Our Obligation To Patience-2

OUR OBLIGATION To PATIENCE-II—James 5:7-12

Need:

I live a fast-paced life. I enjoy it! I like to get things done! People that take their time slow you down. Why should I be patient?

Let’s go to church, get this thing done....head out....enjoy the day! Yeah, I love Sundays!

James declared/asserted the Christian’s obligation to patience(in Christ.

Christians are obligated to practice patience.

Why are Christians obligated to patience?

7 capacities obligating the Christian to patience.

Obligating the Christian to patience is its Capacity for...

OR...

Patience(in Christ) gives us OR informs our capacity for...

1. The LONG HAUL(:7a)

2. CERTAINTY(7b-8)

3. CHANGE/Transformation(:9a)

4—Patience gives us OR informs our capacity for...

CONFIDENCE(:9b)

Explanation: (:9b) Stand

:9—“Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door!”

It is wise for us to keep in mind—with grumbling or any other un-Christ-like behavior— that the Judge’s presence & decisions, are in fact, imminent/about to happen/at the door. We will not get away with such without the Judge’s knowledge. After all, the Spirit of God indwells us!

1Cor. 2:10-12—“But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.”

The fact remains that Christians should fear the “condemnation” which grumbling warrants.

“Judge”—krithv—1) One who passes or arrogates to himself, judgment on anything—1a) An arbiter, 1b) Of a Roman procurator administering justice, 1c) Of God passing judgment on men, 1d) Of the leaders or rulers of the Israelites. Krithv gives prominence to the mental process, whether the judge is a magistrate or not. Strong—A judge (genitive case or specially):-- Judge.

“Standing”—isthmi—1) To cause or make to stand, to place, put, set—1b) To make firm, fix establish, 1c) To set or place in a balance; 2) To stand—2a) To stand by or near, 2b) To stand. Strong—To stand (transitively or intransitively), used in various applications (literally or figuratively):-- Abide, appoint, bring, continue, covenant, establish, hold up, lay, present, set (up), stanch, stand (by, forth, still, up).

Argumentation:

1Cor. 2:10-12—“But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.”

2Cor. 5:4-8—“For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body & to be present with the Lord.”

Php. 1:3-6—“I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;”

Php. 3:3—“For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, & have no confidence in the flesh,”

*Heb 3:14—“For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end,”

*1Jn. 2:28—“And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence & not be ashamed before Him at His coming.”

*1Jn. 3:21—“Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God.”

Illustration:

I became a Research Coordinator/Trusted to load boat & drive it to an out-of-state port for a 3-week cruise/I gained confidence in knowing what would be needed for such a pressing task/CONFIDENCE

Training identifying plankton to species/Books available to me/Constant refamiliarization/CONFIDENCE

My training at UGA using C-14/Applied it in the field with CONFIDENCE

Application:

?Your Patience supply a Capacity for the LONG HAUL?

?Are YOU Patient?