A Faith That Works (15)
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There was a boy who asked a girl to the school dance…
She agreed… so he went to rent a tux, but the rental store had a long line… so he waited and waited, and finally got his suit…
Then he decided to get flowers, but the flower shop had a long line… so he waited and waited, and finally, got his flowers…
He picked her up and they got to the dance, but there was a long line to get in… so they waited and waited, and finally… they got in…
He asked her if she’d like something to drink… She asked for punch…
So he went to the punch table… and thankfully there was no punch line!!!
Ok, ok… I know… that was a bad dad joke!
But…
Do you realize how much of our lives we spend waiting?
It is estimated that we spend about 1/3 of our waking hours … waiting!
— waiting in line
— waiting on traffic
— waiting at the doctor’s office
— waiting for a phone call
— waiting for test results
— waiting to graduate
— waiting to get a job
— waiting for the right man (or woman)
— waiting to start a family
— waiting to buy a house
— waiting to retire
— waiting.......
We wait a lot!!!
But… have you noticed the one type of waiting that we don’t like… and usually refuse to do (or at least complain about the most)?
Waiting on God… Spiritual waiting…
— Waiting for our loved ones to come to Christ…
— Waiting for the prodigal to come home…
— Waiting for God to answer a prayer…
— Waiting for Christ to return…
We will wait for that promotion at work… we will wait in line for those tickets… or that sale price… we want, but… we don’t like to wait on God!
Many of us would rather do the wrong thing than wait. because at least then we are doing something…
31 but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.
and then 41:1 says:
1 Listen to me in silence, O coastlands; let the peoples renew their strength; let them approach, then let them speak; let us together draw near for judgment.
Listen… One of the secrets to life… is learning to wait in the right way.
We are told all the time to “wait on the Lord”…
But… What is waiting? What does it mean to wait?
We might think that it is nothing more than passive resignation… or giving in to our circumstances… throwing up our hands in despair and walking off the field…
Many of us don’t wait for the Lord, because we think “waiting” is giving up… that we have to “do something” about it…
But… From a Biblical perspective, waiting isn’t “passive”… It is the most proactive thing we can do!
To “wait” on the Lord means to TRUST Him… and to get out of the way so He can act.
22 There they strengthened the souls of the disciples and encouraged them to continue in the faith, saying, “It is through many persecutions that we must enter the kingdom of God.”
Why must we wait? Why does scripture repeatedly tell us to “patiently endure” the hardships we face?
Because… Patient Endurance produces strong Faith.
12 Blessed is anyone who endures temptation. Such a one has stood the test and will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
A Faith That Works… Trusts God!
When Jesus stood before His accusers, He did not retaliate, He waited on His Father to accomplish His purposes… He waited for His Father to dole out justice and mercy.
Is that what we do?!?
Do we wait on God… KNOWING that He will dole out justice and mercy in our situation?
One of the marks of Christianity — one of the things that sets Christians apart from the rest of the world — is patience.
22 By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.
Patience is right there! Right there in the middle… Right there in the midst of those characteristics that are supposed to characterize Christians!
Michael Walters says: “If materialism and its accompanying dangers are barriers to true religion, so is impatience.”
But, What is patience? (I think we really need to understand it)
Warren Weirsbe states: “Patience means ‘to stay put and stand fast when you’d like to run away.”
You see… instead of running away… instead of avoiding the situation, or trying to escape it… we stay… we “stand fast” and wait on God!
Psalm 46:10 (NRSV)
10 “Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”
For James… a lack of patience means a lack of maturity… a lack of control and dedication… a lack of True Faith!
Keep in mind… James is writing to believers in the first century… these were people who were poor, struggling, and suffering… they were scattered across the Roman Empire.
These Christians had been (and were being) abused, lied to, misused, and exploited…
They were at the mercy of the rich and powerful… who both figuratively and literally “got away with murder.”
And there was nothing they could do about it!
You can bet… They were asking, “Why does a “loving” God allow this?”
Everything James has dealt with in this letter deals with this issue… everything written here is meant to help them — to help us — develop a Faith That Works! A Faith that carries us through the darkest trials of life in this world!
