It Will Surely Come

For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. Habakkuk 2:3 (ESV)

Our society encourages us to hurry. We eat fast food. We expect next day delivery, seven days a week. Speed and quantity are honored above craftsmanship and quality.

Many Christians are caught up in the rat race. Contemplation, meditation, patience, are becoming obsolete words.

Moses wanted to deliver Israel from the Egyptians. God planned to do that, and he planned to use Moses in doing so. But another 40 years would pass before the journey began, and then 40 more before it ended. The Lord’s plans are not hurried, and that often makes us impatient. The question, “How long?” occurs frequently in the Bible, 25 times just in the Psalms.

Thousands of years passed between the sin in Eden and the sacrifice at Calvary. It was not that God needed all that time to develop a plan for redeeming sinners. The plan existed before the need for the plan was evident. God knew what he would do before the world existed (Eph 1:4). He was awaiting the fullness of time (Eph 1:10).

Jesus wants his people to get out of the crowd from time to time for spiritual refreshment (Mk 6:31). He wants them to wait patiently while his plans come to fruition (Rev 6:10-11). We will not always find it easy, but if we wait for him we will find his blessing. It will surely come.