WEBVTT 00:00:00.500 --> 00:00:08.400 Good morning, Watermark. Thank you for inviting me to speak this morning to bring the message 00:00:08.400 --> 00:00:13.140 from God's Word. It is a great privilege and honor, but it's also a great responsibility. 00:00:13.540 --> 00:00:19.240 So I do thank you for placing your trust in me to bring the message from the Bible today. 00:00:20.219 --> 00:00:25.359 My name is Henry. I'm one of the members here, along with my wife, Florence. She's going to 00:00:25.359 --> 00:00:32.619 do the reading for us this morning. Just before we get into the reading, we're continuing in our 00:00:32.619 --> 00:00:40.039 studies in James. We've been looking through James chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, and part of 5 last week. We're 00:00:40.039 --> 00:00:46.500 now in chapter 5. James is a small book in the New Testament, just five chapters, but it has been 00:00:46.500 --> 00:00:53.960 described as Christianity in overalls because it's so practical and tells us things about implications 00:00:53.960 --> 00:01:00.640 of how to live, implications for the gospel and how we live, like what we say and how we say it, 00:01:00.920 --> 00:01:07.280 how we spend our money, whether what we say we believe acts out in the way that we behave. 00:01:08.079 --> 00:01:14.280 So those kinds of things are all there in James, and today's passage speaks of another characteristic 00:01:14.280 --> 00:01:21.920 of living the Christian life, and that is about patience and perseverance. I know the youth are 00:01:21.920 --> 00:01:29.340 with us today. Well, just a tip. As you get older, patience and perseverance do not get easier, 00:01:29.340 --> 00:01:37.299 but we all need to learn, and delighted to have the younger ones, the youth, with us today. So 00:01:37.299 --> 00:01:43.820 as Florence reads, look out for two words in the reading. Look out for the words patience and 00:01:43.819 --> 00:01:50.099 steadfastness. And Florence now will read from James chapter 5. 00:01:54.519 --> 00:02:03.319 Be patient, therefore, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits 00:02:03.319 --> 00:02:12.379 for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it until it receives the early and the late 00:02:12.379 --> 00:02:23.019 rains. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble 00:02:23.019 --> 00:02:31.519 against one another, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be judged. Behold, the judge is standing 00:02:31.519 --> 00:02:41.340 at the door. As an example of suffering and patience, brothers and sisters, take the prophets who spoke in the 00:02:41.340 --> 00:02:51.280 name of the name of the Lord. Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the 00:02:51.280 --> 00:02:59.580 steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful. 00:03:00.860 --> 00:03:09.780 But above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth, 00:03:09.780 --> 00:03:21.400 or by any other oath, but let your yes be yes, and no be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation. 00:03:26.020 --> 00:03:35.520 Thanks, Florence. So, patience and perseverance. Actually, modern living doesn't equip us well to live 00:03:35.520 --> 00:03:44.379 patiently. We don't like delayed gratification. We want everything, and we want it now. Instagram, 00:03:45.320 --> 00:03:55.379 WhatsApp, Food Panda, online banking, one-click purchases, even email, all are about quick, 00:03:56.020 --> 00:04:03.520 immediate responses. Yet, so much of life is about waiting. Waiting for exam results. Waiting for the 00:04:03.520 --> 00:04:10.480 exam results. Waiting for appointments. Waiting for the bus. Waiting for promotion. Waiting for a wedding 00:04:10.480 --> 00:04:17.720 date. Waiting for the right person to turn up in your life. Waiting for a baby. Waiting is part of life, 00:04:17.780 --> 00:04:25.180 isn't it? And here, James has plenty to say about patience, about waiting, about persevering through life 00:04:25.180 --> 00:04:31.280 as we handle our stresses and our frustrations, our difficulties and disappointments. 00:04:32.079 --> 00:04:37.860 But just a caveat, as I start off. I need to say something about the scope of this talk. 00:04:38.780 --> 00:04:44.500 There are large-scale atrocities and injustices that need to be called out, 00:04:45.139 --> 00:04:51.720 but patience is not the correct response to those abuses, so I'm not talking about those today. 00:04:51.720 --> 00:04:58.380 That isn't the scope of this talk. Neither is the scope of the talk about a proper expectation of 00:04:58.380 --> 00:05:06.640 high standards or of efficiency, for example, in the workplace. And I'm not talking about how to 00:05:06.640 --> 00:05:16.100 handle bad behavior or maybe laziness on the part of others. No, today the talk, the scope is quite narrow. 