James 5:7-12 Series

James: Practical Faith 

James 5:7-12

Pastor Jefferson M. Williams

Chenoa Baptist Church 

01-19-2025

Pearls

When an oyster gets a grain of sand, parasite, or food particle in its shell, there is no way to get rid of it. It irritates the inside of the oyster. The oyster probably prays, “Oh Lord, please take this irritation away from me.” But the grain of sand remains.

Over time, in order to deal with the inflammation, the oyster covers the sand with aragonite and conchiolin, which form nacre.

This process repeats itself many times until it forms something that we pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars for - a pearl.

When life is unfair, when we are going through hardship, suffering, pain, or persecution, God wants to form pearls in us. But that takes time, patience, endurance and a trust that God’s process is for our good and His glory.

Review

Last week, James addressed the unbelieving rich with the power of an Old Testament prophet:

“Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you.” (James 5:1-6)

He blasted them for hoarding wealth in the last days, defrauding laborers of their wages, living in self-indulgent luxury, and robbing the poor of life itself.

In the verses we will look at today, his focus moves from the oppressors to the ones that are oppressed. They are being treated unfairly. How should we respond when we are treated unfairly? Or people lie about us?

In Psalm 37, David gives us a hint of what James will say:

“Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away…Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes…A little while, and the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found.” (Psalm 37:1-2, 5-7, 10)

James will make the point that we are to hold on, wait patiently and stand firm. Jesus, their Judge and our Redeemer is coming soon.

Please turn with me to James 5.

Prayer.

Be Patient

In response to being oppressed, persecuted, and mistreated, what is James’s command? Honestly, you may not like what he has to say.

Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.

The word that Paul uses next is “makrothymia,” which is translated as “patience” or your translation may use “forbearance.” Or it may have “long suffering,” a word literally invented in 1535. This term is a combination of long and passion, anger, or heat.

In the west, we don’t like to wait. We get frustrated at red lights that take too long to turn green. We don’t like to wait in line.

We live in an instant, microwave society.

Dr. Paul Brand writes,

?“People who live in technologically advanced societies live at a greater comfort levels - but seem far less equipped to handle suffering and are far more traumatized by suffering when it inevitably comes.”

It literally means that your anger is a long way off. This is not the word for patience that has to do with dealing with frustrating situations or circumstances. There is another Greek word for that.

This may be even harder to handle. This word means being slow to anger with people who irritate you!

I heard a story this week about a guy who was eating quietly at a local diner when three bikers walked in. The bikers walked over to him and one took his sandwich, the other his coffee, and the other knocked his hat off his head. The man said nothing, got up, silently paid the bill and left.

The bikers were laughing and said to the waitress, “He wasn’t much of a man, was he?” She responded, “He’s not much of a trucker either. He just ran over those three motorcycles that were sitting out front!