Topical Bible: Waiting for Guidance and Teaching

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Waiting for guidance and teaching is a recurring theme in the Bible, reflecting the believer's dependence on God for direction and understanding. This concept is deeply rooted in the relationship between God and His people, where trust and patience are essential virtues.

Old Testament Foundations

In the Old Testament, waiting for God's guidance is often associated with seeking His will and wisdom. The Psalms frequently express a longing for divine instruction. Psalm 25:4-5 states, "Show me Your ways, O LORD; teach me Your paths. Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; all day long I wait for You." Here, the psalmist exemplifies a heart that is eager to learn from God, recognizing Him as the ultimate source of truth and salvation.

The prophet Isaiah also speaks to the importance of waiting on the Lord. Isaiah 40:31 declares, "But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint." This verse highlights the strength and perseverance that come from patiently waiting for God's timing and guidance.

New Testament Insights

In the New Testament, waiting for guidance is closely linked to the work of the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised His disciples that the Spirit would lead them into all truth. John 16:13 says, "However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come." This assurance underscores the believer's reliance on the Holy Spirit for understanding and direction.

The early church demonstrated the practice of waiting for divine guidance through prayer and fasting. In Acts 13:2-3 , we read, "While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.' So after they had fasted and prayed, they laid their hands on them and sent them off." This passage illustrates the community's commitment to seeking God's will before making significant decisions.

Practical Application

For believers today, waiting for guidance and teaching involves a posture of humility and openness to God's leading. It requires a commitment to prayer, meditation on Scripture, and a willingness to be patient as God reveals His plans. James 1:5 encourages believers to seek wisdom from God: "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him."

The practice of waiting is not passive but active, involving a diligent pursuit of God's presence and an expectation that He will provide the necessary guidance and teaching. As believers wait on the Lord, they are reminded of His faithfulness and the assurance that He will direct their paths in His perfect timing.

Nave's Topical Index

Psalm 25:5
Lead me in your truth, and teach me: for you are the God of my salvation; on you do I wait all the day.
Nave's Topical Index

Library

Strengthened by Faith
... was not a mere clutching at a straw, some mental process of my own, rather than
His guidance and teaching. After prayer, however, and renewed waiting upon GOD ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/taylor/a retrospect/chapter vi strengthened by faith.htm

Guidance in Judgment
... God will not leave a man without adequate teaching as to ... of our hearing and profiting
by the guidance is meekness ... the time lost that is spent in waiting to know ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture j/guidance in judgment.htm

The Holy Spirit Our Helper in Prayer
... Patience, hope and waiting help us in prayer ... It is the unfolding of the word by the
Spirit's light, guidance, teaching, enabling us to perform the great office ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/bounds/the reality of prayer/xiv the holy spirit our.htm

Hence it Is, that Grieving, Quenching, or Resisting the Spirit...
... his holy presence within us, by continually waiting for, trusting ... of God and Christ,
is the continual immediate guidance, unction, and teaching of this ...
/.../address 39 0 0 hence it is.htm

Self-Control.
... You must not think you haven't needed the teaching and the guidance you've ... portals
bright and fair Bearing not a single token For my Master waiting there. ...
/.../byrum/the value of a praying mother/chapter ix self-control.htm

The Lack of Prayer
... work in the place which God and waiting on Him ... without my breathing a prayer for
guidance or help ... The Scripture teaching about crying day and night, continuing ...
/.../murray/the ministry of intercession/chapter i the lack of.htm

The Secret of True Obedience.
... who learned obedience' by every moment waiting to see ... used it for His own spiritual
life and guidance. ... that He received the Father's continual direct teaching. ...
/.../murray/the school of obedience/iii the secret of true.htm

Appendix.
... to ponder the passages under the guidance of these ... attention in the expository preaching
and teaching on this ... books may perhaps be mentioned: Waiting on God ...
//christianbookshelf.org/thomas/the prayers of st paul/appendix.htm

Bread and Wine
... That would be to deny the inspiring guidance of Him ... there, or else there in germ,
waiting underneath the ... they could discover that seed was teaching, and fowls ...
/.../chadwick/the gospel of st mark/chapter 14 22-25 bread and wine.htm

Jesus and his Mother.
... no one; but it finds love waiting for it. ... from within, without the aid of home teaching
and training ... never resisted her will, never withdrawn from her guidance. ...
/.../miller/personal friendships of jesus/chapter ii jesus and his.htm