DON'T WAIT

Modern man lives in a world that hates patience. We have instant tea, coffee, soup, oats, rice, potatoes, etc. We cook in a microwave because it takes less time; we don't like to wait. We complain if we have to actually wait in a doctor's waiting room. I often catch myself complaining because someone is late for a meeting or because it takes so long for my computer to boot-up. My impatience has caused me to drive from restaurant to restaurant in order to find one that has "no waiting." Of course my wife loves to remind me that, after finally finding the perfect situation, I could have been finished eating if I had simply waited at the first restaurant of choice. She makes me so mad.

I can't remember where I heard it, but I like the statement, "The hurrieder I go, the behinder I get." One would think with jet planes, interstate highways, washers, dryers, dishwashers, cell phones, remote controls, fast food, etc., that we would have enough time for leisure and recreation. Yet, I hear the majority complaining about never having sufficient time to get things done. I have even heard retired people say that! And with all of the modern inventions and a forty-hour workweek for most, people fail to spend time with their family, to visit neighbors, and the most obvious of all, to go to church. Society has arrived at the time Daniel warned us about (Dan. 12:4).

So here is a test to see if you have patience. I doubt that anyone will take the time to look these up, but there is always hope someone will. I even took it easy on you by using only the New Testament.

God asks you to be patient and wait: Mk. 3:9; Jn. 5:3; Acts 1:4; Rom. 8:23-25; 1 Cor. 1:7; Gal. 5:5; 1 Th. 1:10; 2 Th. 3:5; Jam. 5:7.

Patience is necessary: Lk. 21:19; Rom. 5:3-4; 15:4-5; 2 Cor. 6:4; 12:12; Col. 1:11; 1 Tim. 6:11; 2 Tim. 3:10; Heb. 10:36; 12:1; Jam. 1:3-4; 5:7; 2 Pet. 1:6; Rev. 2:2-3, 19; 3:10; 13:10; 14:12.

The only kind of patience Satan likes: Lk. 11:54; Acts 20:3, 19; 23:21, 30; 25:3; Eph. 4:14.

Speaking of Satan, notice that when he tried to get Jesus to sin, he wanted the Lord to take a shortcut (Matt. 4:1-11). Don't wait for food, change the rocks. Don't wait for the cross, jump. Don't wait for the Father to put all of creation under your authority, worship me and I will give it all to you. And, by the way, he is the one who wants man to wait before accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior. Jesus says that today is the day of salvation, and Satan says, "wait just one more day." The Lord's parable and the warning from James should show that one can not count on tomorrow (Lk. 12:16-21; Jam. 4:14). In the case of accepting Jesus Christ as Lord, DON'T WAIT!