James 1:2-4; 5:7-12
The antiquated train on a branch line was creeping slowly through the countryside when suddenly it came to a dead stop. The only passenger in the car, a salesman riding the line for the first time, asked the conductor why they had stopped. The conductor said, “Nothing to worry about, sir. There’s a cow on the tracks.” In about ten minutes the train got under way again, but after chugging along for a mile or two, it again ground to a halt. “Just a temporary delay,” the conductor said. “We’ll be on our way shortly.” The exasperated salesman asked, “What is it now? Did we catch up to the cow again?”
—James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988), p. 396.
I saw a plaque recently that said, “Lord, give me patience, and give it to me now!”
“Brethren.” The tone turns from stark condemnation to sensitive consolation. James excoriated the rich but encouraged the receptive.
You don’t learn patience, you allow (“let” James 1:4) it. Patience is a product of suffering.
5:7. It is not one option among many; it is not a virtue or gift granted to the few. God commands all Christians—including you—to “wait patiently.”
Clearly, God’s timetable is not the same as ours. But while patience has a waiting side, as the plaque and these verses suggest, it also has an enduring side.
Definition: “Patience is waiting for God to work in a difficult situation that causes you suffering. And it is waiting and enduring without complaint (v.9).
There is an attitude and stance that God expects you to assume during the period when you are awaiting the righting of wrongs. It is the attitude of prayerful, faithful waiting (v. 13) without complaint (v.9), by which you will be able to endure suffering.
It’s easy to lose patience in times of great trial. That is what James is talking about. Too many Christians today whine and complain over inconveniences, slights, and minor afflictions. What will they do when they must stand firm in persecution or acute physical suffering?
Context - injustice at the hands of the rich, 5:1-6
God is not going to right all the wrongs until Jesus comes.
Meanwhile, God uses the injustice of men to perfect us. i.e. Joseph - prime minister
5 ways to allow patience to perfect you
1. v. 7 – wait with long patience
2. v. 8 – establish your heart
3. v. 9,10 – don’t complain or become bitter
4 v. 11 – don’t quit
5. v. 12 – don’t make insincere promises in the pressure of the moment
I. WAIT WITH LONG PATIENCE, v. 7
(“If others have endured, you can too” (James 5:7-11). Farmers do it all the time (v.7).
7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
“Be patient” (makrothym‘sate) comes from a compound of “long” (makros) and “temper” (thymos). The idea 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. Look ahead to the Lord’s coming.
When he was seven years old, his family was forced out of their home on a legal technicality, and he had to work to help support them.
* At age nine, his mother died.
* At 22, he lost his job as a store clerk. He wanted to go to law school, but his education wasn’t good enough.
* At 23, he went into debt to become a partner in a small store.
* At 26, his business partner died, leaving him a huge debt that took years to repay.
* At 28, after courting a girl for four years, he asked her to marry him. She said no.
* At 37, on his third try, he was elected to Congress, but two years later, he failed to be reelected.
* At 41, his four-year-old son died.
* At 45, he ran for the Senate and lost.
* At 47, he failed as the vice-presidential candidate.
* At 49, he ran for the Senate again, and lost.
* At 51, he was elected president of the United States. His name was Abraham Lincoln.
II. ESTABLISH YOUR HEART v. 8-9
James 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
Jam 5:8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
Jam 5:9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.
A young woman was expecting her date. She was dressed-up and waiting patiently. However, by the time he was an hour late she figured she’d been stood-up. So, she took off her makeup, put on her pajamas, gathered all the junk food in the house and sat down to watch TV with the dog. As her favorite show was just coming on, the doorbell sounded. It was her date. He stared at her wide-eyed: I’m two hours late, and you’re still not ready?
The application is clear. Just like the farmer, every believer should be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. The Lord’s return should stimulate every believer to patience and persistence.
3 X’s in verses 7-9 we are reminded of the Second Coming.
The Lord’s return should stimulate every believer to patience and persistence. Ought to live expecting the Lord’s return.
Parousia (coming) refers to more than just coming; it includes the idea of “presence.” Perhaps the best English translation would be “arrival.” the church’s great hope is the arrival of Jesus. That truth appears in more than 500 verses throughout scripture.
2Ti 4:8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
1Jo 3:3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
“Strengthen your hearts”
sterizo is a word denoting resoluteness, firm courage, an attitude of commitment to stay the course no matter how severe the trial.
* The obvious idea of this exhortation was that believers should realize that their trouble is temporary. It will end when Jesus returns.
* Though He has not returned in the lifetimes of millions of believers, He will and all may live in the anticipation that He may come at any moment.
* This argues for imminency, the idea that the next event on God’s schedule for Christ is the deliverance of believers from this world with all its troubles.
Tit 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
William Barclay, “The dynamic of this new life is the expectation of the coming of Jesus Christ. When a royal visit is expected, everything is cleansed and decorated, and made fit for the royal eye to see. The Christian is the man who is always prepared for the coming of the King of kings.”
