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1:05God wants you to grow in your ability to wait upon him. That I'm convinced of. You want to know what God's will for your life is this year? He wants you to grow in your ability to wait upon him. And to do so, you need to be able to understand the blessedness, the reward that comes from waiting upon him. And then you know... You need to know how to wait upon the Lord. I think if you're honest with yourself, if you're anything like me, we're not very good at waiting, are we? We're not really good at waiting.

1:48We get impatient with many things, don't we? We get impatient with circumstances, get impatient with people, and even get impatient with ourselves and get impatient with God. But if you tallied up the number of hours that you spend in this lifetime waiting, you will find out that most of your life is spent waiting for something. Whether you're waiting for a doctor's appointment or your lunch to come, perhaps you're waiting for a marriage, a graduation, maybe you're waiting for an answer to prayer. Maybe you're waiting for somebody to come around to your way of thinking on something.

2:43Or maybe, and praise God, you're waiting for a baby to come. That kind of happens around here a little bit. But the point of whatever you're waiting for. Much of your life is spent waiting. Life is the thing that happens while we're waiting. And the one who waits well is the one who lives well. Since so much of your life is spent waiting, you can be sure that if you are able to wait well, wait upon the Lord well, you're going to be able to live well. The alternative is to rush ahead, to be impatient, to not wait upon the Lord, to take matters into your own hands. And that doesn't work out well.

3:45Waiting upon God is the key to successful living. And if you're an impatient person, I can assure you, life is going to be an unbearable burden for you. Circumstances are going to get you down. You will constantly be at odds with other people. You will be mad at God and you will be marked by a foul spirit. The one who cannot wait well does not live well. Very evident that God expected Israel to wait for him. You remember right after God brought him out, brought them out of Egypt?

4:30Moses went up on the mountain for 40 days. Psalm 106:13 says this about that time. They quickly forgot his works. They did not wait for his counsel, but craved intensely in the wilderness and tempted God in the desert. After 400 years in captivity, they couldn't wait 40 days for God's counsel, and so they made a golden calf, reckless, foolish. But it all comes out of an impatient heart. Oh, the destruction that comes and the misery that comes into your own life when you do not wait and you do not cultivate a patient heart.

5:32Waiting for the Lord is life's lesson. And not just for Israel. Don't think that Israel, this is that Israel's promise problems were limited to one strain of humanity. No, this is when you see Israel and their struggles, this is humanity's struggle. God wants all of us to wait upon Him. And his desired outcome. Waiting upon the Lord is basically waiting upon the Lord for his desired outcome for our situation. Not rushing along into our desired outcome.

6:22And the exhortation to wait comes in verse 14. Look at verse 14. Very clearly stated: wait for the Lord, be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the Lord. Is what God's will for you is to wait upon him. The commands in the verse, it's filled with commands. Wait for the Lord. It says it twice: Be strong. Let your heart take courage. There's really four, what amounts to four commands here. First one, wait. You know what wait means? It literally means to tie something down securely. To tie down, to fix in place, to entwine.

7:18The Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew, says, uses a word stay behind, wait, stay behind, hold out when others are tempted. To leave, you hold out. And the Hebrew here speaks of waiting in the sense of anchor yourself, look forward to a certain outcome. Waiting is looking forward to the arrival of something hoped for. That's what waiting is. Put yourself in a state of waiting. That's the command here. Wait for the Lord. Put yourself in a state of waiting for God's outcome to the situations in life that you are sure to face this semester and this year.

8:15Wait for the Lord. Wait for the outcome of the Lord. We always get in trouble when we try to force our own outcome instead of waiting for God's desired outcome. Second command in this verse is be strong. Again, the idea of tie fast, bind, strengthen, fortify. And the idea is to be strong is to be anchored to something that is immovable. That's what be strong means here. Be anchored to something immovable. Strengthen the grip. Conquer this pressure to let go. Persist.

