Introduction

James 5:7-11 ESV  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.  (8)  You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.  (9)  Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.  (10)  As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.  (11)  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.

• Be patient until the coming of the Lord…
  • As James wraps up his letter to the church that has been dispersed due to persecution he begins his closing statements with “be patient until the coming of the Lord”.
    • Say “Amen” if you believe Jesus is coming back…
      • Come on now, someone say AMEN if you believe Jesus is coming back!
  • How about this one, the word “Maranatha” comes from an Aramaic phrase which means “Lord Come Quickly”
    • If y’all are ready to see Jesus come back soon let me hear you say “Maranatha!”
      • I believe that Jesus is coming soon because Jesus said He is coming soon.
      • I believe Jesus is coming quickly because Jesus said He is coming quickly…
        • But last time I checked He is still at the right hand of the Father and I am still here on earth doing His bidding… doing the work that He has for me…
  • So if I want Jesus to come back, and I do, and if you want Jesus to come back… and you do… but we don’t know exactly when He is coming back… then we have to be patient!
    • Now these verses in James gives us some instructions on what that patience looks like… we talked about this last week.
      • We know that we are supposed to be patient like a farmer is patient for rain and the farmer is patient for the harvest.
        • The farmer can’t do anything to make it rain, other than pray.
        • And the farmer can’t do anything to make the harvest come in faster, once the crop has been planted… but he knows it is coming.
          • But this doesn’t meant the farmer is idle… it doesn’t mean the farmer sits around and does nothing…
          • Because there is still work to do.
          • There are bugs and weeds to manage, there is fertilizer to spread, and there is a harvest to prepare for.
        • And just as the farmer is not idle while being patient for the harvest, we too are not idle… and we identified four things we need to be doing while we are patient last week…
          • Point One – In Patience, Pray Down Favor
          • Point Two – In Patience, Do Work
          • Point Three – In Patience, Avoid Bickering
          • Point Four – In Patience, Remain Steadfast
      • So last week we talked about the first two points
        • In patience, while we are waiting for the Lord, we should be praying for favor… as the farmer prays for rain, so we should pray for favor… favor in our lives, favor for the Kingdom, favor for the harvest… even favor for our enemies,
        • And in patience, while we are waiting for the Lord, we have work to do… there is a mission to accomplish… and I challenged the church with this question: “Is the Kingdom of God accomplishing more because you are a part of it?”
          • That was last week’s message. This week we are going to go over the other two points… In Patience, Avoid Bickering, and in Patience Remain Steadfast.

• Let’s start with point one this morning… in Patience, Avoid bickering… be peaceable, don’t be a grump, don’t be mean, don’t start fights…
  • In patience, Avoid bickering…

Point One – In Patience Avoid Bickering

James 5:7-9 ESV  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.  (8)  You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.  (9)  Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.

• Any of y’all parents of young kids… or parents who’s kids where once young… ever seen a child before?
  • Then you are going to know what I am talking about…
    • You ever just had a really long day, or week, or month… and you are exhausted… and you are just not in the mood for… children?
    • Like everything they do, that if you were in a better mood would be cute… but now it just drives you CRAZY… and all the sudden you are being short with them… maybe even mean with them…
      • Other nights it is “Hannah would you please eat your vegetables?”
      • But this night is it “HANNAH I WILL SPANK YOUR BOTTOM RAW IF YOU DON’T EAT THAT BROCOLI”.
        • Any of y’all ever been like that? No just me?
    • But how many of y’all know… while kids draw it out of us more… adults can get on our nerves when we are worn out too… can’t they?
• Like the more tired I am, the less of a filter that I have…
  • There is something about human nature that just causes us to be jerks when we are tired…
    • We get short… we get agitated… some of us just get mean when we are tired.
      • It’s not just me, right?
      • It can’t just be me… because James addresses it right here:

James 5:9 ESV  Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.

• Don’t grumble against one another brothers… why would we grumble though?
  • Because in this waiting, there is suffering… we see that in the very next verse…

James 5:10 ESV  As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.

