we become, ... both mentally and spiritually, ... and the greater the victory will be.
This is summed up nicely in for what I think is a disturbing passage in Romans 5:2 "we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God, ... and not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation works patience; ... and patience works experience; ... and experience, (works) hope: ... And hope makes not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us".
Nowhere in scripture has God promised us easy miracles. Even Jesus had to wait on some miracles manifesting themselves, so there is no way God is going to let us wave a magic wand for him, and allow us to do miracles “on demand”, like some people like to promote.
No, God is developing us, and we are still infants in this field, because … God is training us to pray, … and to believe in that prayer, ... and then to wait to see that prayer in manifestation. God is training us to be more and more like Jesus, ... but he is also teaching us how to pray with faith, expecting results, ... and that, I am so sorry to say, takes a lot of time, energy and patience to see these results, but they do happen.
The gifts of God’s are free, but they are not easy gifts to open; they require a lot of patience and devotion, and as we try, we get discouraged, but it is working through this discouragement that prayers are answered, but they are usually in a form that we never expect. We therefore have to pray fully depending on God, ... but wait with faith, like it is dependant upon our patience.
Deuteronomy 8:7 says, ... “The Lord is bringing you into a good land, ... a land with streams and pools of water, ... ... a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills”.
There is a powerful principle in that last phrase: the miracle is buried somewhere deep within us all, ... and all we have to do, … all we have to do is, … dig it out. Yes I am being cynical again, but God is saying that the faith is lying deep within us, … but we have to look for it, ... and then dig it out and process it. What I am getting at here is, that knowing that our faith is present within, (mustard seed faith), the easier it is to persevere, ... and find it. Devotion therefore is easier to come by, when we know that that thing we are looking for, is there.
And waiting on that faith doesn’t mean sitting around twiddling our thumbs; it means in waiting in anticipation. I was hoping to avoid the Nunc Dimittis this year but there you go, ... but in Luke chapter 2 there was Simeon and Anna, both in their old age, waiting to die.
Then Luke 2:25 says about Simeon. “It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the Temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took the boy in his arms and praising God, saying: ‘Sovereign, Lord, as you have promised you may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation”.
Simeon waited with faith most of his life, for this very moment, he waited with confidence and patience, ... and I am 100% sure that during this time, Simeon had his doubts, ... his faith must have been severely challenged along the way, ... and that is why I am sure this was a very emotional meeting for him, because God's promise finally came true for him, ... and more important, if this promise came true, all the other promises would be true as well, ... so Simeon could confidently say, "Let your servant in depart peace. ... For my eyes have seen your salvation”.
For Simeon, it was living with this constant expectation of meeting Christ that produced the miracle, ... and it is this expectation of God's promises that we are expected to endure. This is what God has called us to do, ... to focus and believe for those things he has promised us.
One of the secrets to achieving this is to focus on the ultimate goal, and not on how we get there. If you believe that you will overcome a certain situation, then you will, ... somehow paying little attention to the details along the way.
The other way is to pay attention to the details, (just like what I am so good at), ... and when these smaller things take a turn for the worse, or things do not go in the direction I want them to go, then I get very discouraged, ... and with the discouragement, I lose hope, and with hope goes faith. Do you see what I am getting at, the ultimate goal, that is the promises of God are what we should be focusing on, and not how they are achieved, or worse how we achieve them olurselves. ... God I just wish I could take my own advice here.
But we all get discouraged when God doesn’t meet our deadlines, ... and we either give up on the miracle or the promise, and stop praying and believing, ... , ... or sometimes we lash out and blame something, ... or somebody, ... and we become bitter, ... and we all know that bitter never makes anyone better, but still we do it.
And yes there are times to give up, or call it a day, ... but we have to be careful when we do, after all, ... God himself shows us that he is extremely patient, ... because he has told us that he will pour out his wrath on the "Day of the Lord", … but it will be after his patience has been exhausted.
So think about this, if Naaman had only dipped in the Jordan six times instead of seven, he would not have been cured of his leprosy. What if Elijah had only prayed for rain six times, ... then it would not have rained. 1st Kings 18:44 tells us "And it came to pass at the seventh time, ... , ... the heavens became black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain".
