A New Way

But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves.

Malachi 4:2

Promises made. Will they be fulfilled? If so, when? Waiting is difficult. Waiting in silence is excruciating.

Following the return of Israel’s remnant from seventy years of Babylonian captivity, God promised healing and restoration. Then silence.

The Old Testament—The Law—ends.

God was silent for 400 years after He spoke through His prophet Malachi.

The New Testament—Grace—begins.

God’s silence was finally shattered when an angel of the Lord appeared and spoke to a priest named Zechariah. He and his wife, Elizabeth, would give birth to a son, to be named John, in their old age (see Luke 1). Hope renewed.

Was the wait worth it between the Old and the New? Can we imagine what it would have been like to have lived in the silence of such a gap? I imagine discouragement, doubt, and despair. If we’re honest, we have difficulty waiting for one year to end and the new one to begin. We are desperate to believe the new year will be better than the last.

Through the silence the blood line of Jesus proceeded. Some of His ancestors were faithful and some had tarnished life stories. All were part of Jesus’ family tree and God’s perfect plan and timing for humanity.

How long are we willing to wait for a promise to be fulfilled? Does it depend on who makes the promise or the likelihood of it happening? Do we demand evidence before we consider waiting? Many times it’s easier for me to trust in the hollow promises of others because they tell me what I want to hear in the moment. How about you?

Let’s commit to trusting the One Who never breaks His Word and is never late.

Lord, teach me to trust Your promises and expectantly wait on You no matter what.

Karen Sims