Psalm 18:1-3 NKJV I will love You, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies.
The Psalmist spoke about the trust that he had in God. Notice the references to how God helped David. He said, “The Lord was a fortress, deliverer, strength, a shield, salvation, and stronghold.” The Lord our God is faithful, trustworthy, and a very present help in times of trouble.
In the book of Matthew, Jesus gave a parable about ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
They believed the bridegroom was going to do what he promised.
Matthew 25:1-2 NKJV Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
The kingdom of heaven and the bridegroom is an image of the Jesus and the blessings of heaven.
Matthew 25:3-5 NKJV Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.
Matthew 25:6-8 NKJV And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’
Matthew 25:9-10 NKJV But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.
This is a story of people who are looking for the coming of the Lord.
Jesus said they were all full of anticipation expecting something to happen. Have you ever waited for something and it took longer than you thought for the answer to come?
Proverbs 13:12 NKJV Hope deferred makes the heart sick, But when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.
- Have you ever gone through a time of delay?
- They said, “It would be over in a week, and you are still waiting after two months.”
- You expected the baby to arrive in short order, but it took hours of labor.
- You were told the promotion was on the way, but weeks later and nothing has happened.
- You heard the bridegroom was coming, but he has not arrived.
Anytime hope is delayed, it makes the heart sick.
When you keep on waiting and nothing happens, it can wear you down. When you anticipate a change and nothing happens, it costs you.
It costs more to anticipate an answer than it does to want nothing.
That is why many people stop wanting anything. Sometimes it is easier to not want anything than to want it and not get it. If you have no expectation of God doing something in your life, you will not be disappointed. Some people find it easier to give up. Just let things happen the way they happen.
You cannot be disappointed if you have no expectation.
When your heart is filled with hope, you start investing something.
All ten of these girls were waiting with expectation.
They anticipated the bridegroom was coming. When you have hope to get up, to go higher, to move forward, to go on in God, to move on in life, it is going to cost you something.
While they were waiting on the bridegroom to come, they were burning oil.
- While nothing was happening, they were burning oil.
- While they looked for His arrival, they were burning oil.
- While waiting for hours and hours, they were burning oil.
Some of you don’t understand why you are so tired.
You started burning oil as soon as you started hoping. It started when you believed something was going to change in your life. As soon as you decided to get up or go forward, you started burning oil.
The oil is burning.
You have to burn some oil to be able to wait.
Isaiah 40:31 NKJV But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.
You have to be tough to wait. You have to be strong in faith to keep on believing when you don’t see an answer. You have to have strong hope when you pray and you have to wait.
Have you ever gone through a tough time in life and you were waiting for an answer to come?
You kept on looking even when you did not see an answer. You were pressing on for a solution for your situation.
I refuse to lie there and let where I came from be where I am going.
My history is not my destiny. Do you still have a dream and a hope? Do you still have a passion and goal? You say it’s late, but I’m still waiting. I am older, but I’m still waiting. I have had some setbacks, but I’m still waiting.
When you first start out waiting, you are optimistic.
You say: “It will be here any minute.” You are excited and keep everything ready. I have to keep my garments spotless and without wrinkle.
It is harder to maintain hope when you have to wait.
Have you ever spent much time in a waiting room? Did you notice they don’t have beds in waiting rooms? Have you been there long enough that you made a bed out of chairs?
Sometimes we get weary waiting on the Lord.
You prayed and expected an immediate answer. For some reason you are still waiting for an answer.
While they were waiting, the Bridegroom tarried, delayed his coming.
While they were waiting, they began to get tired. They started slumbering and sleeping. They were waiting, but they were tired. They had hope for something to happen, but they got tired.
Do you know what it is like to get tired while you are waiting?
You are trying to hold your head up, but it just keeps falling over. You are trying to be tough, but you’re tired. You are trying to keep on watching and waiting, but you are tired.
One by one, they all went to sleep.
The text says, “All of them were sleeping and slumbering.” It was not just the foolish who went to sleep. Even those who were wise got tired. Although you are determined, you still get tired. It does not matter how focused or committed you are, you still get tired.
Do you know what tired is?
- You go to bed tired and you wake up tired.
- You go through your day tired.
- You eat your lunch tired.
- You answer the phone tired.
- You try to do your work tired.
I can put up with a lot of stuff until I get tired.
When I get tired, it’s hard to go on. Why do things get on your nerves when you get tired? People lose their cool more quickly when they are tired. People get tired of not having answers. We can see it happening all around us.
We can be close to receiving God’s promise and feel like we don’t have what it takes to hold on in faith.
While they were waiting, they fell asleep. They did not plan on falling asleep. Waiting for an answer takes a toll.
I have good news, if you are tired, you can trust God.
The foolish virgins became tired, and they also used up all of their resources. They were burned out when it was time to go out.
When the answer was at the door, they did not have the resources left to do anything.
Their bodies were tired and their garments were wrinkled. Their hair was messed up. The Lord has not come yet and their oil was still burning.
Do you know what it is like to not have anything left to give?
They thought they had more time than they had. They reached a point where they lost perspective. They had to refuel before they would be ready for His coming.
The Bridegroom coming is not a bad thing.
It is not a bad thing when the Lord comes with healing and blessing. Many times God’s blessing happens when it does not look like it is going to happen. When it looks like there is no way in the world, God sends the answer.
When it looked like they were not ready, the cry was made: “Behold, the Bridegroom is coming; go out and meet Him!”
This is not bad news. This is the good news they were waiting on.
This is good news for you.
The thing you have been waiting on, and praying for, and working on is about to happen. The Lord is concerned if you are going to be ready to receive the blessing that He is about to give.
Don’t give up now!
God is going to come through for you! This is your time and your season for the blessing.
Behold the Bridegroom is coming!
The thing that you have been looking for is closer than you thought.
God wants you to be ready!
God is about to do what He said He would do! Don’t quit, the answer is on the way. Don’t give up, the Lord is coming with your answer.
In Isaiah 37:3, Hezekiah said: “This is a day of distress, rebuke and disgrace… for the children have come to birth, and there is no strength to deliver.”
The question is not: “Is the baby coming?”
God has promised and He will do it.
You can trust God!
When God speaks, it is going to happen. What God has promised is going to happen!
The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, what He said He will also do.
Behold the Bridegroom is coming.
You may not see it, but the Lord is coming with healing. He is coming with refreshing and strength. He is coming for those who are waiting on Him with hope and faith.
The thing you have been waiting for is coming.
How you react to challenges tells whether you are ready. A lot of people are giving up on God while they are waiting for an answer to come. You need to hear this message of faith and purpose.
Behold the Bridegroom is coming, go out and meet Him.
You need to get ready for God to do something great. You have been praying and expecting. You have been hoping and looking.
Don’t give up now.
If you are running out of strength, you need to be refilled and restored today. You need more of God’s strength to go on. If you are tired, you need to be given new life. Your faith and trust in God needs to be renewed.
You can trust God to do what He said He would do!
