“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18
Previously, I wrote about waiting on the Lord, specifically, when we are waiting for Him to pull through in our circumstances, decisions or suffering. This message really resonated with me, and I came to realise this hit home to a lot of you as well.
But - what if you are waiting for the Lord?
I think about those who are looking for Jesus’ coming; daily we turn on the news and see torture, uncertainty and fear, but those who hope in the Lord, we see a sign of His coming, Romans 8:21-25 “because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.”
There are some who either don’t understand or, see what is happening but do not recognise the signs. It’s like when the Pharisees and Sadducees were asking for a sign and Jesus rebuked them in Matthew 16:2-3 “He answered and said to them, “When it is evening you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red’; and in the morning, ‘It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ Hypocrites! You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times.” It’s no different from today, people ask ‘how do you know Jesus Christ is coming back?’ The answer to that question is, just as Jesus said, we are to discern the times. Therefore, those who are saved should be discerning the times, go out and preach the gospel as Jesus instructed in Mark 16:15.
Putting this into perspective of importance, it no longer matters on whether I’m working or not, as Paul said in the main text “the persecutions I suffer does not compare with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Meaning, what we suffer in this world, no matter how small or great, it does not compare to the glory that we will be in when our Lord Jesus Christ comes for His bride - that is the hope!
Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not saying mine or your cares and worries do not matter, but my thinking is no longer ‘Lord, I need you to provide in this, and Lord, I need you to provide in that,’ because remember, He already says in Matthew 6:25-34 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
For that reason, I know God is not a man that He should lie (Numbers 23:19), and His words will not return back void (Isaiah 55:11) - therefore, I don’t need to worry, I need to ‘seek first the kingdom of God.’ The Lord in all his sovereignty will move and it won’t be according to my time and that’s okay, because ultimately, when all is said and done, I’m going home to be with the Lord.
In the waiting for me - is no longer based on “things I need,” it is based on Jesus… I’m waiting for Jesus to return. So, the only cares I have in this world is speaking the Lord’s truth, to sow the seed, so Jesus may water it. And, If people feel some kind of way about it, hey, take it up with the Lord, because I am speaking what is in His word and only in His word. Now, there maybe some who are thinking ‘why is she blogging or uploading videos, she is not a Pastor, Teacher, Deacon or Minister’ true, I don’t have a title, but what does that matter when 2nd Timothy 4:2-5 instructs us to preach the gospel. We are all ministers of the gospel, we are all charged to share it in however the Lord instructs us to speak.
I love the Lord and my ONLY desire is to be pleasing to HIM!
Mark 8:34-38 “When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”
So, as I wrap up on this blog, think about your waiting period, are you waiting on the Lord just to provide a specific need in your life, or are you waiting for Him to call you home? And if you feel like you are not ready to go home because you have this and that to accomplish, well I pray you’ll come to the understanding of what it means to “seek the kingdom of God first.” In Philippians 3:19-20 it says, “whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame—who set their mind on earthly things. For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
This is not our home guys, it’s not our home!
Come Jesus Come! Amen x