Be Patient, Jesus Is Coming Soon

MAY 6, 2020 STUDY NOTES JAMES 5:7-8 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES BE PATIENT, JESUS IS COMING SOON INTRODUCTION “Therefore” in verse 7 connects with verses 1-6 Where James spoke of the rich who were unconcerned about God, giving God little thought They were unconcerned about others they were only concerned about gaining wealth Their concern was to gain wealth at any cost, even at the expense of the poor Their desire was to live a worldly life filled with worldly goods, much like our world today James has shown that such a world will stop short of nothing to fulfill those desires Their gain is often obtained through the Christians loss which is no worry of theirs In the eyes of the world, the rich are doing great, they seem to have everything going their way But James said in the previous verses that the “Sovereign, Almighty Lord,” is listening The Lord knows all that is going on and will judge all evil acts, all accounts will be settled In these next verses, James warns the worldly rich and encourages the faithful Christian He speaks words of encouragement to those who will face earthly opposition and persecution He tells us what the attitude of the Christian should be in the time of persecution Jas 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. The Christian is to be “patient,” meaning, we must always be in control of our senses “Patience” is the opposite of a short temper, it is the opposite of anger and wrath Patience is the ability to take a great deal of punishment from evil people Without losing one’s temper, without becoming angry and seeking revenge We are not to have the attitude of, “I will get even” when we are wronged Christians must practice “self-restraint,” even when we are mistreated or wrongfully treated Remember that James is speaking to Christians who had their wages taken away Amazing, we have a message from James written 2,000 years ago, and it speaks to us today His message applies to Christians who are facing the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic Christians are not to have the attitude of, “I give up,” “I quit,” or “I can’t take it anymore” Christians are not to lose faith in Christ, regardless of other people or circumstances we face Biblical patience is the ability to keep on going with and for Christ, regardless of what happens The word that James used has the meaning of patience with people, a great need for today Which involves having an-understanding of people and why they are acting as they do Paul used the same word, 1Th 5:14 Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men. Paul instructs the Christian to be patient “toward all men,” and minister to them at all-times It is not difficult to be patient with some of the people some of the time But to be patient with all people at all-times is not easy and it is not easy to minister to them Biblical patience is something that cannot be obtained through the nature of the flesh It can only be accomplished within the spiritual nature and through the eyes of faith We must remain right in our thinking, in our action, and in our attitude in-order to minister We must keep in mind what James has already revealed and especially what he now tells us “Be patient,” keep ministering to all people all-of the time because Jesus is coming soon unto the coming of the Lord. “Unto” means “until,” which means something is going to happen which will change things That which is going to happen is the return of Christ to the earth And the Bible assures us that things will change when it happens, Jesus himself said, Rev 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. Christians must remain faithful to the Word of God until the Lord comes James refers to the second coming of the Lord in verses 7,8, and 9 In each verse he instructs us to be faithful unto Christ until He returns We have the assurance from the Word of God that Jesus is going to come again Jesus is going to return in the same manner-in which He left, Act 1:9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. The cloud that received Him was most likely the Shekinah Glory Cloud The Shekinah Glory Cloud is the visible manifestation of God’s glory and approval When He ascended back to Heaven, Jesus was wrapped in clouds of Glory When He returns, He will come in the clouds of Glory and with a manifestation of power, Mat 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Jesus Christ will be clearly seen and recognized by the brightness of His glory His Glory will declare that what you see in heaven is because the Son of Man has come As the apostles watched the cloud hid him from their sight, they were left staring up into heaven, Act 1:10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; And then, “behold,” that means “wow”, look at this, their attention turned to 2 angels Two heavenly beings who appeared as men stood beside them, they had to be angels And the angels had a question, Act 1:11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. Their question directs our attention to the same thoughts that James presents to us Christians have no reason to just stand around gazing at the events of the world, even coronavirus Heavenly truth should encourage us to turn to our earthly duties as a Christian The angels not only had a question, they had a promise from God concerning “this same Jesus” How wonderful are the words, “this same Jesus,” can there be any other than Jesus? It must be