March 2, 2007    What it Means to Wait on the Lord   Kathleen Maples

Isa 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

The church needs to bind together, to expect when they get before the presence of the Lord and tarry or linger there, patiently, that He knows they are there, and has need of vessels that are empty of their own desires and ambitions, that have fully relinquished the throne of their hearts to His Lordship. When we wait upon Him, that doesn't mean just bow before Him and wait in silence. I think of little Samuel, ministering to the Lord in the temple before Eli-this was a child doing what an old man should be. (1Sa_3:1) When a waitress waits upon you in a restaurant, she serves up your order, doesn't she? God has ordered His people to praise Him, to honor Him, to love Him, and thank Him. He's instructed us to believe Him and His promises, and come boldly before the throne of grace, for there we find strength-His strength that we can as empty vessels draw from. He can fill us with HIMSELF when we empty ourselves of ourself. When we wait upon Him, we should come with prepared hearts, with reverence, and thanksgiving, and praise for WHO HE IS, because we have no idea what a privilege it truly is to be granted His life, His Spirit, and total access to HIM at any time. What ruler, what president, what celebrity has given that to anyone? NONE. And HE alone has the power to transform and save lives. We come to wait on-or serve Him---to minister to His need for company, for the fellowship of His children who come because they love Him, and know He has all the answers to their need for direction and understanding.

He said after we wait upon Him, we would renew our strength. Remember the example of this Jesus gave?

Luk 17:7 But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat?

Luk 17:8 And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink?

When we go to God, we should go and wait on Him and do that which He has commanded-fulfill His order, so to speak. Serve up His praise, with thankful hearts, serve up the faith and trust He is so worthy of, with gratitude and worship for the privilege to bow before ONE so Holy and so Pure, who loves us so much and paid such a high price for us all.

Does that make us anything? Does it grant us any points with God to do this?

Luk 17:9 Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not.

Luk 17:10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.

Not according to Jesus. It doesn't earn us any special treatment or recognition. God knows we need this for our own good. What are we to eat and drink, church? His flesh and His blood. (Joh_6:53) When we do we receive spiritual strength, and drawing from HIM strengthens our faith as well as we experience HIM for ourselves, in a personal and intimate way. I am beginning to understand when people know their God for themselves, it's very difficult for the devil to lie to their minds and cause them to have wrong thoughts about God. They know better. They have more peace, and they are steady, and stable, not easily shaken by circumstances or events. What did Paul say, in his sufferings and tests? None of these things move me. They didn't move him because he knew Who was his Anchor.

He said they would mount up with wings as eagles. Those who have forsaken their thoughts, desires and ways and wants for His Name's sake, for the gospel, and have picked up their cross, and have no agenda but His, have become living martyrs. Living witnesses and representatives of HIM. In Acts 1:8, Jesus told His disciples they would receive power after the Holy Ghost is come upon them and they would be witnesses unto Him in Jerusalem, Samaria and the uttermost part of the earth. That is-in their home, their comfort zone, and in Samaria, which means a place of mixture, often the religious world, where they hate any thing that contains the light and life of Jesus Christ for it exposes their compromise and mixture as the unholy thing it is. In the uttermost part of the earth-it would spread, like fire to every place. I looked up that word witnesses in verse 8 of Acts 1. In the Greek it means "martus" which is where I am sure, we get our word 'martyr'. Death to self, so He can resurrect us in His image, with His Spirit leading and guiding and ministering to others through our hands and feet and mouth.

When we come to God, like this, yes we can mount up with wings like eagles, because He said in Ephesians 2 He has raised us up and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus-but that is only if we are dead to sin and this world and our life is hid in Him. How can I say that, you ask? Where does the Scripture say that? Go back to Eph 1. Verse 3.

Eph 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

I have dug into that verse before and the word 'blessed' occurs twice in that verse. The first word 'blessed' (G2128) means adorable, (Someone to be adored, praised). The second word blessed and I'm talking in the Greek from which it was translated, means something a little different. (G2127) It is the Greek word eulogeo-where we get our word 'eulogy' from and we only get eulogized when we die, correct? So when we do as Jesus said, and forsake our own ways and thoughts and wants, and put on HIM, (Rom_13:14) and die to self, and take up our cross, and seek first HIS Kingdom, (Mat_6:33) He, recognizing the sacrifice, honors the sacrifice by blessing it with praise, causing it to prosper and granting His favor upon the vessel that has presented itself a living sacrifice, (Rom_12:1) He grants those who do this spiritual blessings in heavenly places- greater intimacy or fellowship with the Godhead and spiritual authority over the powers of darkness. The more we know God, the less intimidating and successful the devil becomes in our lives.

When Jesus was ministering in John 12 many believed on Him but would not confess Him because they feared the Pharisees' wrath and feared being put out of the temple. They valued their traditions, and their religion and the praise of men more than the Son of God in whom was eternal life and hope. They saw Him do miracles no one else could do, they heard Him expound the Scriptures as no one else could, yet they would not forsake their traditions, their habits, their form and routine, and their religion, and follow Him.

Joh 12:43 For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

Somebody with the spiritual authority and intimacy with the Godhead I mentioned above, there will be a difference about them. They will not be proud, they will not seek attention, they will deflect men's praise back to the One to whom it should go, just as Jesus did. They will not seek crowds, or popularity. They would prefer to do their warfare on their knees alone before God, who is their favorite One to spend time with, than raging loudly before others. They won't be caught joking around, talking carnal, gossiping, or criticizing folks. They will be serious minded, compassionate, patient, knowing the Holy One for themselves has shown them how much patience and compassion HE has shown them, so they will show it to others. When we receive such a revelation of HIM for ourselves, it will affect how we look at others. We won't be as critical because having seen HIM high and lifted up, we will be all too well aware of the grace and mercy He has shown our own failures. We will remember the parable of the unforgiving servant, and dare not cross that line. They will also have a greater understanding of the finality of the rapture, and judgment, and they will have God's heart for the lost around them. They will be urging others to wake up and be prepared.

Isa 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

He said they would run and not be weary. They would run the race, because their steps would be ordered by the Lord. They would be full of His life, and strength, and Spirit, drawing daily from the wells of salvation what they needed. The rivers of living water would flow through them from on High. They would walk and not faint, they won't quit, they won't complain, they won't be distracted or sidetracked. Because they have seen HIM for themselves. They have understood something more about Him than a casual church goer knows. They have truly tasted HIM and He has become the Source of their strength, their faith, and their power. They know it is all about HIM and not themselves. Daniel 11:32 says even in a time when the wicked are even more corrupted by the Antichrist spirit, the people that do know their God shall be strong and do exploits. They will be strong because they KNOW Him. Because they KNOW Him, they understand they can TRUST HIM. They have made HIM their Source. Oh, folks, lets learn what waiting on the Lord really means, and learn to hear His voice for ourselves now while we still can. There isn't much time. The world is growing more evil and dark every day. When the next disaster hits we need to be already fortified with HIM and full of His oil, His Spirit and compassion so those around us who are lost and panicked and confused will be able to see a light in the darkness and make it to safety-in HIM. We can ask ourselves now, we know better than anybody except the Lord. Do we have oil -the oil of His Spirit dwelling richly in us or have we let it leak out and dry up because we have been too busy and distracted to spend time with God? Have we let the lies and tricks of the devil hinder us from our prayer closet and alone time with God? If so, we need to remedy that as quickly as possible. If not, pray for those who have.

Thank you Jesus, for Your Truth-