Patience, Patience
Our Bible passage, introduction to Sunday 8th March service and hymns are below.
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Our principal verses are:
Jas 5:7 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.
Jas 5:8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
Jas 5:9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.
Jas 5:10 Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience.
Jas 5:11 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.
Jas 5:12 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.
Patience, Patience
The Apostle’s attention returns to the humble meek. He has denounced the corrupt rich and foretold the miseries that must soon overwhelm them. Now he calls for patience on the part of the redeemed until the purposes of God shall be revealed. Four times in these five verses James explicitly addresses his elect brethren. He is speaking to you and me who believe. Five times he mentions patience.
A return to patience
Patience has been a recurring theme for James. He told us in chapter 1, ‘the trying of your faith worketh patience’ and, ‘let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing’. Here is a call to practical patience. The Apostle has told us to expect trials of our faith, that is, to expect hardship, frustration and even, in some cases, persecution unto death for the cause of Christ and His gospel. Practising restraint will be hard in itself but patience is a blessing that leads to spiritual peace and contentment.
‘Precious fruit’
James’ picture of a husbandman, we might say farmer, waiting patiently for his crops to grow and ripen is a very apt analogy for the Lord’s people. A good work has been begun in us that the Lord will perform. It is not a question of if but when. It is God Himself who will keep us faithful to the end. There is coming a joyful harvest and a glorious entrance into the blessings God has prepared for them that love Him. Nevertheless, for the time being we must endure trials.
Sourcing our good
Our trials are wisely and lovingly sent from God with a divine purpose. They may appear unnecessary and random but that is because we do not see the larger picture. Tests, trials and persecutions are designed to rid the church of dross, strengthen and equip each member and refine our trust in the Lord Jesus. We are not being made more holy but we are being made more beautiful. The trials of our faith differ one from another but they ready us for the same perfect conclusion, as ‘the coming of the Lord draweth nigh’.
‘God is faithful’
James calls his brethren not to begrudge one another. Do not be watching each other in envy while comparing experiences. Our troubles will differ in nature, timing and degree for which we must defer to the Master Builder who knows both our need and our brother’s. Grudging a fellow brother’s relief while we suffer is shortsighted and unbecoming a believer in the Lord. Paul tells the Corinthians, ‘God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able’. Our wise and loving God deals with each of His children according to our individual needs.
Biblical examples
Of course it is hard to see the big picture when we are suffering. Our wish is simply for the pain to stop. Yet James has another dimension for consideration. ‘Take’, he says, ‘my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience’. This is a powerful argument. Those who have gone before us have charted our course. They have suffered, endured and entered into their rest. We see their defeats and their victories and these ought to steel our own response to similar tests of our faith.
‘The patience of Job’
Job is called as a prime example. How this saint suffered, how he wrestled to understand his predicament. Yet we have seen, ‘the end of the Lord’. We have seen how the Lord reasoned with His troubled servant, rebuked his errors and ultimately restored to him all that was lost and more. James believed Job to be a real, historical figure whose experiences can assist our own understanding of hard times. What enduring help can we glean from Job? Much, no doubt, but certainly this, ‘the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy’. So, in our times of trouble let us always be watching for evidences of Christ’s pity and mercy.
Watch your mouth!
The apostle’s final admonition is a very basic but a very suitable and timely piece of advice. Groaning, expressing discontent and swearing are the first evidences of impatience. By asking us to guard ourselves against swearing the apostle is giving us a very practical warning-light for personal restraint. James is not speaking about oath-taking in court. That is suitable and permissible. He is speaking of careless expressions of petulance and ill-temper.
First reaction
We are all prone to utter inappropriate phrases upon meeting opposition. Our statements and talk ought not to be salted with profanity. Even polite swearing betrays a defiant attitude. Whatever the Lord brings upon us, whatever happens to us, all things are for our good. ‘Let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay’ means tempering our reaction to circumstances in a quiet, patient and reflective manner. ‘That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it’ (Isaiah 41:20).
Amen
Hymn 300
“Tribulation worketh patience.” Rom. 5. 3
J. Berridge C.M.
1
How simple are thy children, Lord,
Unskilled in what they pray;
Full oft they lift a hearty word,
Yet know not what they say.
2
For patience when I raised a cry,
Fresh burdens made me roar;
My foolish heart would then reply,
For patience pray no more.
3
So much my Master seemed to blame,
I thought to leave his school;
But now I learn to blush for shame,
And see myself a fool.
4
I fancied patience would be brought
Before my troubles rose;
And by such granted help I thought
To triumph o’er my woes.
5
But Christ has cleared my misty sight,
And, taught by him, I find
That tribulations, working right,
Produce a patient mind.
6
When our dear Master would bestow
Much patience on his friends,
He loads their shoulders well with woe,
And thus obtains his ends.
7
I must expect a daily cross;
Lord, sanctify the pain;
Bid every furnace purge my dross
And yield some patient gain.
Hymn 463
The Burial of a Saint. 1 Cor. 15. 42-44; 1 John 3. 2
J. Hart 8.7.
1
Sons of God, by blest adoption,
View the dead with steady eyes;
What is sown thus in corruption,
Shall in incorruption rise;
What is sown in death’s dishonour,
Shall revive to glory’s light;
What is sown in this weak manner,
Shall be raised in matchless might.
2
Earthy cavern, to thy keeping
We commit our [sister’s] dust;
Keep it safely, softly sleeping,
Till our Lord demand thy trust.
Sweetly sleep, dear saint, in Jesus;
Thou with us shalt wake from death;
Hold he cannot, though he seize us;
We his power defy by faith.
3
Jesus, thy rich consolations
To thy mourning people send;
May we all, with faith and patience,
Wait for our approaching end.
Keep from courage, vain or vaunted,
For our change our hearts prepare;
Give us confidence undaunted,
Cheerful hope and godly fear.
Trials are hard to endure but they carry in them the seeds of spiritual blessing for men and women of faith. James is encouraging the Lord's people to exercise patience, trust in the Lord and use the experiences of hardship as opportunities to grow in grace and deepen our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.