PATIENCE #2
The Fruit of the Spirit (Part 6)
Galatians 5:22-23
Galatians 5:16-25 (NIV)
[22] But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, [23] gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
INTRODUCTION:
The story is told of a man driving to work during rush hour. At a red light his car stalls. Calmly he tried to restart his car through the green light as the line of traffic behind him honks their horns. After the light turns red again, he gets out of his car and goes back to the man hanging his head out the window in the car behind him, who is still blowing his horn, and tells him, ¡§Well, I can¡¦t seem to get it started; maybe you could go give it a try and I¡¦ll sit here and blow the horn for you.¡¨
Now if you were caught in such a situation, which car would you be sitting in? Would you be laying on the horn and looking at the clock because you are late for work? Or would you remain calm in the midst of a long line of angry commuters?
This morning, we continue our series on the fruit of the Spirit.
Remember, we are talking about FRUIT and not fruits. These are nine expressions of the Spirit and each is connected to each other.
„« Love is the blossom; without love the fruit will not develop.
„« Joy is love rejoicing.
„« Peace is love trusting ¡V love resting.
„« Patience is love enduring.
„« Kindness is love serving.
„« Goodness is love extending.
„« Faithfulness is love proving.
„« Gentleness is love touching.
„« Self-Control is love restraining.
While the fruit of the Spirit may not mature at the same time, each is developing and growing. It¡¦s not like going to the produce market to pick and choose the fruit you want. Jesus said, as the branches are connected to the vine, we will bare much fruit when we are connected to Him. If Jesus lives in you, then the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control, will develop in your life.
The fruit of the Spirit describes the character and personality of Jesus. While God loves you just the way you are, He wants you to be just like Jesus. Therefore, God gives us the fruit of the Spirit to make us like Jesus. As the fruit of the Spirit matures in our lives, we become more and more like Jesus.
Today, we continue with patience . . . . Part 2! As I studied patience to prepare for the message last week, there was more to communicate than you would have patience to hear in one sitting! Most of us would agree that we need patience. Unfortunately, it is not a popular topic, even among preachers! I inadvertently discovered that sermons on peace outnumber patience 5 to 1. Is patience needed less than peace?
Paul said that the fruit of the Spirit is ¡§makrothymia¡¨ This is a compound Greek word made up of the words ¡§makro¡¨ meaning long, and ¡§thymia¡¨ meaning anger. So literally it means LONG TO ANGER. (I incorrectly also said that patience is to prolong our anger; you probably already figured out what I really meant to say! We are not to lengthen our anger, but to restrain our wrath, or delay anger.)
God wants us to bear the fruit ¡§makrothymia¡¨ to be LONG TO ANGER as opposed to ¡§oxythymia¡¨ which means sudden anger. We all know people who have a ¡§short fuse.¡¨ They are quick-tempered and easily angered. The fruit of the Spirit develops in our lives to ¡§lengthen our fuse¡¨ and keep us from blowing up in sudden anger. Patience is to have power over anger; it is to restrain our wrath.
Last week we looked first at:
The Picture of Patience
Jesus gave the best picture of patience in the parable of the unmerciful servant in Matthew 18:21-35. Put simply, a servant begs the king to be patience with him, to restrain his wrath and give him time to repay the enormous debt he owed. The king forgave the debt and released the man. No sooner had this servant left, did he fond a fellow servant who owed him pocket change. Although this servant made the same request for patience to repay the debt, the evil servant did not restrain his anger, but had him put in prison until the debt was repaid. When the king was told about this, he summoned the evil servant and chastised him for not treating his fellow servant in the same way he had been treated. Therefore the king had the servant thrown into prison to repay the enormous debt because the evil servant had failed to restrain his anger.
The responsibility of the servant to be long to anger and forgive others is not dependant upon ordinary human emotion and feelings. Because the king was patient with his servant, the servant should follow the example and lifestyle of the king. In other words, the servant should be patient with his fellow servant whether he feels like it or not, simply because the Master has been patient with him.
God has been patient with us. His anger and wrath have been restrained. He has not treated us as we deserve to be treated for our sin. Because God is patient with us, He expects us to be patient with each other. The fruit of the Spirit is ¡§makrothymia¡¨ long to anger ¡V patience.
We also looked at:
The Purpose of Patience
2 Peter 3:15 (MsgB)
Interpret our Master¡¦s patient restraint for what it is: salvation.
God restrains His anger and does not treat us as our sins deserve because He desires to have a relationship with us. Through God¡¦s patience we are given the opportunity to repent and receive forgiveness for our sin.
