Luke 12:35-40
The theme of waiting is found in all of our lessons this morning. The reading from the Book of Wisdom refers to the Israelites’ waiting for their deliverance or exodus from Egyptian bondage. The writer says to God, “Your people awaited the salvation of the just and the destruction of their foes.”
The Letter to the Hebrews talks about waiting in faith for what people hope will come to pass. For Abraham and Sarah, it was waiting for their call to a new place—a “promised land”. Before that, they had to wait a long time for the birth of their first child, Isaac.
In the Gospel lesson, Jesus tells a parable about servants who are asked to wait for the arrival of their master, who had been away for a wedding. When the master finally arrives, he serves them. What a wonderful thing to wait for!
Waiting is a common theme in our faith tradition. The season of Advent, for example, is rooted in the theme of waiting for the arrival of the Christ child. After Easter, we enter into a season of symbolically waiting for the arrival of the Holy Spirit, just as the first disciples waited for the Holy Spirit for several weeks in the upper room.
The Bible is filled with examples of how waiting—and the patience that comes with it—leads to spiritual growth and thefulfilment of God’s promises. Other than the Abraham and Sarah story, there is the Israelites 40-year wandering in the wilderness, Job waiting for God’s restoration after enduring immense suffering and loss, King David waiting many years before he could assume the throne, and, of course, Jesus waiting 30 years before he begins his public ministry.
All of these stories emphasize the importance of being patient and having faith and trust in God’s timetable. They also inspire us to ask ourselves the following question: What are we waiting for? We aren’t in the seasons of Advent or Easter, so we aren’t focused only on the arrival of the Christ child or the Holy Spirit.
I believe our waiting is about many different things. Perhaps we are all waiting for that which we feel we most need at the moment. Here are four possible things we are waiting for:
First, there are many people in our midst who are longing for God to bring justice and restoration to a broken world. We are all yearning for righteousness and peace to replace suffering, evil, and injustices. For some of us, waiting for a more just and peaceful world requires activism, being personally involved in the struggle. For others, for whom activism is not an option, the waiting at least requires prayer for a better world for all.
Second, all of us have to wait for some kind of healing in our lives. None of us get through life without scars. We all need physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual healing. All of us need freedom from unnecessary fears and comfort during hardship. Sometimes this requires waiting a very long time.
Third, many Christians are waiting for Jesus’ return, to fulfill prophecies, judge the living and the dead, and establish God’s kingdom on earth. This hope is based on several passages of scripture found throughout the Bible. But even if one doesn’t believe Jesus will someday return in a literal way, we still wait faithfully for the kingdom of God to come near to us.
Finally, Christians anticipate being resurrected and receiving glorified bodies someday. This is the promise of eternal life with God. We don’t need to wait on this as much as we need to be prepared for it.
No matter what we are waiting on, we are like the servants in Jesus parable waiting for our master to come home, so that, as the parable says, the master can serve us. This is our great hope. We base this hope on faith, with or without evidence.
In the meantime, our waiting is not a passive thing. It is active and purposeful. It is living faithfully and sharing our faith. It is studying scripture and growing spiritually. It is serving others and pursuing justice. It is staying hopeful. And yes, it is well worth the wait.
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