A. I like to see a show of hands: How many of you struggle with a LACK of PATIENCE?
1. I want you to answer this question aloud: What are some things that test your PATIENCE?
a. Busy TRAFFIC.
b. Long lines at Wal Mart.
c. Know-it-all people.
d. I’m just glad that no one said, “Preachers who ask the congregation too many questions.”
2. I believe that you’d agree that PATIENCE is a virtue that we all need to WORK on from time to time
ILLUSTRATION:
I read about a man in Los Angeles who was arrested for negligent DISCHARGE of a WEAPON after shooting his TOILET five times with a 38 caliber HANDGUN. He claims that he just got UPSET. He couldn’t take it any longer. His daughter had FLUSHED a HAIRBRUSH earlier in the day and CLOGGED the PIPES. So, he shot the OFFENDING TOILET. (I have no word on the TOILET’S CONDITION, but the man’s PATIENCE was long gone.)
ILLUSTRATION:
Perhaps you can relate to this story told by the late Paul Harvey:
A woman from Hershey, Pennsylvania was waiting patiently in her new Mercedes for a parking space to open up. The shopping mall was CROWDED. The woman in the Mercedes ZIGZAGGED
between rows—then up ahead she saw a man with a load of PACKAGES heading for his car.
She drove up, parked behind him and waited while he opened his TRUNK and loaded it with PACKAGES. Finally, he got into his car and BACKED out. But before the woman in the Mercedes could drive into the PARKING SPACE, a young man in a SHINY new Volkswagen Beetle ZIPPED
PAST and AROUND her and PARKED into the EMPTY SPACE, got out and started walking away.
“Hey!” shouted the woman in the Mercedes, “I’ve been waiting for that parking place!”
The college-ager responded, “Sorry, lady; that’s how it is when you’re YOUNG and QUICK.” At that instant, she put her Mercedes in GEAR, pushed in the ACCELERATOR, and CRUSHED the right rear FENDER and corner PANEL of his new CANARY YELLOW Beetle and knocked it into a
POLE.
Now the young man is jumping up and down shouting, “Lady, are you CRAZY? You can’t
do that!” The lady in the Mercedes said, “That’s how it is when you’re OLD and RICH!”
COMMENT:
If you’ve ever had someone do something SIMILAR to you, you might have a TENDENCY to CHEER for the LADY. But, quite frankly, the Godly virtue of PATIENCE was greatly lacking in both the LADY and the YOUNG MAN.
B. We often LAUGH at our IMPATIENT TIRADES, but the truth is GODLY PATIENCE is what keeps us
GROUNDED and STRONG in the FAITH.
1. In this context James is exhorting us to be PATIENT when life hands out UNJUST, UNFAIR, or
UNDESERVED treatment.
COMMENT:
Undoubtedly, in this room there are those whom have LOST JOBS, those whom have recently
ended RELATIONSHIPS, those suffering with ILLNESS, or are under great FINANCIAL STRESS.
2. Well, God through James wants to HELP by teaching us how to PATIENTLY respond to SUFFERING
-James 5:7-12 (READ).
MESSAGE:
I. NEED FOR PATIENCE
A. In these six verses James uses the word “PATIENCE” or its equivalent SIX TIMES.
1. He was writing to people who were undergoing DIFFICULTIES and PERSECUTION, and he
reminds them to be PATIENT while they WAIT . . .
a. Let’s be honest here . . . this is a lot easier SAID than DONE!
b. WAITING has probably always been a difficult VIRTUE to master, but it is particularly hard
in TODAY’S SOCIETY.
ILLUSTRATION:
The RAPID PACE culture of the 21st century and MODERN TECHNOLOGY has only intensified our IMPATIENCE: We have MOVIES and TV on DEMAND that we can WATCH whenever we’re READY. We have CELL PHONES to make and receive CALLS on the GO. We have access to HIGH SPEED INTERNET, INSTANT MESSAGING and TEXTING. And who today uses the POST OFFICE to mail a LETTER that takes two or three days to get to where you
want it to GO when you have EMAIL?
Even when it comes to COOKING, we have MICROWAVES that cooks FOOD in minutes and sometimes seconds. But, you know, I still find myself standing in front of that thing waiting IMPATIENTLY for my POPCORN to quit POPPING. WE WANT IT NOW!!!
2. Being PATIENT is difficult enough as it is, but it’s incredibly DIFFICULT for us to demonstrate
PATIENCE when we’re SUFFERING?
ILLUSTRATION:
Even PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES know this. That’s why they come out with PAIN MEDICATIONS that promise us “FAST - FAST - FAST RELIEF.”
So, during times of SUFFERING when we’re faced with SERIOUS ILLNESS, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, PEOPLE PROBLEMS, FINANCIAL PRESSURES we want a REMEDY in a HURRY.