If you think that God has abandoned you… that He doesn’t care about your situation… You Are Wrong!
God gives us the guidance… the encouragement… the answers we need to face any situation this world throws at us!
He didn’t abandon Daniel… he didn’t abandon Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and He won’t abandon you!
What does the Word of God say to those who are cheated?
How do we respond in a Godly fashion when we are mistreated?
How do we keep our faith alive when hard times hit and we cannot see the “light at the end of the tunnel”?
James says, “Learn to wait on the Lord.”
The operative word is “learn”.
Waiting does not come naturally… or easily.
No one wants to wait when our loved ones are suffering…Or, when we are being cheated…
Yet, often, that is what we must do.
Sooner or later, we have to come to grips with the FACT that Life isn’t Fair!
And… that unfairness makes us want to shout, “I didn’t sign up for this!”
(In fact, that is why a lot of people leave the church… )
The Truth is: We did sign up for this!
When we became Christians… when we gave our lives to Christ… we did “sign up for this.”
We told God that we would TRUST Him.
We told God that we would FOLLOW Him… that He would have ALL of us!
That means that we MUST have patience.
Let me tell you something… you see we often make a mistake… we pray for patience…
We shouldn’t PRAY for patience… we should PRACTICE patience.
But how? How do we PRACTICE patience?
I. Wait Expectantly
7 Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains.
8 You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near.
James tells us to consider the farmer.
Farming is a noble profession, wouldn’t you agree?
We wouldn’t eat without farmers to grow crops and tend the herds.
Farming is hard work… which is why not many people want to do it today!
Today… Farmers must be economists, financiers, business executives, and computer experts… as well as knowing how to grow crops and tend herds…
Farmers have to have an “extra dose” of patience… because impatience will cause them to lose…
James says “think about the farmer”… “He waits expectantly for the rain”…
— He digs the ground and prepares the soil…
— He plants the seed… and pulls the weeds…
Then he waits.
That’s all he can do… He cannot make the rain come any sooner… He MUST TRUST that eventually the rain will come… and the seed will grow.
The key word is “eventually.”
Eventually — expresses our hope and expectation.
Eventually… means not today, and maybe not tomorrow, maybe not even next week, or next month … BUT… IT - WILL - COME!
Eventually mean that … sooner or later… the thing we are waiting on will happen.
James says, “Be Patient.”
The word he uses is makrothymesate it is sometimes translated: “longsuffering”
We don’t really like that word, do we?
No one wants to suffer… especially not for a long time!
We might be ok with “short suffering,” but we don’t want anything to do with “long suffering”…
Look back at the farmer…
He endures droughts… bug infestations… hailstorms… and animals eating his crops…
He might be attacked by robbers and thieves… or vandals…
He has to endure calls from the banks and creditors… bills being past due… the threat of foreclosure…
But still he endures… because he knows the rain will come… and there will be a profit in the end.
Weirsbe asks: “Why would he be willing to wait so long?”
The harvest is worth waiting for.
9 So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.
Look at verse 8
8 You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near.
James tells us to “strengthen our hearts”.
“Strengthen” means “to fix… make fast… immovable.”
It describes a person who is so certain about the future that he cannot be moved by the troubles of the present.
Is that where your faith is?
Are you so certain about your future in the Kingdom of God that you cannot be moved from your Faith by the present?
You see… We must learn how to do that — how to strengthen our hearts — when hard times come.
James says there is a reason we need to strengthen our hearts and hold fast… The Lord’s coming is near!
James 5:8 (NRSV)
8 You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near.
Jesus is coming soon!
8 I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”
Notice — It is not a question of “if” He will return, but “when” He will return…
When He returns will we be recognizable as His Children?
2,000 years have passed since Jesus went to Heaven… some of God’s children feel weary… we might even wonder why Jesus hasn’t come back yet…
We struggle with the verses that said that “this generation would not pass before they saw Him come into His glory”…
Regardless of how we feel, or what we think about those scriptures… We MUST wait EXPECTANTLY!
Jesus has not forgotten us… He has not made other plans…
Look back at the farmer — he does not stand around doing nothing: He is constantly at work… looking toward the harvest!