00:05:16.100 --> 00:05:22.560 I'm looking at it from a personal and an individual point of view and learning, hopefully, what James 00:05:22.560 --> 00:05:29.340 has to tell us about patience and perseverance from that personal and individual basis. I'm going to do 00:05:29.340 --> 00:05:38.520 it by asking three questions. Very simple. What is patience? Why should we be patient? And how can we be patient? 00:05:38.519 --> 00:05:56.359 What is patience? Can we define patience precisely? Actually, as in many things, it's easier to explain it in the 00:05:56.359 --> 00:06:05.779 negative. My impatience is on show when I'm irritable, when I'm complaining, grumbling, restless, or giving up 00:06:05.779 --> 00:06:15.679 too easy, when I'm snappy, ungracious, or full of self-pity. We can spot impatience a mile off, but patience 00:06:15.679 --> 00:06:25.359 is quite often more difficult to observe. For example, my daughters tell me that they can see any 00:06:25.359 --> 00:06:32.439 exasperation that I'm experiencing just by one look at my face. I'm working on that one. 00:06:32.439 --> 00:06:40.939 But let's see what James has to say now about patience. He helpfully explains patience by using 00:06:40.939 --> 00:06:47.819 different words and by giving different examples of both patience and impatience. In verses 7 and 8, 00:06:47.939 --> 00:06:56.360 James simply says, be patient. This is showing forbearance, long-suffering, with the frequent ups and 00:06:56.360 --> 00:07:03.420 downs of life. Everyday living is full of frustrations and irritants. That bus that you were waiting for 00:07:03.420 --> 00:07:10.240 is late. WhatsApp is down. You can't find your keys just as you're about to leave. You caught COVID 00:07:10.240 --> 00:07:16.920 before an important exam. The money didn't come through. Plenty of irritants in life and frustrations. 00:07:16.920 --> 00:07:25.840 James tells us, be patient. Don't grumble. Be quiet and accepting. Be patient with life. 00:07:26.840 --> 00:07:36.879 To illustrate this kind of patience, this gentleness, he uses the long-suffering of a farmer. A farmer who 00:07:36.879 --> 00:07:44.300 plants his seed and then just waits, waits for the rains to come, waits for the proper rains to come 00:07:44.300 --> 00:07:49.920 at the proper time. He had confidence that as he waited patiently, the rain would come. 00:07:50.800 --> 00:07:57.280 And for that, he was using his own experience. It happened before. And he was also confident that God 00:07:57.280 --> 00:08:05.879 would bring the rain. That was James really echoing the broader promise of Scripture that when we live 00:08:05.879 --> 00:08:12.439 under the authority of God, that God does send blessings to us. And for the farmer, that means rain 00:08:12.439 --> 00:08:20.160 at the proper season, being confident that God was in control. Like the farmer who waited for the rains 00:08:20.160 --> 00:08:27.360 to come, James is saying, then you should also wait patiently for the Lord is coming. Wait for the 00:08:27.360 --> 00:08:33.279 Lord's coming. Wait patiently. So, that's the first kind of patience. Then there's a second kind of 00:08:33.279 --> 00:08:40.620 patience that James, another word James uses in verse 11 to describe a patient attitude when he talks about 00:08:40.620 --> 00:08:47.960 the steadfastness of Job. A little bit different, not quite the same. It's more nuanced. It's more 00:08:47.960 --> 00:08:56.460 about endurance or perseverance. It's endurance in the face of big problems, difficult circumstances. 00:08:57.120 --> 00:09:02.980 And in this case, James links it to suffering, where he says, as an example of suffering and patience, 00:09:02.980 --> 00:09:11.820 we consider those who remain steadfast. Verse 10. So, this is about not losing heart, not giving up. 00:09:11.940 --> 00:09:20.980 I've used the word endurance, perseverance, steadfastness. Where I come from, and many of you 00:09:20.980 --> 00:09:25.580 will know from my accent where I do come from, it's Northern Ireland, and they've got a word called 00:09:25.580 --> 00:09:32.440 stickability. You don't hear it much, but stickability is a really good description of this kind of patience 00:09:32.440 --> 00:09:38.740 that James is talking about here. It's not about losing heart. It's being patient and resilient 00:09:38.740 --> 00:09:44.960 when facing bigger issues that involve suffering. James's readers had been dispersed from Jerusalem 00:09:44.960 --> 00:09:49.860 and are now living throughout the known world, and he sends this letter to different groups of 00:09:49.860 --> 00:09:56.740 Christians who were suffering persecution from others, from the rich and from the powerful. 