Welcome to Week 2 of “Poetic Promises: God’s Story from Eden to Emmanuel,” a transformative Christmas sermon series that explores biblical prophecy, God’s faithfulness, and the spiritual discipline of waiting for God’s promises to be fulfilled.

What Does It Mean to Wait for God’s Promises?

In this powerful sermon on waiting on God, discover what it truly means to live in the “not yet” with radical hope. The Jewish people waited 700 years for the promised Messiah—not just individuals, but entire generations. They didn’t simply endure this wait; they were sustained by it. The promise itself became the fuel for their faith, shaping their spiritual identity through centuries of anticipation.

This sermon teaches you how to apply that same faith to your own season of waiting. Whether you’re waiting for healing that hasn’t come, a breakthrough in your marriage, a prodigal child to return home, a job opportunity, or any of God’s promises yet unfulfilled, you’ll learn biblical principles for maintaining hope and faith when God feels silent.

Ancient Prophecies, Modern Application

Explore two of the most important prophecies in Scripture:

Isaiah 9:6-7 – In the midst of political crisis and national darkness, the prophet Isaiah announced the coming of a divine King called “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” This radical hope proclaimed that God had already ordained the solution to their current suffering, even though no one listening would live to see its fulfillment.

Micah 5:2 – 150 years later, another prophet named Micah added remarkable specificity to God’s promise: the Messiah would come from Bethlehem, a small, insignificant town. This demonstrates that God doesn’t improvise—He knows the exact place, exact timing, and exact details of His redemptive plan.

Together, these Old Testament prophecies show that God’s promises are not vague hopes; they are specific, detailed, and absolutely certain.

Understanding the 400 Silent Years

Between the last Old Testament prophet (Malachi) and the arrival of Jesus Christ, God’s people endured 400 years of silence. No new prophetic words. No new revelations. Yet in those centuries of waiting, God’s people held fast to the promises given centuries before. This sermon examines how faith in an unseen future sustained an entire nation through darkness, exile, persecution, and uncertainty.

The Old Testament teaches us that waiting isn’t a sign that God has abandoned us. Waiting is the proving ground of faith.

Why We Struggle to Wait in Modern Culture

We live in an age of instant gratification. We get answers in seconds through Google. We receive packages in days through Amazon. We stream entertainment on demand. This constant access to immediacy has trained us to be terrible at waiting. Yet the Christian life is fundamentally a life of waiting.

This sermon addresses the cultural challenge of patience and helps you understand why waiting is essential to spiritual maturity and why God often withholds immediate answers to deepen your faith.

The Victorian Understanding of Hope and Waiting

This message explores how the Victorian era understood hope differently than we do today. Before instant communication, before email and FaceTime, waiting was tangible and real. It shaped emotions and built character. Learn how Charles Dickens captured this theme in A Christmas Carol and what the Victorians can teach us about maintaining hope through long seasons of darkness.

Three Powerful Action Steps for Waiting Well

1. Identify Your Promise – Name one specific promise from Scripture you’re standing on right now. Write it down. Put it where you’ll see it daily. The first step to waiting well is clearly identifying what you’re waiting for.

2. Pray Daily for Patience – Each morning, pray not “God, please hurry up,” but “God, teach me patience while I wait. Teach me to trust Your timing.” The Psalms are full of these prayers: Psalm 27, Psalm 37, and Psalm 42 are specifically prayers of waiting and faith.

3. Encourage Someone Else in Their Season of Waiting – You probably know someone waiting for reconciliation in their marriage, an adoption to be finalized, healing from illness, or a career breakthrough. Be the person who reminds them that God is faithful.

Key Scripture Passages Covered:

• Isaiah 9:6-7 (The Messiah promised)

• Micah 5:2 (Bethlehem prophecy)

• Psalm 22 (Piercing prophecy)

• Isaiah 53 (Suffering Messiah)

• Zechariah 12:10 (The pierced one)

• Philippians 4:6-7 (Peace in waiting)

• Jeremiah 29:11 (God’s plans for you)

• 1 Corinthians 13:12 (Seeing dimly now)

Topics Covered in This Sermon:

• Biblical prophecy and Old Testament promises

• How to maintain faith while waiting on God

• Understanding God’s faithfulness through history

• The spiritual discipline of patience

• Hope in times of darkness and uncertainty

• Messiah prophecy (Isaiah, Micah, and other Old Testament prophets)

• The 700-year wait for the promised Messiah

• The 400 silent years between Malachi and Matthew

• How to encourage others in their season of waiting

• Christmas theology and Emmanuel (God with us)

• Faith during crisis and uncertainty

• Victorian era understanding of hope

• Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol and redemption

Who Should Watch This Sermon?

This message is for anyone who:

• Is waiting for an answered prayer or God’s promise to be fulfilled

• Struggles with patience and feels abandoned by God

• Wants to understand biblical prophecy and how it relates to Christmas

• Is going through a difficult season and needs encouragement

• Wants to strengthen their faith and trust in God’s timing

• Is interested in Old Testament history and biblical theology

• Seeks practical ways to maintain hope in darkness

• Wants to encourage others who are also waiting for breakthrough

A Message of Hope for the Waiting Season

Whatever you’re waiting for right now—healing, wholeness, reconciliation, purpose, direction, breakthrough, or answered prayer—this sermon reminds you that God keeps His promises. Even the ones that take 700 years. Even the ones that feel impossible. Even the ones that require countless generations of faithful waiting.

You can trust that God is faithful. Not because you can see the answer yet. But because He’s proven faithful across all of history, and He will prove faithful in your life as well.