Jesus is coming again in glory. He who died upon the cross for our sins and rose from the grave has promised that He will be back. He will come down as Judge to bring us up to paradise. In the meantime… 

WE WAIT FOR THE SALVATION OF THE LORD

We wait like a farmer with a heart strengthened in faith. James says, “See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”

Farmers depend on God for rain—especially farmers at the time this letter was written. Today, farmers have helpful modern equipment and technologies that didn’t exist in the first century AD. Whether a farmer has modern tech or not, all farmers do the same thing. They plant seeds and wait patiently for the rain to come at the proper time. They have no other choice. It’s out of their control. The growth of crops (daily bread) is a gift from our compassionate and merciful Lord.

What a great analogy as we wait for the Lord’s return! We wait like a farmer. As a farmer waits patiently for the rains to come at the right time, so we wait for the right time when Jesus will descend to bring us to paradise. Following His ascension into heaven, the Church prays for Jesus’ return. We wait eagerly, expectantly, and… patiently.

Our patience flows from the Lord’s own patience. God is holding off on judgment so that sinners may hear the Good News of salvation and be delivered from judgment. When the Gospel has been proclaimed everywhere and the last person who will believe comes to faith, then the Lord will arrive. That’s out of our control. So, we wait patiently.

Patience is faith waiting for God’s promises to be fulfilled. Patience is hard. If you’re like me, you often find yourself impatient with many things. Maybe you’ve heard the joke: “God, give me patience, and hurry!” Impatience is a sin born out of selfishness. It reveals a “me first” attitude that can’t wait on anyone or anything else—even God. Impatience comes out of our sinful hearts most often when things seem to go wrong in our lives, when suffering and affliction burdens us. Impatience can lead us to blame God and reject Him. 

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we don’t come up with patience on our own. The Bible identifies patience as a fruit of the Holy Spirit. It’s a gift from the Holy Spirit because it’s tied directly to faith. Patience is faith waiting for God’s promises to be fulfilled. It flows from a heart established in faith. The Holy Spirit makes our hearts firm and confident in the Lord’s promises of forgiveness, life, and salvation—even when suffering, affliction, and all kinds of horrible things burden us. The Lord strengthens our hearts through the Good News of salvation so that we patiently endure suffering, looking forward to Jesus’ return.

We wait without grumbling against one another. James says, “Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.”

The sin of impatience can lead us to blame God or others for our afflictions. We may take our afflictions out on God and others in the form of grumbling. Think of the Christmas season as one example. It’s such a stressful time. We may sinfully allow the worst of impatience to come out in grumbling against others. We might grumble against those who elbow us, shove us out of the way, or cut in line only to have them fumble with their money or make idle chit chat at the register while the line grows longer. Impatience might boil over when we get behind a slow car or someone cuts us off just to turn a few seconds later. These are just little impatient moments. What happens with important stuff?

James warns that grumbling (especially grumbling against our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ) may cause God’s judgment to come upon us. Our grumblings and complaints against each other are petty in comparison with the legitimate complaint that God can make against us. We are by nature sinful and unclean. Our hearts are tempted by nature to trust and worship pretty much anything else except the God we should trust and worship. Yet, the Lord practices patience—saving us from our sins through the precious blood of Christ. Likewise, we should be patient with others for whom Christ Jesus has died.

The temptation to grumble against others is strong. It’s so easy to whine and complain every moment of every day. Not grumbling is hard, because it’s an aspect of patience. Grumbling is impatience in action. It’s the selfish complaint that others aren’t doing what we want.

The opposite of grumbling is to speak well of others. This is an act of love. Instead of seeking our own wants and desires, grumbling when we don’t get our way, we seek the benefit of others. We serve others as Jesus has served us—without grumbling, but with thankfulness in our hearts. Peter says, “Love covers a multitude of sins.” He says, “Cut each other slack.” We don’t have to grumble about everything. Love bears all things, so that instead of complaining we may speak well of others.

Like patience, love is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. It’s the work of the Spirit within us. We don’t come up with love on our own, but it flows out of Jesus’ love for us, as He has loved us by laying down His life on the cross for our sins. The Bible says, “We love because He first loved us.” Our ability to love comes from the Holy Spirit who creates faith in our hearts that clings to the love of Jesus and seeks to live it out. Love for others is faith copying Jesus’ love for us. Love leaves no room for grumbling or complaining. It seeks the best for each other.

We wait like the prophets and Job. James says, “As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.”

James leads us into the living and active Word of the Lord. God’s Word fills us with patience, established hearts, and a love for one another through many promises: the forgiveness of sins, salvation, eternal life, Jesus' return, and fellowship with all the heavenly host in the kingdom of God. The Word of the Lord fills us with peace, hope, and joy that abounds in patience, strengthened faith, and love.

We hear examples of this in the lives of God's messengers like the prophets. They warned of God’s judgment and proclaimed His mercy and compassion in very hostile environments. Prophets tended to be rejected, threatened, and put to death for speaking in the name of the Lord, because many people refused to listen. The prophets endured suffering patiently, knowing that they were working unto the Lord—calling people blind in sin and the darkness of death to repentance.

James mentions Job as another example of patience and an established heart in the midst of suffering and affliction. He lost his children, his employees, his wealth, and his health. He lost everything except his life, his wife, and some friends. But he suffered so much that he wanted to die. His wife wanted him to curse God and die. His friends thought that he really must have made God mad. Job endured all of these things patiently—struggling with it as we all do.

The Lord gives us opportunities to practice patience, by which He grows us spiritually as He strengthens us through His Word and Spirit.

The Lord’s will is made known through the endurance of the prophets. The Lord’s will is made known through the endurance of Job. The Lord’s will is revealed in the endurance of our Lord Jesus Christ. God’s compassionate, merciful, and gracious heart (His underserved kindness) is made known through the Good News of salvation from sin, death, hell, the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh. Jesus patiently bore our sins on the cross to give us life in His name.

In the midst of his suffering, Job made a confession born of patience and steadfastness: “I know that my Redeemer lives!” The same Redeemer was proclaimed by the prophets. The same Redeemer forgives your sins and promises you eternal life in paradise. Job's living Redeemer is your living Redeemer: Christ Jesus, the Savior and Judge. Through His death and resurrection for you, you have forgiveness and pardon, as you are kept remaining steadfast in Him. Amen.