The admonition to wait on the Lord is found throughout the Old Testament. Many have speculated as to what it means to "wait" on the Lord, yet no one has proved their point. What is it about waiting on the Lord that causes men to mount up on wings as eagles, to run and not be weary, to walk and not faint? How are we to wait on the Lord?
There is a simple answer to these questions. An answer that doesn't have to be conjured or speculated. The Word of God answers these questions simply and easily. The question that remains is: "Does anybody have the courage to embrace the answer found there?"
Jesus died a horrible and terrific death. Isaiah tells us His appearance was so changed from the torture He received that He was not recognizable. His face swelled from His beard being plucked and repeatedly slapped, His upper head was disfigured from the thorns being pushed down into His skin. Anyone who has ever experienced the wound from a thorn understands the pain and swelling that accompanies such a wound. His back and the sides of His abdomen was opened and bleeding from the whipping and bits of bone that were woven into the whip. The disciples either had first hand knowledge of these events or heard descriptions from those who did. The Roman government crucified hundreds of people. All the inhabitants of Israel had witnessed a crucifixion as crucifixion was designed to be a deterrent to unlawful behavior. They were public events along busy thoroughfares. Jesus was not only crucified, He was brutally beaten before He was hung on the cross. Because of the first hand knowledge, the actual witnessing of His horrific suffering and death, Jesus had a hard time convincing the disciples that He was resurrected from the dead in reality. The picture of this brutally beaten, unrecognizable hunk of flesh was permanently imprinted on their hearts.
Moreover, these men were in a state of shock. Jesus spent three and one half years convincing them that He indeed was the Son of the great God Jehovah and just when they had come to believe, He was crucified and died as a common man. All that they had believed came crashing down around them. Jesus spent forty days, "showing by many infallible proofs," that He was indeed resurrected from the dead and had a flesh and bone body. The evidence He presented had to overcome the shock these men were suffering from and erase the picture of His death that was indelibly imprinted on their consciousness. At the point they were ready to believe, He issued a direct order: "wait on the Lord."
Jesus stood before His fledgeling Church and told them that everything had changed. "All power has been given to me in heaven and in earth" (Matt.28:18). The truth is that the Father God gave Jesus a new name at His resurrection, a name He did not have before. There was a new authority granted to Jesus that went with the new name, Lord of Lords and King of Kings. The Father God gave up His authority to Jesus, the Holy Spirit did the same. Jesus is now the supreme ruler of all. Jesus then used military terminology to issue an order to the Church: "Wait in Jerusalem for your Father's promise, the baptism with the Holy Spirit."
The principal of waiting for our Father's promise is a simple one. The word "baptize" means "to saturate" as in the dyeing of a piece of cloth. In John 4, Jesus speaks of a well of water springing up to everlasting life, but in John 7, Jesus speaks again of rivers of water flowing out of the belly. Both instances identify the water as the Holy Spirit. In Acts 2, when the disciples were baptized with the Spirit, it was the Holy Spirit that flowed out of their mouths. Thus, one who has believed in Jesus to be washed from their sins and also allows the gift of tongues to flow from their mouth, is saturated, baptized, with the water.
Have you ever wondered how long one would have to allow the Living Water to pour over their lips before a river would have passed? It takes time, time waiting on Jesus, the Lord, to flow from your belly. Jesus said, when He, the Spirit of truth has come (this coming would be different as the Holy Spirit had been on the earth since He brooded over the water in Genesis), He will not represent Himself, He will be my representative (Jn.16:32). Thus, in this present age of grace, the Holy Spirit is acting on the behalf of Jesus, He is representing Jesus. Jude tells us that we build ourselves up on our faith when we allow the living water to flow from our bellies. The greater the flow, the greater the magnification. As you wait for Jesus to flow out of your mouth as a river, your strength is renewed, you are invigorated with the life of God as it flows from deep in your heart. You are ready to run the tops of the walls and mount up on wings to fly over the storms of life.
In Acts 1:8 Jesus continues the orders to His Church, saying, "You shall receive power and be witnesses of my resurrection after you have received the Father's promise." Have you ever wondered why the Church no longer has power to witness of Jesus' resurrection? They have disobeyed a direct order given by the Lord of Lord and King of Kings. The commandments Jesus gave the Church have been interpreted by the Church to have no application to the Church. Even full gospel churches discount the direct orders of the King. No one obeys the commandment. Whether one speaks in tongues or not is an elective, something we might do on our time table. There is no obedience to a commandment! (If there is no commandment, there can be no obedience.)
It is clear then, the reason why we are not mounting up on wings as eagles, we are not waiting on the Lord. The word "Lord" denotes someone who has power over you, someone who has power to command you. Although Jesus has this authority, He does not lord it over His children. Jesus said, "If you love me, obey my commandments." It might behoove us to mention here that Jesus stripped Himself of all the attributes of God to come to earth as man (Phil.2:6-8). As man, He died for the sins of mankind. He was not made Lord until after His resurrection. Because of this, Jesus has no legal authority to command those who exercise faith in Him as Saviour to obtain righteousness, to obey the commandments issued to the Church. There is a line of division between Jesus' death on the cross as Saviour and His resurrection as Lord of Lords and King of Kings. Most of the Church resides at the cross, rejoicing in the death of Jesus and the washing of sins. They have perfect liberty to disobey Jesus' commandments to His Church.
The words of Matthew 28:19 fit after Acts 1:8. Jesus had to command the disciples to disciple those converted by the power to witness because the natural tendency would be to ignore the new believers after they were converted. The natural tendency would be to follow the power, to get as many converted to Christianity as possible. Jesus had to command that new converts be taught.
Now, having said this, perhaps we need to back up for those who have desired to receive the baptism with the Spirit but have as yet been unable to do so. In Acts 1:4, the word "wait" Jesus used is derived from an ancient word which means extreme passion. Although many people receive the baptism with the Spirit easily, others do not. The original members of the Church fasted and prayed for ten days before receiving. This is extreme behavior. Although it was ten days before Pentecost, it is not just coincidence that they had to wait for the Father's promise with extreme behavior. In their eyes, they were being obedient to Jesus' command and had no idea when the Holy Spirit might come in their lives to baptize them. Our Bibles inform us that we will find the Lord when we seek with our whole heart. This is easier done by some than others, thus some receive easily and quickly, for others, it is a long, drawn out, desperate search. It was for me.