9:03You see, life is going to throw all kinds of circumstances at you that call you to be stronger than your constitution permits. Let me say it again. You're going to face circumstances in life that are going to call you to be stronger than your natural disposition is going to allow you to handle. And the only way you can do that is to anchor yourself to something that is immovable. To brace yourself. That's what it means to be strong.

9:40The third command here: let your heart take courage. Let your heart, it's not technically in the form of a command, but it takes the force of the command from the be strong. Be strong and let your heart take courage. Be strong and then let your heart be on a trajectory of growing stoutness. That's what it's talking about. Put your heart on a trajectory of even becoming stronger while you are waiting for the outcome of the Lord.

10:29The blessing. The blessedness of waiting on the Lord is well attested to all throughout Scripture. Give you a few instances. Psalm, or Proverbs 22, or 20, 22 says this: wait for the Lord and He will save you. Those who wait for the Lord experience God's deliverance, His salvation. Wait for the Lord, and He will save you. You don't have to save yourself. What a blessing. The blessedness is also seen in Psalm 37, 34 that says, Wait for the Lord and keep His way, and He will exalt you.

11:16Those who wait for the Lord experience God's exaltation of them. Not only do you have to save yourself, but you don't have to exalt yourself either. You leave that up to God. Wow, that sure frees a person to live. Those who wait for the Lord experience the fulfillment of God's promises. God told Habakkuk in chapter 2, he tells him all these things, this vision and promises of to come. And he says, the vision is yet for the appointed time, Habakkuk. It hastens toward the goal, and it will not fail.

12:00Though it tarries, wait for it, for it will certainly come. Every one of God's promises will certainly come. Isn't that nice? Isn't that freedom? What a blessed state. You don't have to save yourself. You don't have to exalt yourself. And you don't have to force God to try to fit into your box. Psalm 25, 3 says, Indeed, none of those who wait for you will be ashamed. Those who wait upon God will not be ashamed. Psalm 37:9 says, For evildoers will be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land. Those who wait for the Lord inherit the earth.

12:53Those who wait upon God will certainly experience God's loving kindnesses and all of the rejoicing that follows. And this is what Psalm 33:18 says: Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who hope for his loving kindness, to deliver their soul from death and to keep them alive in famine. Our soul waits for the Lord, he is our help and shield, for our hearts. Rejoices in him because we trust in his holy name. Let me ask you a question. Does your soul wait for the Lord?

13:42On a scale to one to ten, with one being the lowest, ten being the highest, how good are you at waiting? Think of a number. Oh, and five is not allowed. So, all of you who thought about five, I want you to choose either six or number four. How good are you at waiting? Does your soul wait for the Lord? Well, there is a way to wait upon the Lord and to enjoy the wait. And that's what I want to talk to you about this morning.

14:222026 is upon us. And I hope we will all grow in our ability to wait upon the Lord and to enjoy waiting upon the Lord as we do. How do we do this? Well, the answer really comes in verse 13. There are several insights that we can derive from verse 13 that will answer the question: How do we wait for the Lord? How do we wait and enjoy the wait? How do we wait upon the Lord? Well, first of all, Avoid the path that leads to despair.

15:07You need to avoid the path that leads to despair. Look at verse 13. I would have despaired unless. Now, those words in the New American Standard are put in italics because they're not expressly stated as such in the original. There's a word there that starts in the Hebrew, it's called unless. Except, if not this condition. The ESV omits it entirely. It just starts out, I believe that. The NIV also omits the same thing. King James originally wrote, I had fainted, unless I had fainted. The New King James improved that and said, I would have lost heart unless I had believed. Well, the New King James, the NASB, and the LSB, they all understand that there is an expression that this word unless. Unless a certain condition, they infer by the context that an expression like I would have despaired or I would have lost heart is necessary because of the context. And they're right. Unless, unless word unless speaks of an exception. If this condition were not true, then this would have happened.

17:14Except for this one thing, I would fear. I would despair. If this condition were not met, then I would have lost heart. What condition? Back at verse 27, verse 13, I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. You see, the path into despair and debilitating fear is a lack of confidence that one is going to experience the goodness of God. Do you really believe that you are going to experience the goodness of God?

