“Patiently Endure and at the Same Time, Tell the Truth”
James 5:7-12
James is writing to his fellow Jewish believers in Jesus Christ as the Messiah, who have had to disperse because of persecution. His letter has been passed along from group to group, copied and read over and over by those who were able to read it. James saw the ways Christians brought their old habits with them to their new found community and many of the old habits did not fit. God had visited in the flesh as Jesus Christ and taught them what living in heaven was like. Jesus also taught us to live this way “on earth as it is in heaven.” Then Jesus went back to heaven and left His disciples and brother, James to lead this new covenantal group. James came up with twelve teachings on how to live wholeheartedly for Jesus. Ironically they are still needed over two thousand years later.
Today’s Scripture provides us with two more “how to’s” in what it looks like to follow Jesus. The first one James describes is, “patient endurance.” Two of the most difficult words in the English language and James puts them together, “patience and endurance.” Verse 7 begins,
Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming.
Can you imagine what the early Christians thought about Jesus’ return? Many of them had seen Jesus, heard Jesus talk, and counted on what He said to be true because they wanted a better life. Persecution was what they would and did experience by deciding to follow Jesus so it would make sense that you were praying for Jesus’ return every day!
Let’s be honest.
When was the last time you even thought about or
needed to be patient in regards to the Lord’s coming?
Our generation has forgotten that hope.
We spend our days waking up, taking on the day, and going back to sleep, without once thinking,
“Is today the day Jesus will return?”
Until, we are called to endure something harsh. Something that puts us face to face with the end of life. When things happen in our life that require us to put death into perspective, heaven comes into focus.
What if we were to live like Jesus were coming today?
Or this very hour? He could, you know. With that thought in mind, let us continue to read James’ letter.
James uses a metaphor to explain how to be patient, like a farmer. This metaphor worked well for those in the first century. The farmer’s work was well understood by almost everyone. They did not give up when their crop did not immediately come to harvest. Farmers knew they had to put in a lot of work and that there were some elements that were out of their control in the first place. Farmers had to have faith that the seeds they planted were going to sprout. They also had to count on and wait patiently for rain to come at two different times in the crop’s growing before harvest. James reminds Christians to establish their hearts or exercise patient endurance, for the coming of the Lord, just like the farmer did for crops.
We are still waiting, and
We are still called to not lose heart. In fact, we are called to “establish our hearts.”
Just as the farmer keeps working, tending the crop, putting as much effort as possible to ensure a positive outcome, so should we when it comes to our own walk with God. It’s not enough to say, “I’ve accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I know I’m going to heaven.” Then sit back and let God save you.
We’ve been given gifts and talents and God expects us to use them for His glory. We’ve been commissioned by Jesus Himself to, Matthew 28:19-20,
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
James is telling us like the farmer, when the crop doesn’t come immediately we are to keep on, work hard and exercise patient endurance even when the harvest day seems far away.
James goes on in verse 9 to explain how to practice patient endurance,
without grumbling,
especially against one another.
Enduring hardship isn’t easy.
James knew this and so he reminds us that even when we are not at our best, we need to remember not to become grumblers and complainers in our hardship. If we do, James reminds us that we will have added condemnation to our hardship.
Jesus will return, and when He does, He will not be playing the Savior role, He will be playing the role of Judge. Not only will He judge the world, but He will also assess the faithfulness of Christians, 2 Corinthians 5:10,
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
James doesn’t just leave us hanging without guidance. He points us to the prophets. If ever there was a group of people who spoke the name of the Lord and were forced to face suffering and patience for what they said and did, it would be the prophets of the Old Testament.
Jesus used the prophets of the Old Testament as an example too in His Sermon on the Mount.
Following His list of Beatitudes Jesus said, Matthew 5:11,12,
“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
James comes up with three things about Job as an example for the suffering Christian.
First, Job persevered. He refused to curse God. Let me read to you what happened. Job 1:6-22,
The First Test: Family and Fortune
6-7 One day when the angels came to report to God, Satan, who was the Designated Accuser, came along with them. God singled out Satan and said, “What have you been up to?”
Satan answered God, “Going here and there, checking things out on earth.”
8 God said to Satan, “Have you noticed my friend Job? There’s no one quite like him—honest and true to his word, totally devoted to God and hating evil.”
9-10 Satan retorted, “So do you think Job does all that out of the sheer goodness of his heart? Why, no one ever had it so good! You pamper him like a pet, make sure nothing bad ever happens to him or his family or his possessions, bless everything he does—he can’t lose!
11 “But what do you think would happen if you reached down and took away everything that is his? He’d curse you right to your face, that’s what.”