WITHOUT PATIENCE, WE HAVE NO HOPE OF SALVATION!
God¡¦s patience with us has a direct application in our lives, as we saw last week.
The Practical Practice of Patience
Ephesians 4:2 (NIV)
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
With patience, we are to restore and maintain relationships with one another. Patience ¡V restrained anger ¡V means we put up with people we would like to put down. Rather than attacking others and looking for revenge, rather than letting our anger boil over onto others, we are willing to restrain our wrath and overlook an offence. With patience, we preserve friendships that would otherwise be broken.
Impatience Always Produces Anger
When we are impatient we become annoyed, bothered, irritates, and get upset. The pressure cooker of anger begins to boil on the inside and will get the best of us and blow up, unless we learn patience.
James 1:19-20 (NLT)
. . . Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. . .
Why should we be slow to anger? Why should we be patient?
Your anger can never make things right in God¡¦s sight.
Uncontrolled anger willjust make a mess of things; it won¡¦t solve anything. When our anger blows up inour face, it does great damage. It will take more energy and much longer to try to undo the destruction caused by anger than what it takes for our anger to explode. Sometimes the damage and destruction cause by our anger can never be repaired.
Where Is Our Anger Directed?
When we fail to be patient, to restrain our wrath, then our anger will be directed in one or more of four different directions. The blast of anger may be focused in one direction, However, more often than not, anger is haphazard and indiscriminate, exploding in two or more directions. Anger is not a ¡§smart bomb;¡¨ when anger blows up, there is often ¡§accidental damage.¡¨ Sometimes our anger can be so great as to lash out in all four ways at the same time.
[1] Our anger can be directed toward God.
Do you know anyone who is angry at God? One of the best examples of anger directed toward God is in that of Jonah. Jonah was quick tempered. ¡K A lot like us. Jonah thought he knew what was best and blew up when God chose not to do things Jonah¡¦s way.
You remember Jonah¡¦s story, don¡¦t you? . . . after being swallowed by a great fish and then literally thrown up on to beach? God sent Jonah to announce His divine judgment upon the city of Nineveh. On the one hand, Jonah was glad to see his enemies finally get what they deserved, except Jonah had one problem with God¡¦s message ¡V the destruction was not immediate! God told Jonah to tell the city of Nineveh that God would bring destruction upon them in 40 days. This gave Jonah¡¦s enemies too much time to repent for their sin, andhe was sure that God would not follow through with their destruction if they askedfor mercy. Sure enough, when God saw how the people of Nineveh from the king and down repented, the Lord relented and did not destroy the city.
Jonah 4:1-4 (MsgB)
Jonah was furious. He lost his temper. [2] He yelled at God, ¡§God! I knew it ¡V when I was back home, I knew this was going to happen! That¡¦s why I ran off to Tarshish! I knew you were sheer grace and mercy, not easily angered, rich in love, and ready at the drop of a hat to turn your plans of punishment into a program of forgiveness! [3] ¡§So, God, if you won¡¦t kill them, kill me! I¡¦m better off dead!¡¨ [4] God said, ¡§What do you have to be angry about?¡¨
In Jonah we find the difference between God and man. God is patient, slow to anger; we are impatient and easily angered.
Jonah¡¦s anger with God also shows us another way anger can be directed. Jonah¡¦s anger with God did not inure God, not did it cause God to give in and do what Joanah wanted. However, the force of Joanh¡¦s explosion of anger did damge to Jonah personally. ¡§God if you won¡¦t kill them, kill me! I¡¦m better off dead!¡¨
[2] Our anger can be directed inward, toward self.
[3] Our anger can be directed at innocent bystanders.
[4] Our anger can be directed at the source.
Proverbs 29:11 (NIV)
A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.
Proverbs 29:22 (NIV)
An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered one commits many sins.
How Then Can We Learn To Have Patience? How Can Patience Be Developed In Our Lives?
[1] We Must Be Connected to Jesus.
John 15:5 (MsgB)
I am the vine, you are the branches. When you¡¦re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can¡¦t produce a thing.
Remember, it is the fruit of the SPIRIT, not the fruit of the saints. We cannot have true patience apart from being in relationship with Christ. He who is patient makes us to be like Himself.
[2] Ask God For Help! Yes, Pray For Patience.
If you haven¡¦t already figured it out yet, you will encounter difficult people and difficult circumstances throughout your life! You cannot escape them, it is a part of life. So the next time you face an individual circumstance that causes you discomfort you can either do so with your own strength or you can be prepared with God-given patience.