18:09How would you characterize your life? Is it characterized by despair or paralyzing fear? Is that what characterizes you? I don't mean if there's times you have, I'm talking about: are you characterized by this? Then let me ask you this follow-up question: to what degree do you really believe that you're going to see the goodness of God? You see, those without faith that they're going to see the goodness of God are going to be in a condition of despair. Life will be a burden.

18:48This speaks of those without faith. Unless I had believed, I would have despaired unless I had believed. You see, those without faith live as if there were no God, or not a good God, anyway, or not a God who's in control. But God is both good, and He is sovereign, and that's the God of the Bible. And those who are characterized by despair or paralyzed by fear live as one without faith, as if there were no God.

19:28You see, if you do not believe that you are not faithful, You will see the goodness of God. You really don't know the gospel. And so your life will be marked by despair or debilitating fear. You avoid the path that leads to despair by believing the gospel. But how are you going to wait upon the Lord? What's well waiting look like? Well, avoid the path that leads to despair. And believing the gospel is more broadly believing that you're going to see the goodness of God. So how do you wait upon the Lord? Well, avoid the path that leads to despair. But second, believe that you will see the goodness of God.

20:21You will see the goodness of God. And in the situation that you're in, there will be a perspective that's coming someday where you will be able to put it all in its right place and you will see the goodness of God, even if for a time you can't see it. Avoid the faithless path that leads to despair and embrace the way of faith. Look back at verse 13. I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the Lamb. Of the living. I would have despaired unless I had believed. Do you know what the word believed means here? It's interesting. It means certainly to be confident in, to be sure of something.

21:16But in a literal sense, it means to lean on something, to lean on something for support. And this is what David is saying: I would have despaired except for I was leaning upon this one thing. Faith is leaning upon. It's believing in something. Faith is leaning upon something secure, something immovable. Look, we're all spiritual beings. We all build our lives on something. And we need to start with that solid foundation, a firm conviction. You don't build a building on something soft and mushy.

22:10It's interesting. Some look at this word and they say, you know, the Hebrew suggests wearing something. The idea of I believe means wearing something. Faith is like a mindset. It's wearing a mindset. You often see this verse. Speaks about the helmet of salvation, a helmet. In Isaiah 59, 17, it's Christ who wears the helmet of salvation. He is determined to save. And then in Ephesians 6:17, we are told to wear the helmet of salvation. Put this mindset in you. God is your God, and God delivers. Let that mindset wear that mindset. That's what faith is.

23:04What was David's firm conviction? What was this strength of mind and heart? Well, it says right there, look back at verse 2: I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see something. I would see. What does the word see mean? To know something by experience. I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord, that I would personally enjoy, that I would participate in, that's the idea, that I would experience, that I would know by experience.

23:50And what was it that he was so sure that he would enjoy the goodness of the Lord? The goodness of the Lord. This speaks of the kindness of the Lord, the beauty of the Lord, the blessing of the Lord. It's literally the very best things of Yahweh. It's what David is convinced of. He said, Look, I would have despaired unless I had believed, unless my mind was convinced of, and I was anchored to the fact that I knew that I was going to enjoy the very fullness of the goodness of Yahweh. See, that strength of mind, that strength of faith. And this is the one thing that David asked for in verse 4: One thing that I have asked from the Lord that I shall seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to meditate in his temple, to behold his beauty, to experience his goodness.

24:58Notice this last phrase: in the land of the living. He's speaking about this life. I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of God in the land of the living, not just in the ages to come. Certainly it includes that, and certainly it includes the resurrected life that is to come when we are once again put into the land. And resurrected into the land of the living. But what David is saying, what encouraged me is that even now, even in the midst of all these challenges that he's facing in Psalm 27 and throughout his life, he's saying, I would have despaired of these. They would have gotten me down. They would have put me in a paralysis of fear. They would have led me to deep despair, except for this one thing.