Queen Victoria was much loved. She made unexpected calls on the farm folks who lived in cottages. Any day might be a royal day, and the Scots had a chair prepared for her visit. Their houses were kept spotless. They were a clean and wholesome people, but her announced visits added to the joy of keeping their homes lovely. The old people who remembered her visits in their youth charmed visitors by the expression used in the residences on Deeside. They would say, Perhaps today, she’ll come my way.
Perhaps today the clouds will part
asunder,
Reveal a glory brighter than the sun;
And we shall view, with transport, joy
and wonder,
The hope of earth and Heavens
beloved one.
Jam 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
Jam 5:8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
Jam 5:9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.
J. A. Motyer, “His return is at hand. It has been so from the day of the apostles. James was not mistaken even though he lived over 1,000 years ago. The return of the Lord was then at hand; the return of the Lord is now at hand. We live in the last days, the days of the imminent return. . . the pressure upon us of that return is not to promote curiosity as to the date and circumstances, but to promote the life of holiness and of fruitfulness, so that we may be ready to meet the Lord.
The relationship of “imminent” to “expectant” should be noted. The term “imminent” is an adjective used to describe the nature of an event. It depicts the kind of event that is always hanging overhead and could happen at any moment. By contrast, the term “expectant” is an adjective used to describe people’s attitude toward and event.
Spiros Zodhiates, “When this verb is used of time, it speaks of imminence. James tells us that this blessed event of the second coming of the Lord will come any time, is imminent. . . Our hearts will be propped up if we live in the constant expectation of His coming.”
The boss caught Calvin sitting at his desk gazing out the window. ‘Why Aren’t you working, Calvin?’ Without much thought Calvin confessed to his boss, ‘Because I didn’t see you coming.’ (The Saturday Evening Post, Jan/Feb 1994, p.32)
3. DON’T COMPLAIN OF BECOME BITTER, vs. 9, 10
Jam 5:9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.
Jam 5:10 Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience.
One of the marks of impatience is to grumble and complain
A man’s car stalled in the heavy traffic as the light turned green. All his efforts to start the engine failed, and a chorus of honking behind him made matters worse. He finally got out of his car and walked back to the first driver and said, “I’m sorry, but I can’t seem to get my car started. I tell you what - if you’ll go up there and give it a try, I’ll stay here and lean on your horn for you.”
We think there is nothing wrong with complaining. But there is!
What was one Satan’s goals for Job? Was it not that Job would curse God and become bitter?
The prophets suffered in the will of God because of their patience God’s will was done
I Peter 2:18-23
1Pe 2:18 Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward.
1Pe 2:19 For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.
1Pe 2:20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.
1Pe 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:
1Pe 2:22 Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:
1Pe 2:23 Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:
1Pe 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
Impatience prevents God’s will
Had Christ reviled, complained, we’d be headed for hell
Because we won’t allow God or trust God to use our situation, we grumble and grudge
A little girl walking in a garden noticed a particularly beautiful flower. She admired its beauty and enjoyed its fragrance. “It’s so pretty!” she exclaimed. As she gazed on it, her eyes followed the stem down to the soil in which it grew. “This flower is too pretty to be planted in such dirt!” she cried. So she pulled it up by its roots and ran to the water faucet to wash away the soil. It wasn’t long until the flower wilted and died.
When the gardener saw what the little girl had done, he exclaimed, “You have destroyed my finest plant!”
“I’m sorry, but I didn’t like it in that dirt,” she said. The gardener replied, “I chose that spot and mixed the soil because I knew that only there could it grow to be a beautiful flower.”
Often we murmur because of the circumstances into which God has sovereignly placed us. We fail to realize that He is using our pressures, trials, and difficulties to bring us to a new degree of spiritual beauty. Contentment comes when we accept what God is doing and thank Him for it.
1. Wait with long patience
2. Strengthen your heart
3. Don’t complain or become bitter
4. Don’t Quit, v. 11, “endure and patience” “remain under”
Others have endured.
Jam 5:11 Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.
First, he says, looking at the long-term view helps: “and have seen the end of the Lord.”
* God urges you to look at the outcome.
* In the end, God blessed Job far more than He had before the trial.
* Moreover, in the suffering of persecution, James says, you must remember that Christ will come and right all wrongs (see vv. 7-9). The last vote (God’s—the only one that counts) is not in yet.
Dr. Glenn Olds, former President of Kent State University, recalled the sight of Mt. Rushmore as he hitch-hiked cross-country in 1941 during his junior year. From 10 miles back, he recognized Washington and Lincoln. But in the middle was a figure that looked like Adolf Hitler. Once close, instead of hair combed over a forehead, the young man saw guy wires, instead of a moustache, he saw scaffolding. The image stuck, and he made a note in his journal.
“What was Adolf Hitler at 10 miles away was Thomas Jefferson under construction,” he said. The experience became a parable: “Almost every major problem at a distance looks bad. When you get up close, you can see it’s something terribly important under construction.
example: v. 11, Job had no idea what was behind it
Satan wanted Job to get impatient with God and abandon his faith
Job was righteous and yet he suffered.
5:11b
Job 23:10 “But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.”
Job endured - remained under
James also give this wonderful, sustaining assurance: you can endure testing and trial if you will only remember God’s nature. Your heavenly Father “. . . is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.” (v.11)
Don’t quit!
