Are You Waiting On the Promises? - Free Indeed - Ep. 14

Summary

Barry Bennett teaches that “waiting on God” should not mean passively hoping that a promise will eventually come true. In his interpretation of the Bible, genuine waiting is active, faith-filled fellowship with God: holding to the promise, keeping it in view, and continuing in faith and patience.

Main Ideas

• Hold firmly to hope. Citing Hebrews 10:23, Bennett says believers should hold fast to their confession without wavering because God is faithful to what He has promised.
• Waiting is not resignation. He distinguishes biblical waiting from giving up, becoming bitter, or adopting a “whatever happens, happens” attitude. He argues that passivity should not be presented as waiting on God.
• God’s promises are like seeds. Bennett compares a promise planted in the heart to a seed that needs care. He illustrates this with his wife’s flower pots: although the pots had the same soil and seeds, the one that received more light grew larger. He relates this to nourishing faith with God’s Word.
• Waiting means staying closely connected to God. Bennett interprets “wait” in Isaiah 40:31 as being bound together with the Lord—not sitting idle, but remaining attentive and engaged in fellowship with God.
• Signs of active waiting. Bennett reads Isaiah’s promise of renewed strength, eagle-like vision, and endurance as indicators of genuine waiting. In his view, someone waiting in faith should grow spiritually stronger and maintain a clear vision of the hoped-for future, even if circumstances have not yet changed.
• Faith and patience may involve time. Referring to Galatians 6:9 and Hebrews 6:12, Bennett says believers should not grow weary while doing good, but should continue in faith and patience until the “due season.” Outcomes may take longer than desired.
• Keep tending the promise. Using the farmer-and-seed analogy, Bennett says not to keep digging up the seed to check on it, but to care for it. He recommends keeping “weeds” out, watering it with Scripture, and continuing to remember, picture, and speak the promise.
• Respond to discouragement by returning to fellowship. Bennett says that if someone has become offended or given up, they can acknowledge it, repent, and choose to return to fellowship with God rather than remain in resentment.
• Personal testimony. Bennett describes a year-long battle with cancer. He says he continued to trust a word he believed he had received from God, imagine himself healed and preaching again, and speak that belief to himself. He presents his later recovery as an example of active waiting. He also teaches that spiritual reality will eventually be reflected in physical reality; this is his stated belief in the lesson.
• Prayer and encouragement. Bennett prays for renewed strength and faith, as well as healing, deliverance from addiction, and restored relationships. He closes by promoting ministry resources and his book You Have the Advantage.

Practical Approach to Waiting

As presented by Bennett:

• Hold on to the promise and keep your confession of hope.
• Stay connected to God through ongoing fellowship.
• Keep the promise in mind: visualize the future it points toward and remind yourself of it.
• Continue speaking and declaring the promise rather than slipping into passive resignation.
• Nourish faith by spending time with Scripture and teaching.
• Keep doing good and serving where you can, even amid difficult circumstances.
• Exercise patience without treating delay as proof that the promise has failed.
• If you have become discouraged or bitter, acknowledge it and return to faith and fellowship.

Speakers and Sources Featured

• Barry Bennett — the sole speaker and teacher.
• Biblical passages cited: Hebrews 10:23; Isaiah 40:31; Psalm 1:3; Galatians 6:9; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Isaiah 55; Romans 10:10; Proverbs 6:9–11; and Hebrews 6:12.
• Personal examples mentioned: Bennett’s cancer experience, his wife’s gardening, and statements from his doctors. These are discussed by Bennett; his wife and doctors do not speak in the subtitles.