3. But James says, “Be patient! Endure! Persevere!” There are going to be TIMES when there’s very little we can DO . . . except . . . WAIT.
B. James adds this ENCOURAGEMENT at the beginning of v. 7- “…be PATIENT as you WAIT for
the Lord’s Coming.”
1. That’s hard but James is giving us a timeless truth: “Good things come with some WAITING.”
a. And the BEST THING EVER will be the REWARD that Jesus brings to those who have a
RELATIONSHIP with Him.
b. James repeats this same ENCOURAGEMENT in v. 8- “…be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.”
c. We don’t know WHEN it will be, but we should always WATCH and be READY for the Lord’s COMING to take us out of this world full of SUFFERING into His heavenly HOME.
2. We won’t be in HEAVEN for a split second before we realize that everything that we have gone
through—all the SUFFERING, all the PAIN, all the HEARTACHE—will be worth the WAIT.
a. Romans 8:18- “I consider our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that
will be revealed to us.” (NOTHING COMPARES TO ETERNAL LIFE IN HEAVEN)
COMMENT:
We LIVE in a TOUGH world, but this WORLD is only TEMPORARY. Our ETERNAL HOME is with God in Heaven. At Christ’s coming He will MAKE THINGS RIGHT. No more SORROW, no more SUFFERING, no more DEATH.
b. That’s why we are to STAND FIRM and wait PATIENTLY for the Lord.
II. EVIDENCES OF IMPATIENCE
A. GRUMBLING. “Don’t grumble against each other . . . or you will be judged”- v. 9.
1. When we’re SUFFERING, there’s a natural inclination to GRUMBLE, to LASH OUT at others
because of the PRESSURE that we are feeling.
ILLUSTRATION:
“I can’t believe the BOSS picked him for the PROMOTION over me!” “Why did the CREDIT CARD COMPANY approve my CREDIT in the first place, they knew I was a CREDIT RISK!” “Why didn’t the Doctors DIAGNOSE this PROBLEM sooner?” “Why
did God ALLOW this to HAPPEN?”
a. James points out that GRUMBLING is a tell-tale sign that we are not practicing PATIENCE.
b. In fact, it tells just the OPPOSITE—we’re on EDGE, we’re ANGRY, we want someone or something to BLAME for our PROBLEMS.
2. God considers GRUMBLING or COMPLAINING a very serious SIN because it is an indication
that you really don’t TRUST Him.
a. Our IMPATIENCE is an indication that we really don’t believe that God is going to CARE for
us—that He’s going to provide what is ULTIMATELY the BEST for us.
b. Listen to Paul- “Do everything without grumbling or disputing”- Philippians 2:14 (NASV)
(NIV- “Do everything without complaining or arguing.”)
c. Instead of GRUMBLING, turn to God in PRAYER and bring your CONCERNS to Him.
B. SWEARING. “Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything
else. Let your ‘Yes,’ be yes, and your ‘No,’ be no, or you will be condemned”- v. 12.
1. In this verse James is not referring to the use of PROFANITY, but is cautioning about OATH
TAKING—trying to put WEIGHT to our WORDS by swearing on God or heaven or by
something else.
ILLUSTRATION:
“I swear to God, I’ll never do it again.” “I swear on a stack of Bibles that I was there.”
“I swear on my mother’s grave that I didn’t say that.”
a. James said, “Just let your ‘Yes,’ be yes, and your ‘No,’ be no.” In other words, “MEAN
WHAT YOU SAY.”
b. If you say you are GOING to DO SOMETHING, then DO IT! SPEAK the TRUTH!
2. James is also talking about IMPATIENTLY making HASTY PROMISES to help ease your
SUFFERING.
ILLUSTRATION:
“God, if you make her WELL I promise to read my BIBLE everyday.” “Lord, if you just help me GET OUT of DEBT, I promise to start TITHING every Sunday.” “I swear
God if you just help me get this JOB, I’ll start back to CHURCH.”
a. James is saying, “I know you are suffering, but don’t try to ease your HURT by making
HASTY PROMISES. Just give it to God and wait PATIENTLY on Him.”
b. Simply say, “God, even if things don’t work out like I WANT, I still TRUST you. I know
you are able to HANDLE anything and you will give me the STRENGTH to persevere.”
COMMENT:
Whatever DIFFICULTY you are dealing with RIGHT NOW, don’t GRUMBLE about it,
don’t BLAME others, don’t make HASTY PROMISES, just GIVE it to God and WAIT on Him.
III. EXAMPLES OF PATIENCE
A. The FARMER. “See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient
he is for the autumn and spring rains”- v. 7b
1. The church where I preached before coming here in Rossville, Illinois is full of FARMERS. In
fact, the church building is surrounded by CORN and SOYBEAN fields.
