Worth The Wait
44 Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you--that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled." 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, 46 and he said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high." 52 And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; 53 and they were continually in the temple blessing God.(Luke 24:44-49, 52-53)
After appearing to the disciples several times post resurrection, Jesus had to make a final departure so that the Holy Spirit could come. Jesus instructed his followers to wait in Jerusalem for this new power. This could have felt like enduring Jesus' death all over again since they had come to eagerly anticipate Jesus showing up among them. Instead, the increasingly mature disciples rejoiced in what they had received from Jesus already and in anticipation of what was to come. They didn't know what the Holy Spirit would be or how the Sprit would arrive, but they had joy in the peace of trusting Jesus' promise. Finally, they were beginning to grasp the goodness of God - that even when things were uncertain or difficult, God had blessings in store.
We can rejoice in this peace as well! God's goodness and provision are always with us. Rather we await the outcomes of day-to-day uncertainties, or if we are in anticipation of some life shifting change, we can be assured that God's got it - and because God has it, there will be blessing in it. We often feel anxious over what could go "wrong", but how might our perspective shift if we understand that whatever happens, God will use it for our growth, our benefit, and/or our purpose in blessing someone else? The hard stuff is still hard, but it's not empty - it's full of promise and possibility. And God's blessings are always worth the wait.
4 He chose our heritage for us, the pride of Jacob whom he loves. Selah 5 God has gone up with a shout, the LORD with the sound of a trumpet. 6 Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. 7 For God is the king of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm. 8 God is king over the nations; God sits on his holy throne. 9 The princes of the peoples gather as the people of the God of Abraham. For the shields of the earth belong to God; he is highly exalted. (Psalm 47:4-9)
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