It was very kind of Ian to include me amongst the young preachers.
I could probably double the rage in some of them.
Thank you for giving me the privilege of sharing God's Word tonight with you this evening.
Thank you also for extending to me the courtesy of allowing me to sit to speak.
Unfortunately, I have back trouble and that prevents me from standing for very long.
So it would be a very short sermon if I did.
That might be an option you wish you had taken later.
Just a quick prayer.
Father, as we turn to your Word, may your Holy Spirit take it and comfort us where we need to be comforted.
Encourage us where we need to be encouraged.
And challenge us where we need to be challenged.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
Can I ask you to take your Bibles please and open them at James chapter 5 as we continue our series in that book.
Reading verses 7 to 12.
So that's James chapter 5, verses 7 to 12.
This is the Word of God.
Be patient then, brothers, until the Lord's coming.
See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop.
How patient he is in the autumn and spring rains.
Brothers, you too, be patient and stand firm.
Because the Lord's coming is near.
Don't grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged.
The judge is standing at the door.
Brothers, as an example of patience in the face of suffering.
Take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.
As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered.
You've heard of Job's perseverance.
And have seen what the Lord finally brought about.
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.
Above all, my brothers, do not swear, not by heaven or by earth or by anything else.
Let your yes be yes and your no be no.
Or you will be condemned.
Amen.
When I was a lad, and that wasn't yesterday,
the only phone we had in the house was in the hall.
And it was attached by a cord to the wall, to a box in the wall.
It sat on a telephone table, especially because...
And it had a seat as a part of its construction.
Where you sat and made your calls.
If the person you were calling was not in, or was engaged in another call,
you simply called them back later.
It was a major step forward in technology when we got an answering machine.
The nearest thing to a mobile phone was the call box at the end of most streets.
Today, the majority of us probably carry one of these.
With it, we can call, message, and send emails all over the world, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
If you're anything like me, then when, for example, I send a WhatsApp message,
and the message has been...
There's a marker there that shows that the message has been delivered.
And then it changes colour when the person, the recipient, has read it.
Impatience then builds as I wait for the person to respond.
The patience levels of our society have plummeted,
and we live in a world demanding instant responses.
During this period of lockdown, forcing many of us to work from home,
one of the partners in the firm I work for found it necessary to send out an instruction to all staff
saying that we were no longer allowed to use ASAP, i.e. as soon as possible,
on any of our emails or Teams messages,
and we had to start showing an increased level of patience.
So as we study this passage in James chapter 5,
God calls us, especially those within his church,
to a life of patience in that world of urgency.
Our key verse is found at verse 7,
when it says,
Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming.
So I'd like us to consider this passage under three headings.
First, faithful patience.
Secondly, obedient patience.
Thirdly, fulfilled patience.
That's faithful patience.
Obedient patience.
Fulfilled patience.
So faithful patience.
In verse 7, we are given the example of the farmer.
He will have lovingly prepared the soil,
ploughing it, removing all possible stones and weeds
to ensure it gives the best environment possible for the seed to flourish.
He will then have planted the best seed available to him,
but, and that's a big but,
he is powerless in making that seed germinate and produce a crop.
For that, he looks upwards in faith to his heavenly Father
to bring the rains, and hopefully the sunshine,
to allow that seed to grow and mature.
Is that a blind faith?
No.
As a farmer in New Testament times,
he will have known the Old Testament promises of God,
including those in Isaiah 55 that talk about God bringing the rains.
Like most farmers of his day,
he will be totally reliant on that crop
to provide for his family for the coming year,
and therefore his faith is absolute in God
as he waits in expectation for what will happen later that year.
We are then in verses 10 to 12,
given the examples of Job and a number of the Old Testament prophets.
The patience of Job is an expression that's used in our world today.
If you Google it,
the dictionary definition is
the ability to remain patient
and do what you think you should do
despite having many problems.
Unfortunately, the dictionary has totally missed the point.
As we've been discovering in our Sunday morning series,
Job's patience and perseverance
is rooted not in a self-reliance
or the stiff upper lip
to keep going through adversity,
but has its foundations
built on that rock that is God.
It's his faith and knowledge
and the promise that God would never forsake him
that sees him through this period of trial and tribulation.
Job may have voiced complaints about his circumstances,
but he did not stop trusting and putting his faith in God.
Job 1.21, for example, says,
Naked I have come from my mother's womb,
and naked I will depart.
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away.
May the name of the Lord be praised.
The farmer Job and the other prophets referred to
took God at his word
and found him to be faithful.
We have God's word
in the form of our Bibles
and that is full of his promises
and that we can cling to
and put our faith in
as we live our lives.
In some senses,
we have it relatively easy
in this country
compared to the difficulties
many of our brothers and sisters
around the world face.
