Patience
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Good morning Chapel family. We’re taking this fall to walk through the famous Fruit of the Spirit teaching from the New Testament. Usually, the only thing you hear is the list, right? Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. It’s a beautiful list. But when you look at the broader context where that list appears, you realize that beautiful way of living doesn’t come without a battle. Because there’s a part of you that wants to live in a very different way—with selfishness and envy and rage, etc. Ugly things. And until you enter heaven, that struggle between the flesh and the spirit will always be there. But here’s the surprising part: the way to win that battle is not to just to try harder; it’s to learn how to connect with the power of Christ.
In other words, like we’ve been saying every week:
The pull of sin is strong But the living Christ is stronger So open yourself to his Spirit And you will bear his fruit
So that’s what this series is all about—learning together how to open ourselves to the Spirit of Jesus—the Holy Spirit—so that we bear the fruit of Jesus in our lives. We actually become like him!
So today we come to the fourth fruit, which is patience.
Honestly, this is a challenging area for me. When Norma Jean and I are driving together, and somebody slow pulls out in front of me in a no-passing zone, like—say on Jacksonville Road—and if we come to the light at the Towaco post office, and that person makes the light, but I get stopped at the red, and I would have made it if it weren’t for that person, I have a natural tendency to get a bit agitated. And Norma Jean just shakes her head. She says, “Why does that matter to you so much?” And the honest answer is, “I don’t know.” Usually I’m not late for something; I just don’t like when somebody slows me down. Can anybody relate? And that’s not a good thing. Because it’s not just about how we handle slow drivers; I really believe our response to things like that is a microcosm of how we deal with much larger frustrations.
So how about you? Would you consider yourself a patient person, or do you struggle with it, like I do? Proverbs 16:32 says, “Better a patient person than a warrior.” Think about that—it’s actually more beneficial to be a patient person than to be a warrior. You will have a more powerful life; you will have a less frustrating life; you will be a strong blessing to the people around you—if you develop patience. Patience is a good thing. I want more of it. So the question is…how do you get it?
Look with me at James chapter 5, beginning in verse 7. Let’s hear the Word of God…
7 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. 8 You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. 9 Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!
10 Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered.
You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy. This is the Word of the Lord.
So as I studied this passage, I realized there’s one main thing that James is trying to get across, and you hear this same message echoed all through the Bible. Here it is:
The depth of your patience is determined by the size of your God.
Can we say that together? The depth of your patience is determined by the size of your God. It’s really that simple. So let’s unpack that with two points today.
First, The Evidence of a Small God. How does that show up in your life?
Well, if you read the fruit of the Spirit passage in Galatians, in the old King James, instead of “patience,” it says…anybody know? Longsuffering. Isn’t that a great word? Like, “How much time have you been suffering?” Long. Longsuffering. The Greek word is actually a compound word—it’s made up of the word for “long” and the word for “temper,” so it’s talking about being long-tempered. Having a temper that takes a long time to set off. It’s the same word that James uses here in James 5 for “patience.” Some modern translations use the word “forbearance,” which means you’re able to bear with a lot before you finally lose it. So…longsuffering, forbearance, patience—they’re all translating the same Greek word, meaning it takes a lot to set you off. You have a long fuse.
So the opposite of that would be having a short fuse.
When we were kids around 4th of July, there was always the one kid who would hold the firecracker in his hand while lighting it, and after it was lit he would hold it for a couple of seconds just to make us all nervous, and finally he’d throw it, and it would explode in the air. Remember that kid? Were you that kid? But sooner or later, it would catch up with him. Because he would get a firecracker with a…what? A short fuse—not necessarily short in length, but short in burn time—so it would go off right in his hand, and he would scream with pain.
Short fuses cause a lot of damage, don’t they? They damage the person with the short fuse, and they usually damage innocent bystanders.
And in James 5 he talks about one of the most common manifestations of having a short fuse. Look at James 5, verse 9: Don’t grumble against one another. A short fuse often shows up as grumbling. Complaining. Criticizing. Fault-finding.
Now: James was writing to a group of people who were struggling to follow Christ in a hostile world. They faced all kinds persecution from the secular culture around them. But notice: James doesn’t say, “Don’t grumble against those terrible pagans who are persecuting you.” What does he say? “Don’t grumble against one another.” And this is such a good warning. Because when I’m upset about some kind of injustice or problem in the world, guess who I sometimes take it out on? Not the people that are causing the problem; I take it out on the people that are closest to me! So James is saying, “Look—I know life is hard, but don’t take it out on each other!” Don’t let the unfairness of your job cause you to come home and snap at your parents! Don’t let the pain in your shoulder (or your knee or your stomach) cause you to have a short fuse with your wife! “Don’t grumble against one another.”