12 God replied, “We’ll see. Go ahead—do what you want with all that is his. Just don’t hurt him.” Then Satan left the presence of God.
13-15 Sometime later, while Job’s children were having one of their parties at the home of the oldest son, a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys grazing in the field next to us when Sabeans attacked. They stole the animals and killed the field hands. I’m the only one to get out alive and tell you what happened.”
16 While he was still talking, another messenger arrived and said, “Bolts of lightning struck the sheep and the shepherds and fried them—burned them to a crisp. I’m the only one to get out alive and tell you what happened.”
17 While he was still talking, another messenger arrived and said, “Chaldeans coming from three directions raided the camels and massacred the camel drivers. I’m the only one to get out alive and tell you what happened.”
18-19 While he was still talking, another messenger arrived and said, “Your children were having a party at the home of the oldest brother when a tornado swept in off the desert and struck the house.
It collapsed on the young people and they died. I’m the only one to get out alive and tell you what happened.”
20 Job got to his feet, ripped his robe, shaved his head, then fell to the ground and worshiped:
21
Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
naked I’ll return to the womb of the earth.
God gives, God takes.
God’s name be ever blessed.
22 Not once through all this did Job sin; not once did he blame God.
Wow! Satan thought one thing about Job and
God knew another.
The second thing James tells us about God’s ultimate goal and purpose in allowing suffering to Job was to use him as a lesson to angelic beings.
Paul writes to the Ephesians and explains that God is doing the same today with His church, verses 7-11,
7 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power. 8 Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ,
9 and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. 10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, 11 according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.
When we remember that all things work for good for those who love the Lord and are called to His purpose we can think like Charles Spurgeon who wrote:
“If a man were to attack me with a knife I would resist him with all my strength, and count it a tragedy if he succeeded. Yet if a surgeon comes to me with a knife, I welcome both him and the knife; let him cut me open, even wider than the knife-attacker, because I know his purpose is good and necessary.” (Spurgeon)
Thirdly, in all that happened to Job we see that, indeed, the Lord was very compassionate and merciful. This may not be immediately apparent in the story. Initially it may seem that God was actually cruel to Job. Yet, God allowed suffering for a good reason and God restricted what things could actually be done to Job. God also sustained Job through it all. In fact, throughout the whole process God used Satan to demonstrate a lesson and Job became a better man in character, more humble and and more blessed than ever.
The Greek words James uses when he calls God “compassionate,” literally mean “that the Lord hath ‘many bowels,’ or a great heart and so it indicates great tenderness. (Spurgeon)
James goes on to explain that since we know that God cares, Christians should focus on telling the truth. James was writing during a time when many Jewish people made distinctions between “binding oaths” and “non-binding oaths.” If you were to make an oath that did not include the name of God it was considered to be non-binding. Today we would equate that to making an oath and “crossing your fingers behind your back,” knowing you’re not going to keep it. These were the oaths that James condemned. It’s not the act of swearing an oath that James is forbidding. God Himself swears oaths:
> Luke 1:73 the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
> Hebrews 3:11 So I declared on oath in my anger,
‘They shall never enter my rest.’
> Hebrews 6:13 When God made his promise to Abraham,
since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he
swore by himself,
However, James again echoes Jesus from His Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5:34-37
34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.[g]
When it comes right down to it, the need to swear or make an oath, beyond our simple yes or no, reveals the weakness of our own words. It means we do not have a strong enough character to confirm what we say. According to James, this lack of character will be exposed at the judgment seat of Christ. Again, reminding us that as Christians we don’t miss judgment all together.
Sure, we escape hell, but we will still need to stand before Jesus and be judged, Revelation 22:12,
“Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done.”
Jesus’ judgment is like the PBIS discipline program we have at school. Instead of punishing students for things they do wrong, we are told to reward students for what they do right. The premise is that students will want the reward, and always choose to do the right thing. The debate is still out as to whether it works or not, but as followers of Christ, we will not be punished and sent to hell, all of our sins have been forgiven. We will be asked what we did with what God has given us, so Jesus can reward us, as good and faithful servants.
This should motivate us to listen and take stock and put into action these teachings of James:
We should,
- speak with integrity,
- endure hardships with patience
- beware of putting anything in place of God such as our own efforts or money
- not condemn others
- not follow God half-heartedly
- be prepared for the world to misunderstand us
- keep tabs on our tongue
- spend much time with our Savior to cultivate a genuine faith.
When it comes right down to it, we should be living today like we will be living in heaven. We should be preparing ourselves for the day Jesus does return and takes us to be with Him forever.
What if He comes today?
Let’s pray.