James tells us to do the same thing… Keep working and waiting… Keep serving…
43 Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives.
Jesus said that He would come back — He WILL!
And when He does, He will set things right!
Our job is to wait expectantly.
II. Wait Graciously.
9 Beloved, do not grumble against one another, so that you may not be judged. See, the Judge is standing at the doors!
This is a warning we ALL need to heed.
We can state it this way: Watch Your Mouth!
When you are tired… when you are scared… when you are angry… watch your mouth!
When you feel backed into a corner… when your life tumbles around you… when you are betrayed, attacked, harassed, lied to, and lied about … when your world turns upside down… Watch your mouth!
The word translated “complain” or “grumble” is stenadzein it means “to groan or to sigh; to grumble; to complain.”
It’s what we tend to do when we’ve had enough… when we don’t feel like taking it anymore.
Our spirit becomes upset and overwhelmed… we sigh inwardly and outwardly… the pressure mounts… and we move into attack mode!
We grumble against our brothers and sisters… we grumble against God…
They have it easy.
They have more money.
They are happily married.
They have perfect children. (lol)
They don’t treat me right… or looked at me wrong.
and on and on it goes…
We even blame them for the problems within the church!
When we are tired… when we are scared… when we are angry… it is easy to get hypercritical of the people we love the most.
It’s odd how that works, isn’t it?
— If we walk down the street and someone insults us… we are apt to just laugh it off…
But… let our spouse say or do the wrong thing… or let our kids get on “our last nerve”… or our friends at church, or the pastor, not respond the way we want them to… and what happens then?!?
We blow our top!
We lose our cool!
We say something totally stupid!
Let me tell you: If we are looking for a reason to grumble — to complain — then we will find one.
Our friends will let us down…
Our spouse will get on our nerves…
Our kids will “drive us up the wall”…
Guess what? We will too.
How much of our “grumbling” is because of ourselves?
— because of “lukewarmness”… liberalness… rigidity… overzealousness… pride… ego… etc…
Grumbling and Complaining DESTROYS!
It destroys our relationships with each other!
And… It hinders our relationship with God!
James 5:9 (NRSV)
9 Beloved, do not grumble against one another, so that you may not be judged. See, the Judge is standing at the doors!
James says: Do not complain “or you will be judged.”
Judged by whom?
Unfortunately by everyone… but there is one we should be concerned with — GOD!
God is the ONLY Judge!
Pastor David Owens says: “We’re all familiar with the image of Christ standing at the door, knocking and waiting for us to open the door (Rev. 3:20). It’s a beautiful picture of the Lord waiting to enter and have fellowship with us. James gives us the ‘flip side’ of that scene.”
Christ stands at the door, ready to come in, and judge the judger.
1 “Do not judge, so that you may not be judged.
2 For with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get.
Christ will personally expose our critical spirit… our bitter words… and all the inward sighs we thought no one would notice.
Grumblers will answer to the Lord.
So, here’s the question: “Can I, with God’s help, maintain a gentle and gracious spirit when hard times hit?”
Can I smile in the fiery furnace?
Can I laugh at the Lion’s Den?
Maybe not… but, can I at least refrain from snapping at my loved ones?
Let me tell you: Nothing destroys Christian unity quicker than a complaining and grumbling spirit.
How many churches have split… how many ministries ruined… how many servants of God have been injured because of the thoughtless grumbling of other believers?
— Because of “blaming” others out of impatience?
When hard times hit, we must first wait expectantly, second wait graciously, and third…
III. Wait Patiently.
10 As an example of suffering and patience, beloved, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.
11 Indeed we call blessed those who showed endurance. You have heard of the endurance of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
Ray Pritchard said: “Sometimes victory looks like survival, and survival looks like victory.”
Sometimes the only thing we can do is hunker down and hang on!
That is why God blesses those who persevere; those who patiently endure.
The Lord honors FAITH, when it is easier to walk away.
What is FAITH?
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Notice — it does not say “believing in things unseen”… Faith is “the ASSURANCE of things hoped for.”
James says “Look at the prophets.”