• This world in it’s current form is cursed…
  • Y’all know that right… we live in a CURSED world… and that curse brings suffering.
    • And as an aside, the suffering is not from God, but the consequences of man sins… but none the less, we are going to suffer as we wait for Christ.
  • Suffering is all but promised for the Christian… not because God want’s us to suffer, He most certainly does not… but because there is a curse and there is an enemy and they are working against us Christians.
    • The enemy brings death and destructions, lies, and persecution.
    • The enemy seeks to kill, steal, and destroy…
      • And that causes suffering.
        • There is going to be suffering.
          • Jesus suffered.
          • His disciples suffered.
          • We are going to suffer, while we wait for Christ.
    • And when we are trying to be patient through suffering, it only makes sense that we are going to get tired.
      • We are going to get jaded.
      • We are going to get worn out.
      • We are going to get short… and frustrated… and agitated…
      • We are waiting and we are suffering and we are trying to be patient but it’s hard…
        • This creates a perfect storm for bickering, and infighting, and arguing over stupid stuff.
          • AND MAN I AM SICK OF DEALING WITH Y’ALLS PETTY ISSUES.
          • Why on earth do you think you need to text your pastor because your husband messed up the laundry?
          • Why do you think you need to have a sit down meeting with Amanda and I because someone sat in your seat at church?
          • I mean, are you REALLY going to leave the church because someone who was not even a pastor said something that offended you?
      • Sometimes I think we treat Christ and His bride worse than we treat the world.
        • Have you ever quite a job because a coworker once said something mean… not your boss, but a coworker?
        • Have you ever flipped out because someone parked where you normally park at your school or your job?
        • Do you text your manager and ask for a meeting because you coworker didn’t say good morning to you?
        • Do you stop talking to your brothers or sisters the moment they say something you disagree with politically?
        • Do you divorce your wife because she asked you to serve by doing some chores around the house?
          • YET THESE ARE ALL REASONS THAT PEOPLE HAVE LEFT THE CHURCH…
          • So petty… so stupid… such a lack of true, Biblical patience.
          • Because true Biblical patience does not involve bickering.
• And would you please, church, take head to this warning that James is giving… listen and consider this warning…

James 5:9 ESV  Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.

• THE JUDGE IS STANDING AT THE DOOR.
  • That’s God! He is your Judge! You want to be mean, you want to be a jerk, you want to bicker… then you will find yourself judged!

Matthew 12:36-37 ESV  I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak,  (37)  for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Romans 14:10 ESV  Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God;

• You know I have talked about this before, but when I do marriage counseling I always ask the husband “Do you cuss at her? Do you call her names? Do you make her feel small? Do you make her cry?”
  • Well, yes pastor… sometimes when I get angry I do those things…
    • I see, well let me ask you, sir, how would you feel if I cussed out your wife, if I called her names, made her feel small, and made her cry?
    • And who, dear sir, should be loving your wife more? ME OR YOU? Yet you treat her worse than you would ever let anyone else treat her.
• Guy’s, the church is the bride of Christ.
  • HOW ARE YOU TREATING CRHIST’S BRIDE?
    • “Well he is a RACIST! I can’t go to church with him”
      • That’s Christ’s bride you are talking about… I mean he voted for Trump… it’s not like he is in the KKK.
    • “Well I just can’t be around SOMEONE like that!”
      • You can’t be around Christ’s bride? I don’t think you are going to like heaven very much.
    • “That person is a heretic!”
      • Why? What heresy did they preach?
    • “They said that David picked up three stones to fight Goliath, but the Bible said he picked up five!”
      • Ok… he just made a mistake… I don’t think that makes him a heretic.
    • “She didn’t say hi to me.”
    • “He rolled his eyes at me”
    • “She wore the same dress as me”
    • “He cut me off in traffic”
    • “She doesn’t spank her kids”
    • “He does spank his kids”
    • “She listens to a Christian band I don’t like”
    • “He once sang the lyrics to a secular song!”
    • “She didn’t come to my son’s birthday party!”
    • “He didn’t invite me to his daughters birthday party!”
    • “I HATE BIRTHDAYS AND THEY THREW ME A PARTY ANYWAYS!”
  • CHURCH! Can we just stop with this garbage… this is the bride of Christ… we are the bride of Christ. STOP CALLING JESUS’ BRIDE UGLY.
    • I am not saying we can’t be frustrated… or that we can’t disagree… but we are FAMILY.
      • We don’t bicker, we don’t fight, and when we do those things we repent and reconcile… because we are family!
  • The solution to bickering, church, by the way is right here in this passage from James:

James 5:8-9 ESV  You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.  (9)  Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.

• How do we avoid bickering and murmuring? We establish our hearts.
  • Establish your heart! KNOW WHO YOU ARE!
    • You are a good fearing, Bible believing, sanctified, justified, born again believer in Christ Jesus.
    • Establish your heart! You are more than a conqueror in Christ Jesus, you are a chosen people, a hole priesthood.
    • You are forever purchased by the blood of Christ and you will live with Him and for Him in eternity.
      • So what if they offended you… You are your Beloved’s and your Beloved is yours. They can’t take that away.
      • So what if they disagree with you. People are wrong all the time… at least we can all be right about this one thing: Christ Jesus an Him crucified.
      • So what if they act a certain way, talk a certain way, behave a certain way… how does that effect who you are and what YOUR calling and commission is? Establish your hearts church.
      • LETS BE A BICKERING FREE CHURCH. LET’S BE A CHURCH THAT IS AS UNITED AS THE FAHTER AND THE SON ARE UNITED.
      • Let’s be united in love as the bride loves the bridegroom!
• So point one this morning is “In patience avoid bickering” now we move on to point two “In Patience remain steadfast”.

Point Two – In Patience, Remain Steadfast

James 5:10-11 ESV  As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.  (11)  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.

