Patience

We know we should be self-controlled and patient. It is a command. How do we go about practicing this?

A few weeks back, I called a local auto glass repair shop to make an appointment to fix my car windshield. A nice-sounding young lady answered the phone and proceeded to ask me a series of questions that went well beyond just asking for my name and phone number. 

She asked about me, the car, and my insurance company. I felt myself getting increasingly frustrated and impatient. I am sure she was doing what the company required of her, but I was not in a place to be patient with this unexpected process. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that the breakfast burrito I had just warmed was getting cold! Despite my aggravation, she eventually scheduled the appointment. 

This incident occurred about a week before I was to exhort for our ecclesia. I had been wondering what a good topic would be. Right after that phone call, it became clear what the exhortation should be. I needed a strong reminder of the importance of patience!

The definition of patience in Greek refers to a cheerful or hopeful endurance, a steadfast waiting for something. Paul uses this to commend and exhort the brothers and sisters. He prays that they “may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy.” (Colossians 1:10-11).1 

So, Paul reminds us to be cheerful and joyful while waiting patiently for something. He also adds longsuffering to the prayer. While we can employ patience when we wait for something or endure a momentary inconvenience, like waiting to eat my burrito, longsuffering is needed when we endure a longer-term and much more serious hardship. 

Certainly, our Heavenly Father demonstrated patience and longsuffering when he endured the disobedience of the children of Israel. The same could be said for His patience with you and me! Scripture is filled with examples of patient disciples. Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, and Rebekah had to wait decades for their promised sons to be born. For those blessed to have children, did we have to wait twenty years or more for our first child to be born? 

Also, the apostles and the rest of the first-century faithful disciples had gotten their hopes up while they witnessed Christ’s miracles and heard Him teach about the Kingdom—which they thought would soon be established. However, when he ascended to Heaven, they had to replace their disappointment with hopeful, even cheerful patience, waiting for His return.

They would all fall asleep holding fast to the hope of resurrection and the blessings the Kingdom would bring. We sometimes get impatient when we observe the decline of the world around us and wonder why our Father has not yet sent our Lord back to earth. The faithful of the first century had to wait for the rest of their mortal lives for the Kingdom to become a reality. So may we.

Christ taught us to be patient. In the parable of the Sower, he ends the lesson with a description of those who would make up fruitful, good ground. These “are those who, having heard the Word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.” (Luke 8:15).

The Apostle Paul exhorted Timothy to avoid the desire to be rich and the love of money: “But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life.” Furthermore, Paul encourages: “I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus… that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ’s appearing.” (1 Timothy 6:11-14). To Titus, Paul writes that the elders should not be “quick-tempered,” but “self-controlled” (Titus 1:7, 8), which clearly implies the need for patience. Later, he adds that the older men should “be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience.” (Titus 2:2). Who do you think he might be addressing here? I am one of those older men!

So, we know we should be self-controlled and patient. It is a command. How do we go about practicing this? One solution is the age-old approach of counting to ten when an unexpected and frustrating event occurs. Some years back, people wore WWJD bracelets to remind them of “What Would Jesus Do?” And what did Jesus do when his patience was tested, especially in the wilderness? He responded with instruction from God’s Word. Of course, for this to be an effective approach, we must have our vessels full of God’s Word. 

Our Lord was the epitome of patience throughout his ministry. The development of His patience started with his trials in the wilderness. It continued when he had to live a nomadic lifestyle with no place to lay his head when he endured the apostles’ lack of understanding of the complete picture of his mission, and when the people wanted to make him king prematurely. Then, finally, in the garden when he faced his greatest test of patience. The Lord wrapped up all these moments in a resolute belief that his Heavenly Father’s will should “be done”—not his! (Luke 22:42).

If our Lord Jesus had not repeatedly shown the self-control, patience, perseverance, and endurance that showed his complete faith in his Father’s will—we would not be here today! If it were not for our Heavenly Father’s longsuffering, forbearance, and mercy when his people let him down, we would not be here today! If our Father had not provided the offering of His Son to cover our sins—we would not be here today!

So, remembering the Almighty and His son’s loving patience with us as often as possible should help us develop our patience with those in our family, our ecclesia, and beyond. Just as God will not forgive us if we do not forgive others, God will not treat us with patience if we are not patient with others. Paul’s reminder to the brothers and sisters at Rome was:

“For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus.” (Romans 15:4-5).

Brad Butts,
Denver Ecclesia, CO