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“Patient Prayer For The Present” • 6.3.18
• Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service
Intro.
- The book of James is a direct
letter, written to a scattered congregation, instructing them to live their
lives before the Lord.
- James has warned them against
assuming a proud posture with regard to their fellow Christians and against a
presumptive attitude in regard to their planning.
- Those that live in those
realities, the wicked wealthy, will experience the judgment of God. This has
been what they were to avoid. But, what were they to adopt?
- In our final study in this
powerful book, James will look into his family's eye for the last time, and
tell them of the life that best represents the life that their Lord intended
them to live. Verse 7.
Text
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James 5:7-9 : "Therefore be patient, brethren,
until the coming of the Lord." We have
often commented that the "therefore," connects us to the previous content.
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Because the wicked wealthy are being prepared for judgment and because they, the
exploited poor, have called upon the Lord of Hosts, James commands them to be
patient.
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If God commands us to do something, it is less about emotion and more about the
will. We as Christians must decide that we will be patient.
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This word reflects an ability to bear up under the offense of others, to
"endure misfortunes and troubles" as well as the injuries that others
might impose upon us.
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Essentially, whatever circumstance comes our way, as Christians, we are to
continue to follow the Lord through it, regardless of the difficulty involved.
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It must be our purpose, come "hell or high water," to make it to the
other side! And it's not as though we will always have to wait. There is an expiration
date on our waiting!
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We are only to wait until the coming of the Lord! James meant this as an
encouragement, and taught this as though it were imminent! That is how each of
the New Testament authors view it!
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Unfortunately, it has become a source of great confusion within the body of
Christ.
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When you think about the "coming of the Lord," think first about the
immediate context. What has James just been referring to? The judgment of the
unbelieving, wicked and oppressive wealthy.
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We know then, that James cannot not be referring to the rapture of the church,
which intiates the "Day of the Lord," the "coming" of
Christ.
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He is not really even referring to the "Great Tribulation," which
will be the 7 year period in which the wrath of the Lamb will be poured out on
an unbelieving planet Earth.
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James must be referring to the time after the Great Tribulation when every
unbeliever will stand before the "Great White Throne" judgment, to be
assigned their final destination.
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Then, Jesus will have come, established His throne in Jerusalem, and all of
God's people will dwell in peace for a thousand years, otherwise known as the
"Millenium."
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All Christians believe in some version of what I have just shared with you,
though every Calvary Chapel Pastor is Pre-Millenial, Pre-Wrath, and
Pre-Tribulation in their eschatology.
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The point, no matter your eschatology, is that believers can wait patiently
because His coming draws closer with each passing year!
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James, in the first century of the church, quite possibly less than 20 years
from it's inception, calls his people to anticipate the coming of the Lord! How
much more should that be true of us!?
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How should we wait? What examples do we have? As usual, James provides his own
illustrations for our benefit! Verse 8.
•
James 5:8,9 : "See how the farmer waits for the
precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the
early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of
the Lord is at hand. Do
not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the
Judge is standing at the door!" : In a
largely agrarian society, every one of our author's audience had either been or
had access to, a local farmer. James says, "Look at the farmer."
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I love that even this is an imperitive! It's as if he takes his hands and
places them on his congregation's face and forces them to look at the farmer in
the field! "Don't miss this," he says.
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The farmer doesn't plant a crop on Monday and expect there to be a harvest on
Tuesday. He must wait for the "precious fruit of the earth," the
harvest.
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You might say, "It's just lettuce!" That's because you didn't prepare
the field. You didn't purchase and then plant the seed. And since you are the
consumer, you are not living from it!
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That which comes up from the ground for the farmer is all of his life and
livelihood! He has bet everything upon this seemingly uncertain enterprise.
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The farmer waits for that crop, waiting patiently, enduring through the season
of uncertainty, when nothing is happening on the surface. What is he looking
for? The early and latter rain.
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In Israel, the rain begins to fall in October. This softened the ground and
signaled the beginning of the season. March and April brought the last chance
for rain.
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He is not necessarily looking for the crop, but is guided by the signs provided
by these rains. For him, this begins the ticking of the clock!
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He doesn't judge his crop by the first rain alone, but waits to see what the
entire season will bring about. He doesn't judge his crop by what comes up in
October. He waits for April.
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James is telling his brothers and sisters to look at their life in the same
way!
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Don't base your judgment upon what you see or don't see right now! Understand
that there is a season of life and you have to wait to the end to reap the
reward!
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Besides, where else do you have to go? Who else can you trust with your life?
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When the Lord Jesus taught a few difficult truths, several that followed Him bowed
out. Jesus turned to his disciples and asked if they would leave also.
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Peter answered, "Lord to whom shall
we go! You have the words of eternal life! Also we have come to believe and
know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!" (John 6:68)
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God has begun this work in you and He will finish it! He has given you His
Spirit and when this life has passed, there will be a harvest to enjoy. So,
what do we do now?