Jesus who returns, the same one who died for our sins and arose from the dead The same Jesus who ascended back to the Father and sits at the right hand of God The same Jesus whose name is exalted above all other names, Php 2:9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: He is the only One worthy to return and fulfill the work of redemption, Rev 5:9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; Because He has redeemed us, we will reign with Him when He returns as “Lord,” Rev 19:16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. His Coming will be personal, bodily, and visible, Rev 1:7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. The world will know that it is Jesus Christ who has returned, and He is the One they now face, Rev 6:16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: The lost and sinful world will face the wrath of God when Christ returns But for the Christian, His return is our motive, our encouragement, our hope, Tit 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ; To live for Christ today is to be ready for Christ to return any day Which is exactly what James is instructing us to do Jas 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Four times in chapter 5 James tells us to “behold,” telling us we need to pay attention We need to pay attention to the example that James now gives us concerning the farmer The farmer is a good example of patience as he waits for his crop to bear fruit A faithful farmer has a “Vision of the Harvest” before he ever plants the seeds He knows that the harvest is valuable enough to work for and to wait for He believes the day will come when the land will bring forth fruit He can see beyond the plowing, planting, weeding, and working of the crop If the bugs come, if the diseases come, he will do it all over again If the rain does not come and there is a drought, he will do it all over again If too much rain comes and there is a flood, he will do it all over again In the winter he will do what he has-to do because he believes in the harvest In the spring and summer, he will do what he has-to do because harvest time is coming James was talking about the farmer who had no government subsidy or grant It was, produce a crop or else, but he knew that “Harvest Time” was worth all the effort The attitude of the farmer was “expectancy,” “Harvest time is coming” The “Vision of the Harvest” says that one day all-of the effort and work will bring forth fruit Christian, our harvest will come “one day,” because Jesus is coming “someday” Just like the farmer we must have “long patience” waiting for the time of harvest Faithfully doing our work and having faith in God who will do what He promises The farmer does not always see the rain when he wants to see it But he remains faithful until it does rain, and it will rain in due time The farmer is faithful to his work and patient unto the time of harvest James applies those same thoughts to our daily Christian life Jas 5:8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. Like the farmer who works faithfully and waits patiently throughout the growing season Christians are to wait patiently for the return of Jesus Christ The Thessalonians were an example, 1Th 1:3 Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father; The Thessalonians continued to endure because of their “hope” in Christ Their “hope” was not in man or the governments rules and regulations for man Their “hope” was in the person and work of Jesus Christ Christian “hope” is faith looking forward to the next thing that Jesus is going to do for us Our “hope” is: The expectation of the return of Christ; our patience while waiting for His return Living for Christ today, because He is coming again someday, trusting the Lord for the future We are sure, certain, and confident that Jesus will come again So, we endure life today because He is coming soon Our assurance of His return is the reason for our endurance The opposite of hope is despair, doubt, and disbelief, despair will destroy, but Hope heals Paul said to the Galatians, Gal 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. Our “faith” is in Jesus who died for us; our “love” is in Christ who lives for us Our “hope” is in the Lord who is coming for us, all of which allows us to be strong spiritually James said that we are to establish our heart meaning to be strong in heart Which is the same as saying, “have your mind made up,” be of strong mind The meaning of “establish” is “to make strong” by providing a support The Christian heart is to be strong, solid, and stable God is working in us to keep us from shifting, drifting, and swaying from the truth Some Christians can be wild with excitement one day and then something goes wrong And they are falling apart emotionally the next day, don’t let it happen in this present day Christians are to be stable, able to stand true in all tests, not tossed to and fro, or shut down Paul taught that Christians are to stand strong for one another, 1Th 3:2 And sent Timotheus, our brother, and minister of God, and our fellow laborer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith: The most qualified person to help others through difficult times is a Christian But in-order to help others we must be living as a Christian should Be sure that we are allowing the Spirit to guide us in all-of our decisions Be dependent upon the Holy Spirit in all that you do, all Christians are fellow workers for God God sends us out daily to do