Waiting…(Jeremiah 1-4; Psalm 130; 2 Cor 9)

What are you like at waiting? It can be hard, especially in an instant culture like ours. And yet, there can be something good about waiting, building expectation. Do you remember going to develop a film?! For the benefit of younger readers, in the olden days, cameras were not digital! We would take our little roll of film to the processor (or send it in the post), and then eventually, you would get the photos back! There was excitement as you relived the moments.

The Christian life consists of lots of waiting, we are waiting for Jesus’ return, waiting for the new heavens and new earth, for the end to suffering, for the resurrection body. Psalm 130 helps us with that experience, because when they first sang the psalm they were waiting for something that we have seen God do.

The psalm was either written during the exile or shortly afterwards. They were in the depths, crying out to God for mercy. They knew there was a way of forgiveness as promised through the prophets, they knew a suffering servant would come to deliver them. They longed for the Lord’s rescue, they were like the watchmen longing for the morning. They waited, trusting God’s Word of rescue (v5). The psalmist encourages God’s people to keep trusting and looking forward to the day of redemption.

Imagine Simeon and Anna (Luke 2) singing this Psalm. What joy they must have had when they met the baby Jesus! Here is the one they had been waiting for! They would need to wait another few years to see how God would bring the rescue, but it was enough for them to get a glimpse.

Imagine Jesus singing this Psalm, and instructing others to wait and hope on the Lord. He knew forgiveness and redemption were on the way, and He knew what it would cost Him.

As we sing this psalm, we can have even greater confidence for the future deliverance, since we have seen God fulfilling His promises in the past. We look forward to the day of Jesus return, when there will be redemption of our bodies. We join creation in groaning and longing for that day (Romans 8:19-23). Amen. Come Lord Jesus.