“Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. 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. Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door. 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 5:7-11 ESV)
The verses preceding this section of verses was about the self-indulgent who took advantage of the poor, the weak, the helpless, and the less fortunate. They took advantage of the laborers who worked for them and they did not pay them adequately or at all for the work that they did for them. They also condemned and murdered the righteous person who did not resist them. So they were liars, abusers, and those who took advantage of others, and they were persecutors and murderers of those who were living for the Lord.
And so the encouragement here, for those of us of genuine walks of faith in the Lord Jesus, is to be patient in tribulation and when being persecuted for righteousness’ sake. We are to be patient in tribulation until the coming of the Lord, or until we leave this earth through physical death. We are to be patient, too, with regard to seeing our friends and family and other loved ones come to genuine walks of faith and obedience to our Lord but who are still walking in sin and in self-indulgence. And that takes patience.
And we are to be patient, too, with regard to the adulterous flesh-driven and market-driven “churches” of today which so many professers of faith in Jesus Christ are party to and are active participants in, but which are not following after Jesus Christ and his word and his will for his church, the body of Christ. For they are not being led by the Holy Spirit, but they have driven the Holy Spirit right out of their gatherings in order to cater to the felt needs of the ungodly and in order to not offend human flesh.
Now, this is not saying that we cannot address these issues from a biblical perspective or that we cannot call for repentance and changed hearts and minds, or that we cannot point out the fallacies of what so many are teaching today in the name of Christ and in the name of the gospel. We can and we ought to, and we are called to do so. We are not only not to participate in the fruitless deeds of darkness, but we are to expose them for what they are, and we are to point out the errors of men of lawlessness.
But we are not to purposefully try to pick fights with one another just for the sake of argument. We are not to engage in foolish and pointless arguments. So we need to guard our hearts and minds against being baited by others into getting into arguments that go nowhere good, and that produce nothing of value. We need to be wise and discerning to recognize when we are being baited and to not take the bait. Yes, we can have healthy and productive conversations, but we must guard against the unhealthy ones.
And if we are Christians who take our calling from God seriously, and so we are taking the message of the gospel to the ends of the earth, and so we are sharing the truth of the Scriptures in context, and so we are refuting the lies of the enemy, we are going to be hated and persecuted, rejected and despised, forgotten and forsaken, mocked and laughed at, cast aside as unwanted, and treated like dirt under other people’s feet for them to stomp on. Most will probably just ignore us and disregard us altogether.
So we need to be patient and steadfast in the Lord, and not ever give up hope no matter how bad or how hard things get for us, for they will get worse. The Bible says that they will. And that is just the reality that we must face. For if we do not face that reality, we will not survive when things get much worse, and they are certainly working their way in that direction. Thus, we cannot live in a bubble of stuff that makes us feel good all the time, for that is not reality, and that bubble is going to burst one day.
[Matt 5:10-12; Matt 10:16-25; Matt 24:9-14; Luke 6:22-23; Luke 12:49-53; Luke 21:12-19; John 15:1-21; John 16:33; John 17:14; Acts 14:22; Rom 5:3-5; Eph 6:10-20; Phil 3:7-11; 1 Pet 1:6-7; 1 Pet 4:12-17; 2 Tim 3:12; 1 Thess 3:1-5; Jas 1:2-4; 2 Co 1:3-11; Heb 12:3-12; 1 Jn 3:13; Rev 6:9-11; Rev 7:9-17; Rev 11:1-3; Rev 12:17; Rev 13:1-18; Rev 14:1-13]
My Sheep
An Original Work / June 24, 2012
Based off John 10:1-30 NIV
My sheep hear me. They know me.
They listen to my voice and obey.
I call them and lead them.
They know my voice, so they follow me.
They will never follow strangers.
They will run away from them.
The voice of a stranger they know not;
They do not follow him.
So, I tell you the truth that
I am the gate, so you enter in.
Whoever does enter
Will find forgiveness and will be saved.
Nonetheless whoever enters
Not by the gate; other way,
He is the thief and a robber.
Listen not, the sheep to him.
Oh, I am the Good Shepherd,
Who laid his own life down for the sheep.
I know them. They know me.
They will live with me eternally.
The thief only comes to steal and
Kill and to destroy the church.
I have come to give you life that
You may have it to the full…
They know my voice, so they follow me.
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