"My Lord delayeth his coming."

"My Lord delayeth his coming." Daniel 10 - Vision of the Glorious/Patient Saint In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a message was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar. The message was true, but the appointed time was long; and he understood the message, and had understanding of the vision. In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks. I ate no pleasant food, no meat or wine came into my mouth, nor did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were fulfilled. Now on the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river, that is, the Tigris, I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, a certain man clothed in linen, whose waist was girded with gold of Uphaz! His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like torches of fire, his arms and feet like burnished bronze in color, and the sound of his words like the voice of a multitude. And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision; but a great terror fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves. Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, and no strength remained in me; for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength. Yet I heard the sound of his words; and while I heard the sound of his words I was in a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground. Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands. And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you.” While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling. Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your G-d, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. 13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia. 14 Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come.” When he had spoken such words to me, I turned my face toward the ground and became speechless. And suddenly, one having the likeness of the sons of men touched my lips; then I opened my mouth and spoke, saying to him who stood before me, “My lord, because of the vision my sorrows have overwhelmed me, and I have retained no strength. For how can this servant of my lord talk with you, my lord? As for me, no strength remains in me now, nor is any breath left in me.” Then again, the one having the likeness of a man touched me and strengthened me. And he said, “O man greatly beloved, fear not! Peace be to you; be strong, yes, be strong!” So when he spoke to me I was strengthened, and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.” Then he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? And now I must return to fight with the prince of Persia; and when I have gone forth, indeed the prince of Greece will come. But I will tell you what is noted in the Scripture of Truth. (No one upholds me against these, except Michael your prince. So, who is Michael? In Jude 1:9, Michael is called "the archangel" and he personally contends with the devil. In Daniel 12:1, Michael is called "the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people." This is not about personal guardian angels - it is about angels who have such great power that they are called princes. From their element in the spiritual world, they direct the affairs of nations. The news we read on a daily basis is not just the result of the actions of men. It also reflects the spiritual battles that are going on in the spirit world. The princes of this world are often led by their corresponding princes in the spirit world. These principalities, in turn, are all under the authority of "the prince of the power of the air" (Ephesians 6:12)--by Satan himself. It is important for us to understand that our battles truly are spiritual ones. 1 Peter 4:12 - "Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:" Ephesians 6:12 - “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Isaiah 40:31 - "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." John: 14:12 - "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the WORKS that I do he will do also; and GREATER WORKS than these he will do, because I go to My Father." "My Lord delayeth his coming." In Matthew 24: 45 -51 Jesus said: "Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing . Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods .But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming ;And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Few things are more clear to me than the fact that Jesus warned us that Satan continues to deceive us in order to destroy us. In Matthew 25 - Jesus tells us another parable of ten virgins - all of the virgins went out to meet the Bridegroom ho delayed coming; half were prudent and half were foolish so that: - "While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept" - and half the virgins who were unprepared were foolishy destroyed! You have to wait and occupy until He returns! Because at midnight there went forth an arousing cry - "Behold, the Bridegroom! Go ye out to meet Him!" Behold, the Bridegroom comes at midnight, and blessed is that servant whom He shall find watching, and again, unworthy is the servant whom He shall find heedless. Beware, therefore, O my soul, do not be weighed down with sleep, lest you be given up to death, and lest you be shut out of the Kingdom. Be careful therefore that Satan's bequiling efforts will achieve no success in depriving you of what G-d has planned for you. But there is real and present danger that you may yet close your eyes and simply allow Satan to steal your "blessed hope." Such then is great danger of you not waiting or prepared that Jesus gave us parables that expressly warn against this satanic snare which the enemy uses to try to destroy you and I. (Matt. 24: 45-51.) Remeber that our adversary wants to stop us from waiting patiently for the Lord's second coming and/or to receive any of the Lord's promises. Of two things one thing is clear, we will either continue to wait for Him to keep His promises simply because we continue to believe that He is surely coming to save us or we will allow Satan to steal our faith. If we doubt G-d and beLIEve the devil we too might say: "We have expected Him all these years, and He has never come, nor know we at all when He will." It is Satan's job is to steal our hope and cause us to give up our waiting for G-d! If Satan can steal your "blessed hope," he