"Growing with Patience"

Text: James 5:7–8 Series: “Harvest of the Heart”

Main Idea: Like a farmer waiting for the harvest, believers must live in patient expectation, trusting God’s timing.

INTRODUCTION — “The Farmer’s Secret”

Several years ago, a journalist went to interview a seasoned corn farmer in Iowa named Bill. This man had been farming the same land for over 50 years.

The reporter asked, “Bill, what’s your secret to growing such strong, healthy crops every single year?”

Bill grinned and said, “My secret is patience. I plant in April, but I don’t panic in May.

I trust the soil and the seasons God gives. If I rush it, I ruin it. But if I wait, the harvest comes.”

Church, that one sentence preaches.

The farmer can plow, plant, water, and weed—but he cannot make the seed grow.

Only God can do that.

James uses this very image in his letter to weary believers who are tired of waiting—tired of persecution, tired of injustice, tired of unanswered prayers.

And instead of giving them a quick fix, he gives them the picture of a farmer who trusts God’s timing.

James 5:7-8:

“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”

1. The Example of the Farmer (v. 7a)

James begins with something every person in his audience understood — farming.

“See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains.”

A farmer in Palestine couldn’t control the weather.

He depended on the early rains in the fall to soften the soil, and the late rains in the spring to ripen the grain for harvest.

If he got impatient and harvested too soon, he lost the crop.

James uses the Greek verb μακροθυμέω (makrothymeō) — “to be long-tempered, to endure patiently without giving in to frustration.”

This isn’t lazy waiting. It’s active trust in God’s timing.

The New International Commentary on the New Testament points out: “Waiting is not wasted time; it’s trusting time. The farmer’s waiting is not passive but confident in God’s faithfulness.”

Illustration:

A child planted a seed.

For the first few days, he watered it eagerly.

But when nothing sprouted, he grew frustrated.

So he dug it up to “check on it.” Of course, he killed the seed.

Impatience destroyed what patience could have produced.

****”If you rush the season, you can ruin the harvest.” God often works beneath the surface before we ever see the fruit.

2. The Endurance of the Faithful (v. 7b)

“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord.”

Here James shifts from illustration to instruction.

What the farmer does with his crop, the believer must do with their soul: wait with endurance.

The phrase “the coming of the Lord” uses the Greek word παρουσία (parousia) — which referred to the royal arrival of a king or emperor.

James is saying: Jesus is coming back. The King is on His way.

According to the The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, this phrase “anchors Christian patience not in vague optimism but in eschatological certainty”

— meaning we can endure now because we know how the story ends.

James’ readers were being oppressed by the rich, facing injustice, and growing weary.

Instead of taking vengeance or giving up, James says, “Hold on. The Lord is coming.”

Illustration: During WWII, people in London endured nightly bombings.

Hope ran low. But when the news spread that Allied forces were advancing, morale shifted.

Their situation hadn’t changed — but their hope had.

****“Endurance isn’t pretending the pain isn’t real. It’s remembering that the Lord’s return is sure.”

Like the farmer tending his fields in dry days, we must keep serving God faithfully in hard seasons. Waiting is not quitting.

3. The Encouragement of the Future (v. 8)

“You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”

James repeats the call to be patient, but then adds a second word: στήρίξατε (stērixate) — “establish” or “strengthen.” It means to brace, to anchor, to make firm against pressure.

The phrase “the coming of the Lord is at hand” doesn’t mean it’s immediate — it means it’s imminent. It could happen at any time.

James is saying: Anchor your heart in that reality.

NICNT notes: “The nearness of the parousia functions not to set a timetable but to shape an attitude.”

Hope shapes endurance.

Illustration: When someone you love is about to land at the airport, you don’t fall asleep in the terminal.

You stay alert. You keep scanning the runway. You’re not worried about if they’ll come, just when.

****”The promise of Christ’s return doesn’t make us passive — it makes us steadfast.

Farmers don’t plant and walk away. They keep working while they wait.”

SUMMARY:

This is the middle message of James 5 — the “waiting season.”

The farmer shows us that waiting is part of God’s process.

The faithful remind us that patience has a finish line.

The future assures us the harvest is coming.

****Even when you see nothing happening, God is working beneath the soil of your circumstances.

LIFE APPLICATIONS:

1. Resist the Urge to Rush God’s Process.

God’s timing is perfect; ours is impatient.

When you feel like nothing is happening, remember the seed is still in the soil.

Practical step: Instead of trying to dig up answers, water them with prayer, Scripture, and worship.

2. Anchor Your Hope in Christ’s Return, Not Earthly Results.

When life seems unfair, when prayers seem unanswered, remember: Jesus is coming.

Justice will be done. The harvest will come.

Practical step: Begin each morning with this confession: “The Lord is coming. I will endure.”

3. Strengthen Your Heart Through Spiritual Disciplines.

James says, “Establish your hearts.”

That means building spiritual strength before the storm hits.

Practical step: Commit to a consistent rhythm of prayer, Scripture intake, worship, and Christian community.

CONCLUSION — “The Harvest Is Coming”

The farmer doesn’t fear the seasons. He trusts them. And so must we.

Your waiting is not wasted. The God who began a good work in you will bring it to harvest in His time.

So…

Keep planting in faith.

Keep waiting in trust.

Keep watching for the King.

“Let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not give up.” — Galatians 6:9

****“Patience is not weakness — it’s faith with its sleeves rolled up.”

Let’s bow our heads. -Maybe you’re in a season of waiting right now. -Maybe you’re frustrated, ready to dig up the seed. -God is saying, “Trust My timing. The harvest is coming.”

Amen.