A PATIENCE THAT TRIUMPHS--James 5:7-12
Proposition: A patience that triumphs is a faith that patiently endures the trials of life even when it is very difficult.
Objective: My purpose is to challenge God’s people to realize and trust God even when it seems impossible to do so as God will help us to have a patience that eventually will triumph.
INTRODUCTION:
Illus: I heard a story about a truck driver who dropped in at an all-night restaurant in Broken Bow, Nebraska. The waitress had just served him when three swaggering, leather-jacketed motorcyclists - of the Hell’s Angels type - entered and rushed up to him, apparently spoiling for a fight. One grabbed the hamburger off his plate; another took a handful of his French fries; and the third picked up his coffee and began to drink it. The trucker did not respond as one might expect. Instead, he calmly rose, picked up his check, walked to the front of the room, put the check and his money on the cash register, and went out the door. The waitress followed him to put the money in the till and stood watching out the door as the big truck drove away into the night. When she returned, one of the cyclists said to her, "Well, he’s not much of a man, is he?" She replied, "I can’t answer as to that, but he’s not much of a truck driver. He just ran over three motorcycles out in the parking lot." That’s what some might call a picture of patience but is it really?
Illus: Sometimes it does seem as if God delays long. We want God to zap someone and to zap them NOW! What is that saying? "Dear God, Give me patience...and hurry! I need it right now." We are not willing to accept God on God’s time, or that God knows better than we do just what our needs truly are. We laugh at babies and their need for instant gratification, and then don’t notice our own impatience when we must wait in a line, or our dinner is not brought immediately. And sometimes we want to find God’s answers "out there" some-where, instead of looking on our own heart. We search in places that have easy answers or that make us feel good, at least temporarily.
In this passage, James tells us, we need to be patient with God, we need to be patient in circumstances and we need to be patient with one another. We need to be patient with God because he is in control and everything will work out in the end. For now, we often get discouraged because it looks like evil is winning while good is losing. It is hard to see the rubble from the twin towers without asking God why he doesn’t intervene and triumph over evil. Exactly what He is going to do--in His time. Like Job, James wants us to be patient with God, patient with our circumstances and patient with one another. And if we will, we will find "God’s best" for us and experience the compassionate and merciful outcome God has planned for our life.
No matter what the circumstances of our lives we always, in all situations act as Jesus would. As believers we never very in our behavior or appearance regardless of pressure from the world or flesh or actions of Satan in our lives.
I. A PROCESS FOR A PATIENCE THAT TRIUMPHS (v. 7) “See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth” The Farmer will reap his harvest (5:7)--Be patient for God is working. The farmer waits patiently for the grain to grow. It requires time to mature the crop, and he does not become impatient. The idea seems to be, that we should wait for things to develop themselves in their proper season, and should not be impatient before that season arrives. In due time we may expect the harvest to be ripened.
1. Appeal “Therefore, be patient brethren”--The Greek word for patience means ‘to be long-fused." A patient person is one who sets the timer of their life for extra time. Because our time and God’s time are not always the same thing. Be long-fused. Because when we go through adversity, we tend to be short-fused. Be long-tempered, not short-tempered. Catch your wind for a long race (long-tempered as opposed to short-tempered). The sense of patience in this case includes waiting and endurance until the Lord takes action on their behalf. What does it mean to be patient until the Lord’s coming? It means to do what God also is doing: enduring human evil for a season. The idea of being patient is to set the timer of one’s temper for a long run. Think long. Focus on the final lap in the race of life. Have a long fuse.
2. Alertness “until the coming of the Lord”-- The word for the "coming of the Lord” is a word which emphasizes the nearness and certainty of the Lord’s return. The word was often used in the papyri as a technical term for the arrival or visit of a king, or some other important official. Even though Christ is present with His people now, that presence will not be fully realized until He returns in glory at the end of the age.
3. Awareness “See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit”-- Now, we are given an example of one who is patient. The example of a farmer who must be patient to wait for the seeds that he has sown to produce the crop that he desires. He prepares the soil, sows the seed, keeps his fields free from grass and weeds; but for the germination of the seed and the growth of the plant he must trust the providential care of God.
4. Anticipation “waiting patiently for…the early and latter rain”-- Likewise, we are to wait for the seeds we have sown to produce the crop we desire. The early rain was the October and November showers which prepared the ground for the seed; the latter rain, the spring showers in April and May needed to bring the harvest to maturity. A farmer must be patient during this time to wait for the seeds that he has sown to produce the crop that he desires. Principle: The crop we desire will come into fruition if we sow the right seeds and wait on the Lord.
