FIRST QUARTER 2024
SABBATH SCHOOL INSIGHT #13
MARCH 30, 2024
“WAIT ON THE LORD”

 

“Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!” (Psalm 26:14, NKJV).

We liken “Wait on the Lord,” the theme of this week’s lesson, to a broad-brush stroke on the painter’s canvas of time, stretching from the tragic entrance of sin to its expulsion.

From the days of Abel until now, “the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together” (Romans 8:22, NKJV).

The Psalmist poetically portrayed the captivity and deliverance of the Jews in Babylon in verse and melody. Songs of faith buoyed their courage during times of discouragement and disappointment.

“Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy. He who continually goes forth weeping, bearing seed for sowing, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him” (Psalm 126:5, 6, NKJV).

In every age a faithful remnant has waited and worked, watched and prayed for the Messiah’s advent. After the Jews’ return from Babylon, the voice of the living prophet soon fell silent. Ezra and Nehemiah were among the last of these voices, and it was their special work to assemble the writings of the ancient prophets into what would be known as the Old Testament.

Four long centuries passed before the Messiah’s first advent. During that time there were no Jeremiahs or Isaiahs, Ezekiels or Daniels to give prophetic utterance and meaning to the signs of the times. The faith of the remnant was severely tried. Meanwhile, the love of many waxed cold. The Jewish religion devolved into an arduous series of rules, rituals and ceremonies.

Yet in the hearts of a remnant, the flame of hope had not died.

The Psalmist’s words, “Wait, I say, on the Lord,” echoed through the centuries.

At one of earth’s darkest hours, the Messiah was born in an obscure barn attended by peasant parents and a curious collection of furry onlookers. But when the Messiah came, the world knew Him not. If He had been born in a kingly palace attended by the elite of the nation and heralded by the religious leaders of the land, multitudes would have welcomed His coming. But no such outward accoutrements would tempt a prideful show of admiration or encourage a shallow faith.

“He came unto His own, and His own received Him not” (John 1:11).

After Christ’s death and resurrection, the eyes of His followers—long blinded by the false teachings of the spiritual leaders— “were opened and they knew Him” (Luke 24:31, NKJV).  

They exclaimed to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?” (verse 32). 

The dramatic realization that Jesus Christ was indeed the long-looked for Messiah, the Savior of the world, gripped the disciples. No longer could life go on as usual. No, they must tell the world! They took no thought for their lives or their safety.

Paul declared, “For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified,” (2 Corinthians 2:2, NKJV).  Even their enemies declared that the disciples had “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6, NKJV). 

The early Christians ardently anticipated the soon return of Jesus, but the time was not yet. Paul explained that a falling away must first come, and that the man of sin must be revealed.

In the past Satan had done his utmost to destroy God’s people through pagan philosophy and religion. But now, his disguise would be more sophisticated. He would baptize paganism and clothe it in a garb of sanctity. His deceptions would be so subtly interwoven that few would notice or object.

The 1260-day prophecy foretold a long period of intense religious persecution. As that time drew to a close, voices began to herald the second advent of Jesus. The cry, “Behold, the Bridegroom cometh!” reached its zenith in the years just before 1844, a time foretold in the far-reaching 2300-day prophecy of Daniel 8:14. Jesus was soon to come, but unlike His first coming, no date for the second advent of Christ was given.

The long period of waiting was almost over. How the early Adventists’ hearts yearned to see their Savior face to face! The “Midnight Cry” went forth and the inhabitants of the earth were warned, “Christ is coming! Get ready! Get ready!”

But when the hoped-for window of time for Christ’s expected return passed in 1844, the disappointed believers scattered. Many of them lost faith.

In 1868, Ellen White wrote: “Had Adventists, after the great disappointment in 1844, held fast their faith, and followed on unitedly in the opening providence of God, receiving the message of the third angel and in the power of the Holy Spirit proclaiming it to the world, they would have seen the salvation of God, the Lord would have wrought mightily with their efforts, the work would have been completed, and Christ would have come ere this to receive His people to their reward” —Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, book 1, pp. 67-69.

In 1904, she wrote, “If all who had labored unitedly in the work of 1844 had received the third angel's message and proclaimed it in the power of the Holy Spirit, the Lord would have wrought mightily with their efforts. A flood of light would have been shed upon the world. Years ago, the inhabitants of the earth would have been warned, the closing work would have been completed, and Christ would have come for the redemption of His people” —Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8, p. 115.

The cause for this delay is pinpointed in her statement made in 1901: “We may have to remain here in this world because of insubordination many more years, as did the children of Israel; but for Christ's sake, His people should not add sin to sin by charging God with the consequence of their own wrong course of action” —Ellen G. White, Evangelism, p. 696.

The timing of this 1901 statement is significant, because, “The Lord in His great mercy sent a most precious message to His people through Elders Waggoner and Jones. This message was to bring more prominently before the world the uplifted Saviour, the sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. It presented justification through faith in the Surety; it invited the people to receive the righteousness of Christ, which is made manifest in obedience to all the commandments of God. Many had lost sight of Jesus. They needed to have their eyes directed to His divine person, His merits, and His changeless love for the human family. All power is given into His hands, that He may dispense rich gifts unto men, imparting the priceless gift of His own righteousness to the helpless human agent. This is the message that God commanded to be given to the world. It is the third angel's message, which is to be proclaimed with a loud voice, and attended with the outpouring of His Spirit in a large measure” —Ellen G. White, Testimonies to Ministers, p. 91.

The insubordination to which she referred was a reference to a resistance to the most precious message of Christ’s righteousness. It’s hard to comprehend the tragedy encompassed in these words. The wars, the suffering that might not have been. Lord, please forgive us.

There are no shortcuts to heaven. We still need this message. One hundred eighty years have passed since the Midnight Cry was given in 1844. Clearly, this was not Plan A for heaven.

Let’s wait, watch, and pray together that the Lord will find hearts everywhere willing to receive that most precious message and the accompanying outpouring of the Holy Spirit in latter rain power.

“Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!” (Psalm 26:14, NKJV).

 

~ Patti Guthrie