Increasingly, however,
there are battles to face
and thankfully the Lord
has blessed the Christian community
in this country recently
with some significant victories.
There's a case of the advertising
for the Festival of Hope Christian event
in Lancashire
where Franklin Graham,
son of Billy Graham,
was to be the headline speaker.
As a result of his views
on biblical marriage,
the local council banned
the adverts for the event
from their buses.
Recently, a court
found that the Christian organizers
of the event
had been unfairly discriminated against
and ordered the council
to pay over £100,000 in damages.
Similarly, the case of the elder
in Stirling Free Church
who is the chief executive officer
of the Robertson Trust
was sacked after nine years at the helm.
An industrial tribunal found
that he had been unlawfully
discriminated against
and again because of his
Christian views on marriage.
Job and the prophets
such as Elijah and Daniel
stood firm in the face of testing.
And in verse 8,
we are called to do likewise
when it says,
you too be patient
and stand firm
because the Lord's coming
is near.
Are there situations
we are going through at work
or in our personal lives
that we are tempted
to throw in the towel?
We're encouraged here
to look to our Heavenly Father
in faith,
in the knowledge
that he's always there
and he will carry us through
the trial we're going through
just as he did with Job
and the other prophets.
So secondly,
we have obedient patience.
Verse 7 says,
be patient.
This is not a request
or an optional extra.
This is a command,
firstly for us
as a body of believers,
but subsequently for us
to be a shining example
to our communities
outside these four walls.
The world we live in
has increasingly become
a place that seeks
instant gratification.
This can be quite innocently
things like instant coffee
or that instant meal
we zap in the microwave.
However,
I doubt that many
would say that
an instant coffee
trumps the freshly brewed
version
or a ready meal
tastes as good
as one lovingly prepared
from scratch
by a talented cook or chef.
As the world
turns its back
on its creator,
it tries to short circuit
God's plans
and aims to scratch
where it itches.
There's a desire
for sex
without patiently
waiting for the
God-given relationship
of marriage,
the rise in casual
relationships
and the increased
availability and use
of pornography
bringing with it
a big impact
on our society.
There's the desire
to have the latest
and the best
right now
even if we can't
afford it.
This has given rise
to a huge debt problem
and people
attempt to keep up
with the Joneses.
But many have turned
to serious gambling
in this respect
to satisfy their
discontentment
with their present
position.
Our TV screens
are full of adverts
attempting to
reel vulnerable
people in.
God would say to us
to be content
with what we have
and patiently work
with what we'd like
to achieve.
However,
in our passages,
we as God's people
are given two
very specific areas
to live out
obedient patience.
In verse 9
it says,
don't grumble
against each other
brothers
or you will be judged.
The judge
is standing
at the door.
Why would there
be grumbling
amongst us?
I would suggest
it arises
when we lose
patience with one
another.
It leads us
to putting ourselves
on that pedestal
rising us up there
as we look down
on our brothers
or sister.
It can be very
easy to point
the finger
at somebody
at someone's
perceived shortcomings
but we do not
always know
the full story
of what they're
going through.
I read an
interesting article
recently that
highlighted the fact
that if you
physically point
the finger
at somebody
then three fingers
of your same hand
are pointing
right back at you.
Think about it.
Try it.
The second half
of verse 9
warns us
that if we go
about judging
one another
then we face
a judgment
from God.
Our command
is not to grumble
but I believe
that that
should be evident
in the way
that we do
the opposite
and treat each
other with
compassion
and mercy
just so
as God
treats each
one of us.
Secondly
in verse 12
there's a command
about our speech.
Above all
my brothers
do not swear
by heaven
or by earth
or by anything
else.
Let your yes
be yes
and your no
no
or you will
be condemned.
What we say
and how we say
it
has been a
common thread
through the book
of James
so far.
This parallels
with Jesus'
words in Matthew
5
34 to 37
and I encourage
you to check
these verses
out at your
leisure.
oaths in
this context
were often
used to
sound impressive
to puff
somebody up
and give
the impression
of truth.
However
the honesty
of these oaths
was often
questionable.
James is
therefore telling
us that we
should have
no part
in that
practice.
We are to
be people
of integrity
and what we
say should
be honest
and trustworthy.
As part
of God's
family
is our
word
our bond.
Are we
totally honest
in all our
dealings
when around
us
others
venture
into those
grey areas
of truth?
An added
dimension is
often found
that when
we have
lost our
patience
with someone
or in some
situation
we become
exasperated
and we lose
self-control.
This is
evident to
those
around us
when we
come out
with some
form of
expletive.
Consistent
with the rest
of scripture
God is
calling us
to exercise
self-control
and bring
the situation
that's causing
us stress
to him
in prayer
and let him
deal with it.