My trouble is that I’m in a hurry, but God isn’t. Are you like me? Do you hate to wait, especially when it hurts? No exceptions--God seeks to develop patience in all our lives! Patience is a fruit of the Spirit. “For the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace”…that we know. But do we also recall that the list includes patience? On a scale of 1-10, where are you on the patience scale? Does God make you wait? I know He makes me!
Illus: A man named Richard Hendricks states, “Second only to suffering, waiting may be the greatest teacher and trainer in godliness, maturity and genuine spirituality most of us will ever encounter.” If you’re scratching your head, wondering if I’m right, let me say it another way. “At least as important as the things we wait for is the work God wants to do in us as we wait.”
II. A PROSPECT FOR A PATIENCE THAT TRIUMPHS
(v. 8) “The coming of the Lord is at hand”--The Lord’s return should stimulate every believer to patience & persistence. James repeats the reference to the Lord’s coming but now focused on its nearness. The New Testament has over 300 references to Christ’s return – one out of every 13 verses.
1. Assertion “You also be patient”--Patience is out-waiting a situation of inactivity where you feel totally at a loss for being constructive; therefore, you try to keep your mind and heart in the waiting, and in anticipation of something better to do than just waste away.
Illus: Stuck at the express cashier lane? All other lanes backed up for miles? Your stomach is growling, your mouth is dry and your feet are restless. Now you have two options: either drop all the groceries and storm out of the supermarket, angry as a rabid dog, or wait patiently until your turn comes.
2. Anchor “Establish your hearts”--The imperative "stand firm" could be more literally translated "strengthen your hearts," meaning to confirm ones faith through patient endurance. Take courage; do not sink under your trials. We would say, “Don’t give up! Stay steady and strong.” In other words, let your faith be firm, without wavering, your practice of what is good constant and continued, without tiring, and your resolutions for God and heaven fixed, in spite of all sufferings or temptations. “Keep your hopes high.” Don’t let your trials or anything turn you from the Lord but put your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Principle: The longer you remain patient in your trial, the stronger you will be when it is over.
3. Assurance “The coming of the Lord is at hand”-- How “near”
or “nigh” did James mean? The entire letter is written from the perspective that the time will be short in that we live in the last stage of redemptive history preceding the Lord’s return. The imminency of the Lord’s return, therefore, referred to the necessity of constant readiness and persevering faith based upon the knowledge that He may return at any time. This passage tells what the nearness of the Lord signifies and how the knowledge of it strengthens the heart of the believer. We know that Jesus had distinctly said that no one knew when he would return, so we must be ready for His coming.
Illus: There is an inscription in the dome of our Capitol in Washington which few people know about. It says: "One far-off divine event toward which the whole creation moves." A visitor saw this inscription and asked the guide what it meant. He said: "I think it refers to the second coming of Christ." When the dome of our Capitol was erected, some God-fearing official ordered that inscription to be etched in the dome of our seat of government, believing that its truth was vital to the concern of our nation. (Billy Graham)
Illus: In his book, The Road to Armageddon, Charles Swindoll shares about the days that he worked his way through college in a large machine shop. One of his co-workers was a man named "Tex." Now-working in a plant like that meant that his time was governed by the shrill blowing of a huge whistle. It would blow to tell him when to start work...and another time to remind him when it was time for lunch and again at the end of the day to inform all employees that it was QUITTIN’ TIME. Swindoll noticed that Tex was ready to go home before anyone else. He would always have his lunch box and coat handy and was out the door at the end of the day before any one else. One day he asked him about this and Tex replied, "Sonny, let me tell you something. I STAY ready...to keep from GETTIN’ ready. I STAY ready for quittin’ time." And, we need to live like Tex, ALWAYS ready for the time when, not a whistle but a trumpet will blow to signal that it is "quittin’ time" on earth.
III. A PROBLEM FOR A PATIENCE THAT TRIUMPHS (v. 9) “Do not grumble against one another” - Part of patience is not playing the blame game. “Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door” (v. 9). It is not an easy road, but it does get easier. The hard part is overcoming the inertia of past behavior and attitudes... once we open our hearts to patience, faith, unconditional love and acceptance, the path does get easier... We learn to overlook "aggravations" and "errors"... When we feel aggravated at someone (and ourselves) we might as ourselves "What difference will this make in 10 days, 10 weeks, 10 years, 10 centuries?" That might help put things into perspective. However, sometimes we don’t.
