Nevertheless, waiting is presented in the Bible as a necessary duty in the lives of God's people. The prophetic chapter of Isaiah 25, for instance, describes the faithful as reveling in the lavish banquet God has prepared as they joyfully declare, “Behold, this is our God for Whom we have waited that He might save us.”
The chapter makes clear that these are men and women from all eras and all nations whose faith in God was finally receiving its rewards, including a full knowledge of God and fellowship with Him, the elimination of death, the reconciliation of all things to their Creator, the comfort from all sorrows, and the ultimate triumph of His holy power.
But, of course, there is that word there — wait.
These believers had to wait for that sweet and forever day of victory. It didn’t come when they wanted it; it came at God’s appointed time. They had to wait on Him: patiently, devotedly, keeping their eyes not on the temporary trials of this sin-scarred earth but on the promised prize.
There are several other Scriptures which speak to this matter and, in various ways, they illustrate that waiting on God requires existential faith in the Lord’s promises and a confident expectation that His power, His love, His righteousness, and His wise purposes are perfect…even in their timing. As we exercise faith in a God Who loves us and Who is sovereign over all circumstances, we can certainly endure. By the Spirit's power, we can maintain joy, loyal worship, and good deeds which shine God's light even in dark and difficult times.
We can, in a word, wait. And, as Isaiah 25 shows, with its awesome pictures of God’s (and our) ultimate triumph, we will one great day testify that His glorious, liberating victory in our behalf was well worth the wait.