COMMENT:
I don’t know a lot or actually anything about FARMING, but what I observed during those years I lived in Rossville, is that it’s almost like playing RUSSIAN ROULETTE. Too much RAIN can cause the CROP to ROT…too much SUN can BURN it up. A late FROST can KILL it. Birds can EAT up the CROPS. INSECTS and DISEASE can DESTROY it.
2. A FARMER knows that he has to PATIENTLY DEPEND on God for a bountiful CROP.
a. He has no CONTROL over the RAIN. He can’t even COUNT on the RAIN; he just has to
HOPE for it. But he knows that God has always PROVIDED in the PAST.
b. James wants us to know that life has a lot of UNKNOWNS, but all we can do is WAIT and TRUST God to get us THROUGH.
B. The PROPHETS. “…as an example of PATIENCE in the face of suffering, take the prophets who
spoke in the name of the Lord”- v. 10
1. The Old Testaments Prophets were God’s SPOKESMEN, and although God used them to
SPREAD His MESSAGE to the people they were not exempt from SUFFERING.
a. The prophet Ezekiel’s WIFE died on the day right before he was to DELIVER an important
MESSAGE.
b. The prophet Daniel, a young Jew, was taken into a FOREIGN COUNTRY as a HOSTAGE.
c. The prophet Hosea, had a WIFE who was UNFAITHFUL.
d. Jeremiah was known as the “WEEPING PROPHET” because the PEOPLE were so
ANGRY at his MESSAGE to turn from their SIN that they BEAT him up.
2. So often when we SUFFER we feel that we are the CAUSE of it: “God why me? What have I
done wrong? Lord, whatever it is I will change. Just please forgive me!”
a. These PROPHETS were walking in the WILL of God and, yet, they still SUFFERED.
COMMENT:
There are times when we face DIFFICULTIES that are the DIRECT RESULTS of our own DOING—whether it’s our INVOLVEMENT in SIN, POOR CHOICES we make, or a blatant REBELLION against God. There are LESSONS that we can and need to LEARN from those
DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES.
Usually Christians SUFFER not for some SIN in their LIVES, but because we live in a FALLEN WORLD full of SICKNESS and HATE and TRAGEDY.
b. Yet, despite the DIFFICULTIES the PROPHETS endured, they PATIENTLY CONTINUED
to SERVE the Lord and COMPLETED the MISSION set before them.
COMMENT:
Even as the prophets PERSEVERED in the midst of SUFFERING, so are we!
C. JOB. “You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about.
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy”- v. 11b.
1. No matter how much you are HURTING today, there is no one here who has SUFFERED as much
as Job.
a. Read Job 1:13-19 (NEED SOMEONE WITH A STOP WATCH ON THEIR PHONE)
COMMENT:
The time it took for me to READ this passage is pretty close to the time it took for Job to hear about one TRAGEDY after another that befell him with increasing INTENSITY until he
finally hears that all ten of his CHILDREN were KILLED.
b. Job loses absolutely everything.
2. As you read the verses prior to this section you find out that Satan is the CAUSE of Job’s
SUFFERING, but he’s not THROUGH with him yet.
a. Satan then afflicts Job with, what many scholars believe is LEPROSY. He is covered with PAINFUL, OOZING, ITCHING, FOUL SMELLING SORES from the TOP of His HEAD to
the BOTTOM of his FEET.
b. Job’s wife can’t take anymore, so “she urges Job to CURSE God and KILL himself”- Job 2:9.
c. Then Job’s FRIENDS turn against him making FALSE ACCUSATIONS, telling him that all this TRAGEDY has come upon him because he is a SINNER.
3. Despite all the TRAGEDY and ACCUSATIONS brought against him, Job remains FAITHFUL to
God and PERSEVERES through all the SUFFERING he’s going through.
a. In chapters 38-42 we see Job’s DELIVERANCE.
b. God HONORS Job and gives him TWICE AS MUCH as he had before.
COMMENT:
What does this mean to us? It means that some of our PAIN and HEARTACHE in this LIFE is caused directly by Satan OPPOSING the things that we are doing RIGHT. God allows Satan to TEST His children, but He always LIMITS the extent of the ENEMY’S POWER.
When you find yourselves in the FIRE, Job tells us, we simply need to REMEMBER that God keeps His hand on the THERMOSTAT.
4. Job said it best: “But, He (God) knows the way that I take; when He has tested me (put me to the refining fire), I will come forth as gold”- Job 23:10
CONCLUSION:
A. James said, “Be PATIENT . . . STAND FIRM . . . PERSEVERE . . . KEEP YOUR HOPES HIGH and
YOUR HEARTS SET.”
1. Whatever DIFFICULTY you face in life, don’t GIVE UP, don’t QUIT . . . WAIT PATIENTLY on the
Lord for “He is full of COMPASSION and MERCY.”
