It has been said that faith and patience are the perfect twins.
I tend to believe that.
We know that faith worketh by love according to Galatians 5:5-6.
If there is no love, there is no faith and vice-versa.
When teaching about the Gifts of the Spirit (see The Holy Spirit and His Gifts), Paul talked about love, saying-
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.
It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.
Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
It would seem therefore that Faith, Love and Patience are closely aligned. This page discusses the attribute of patience.
What is patience
Consider it wholly joyful, my brethren, whenever you are enveloped in or encounter trials of any sort or fall into various temptations.
Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and steadfastness and patience.
But let endurance and steadfastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work, so that you may be [people] perfectly and fully developed [with no defects], lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4.
The attribute of patience is most likely nothing near what you thought it was.
Most people think that we have to grin and bear it when things go wrong, or something did not turn out as they had wished. Perhaps they had asked for prayer regarding sickness, so when the symptoms remain, think that they never got healed and so ask God to give them patience to endure it!
That is completely wrong and contrary to the mind and will of God according to His Word!
One of God's passionate desires for you is to live in Divine health and lack for nothing. There are scores of scriptures to back up my statement, but look at what John said about the matter.
Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even as thou walkest in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth. 3 John 1:2-4.
Walking in divine health and living prosperously is walking in the truth! It is impossible to give God glory in poverty or sickness. No one can support the ministry... any ministry if they are broke! It takes money to preach the gospel. Someone has to pay the bills. My web site and creating the teachings I share around the world for example, does not come cheaply. The factors involved are many and varied, ranging from the costs of the computer hardware, the software, a connection to the internet, web site hosting and more and I am pleased to do this, but if I was poor in the way religion teaches, you would not be reading this now!
I must point out here that walking in faith is also practical. Many people get “too spiritual” and ignore the signs that our bodies tell us. If you are tired, then you are tired, so listen to that your body tells you and go to sleep! Drink plenty of water. Eat good food. If you get sick, because you abuse your body, that is not an evil spirit or a “lack of faith”—the machine needs maintenance!
Please also remember that you could be “believing for something” that God did not ask you to believe for. If it didn’t happen, that does not always mean your faith is a fake, you might be putting your faith, trust and confidence in something that God did not initiate! Don’t “waste your faith” and become disillusioned. Check it out with God!
Getting back to the point of sickness. Religious folk say that they did not get their healing, so opt for second best, asking God to give them patience to endure it. That is totally wrong!
If they need employment and cannot get a job, they ask God to help them to last the distance. We are not supposed to last the distance! We are not supposed to endure it! We are destined to rule and reign in life with Him right here and now! We are supposed to overcome.
God never told us we would never have problems. He did tell us however that He would tell us what to do if and when problems come. He did promise to always be with us!
Jesus never told us to occupy til I come in Luke 19:13 so that we can simply hang in there, hoping for Him to come soon and rescue us or to take us out of here. No! No! No! He meant us to take charge. This often means that we are to take charge over our own lives!
Adam was in charge, but made the wrong decisions. Jesus was in charge and He made the right choices. We are meant to represent the King in His Kingdom as ambassadors who are also supposed to in charge in their spheres of appointment.
God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
2 Corinthians 5:19-21
Ambassadors have authority and access to resources, backed by their government back home. We have access to the storehouses of our government back home... the government of God... the kingdom of Heaven.
They have delegated power and authority. We have delegated authority.
If they have that in the kingdoms of the world, how much more do we have full access to the resources of Heaven?
Patience is not the weak, inert, inactive element that allows us to tolerate difficult situations whereby if we hang in there long enough God will give us a commendation.
Patience is a powerful force that works hand in hand with faith and with love…
Defining patience
What is patience?
Webster's Dictionary describes patience as being-
The capacity, habit, or fact of being patient; to suffer; bearing pains or trials calmly or without complaint, manifesting forbearance under provocation or strain; not hasty or impetuous; steadfast despite opposition, difficulty, or adversity; able or willing to bear.