25:53I knew I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. I would see God's goodness. There would be vestiges and even an understanding that God is working all things out for good. David was leaning upon a certainty. He was unshakable in his conviction that he would see the goodness of the Lord. Is that you? No matter the circumstances he faced, he knew that one day they would pass away and they would leave a monument behind to the goodness of God.

26:40And David knew that the days of trouble he faced were ultimately occasions for him to experience the goodness of God. And this is the mindset and the content of faith. Do you really believe that you are going to see the goodness of God? Now, in this life, some way, shape, certainly in eternity. This is David's faith, and this is what gave him a supernatural confidence in facing the issues that he faced in Psalm 27. I'm going to take a these were days of trouble that came against him, and I want to take a quick moment to walk through and look at some of these days of trouble that are indicated in this psalm that David faced and this confidence that he had.

27:42David certainly had his share of days of trouble. We don't know exactly what the occasion was when he wrote Psalm 27, so I'll just leave it at that. It could very well be the time of Saul and the evil doeg and all that that happened. Could have been the time of Absalom. Sometime he was, seems to be, had been, enemies had gathered around him, even his parents had forsaken him. Whatever it was, it was a day of trouble on many levels. And yet, it was a day of great confidence. It was a day of great confidence. Look at what he says in verse 1: The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? Lord is the defense of my life, whom shall I dread? So it's clear it was a day when David's enemies came to take his life. Look at verse 2. When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh, you know what that means? Kill me. When evildoers came upon me to kill me, to devour my flesh, my adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell. And though a host encamp against me, my heart will not fear. Though war arise against me, in spite of this, I shall be confident. Imagine that. All these enemies coming around David. And it would be frightful. I want to kill you, David.

29:16David, you're going to die. David could look at him because of his confidence of faith and say, yeah, I see that. I see the surrounding. I see this trouble. But there's one thing, and I would fear. In fact, this would really freak me out. All these enemies coming here to kill me, that would really mess me up, except there's this one thing that I can't get out of my mind. I believe that I would see the goodness of the Lord. And that doesn't equate with what's happening right here.

29:50It was also a day, it's clear, that his enemies had driven David from worshiping in the tabernacle. Look at verse 4. One thing I have. Asked from the Lord that I shall seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in his temple. For in the day of trouble, he will conceal me in his tabernacle. In the secret place of his tent, he will hide me, he will lift me up on a rock. There seems to be this time when David has been has had to leave Jerusalem and the presence of the temple, I mean, and of the tabernacle.

30:41They ostracized him from the worship. You can't worship God. You're unfit to worship. But look at what he says in verse 6. And now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy. I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord. You see, David knew not only that God had jurisdiction over his flesh, he also knew that God had jurisdiction over his worship. And David knew. So when those voices he would hear, God doesn't want your worship. You're no longer allowed. To worship here, he could say, Yeah, that would really mess me up, except there's this one thing. There's this one thing I would have despaired, except there's this one thing I can't get out of my mind.

31:42I believe that I would see the goodness of God, and He's the one who has called me to worship Him, and it's not anyone else that can change that. There's also a day when personal failures seem to have flooded David's mind. Look at verse 7: Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice, and be gracious to me and answer me. When you said, Seek my face, my heart said to you, Your face, O Lord, I shall seek. Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger. You have been my help. Do not abandon me nor forsake me, O God of my salvation.

32:36Anger. Why would God be angry? Why was David personal failure, sin? But David knew that God's capacity to forgive was much greater than David's sins and failures. And so when that little voice would whisper in David's ear, God is angry with you. That's why all this is coming upon you. He doesn't like you. He's angry with you. And he is going to cast you away forever. David could say, yeah, that would really mess me up. That would really put me in despair, except this one thing. I believed that I would see the goodness of God.

33:27We cannot see God's goodness without his forgiveness, without him taking into consideration our sins and failures. There was also a day when the closest to David had abandoned him. It was a time of loneliness, personal loneliness. Look at verse 10. For my mother and my father have forsaken me, even in the darkest valley of loneliness and rejection. David could say, look at what he says in verse 10, but the Lord will take me. How could he be so confident that the Lord would take him when all others had abandoned him? I mean, if everybody's abandoning you, wouldn't that be like, oh, yeah, that's really frightful. That's going to cause me to despair.

