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Thursday, August
14, 2008
Red and Green
Isaiah 40:29-31 He giveth power to the
faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. (30) Even the
youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: (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. (KJV)
Have you ever gotten in hurry only to end
up frustrated by red lights; you know those days where it seems like we hit
them all? Christians are like that, they get in a big hurry and then get
frustrated and worn out because they get ahead of our Lord and act before
hearing all His instructions. When driving, red means stop because it
allows other traffic to move to the place they need to be, while you need
to wait for the green light to proceed. Of course it goes without saying
the perils one can get themselves into if they don’t wait and decide to
proceed on red. Besides the trouble you get yourself into by breaking a
simple law, it can hurt and affect others as well if you don’t obey simple
instructions. The same holds true spiritually; many are used to man’s ways
and timing, which seems to get more fast paced daily, and miss God’s way
and timing, especially that patience part. There is definitely a big
difference between man’s patience and the Lord’s. Knowing the difference
can save you a world of hurt and frustration so that you don’t end up so
weary and utterly falling short.
Psalms 145:14-15 The LORD upholdeth all
that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down. (15) The eyes of
all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season. (KJV)
Oh but I prayed and the Lord didn’t
answer me so I just went ahead anyway. Well no wonder you fell as verse 14
makes reference to, and need to be picked up and dusted off again. Was it
so much the Lord didn’t answer your prayer, or maybe He didn’t answer it
the way you thought He should, or in the time you thought was appropriate?
Has the Lord failed you or any other of His people before, or was it you
that failed to wait until you knew it was time to proceed forward, you know
like getting the green light? So if you were the one that took off before
the light changed, is it the Lord’s fault you ended up in a wreck and had
to speed dial 911?
Psalms 123:1-2 Unto thee lift I up mine
eyes, O thou that dwellest in the heavens. (2) Behold, as the eyes of
servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden
unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God,
until that he have mercy upon us. (KJV)
Think of a waiter, interesting name isn’t
it for one that waits on customers in a restaurant? If the waiter is in a
hurry and doesn’t get all of the order correct it ends up with a complaint
from the customer and sent back to the kitchen to be redone. You know, my
life before the Lord was one of always in a hurry, I never had time to do
things right the first time, so think how frustrating it was when it had to
be redone a second time to make up for my lack of patience in doing it
right the first time around.
Hebrews 6:12-15 That ye be not slothful,
but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
(13) For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no
greater, he sware by himself, (14) Saying, Surely blessing I will bless
thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. (15) And so, after he had
patiently endured, he obtained the promise. (KJV)
It’s not like God has a history of failure,
and it’s not like going to a casino where you hope to get a lucky break
once in a while but quite the opposite is true. I can’t think of anyone
above God and neither could He, so when He made promises to Abraham as He
has with all those that choose to believe Him, He swore it by Himself,
guaranteed it in fact. What one needs to make note of though, verse 12
points out not only hearing the message of faith but then being a doer of
it, which sometimes includes patiently waiting on the answer. God’s word is
forever settled in heaven and will endure, the question is will you be
settled in His promise and endure to the end also so that you can obtain
what is promised?
Psalms 37:7-9 Rest in the LORD, and wait
patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his
way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. (8) Cease from
anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil. (9) For
evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall
inherit the earth.
(KJV)
Oh by the way, did someone tell you this
world is fair? If they did let me be the one to tell you it is not. Just
like with negligent drivers who run red lights or drive too fast causing
injury to others, man’s ways are not fair or just and never will be because
they are stuck in a fallen realm and in bondage to their fallen natures.
There are times you are going to endure grief, but be reminded that we are
only on this earth for a short time and then our Lord is going to return
and set things right, and put all those evil doers in their place. That’s
why we are reminded that as much as possible we should live peaceably with
all men. The wrath of man does not work the righteousness of God, because
it causes one to react in the flesh rather than respond in a spiritual
manner.
Isaiah 25:8-9 He will swallow up death in
victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the
rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the
LORD hath spoken it. (9) And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our
God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have
waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation. (KJV)
Red means stop, stop getting angry and in
a hurry, but wait until there is a green light to proceed forward. Verse 8
reminds us of what is going to take place shortly for the body of Christ
when they inherit this earth. When driving, one sets out for a certain
destination and sometimes gets detoured or delayed for certain reasons,
sometimes to avoid hazardous conditions. When driving forward in your walk
with the Lord it is vital to be patient and endure to the end so that you
can make it to the destination God intended for you also. Keep looking
forward and forget what is behind, and wait till you see what God has for
you.
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