These certainly are good descriptions, but what does God say about it?
In one word, it is consistency. Being patient is the act of being consistently consistent.
For example, look at our passage in James.
The word Patience comes from the Greek word ὑπομονή (hypomonē).
All these are active ingredients. Rather than waiting for things to get better or change, or hoping that you will last the distance and that God will rescue you from this bad world, patience is a powerfully strong state of being. It is remaining consistent at all times, standing steadfast on the solid rock of your faith, knowing that God is in charge and that He is so much on our side, that you are the winner. If you have something to aim for and hope for—some word of promise that God has given you, then hell will freeze over before He will forsake you and you go down!
Scriptures give us many examples and role models to look to. They all exercised this powerful attribute and every one of them received what God had for them. We shall look at a few, starting with Jesus who is our true champion.
Therefore then, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses [who have borne testimony to the Truth], let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (unnecessary weight) and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us, and let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the race that is set before us, Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and perfection]. He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Just think of Him Who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and bitter hostility against Himself [reckon up and consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds. Hebrews 12:1-3.
This was no hoping against hope and settling for status quo, but an active element.
We are to get deeply involved, not passively waiting for something to happen.
We are to strip off the hindrances; run the race; look away from the distractions; focus on the objective; not grow weary and want to quit.
Jesus could have quit, but He had a vision and would not let go of it. If you have a vision of some kind, never let go of it. Do not look at your surroundings and allow the conditions around you to take over, for if you do, you will sink!
Instead, be consistently consistent. Run and keep running the race; keep your eyes on the prize ahead and be assured that one who did it all before you, is there with you all the time.
Hebrews 13:8 tells us that He has not changed, so you can be assured that He is consistently consistent in all things.
The patience of Job
I’ve often heard people comment on the patience of Job. I agree that he was a patient man, but not in the way those statements were made. Foolish people who do not know better think like that. They think for some reason that God allows sickness and problems to come upon us. They mistakenly believe that such things come to test us or to teach us lessons. We can of course be tested and we can of course learn from life’s experiences, but they are not God’s way of teaching us. We are taught from the Word of God and the Holy Spirit is our teacher. When we get that right, things will fall into place correctly and we can live the way God intends us to live.
Look at the matter of testing. James makes it very clear that God is NOT the author.
Blessed are those who endure when they are tested. When they pass the test, they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. When someone is tempted, he shouldn't say that God is tempting him. God can't be tempted by evil, and God doesn't tempt anyone. Everyone is tempted by his own desires as they lure him away and trap him. Then desire becomes pregnant and gives birth to sin. When sin grows up, it gives birth to death. My dear brothers and sisters, don't be fooled. Every good present and every perfect gift comes from above, from the Father who made the sun, moon, and stars. The Father doesn't change like the shifting shadows produced by the sun and the moon. James 1:12-17.
Most times, temptation comes from within. Your own mind—your own imagination, thoughts; desires; passions; lusts; lack of self discipline and the like are more often than not the source. Often times, you cant even blame the devil for it. That can be a real copout you know. This is why we are to put the old man to death inside us. This is why we are to control our thought life. This is why we are to speak the word of God. Turn the TV off if you must and watch Christian DVD’s instead. Go to sleep early and wake early to spend time with the Father. Are you a Disciple of Christ or a self-centred, lazy and selfish wimp? Deal with it now and you will be victorious.
Job’s problems were self-induced! His own actions and confession gave the devil a legal basis on which he could operate and God’s hands were tied. I often told my church, If you are in a submarine, don’t open a porthole. The bible tells us do not give the devil an opportunity. He is a legalist and he will take it. God thought well of the man. Look at his testimony-
There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who [reverently] feared God and abstained from and shunned evil [because it was wrong]. Job 1:1.
You could not ask for any greater commendation than that, but he had one failing. He neglected to train and discipline his children properly. They were not like him and he let them get away with things that they should never have touched! This was the handle of that porthole in the submarine I mentioned!
