Working While We Wait
by Dr. Paul Chappell
“Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.”
Luke 12:35–37
The last promise that Jesus made here on Earth was to tell His disciples that the Holy Spirit would come on them in power so that they could do the work He was leaving them to accomplish: “For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence” (Acts 1:5). When He was taken up into Heaven, the angels appeared with another promise: “Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).
There is a direct connection between these two promises. The power of the Holy Spirit equips us to witness and work effectively for Jesus until the time He returns. We do not know, indeed we are not meant to know, when that day will be. Our responsibility is to fill our days with service for God, so that when the Lord appears we will not be ashamed.
Charles Spurgeon said, “If I knew that our Lord would come this evening, I should preach just as I mean to preach; and if I knew he would come during this sermon, I would go on preaching until He did...The fact that Jesus Christ is to come again is not a reason for star-gazing, but for working in the power of the Holy Ghost.”
Luke 12:35–37
The last promise that Jesus made here on Earth was to tell His disciples that the Holy Spirit would come on them in power so that they could do the work He was leaving them to accomplish: “For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence” (Acts 1:5). When He was taken up into Heaven, the angels appeared with another promise: “Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).
There is a direct connection between these two promises. The power of the Holy Spirit equips us to witness and work effectively for Jesus until the time He returns. We do not know, indeed we are not meant to know, when that day will be. Our responsibility is to fill our days with service for God, so that when the Lord appears we will not be ashamed.
Charles Spurgeon said, “If I knew that our Lord would come this evening, I should preach just as I mean to preach; and if I knew he would come during this sermon, I would go on preaching until He did...The fact that Jesus Christ is to come again is not a reason for star-gazing, but for working in the power of the Holy Ghost.”
Today’s Growth Principle:
Since we do not know when the Lord will return, we must be busy about His work every day.
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