00:09:56.740 --> 00:10:04.639 But of course, your suffering could be a long illness. It could be a setback at work. It could be a family's 00:10:04.639 --> 00:10:11.460 estrangement. It could be not achieving your dreams. But in this kind of suffering, whatever the reason, 00:10:11.580 --> 00:10:18.779 James wants us to know that we should endure our hardships, persevere, and show patience. 00:10:18.779 --> 00:10:25.659 In verses 10 and 11, so the example of the first kind of patience was the farmer waiting for the rains. 00:10:25.980 --> 00:10:32.139 The example of the second kind of perseverance or endurance is the Old Testament prophets and Job. 00:10:32.620 --> 00:10:37.799 They were models of perseverance and endurance in the face of extremely difficult circumstances. 00:10:39.240 --> 00:10:47.019 Even through their extreme suffering, Job and the prophets remained steadfast. They didn't give up. 00:10:47.019 --> 00:10:52.559 They didn't lose heart. They didn't buckle under pressure. They saw it through to the end, 00:10:52.720 --> 00:11:01.539 and James says they were blessed. So that's another kind of patience. Tim Keller in one of his sermons 00:11:01.539 --> 00:11:11.220 on James says that these verses overall, this section, speaks to patience in life, patience with suffering, 00:11:11.220 --> 00:11:18.259 patience with others, and even patience with God. Patience with life, with others, with suffering, 00:11:18.460 --> 00:11:24.300 and with God. And I think he's right. And to properly handle what comes at us, we need to be patient both in 00:11:24.300 --> 00:11:32.100 the small things and in the bigger things too, to be long-suffering and steadfast. We need to be able to 00:11:32.100 --> 00:11:41.360 handle deliveroo getting the food order wrong or the flat tire on the car, as well as bigger issues, 00:11:41.680 --> 00:11:47.820 disappointments at work, or a serious medical diagnosis, or a relationship breakdown. 00:11:48.659 --> 00:11:56.139 So as I've said, James describes patients in two ways, two types of patients. First, gentle, serene, 00:11:56.139 --> 00:12:03.559 long-suffering, and the second, perseverance and steadfastness despite our circumstances. 00:12:04.519 --> 00:12:10.439 So if that's what patience is, then it brings us to our next question, why should we be patient? 00:12:12.639 --> 00:12:18.139 One reason James gives for being patient is straightforward enough. He says, 00:12:18.720 --> 00:12:25.980 be patient until the coming of the Lord. And again, and that was in verse 7 and verse 8, he says, 00:12:25.980 --> 00:12:33.180 be patient for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Put simply, Jesus is coming back again, 00:12:33.240 --> 00:12:39.379 and that should affect the way that we live. Let me say that again. Jesus is coming back again, 00:12:39.379 --> 00:12:47.580 and that should affect how we live. You know, as Christians, we don't talk much about the Lord's 00:12:47.580 --> 00:12:55.580 return. We celebrate Christmas, so we think of his birth. Easter, we think of his death and 00:12:55.580 --> 00:13:00.700 resurrection, and we do that when we celebrate communion as well. We're all familiar that the 00:13:00.700 --> 00:13:08.520 Lord left earth and ascended, so we've got his ascension, but we don't talk much about the Lord's 00:13:08.520 --> 00:13:15.820 return, that Jesus is coming back again. Yet he said to them, I am coming back. The angels told his 00:13:15.820 --> 00:13:21.560 disciples as they stood there looking up into the sky when he left them, that he's coming back again. 00:13:21.559 --> 00:13:31.839 And the last chapter of the Bible in Revelation 22, Jesus is recorded as saying three times, 00:13:32.219 --> 00:13:42.639 I am coming. I am coming. Surely, I am coming, he said. I am coming soon. Now, in that book, 00:13:42.939 --> 00:13:50.679 the book of Revelation, it's a strange book for modern readers. It's full of language. We're not used to 00:13:50.679 --> 00:13:58.079 apocalyptic literature. We're not used to its astonishing energy and imagery like red dragons 00:13:58.079 --> 00:14:08.579 and a slain lamb and a throne surrounded by a rainbow or four horses that are colored differently 00:14:08.579 --> 00:14:17.339 or a rider on a white horse with a sword in his mouth or golden streets in a city and gates of pearls 00:14:17.340 --> 00:14:25.480 or a nuclear type war. Revelation is a strange book. It reminds me of a story that Daryl Johnson, 00:14:25.639 --> 00:14:32.120 preacher and pastor, wrote in his commentary on Revelation. And he says, he tells a story about 00:14:32.120 --> 00:14:39.980 some seminary students, so some theological students who were renting out a gymnasium at a high school, 00:14:39.980 --> 00:14:47.399 and the janitor or the caretaker, the cleaner at the school, used to wait for them to finish their 00:14:47.399 --> 00:14:54.039 basketball game in the gym. And while he waited, he would borrow a Bible from one of the students 00:14:54.039 --> 00:15:00.840 as they played. So one day, one of the students thought, I'll ask him what he's reading. So he asked 00:15:00.840 --> 00:15:06.080 the janitor, oh, what are you reading? And he was surprised by the response he got, which was 00:15:06.080 --> 00:15:14.840 Revelation. So then he thought, well, oh yes, you're reading Revelation. Do you know what it means? 