And when the days of their feasting were over, Job sent for them to purify and hallow them, and rose up early in the morning and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed or disowned God in their hearts. Thus did Job at all [such] times. Job 1:5.
Job was not a good father and allowed them to do their thing without correcting them and this was the thin edge of the wedge that allowed the devil entry into the court of Heaven.
One day when the sons of God came to stand in front of the LORD, Satan the Accuser came along with them. The LORD asked Satan, “Where have you come from?” Satan answered the LORD, “From wandering all over the earth.” The LORD asked Satan, “Have you thought about my servant Job? No one in the world is like him! He is a man of integrity: He is decent, he fears God, and he stays away from evil.” Satan answered the LORD, “Haven't you given Job a reason to fear God? Haven't you put a protective fence around him, his home, and everything he has? You have blessed everything he does. His cattle have spread out over the land. But now stretch out your hand, and strike everything he has. I bet he'll curse you to your face.” The LORD told Satan, “Everything he has is in your power, but you must not lay a hand on him!” Then Satan left the LORD'S presence. Job 1:6-12.
There is a great misconception in many areas of the church. Religion teaches us that God in essence instigated the proceedings. He did not!
The devil was not even supposed to have entry. God never permitted him there at all and asked him in essence, What do you think you are doing? How come you are here? You have no right to present yourself here. Study it out in the original languages yourself and you will see the truth. Satan was the accuser. He came for one task which was to look for a doorway of opportunity to accuse and slander someone and Job gave it to him!
Paul speaks about this kind of thing-
So I tell you and encourage you in the Lord's name not to live any longer like other people in the world. Their minds are set on worthless things. They can't understand because they are in the dark. They are excluded from the life that God approves of because of their ignorance and stubbornness. Since they no longer have any sense of shame, they have become promiscuous. They practice every kind of sexual perversion with a constant desire for more.
But that is not what you learned from Christ's teachings. You have certainly heard his message and have been taught his ways.
The truth is in Jesus. You were taught to change the way you were living.
The person you used to be will ruin you through desires that deceive you. However, you were taught to have a new attitude. You were also taught to become a new person created to be like God, truly righteous and holy.
So then, get rid of lies. Speak the truth to each other, because we are all members of the same body. Be angry without sinning. Don't go to bed angry. Don't give the devil any opportunity {to work}. Thieves must quit stealing and, instead, they must work hard. They should do something good with their hands so that they'll have something to share with those in need. Don't say anything that would hurt {another person}. Instead, speak only what is good so that you can give help wherever it is needed. That way, what you say will help those who hear you.
Don't give God's Holy Spirit any reason to be upset with you. He has put his seal on you for the day you will be set free {from the world of sin}. Get rid of your bitterness, hot tempers, anger, loud quarreling, cursing, and hatred. Be kind to each other, sympathetic, forgiving each other as God has forgiven you through Christ. Ephesians 4:17-32.
Paul was telling us not to let the devil get anything on us, because as the accuser of the brethren, he will take whatever opportunity you give him!
When the devil accused Job, God's reply was something like, What do you think you are doing? How dare you even think of touching My servant Job.
Listen very carefully now! God never did a thing to harm Job. The Lord did Not give and take away! What Job said was not truth. Religious people say that, without realising that the devil did the stealing, killing and destroying, because he is the thief and Jesus said so! See John 10:10.
All He did was to place a limit on the devil's activity! Satan wanted God to stretch out His hand and harm Job. The Lord gives, but the Lord NEVER takes away! Job and religions people got it wrong! The devil was responsible for Job's problems and God had to allow this because of legal grounds. Job's own confession led to his own undoing. He said-
“Why give light to one in misery and life to those who find it so bitter, to those who long for death but it never comes— though they dig for it more than for buried treasure? They are ecstatic, delighted to find the grave. Why give light to those whose paths have been hidden, to those whom God has fenced in? “When my food is in front of me, I sigh. I pour out my groaning like water. What I fear most overtakes me. What I dread happens to me. I have no peace! I have no quiet! I have no rest! And trouble keeps coming!” Job 3:20-26.