In June of 1955, Winston Churchill, was near the end of his life, was asked to deliver the commencement address of a university in Britain. Mr. Churchill was so weak at the time that he had to be helped to the podium. Once he was at the podium, he stood with both of his hands clinging to the podium and his head down for what seemed like an eternity. Finally he lifted his head, and the voice that, years before had called Britain back from the brink of destruction spoke publicly for the last time. Though he only spoke nine words, they still ring in the memory of those that heard them. “Never give up. Never Give up. Never give up.”
For years William Wilberforce pushed Britain’s Parliament to abolish slavery. Discouraged, he was about to give up. His elderly friend, John Wesley, heard of it and from his deathbed called for pen and paper.
With trembling hand, Wesley wrote: “Unless God has raised you up for this very thing, you will be worn out by the opposition of men and devils. But if God be for you, who can be against you? Are all of them stronger than God?
“Oh be not weary of well-doing! Go on, in the name of God and in the power of his might, till even American slavery shall vanish away before it.”
Wesley died six days later. But Wilberforce fought for forty-five more years and in 1833, three days before his own death, saw slavery abolished in Britain.
Even the greatest ones need encouragement.
— Carol Porter in Fresh Illustrations for Preaching & Teaching (Baker), from the editors of Leadership.
How to let patience work
1. Wait with long patience
2. strengthen your heart
3. Don’t complain or become bitter
4. Don’t Quit
5. Don’t Swear v.12
One sign of losing patience: swearing.
Such swearing is wrong, James says, because t makes some speech more reliable than others, whereas all of a Christian’s speech should be equally truthful and known by others to be dependable.
He’s talking about promises made in trials that are forgotten as soon as the trial is past.
Matt 5:33-37
Pharisees used Lev. 19:12
“And ye shall not swear by my name falsely.”
Job did curse the day he was born (Job 3:1), but he never cursed God or spoke with a foolish oath. Neither did he try to bargain with God.
Surely James is reminding us of our Lord’s teaching in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 5:34-37). The Jews were great ones for using various oaths to back up their statements. They were careful, however, not to use the name of God in their oaths, lest they blaspheme God. So, they would swear by heaven, or earth, or Jerusalem, or even by their own heads! But Jesus taught that it is impossible to avoid God in such oaths. Heaven is His throne, earth is His footstool, and Jerusalem is the “city of the great King.” As for swearing by your head, what good is it? “Thou canst not make one hair black or white” (Matt. 5:36) - or even keep one hair on your head.
It is a basic principle that true Christian character requires few words. The person who must use many words (including oaths) to convince us has something wrong with his character and must bolster this weakness by using words. If you are a true Christian, with integrity, then all you have to say is “Yes” or “No” and people will believe you. Jesus warns us that anything more than this is from the evil one.
One of the purposes of suffering is the building of character. Certainly Job was a better man for having gone through the furnace. (James explained this process to us, 1:2-12). If words are a test of character, then oaths would indicate that there is yet work to be done. When Peter poured out those oaths in the courtyard (Matt 26:71), he was giving evidence that his character was still in need of a transformation.
The Mishna, a Jewish commentary on the law, had sections on both oaths and vows, explaining both assertive statements and promises for the future, the ones to keep and not to keep. The Pharisees got it down to prepositions. If they swore toward Jerusalem, the oath didn’t matter. Jesus mocked all of that. In Matthew 23:16-22, He mocked all of their oaths: swearing by the gold of the temple instead of the temple, swearing by the gift on the altar instead of the altar, and swearing by heaven instead of God’s throne.
We don’t tell the truth because we have taken an oath; we tell the truth because we are truthful. Our yes is yes; our no is no.
My older brother used to twist my arm and make me say, "uncle.” I resisted as long as possible but finally I would give in and say, “uncle.” As soon as he released me and I was a safe distance away I would show him that my fingers had been crossed. Many Christians act like that with God. Rather than allowing the trial to temper them they make a promise in the trial that is forgotten as soon as the pressure is past. That’s not patience and doesn’t produce perfection
I Peter 1:7-9
Have you noticed? Some people will just not be stopped. They have accomplished much despite adversity. They refuse to listen to their fears. Nothing anyone says or does holds them back. As Ted Engstrom insightfully writes in his book Pursuit of Excellence:
* Cripple him, and you have a Sir Walter Scott.
* Lock him in a prison cell, and you have a John Bunyan.
* Bury him in the snows of Valley Forge, and you have a George Washington.
* Raise him in abject poverty and you have an Abraham Lincoln.
* Strike him down with infantile paralysis, and he becomes Franklin Roosevelt.
* Burn him so severely that the doctors say he’ll never walk again, and you have a Glenn Cunningham—who set the world’s one-mile record in 1934.
* Deafen him and you have a Ludwig von Beethoven.
* Have him or her born black in a society filled with racial discrimination, and you have a Booker T. Washington, a Marian Anderson, a George Washington Carver.
* Call him a slow learner, “retarded,” and write him off as uneducable, and you have an Albert Einstein.