00:15:15.259 --> 00:15:22.800 And the older man said, oh yes. So then he said, well, what does it mean? And he leaned forward 00:15:22.800 --> 00:15:28.879 and looked in his eye and whispered in his ear, it means Jesus is going to win. 00:15:28.879 --> 00:15:40.860 Yes, Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Yes, he died and rose again outside Jerusalem. And yes, he is coming 00:15:40.860 --> 00:15:50.840 back. And when he comes back, he will come back as king and savior and as judge. You see, whatever 00:15:50.840 --> 00:15:58.600 wrongs need to be put right, whatever justice needs to prevail, whatever oppression needs to be 00:15:58.600 --> 00:16:07.019 overthrown will happen when Jesus returns. Christians look forward to that day. Jesus is 00:16:07.019 --> 00:16:15.800 going to win. And this is the next event in the historical salvation timetable. We've had Jesus' 00:16:15.960 --> 00:16:23.980 birth. We've had his death. We've had his resurrection. We've had his ascension. And now we wait for his 00:16:23.980 --> 00:16:29.899 return. Jesus is coming back. And that's why James wrote, the coming of the Lord is at hand. 00:16:30.420 --> 00:16:37.279 And Revelation assures us that when he comes, he will make all things new. And James says, 00:16:37.399 --> 00:16:45.580 that's a reason why you can be patient, why you can endure and live in the face of difficulties, 00:16:46.279 --> 00:16:52.440 suffering, persecution, and oppression. We don't have to take revenge on people that have done wrong 00:16:52.440 --> 00:17:01.080 to us. We don't have to get our own back or get even because Jesus is coming back. We're on his side. 00:17:01.640 --> 00:17:09.240 He's going to win. One author has put it like this. Sam Albury writes, the coming of Jesus will not 00:17:09.240 --> 00:17:17.240 merely be an in-house event for his own people by which they're able to join him for eternity. It will be 00:17:17.240 --> 00:17:25.799 a global and cataclysmic event. It will herald the judgment of all sin and the righting of all wrongs. 00:17:26.519 --> 00:17:32.380 Knowing the end with confidence makes it possible to bear something otherwise unendurable. 00:17:34.779 --> 00:17:45.140 James writes, be patient. Establish your hearts for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Verse 8. 00:17:45.140 --> 00:17:55.400 Then in verse 9, James gives us another reason for being patient. It's not quite so obvious, 00:17:55.840 --> 00:18:03.060 yet it's very relevant. Here we have the example of grumbling against another as a serious form of 00:18:03.060 --> 00:18:10.420 impatience. Grumbling. But everybody does that. It's part of being human. Yes, I get the bit about 00:18:10.420 --> 00:18:15.840 being more patient or gentle or gracious, but what's so bad about grumbling? It's human nature 00:18:15.840 --> 00:18:24.759 after all, isn't it? Why does James say that it will be judged and the judge is standing at the door 00:18:24.759 --> 00:18:31.600 as if it's just about to happen? Grumbling? I think James is putting his finger on something 00:18:31.600 --> 00:18:37.440 really important here, and we'll get to the bottom of it if we think of a few examples of our grumbling. 00:18:37.440 --> 00:18:48.180 What do we grumble about? The MTR doors closed just as I got there. That guy, he cut in right in front 00:18:48.180 --> 00:18:56.779 of me. I deserved a better grade after all the work I'd done. She doesn't understand me. 00:18:58.240 --> 00:19:05.480 He just ripped me off, that guy. Those kinds of things, everyday problems, and we grumble about them 00:19:05.480 --> 00:19:13.200 because we see them through our own lens. We see them about how it affects me, how I'm being treated, 00:19:13.380 --> 00:19:19.180 how I lost out, how I'm being disrespected, how this puts me at a disadvantage. 00:19:22.039 --> 00:19:30.299 Now, Jesus said that the two most important commandments were to love God and to love others. 00:19:30.299 --> 00:19:39.119 And when we grumble, we're not loving God or loving others. Who are we loving? I'm loving me 00:19:39.119 --> 00:19:44.879 when I'm grumbling. We're loving neither God or others. Grumbling is all about me. I'm not thinking 00:19:44.879 --> 00:19:49.799 about the other person. I'm not thinking about God's interests. When I grumble, I'm only looking 00:19:49.799 --> 00:19:56.619 after myself. I'm self-absorbed when I'm grumbling. And the more we grumble, the more we develop that 00:19:56.619 --> 00:20:02.139 pattern of looking out for our own interests instead of looking out for the interests of others. 