But you know what? Sometimes our frustration is with the people around us. Because they can be so annoying. And when you’re around them a lot, you’re confronted by their maddening habits over and over again, and it can drive you crazy. Like for example, when you and your wife both have Covid, and you’re stuck in the same house together for 10 days straight. I heard that can be tough. Ephesians 4:2 says it like this: Be completely humble and gentle; be patient (there’s that word again…), bearing
with one another in love. So the Bible calls us to have a long fuse—to bear with each other—to put up with each other—to realize the people around you are probably having to bear with you also, and to give each other the same grace God gives us.
And here’s what I’m saying: when we’re not doing that—when we find ourselves quick to anger, quick to judge, quick to complain—it actually says something about the size of our God. See, James is basing his whole appeal on a recognition of who God is and what God will do. Look again at verse 8: 8 You too, be patient and stand firm. Why? because the Lord’s coming is near. So knowing the Lord is going to return is what enables you to be patient! You can hold out till then. Verse 9—9 Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters… Why not? or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door! So the fact that God is watching and you’ll have to stand before him should make you think twice before judging other people. Are you following me? So if your world view lacks that very real sense of God’s presence, it’s much more likely you will be an impatient person. You will feel like it’s your job to judge, and to bring vengeance, and to take matters into your own hands, because somebody’s got to do it!
So I really hate to admit this, but when I’m stuck behind some absent-minded driver who’s going 28 miles an hour on Jacksonville Road, and I’m getting all agitated and flustered, and tempted to drive right up on their bumper, and I’m in no mood for any kind of constructive conversation with the other people in my car, at that moment in time I am functioning with a very small view of God. I hate to admit that…but it’s true.
Because the depth of our patience is determined by the size of our God
So what happens when we start to get a bigger view of God?
Point number 2: The Invitation of a Big God. I see three parts of this invitation.
First, Trust his plan. Look at James 5:7 again: 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. Any good farmer knows that there’s a time when you plant crops, and there’s a time when you harvest the crops. But then there’s a lot of time in between those two when you’re waiting. You wait for the rains; you wait for the roots to grow deep; you wait for the crop to grow. There’s lots of waiting, because that’s the way God planned for agriculture to work…and that’s the way God planned our lives to work. There’s a lot of waiting involved.
Lloyd Ogilvie was the Chaplain of the U.S. Senate years ago. He said this: “Patience must be rooted in an overarching confidence that there is someone in control of the universe, our world, and our life. We need to know that God does work things together for good for those who love Him. A patient person knows the shortness of time and the length of eternity. Patience is really faith in action.”
In other words, when you’re feeling antsy and impatient, put your faith into action by choosing to believe that God is up to something. Again, think about a farmer: there’s a long period of time, after planting, that a farmer can look out at his field, and he won’t see any visible activity. Right? Just dirt. But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing happening. God is at work in deep ways, beneath the surface. And it’s like that for us. Right now, God is at work beneath the surface of your life, in ways you’ll never see.
So trust his plan. Trust that he has a plan even in the little things. About two weeks ago I was driving on a one-lane road, and sure enough, a big construction vehicle pulled out right in front of me. And I realized I was going to be stuck behind him for the next 5 or 10 minutes. My instant reaction was frustration, but I quickly caught myself. And I said, “Lord, you did this, didn’t you?” And then I said,
“Thank you for this opportunity to pray.” And for the next 8 minutes or so, as I looked at the back of a cement mixer, I talked with God about some important things in my life. That might seem like a dumb little thing, but it’s a decision to submit to the plan of God, rather than fighting him. It turned out to be a really good part of my day.
And if we can trust God’s plan in little ways like that, we can begin trusting his plan in bigger ways. I can’t remember the last time I read a poem as part of a sermon, but I really like this one. It’s by a Jesuit priest named Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. It’s called Trust in the Slow Work of God. Listen:
Above all, trust in the slow work of God. We are quite naturally impatient in everything to reach the end without delay. We should like to skip the intermediate stages. We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new.
And yet it is the law of all progress that it is made by passing through some stages of instability- and that it may take a very long time. And so I think it is with you…
Give Our Lord the benefit of believing that his hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete.
Man, there’s a lot of wisdom there. So if you find yourself in one of those in between places—maybe in between jobs, or in between relationships, or in-between churches, remember: God is in control. He knows what he’s doing. And he’s good. So trust his plan.
Okay, the next part of the invitation: Trust his justice. Sometimes, the thing that’s causing our impatience is that there’s something in life that’s just not right. That kid in school who bullied your son or daughter isn’t getting punished enough for what he did. That terrible teacher in school is allowed to keep on teaching, despite all the complaints. That ex-spouse is dragging out the divorce settlement for way too long, or avoiding child support payments, and it seems like they’re getting away with it. That girl who’s mean to everyone becomes homecoming queen. We’ve all experienced unfair things, right? And it’s easy to get impatient with God, like, “Come on, God! Are you ever going to bring these people to justice?”
