Warrior Church Home Fellowship Study

Dr. Kevin Zadai 11 -12 - 2023 -- 11 -18 - 2023

Sometimes God Delays Things Because He Loves You.

"The delay is because God loves people and wants them to repent; He wants them return to Him."

~Kevin Zadai

But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion on them and turned to them because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob, and would not destroy them or cast them from His presence
until now.
—2 Kings 13:23 NASB

DISCUSSION:
This week, we will discuss a revelation the Lord has put on my heart: sometimes God delays things because He loves you. We must recognize that we don't get punished every time we do something wrong; we also don't see an instant reward for everything we do right. The delay is sometimes due to God intervening or refraining because He loves us.

GOD IS MERCIFUL TO THE HUMBLE
Sometimes, wicked people who are doing terrible things don't get judged right away because God still loves them and is working with them. However, from what I understand from scripture and what I saw in Heaven, there will come that time when the level of evil they're doing builds up to a certain point, as water fills a bowl, and then God will say, "That's it." It's crucial to understand why evil people seem to get away with things, and it takes a little longer for God to step in. Also, realizing why you sometimes see a delay in your life when you've done the right thing is vital.

Do you see how Ahab has humbled himself before Me? Because he has humbled himself before Me, I will not bring the evil in his days, but I evil bring the evil upon his house in his son's days.
—1 Kings 21:29 NASB

In 1 Kings 21:29, the Lord expressed that Ahab humbled himself, so He chose not to bring the consequences during his life, but said, "I will bring the evil upon his house in his son's days." This is a difficult scripture, which most people have never heard preached. Often, when scriptures are hard to understand, nobody wants to touch them. Yet, I want to explain something: Even when evil people, like Ahab, humble themselves, the Lord will reward them just like He rewards us if we humble ourselves.

When we decide to humble ourselves underneath the mighty hand of God, a breakthrough happens (1 Peter 5:6). Trust me, when I humble myself, the Lord moves powerfully and quickly; it's almost instant for me. Because Ahab humbled himself, the Lord actually delayed the punishment that would have come upon his house and family. It's in the Scripture, so we have to talk about it. Even if an evil person humbles themselves and gets it right, God will move on their behalf because He's a good God—He's a righteous God. Remembering this revelation will help you in different situations, so I encourage you to keep these scriptures in mind.

o Discuss the impact that humility before God can have on one's life.

HONORING PREVIOUS COVENANTS
2 Kings 13:23 explains that the Lord was gracious, had compassion on His people, and turned to them because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He would not destroy or cast them from His presence until that appointed time. This verse states something was going to happen; yet the idea here, like the scripture we just discussed, is that the Lord is gracious and compassionate. God honored those previously made covenants; He did not immediately destroy or cast out the descendants of those who covenanted with God. Then, there will come that time when He has to deal with wickedness, which you see in the scripture. This is the character of God revealed.

In Genesis 6, we read that God continued to strive with humans until it became unbearable. Then He essentially said, "That's enough." He decided to limit human life to 120 years. Because of the level of wickedness, God destroyed the earth, preserving only Noah and his family (Genesis 6:1–12). We see the character of God revealed in this account, as we do in many situations today. You may not understand what's happening and why there sometimes is a delay; yet it's because of all these factors, like covenants or the fact that somebody may have humbled themselves before the Lord and asked for help.

GOD SEES EVERYTHING
Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed quickly, therefore the hearts of the sons of men among them are given fully to do evil.
—Ecclesiastes 8:11 NASB

Ecclesiastes 8:11 is an interesting verse that explains how people's hearts are given entirely to wickedness when a sentence against an evil deed is not executed immediately. This is crucial to understand, especially today. We see what's happening with the leadership in our country and worldwide; evil deeds are being done to the point we wonder, When is God going to step in? Wickedness occurs daily with our coworkers, family, and neighbors, which causes many to question when God will do something about our suffering and persecution.