34:19Even my mother and father disowned me. And this would really get me down, except for this one thing. I believe that. I am going to see the goodness of God. And that doesn't happen if he abandons me. There's also a day when the enemies of David wanted to destroy his reputation. Are you concerned about your reputation? Look at verse 11. Teach me your way, O Lord, and lead me in a level path because of my foes. Do not deliver me over to the desire of my adversaries, for false witnesses have risen against me and such as breathe out violence.

35:08They wanted to destroy David's reputation. And there were a lot of people who wanted to believe the slander. False accusations. And many people were believing these false witnesses. But David knew that God had jurisdiction over the truth. David said, Yeah, even though there's all these slanderers around me, and there's many people who want to believe the slander, that would really get me down. Except this one thing. I believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord.

35:48What's the source of all this confidence? Faith. David believed and knew like a hand. Helmet like an anchor, like tied to an anchor, a conviction. And when all these storms came against me, he's like, Yeah, these would overwhelm me. This is these issues are bigger than me, except I'm anchored. I believe that I will see the goodness of God. And so, because David knew this, he could be strong and courageous in the days of trouble while he waited for the goodness of God to come into view.

36:32And that's what life's going to be. It's going to throw at you some of these struggles. And you're going to say, I don't see the goodness of God in this. Wait for it. Wait for it. That's what David is saying. He's teaching by experience. This is what he, he was not only was he strong and courageous himself, but he could exhort others and then go to verse 14 and say, wait for the Lord. As I have waited, wait for it. You're going to have struggles in life, but guess what? Wait. The goodness of the Lord in that situation one day will be made known. But meanwhile, let this be enough. You will see the very best of Yahweh.

37:20That's the faith. That's the gospel. And oftentimes we can't see God's goodness except through the trials of this life. But David knew that God had created him, called him, and destined him to see God's goodness. And the same is true for everyone who believes the gospel. Do you really believe the gospel? It speaks of destiny, that God didn't create you just to cast you out. We need to move on. How do you wait upon the Lord? Well, avoid the path that leads to despair. Believe that you will see the goodness of God and expect the days of trouble to come. Expect it. Look back at verse 14. Wait for the Lord. You see, this exhortation assumes that there's going to be many occasions where you have to wait. That's going to be life. You're going to have to wait for his solution. You're going to have to wait for his timing this semester and be waiting.

38:29How do you wait well? Well, what does waiting look like? Do we go off into a cave? Is waiting inactivity? No. It involves much activity. In fact, I did a study of the context where waiting was used in the context of others, synonyms, ideas, words that are often associated with waiting. And I'll just throw out five of them real quick. Quickly. Waiting involves trusting in God's loving kindness. Psalm 52, 8. I trust in the loving kindness of God forever and ever. And I will wait on your name, for it is good. Second, waiting involves considering God's testimonies.

39:21Psalm 119, 95 says, The wicked wait to destroy me, but I shall diligently consider your testimonies. Waiting is trusting, waiting is considering, but waiting is also hoping in his word. Psalm 133 says this: If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with you, that you may be feared. I wait for the Lord. My soul does wait, and in his word do I hope. Waiting involves trusting, considering, hoping. And it also involves enduring patiently, enduring patiently. 1 Peter 2:20 says this, but if you suffer for doing what is right, you patiently endure, and this finds favor with God. Patiently enduring situations.

40:22Waiting also involves remaining, or may I say, resisting the temptation to leave. The faith. Waiting involves resisting the temptation to leave the faith. 1 Peter 5:8 says, Be sober, be alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. You know what he wants to devour? Your faith. More specifically, do you know what he wants to devour? Your confidence that God wants to show his goodness to you. Believe that you will see the goodness of the Lord. Expect days of trouble to come. And then finally, let these days of trouble, let them be occasions to strengthen your confidence in the goodness of God. Don't let them be occasions to weaken your confidence. On the contrary, look back at Psalm 27:14. Wait for the Lord, be strong, and let your heart take courage. And that's the interesting verb here. Let it become even stronger. Be strong, and then let your heart become even stronger while you're waiting.