I think James’ readers struggled with those feelings, because they were being mistreated by the powerful people around them. And look what James says in verse 8: You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. All through the Bible, the coming of the Lord is a day of…what? Of judgment. It’s the time when God will finally hold people accountable for the ways they have defied God and mistreated other people. So James is telling his readers, “Believe me: whatever wrongs are happening in the world, God is going to set them right.” And if we believe that—if we have that big view of God’s justice, we can patiently wait for him to bring it in his timing.
If you’re wondering what it looks like to trust in God’s justice, look at Jesus. 1 Peter 2, verse 23: 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.
The ultimate injustice in the history of the world, right? The way that Jesus was treated. How could he possibly endure that? Because he knew God was a just judge, and he trusted in God. And guys, that’s
our example: patiently enduring the unfair things in our life. That doesn’t mean we don’t speak out against injustice! That certainly doesn’t mean we allow abusers to abuse us—we confront it, and we speak out against it. But sometimes there are things in life that will remain unfair for now. And those things will drive you crazy…unless you have a big view of God’s justice.
So…how do you develop patience? Trust God’s plan; trust his justice.
And one more thing: Trust his reward. Tim Keller gives this illustration:
Imagine you have two women of the same age, the same socioeconomic status, the same educational level, and even the same temperament. You hire both of them and say to each, "You are part of an assembly line, and I want you to put part A into slot B and then hand what you have assembled to someone else. I want you to do that over and over for eight hours a day." You put them in identical rooms with identical lighting, temperature, and ventilation. You give them the very same number of breaks in a day. It is very boring work. Their conditions are the same in every way—except for one difference. You tell the first woman that at the end of the year you will pay her thirty thousand dollars, and you tell the second woman that at the end of the year you will pay her thirty million.
After a couple of weeks the first woman will be saying, "Isn't this tedious? Isn't it driving you insane? Aren't you thinking about quitting?" And the second woman will say. "No. This is perfectly acceptable. In fact, I whistle while I work." What is going on? You have two human beings who are experiencing identical circumstances in radically different ways. What makes the difference? It is their expectation of the future. This illustration is not intended to say that all we need is a good income. It does, however, show that what we believe about our future completely controls how we are experiencing our present.
I think that is so spot-on: what we believe about the future completely controls how we experience the present. If your view of the future is not dominated by the ultimate victory and ultimate reward of God, then it’s going to be really hard for you to handle difficult things in the present. Because you have no reason to believe that things will get any better. So you will be easily angered and agitated and impatient, and your life will be miserable. But if you believe the future is ruled by a good God who gives good things to his children, you’ll handle the hard things in life so much differently.
So look how James ends this section—James 5:11… As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy. So James appeals to his readers’ knowledge of the Old Testament, and he just assumes they know the story of Job. You know the story of Job, right? He was a good man who was struck by a ridiculous amount of misfortune over a very short period of time. He lost his crops, his barns, his cattle, his servants, and even his own kids. And then his own health. It was utterly devastating.
And through all that, Job persevered. He definitely expressed his pain, and his questions, and he was brutally honest in his prayers, but he persevered. He didn’t turn his back on God; he didn’t turn to a life of sin and rebellion, he didn’t numb his pain with alcohol. He persevered through the pain, and he waited for God to somehow provide an explanation for what had happened. It’s a breathtaking example of patience.
And then finally God shows up. And he basically says, “Job, there are things about this life that are so far above your understanding, you wouldn’t understand even if I told you.” And Job is so overwhelmed by the presence of God, he says, “I spoke of things I didn’t understand—things too wonderful for me to know. My ears had heard of you, but now my eyes have seen you.” And he repents of even the thought that God owed him an explanation. That’s in the last chapter of Job, but the story’s not over yet. Because at the very end, God restores Job’s fortunes and gives him twice as much as he had before. And it says the Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part. Despite the scars and the loss, Job’s life ended really, really well.
So James is saying this, “Listen: when life is so hard, and you’re waiting for things to change, and you can’t imagine why it’s taking God so long to show up and bring some relief…remember Job. Never forget that when you’re with God, the story ends really, really well.”
Because the depth of your patience is determined by the size of your God.
So today, please, hear the invitation of this big God! He’s inviting you: “Trust my plan, even when you can’t see it. Trust my justice, when life is unfair. And trust my reward—it’s going to end really well.” Choose to trust in him. And when you do, even when life gets hard, you will find yourself with a depth of patience you never knew was possible.