The answer to when God will intervene is found in Ecclesiastes 8:11: This verse explains that although people are doing evil things, the sentence is not executed quickly. In other words, it'll continue to get worse, and the evil will get to the point where it's in its full bloom.

Warrior Church Home Fellowship Study

Dr. Kevin Zadai  11 -12 - 2023 -- 11 -18 - 2023

 At that point, there will be a time when God just acts. I've seen this happen many times over the 43 years I've walked with the Lord. Intervention does take place, just not immediately. The delay is because God loves people and wants them to repent; He wants them to return to Him.

For the sake of My name I delay My wrath, and for My praise I restrain it for you, in order not to cut you off.

—Isaiah 48:9 NASB

Isaiah 48:9 expresses that God delays and restrains His wrath because He doesn't want to cut people off.

• God is a gracious God.

• The Lord is neither blind nor deaf. He sees and hears everything, yet is very patient. However, there will come that time when He has had enough.

• There is the potential that we or our enemies could be cut off at any moment.

• Because of God's love and compassion for people, He delays dealing with evil.

• We can get very frustrated, especially when we see evil being propagated to a place that looks like all these wicked people are prospering (Psalm 37:1–7).

• We also observe ministries throughout the body of Christ, where people are being taken advantage of with offerings and all kinds of gimmicks. You may think, How do these people get away with it? But they don't get away with it; it's just that God doesn't just act right away.

• Some consequences are delayed, while others are immediate; God sees everything.

• We must encourage each other because it can be very frustrating.

TIME IS GIVEN TO REPENT

And he said to the vineyard-keeper, "Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?"

—Luke 13:7 NASB

When I was training at Rhema Bible School, Brother Kenneth Hagin taught us a powerful revelation from Luke 13:7. This verse speaks of a fig tree that did not bear fruit for three years, so the owner ordered it to be cut down, asking, "Why does it even use up the ground?" It's peculiar to see specific numbers in the Bible, yet there is a purpose. For example, John 21:11 mentions the disciples caught 153 fish in a net. You may wonder, Why was it so specific? There's a reason it's in the Bible, even if we don't know what it is.

In Luke 13:7, three years is significant, according to Brother Hagin. He said the Lord showed him that three years is the time God gives for repentance for a minister or a mature Christian who's more accountable. In other words, He works with you until a certain point, which Brother Hagin noticed seemed to be about three years. What I've observed follows that. Of course, this isn't set in stone; however, I wanted to share the concept with you, since most of you didn't go to Rhema and sit under that anointed man.

The revelation that God sometimes delays things because He loves you will help you going forward. Please do not get frustrated or harbor unforgiveness over the fact that people are not punished, because they will be found out. There's a delay because God is working things out. I guarantee if you do what's right and are right about these things, God will reward you openly with greater than what you lost or any frustration. God is with you in a mighty way.

PRAYER:

Father, thank You so much for all my family all over the world. I ask for the impartation of the Holy Spirit to go into every gathering right now. Thank You, Lord, for the revelation from the Scriptures we've gone over. Lord, may the power of the Holy Spirit enlighten everyone to understand what You're saying to the Church. May we be encouraged, knowing You are in the delays. Thank You, Father, that You are righteous, and You cause righteousness to reign in our lives. Thank You, Father, for helping us with our finances, health, and relationships. Lord, thank You for driving out sickness and poverty from the midst of us. Thank You, Lord, that relationships are being mended. Thank You for angel visitation and angelic help enforcing the covenant of Jesus Christ, in Jesus's name, amen.

1. According to this study, why don't wicked people get judged immediately? 

2. Why is it important to understand that God sometimes delays both rewards and judgments?

3. Take some time to talk about the character or nature of God.

4. Discuss the revelation in Ecclesiastes 8:11, which states that people's hearts are given fully to evil when the sentence is not executed quickly.

5. What did Brother Hagin teach Dr. Zadai concerning Luke 13:7?