So we've
got faithful
patience
and got
obedient
patience
and thirdly
fulfilled
patience.
For the
farmer
fulfilled
patience
is seen
in a crop
to be
harvested
and provide
for his
family
over the
coming year.
For Job
it was an
end to
that period
of testing
and a
restoration
of God's
blessing.
For many
going through
suffering
the fulfillment
of their
patience
may not
be seen
in these
earthly
lives
but when
they are
called
home
by God.
For me
personally
I can
honestly say
that I
had a real
sense of
joy
at both
the funerals
of my
dad
and the
more recently
my mum.
Yes for me
there was a
deep
grieving
and a real
sense of
loss
but I
realised
for them
for both
of them
that they
had been
released
from the
suffering
that they
had
increasingly
been
experiencing
as their
earthly
bodies
deteriorated
and now
we're in
the presence
of their
Lord and
Saviour
which was
better by
far.
I'm sure
many here
can echo
that experience.
Verse 7
commands us
to be
patient
until the
Lord's
coming
which means
there is a
finite point
in time
when God
is going to
make all
things right
it will be
a total
game changer
but the
Lord has
already been
and when
he came
the first
time he
was the
greatest
fulfilment
of patience
this world
has ever
seen.
Looking back
at our
studies in
the book
of Leviticus
earlier this
year we
learnt that
the ordained
access into
God's
presence was
once a
year by
one man
the high
priest and
on the
appointed
day he
went behind
the curtain
into the
temple with
the blood
of a
sacrificed
animal and
offered it
as a
sin offering
on behalf
of the
people.
On that
first Good
Friday when
Jesus was
crucified on
that cross
at Calvary
and exclaimed
it is
finished
the curtain
in the
temple was
torn from
top to
bottom
giving
access
into
God's
presence
to all
who are
willing to
repent
and believe.
The access
is not there
just once a
year but
every hour
of every
day wherever
we are.
When Jesus
returns as
described in
verse 7
it won't be
as a baby
in a manger
but it will
be in all
his glory
and majesty
it will be
both a
fearful day
and a
day of
great joy
fearful
because it
will be a
day of
judgment
and
accountability
joyful
for those
who are
in Christ
that they
will go
and spend
eternity
in the
presence of
God.
We live
today in
a period
of God's
patience
between the
first coming
of Jesus
and his
return.
for all
of us
today
that has
critical
significance.
For the
believer
who has
already
come in
repentance
and put
our trust
in Jesus
the Savior
and Lord
we are
firstly
commanded to
live our
lives with
evident
patience.
Borrowing a
phrase from a
preacher I
heard recently
we are to
follow the
compass and
not the
clock.
Follow the
compass and
not the
clock.
In other
words live
faithfully in
accordance with
the direction
of God's
word whilst
leaving the
timing of
our circumstances
in God's
hands.
Following on
from that we
have been
given the
privilege of
sharing the
good news of
the gospel to
the world
outside these
walls that
desperately needs
to hear it.
Like the
farmer we
can prepare the
soil in our
friends and
relatives and
help them to
remove some
of the weeds
and stones of
issues that
may be a
hindrance.
We can plant
the seed by
introducing them
to Jesus but
just as the
farmer had to
look to his
heavenly father
to provide the
weather to make
the seed germinate
and grow, we
too are totally
reliant on God
through the Holy
Spirit to work a
miracle in the
lives of those
we are seeking
to reach out
to.
We wait
patiently for
the Lord.
Our time on
this earth is
short and
temporary and
it's not our
forever home so
let's not get
too comfortable.
if you may be
here today or
tonight and
you've not yet
put your trust
in Jesus as
your Saviour
and Lord
then this passage
comes with a
warning.
God has an
appointed time
when his son
the Lord Jesus
will return in
all his glory
and as I said
earlier it will
be a day of
judgment and
accountability.
None of us
know when that
will happen.
It could be
tomorrow or it
might be a
considerable time
yet.
The important
point is until
that happens
there is still
an opportunity
to respond and
accept the
gift of a
restored relationship
with God
through what
Jesus accomplished
in his death
and resurrection.
If you're in
that position
tonight then
can I please
urge you to
take time out
to consider the
gift of eternal
life that Jesus
offers you.
Don't put it
in the back
burner of your
life.
If you want to
talk further
then please
come speak to
me or speak
to one of the
leaders of this
church or the
person that's
brought you
along tonight.
Let's pray.
Father I just
thank you for
this passage
from scripture.
I thank you for
what you've been
saying to us
and may Lord
by your Holy
Spirit cement in
our hearts
what's the
application of it
to our lives.
We pray in
Jesus name.
Amen.
Thank you.