The Long Āgama Sūtra 2.109

2.109

佛告波旬：「且止！且止！我自知時。如來今者未取涅槃，須我諸比丘集，又能自調，勇捍無怯，到安隱處，逮得己利，為人導師，演布經教，顯於句義。若有異論，能以正法而降伏之。又以神變，自身作證。如是弟子皆悉未集。又諸比丘尼、優婆塞、優婆夷，普皆如是，亦復未集。今者要當廣於梵行，演布覺意，使諸天人普見神變。」

The Buddha told the Wicked One, “Stop! Stop! I’ll decide when it’s time. For now, the Tathāgata hasn’t decided on nirvāṇa yet. My monks need to be assembled who can discipline themselves, overcome agitation without fear, and arrive at the place of safety. They need to obtain their own reward, be teachers for other people, disseminate the sutra teachings, and make their words and meanings plain. They need to defeat whatever other teachings there may be with the correct Dharma. They’ll need to realize these miracles for themselves. Such disciples haven’t assembled yet. There also need to be nuns, laymen, and laywomen who are all like this, and they haven’t been assembled yet, either. What’s essential now is to broadly lecture about the awakened heart in the religious life and let gods and humans all see these miracles.”