Fruit Of Patience Series

Theme: Fruit of Patience

Text: Psalm 40:1-13

Greetings & Introduction:

The Lord is good; his love endures forever. I greet you all in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. We will meditate from Psalm 40, about the fruit of patience.

Galatians 5:22 mentions endurance as one of the slices/ traces/graces of the fruit of the Spirit of God. I want to leave with you three things related to longsuffering. Patience is a valuable character quality.

- Cultivate patience in personal life – Psalm 40:1-5

- Concentrate on Christ, the personification of Patience – Psalm 40:6-11, and

- Conquer the impatience through sufferings – Psalm 40:12-17

1. Cultivate Patience in personal life (Psalm 40:1-5)

The Psalmist says I waited for the Lord patiently. Because your thoughts are many, your plans are many than what I have (Psalm 40:5).

Albert Barnes says David expressed that “in waiting, I waited for the Lord”. Patience is essentially "waiting with grace." Part of being Christian is the ability to accept unfortunate circumstances gracefully while having faith that we will ultimately find resolution in God (ref: ibeleive.com).

Calvin Comments that David had been a long time in anxious suspense.

The dictionary defines patience as ‘the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset. ‘The ability to wait for something without frustration is a useful skill and a good aspect of one’s personality.

Patience can help us to achieve our goals. It maintains a more positive outlook on life. It makes us less reactive, in turn, will make us less prone to bad decisions. Stress, regret, and anger don't help anything. So when you're facing an uncertain future, a negative event, or something scary, take a minute. Don't do anything. Just sit a spell (ref: Countryliving.com/Kate Phillips).

Amanda Hess wrote an article in Washington City Paper themed ‘Patience is a (Feminist) virtue’ She said, “Patience is a virtue, possess it if you can. Seldom found in woman, never found in man.”

Elyse Fitzpatrick writes in Helper By Design on patience, a woman submitting to a man in the name of God, as the “power to endure without complaint something disagreeable.”

A man usually thinks on his wedding day that probably he has a perfect spouse—then he sets out to improve the spouse. Finally, he found that not she but he needs to improve. “When long-married couples asked the recipe for marital success, many identify patience as a key ingredient”.

The reading of the scriptures throw lots of ideas and ways to improve the virtue of patience. But, it directs us to cultivate the fruit of the Spirit of Patience. Paul wrote in Romans that Patience is a gift of God (Romans 15:6). It is obtained through the reading of the Holy Scriptures and meditating on the Word of God. (Romans 15:4, Luke 8:15). This fruit is nurtured through the prayers of the saints (Colossians 1:11).

Bible teaches us many valuable lessons on impatient persons. Impatient persons had lost their dignity and invited many troubles, struggles. They lost their lives. I like to cite few examples for our reference.

Sarah could not hold her peace in the case of the promise related to a Son. So, she invited her trouble from her salve girl Hagar and paved the way for the formation of a nation through Ismail (Genesis 16:2,12).

The impatience of King Saul brought irreparable loss to his children, family, and the entire generation. He offered the sacrifice without waiting for the servant of God. (1 Samuel 13:13).

Absalom could not wait for his turn and for the time of the Lord to enthrone him, and he lost the grace and was killed (2 Samuel 15:1-5).

St. Francis of Assisi said, “Where there is charity and wisdom, there is neither fear nor ignorance. Where there is patience and humility, there is neither anger nor vexation. Where there is poverty and joy, there is neither greed nor avarice. Where there is peace and meditation, there is neither anxiety nor doubt.”

St. Augustine described patience as the companion of wisdom.

We have a person called Christ who personified this virtue in his life and shown to the world Patience as a fruit of the Spirit of God.

2. Concentrate on Christ the Personification of Patience (Psalm 40:6-11)

Focus on Christ, who is the personification of Patience, an embodiment of longsuffering. He exhibited endurance in sufferings, insults and mockery. He never opened his mouth and established this virtue as one of the highest virtues with tolerance and forbearance.

Patient waiting upon God was a notable characteristic of Jesus Christ. Jesus never allowed impatience to lingered in his heart. Despite his agony in the garden of Gethsemane, his trial of cruel mocking before Herod and Pilate, and his passion on the tree, he waited patiently. There was no glance of wrath, no word of murmuring, no deed of vengeance came from this patient Lamb. Jesus waited and waited on, he was patient, and patient to perfection, far excelling all others (ref: biblestudytools.com).