Job received what he kept confessing, which shows that Jesus' words in Luke 6:45 and Proverbs 18:21 are true!
If you study the life of Job properly, you will see that he eventually got his mindset and attitudes correct and God turned it around. He finished up better than he started, but he had to get truth and revelation into his being before this happened-
Then Job said to the Lord, I know that You can do all things, and that no thought or purpose of Yours can be restrained or thwarted. [You said to me] Who is this that darkens and obscures counsel [by words] without knowledge? Therefore [I now see] I have [rashly] uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. [I had virtually said to You what You have said to me:] Hear, I beseech You, and I will speak; I will demand of You, and You declare to me. I had heard of You [only] by the hearing of the ear, but now my [spiritual] eye sees You. Therefore I loathe [my words] and abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes. Job 42:1-6.
You see, he had no intimate relationship beforehand. He only heard about God (that's religion), but now he knew God (that's a personal experience and relationship).
He said foolish things, repented and confessed his sin, then God stepped in and saved the man.
It says in chapter forty-two and verse twelve that the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. In fact He had double what was lost and all his "troubles" only lasted 49 days!
The patience of Job?
Patience breeds champions in faith
Jesus, as I have stated, is our champion. He is our role model. There are of course several others. As we look at their lives, including the life of Jesus, please remember that every single one of them were ordinary men. Jesus was and is God of course, but He ministered on earth like one of us. If He, as the Second Adam could do it, so can you.Turn with me to the Faith Chapter of the bible... Hebrews chapter eleven.
Faith assures us of things we expect and convinces us of the existence of things we cannot see. God accepted our ancestors because of their faith. Faith convinces us that God created the world through his word. This means what can be seen was made by something that could not be seen. Faith led Abel to offer God a better sacrifice than Cain's sacrifice. Through his faith Abel received God's approval, since God accepted his sacrifices. Through his faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead. Faith enabled Enoch to be taken instead of dying. No one could find him, because God had taken him. Scripture states that before Enoch was taken, God was pleased with him. No one can please God without faith. Whoever goes to God must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who seek him. Hebrews 11:1-6.
This is why I stated before that Faith and patience go hand in hand.
Faith is active believing. Faith is expressive. Faith causes one to do something. It exasperates me in certain conversations I have had with some people, when I tell them a truth in God and they nod their head and say, Yes, yes, I know. Liars! Their fruit or lack thereof tells the truth and when it comes to the point of exercising their faith, everything is pure mental assent. They are religious! Religious people speak about the faith, but never act on it!
My brothers and sisters, what good does it do if someone claims to have faith but doesn't do any good things? Can this kind of faith save him? Suppose a believer, whether a man or a woman, needs clothes or food and one of you tells that person, “God be with you! Stay warm, and make sure you eat enough.” If you don't provide for that person's physical needs, what good does it do? In the same way, faith by itself is dead if it doesn't cause you to do any good things.
Another person might say, “You have faith, but I do good things.” Show me your faith apart from the good things you do. I will show you my faith by the good things I do.
You believe that there is one God. That's fine! The demons also believe that, and they tremble with fear.
You fool! Do you have to be shown that faith which does nothing is useless? Didn't our ancestor Abraham receive God's approval as a result of what he did when he offered his son Isaac as a sacrifice on the altar? You see that Abraham's faith and what he did worked together. His faith was shown to be genuine by what he did. The Scripture passage came true. It says, “Abraham believed God, and that faith was regarded by God to be his approval of Abraham.” So Abraham was called God's friend. You see that a person receives God's approval because of what he does, not only because of what he believes. The same is true of the prostitute Rahab who welcomed the spies and sent them away on another road. She received God's approval because of what she did. A body that doesn't breathe is dead. In the same way faith that does nothing is dead. James 2:14-26.
