After the ascension of Jesus to the Father, the disciples became more focused on His promises to them. They were all together in one accord – praying and studying the scriptures. There was a singleness of purpose among them, to stay focused on obeying Jesus’ last instruction to them.
Jesus had commanded them:
“Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.”
Acts 1:4b NIV
Just as the disciples were commanded to wait; there are times when the Lord may want you to wait, for the fulfillment of His promise to you also.
By obeying this command of Jesus to remain in Jerusalem, the disciples positioned themselves in God’s perfect plan. Every act of your obedience to God, will get you in line with His perfect plan for your life. While every act of disobedience will get you further away from God.
They had been commanded not to leave the city of Jerusalem; after having witnessed Jesus’ ascension. They were to wait for the promise of the gift of the Holy Spirit, which was to be given to all who were to believe in the name of Jesus.
There was no need for them to hurry in getting out of Jerusalem, so as to go the end of the earth as commanded by Jesus. They knew that they had been called to preach the gospel to the end of the earth; but they had to wait for the right time before going.
Jerusalem later became home to them – the birthplace of Christianity. The timeline for them to go to the end of the earth belonged to God alone. They knew that there was a set season and time for everything that God does on the earth (Ecclesiastes 3).
That’s why we don’t ever underestimate our waiting time for the fulfillment of God’s promises to us. If He has promised you anything; He will bring it to come to pass. You have no business setting the time for Him concerning when to do it. God is faithful. He will do it. If He promised; He will do it. He is not weak; but strong to bring it to come to pass.
The early disciples did not know what to do further after the ascension of Jesus. They only knew that they had to wait for the promise of the Holy Spirit, as they had been commanded by Jesus.
They never even knew how to wait. They had never done this before. It was a new thing for them. Jesus had always been with them and for them. But He had also advised them before, about waiting for certain things in life (Matthew 9:15).
Now, they were left alone to face the reality of the future. One major thing to note about their attitude in waiting, was the fortitude of their faith in God to do what He had promised.
Their example in waiting will serve a good purpose today; to all who are waiting on the Lord for the fulfillment of His promises.
You may be waiting right now for your healing, the salvation of your loved ones or their deliverance. You may be waiting to get married; but you don’t even know how it will happen or to whom. Are you waiting for the promotion on your job? You may even be waiting for the breakthrough in your business.
But know fully well that for every promise of God to you, there is a waiting period for the fulfillment of that promise.
Be watchful and careful while waiting.
There are many today who are struggling as they are waiting, to obey God’s command and instruction to them. We however do know that if anyone is not obeying God, that person is only prolonging his waiting period. God will not fulfill His promises, until your acts of obedience has been completed (2 Corinthians 10:6). Period!
Many are waiting on the Lord today for the salvation, healing or deliverance of their loved ones. Yet they can’t obey the command of Jesus to stay in love, as an example.
Note that you can’t receive anything from the Lord, if you are not walking in love. Love is the fulfillment of God’s commandments (Romans 13:10).
And your waiting season is never meant to be preoccupied by communing with “flesh and blood” (Galatians 1:16); in order to bring God’s promises to come to pass.
It’s important to note here that you are not involved in a struggle with flesh and blood. You are in a spiritual warfare. Waiting on the Lord is a spiritual act of worship. True worshippers know how to wait on the Lord.
Some people have been sidetracked from the good fight of faith, as they’ve yielded themselves to every manifestation of the works of the flesh; that has been spiritually engineered by Satan against them, so as to hinder the fruit of their faith.
There are “master spirits” that Satan has released on assignment, to stop your faith and your prayer from seeing and receiving the expected results. It’s up to you to humble yourself before the Lord, as you are resisting them by faith.
These “master spirits” from the devil have taken time out to monitor and study you very well, before launching out against your faith. They do know your strength and your weaknesses in waiting.
Master spirits will normally send out thoughts into your mind. These are thoughts that are targeted to deceive and lie to you about God’s promises.
This is how they often begin to target your faith. Your faith is of the heart. And they can’t prevail against the heart that is filled with the words of faith. If they can’t overrun your mind, by manipulating you to think contrary to what the scriptures says, then they will never prevail.
So, if your heart is never open to them, you can defeat them. They normally will flee from you, once you start exercising your authority as a believer in Christ Jesus by faith over them. You have to exercise authority always in conquering their manipulative and deceptive thoughts to the mind.
The waiting period on the Lord will expose your spiritual strength and weaknesses to you, so that you will have to take actions based on what is being revealed to you by the Lord. Don’t just be waiting on the Lord for anything without doing something to develop and grow in faith.
That’s the mistake which many Christians do often make. They think that being saved is all that they need, to receive from God. But the devil doesn’t really want you to be saved, healed or to even be on the way to Heaven. He will do anything to try and stop you. He is seeking company in hell to be with him.
Waiting on the Lord helps you to grow up spiritually. It helps you to develop spiritual muscles, so that you will be able to ride on the waves of God, which are coming across your way while waiting.