00:20:03.959 --> 00:20:10.599 Did we even think about the other person that we grumbled about? Maybe it was their first day on the 00:20:10.599 --> 00:20:20.179 job. Maybe they're new to this. Maybe their child is sick or being bullied at school. Maybe they 00:20:20.179 --> 00:20:25.339 inadvertently sent that email when they were sitting in the doctor's surgery waiting for a report. 00:20:26.619 --> 00:20:34.419 Maybe their husband is having an affair. Consider the other person. I'm not perfect either. 00:20:35.959 --> 00:20:44.879 So James says, don't grumble. Don't concentrate only on me. Because when I grumble, it really asks the 00:20:44.879 --> 00:20:50.919 question, so who is Lord of your life, Henry? Who's in charge? Who do you say owns you, Jesus? 00:20:50.920 --> 00:20:59.200 And you're grumbling like that? Or have I taken Lordship back and now I'm in charge of my life. I'm in 00:20:59.200 --> 00:21:06.140 control again. Always finding fault. Nitpicking shows who's really in control of your life. It's you. 00:21:07.279 --> 00:21:13.360 So don't gripe all the time. Don't plot revenge, James says. Don't complain. Don't be self-absorbed. 00:21:13.359 --> 00:21:21.639 Instead, be patient. Do not grumble. The judge is standing at the door. In a nutshell then, 00:21:22.699 --> 00:21:29.399 being impatient says that I'm the most important person here. Others should be looking out for my 00:21:29.399 --> 00:21:38.459 interests. I'm the top of this pile. Don't get in my way. Bring the food on time. Make sure it's hot. 00:21:38.460 --> 00:21:46.500 And by the way, open the MTR doors again so I can get in. But that's not how a follower of Jesus 00:21:46.500 --> 00:21:55.059 ought to live. And so this brings us to the third question. How can we be patient? How then can I be 00:21:55.059 --> 00:22:01.079 patient? James says, remember the examples of Job and the prophets who showed patience in the face of 00:22:01.079 --> 00:22:09.240 suffering and opposition? The key principle here is steadfastness. Steadfastness. Other translations, 00:22:09.419 --> 00:22:17.539 English translations use the word perseverance or use the word endurance. And I've suggested we 00:22:17.539 --> 00:22:24.159 could use the word stickability. The prophets remained on the job and didn't give up. Think about 00:22:24.160 --> 00:22:31.820 Jeremiah. His job was to tell faithless the nation, faithless Israel, that God was going to judge them. 00:22:32.100 --> 00:22:37.660 And what was worse, they were going to be judged by their sworn enemies, the Babylonians, 00:22:38.180 --> 00:22:43.300 and they were going to be carried off into captivity. And the Israelites didn't like that 00:22:43.300 --> 00:22:48.580 message from Jeremiah. They thought he was a traitor. They threw him in prison and put a death 00:22:48.579 --> 00:22:55.899 sentence on his head. And James says, think about the prophets when you want to think about being 00:22:55.899 --> 00:23:06.059 steadfast. Or who else? Think about Hosea. He had the shame and pain of discovering that the woman 00:23:06.059 --> 00:23:13.839 that God had told him to marry went back to a life of prostitution. The prophets didn't have it easy. 00:23:13.839 --> 00:23:20.899 They endured in the face of suffering, but despite their personal suffering, they stood firm. They 00:23:20.899 --> 00:23:27.659 stood faithfully with God in their task. They were solid. They didn't shrink from their responsibility. 00:23:28.019 --> 00:23:33.339 They didn't lose heart. They didn't give up on God when the going got tough. What about you? 00:23:34.619 --> 00:23:43.819 What about me? When things don't go as I hoped or as I expected or as I even prayed, 00:23:43.839 --> 00:23:51.039 prayed for, do I stand firm or do I slink off? Maybe I think God has let me down, so I'll just 00:23:51.039 --> 00:23:57.119 abandon the whole thing. I'll just walk away from it, turn my back on it. But we can think about those 00:23:57.119 --> 00:24:04.659 difficulties and frustrations in another way. Perhaps this testing time, this relationship breakup, 00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:10.439 those financial losses, that illness, they're supposed to strengthen you and me. 00:24:10.440 --> 00:24:17.640 Didn't James earlier say in chapter 1, count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of 00:24:17.640 --> 00:24:27.019 various kinds? For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. Maybe those things 00:24:27.019 --> 00:24:35.519 have been given to you for a purpose. Sebastian gave us a very graphic example of that just a few 00:24:35.519 --> 00:24:42.579 minutes ago. Now, this isn't stoicism. This isn't gritting your teeth and tightening your tummy. 00:24:43.220 --> 00:24:50.139 This isn't fatalism or resignation because here God is in the picture. That's the difference. 