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Establish your hearts. The word refers to resolution. James commands them to
fix, to set their hearts firm in a direction. No matter the difficulty, the
Lord's coming is at hand!
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Is this where your heart is fixed? Are your life and it's choices directed by
that reality?
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A farmer is fixed, determined to wait out the season. You won't find him grumbling
against his fellow farmers and we shouldn't grumble against our fellow brothers
and sisters. either!
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The original word speaks of literally groaning or sighing at the thought of
another. The ASV translates the same word as "murmur" and the NASB renders
the word "complain."
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Be careful of your attitude because if you are caught thinking that way, the
Judge will turn His judgment on you and He is at the very door! He is right
outside!
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When you and I hear this, it sounds ridiculous because this was 2,000 years ago
and Jesus has not come. But we are thinking about it all wrong!
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He is at the door because our life is but a vapor and when it is no longer
visible, we will experience the coming of the Lord through the lens of
eternity!
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Our own short life, makes the coming of the Lord that much more imminent and
when we awake in eternity, the rapture will only precede the Bema seat judgment
that we will stand at!
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Doesn't that make you want to love your brothers and sisters and forsake a
murmuring, complaining heart? Do you want to explain that to Christ at the Bema
Seat? I think not! Verse 10.
•
James 5:10,11 : "My brethren, take the prophets, who
spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. Indeed we count them blessed who
endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by
the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful." : James offers a second illustration for our consideration. Think
about the prophets.
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These had the great privilege of hearing from the Lord audibly and speaking on
the Lord's behalf to His people. In a world that was right side up, these men
would have been the celebrities!
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But we all know that this wasn't their lot! They serve as an example, an
exhibit piece that reveals what it means to follow the Lord and their stories
embody the phrase "suffering and patience!"
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They experienced every evil imaginable and you and I count them as blessed
because they endured to the end!
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Imagine if Jeremiah, who wanted to quit, actually did quit. How would we view
him today? What if Elijah decided not to leave Mt. Sinai, but instead forced
God to kill him there as he asked?
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No, we revere these men because they obeyed God until the end. They kept
serving the Lord, speaking for Him until the very end!
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Even in the life of Job, whose legendary patience is a byword used by people
today for far less trying circumstances, reveals that to those who will wait,
the Lord will repay with goodness!
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Turn over to Job 42. While you are
dusting off that part of your Bible, let me remind you of his earlier chapters.
In chapter 1, he lost his seven
sons, three daughters and all of his property.
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In chapter 2, Job lost all of his
own health. "Well, at least I have my wife!" She's the one who told
him to curse God and die in 2:9!
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Then, Job had to defend himself from his friends, and their well intentioned,
yet seriously flawed counsel. To top it off, Job was cross examined by the Lord
Himself! How did it end?
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After restoring all of Job's losses, recorded in Job 42:10, the record
stands in verse 12.
•
Job 42:12-17 : "Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job
more than his beginning; for he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand
camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand female donkeys. He also had seven sons and three
daughters. And he
called the name of the first Jemimah, the name of the second Keziah, and the
name of the third Keren-Happuch. In all the land were found no women so beautiful as the
daughters of Job; and their father gave them an inheritance among their
brothers. After
this Job lived one hundred and forty years, and saw his children and
grandchildren for four generations. So Job
died, old and full of days." : We don't know how long Job suffered, but by
the end of the book, he effectively gains double from the Lord and multiplied
years of blessing.
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Through all of his suffering, Job learned one thing: The Lord is compassionate
and merciful! He knows how to respond to us when we suffer!
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This is not to diminish what Job suffered or what you and I will be called to
suffer in this life. There is no replacing what might be lost, but there
remains compassion and blessing from the Lord.
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"But you don't know what I've lost." Neither do you know what you
have gained! Paul writes:
•
Romans 8:18 : "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not
worthy to be
compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.": We cannot quantify what we have lost, we are also unable to
imagine what it is that we will have gained!
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James comes back to his thought about being patient. Verse 12.
•
James 5:12 : "But above all, my brethren, do not
swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your 'Yes'
be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No,' lest you fall into judgment." : We've come a long way from the end of verse 11. Remember that James is talking
about enduring. As a matter of first importance then, keep your word.
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Don't pretend to strengthen your commitment to the Lord by fancy oaths.
"I'll continue with the Lord no matter what! I swear on heaven!"
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If a Christian's word is not sufficient, if he or she has to swear on a stack
of Bibles, there isn't enough pressure in the world to make them keep it!
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Let your resolve and character be this simple: Yes or no! That is where it
begins and ends with the Lord. He swears upon Himself! What do you have to
swear by?
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"Yes" and "no" is the language of determination, the
language of one that purposes to endure through any trial, to wait through any
pain, in order to see the end of the Lord's work.