And, I am sure by the way; that the walls of Jericho would still be standing had the Israelites only walked around Jericho six times? .... Why, because those walls were so strong; totally impenetrable is the phrase that comes to mind?
So we can conclude that most miracles fail because we give up too soon, or we fail to act with patience or without full understanding of that patience, ... and when I say act, I mean to continually believe.
A good passage on the importance of prevailing in prayer is in the book of Daniel, where Daniel had a vision from God and he thereby decided to fast. And for days he did, and in doing so, he felt like the heavens were closed and God had totally abandoned him, ... but when that happens, that is the time we should persevere, and that is the time to keep going until we see a breakthrough; this is the time our faith is at it strongest, when we feel it is at its weakest. 2nd Corinthians 13 verse: 9 says, “for we are glad, when we are weak, because you are strong: and this we wish, even your perfection”.
And for Daniel that happened on Day twenty one, when Daniel was visited by an angel. Daniel 10 verse 12, ... "And he said unto me, ... ... Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, ... your words were heard, and I am come for your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, … Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia".
From this passage we gleam that Daniels prayer was heard the very moment it was prayed, ... but it took twenty-one days to answer his prayer because of spiritual opposition. For the first twenty days there was nothing but despair, but on day twenty one we read in verse 14 “Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future”. ... It took twenty days for him to wait, and wait with faith through doubt and negativity, but on day twenty one he gets clarity of his vision. ...
We too want clarity, but we must learn how to wait on our prayers being answered. This is completely different from our prayers being heard, ... because our prayers are always heard straight away, … but the answers require us to wait.
I have been aware for some time, the power behind waiting on prayer with faith; ... but it is the ability to wait, that sets us apart, because it is so powerful.
And I say this regularly, that Christians are seen by many as weak and feeble entities, but I will tell you, … I would not like to take on anyone who has the power to wait on God, ... can you see the strength in this, … can you see the power working through the weakness, or the power working through humility.
Who then is weak, the one who is quick to defend himself, or the one who is patient and who can wait on God?
Enough said, I think we will finish there,
Let us pray
Let us pray,
Father, we thank you for Jesus. We thank you that he is our salvation, and that he is our strength leading us to glory.
Father please forgive us for our impatience; forgive us for wanting our own way, and forgive for not seeing the bigger picture as you do.
But Father, as children of yours, we need you to answer our prayers because life at times can be so cruel, that we need your loving presence.
Come to us father, let us know you are with us, and if we do not feel your presence, let us be assured somehow, that you are are very much with us, wanting us to do well for you, and succeed.
Father instead of us being full of fear when waiting on answered prayer, enable us to rejoice in this time of waiting, knowing that you are at working within us, and strengthening us by waiting, and encouraging us to see it through unto the breakthrough.
Father show us please, that we are truly strong in you.
Father we also take this opportunity to pray for Mike Batterson and his congregation, whose inspiration helped me start and complete this complex sermon.
We ask humbly therefore, in Jesus name, Amen.
Note to the reader:
If you have been blessed by this sermon, or any of my sermons, I would be greatly honoured to receive an e-mail from you saying so; I like so many others need encouragement.
I often feel that to deliver a sermon one time to my congregation is such a waste; where as many more could be blessed by its message, after all, it is not for my glory but for his. I would therefore like my sermons to bless more people, preferably internationally and not only in a small part, of a small country called Scotland.
Simply let me know where you are in the world … and any other information you may want to share or be prayed for. I would also take it as a compliment for you to use my sermons in order to bless others in his almighty name. I do not even need acknowledged, but he does, and I will receive a blessing directly from him.
Thank you for taking the time to read, and I wish you "all the best" as we say in Scotland … and I pray that your endeavours in the Lord are equally blessed. Yours in Christ, Gordon McCulloch, Scotland.
Compiled By: Gordon McCulloch (Worship Leader),
St Oswalds Episcopal Church,
Maybole. Ayrshire.
Scotland. UK
KA19 8KF or E-Mail me through Sermon Central