00:24:50.859 --> 00:24:57.660 He knows what's happening. The prophets were serving God. Os Guinness, one of my favorite authors, 00:24:57.660 --> 00:25:04.680 wrote what I think is going to come up on the screen in a moment, one of my favorite quotes. 00:25:04.680 --> 00:25:15.180 It says, faith may not know why, but it knows why it trusts God who knows why. That's the difference. 00:25:16.060 --> 00:25:23.779 God is in it. We don't persevere because we're strong. It's because God is on the throne of the 00:25:23.779 --> 00:25:30.859 universe. He's sustaining us and He is with us. Therefore, what's happening is an opportunity, 00:25:31.460 --> 00:25:37.859 an opportunity for me to develop patience and endurance and steadfast under God's direction 00:25:37.859 --> 00:25:46.200 and care and love. This trial by fire, this difficulty, this relationship that's problematic, 00:25:47.000 --> 00:25:52.200 this conflict at work, this frustration, they've been measured by God and they're for my good. 00:25:52.200 --> 00:25:59.259 Paul wrote something similar when he wrote his letter to the Roman Christians. We rejoice in our 00:25:59.259 --> 00:26:06.880 sufferings knowing that suffering produces endurance and endurance produces character and character 00:26:06.880 --> 00:26:14.059 produces hope. Maybe that's why some of these things come your way so that you can have the hope 00:26:14.059 --> 00:26:20.620 that's been produced from your character, that's been produced by showing that endurance, 00:26:20.619 --> 00:26:26.879 perseverance that has been, that has come out of the suffering. And so along with the prophets, 00:26:27.000 --> 00:26:34.379 then James uses another example of perseverance and that is Job. We just had a whole series on 00:26:34.379 --> 00:26:40.659 teaching on Job. So just a quick summary here, I suppose. We discovered that Job complained a lot, 00:26:40.679 --> 00:26:47.479 but although he pleaded his blamelessness, he's a model of patience. We talk about the patience of Job 00:26:47.480 --> 00:26:57.380 after all, don't we? And he protested to God. He protested a lot. But his most outspoken utterances, 00:26:57.900 --> 00:27:05.599 while there were protests, who were they protesting to? It was to God. He was praying to God. He was 00:27:05.599 --> 00:27:13.660 asking God for help. He was asking God to intervene. He laid hold upon God. Job never abandoned God or 00:27:13.660 --> 00:27:18.660 walked away from him. In fact, Job is the one person in the Bible that tells us that it's okay to 00:27:18.660 --> 00:27:26.820 complain to God, to protest, to say, what is happening? Be with me. Give me a sense of your presence. 00:27:27.519 --> 00:27:33.120 Let me know you're here, God. Let me know you're real, because I'm going through a difficult time. But 00:27:33.120 --> 00:27:39.279 don't let go of God. It's okay to protest to God. And if you must complain to anyone, 00:27:39.279 --> 00:27:44.799 then complain to God. Listen to what Job said. These are wonderful, wonderful words. 00:27:46.379 --> 00:27:53.359 They should grip our hearts this morning. Job said, but he, God, he knows the way I take. 00:27:54.220 --> 00:28:04.759 When he has tried me, I shall come out as gold. He knows the way. God is in this. I'm involving God. 00:28:04.759 --> 00:28:11.359 I'm not being stoic or fatalistic. I'm a believer in God. And when he has tried me, 00:28:11.539 --> 00:28:20.819 I shall come forth as gold. That's patience. That's endurance. Trusting that God is in control 00:28:20.819 --> 00:28:26.960 and that under God, things will turn out for the best. Timothy Keller puts it like this, 00:28:26.960 --> 00:28:34.559 the only things faithful people can lose in suffering are things that are finally expendable. 00:28:35.559 --> 00:28:46.740 The real you, the one God is creating, cannot be harmed. That idea is steadfast faith. 00:28:47.740 --> 00:28:55.180 It's not being stoic. It's surrendering to God. Now, maybe you're thinking, oh, well, 00:28:55.180 --> 00:29:01.000 that's all good, Henry. Yeah. Take, take, take. I agree. Yeah. I'll go along with all that. When it 00:29:01.000 --> 00:29:06.720 comes to patience and perseverance, yeah, I'm not really very proud of myself. I'm like the school 00:29:06.720 --> 00:29:14.019 report that says must do better. So we think that with a bit more effort, with a bit more intentionality, 00:29:14.019 --> 00:29:23.420 a bit more self-discipline, that we, a bit more effort that we'll get there. But that's not how it works. 