Your waiting time therefore is meant to be spent, in the same manner as the early disciples waited for the promise of the Holy Spirit.
It won’t do you any good at all, for you to be seeking counseling and advice from men, about what to do while waiting. You do have the counsel of God, in that very last command which He gave to you from the scriptures.
You have no need for the opinions of men, when you do have the wisdom of God in His written Word to counsel you. Most importantly the Great Counselor – the Holy Spirit lives inside of you.
As the scripture says:
… “as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
2 Corinthians 6:16 KJV
God lives inside of you. He dwells and abides inside of you. Wherever you go He goes with you, because He is inside of you. You belong to Him, and He is yours. So, what else do you need?
If they waited, you can wait also.
Waiting on the Lord for the fulfillment of His promises is good for you. It guarantees you the very best from Him. Your waiting period is never wasted, even when it seems to you as if nothing is happening. Don’t ever forget that God is actually cooking something for you, which is beyond your understanding or imagination.
So, stop trying to figure out things as you wait on Him. Learn how you can spiritually grow by worshipping God more often. It will help you to focus more on the promises of God. Stop daydreaming about how God is going to fulfill His promises to you.
Don’t get yourself into the habit of putting out fleeces on God either. It is not based on faith in God. It is a faith killer. Gideon did it in the Old Testament out of ignorance about the ways of God (Judges 6:36-40).
And God had to work with him, because there was no other qualified believer in Israel at that time. But it’s your ability to worship Jesus, that brings you closer to God in fellowship.
King David said during his waiting period as he ascended to the throne of Israel:
“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.”
Psalms 23:5-6 NKJV
David’s waiting time in the caves, wilderness and mountains were never wasted. God used it to prepare him for the throne, while Saul was seeking after his life. It was during those troubling moments of his life, that David recognized God as the Shepherd of his life (Psalms 23:1).
He learnt to worship God more as he waited for the throne to come to him. David developed a closer relationship with God during those moments of his life.
As he walked in the reality of God as being the Shepherd of his life, he found himself at the prepared table of the Lord in the presence of his enemies.
David had many enemies in life. It was when he started confronting his enemies, that the anointing over his life began to increase into the overflow. God did not take David’s enemies away from his life. David learnt to deal with each situation concerning them, by relying on the Shepherd of his soul to lead him.
In the same manner you will have to confront those trials of your faith, and the enemies to your destiny; before the prepared table of the Lord’s blessings will manifest in your life. Stop trying to avoid your enemies. Learn to deal with them. Learn to love them and become a blessing to them.
There are divine encounters with destinies, that the Lord will bring along your pathway in life, as you are waiting on Him.
Instead of trying to avoid them or run away from them; you’ve got to confront them, if you really want to inherit the promises of God.
Until you confront your giant, you will never know what to do, so as to slay it. You can’t be running away from your destiny in life, and expect God to hand you the promised blessing, without you having to fight the good fight of faith.
For King David the waiting time was not only the preparation time for the throne. David used those moments to develop a closer relationship with God. What are you doing during your waiting time?
At the end of it all, David saw himself sitting at the table of the Lord, right in the presence of his enemies. The place of his confrontation with the enemies became a position of blessing to him.
If David had never confronted Goliath, a pathway into the palace would not have been opened to him. Nothing ever happens by accident. God had destiny planned out for David in ascending to the throne of Israel.
For David this was a long wait that was really worth it. Up till this day in Israel’s history, the reign of King David is still being regarded as the golden era, and the most prosperous for the nation.
That happened as a result of his ability to wait patiently on the Lord. David had many opportunities to quickly ascend to the throne, but he chose to wait on the Lord for it.
Your spiritual warfare may be seeming too long to you. But you can learn something from the life of David. The scriptures said about David during that period of waiting:
“The war between the house of Saul and the house of David lasted a long time. David grew stronger and stronger, while the house of Saul grew weaker and weaker.”
2 Samuel 3:1 NIV
Even though it took a long time, David was getting stronger and stronger as he waited. He fought many battles that seemed so endless.
But it was worth the wait time for the throne of Israel. Don’t ever underrate your waiting time on the promises of God. It’s the period for you to develop spiritual muscles in being able to carry the blessings of God.
Waiting will cause you to soar.
The Prophet Isaiah said:
“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, The Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, And the young men shall utterly fall, 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.”
Isaiah 40:28-31 NKJV
This comparison of Israel’s ability to wait on the Lord with that of the eagle by the Prophet Isaiah is amazing. If you have ever watched an eagle waiting on its prey before going for it, you will understand what the Prophet was illustrating here very well.
An eagle is never in a hurry to go after its target. The eagle knows how to wait for the proper and easiest moment before striking.
It soars around the target for some time on the winds in the skies, from where it monitors the target. It does this from a distance of about five thousand meters away from the target. If necessary, the eagle will hide itself away from the prey, until the best opportune time comes for it to strike.