• In patience, remain steadfast.
  • In other words… don’t give up!
    • I was just talking to a church planting pastor the morning I wrote this sermon, and he asked for advice.
    • My advice “Don’t give up”
    • Just don’t give up church. Persevere, push through, remain steadfast.
• A marathon is a race that is 26.2 miles long… 26.2 miles of running.
  • You know what happens to runners who run 26.1 miles and then quit?
    • They are disqualified… they lose… it’s over.
  • You could be the fastest runner, and be in first place by a mile… but if you quit even just one foot before the finish line… THEN YOU LOSE!
    • How many Christians have run good races… but while waiting for the return of the Lord… while trying to be patient… they give up… they quit.

1 Corinthians 9:27 ESV  But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

• Some people say that once you are saved you are always saved… but it seems that Paul disagrees.
  • Paul seems to think that there is a way that he can be disqualified…
  • To be disqualified, you have to be qualified at first… otherwise you simply say “I did not qualify”.
    • But Paul says “Look, I am preaching to others, I am making disciples, I am leading people to Christ… but I must remain disciplined, like a runner running a race, because if I don’t I might find myself disqualified”.
• I wonder how many people find themselves disqualified when they get to heaven.
  • Maybe you believe in once saved always saved, maybe you don’t… but you should agree that there is some condition, some kind of disqualification that makes it so you don’t enter heaven… maybe you would say “That person was never saved to begin with” or maybe you would say “That person lost or gave up their salvation”… either way we can agree that person, the disqualified person, is not saved and is not going to heaven.
• And if we can agree on that, the question must be asked “What is it that makes someone disqualified?”
  • May I suggest that the disqualification comes not solely because of sin, though sin is a big part of it…
    • The disqualification does not come solely from sin, because sin can be forgiven, but it comes from giving up.
      • When you stop seeking Christ. Stop seeking forgiveness. Stop seeking to be more like Him and less like you.
      • Jesus says “Take up your cross daily and follow me” and I think some people get tired and frustrated of waiting for the Lord’s return… they are suffering, they are bitter, they are bickering… and finally instead of taking up their cross, they simply leave on the side of the road and walk away.
        • Like a marathon runner quitting in the middle of the race… far too many Christians quit…

James 5:11 ESV  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.

• Consider for a moment Job…
  • Job had issues with his theology.
  • He even at points played with accusing God.
    • He suggested that God was his afflicter, (he wasn’t, Satan was) and said things about and too God that he would later regret.
      • Yet Job is here quoted as someone we should remember.
      • Job is a hero of the faith.
      • Not because of his theology, not because he accomplished so much for the Kingdom of God… though he did accomplish much.
      • But he is remembered for this one thing. HE DID NOT GIVE UP.
      • His suffered and suffered and suffered, through no fault of his own…
        • His wife said “Curse God and die”.
        • But Job did not give up… and that result in tons of blessings, I am sure it resulted in life forevermore… and it resulted in him being remembered throughout history as a hero of the faith.
• Now consider Demus… when is the last time you heard a Christian parent name their child Demus?
  • Not a lot of Demus’s walking around are there… why?
    • In Colossians 4:14 Demas is a man of God who greets the church.
    • In Philemon 24 Demas is called a fellow worker of Christ
      • Yet no one names their kid Demus… a bit obscure, sure… but I have heard people chose way less famous men in the Bible to name their kids after…
      • What happened to Demus? HE GAVE UP.
      • In 2 Timothy 4:10 we see that Demus, in love with the present world, deserts the work of the Gospel.

2 Timothy 4:10 ESV  For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica.

• Dude was in love with this present world… that shows us one of the two main reasons people quit the race…
  • One is because they love their sin… they love the world… they love the things that God hates…
    • You can’t live long like that because a house divided can not stand.
  • And the other is because of offense.
    • They are offended from the bickering, the murmuring, or from what some pastor somewhere said some time.
      • All those examples I gave about bickering… those were all reasons people have left this church.
        • And most of those people, though not all, but most have simply stopped going to church all together because of it.
        • And when you are disconnected from the church… how long until you are disconnected from Christ.
        • When you are apart from the bride… how long until you are apart from the bridegroom?

Conclusion

• Guys I know life is hard.
  • And believe me, I know church is hard.
    • But we can’t give up.
    • We can’t give up worshiping.
    • We can’t give up praying.
    • We can’t give up repenting.
    • We can’t give up growing.
    • We can’t give up disciple making.
      • I once saw a church sign regarding perseverance…
      • It said “If the journey is getting easier, you are probably going down hill”.
      • I can’t promise that your journey will get easier… it got significantly more difficult for most Biblical Christians…
      • But I can promise you that Jesus will be with you, and if you can learn to give Him your burdens, He will always be there to give you rest.
        • Don’t find you rest by giving up, find your rest by giving it all to Jesus.

Matthew 11:28-30 ESV  Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  (29)  Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  (30)  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

• Your yoke may be difficult, but Jesus’ yoke is easy.
• Your burden may be heavy… but Jesus’ burden is light.
  • Don’t give up, instead give it to Jesus.
• Gospel Call

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