00:29:23.420 --> 00:29:34.100 This is not a talk on self-help or self-actualization. Patience and perseverance in life with others in 00:29:34.100 --> 00:29:44.420 suffering and even with God needs God's intervention. We can't do it by ourselves. That's why we pray when 00:29:44.420 --> 00:29:52.279 we're irritable and unpleasant and impatient, when we lose it with our children, when we say some horrible 00:29:52.279 --> 00:29:57.080 things to our spouse, or when we feel like chucking the whole, chucking the whole thing in. 00:29:58.539 --> 00:30:06.279 That's when we need to pray. That's when we need to process our struggles through prayer. And when we 00:30:06.279 --> 00:30:13.440 talk to God about it, we need to ask Him to give us the right attitude, that we will grow in gentleness 00:30:13.440 --> 00:30:25.519 and love and peace and kindness and patience. Do those words seem familiar? They're the fruit of 00:30:25.519 --> 00:30:33.299 the Spirit, aren't they? And we need God's Spirit to help us grow in patience and kindness and gentleness 00:30:33.299 --> 00:30:39.139 and goodness. In other words, in changing our attitude from self-absorption 00:30:39.139 --> 00:30:48.299 to the way God wants us to be, we need God's help. We need God's Spirit to come and act in our lives. 00:30:49.759 --> 00:30:54.220 And so that's the example of Job, the example of the prophets, 00:30:55.019 --> 00:30:59.799 like those who James refers to as waiting for Jesus' return, 00:30:59.799 --> 00:31:06.159 for the farmer who waits for the rain, then we should be all able to say, like Jeremiah, 00:31:06.539 --> 00:31:11.740 the words that are coming up now, because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed. 00:31:12.960 --> 00:31:20.740 For His compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness. 00:31:21.579 --> 00:31:28.019 I say to myself, the Lord is my portion. Therefore, I will wait for Him. 00:31:28.019 --> 00:31:34.299 The Lord is my portion. Therefore, I will wait for Him. 00:31:36.700 --> 00:31:42.859 And so after answering our three questions, I want to just pivot a little bit here to consider 00:31:42.859 --> 00:31:45.960 a Bible verse that says this, 00:31:45.960 --> 00:31:57.039 Let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith. 00:31:57.700 --> 00:31:59.440 Looking to Jesus. 00:31:59.440 --> 00:32:13.180 What do we find when we look to Him? How did He counter the taunts, the ridicule, the badgering, the scorn, the intimidation, 00:32:13.700 --> 00:32:16.180 the derision, and the torture that He faced? 00:32:17.400 --> 00:32:19.340 And so this is our last question today. 00:32:20.059 --> 00:32:21.880 How did Jesus respond? 00:32:21.880 --> 00:32:32.520 We read just immediately afterwards in Hebrews chapter 12 that it was for the joy set before Him, 00:32:33.260 --> 00:32:36.900 He endured the cross, despising the shame. 00:32:37.840 --> 00:32:44.840 He didn't call those 10,000 angels that He could have done to rescue Him from the Roman soldiers. 00:32:44.839 --> 00:32:47.720 He was patient. 00:32:48.059 --> 00:32:48.959 He endured. 00:32:50.240 --> 00:32:51.319 He was long-suffering. 00:32:52.159 --> 00:32:58.399 He fully acted out God's character that is mentioned over and over and over again in the Bible. 00:32:58.759 --> 00:33:00.619 He was slow to anger. 00:33:02.899 --> 00:33:03.899 And why? 00:33:04.679 --> 00:33:05.959 Why was Jesus like that? 00:33:06.299 --> 00:33:08.819 For the joy set before Him. 00:33:09.139 --> 00:33:09.720 What joy? 00:33:09.720 --> 00:33:14.559 What joy is there going to a Roman crucifixion? 00:33:15.240 --> 00:33:18.519 What joy is there to be brutally put to death? 00:33:19.500 --> 00:33:21.240 What joy did He anticipate? 00:33:23.319 --> 00:33:31.839 The joy of having you and me by His side in heaven, in His kingdom. 00:33:32.620 --> 00:33:37.500 The joy of redeeming a multitude of people for Himself. 00:33:37.500 --> 00:33:43.299 The joy of bringing many sons and daughters to glory. 00:33:44.720 --> 00:33:51.940 He showed patience, restraint, endurance for you and for me. 00:33:53.519 --> 00:34:00.319 And perhaps in the end, this is the greatest reason of all for showing patience and perseverance. 00:34:01.039 --> 00:34:06.839 For not being impatient and not losing heart when it comes to life and to others. 00:34:07.500 --> 00:34:09.480 And to suffering and to God. 00:34:10.420 --> 00:34:14.000 When we're impatient, restless, grumbling, complaining. 00:34:14.340 --> 00:34:15.619 We've allowed our ego. 00:34:15.840 --> 00:34:16.820 It's all about me. 00:34:17.460 --> 00:34:18.920 To have the upper hand. 00:34:18.920 --> 00:34:31.380 What do our spouses, our children, our colleagues, our neighbors, our casual acquaintances think when we have a meltdown? 00:34:32.220 --> 00:34:33.400 When we lose it? 00:34:34.079 --> 00:34:35.200 When we swear? 00:34:35.900 --> 00:34:39.260 When we can't keep our tongues from saying toxic things? 00:34:39.260 --> 00:34:44.240 Well, they certainly don't think there's someone that belongs to Christ. 00:34:44.660 --> 00:34:49.200 There's a person who shows Christ's humility, the kindness and love of Jesus. 