James 5. Patience
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THE POWER OF PATIENCE
THE POWER OF PATIENCE
James was still addressing the suffering saints when he wrote, “Be patient.” This was his counsel at the beginning of his letter (James 1:1–5), and his counsel as his letter came to a close.
God is not going to right all the wrongs in this world until Jesus Christ returns, and we believers must patiently endure—and expect.
Three times James reminds us of the coming of the Lord.
This is the “blessed hope” of the Christian (Titus 2:13).
We do not expect to have everything easy and comfortable in this present life.
33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
Paul reminded his converts
22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
We must patiently endure hardships and heartaches until Jesus returns.
The question we must answer is:
How can we as Christians experience this kind of patient endurance as we wait for the Lord to return?
To answer that question (and need), James gave three encouraging examples of patient endurance.
The Farmer
The Farmer
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.
8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.
If a man is impatient, then he had better not become a farmer.
No crop appears overnight (except perhaps a crop of weeds), and no farmer has control over the weather.
Too much rain can cause the crop to rot, and too much sun can burn it up. An early frost can kill the crop.
How long-suffering the farmer must be with the weather!
He must also have patience with the seed and the crop, for it takes time for plants to grow.
The “early rain” would soften the soil.
The “latter rain” would come in the early spring (our February–March) and help to mature the harvest.
The farmer had to wait many weeks for his seed to produce fruit.
Why did he willingly wait so long?
Because the fruit is “precious” (James 5:7).
The harvest is worth waiting for. “In due season we shall reap, if we faint not” (Gal. 6:9).
James pictured the Christian as a “spiritual farmer” looking for a spiritual harvest.
8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
Our hearts are the soil, and the “seed is the Word of God” (Luke 8:11).
There are seasons to the spiritual life just as there are seasons to the soil. Sometimes, our hearts become cold and “wintry,” and the Lord has to “plow them up” before He can plant the seed (Jer. 4:3).
He sends the sunshine and the rains of His goodness to water and nurture the seeds planted; but we must be patient to wait for the harvest.
Here, then, is a secret of endurance when the going is tough:
God is producing a harvest in our lives.
He wants the “fruit of the Spirit” to grow (Gal. 5:22–23), and the only way He can do it is through trials and troubles.
Instead of growing impatient with God and with ourselves, we must yield to the Lord and permit the fruit to grow.
We are “spiritual farmers” looking for a harvest.
You can enjoy this kind of a harvest only if your heart is established (James 5:8).
One of the purposes of the spiritual ministry of the local church is to establish the heart.
11 For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established;
Paul sent Timothy to Thessalonica to establish the young Christians in their faith.
And Paul also prayed for them that they might be established.
10 Night and day praying exceedingly that we might see your face, and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith?
11 Now God himself and our Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, direct our way unto you.
12 And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you:
13 To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints.
The ministry of the Word of God and prayer are important if the heart is going to be established.
A heart that is not established cannot bear fruit.
Keep in mind that the farmer does not stand around doing nothing: he is constantly at work as he looks toward the harvest.
James did not tell these suffering believers to put on white robes, climb a hill, and wait for Jesus to return.
“Keep working and waiting” was his admonition.
43 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
The Prophets
The Prophets
10 Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience.
A Jewish congregation would understand this simple reference that James made to the Old Testament prophets.
In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus also used the prophets as an example of victory over persecution (Matt. 5:10–12).
What encouragements do we receive from their example?
For one thing, they were in the will of God, yet they suffered.
They were preaching “in the name of the Lord,” yet they were persecuted.
Satan tells the faithful Christian that his suffering is the result of sin or unfaithfulness; and yet his suffering might well be because of faithfulness!
12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
We must never think that obedience automatically produces ease and pleasure.
Our Lord was obedient, and it led to a cross!
Why is it that those who “speak in the name of the Lord” often must endure difficult trials?
It is so that their lives might back up their messages.
The impact of a faithful, godly life carries much power.
We need to remind ourselves that our patience in times of suffering is a testimony to others around us.
But have not many faithful Christians suffered and died without any notice or recognition?
Yes, but when Jesus returns, these “obscure heroes” will receive their rewards.
The prophets were killed and buried, but today their names are honored. When our Lord comes again, He will bring His reward with Him (Rev. 22:12).
Job
Job
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.
12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.
But you cannot persevere unless there is a trial in your life.
There can be no victories without battles; there can be no peaks without valleys.
If you want the blessing, you must be prepared to carry the burden and fight the battle.
When do “blessings” come?
In the midst of trials we may experience God’s blessings, as did the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace (Dan. 3); but James taught that there is a blessing after we have endured.
His example was Job.
The Book of Job is a long book, and the chapters are filled with speeches that, to the Western mind, seem long and tedious.
In the first three chapters you have Job’s distress: he loses his wealth, his family (except for his wife, and she told him to commit suicide), and his health.
In Job 4–31 we read Job’s defense, as he debates with his three friends and answers their false accusations.
Job 38–42 present Job’s deliverance: first God humbles Job, and then He honors Job and gives him twice as much as he had before.
In studying the experience of Job, it is important to remember that Job did not know what was going on “behind the scenes” between God and Satan.
Job’s friends accused him of being a sinner and a hypocrite.
“There must be some terrible sin in your life,” they argued, “or God would never have permitted this suffering.”
Job disagreed with them and maintained his innocence (but not perfection) during the entire conversation.
The friends were wrong: God had no cause against Job (Job 2:3), and in the end, God rebuked the friends for telling lies about Job (Job 42:7).
It is difficult to find a greater example of suffering than Job.
Circumstances were against him, for he lost his wealth and his health.
He also lost his beloved children.
His wife was against him, for she said, “Curse God and die” (Job 2:9).
His friends were against him, for they accused him of being a hypocrite, deserving of the judgment of God.
And it seemed like God was against him!
When Job cried out for answers to his questions, there was no reply from heaven.
Yet, Job endured. Satan predicted that Job would get impatient with God and abandon his faith, but that did not happen.
conclusion
conclusion
As you review this section, you can see the practicality of it. James wanted to encourage us to be patient in times of suffering.
Like the farmer, we are waiting for a spiritual harvest, for fruit that will glorify God.
Like the prophets, we look for opportunities for witness, to share the truth of God.
And, like Job, we wait for the Lord to fulfill His loving purpose, knowing that He will never cause His children to suffer needlessly.
And, like Job, we shall have a clearer vision of the Lord and come to know Him better for having been in the furnace of affliction.
“Be patient, for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh!”