will have destroyed you. How different is it to faith! There is no darkness so deep or so profound to be impenetrable to the piercing rays of "the bright and the morning Star," There is no time so short as to preclude His coming, because even if there is only enough time left for an eye to twinkle, there is time enough for Him to come and save you dear one! The need for patience and continued agreement "until He come" is greater now than ever before. "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." (Hebrews 10:25). ‘Forsaking not the assembling of yourselves together’ - but no honest person can say all of the Lord's believers are assembled together today. One factor that causes some to withdraw from fellowship is because they refuse to hear what the other’s have to say. Some who have withdrawn have a spirit of self-righteousness and/or they have a spirit of pride and/or bitterness sewn with confusion and/or misunderstanding. With these demonic spirits present in them, it is almost impossible to reach them or point out where they may have taken the wrong turn. A self-righteous person can not repent or join with other believers because they beLIEve they are right! YE NEED NOT THAT ANY MAN TEACH YOU - It truly is written: "But the anointing which ye have received of Him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in Him." (1 John 2:27). John, of course, was not saying that G-d does not also call apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers as Paul pointed out in Ephesians 4:10. If that were his implication, he would have been very much in conflict with Paul, the other apostles, and with himself as well. If there were no need of men and women to preach/teach the Word of G-d, it is unlikely Paul would have written: "...How shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!" (Rom 10:14-15). Are you dividing the Body of Christ? Do you speak against the unity of the Holy Spirit? Do you truly love one another? Do you judge? Have you asked Him the simple question - "Is it I?" Do you understand these two little words: assembling, and gathering. The two terms appear the same, but there is quite a difference. ARE YOU SIMPLY GATHERING OR ARE YOU ASSEMBLING? The best example of being assembled were the 120 in the upper room at Pentecost. And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. That is what being assembled is. Act 1:14 tells us: "These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren." With one accord - Greek: ὁμοθυμαδόν homothumadon - means "with one mind." The word denotes the entire harmony of their views and feelings. There were no schisms, no divided interests, no discordant purposes. This is a beautiful picture of devotion, and a specimen of what social worship ought now to be, and a beautiful illustration of Psalm 133:1-3.. How can two walk together if they be not agreed? Do you really have the mind of Christ or are you listening to old slewfoot? I believe that most denominational church services at their very best today, are gatherings rather than assemblies. Have you ever bought a present for your child, and when you opened the box it was full of parts with a notice that read — "Some assembly required?" Only after all of the parts were assembled could anyone use the present! Well, dear "gatherers," some "assembly" is now required with us. We must first want to be part of Christ’s manifested Body, in order for us to do this, we must then be assembled by Him together in one place and in one accord. You do not need to be in one physical space to be gathered together in one accord, but you must be in one spiritual place! If you think that you need to be present in a physical place or "church" Remember what Solomon said as he dedicated the Second Temple: "Behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain Thee; how much less this house that I have builded?" 1 Kings 8:27 Where is that spiritual place? We are to gather unto HIM! In Ephesians 4:4 we read that there is only body and only one spirit. In 1 Corinthians 12:13 we read that "for by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body" and in 1 Corinthians 12:12 we see that the body is Christ!. We need to have the mind of Christ and not our own. Remember dear one tha spectators are GATHERED in the stands so they can watch the ASSEMBLED team work together as ONE BODY. DO YOU WANT TO DO GREATER WORKS OR DO YOU JUST WANT TO WATCH? We know the body has many members and these members are all physically isolated from one another. We need to become spiritually one in order to be connected or assembled! There are so many unconnected saints today - they may even be gathered, but they are not assembled. You may spend every Sunday morning in small little "churches" or even in massive congregations that number in the tens of thousands and not be assembled. You may give fortunes to the ministry, you may usher and/or may sing in the choir, you may teach Sunday-school classes, or even preach firebrand sermons, and still not be assembled, you are only gathered. What a difference there is in the two little words - gathered or assembled! Just being there does not constitute a true assembly. James put it this way: "Thou believest that there is one G-d; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?" (James 2:19-20). In Matthew 7:21 -23 we read: "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." Are you really working together as a part of Christ's body? Who does He know? Read John 10:27. May the Holy Ghost keep keep reminding our souls of our "blessed hope," to wait patiently and never allow us to say in our hearts: "My Lord delayeth His coming." It is not in what we do for G-d, but it is in our continued patience that He is pleased with us - as we wait for Him to return triumphant to a world where there is nothing of G-d. In Hebrews 11:6 we read: "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to G-d must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." Faith then is simply waiting for G-d to keep His promises. May we all truly receive the mind of Christ and the power of the Holy Ghost and Hear our Lord - so we can be in one perfect accord and assemble only unto HIM! Then and only then can we together defeat all of the "principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this world and defeat all of the spiritual wickedness in high places.” Revelation 17:14!