00:34:50.560 --> 00:34:54.660 Verse 12, and this is the last verse and we're coming toward the end. 00:34:55.500 --> 00:34:58.020 Verse 12 in our passage today. 00:34:58.660 --> 00:34:59.360 James says, 00:34:59.360 --> 00:35:02.480 Let your yes be yes and your no be no. 00:35:02.740 --> 00:35:05.860 So that you will not fall under condemnation. 00:35:06.460 --> 00:35:08.800 There's the judge standing at the door again. 00:35:09.340 --> 00:35:10.059 Condemnation. 00:35:10.539 --> 00:35:11.740 Hey, it's just what I'm saying. 00:35:12.099 --> 00:35:13.360 It's just the odd grumble. 00:35:13.920 --> 00:35:14.360 It's the... 00:35:15.019 --> 00:35:16.360 It's... 00:35:16.360 --> 00:35:18.240 But what is it? 00:35:19.039 --> 00:35:20.099 Rash speech. 00:35:20.620 --> 00:35:21.099 Swearing. 00:35:21.380 --> 00:35:22.420 Harsh, angry words. 00:35:22.780 --> 00:35:25.720 And impatient grumbling have the capacity to spoil everything. 00:35:25.719 --> 00:35:31.359 Jesus said that as we speak out of the abundance of our hearts. 00:35:31.599 --> 00:35:34.500 So what comes out is what is really inside. 00:35:35.279 --> 00:35:37.399 What do your words say about you? 00:35:38.239 --> 00:35:41.559 James is trying to get us to look inside and to see ourselves. 00:35:41.759 --> 00:35:42.619 To self-examine. 00:35:42.980 --> 00:35:46.000 To see why we are impatient and why we lose heart. 00:35:46.539 --> 00:35:50.639 Is my trust in God or have I taken over control of my life again? 00:35:50.639 --> 00:35:52.679 To see why... 00:35:52.679 --> 00:35:57.079 To see that what is inside isn't really very nice. 00:35:57.719 --> 00:35:59.019 It needs to be changed. 00:35:59.359 --> 00:36:03.799 And it needs God's help and God's intervention to change it. 00:36:04.859 --> 00:36:07.799 And so, am I looking forward to Christ's return? 00:36:08.480 --> 00:36:09.859 Am I one of the redeemed? 00:36:10.759 --> 00:36:12.839 If I am, my life should show it. 00:36:13.519 --> 00:36:18.719 As we finish, let me just summarize what we've learned from James this morning. 00:36:18.719 --> 00:36:25.299 We know that the big picture is that Jesus is coming back and he will set everything right. 00:36:26.679 --> 00:36:27.959 Jesus is going to win. 00:36:30.079 --> 00:36:38.539 We know that on the cross, Jesus was slow to anger when he prayed for his executioners. 00:36:38.539 --> 00:36:46.500 We know that in the face of frustrations and suffering and stress, we should be long-suffering and steadfast. 00:36:46.940 --> 00:36:49.679 That we're not the most important person on the planet. 00:36:51.719 --> 00:37:01.639 We know that we need to process our disappointments and our frustrations, our stresses, and our suffering through prayer. 00:37:01.639 --> 00:37:07.000 And most of all, we need to want to become like Jesus. 00:37:07.539 --> 00:37:10.420 To be patient and steadfast like him. 00:37:11.319 --> 00:37:14.839 And so, we look to him if we belong to him. 00:37:15.639 --> 00:37:18.239 To be patient like he was and endure. 00:37:19.019 --> 00:37:24.879 Because in him we see love and patience and kindness and goodness and gentleness. 00:37:24.880 --> 00:37:27.079 And we want to please him. 00:37:29.160 --> 00:37:34.480 I don't know where each of you is on your spiritual journey. 00:37:35.160 --> 00:37:40.320 Whether you would say, I've known Jesus all my life and I trust him. 00:37:41.440 --> 00:37:46.559 Or whether you're still on that journey wondering about faith in Jesus. 00:37:48.200 --> 00:37:51.559 Or whether you've been there and you're thinking about abandoning it. 00:37:52.079 --> 00:37:53.700 I don't know where you are in the journey. 00:37:53.699 --> 00:37:58.460 James tells us to be patient and to be steadfast. 00:37:58.819 --> 00:38:01.919 So, I'm going to put up some reflection points on the screen. 00:38:02.659 --> 00:38:07.799 And then after that, Julian will come and lead us in another song. 00:38:09.039 --> 00:38:10.299 Points for reflection. 00:38:11.480 --> 00:38:16.839 Whether you're on that journey of faith, just started out on it, or aren't quite there yet. 00:38:17.259 --> 00:38:20.199 How am I doing in patience and perseverance? 00:38:20.199 --> 00:38:25.960 Will I pray to God for help and transformation in my life? 00:38:27.079 --> 00:38:33.279 And lastly, am I looking to Jesus, eagerly awaiting his return? 00:38:34.000 --> 00:38:35.179 One final word. 00:38:36.039 --> 00:38:43.179 The second last verse in the Bible, in the book of Revelation, is the word Maranatha. 00:38:43.179 --> 00:38:45.579 And it's John who is writing. 00:38:46.139 --> 00:38:48.519 And John is saying these words. 00:38:49.239 --> 00:38:50.899 Come, Lord Jesus. 00:38:51.779 --> 00:38:54.119 May that be our prayer today as well. 00:38:54.319 --> 00:38:54.799 Thank you. 00:38:54.800 --> 00:38:56.340 Thank you. 00:38:56.340 --> 00:39:09.300 Thanks, God.