Merely believing is not enough. James tells us that the demons believe in God, but they have no relationship! Their destiny is very bad. You must do more than merely believe. You must be obedient, disciplined, dedicated and committed, born again, blood washed, redeemed and in covenant relationship and then it all works! I know good people who say Yes and amen to all I preach, but know nothing about God and His ways whatsoever. For some mysterious reason, they think it does not apply to them when it comes to correction and advice, but always to some other person; they confess the blessings, say the right sayings, read the bible and do all the things one expects, but they do not know God!
Patience breeds Champions of the faith!
Look now at champion number one—Noah.
Faith led Noah to listen when God warned him about the things in the future that he could not see. He obeyed God and built a ship to save his family. Through faith Noah condemned the world and received God's approval that comes through faith. Hebrews 11:7.
God commanded him to build an ark, because the flood was coming. They didn’t know what rain was! No one knew what a boat was! Noah, trusting God, putting his faith into action, went ahead on the basis of the Word of the Lord and built the thing. It took him 120 years to do it, all the while he preached the word, warning people of the coming flood and no one other than his immediate family believed him!
This is a classic example of what I mean—faith and patience working together.
One day, the rain came, but he had no proof until the first drop landed on his head! For 120 years, he had been patient, exercising his trust and faith and was obedient to the word of the Lord. In other words, he was being consistently consistent.
Our next champion is Father Abraham.
Faith led Abraham to obey when God called him to go to a place that he would receive as an inheritance. Abraham left his own country without knowing where he was going. Faith led Abraham to live as a foreigner in the country that God had promised him. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who received the same promise from God. Abraham was waiting for the city that God had designed and built, the city with permanent foundations. Faith enabled Abraham to become a father, even though he was old and Sarah had never been able to have children. Abraham trusted that God would keep his promise. Abraham was as good as dead. Yet, from this man came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the grains of sand on the seashore. Hebrews 11:8-12.
God said, Abram, Pack up and move. That’s all! Abram heard the command and obeyed it. Imagine him asking, Where? God said, I’ll tell you when you get there.
This was before Moses’ time! No one knew who God was then. Moses had to ask Him and the answer never made grammatical sense. I Am that I Am.
No one had a covenant relations in the sense we understand one now. Abram didn’t know where he was going, but he went anyhow. Despite a few mistakes here and there, this man became the father of us all and he still never received everything God personally promised him, looking for the city that God was to build! Hallelujah! We’re all going to visit there soon! God promised him a son when he was past it and 25 years later Isaac was born.
Other champions are like a who's who list that is summed up in Hebrews chapter eleven.
They include, Abel, Enoch, Moses, Joshua, Caleb, Gideon, Rahab, David, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, Esther, Ruth, Samuel and the prophets, Stephen, Philip, Peter, James, John, Paul and many others.
Were they perfect? No! They were as human as you and me and made their mistakes too. Noah got drunk, David committed adultery and murder, Gideon wanted proof, Rahab was a prostitute, Stephen was killed and Samson had a woman problem but they are recorded in the bible to encourage us in our walk of faith.
I just mentioned Rahab. The bible calls her a harlot. A harlot listed in the halls of fame? Why would she be included with these "champions"? Well...she believed...when she was a harlot, This shows me that you do not have to "clean up your life and become a perfect little goody-two-shoes to receive God. Those things are "works" that do not please him. Believe Him...receive Him...accept His promises and after that, He calls you righteous. That sounds a little like getting born again to me.
Abraham was told to go leave his family behind, but he took his father and Lot with his family. He reached the Promised Land, but kept going into Egypt. He lied about his wife and let her be taken into a harem, but he learned how to please God. Faith was put into motion and patience kept the wheels turning! We can learn how to please God and it is by using our faith. See Romans 3:28 and Hebrews 11:6.
Making it practical
I’ve given some biblical illustrations and defined patience as best I can, so now let us put it to practical use
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