February 10, 2013 – Pastor Tim – “I Can’t Wait” – Click to download
John 13:36-38, Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, where are You going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me afterward.”
37 Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.” 38 Jesus answered him, “Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times.”
There is a brief moment, when we think we have it all together; then we realize that all our vows and resolutions end in denial because we have no power to carry them out. When we have come to the end of ourselves, not in imagination but really, we are able to receive the Holy Spirit. John 20:22, “And when He [Jesus] had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” –the idea is that of invasion. Ephesians 5:18, “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit.” All our preconceived notions are meaningless. We are about to fall under the control of the Holy Spirit. (review top Scripture)
Jesus knew Peter didn’t have the power to follow Him…BUT he would. Jesus knew Peter would struggle without this power. Acts 1:8, “ But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me[a] in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” When we follow Jesus we will have challenges, but with the Holy Spirit we will make it!
No matter what changes God has brought us, never rely on them—build only on a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, and on the Spirit He gives.
There is only one guiding light in our lives now, the Lord Jesus Christ. Every cell of our being lights up. Jesus said “Follow me.” He didn’t say mostly, or nearly completely, He just said, “Follow me.” Up until now we have relied on our own beliefs, attitudes, talents, and ideas. Ditch them. Jesus wants our complete and total devotion. Follow Him.
There are times when we cannot understand why we cannot do what we want to do. Romans 7:19, 24, and 25a, “For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Never run before God’s guidance. If there is the slightest doubt, then He is not guiding. Whenever there is doubt—don’t. James 1:6, “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.”
Imagine our lives as an airline pilot. We’re sitting behind the controls reviewing our checklist. Sometimes there are tests or challenges before we can start. And when the instruments are in order, every gauge is working; we must sit and wait for clearance from our “strong tower.” And it completely normal to want to throw the throttle and take off down the runway, but God must give us the clearance. Wait…listen to the comforting hum of the engines—the peace of God. We’re ready, God knows that—have faith! Listen for the signal. Remember, when God brings the blank space, see that we do not fill it in, but wait. The blank space may come in order to teach us what sanctification means, or it may come after sanctification to teach us what service means.
Timing is everything. Just because we’re ready to take off doesn’t mean we can. Paul said in Philippians 1:21, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Just because the road is clear ahead of us doesn’t mean it is safe. We promised we would trust Him, remember? So relax for a minute. Ask God when to go. He will let us know when the time is right.
I never ask God for patience!! However, I do ask Him to help me learn how to wait. That’s hard for some people—believe me, I know!! We have to ask God to show us the right path when He wants us to see it, no matter how badly we want to get started. As we ask Him to light the path and make it ready we won’t have to stumble as we begin.
We pray that we will be ready for it when it begins! Romans 15:4-6, “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. [It’s never a waste of time to study God’s Word.] 5 Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus, 6 that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Relax. God knows when and how…
He’ll tell you…honest.
You must be logged in to post a comment.