Waiting Upon the Lord Psalm 27:13-14 The text before us describes one of God s people who is in the midst of trials and troubles, finding strength and courage in the Lord. David had every reason to be filled with unrest, fear, and worry. The words that precede our text tell us that David s enemies sought to destroy him. They threatened to plunge him into military warfare. They had kept him from some of the greatest joys in his life worshiping the Lord in His house, and being with his father and mother. David had every reason to be discouraged and downtrodden, but he wasn t. He had strength and courage in the midst of these trials because he waited upon the Lord. This morning we look at the importance of waiting upon the Lord: What that means and how that takes place. May God bless us through our study today so that as we encounter the difficult situations in life we will have the same faith and confidence David here displays. We begin by considering the fact that waiting upon the Lord is a significant aspect of faith. The reason waiting upon the Lord is so difficult for us is because we have trouble understanding God s ways. Recently I had a conversation with a person who was struggling with the reality of God s existence. His struggle existed because in his profession he has encountered numerous times when people who have been abiding by the laws of the land are injured or even killed by those who have ignored those laws. His
question: If God does exist, why would He let such injustices occur? His question is a question we may all have asked at some time, and it is a question that has no satisfying answer. We have trouble understanding God s ways, and God is the first one to acknowledge that fact. In Isaiah 55:8-9, He tells us: For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. Waiting upon the Lord is also difficult for us, because God s timing on matters frequently seems to be slow to us. As Americans we have gotten ourselves so wrapped up in our fast pace society that we have trouble waiting on anything. With such modern conveniences as the Internet and the microwave, we expect to have things at our figure tips at a moments notice. If God is as powerful as He says He is and He can do things instantly, there should be no reason that when we pray to Him we have to wait for an indefinite amount of time for an answer. Yet, that is what happens most of the time. God s responses to our prayers do not come as quickly as we would like. We become impatient with Him, rather than waiting patiently upon the Lord. What we need to be mindful of here is that waiting upon the Lord means that we trust in God s perfect knowledge and God s perfect timing in dealing with us for our eternal benefit.
Waiting upon the Lord is relying upon God s promises. A picture of what this means can be seen when a small child in danger or fear wraps his arms around his mother and is unafraid in her arms. We wait upon the Lord as we wrap ourselves in the promises of God. Seeing Christ on the cross, assures us that He love us and will take care of us. Romans 8:32 states: If God did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not with Him freely give us all things? Waiting upon the Lord is trusting in God s love, resting in His promises, knowing that He has full charge of all things for our eternal benefit. That such confident faith would be ours, we learn about the importance of going to church. Waiting upon the Lord comes to fruition as we come to God s house to hear His Word and receive His Sacraments. David makes the comment in our text that he believed and did not lose heart as he saw the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Luther noted that the land of the living is the Lord s church. There one finds those who through faith in Jesus Christ have everlasting life. The world is the land of the dying, but through God s Word and Sacraments there is life and salvation for all who believe in Jesus. Do we find it a struggle to wait patiently upon the Lord? Do we become impatient as we pray to the Lord and seek His help? Are we restless and uneasy, confused and uncertain about matters that we have to deal with in life?
This is why God gives us His Word the one thing needful. In God s Word we are not given precise answers that help us understand every situation in life. Rather what God gives us in His Word is the assurance that all events and situations in life are appointed or permitted by God for divine and eternal purposes. Nothing happens by chance, but everything is deigned for our eternal wellbeing. Through God s Word we are also given the vision of looking at situations from a spiritual perspective. God leads us to see life beyond the here and now and points us to eternity and the home He has prepared for all who believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. It is as we stay focused on the Word of God that we can wait patiently on the Lord and join Luther in singing: God s by our side upon the plain With His good gifts and Spirit. And take they our life, Goods, fame, child, and wife, Let them all be gone, They yet have nothing won; The Kingdom ours remaineth. In God s house we are blessed to personally receive His body and His blood in the Meal He has instituted. When we doubt God s love for us, come to this table and be touched by Christ s body and blood. See there what He has done for us at Calvary. Our sins are washed away, death is conquered, and we are His eternally redeemed children. This is why David expressed in the psalms his great joy in going to the Lord s house. There he met with His Lord and was blessed, nourished, and
strengthened in the divine truth that could sustain him for daily living. My friends cherish the opportunities we have to be here and grow in Christ that we may be strengthened in our faith to wait patiently upon the Lord. Whoever waits upon the Lord will never be disappointed. Instead, he will be given strength and courage. Waiting upon the Lord, hearing His truth and resting in His promises, gives us the blessed assurance that things are not out of control, but that God s perfect and eternal plan for His people is coming to pass. Waiting upon the Lord, facing life s situation with humble submissiveness, knowing that His purposes will be accomplished in His time, grant to us a peace that is beyond human understanding and a joy that knows no end. David said, I would have lost heart had I not believed. But I saw the goodness of the Lord in His sanctuary and it gave me courage and strength to wait upon Him. May God in His grace and mercy allow us to know the true meaning of these words as we place our lives in His hands through the comfort and blessedness He bestows upon us in His Word and Sacraments. Amen.