David was an eagle type King. He never fought needless wars. He never shed blood for no reason. But when he fought, he was always sure of winning, because his battles were always justified by the Lord God.
Are you an eagle or a chicken type Christian? A chicken normally roams about for food like the other birds and animals around it.
Eagles don’t do that. An eagle will always stand out clearly from among all the other birds in the skies. It makes its home on the top of mountains, or in the rocky crevices from, where it can see everything around it.
As an eagle Christian your spiritual life has to be with Christ Jesus, where He is seated in the high place with our Father God. You have to be seated with Him where He is reigning over every principality and power of the earth.
The Scripture says:
“And you are in Him, made full and having come to fullness of life [in Christ you too are filled with the Godhead–Father, Son and Holy Spirit–and reach full spiritual stature]. And He is the Head of all rule and authority [of every angelic principality and power].”
Colossians 2:10 AMPC
If Christ is the Head of all principalities and powers (including the angelic beings), and you are seated with Him in that spiritual high place; then your thoughts should be about what Jesus is saying to you from that realm.
Therefore:
“If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.”
Colossians 3:1-2 NKJV
If you’re seated with Him in that high place while you’re waiting on Him for something on the earth, then your focus needs to be on Him in that high place. He is the One who will give you the word of command, as you’re waiting in His presence concerning every one of your moves in spiritual warfare.
The waiting time of the early disciples made them like the eagles also, to the world in which they preached the gospel. They waited just like the eagle on the promise of the infilling of the Holy Spirit to be fulfilled.
The Bible says:
“They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.”
Acts 1:14 NIV
They never went to town seeking the opinions of the famous religious leaders at Jerusalem, about how best to wait on God’s promises. They just acted on the words of Jesus in waiting. They never needed the viewpoints of men, when they had the words of Jesus.
And just like the eagle, their eyes were set on the last command of Jesus to them. They were not prepared to blink while they waited. Their faces were set as a flint, on the fulfillment of the Lord’s promise to them (Isaiah 50:7).
Jesus had warned them about the various religious groups of His time. They knew that men’s opinions were of no use, when they had God’s word.
Stay focused; don’t get yourself distracted.
Being filled with the Holy Spirit will help you to wait better on the Lord. It will help you to pray and intercede better in the spirit, as you stay focused on the last command of Jesus to you.
Stop seeking the voices of men into your life. Stay focused on the last instruction of Jesus to you, until He gives you another one. Stay focused on the word of God. Those who are seeking for help from the arm of the flesh, are the ones who will be seeking the voices of men; even when God’s voice is in their lives.
As the disciples stayed focused together, through constant prayer and intercession. What they were waiting for came upon them “suddenly”.
The Bible says:
“When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.”
Acts 2:1-4 NIV
Why seek the words of men, when you can wait constantly in prayer until your own “sudden” moment comes? An eagle waits for that “sudden moment” to come, before going after its target.
As you continue to pray in the spirit, you will know your exact “sudden moment” when it comes. That will be the moment for you to step out in faith and do what the Lord told you to do.
Jesus said:
“Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.”
Mark 13:33 NKJV
God is the Lord of the sudden opportunities, that are coming your way. He knows how to realign destinies to catch up and overtake you, as you are waiting on Him.
For the early disciples, all He had to do was to create a sound through the move of the Holy Spirit, to catch the attention of all in the city of Jerusalem. He is the God of signs and wonders. He knows exactly what signs and wonders to create around you, while realigning destinies across your pathways in life. Just keep waiting on Him – watching and praying in the spirit – praying in tongues.
The scripture says about the response from the residents of Jerusalem to the encounter of the early disciples with the Holy Spirit:
“When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken.”
Acts 2:6 NIV
You see, God knows you better than you think you do know yourself. He knows what to do in drawing attention to you, so as to pull you into the right direction for your life.
The crowd in Jerusalem at the moment that this sound came, had been destined to be there at that time to hear the sound. And their response brought in the first harvest of souls into the Body of Christ, after the ascension of Jesus.
As you are waiting for the fulfillment of God’s promises to you – be still. Don’t do anything until God tells you to do something. He knows how to bring destiny across your pathway in life. And that’s how your healing and breakthroughs will come as you are waiting.
But it’s also the moment to stretch your faith for the hand of God to move on your behalf.
At this very moment God is surely cooking a good meal for you, in the presence of your enemies. You’ve got to wait for a well “cooked meal” – a well-prepared blessing from Him. Why are you in a hurry, when you can wait? So, rejoice in the Lord as you are waiting.
Learn to praise and worship God more often in the spirit. Worship of God will draw you closer to the throne room of God. It will get you into a place of intimate fellowship with God, where you will get to know Him more. And before you know it, the Lord will “suddenly” release you. Just wait on Him. Your time is just around the corner.
Remember:
…”Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty”.
Zechariah 4:6b NIV