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James has let us know that we are to be a patient people and as we move into verse
13, we find that we are to be a
praying people as well.
•
James 5:13-16a : "Is anyone among you suffering? Let
him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him
call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with
oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will
raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one
another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed." : Is anyone going through difficulties or hardships? Let him post
it to their favorite social media platform. No. Let him pray!
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Suffering is your reminder that life is bigger than you, your family and your
social group! God is calling you to come to Him! Redeem your suffering. Use it
as an occassion to pray.
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On the other side of the spectrum, how many of you are cheerful? In the same
way that suffering is a reminder to pray, cheerfulness is a reminder to praise!
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This is why we are always adding new songs to our church worship service.
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The Lord wants his people to have a fresh vocabulary to express praise to the
Lord. Sing to Him!
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Notice that these first two occasions are personal. You are to pray. You are to
sing. It's not that you have to do that alone, but you can.
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However, when you are weak, powerless, helpless, you aren't supposed to do that
alone. The sense of this "sickness" is that there is nothing that
anyone else can do.
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The diagnosis is grim and the person has run out of medical options. This is
when one is called to go public by calling upon the elders to pray.
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James doesn't say that he needs to be there, or that a team of "healing
elders" has to come or that a "miracle service" needs to be
called. It's just the elders and the annointing oil.
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In those days, oil was poured out over a person. Today, we will come and put a
little on our finger to put onto your forehead. Oil simply represents a point
of contact for our faith.
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The agency that we believe upon, is the power of God present among us as we
pray to save the sick and raise them up. God "will" save the sick and
"will" raise them up.
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Two things need to be said: It's not about the oil. It's not about the level of
faith. It's about the God who is powerful to affect change. Whether it happens
immediately or permanently, God will heal!
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The Lord still heals people today. I do not question that and neither should
you. There are too many stories of unexplained and radical recovery that can
only be explained by providence.
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That being said, notice that the emphasis is on this person's sanctification.
He will be raised up and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven!
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The most important healing on earth is the one that affects a person's
relationship to the God that created them! The God that can heal the body can
also heal the rift between Him and His person.
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Right along side of this, look at how James turns the table on the second most
important relationship. Love God with all your heart. Love your neighbor as
yourself!
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"Confess your trespasses to one another." The word
"trespass" between God and a person refers to sin. When it's used
between a person and another person, there has been a deviation.
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James is telling them to agree with one another about your own faults. He is
not telling you to broadcast another's faults. Stick to confessing your own! Learn
to say with humility, "I was wrong."
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You don't know what kind of healing this brings, but what a joy it is to return
to being able to pray with one another, without the baggage of past hurts! Verse
17.
•
James 5:16b-18 : "The effective, fervent prayer of a
righteous man avails much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed
earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three
years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth
produced its fruit." : Do you believe that an
energized and repeated prayer wields great power? James reminds us of Elijah.
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Elijah, though incredibly gifted, was just like us. In fact, one could say that
he was much more human than most would give him credit for.
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He's the prophet that almost quit after his greatest victory! Yes, he had a
nature like us and when he prayed earnestly, repeatedly for it not to rain, it
didn't rain for three and a half years!
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Elijah knew of God's promise to withhold rain from the people of Israel if they
worshipped other gods. When those gods were defeated, he could pray for there
to be a reversal and there was.
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James is wanting us to understand that nothing has changed! We have more
privileges than Elijah did! How can we not pray? Verse 19.
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James 5:19,20 : "Brethren, if anyone among you
wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a
sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a
multitude of sins." : Pray as hard as you can and
be present to watch out for those among you that err regarding the truth!
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These are people that are "among you." These are not unbelievers, but
fellow believers that are tempted to walk away from their faith. When we studied
Hebrews, we called them
"apostates."
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It's interesting the James employs the word "wanders." The word
speaks of "roaming" or going astray. Generally, it's rare to find
someone who just makes a beeline to error. It usually gradual.
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Consider what you need to do to be able to obey the Lord's Word here.
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First, you need to know the truth yourself! Second, you have to be around the
people of God to see who is missing. Third, you must be willing to track that
person down and turn them back!
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To that person, there is a word of encouragement. You have participated with
God in helping to turn a sinner from the error of his way! He might have died!
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There are some whose sin would lead to physical death! Our lives might spare
them and bring them into a place where their sins are put away in God's crypt!
Conclusion
- James calls
us to endure through to the end! Be patient! Jesus is coming and He is at the
door! Set your hearts on Him!
- James
commands us to engage with our family in Christ! Be prayerful! Jesus will hear
our pleas and petitions. He will save and heal as we keep our accounts clean
with each other.
- Finally,
James convinces us to watch out for those that wander! Be present! You could be
the instrument that God uses to save a life from death and sin! Let's pray!
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