1. Complaint “Do not grumble”-- Vincent says, The verb means to sigh or groan. Then he presents a negative trap that we often fall into. Complaining. James says, “Stop groaning against one another,” as some were already doing in view of their troubles. Watch what you say when you’re going through a trial. God is at the door of your life, listening to every word you say. If we would spend more time praising God, instead of complaining, then we would get out of our trial so much faster. You see, many times we are tempted to complain or gossip about someone or something, but we can’t because someone else is nearby. Many kids are having a bad day, they throw a temper tantrum, so on top of all the bad things they were going through, they get a spanking on top of it. Many of us are in the middle of major attacks from the devil. We’re upset, we’re angry. We go home and take it out on the kids. That’s wrong. You’re venting your frustrations in the wrong direction.
Illus: Why do we grumble against others or God, who has done so much for us? A man, writing at the desk in the post office, was approached by an older fellow who had a postcard in his hand: "Excuse me, but would you mind addressing this postcard for me to my friend?" And so he did. Then he said: "Would you just write a little note on the postcard for me?" So, he told him what to write and he wrote it. Then, he said: "Would you mind signing my name?" So, he signed it and asked: "Is there anything else I can do for you?" He thought a minute and said: "Yes, at the end, just put `P.S. Please excuse the sloppy handwriting.’" Why is it that we complain against the people who do the best things for us?
Illus: “Knockers belong on a door, not in a church.”
2. Condemnation “lest you be condemned”-- To "murmur against one another" is virtually to judge, and so to become liable to be judged. The thought of Christ’s return is a warning as well as a consolation to each one of us.
3. Consideration “the Judge is standing at the door”-- His eye is upon every thing that is wrong in you, and every wrong that is done to you; and He is now entering into judgment with your oppressors. God will make all things right.
Illus: A monk joined a monastery and took a vow of silence. After the first 10 years his superior called him in and asked, “Do you have anything to say?” The monk replied, “Food bad.” After another 10 years the monk again had opportunity to voice his thoughts. He said, “Bed hard.” Another 10 years went by and again he was called in before his superior. When asked if he had anything to say, he respond-ed, “I quit.” “It doesn’t surprise me a bit. You’ve done nothing but complain ever since you got here.”
IV. A PATTERN FOR A PATIENCE THAT TRIUMPHS (V. 10) “Take the prophets…as an example”
1. An encouragement “Take the prophets who spoke in the
name of the Lord”-- The prophets, who had spoken to their forefathers by the authority of God, were persecuted by the very people to whom they delivered the Divine message. They would say, “Thus says the Lord,” “The Word that came from the Lord,” and “This is the Word of the Lord.” They spake with the authority of God, the message of God, to the people of God. If they suffered affliction and persecution with patience, it may be expected that other good men will face
persecution also.
2. An example “an example of suffering”-- They showed us how evils are to be borne. There are many examples in the Bible of men and women who remained patient in the midst of a trial. They hung in there. It took Joseph 13 years to get the position of ruler. Patience. It took Abraham 25 years to bear a son, Isaac. Patience. It took Noah 120 years before the rains began to fall. Patience. They never gave up on the Lord. So they then are a model for us.
Illus: Too many of us are like Phillips Brooks, the Boston preacher who wrote the words to the lovely Christmas carol, "O Little Town of Bethlehem." He was known for his calmness and poise, but one day some of his close friends knew he suffered moments of frustration and irritability. One day he was pacing the floor of his study one day like a caged lion so a friend asked him, “What is the trouble, Dr.
Brooks?” He replied, "The trouble is that I’m in a hurry, but God isn’t." Have you ever felt that way?
V. A PERSEVERANCE FOR A PATIENCE THAT TRIUMPHS (V. 11) “The perseverance of Job” A Disclosure The Lord will disclose His Purpose (v. 11) “We count them blessed who endure” Don’t play the blame game “Patience is defined as the capacity to tolerate trouble and delay without becoming upset. Persistence is the ability to keep on pushing through despite the trouble and delay.”
The Greek origin of our word "patience" implies two ideas: perseverance and endurance. It can mean either a willingness to wait, or continuance in our effort to achieve. Both of these elements should be present in our lives. It’s like having moxie, chutzpah, grit.
1. Commendation “We count them blessed”-- The sense here is, he speak of their patience with commendation. They have done what they ought to do, and their name is honored and blessed. They are the heroes of our faith.
2. Consolation (comfort) “the patience (perseverance) of Job”
Job 42:10-13, 15 “The Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning” Then he uses Job as an example of patience. He lost his health, he lost his wealth, and he lost his family. But he never lost his faith in the Lord. A total collapse in life, and he wasn’t a failure – the Bible describes him as a righteous man. "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him." Job 42:5 "My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you." When we talk about Job, we talk about the fact that because Job endured, and was patient, he had more things at the end of his life than before. He had a better second half than a first half. Principle: When you finally get a real view of God, He will entrust you with more.