the same thing that Timothy was sent to do There are at least two goals that Timothy was to accomplish in Thessalonica He was to “establish” the believers and he was to “comfort” the believers Both were directed toward the same area of their lives, Paul was concerned about their faith We need Christians doing that same work of Timothy today Christians must continue to stand strong in the faith until Christ returns for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. The word translated “coming” is an interesting word in the original Greek language Presenting to us two thoughts, the thought of “arrival” and then the thought of “presence” Jesus Christ is going to return to the earth one day, we can expect His arrival When He does, all attention will be focused upon His presence and what He is going to do James does not go into the details of what Christ is going to do when He returns But his words are encouraging and comforting to Christians who are facing earthly trials Let us consider why those words from James give us encouragement, comfort, and hope His return will be a blessing to the Christian because He will remove us from the earthly trials We have the promise of what is known as the “Rapture,” the catching up of the church The key passage concerning the Rapture of the Church is found in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Christ will return to deliver the Church from Satan and a sinful world, 1Th 4:13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. God is saying to us, “I want you to know and understand truths related to the Second Coming” Understanding prophecy lights up the future for us and guides our path for today Knowing our future with Christ encourages us to live for Christ now As “brethren” they could comfort and encourage one another with the Word of God Paul begins by explaining to them the present experience of those who have died physically Paul uses the term “asleep” to identify the state of physical death for the Christian Paul instructs us concerning the hope of the Christian beyond physical death He is also teaching that for those without Christ there is “no hope” beyond physical death Then Paul explains why Christians have “hope,” 1Th 4:14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. Christians are persuaded that Jesus Christ arose from the dead, our faith that leads to a faithful life “Even so” presents a certainty, just as sure as Jesus died and rose again, He is coming again When Jesus leaves heaven to come back to earth He will lead the way for believers in heaven God will see to it that believers will be led by Jesus from Heaven to earth Christians will follow Jesus from heaven because they followed Him on earth The True Church will remain on the earth until the time of the return of Christ There will be Christians living on the earth when Jesus returns, 1Th 4:15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. Paul’s teaching comes with the authority of Jesus Christ and is therefore the Word of God In verse 14 Paul told us of the hope for the dead “in Christ,” those Christians who had died Now in verse 15 he tells us of the hope for those who are “alive and remain” They are the Christians who will still be living on the earth when Jesus returns Paul gives us the same promise that James did, the coming of the Lord is drawing near, 1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: “For” has the thought of “because,” this is the reason the previous verse is true Who is going to return? “The Lord Himself?” This “same Jesus” The main point of the verse is that it will be Jesus Himself who will return What is going to happen when He returns? “The dead in Christ shall rise first” “The dead in Christ” refers to Christians who have died physically “In Christ” identifies those who are saved, death did not separate them from Jesus At the time of death their body went to the grave and their spirit went to be with Jesus Jesus is going to bring their spirit with Him when He returns from heaven The body of all Christians will be called forth from the grave to reunite with their spirit So, “first in order” of events will be the resurrected body of the dead in Christ The spirit and the body of the believer will be united, the spirit comes in the air with Jesus The body comes forth from its earthly grave to unite with the spirit Christians who have died before the return of Christ will receive their new bodies first Then those who are still alive when Christ returns will receive their new bodies, 1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. “Together” Christians will meet the Lord in the air, “together” means at the same time The “dead in Christ” will have received their resurrected body Those “who are alive and remain” will have received their translated body And then “together” all will be “caught up in the clouds” And “together” we will all “meet the Lord in the air” After the rapture, we will never be separated from Jesus We will be with Him always, at all-times, throughout the eternity of eternities These words of Paul are to inform us; instruct us; encourage us; and to comfort us, 1Th 4:18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words. As Christian’s today we need to be encouraged in the faith as we face our earthly trials And we need to encourage one another, so how can we do that? We are encouraged to live for Jesus today because He is coming someday James says that day is drawing near, the song says, SOON AND VERY SOON