“They spoke in the name of the Lord, but what happened to them?”
“They were maligned… attacked… criticized… even killed.”
Look at what Elijah said when questioned by God:
1 Kings 19:10 (NRSV)
10 He answered, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.”
The writer of Hebrews points to others:
35 Women received their dead by resurrection. Others were tortured, refusing to accept release, in order to obtain a better resurrection.
36 Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.
37 They were stoned to death, they were sawn in two, they were killed by the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, persecuted, tormented—
38 of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.
Who were these “others”?
— They are the men and women who would not bend a knee to baal.
— They are Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego… who would not kneel before the golden image…
— They are ALL the saints of ALL the ages… who regarded FAITH in God as worth far more than life itself!
— They are the believers in Afghanistan, Nigeria, India, and China… who at this moment are being harassed, beaten, and killed because of their FAITH in Christ.
James gives us the best example…
11 Indeed we call blessed those who showed endurance. You have heard of the endurance of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
You remember Job… he was a righteous man, whose soul was put to the test through the waves of hardship that hit him one after the other…
He was cast down… discouraged… but he never gave up his FAITH.
Even when his wife told him to “curse God and die”… he chose to bless the name of God instead…
How did the prophets survive?
How did Job survive?
They survived… with their FAITH intact… because they knew who God is!
Everything in life comes down to one question: “Who is God to you?”
— Is He just some invisible being bent on playing games with your life? Having a good laugh?
— Is He far off and unreachable?
— or, Is He a personal God, who loves you deeply and will never let anything destroy you?
Job and the Prophets understood: “The Lord is full of compassion and mercy” (v. 11)
That phrase “full of compassion and mercy” (NIV) translates a Greek word that is only used once in the NT.
“Polysplagchnos” — “Rich in compassion” - “very compassionate, full of mercy” - “great affection and compassion.”
We could translate it as “exceedingly compassionate” or “full of tenderness.”
Remember that Job ended up with more than he started with… but he had to go through a terrible trial to receive it.
The prophets also suffered in the name of the Lord.
Sometimes they received their reward in this life… but more often it came in the next life… as they saw their Lord face to face.
And we will see Him too!
But it depends on how we handle hard times…
Over and over in scripture, we are told to “patiently endure”… to “hold on to our Faith”…
We WILL face hard times.
What will we do when those hard times hit?
It all depends on our view of God.
Do we TRULY believe in and trust that our God is full of tenderness and overflowing with mercy?
If that is our view of God… then when hard times knock us down… we know that we won’t stay down forever, the Lord WILL pick us up!
Sometimes victory looks like survival, and survival looks like victory!
James offers his readers a way out of their troubles.
He doesn’t say: “Pray this prayer, and your troubles will vanish.” James is too honest for that.
There is no quick fix!
Life isn’t fair ands sometimes we can’t do anything about it… But, We can control how we respond!
A Faith That Works… TRUSTS God COMPLETELY!
If we believe that the God of the universe is in control of our lives… that our enemies cannot trouble us without His permission… that He is full of marcy and compassion… that Jesus is coming back soon… then we will find a way to hang on and wait expectantly.
We will find a way to keep from complaining and grumbling.
We will find a way to stand firm in the Lord and wait patiently.
WHY? Because we KNOW the Lord!
12 Above all, my beloved, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “Yes” be yes and your “No” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.
James is saying: “Don’t be fake… live your life according to your FAITH!”
Life is all about learning to wait on the Lord.
Our duty is to trust and obey God.
— that means completely surrendering to Him.
— Just like Job.
Surrendering to God means that we declare: “I know God is going to resolve this situation. I don’t know how, and I don’t know when, but I know He IS going to do it. I’m not giving up. I’m not running away. I’m waiting on Him.”
It means proclaiming (and meaning it!) with Job:
15 Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him; I will surely defend my ways to his face.
Do you SEE what that says?
That says: I know where I am going to be… I know who my God is… and I will see Him FACE-TO-FACE!
Patient endurance is not easy… but we know that “the Lord is full of compassion and mercy”… that He loves us… and that He will reward our patience and faithfulness.