3. Compassion “The Lord is very compassionate and merciful”-- As He showed deep compassion in the case of Job, we have equal reason to suppose that He will in our own. As Peter states, “Casting all your care upon Him for He cares for you.” The Lord states, “I will not leave you nor forsake you.”
CONCLUSION: According to James, patience is a matter of the mind—be patient. It’s a matter of the lips—stop grumbling. It’s a matter of the heart—be strengthened and persevere. How do you develop more patience?
1. One thing we can do is to develop a new perspective. We can find a new way of looking at a situation or a person who is causing problems for us. This is what the oyster does. The oyster takes an irritation, a grain of sand, and turns it into a pearl. A pearl is nothing more than a garment of patience surrounding an annoyance.
Illus: A comic strip recently shows where a man pulled up to a traffic light and then his car stalled. The light turned green and the fellow behind him just sits on the horn. The man in front with the engine trouble tries and tries to crank his car. Then he calmly gets out and goes to the car behind him and signals for the man to roll down his window. When the window is rolled down the man says, "I’m sorry, I can’t seem to get my car started. If you’ll go up there and give it a try, I’ll stay here and blow your horn for you."
2. Another patience builder is to remember you’re in the game for the long haul. It’s not how you start that counts; it’s how you finish that really matters. In the old west when there was a particularly wild horse that needed to be broken in, and the horse was too wild or too dangerous to put a man on, a little burro, or donkey would be harnessed to the horse. Bucking and raging, convulsing up and down, the two would be let loose out in the desert. As they disappeared over the horizon, the horse would be dragging the little donkey along, bucking, kicking, and throwing the donkey around like a sack of puffed wheat. They might be gone for days, but eventually they’d come back. The little burro would be seen first, trotting back across the prairie, leading the submissive horse in tow. You see, somewhere out there in the desert the horse would become exhausted from trying to get rid of the little burro, and in that moment, the burro would take control and become the leader. That’s the way it is in the kingdom too. The battle goes to the determined. The battle goes to the patient person, not to the outraged. The battle goes to the committed disciple, not to the overly dramatic.
3. Another step in developing patience – in developing a faith that works – is to depend on God. We need to learn to say with the Psalmist, "I trust in You, O Lord; I say, ’You are my God.’ My times are in Your hands." ( Psalm 31:14-15a)
Illus: It was Mexico City 1968. John Steven Akhwari (AK-WIRE-E) of Tanzania had started the Olympic marathon with all the other runners hours before. The favorite in the marathon had been a runner from Ethiopia. However, he developed a stress fracture and had to drop out. One of his countrymen picked up the pace and went on to win the gold medal. The country of Tanzania selected John Stephen Akhwari to represent it in the Olympics. Along the course for the marathon, Akhwari stumbled and fell, severely injuring both his knee and ankle. By 7 pm, a runner from Ethiopia had won the race, and all the other competitors had finished and been cared for. Then out of the darkness a lone runner number 36 entered the stadium as sirens blared- his leg bloody and bandaged. John Stephen Akhwari of Tanzania was hobbling with pain. Earlier the packed stadium had seen the marathon winner finish. Now, Just a few hundred spectators were left in the huge stadium when a police siren at the gate caught their attention. They realized that this runner was finishing long after all the others. ... John’s right leg was bandaged and bleeding heavily. He was obviously in great pain... but he crossed the finish line suffering from fatigue... leg cramps... dehydration... and disorientation. The remaining people began to applaud. as he completed the final lap of the race. As he crossed the finish line, the small crowd stood to its feet, cheering with admiration for the courageous man who would not give up and quit. The next day the lead story in the newspaper said, “Today we have seen a young African runner who symbolized the finest in the human spirit, a performance that gives meaning to the word courage. All honor to John Stephen Akhwari.” They asked him, “Why did you continue to run when you were all alone and no one would see you? You knew you could not win. You could not even finish in the top 10. You knew you would be last, why did you continue to run?” He responded, “Gentlemen, I don’t think you understand. My country did not send me to Mexico City to start the race. They sent me to finish the race!” What a great statement. “I didn’t come to start the race. I came to finish the race.” Too often, we start, but it becomes hard or people criticize us and we give up. There is so much that needs to be done. We can’t do it all at once, but we can start, and if we don’t quit, we can finish.
Prepared by: Gerald Steffy, 6206 N. Hamilton Rd.
Peoria, IL 61614, Phone: 309-691-3680,
E-Mail grsteffy@yahoo.com to receive MY SERMON NUGGETS weekly
