WAITING ON THE LORD
PSALM 130:5-6
ISAIAH 40:29-31
Introduction:
 This biblical waiting is a form of
spiritual discipline that calls for
believers to patiently wait on the Lord.
 Most often the process of waiting is
God’s very purpose for us- to mold our
characters into Christ-likeness.
Why is it difficult to wait?
1. As a part of our fallen humanity, we
are so prone to take matters into
our own hands.
2. We have grown accustomed to the
influence of modern age
conveniences.
3. We are easily swayed by a society
that has grown accustomed to
immediate gratification.
 We have to realize that “Life is full of
waiting”. This process of waiting, with
the heart of seeking and honoring the
Lord is a vital element in the Christian life
- for our spiritual growth.
Background/context: Psalm 130:5-6
 God's people should wait or put their
hope in Yahweh for who He is.
 Present distress(es) in our lives should be
opportunities to prove God in providing
deliverance as we wait upon Him.
 The Israelites' confident waiting in God is
based on the certainty of God’s character.
 All of God’s people can also be assured of
His holy purposes in all our waiting upon
Him.
 The same unchanging and
sovereign God through His
unchanging Words continues to
call us to wait and put our hope
in Him, because our present and
future deliverance is sure. This
must be the basis and root of
our confident waiting.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO WAIT
UPON THE LORD?
I. WAITING MEANS CONFIDENT
EXPECTATION
 It is easy to claim that we are
waiting on the Lord. But it is
possible to wait and not have
the attitude of confident
expectation.
 The word “wait” (v.5) in the original
language includes the concept of
“hope”. That’s why “wait” is also
translated “hope” or to “look
expectantly or confidently”.
 WAITING and HOPING are bound
together like the strands of a
rope.
Principles concerning this confident
waiting upon the Lord:
1. Confident waiting is more than
simply a passing of time.
2. Confident waiting involves an
expectation of something special
– anticipation and hope in
something that will take place.
II.
WAITING MEANS EXPECTATIONS
ARE BASED ON KNOWLEDGE
AND TRUST OF WHO GOD IS
 Without knowledge and trust on
God, we simply won’t wait.
 At least 28 of the passages that
deal with waiting have the Lord as
the object waited for and as the
confidence of the one waiting.
 Psalm 130:5-8:
Implications:
 The ability to wait on the Lord stems
from being confident and focused
on who God is and in what God is
doing.
 It means confidence in God’s
person: His wisdom, love, timing,
and understanding of our situation
and that of the world.
 It means knowing and trusting in
God’s principles, promises,
purposes, and power.
Passages that contains the call to
wait and rest in God based on His
character and faithfulness:
 Psalm 52:8-9
 Psalm 37:7-9
 Psalm 39:7
 Waiting means claiming God’s
promises by faith and resting in
what God is doing in our lives so
we can faithfully follow His
principles and keep His values,
priorities and pursuits.
What am I to do during the
waiting process?
III. WAITING MEANS SEEKING
THE LORD THROUGH HIS
WORD AND PRAYER
 Lamentations 3:25
 Biblical waiting always
means seeking the Lord.
 Time spent in seeking Him means:
 Time in His Word
• studying
• seeking answers
• claiming God’s promises
 Time in prayer
• praying about the issues
• praying for wisdom and
discernment
 Time of meditating on who God is
• What He wants to do in us and
through us, and on what we need
to do by way of answers and
direction.
• Our need to examine and
evaluate our motives and
attitudes, our values and
priorities, and our goals and
objectives in life.
IV. WAITING MEANS IT IS BOTH
PASSIVE AND ACTIVE
 Involves things we should do
(active) and things we should
not do (passive)
 This kind of waiting involves two
things:
1. Things we do- doing the right things.
2. Things we are not to do- refraining
from the wrong things.
 The following passages contain
these elements which are woven
together as part of the waiting
process, as one trusts confidently
in the Lord.
 Psalm 37:7-9
 Psalm 37:1-6
V. CHALLENGE AND CONCLUSION:
 WAITING STRENGTHENS AND
ENABLES
 Isaiah 40:29-31
 The key to unlocking this verse
is the word wait. Those who
wait on (upon) the Lord get all
the attributes of strength in this
verse.
 Definition of the Hebrew word
“qavah” which is translated
figuratively as “wait” (in Isaiah
40:31).
 The literal meaning of the word
“qavah” is “to bind together like a
cord.”
 the process of making a rope
(cord) by twisting or weaving
(binding) thin threads together
to form the rope.
 The more strands that are twisted or
woven together in a rope, the greater
is the strength. Ecclesiastes 4:12
 The literal definition of “qavah” or
“wait” implies strength through
numbers. The more strands in your
rope, the greater its strength.
Just as a rope’s strength comes
from being made of many strands,
so our strength comes through
being united with Christ.
 The “rope” of our lives gains
strength by being twisted, woven
or bound together with the Father’s
sovereign plan in our lives and
Christ transforming work in us
through the Holy Spirit.
 The more “strands” that we weave
into our relationship with God, the
more strength He gives to us.
Many of the “strands” that are connected
with our relationship to God are:
 Waiting expectantly and confidently
upon the Lord.
 Seeking God through the Word and
Prayer
 Being content with God’s provision and
resting in His timing in any given
situation
 Actively waiting characterized by serving,
fellowshipping and being accountable
with other believers in the church.
A rope's strength remains constant
even when it is not being used.
When a rope is not being used,
what is it doing?
The rope is “waiting.” It “waits” for
its owner to put it to use. When the
rope is attached to a load, it draws
its strength from all the strands
and goes to work.
“They that have all aspects of their lives
intertwined and bound together with the
Lord, like threads are twisted into a rope,
shall exchange their meager strength for
the strength of the rope, they shall rise up
to meet challenges as if they had powerful
wings like an eagle, they shall run through
life and not be weary, they shall walk
through problems and not faint.”
ISAIAH 40:31