THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS PATIENCE—GALATIANS 5:22-26;
MATTHEW 18:21-32
It was May of 2004 when the Holy Spirit taught me a valuable lesson in patience thanks to Sheila. Liz was on the leadership Team of a Walk to Emmaus, and I was left for 72 hours to be Sheila’s sole care giver. It seems so much easier for me to serve on an Emmaus weekend rather than Liz. After all, she’s the full time grandmother; I ‘m the full time pastor. For three weekends during her Team Formation meetings to plan the Walk plus this actual Walk weekend, I had to fulfill the dual role as pastor and granddad, or as our secretary at Decatur Central so well put it, “I had to play the role of a single parent.”
Friday evening I was finishing my study preparations for Sinday’s sermon. I let Sheila watch the Cartoon Network. Now I am one who can study for hours. I’m not the best “baby sitter” in the world. I simply continued studying in the home office while she watched her cartoons. At nine o’clock I told her it was time to go to bed. I continued my studying for a few minutes while I assumed she was obediently changing clothes. I went to tuck her in bed and was choked by the smell of what I assumed was perfume. I looked at Sheila’s hair, and it had turned completely gray. In the master bathroom I discovered that she had gotten into Liz’s White Diamonds face powder which had been a Christmas present from me. Sheila had saturated her hair with the powder. I immediately called on the Lord for an extra doze of patience.
In the late 1980s, when I was still in the best physical shape of my life and serving as pastor of the Ellen Moore United Methodist Church in Fairfield, I was logging 70 or more miles of running a week, ten or more miles per day including Sundays. I would easily finish a 10 mile run through Fairfield before time for worship. It takes endurance to be a distance runner, and the Lord had enabled me through rigorous training to build such disciplined endurance.
When I announced this series on “The Fruit of the Spirit,” both Mike LaReau and Liz made the comment, “I really need the one on Patience.” Actually we need a new hymn or praise and worship chorus for this service either entitled, “Lord, Give Me Patience Now,” or “God Give Me Patience, and Hurry!” The Bible calls us as Christians to a life style that includes both patience and endurance. On the surface, the two may seem quite different; but Scripturally speaking they are closely related. “The Fruit of the Spirit Is Patience.” What does that mean?
We all face hardships in our lives. Circumstances we face may not be the best. There are times of suffering, pain, grief, misfortune, trouble, distress, affliction, torment, or misery. Worries and cares come our way. We all experience heartaches and disappointments in life. Are these times that call us to be patient?
A few years ago we had a good friend in our Sumner Church that lost her job one day before lunch. Immediately she came to Liz and me for ministry, help, encouragement, support, and prayer. The three of us spent several hours together. During that time I asked her, “What kind of job do you want?” Her response was, “Something where I don’t have to meet the public.” On occasions Liz has shared with me the thought, “It would be easy for me to be a Christian if it weren’t for people.” All of us can relate to such situations. There are difficult people in our lives even in our Christian circles. Do our relationships with others require patience?
The Bible speaks to both these situations. Patience and endurance are companions. In fact, we might say in many respects they are twin traits of discipleship, but the Bible distinguishes between the two by using two different Greek words in the New Testament. The word for patience refers to our relationships with others, both with God and with our neighbor. The word endurance refers circumstances we face in life. It literally means “putting up with things.”
Often the two are yoked together in the same context. Take, for instance, the admonition of Paul in II Corinthians 6:4-8, “Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance: in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love, in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right and in the left . . .” The Holy Spirit toughened Paul to endure countless times of trouble, hardship, distress, beatings, imprisonments, riots, hard work, sleepless nights, and hunger. The Spirit also enabled him to be patient with people, especially those in the Church.
The Church at Corinth often required Paul to show patient understanding. They could be difficult folks at times. He often had to chasten them and correct them in love. I Corinthians 3 is an example: “Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly—mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere human beings? For when one says, ‘I follow Paul,’ and another, ‘I follow Apollos,’ are you not mere human beings?’ [I Corinthians 3:1-4, TNIV]?”Corinth was one of the most immoral cities in antiquity. The Corinthian Church faced internal divisions and issues of morality. Paul had to deal with this congregation in the spirit of love and patience.
We as modern day disciples of Jesus Christ need to be patient with everyone. I Thessalonians 5:14 charges us, “Be patient with everyone.” The King James word for patience is “long-suffering;” some translations use the world “forbearance.” Remember our friend from Sumner who wanted a job where she did not have to meet the public; remember Liz’s remark, “It would be easy for me to be a Christian if it were not for people.” People, even Christian brothers and sisters, can provoke us at times. The Holy Spirit graces us with self-restraint; He constrains us from retaliating in times when we are hurt or wronged. He restrains us from reacting in hasty anger or desiring to even the score. “The Fruit of the Spirit is Patience.” The Holy Spirit enables us in times when people provoke or irritate us to keep on loving and forgiving them.
Jesus is the ultimate example of patience. The secret of patience is keeping our eyes fixed on Him as the writer to the Hebrews knew so well: “Let us keep our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” [Hebrews 12:2-3, TNIV]. Remember how severely He suffered at the hands of sinners. I Peter 2:21-23 recalls His suffering well: “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His steps:
‘He committed no sin,
and no deceit was found in His mouth.’
When they hurled their insults at Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats. Instead, He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.” Jesus is the perfect example of patience. He was insulted but did not retaliate; he suffered, but He made no threats, and by the power of the Holy Spirit living in us we can “follow in His steps.”
Jesus clearly teaches us patience in our Gospel Lesson this Morning, the “Parable of the Unmerciful Servant.” “The king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants” is patient. The unmerciful servant’ pled, “Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.” His debt in terms of our modern economy amounted to “billions of dollars.” There was no way he could ever repay his debt; so, “He fell on his knees before the king and begged, “Be patient with me, and I will pay back everything.” His patient king, “took pity on Him, canceled the debt, and let him go.”
What was the purpose of this parable? Jesus tells it in answer to Peter’s question, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive someone who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus responded with this parable teaching us that a patient disciple shows no limits in forgiving. “The Fruit of the Spirit is Patience.” It keeps on loving and forgiving everyone no matter how much and how often they provoke us. Patience is the overflow of God’s grace from us.
One final passage of Scripture that shows the true spirit of patience is James 5:7-9, “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. Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!” The patient disciple does not grumble against a brother or sister. That’s a huge order. Grumblers are rude, hostile, and hard to please. Grumblers find fault with each other. Grumblers get irritated at each other. Grumblers are cross with each other. Rather than encourage each other, grumblers tear each other apart.
How often have you and I been guilty of grumbling? How often has the demon of grumbling destroyed a church’s effectiveness for ministry? Walking in the Spirit and following in the steps of Jesus, the patient disciple does not grumble. Individuals and Churches who grumble will be judged by The Judge of all the Earth Who is standing at our door.
A Christian bumper sticker that has been round for decades sums up today’s message extremely well, “Be patient with me; God isn’t finished with me yet.” “The Fruit of the Spirit Is Patience.” As we walk in the Spirit may we not only be patient with each other but with everyone, for “Jesus is not finished with any one of us yet.
