"Let Time Do Its Work" – Isaiah 40:31 There are situations that cannot be settled at once: they need time to mature, time to heal and time to become clear. Isaiah writes to a people shattered by invasion and carried captive to Babylon, a people who needed encouragement and hope, and he tells them that those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength, will mount up with wings like eagles, will run and not get tired, will walk and not become weary. Waiting is not sitting idle: it is trusting God, depending on Him and believing that He will work in His own time. As the eagle rises above the storm by letting the air currents carry it, the believer rises above every difficulty when he lets God do His work. The message also walks through Psalm 37:7, Psalm 27:14 and Isaiah 26:3, and closes with a warning: time will render the wage of every act of our lives.
I. There are situations that cannot be settled at once.
A. The hardest thing on earth is dealing with mortals; we are human beings and we grow tired.
1. There are things that go by time, until time is willing.
2. As sheep we cannot strain beyond our capacity, and that capacity is limited.
B. Some problems last months, a year, or a whole lifetime.
1. It is the personality one has been developing, and it marks a person from childhood.
2. It is not the mortal who changes that: it is God, through the Word that teaches us.
C. We want quick answers, and most of the time they do not come quickly.
1. We must let go a little and allow time to mature, to heal and to clarify.
2. God begins to work with each person individually, not two by two.
II. A people who needed encouragement and hope.
A. The invasion shattered the people of Israel and they were carried to Babylon.
1. There they became settled, but all they wanted was to return to their land.
2. They had to wait for God to do the work, both when taken away and when returning.
3. On their return the first thing they raised were the walls: there lay the safety of the people.
B. To let God do His work one must have relationship, peace and a seeking of God.
1. Five, six, seven ideas come to mind and none of them works; then the mortal rests.
2. For that one must be meek: being stubborn and reckless is dangerous.
C. When courage falls, the steps grow slow and life seems to say “you cannot”.
1. God keeps in secret what He thinks of you and reveals it as you sanctify yourself and seek Him.
III. Those who wait for the Lord.
A. We do not wait on the politician, nor the friend, nor this one or that one.
1. Waiting is not doing nothing: it is trusting, depending on Him and believing He will work in His time.
B. If anyone knows you, it is God.
1. Each person must live his own life in this matter of letting time do its work.
2. The Holy Spirit is the one who moves our lives; so we must learn to rest in prayer.
IV. They will gain new strength.
A. God renews the physical, emotional and spiritual strength of those who fully trust Him.
1. When our strength runs out, His does not.
B. Do not live embittered by conversations that get twisted.
1. No one can live as though he hated humanity.
V. They will mount up with wings like eagles.
A. The eagle rises above the storms by using the air currents.
1. It lets itself be carried, and at the same time works to hold its body up there.
2. Let yourself be carried: we are stubborn and hard-headed on so many occasions.
B. So too God helps His children rise above every difficulty.
1. Make a habit of prayer; it costs nothing.
VI. They will run and not get tired.
A. God gives perseverance to keep going in the race of faith.
1. He does not promise a life without trials: it is in the trial that we mature and are sanctified.
2. He promises strength to get through them all.
B. His strength arrives at the right moment.
1. When you feel weary, worried or uncertain, remember that God does not abandon those who wait for Him.
VII. Rest in the Lord (Psalm 37:7).
A. To be silent before the Lord is to rest the heart before God.
1. It means setting aside anxiety, complaint and desperation.
2. God does not want us dominated by anguish, because anguish crushes.
B. “And wait patiently for Him”: it is trusting His times and His plans.
1. Each person's time is individual; do not put the blame on someone else.
2. It is the Father who creates and marks the times, and the times give account to God.
3. Though the answer seems to delay, God keeps working.
C. “Do not fret”: do not let envy, anger or frustration rule your heart.
1. Appearances deceive: the prosperity of the wicked is temporary.
2. Keep your eyes on God and not on the circumstances you have had to live.
VIII. Wait for the Lord and be strong (Psalm 27:14).
A. Waiting with confidence is not a passive wait, but an attitude of faith and dependence.
1. It is trusting Him more than our own capacities.
B. Faith requires perseverance, especially in times of trial.
1. Each one must work on his own heart, because the heart is deceitful.
2. The sheep that starves itself of faith, passion, surrender and meekness goes off over the cliff.
C. When God seems to keep silent, He is still faithful and still at work.
IX. You will keep in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3).
A. “Perfect peace” means a full, deep and lasting peace.
1. It does not depend on circumstances, but on the presence and care of God.
2. You sleep and He does not sleep, watching over you; God sees everything.
B. “The one whose mind is steadfast on You”: the one who keeps mind and heart focused on God.
1. When we meditate on His promises, faith grows and fears shrink.
2. As much as you love God, so is the space you have given Him.
C. “Because he trusts in You”: peace is the result of trusting God.
1. Pray and hand your burden to the Lord; keep your eyes on Christ.
X. Time will render the wage of every act.
A. It is easy to mistreat, to betray, to offend, to despise and to gossip.
1. No angel comes to cover our mouths: we have free will.
B. Time is not in a hurry, but time gathers the truth.
1. In the third heaven there are millions of books where everything is written.
2. We decide whether we cultivate our life or leave it striking out blindly.
Christian Church Mega Zoé · Pastor Edermira Cruz
Leer en español →