Patience for the Promise
Patience. This is a word that can make the very best of us writhe within. Just thinking about waiting, persevering in patience, hitting the pause button on our plans for our lives can make the most motivated and driven of us feel useless. But in God’s economy and kingdom, waiting with patience is something that is smiled upon and encouraged. A fundamental verse that the Lord continually brings to the forefront of my mind in regards to this is Isaiah 64:4, “For since the beginning of the world men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, nor has the eye seen any God besides You, Who acts for the one who waits for Him.” So why am I bringing up the word patience and the act of waiting in the life of us as believers? Well, this Christmas season is one that exhorts us to wait with patience! The word advent is one we often speak of this time of year which has multiple facets correlated with its meaning. To give some clarity to this often misunderstood word, I would like to lay out a three-pronged outline by Oxford Languages Dictionary that I think is beneficial in understanding what advent is:
The arrival of a notable person, thing, or event
The first season of the Christian church year, leading up to Christmas and including the four preceding Sundays
The coming or second coming of Christ
During this season, the culminating event of our celebration falls on Christmas Day as we commemorate the birth of our Savior, who was born into this world, unto a virgin, wrapped in our human flesh, to ultimately die for the sins of all mankind, making a way for us to be reconciled to God. So, the first arrival, or coming of the Lord has been checked off; the initial step of God moving on our behalf. The second point is the four weeks leading up to Christmas Day. In this time we should be all the more diligent to do as a classic Christmas carol exhorts us to do, “Let every heart, prepare Him room.” As believers we are indeed in-dwelt by the Holy Spirit of God, but we can often busy ourselves during advent season with things and activities that may take us further from Him. In light of this, it is necessary to take a short inventory of our lives and ask the Lord to help us prepare our heart, mind, and soul, to make room and receive more of Him. Lastly, the coming or second of Christ. Want to talk about a topic that tests our patience? This is the one! His return for His bride, His church, and His second coming to earth is something that we yearn for all the more in the dark days we are living in. Looking at the world around us and looking inwardly, we are often led to cry out all the louder and more frequently, “Oh come, oh come Emmanuel!”
I find it notable as well that on the first day of advent this year, Pastor Kory taught on the scoffers in the last days who will mockingly ask about the promise given in His word to us of His coming, saying “Where is the promise of His coming?” (II Peter 3:4) Just hearing this may even cause us to be impatient with Him in our own souls; but this waiting for His coming has a purifying effect on our lives as we look to sanctify ourselves for Him and patiently hold to the promise of His soon return.
In our age of overworking and productivity, it is crucial to practice patience in the waiting of our lives. The theologian Stanley Hauerwas puts it this way, “Advent is patience, it’s how God has made us a people of promise, in a world of impatience.” We can often fall victim to impatience in many areas of our lives, but my prayer is that in this advent season, we would prepare as much room as possible for our Savior in all areas of our lives, as we patiently wait for His coming. Maranatha!
Come Thou Long Expected Jesus by Charles Wesley
Come Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free
From our fears and sins release us
Let us find our rest in Thee
Israel’s strength and consolation
Hope of all the earth Thou art
Dear desire of every nation
Joy of every longing heart
Born Thy people to deliver
Born a child and yet a King
Born to reign in us forever
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring
By Thine own eternal Spirit
Rule in all our hearts alone
By Thine all sufficient merit
Raise us to Thy glorious throne
By Mark Anderson
December 2022