God will equip you to live a lifestyle of patience, to be long to anger, or you can face conflict and hurtful relationships on your own.
[3] Patience Develops Through THANKKFULNESS
Psalm 103:8-10 (NLT)
The Lord is merciful and gracious; he is slow to get angry and full of unfailing love. [9] He will not constantly accuse us, nor remains angry forever. [10] He has not punished us for all our sins, nor does he deal with us as we deserve.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NLT)
No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God¡¦s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
Remain ever thankful for God¡¦s patience in your life. Being mindful of God¡¦s patience will remind us of our responsibility to do likewise.
[4] Patience Grows Through TRIALS.
James 1:2-4 (NIV)
Consider if pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, [3] because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. [4] Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Romans 12:12
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
[5] Patience Matures Within GOD¡¦S TIME-TABLE.
Let¡¦s be honest, our schedule is not God¡¦s!
Our culture and society is on a fast paces, do it now, no I wanted it yesterday time schedule! Everywhere you look you will find people who are in a hurt. Don¡¦t believe me? See how long it takes for someone to honk if you wait at a red light, or notice the reaction you and others around have when the cashier has to call for a price check because the computer won¡¦t scan the UPC code.
Believe it or not, there once was a time when time was not measured in seconds, but in hours. It has only been in the last 200 or so years that clocks have broken the hour down into minutes and seconds. . . and now even hundredths of a second. We not only have clocks tied to our wrists, but they are built into our cell phones and computers. Clocks are in your cars, on the microwave and your stove; they are on your coffee maker. You can even get them built into your refrigerators now; how many clocks and timers do you need just for your kitchen?
OUR LIVES ARE DRIVEN BY THE CLOCK! Don¡¦t believe me? Just try going through a day or two without wearing your wristwatch! I have intentionally stopped wearing a watch to try to slow down my personal pace and let God direct my steps.. but I still feel the tension of the ¡§ticking clock.¡¨ I¡¦ll still check the time on the cell phone, or my pocket computer, and if neither of those are handy I still have the clock on the wall that I can look at! It¡¦s hard to get on God¡¦s time-table when the clock is pushing us to do things at a specific time. GOD¡¦S TIME-TABLE IS NO THE SAME AS OURS!
2 Peter 3:8 (NIV)
But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.
„g I thought I might have just a little fun with this one. When we ask a friend for help, they might reply, ¡§Give me a minute.¡¨ Now what if God told us to wait a minute when we prayed about something? One day has 1,440 minutes and there are 525,600,000 minutes in 1,000 years. Therefore, if God tells you to wait a minute don¡¦t get in a hurry for the answer to come because a minute to God is the same as roughly 254 days ¡V about 8 months! No wonder that when God simply says ¡§WAIT¡¨ we still get anxious about when God is going to answer our prayer!
Think with me about God¡¦s timing in Scripture:
„g God told Abraham He would make him into a great nation when he was 75 years old; Isaac, the child of promise, was born 25 years later when Abraham was 100 and his wife was 90! Don¡¦t you think God should have done that a little quicker?
„g Jacob, Abraham¡¦s grandson, went down to Egypt with his entire family 215 years after God made the promise to Abraham to make him into a great nation. All Jacob¡¦s family numbered 70..is 70 a great nation?
„g God had also promised Abraham that he would posses all the land he walked on, yet in Abraham¡¦s life, the only land he ever owned was a place to burry his wife.
„g 400 years after Jacob went to Egypt, his descendants were well over a million people, but they still were not a ¡§great nation¡¨ and they didn¡¦t own any land ¡V they were slaves in Egypt.
„g God delivered the Israelites in Egypt from slavery to go the Promised Land, but first they wandered in the desert for 40 years because of their unbelief! Finally, nearly after 700 years after God had made the promise to Abraham to make him into a great nation, and give him the land as his inheritance, Israel took possession of the land, driving our the other nations in the land.
„g Or, think about David. God had Samuel anoint him to be the next kind of Israel, but instead of being honored as the king, David spent the next 20 to 30 years running for his life. King Saul wanted to destroy David. Yet David trusted in God even through these difficult times. Twice David had Saul¡¦s life in his hands, and oculd have taken the kingdom by force, BUT DAVID WAS PATIENT! David refused to take the life of God¡¦s anointed and trusted God to make him the king in God¡¦s time and not according to David¡¦s time-table.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 (GW)
It is beautiful how God has done everything at the right time. He has put a sense of eternity in people¡¦s minds. Yet, mortals still can¡¦t grasp what God is doing from the beginning to the end {of time}.
