WHY ARE OUR BLESSINGS DELAYED
OUTLINE
1. GOD'S TIMING
2. THE TEST OF FAITH
3. TURNING POINTS
4. GREATER GLORY OF GOD
5. OUR FEARS
6. SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS.
7. LACK OF DESPERATION
THE MESSAGE
WHY ARE OUR BLESSINGS DELAYED
1. GOD'S TIMING
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
John 2:3,4
3. And when they ran out of wine , the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."
4. Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come."
John 7:2-6
2. Now the Jews Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.
3. His brothers therefore said to Him, Depart from here and go into Jedea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing.
4. For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly. If You do these things, show Yourself to the world.
5. For even His brothers did not believe in Him.
6. Then Jesus said to them, My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.
John 7:30
30. Then they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.
John 8:20
20. These words Jesus spoke in the treasure, as He taught in the temple; and no one laid hands on Him, for His hour had not yet come.
Revelation 6:9-11
9. When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held.
10. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord holy and true , until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?"
11. And a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were was completed.
2. THE TEST OF FAITH
Genesis 22:1,2
1. Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am."
2. And He said, "Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you."
Genesis 22:12
12. And He said, "Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me."
Genesis 22:17,18
17. "in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.
18. "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice."
Deuteronomy 8:2,3
2. "And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.
3. "So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD.
I Peter 1:6-7
6. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials.
7. that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
I Peter 4:12-14
12. Behold do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you;
13. but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.
14. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God resets upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.
Hebrews 10:38
38. Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him."
Hebrews 11:6
6. but without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who deligently seek Him.
2 Corinthians 5:7
7. For we walk by faith, not by sight.
1 Corinthians 10:13
13. No temptation has overtaken you except sucjh as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
3. TURNING POINTS
Hebrews 12:26,27
26. Whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, "Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven."
27. Now this "Yet once more," indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain.
Acts 10:9-16
9. The next day, as they went on their journey and drew near the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray abour the sixth hour.
10. Then he became very hungry and wanted to ear; but while they made ready he fell into a trance
11. and saw heaven opened and an object like a great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the earth.
12. In it were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air.
13. And a voice came to him, "Rise, Peter; kill and eat."
14. But Peter said, "Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean."
15. And a voiLuke times. And the object was taken up into heaven again.
Acts 10:28,34,35.
28. Then he said to them, "You know how unlasful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation. shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean.
34. Then Peter opened his mouth and said: In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality.
35. "But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him.
Isaiah 40:29-31
29. He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength.
30. Evern the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall,
31. But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.
Psalm 103:5
5. Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
Jeremiah 1:10
10. See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, To root out and to pull down, To destroy and to throw down, To build and to plan.
Luke 2:34-35
34. Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary His mother, "Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Isreal, and for a sign which will be spoken against.
35. (yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed."
4. GREATER GLORY OF GOD
John 11:1-6
1. Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha.
2. It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.
3. Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying , "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick."
4. When Jesus heard that, He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it."
5. Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
6. So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.
John 11:37
37. And some of them said, "Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, also have kept this man from dying?"
Job 1:1
1. THERE was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil.
Job 1:8-12 , 20-22
8. Then the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?"
9. So Satan answered the LORD and said, "Does Job fear God for nothing?
10. "Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.
11. "But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!"
12. So the LORD said to Satan, "Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not lay a hand on his person." Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD.
20 At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship
21 and said:
“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
and naked I will depart.
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away;
may the name of the Lord be praised.”
22 In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.
Job 2:3-10
3. The the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause."
4. So Satan answered the LORD and said, Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life.
5. "But stretch out Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will surely curse You to Your face!"
6. So the LORD said to Satan, "Behold, he is in your hand, but spare his life.
7. Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD, and struck Job with painful boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.
8 Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.
9 His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!”
10 He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?”
In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.
Job 42:10
10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the LORD restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.
John 9:1-3
1. Now as Jesus passed by, He was a man who was blind from birth,
2. And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was norn blind?"
3. Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.
5. OUR FEARS
Job 3:25
25. For the thing I greatly feared has come upon me, And what I dreaded has happened to me.
Job 1:5
5. So it was when the days of feasting had run their course, that Job would send and sanctify them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, "It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts." Thus Job did regularly.
Matthew 14:29,30
29. So He said, "Come," And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.
30. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!"
Numbers 13 : 26-33
26 They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. There they reported to them and to the whole assembly and showed them the fruit of the land.
27 They gave Moses this account: “We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit.
28 But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there.
29 The Amalekites live in the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live near the sea and along the Jordan.”
30 Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.”
31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.”
32 And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size.
33 We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.”
6. SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS.
II Corinthians 12:7-10
7. And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.
8. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me.
9. And He said to me "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
10. Therefor I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Proverbs 30:7-9
7. Two things I request of You (Deprive me not before I die):
8. Remove falsehood and lies far from me; Give me neither poverty nor riches Feed me with the food You prescribe for me;
9. Lest I be full and deny You, And say, "who is the LORD?" Or lest I be poor and steal, And profane the name of my God.
Matthew 5:29,30
29. "And if your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.
30. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.
Mark 9:43-47
43. And if your hand makes you sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched.
44. where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.
45. And it your foot makes you sin, cut it off, It is better for you to enter life lame, than having two feet, to be cast into hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched.
46. where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.
47. And if your eye makes you sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire.
Psalm 119:67,71,75
67. Before I was afflicted I went astray, But now I keep Your word.
71. It is good for me that I have been afflicted, That I may learn Your statutes.
75. I know, O LORD, that Your judgments are right, And that in faithfulness You have afflicted me.
Psalm 106:15
15. And He gave them their request, But sent leanness into their soul.
7. LACK OF DESPERATION
Genesis 32: 24 - 28
24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.
25 When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man.
26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”
But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
27 The man asked him, “What is your name?”
“Jacob,” he answered.
28 Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel,[f] because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”
1 Chronicles 4: 9-10
9 Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez,[c] saying, “I gave birth to him in pain.”
10 Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, “Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.” And God granted his request.
Matthew 5 : 6
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Psalm 42: 1-2
1 As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, my God.
2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
*************************************************************