41:51Let the days of trouble be catalysts to strengthen your heart, not cause it to faith. May the days Of trouble, may the periods of waiting that you're in, even now, may they cause you to long to see the goodness of God all the more. And may these occasions drive you to further assurance in your heart that you will see the goodness of God. You and I are going to face days of trouble, much like David. It's playing off of what he says in this psalm. There are going to be days where your physical body is under attack.

42:39May not be like by enemies, like David. Maybe it will. Maybe an injury, maybe disease, maybe decline. Friends, your physical strength is going to pass. Your beauty will pass. Your mental capabilities will pass. And if you're just looking at this, you might be caused to despair. But then say to yourself, yet I will see the goodness of God in the land of the living. Even before I die in this life, I will see the goodness of God. Listen, the decline of the body opens up all kinds of other vistas to see the goodness of God. God and meet all kinds of different people.

43:41But even after I die, I know that I will once again be resurrected and see the goodness of God in the land of the living. Let your heart take courage. There are also going to be days when you feel abandoned by your closest friends or family. But say to yourself that God has not abandoned me, and say to yourself, I know that I will see the goodness of God. And he will let the world know that he has not abandoned me, and he has not abandoned any of his people. So even in days of loneliness, assure your heart that you will see the goodness of God. There will be days when you will be slandered by those who wish to destroy your reputation and cause others to think ill of you. Say to yourself, I will see the goodness of God in the land of the living. God is going to set the record right, and I will see the goodness of God in the way that he defends his people. I will know that by personal experience.

45:00There will be days when you experience sin and failures, and they will be acutely felt and overwhelm your mind. And you will hear that little voice in your mind that says, You have outsend God's forgiveness. Even He cannot forgive you. That's what's wrong. Let your heart lean on this truth. Yet, I will see the goodness of God. No matter what you're facing, wait for God's solutions to your problems. God is going to show Himself, He will let Him show Himself to you.

45:48Wait for Him. Do not recklessly go taking matters in your own hand. Like Israel, wait. He's very mindful of you. He's very mindful of what you're going through. He's mindful of what the year holds. Put yourself in a pattern of waiting for God. He will take care of all that needs to be taken care of, and then enjoy the day. Enjoy the moment. Even in the dark times, your ability, your depth in being able to appreciate the goodness of God is happening. Even if you cannot see it, how does that work?

46:35And all of us, all of us are in a waiting pattern of some sort this morning, aren't we? Don't waste your weight. Wait well. Enjoy the wait. There are people around you, there are friends. There are so many things to celebrate. Don't be paralyzed by fear or debilitated by despair. Wait upon the Lord. Wait upon Him. Avoid the path that leads to despair. Believe that you will see the goodness of God. Expect days of trouble to come, and then let them be occasions to strengthen your confidence in the goodness of God.

47:20Well, do you have faith that you'll see the goodness of God? Where does despair come from? From a lack of faith. Where does strength and courage come from? From faith. Faith is confidence that we will see the goodness of God. And so, life 2026 is that thing that's going to happen while we're waiting. Let's wait well. Let's wait in faith. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we just thank you for the assurance of the gospel that you sealed these truths in your own blood, Father. That we know for sure that our sins are forgiven, that you are sovereign over and good in all aspects of our lives. We thank you for the gospel and the assurance that it communicates to us and guarantees that we will behold your goodness. We see your goodness at the cross, but then, wow, Father, it goes so far beyond so many things you have in store for your people. And, Father, I know we walk in a fallen world, and so we're all too accustomed to knowing disappointments and seeing situations that cause us despair and to be fearful.

48:50But, Father, help us to anchor. We anchor our faith in this truth that your people will see your goodness that you have assured us of. Thank you in Jesus' name. Amen.