God’s Indescribable Patience

Mysteries are my favorite genre, both in books and film, but even in real life. I love challenging puzzles that take time and patience to solve. I also particularly enjoy watching God resolve problems that seemed totally without solutions. 

However, the negative side of this even in fiction is seeing the sinful condition of humanity. Last night, one television show was the solving of a cold-case murder that depicted the mental and physical damage suffered by the perpetrator in the years before he was finally discovered and brought to justice by some extremely patient police officers.

This morning I read about the patience of God. The sin of the world is an ugly puzzle at times. Charnock lists some: blasphemies, oaths, thefts, adulteries, murders, oppressions, contempt of religion, the open idolatries of heathens, the more spiritual and refined idolatries of others, the ingratitude of those that profess His name, our pride, earthliness, carelessness, sluggishness to Divine duties, and in every one of those a multitude of provocations; the whole person engaged in every sin, the understanding contriving it, the will embracing it, the affections complying with it, and all the members of the body instruments in the acting the unrighteousness of it. Even the offenses all receive from our fellow-creatures is like dust compared to the injuries God receives from humanity. 

Add to that the days of each lifetime and the numbers of people who have ever lived. Who can count all the foul-mouthed oaths, the beastly excess, the uncleanness, committed in the space of a day, year, twenty years in this city, much less in the whole nation, least of all, in the whole world? 

They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. (Romans 1:29–31)

Yet “millions of such haters of Him” breathe every day in His air, and are maintained by His goodness, have their tables spread, and their cups filled to the brim, and that in the midst of even boasting of their rejection of Him — even as God puts a stop to the devils who wish to destroy all of them.
Those who know Jesus sometimes want His fury to be poured out: But the people did not receive (Jesus), because his face was set toward Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But he turned and rebuked them. (Luke 9:53–55)

Such is His patience and nothing but patience stands in the gap to keep off judgment from sinners. And even the fiction I read or see on the screen awakens in me the desire to be patient. I don’t want those who sin to be patted on the head and given no rebuke, but I do want the goads of God to open their hearts in conviction of their guilt, but not just that. I also want sinners to know that Jesus Christ bore their sin and will rescue them from all slavery to it. As overwhelming as this is, it is the only way to peace with God and life eternal.

Paul wrote this:

I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. (1 Timothy 1:12–17)

PRAY: Grant strength to me, to all who trust You, that we leave behind our sin and allow Your goodness and mercy to overflow in our lives. Thank You for Your incredible patience toward us and that this same patience is available to us through Your Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Discomfort’s True Purpose

In being very ill and in the hospital for a few days, I experienced something valuable; God uses what seems bad for good. The greatest example is Jesus. The worst evil that ever happened was His crucifixion — the best thing that ever happened was His death and resurrection that brought eternal salvation to the world:

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. (John 3:16–17)

Compared to that, my experience is nothing, yet “bad” things can result in eternal good. I know of a boy who was trapped in a burning vehicle. The radio was on and a pastor prayed for the salvation of all who suffered and thinking he would die, that boy gave his life to Jesus. He was rescued, scarred for the rest of his days, but saved for eternity with Jesus.

I know a woman who decided to divorce her husband. She liked someone else but that didn’t work either and in her despair, Jesus came info her life. Her bad decision affected her eternal destiny. For these, but mostly because the Word of God says it, God’s love is at work even in trouble. He is the One who sends Jesus to us in our suffering:

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; (Isaiah 61:1–2)

It says “all.” His power is not just for certain people but everyone who is poor, brokenhearted, in captivity of any kind, and who mourn. He wants me to be like that toward others also, not forgetting the “all” so I am not picky or a respecter of persons.

And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. (1 Thessalonians 5:14)

The very ones who need comfort most are not the strong-minded but the faint of heart, the weak. This goes two ways. If I am feeling like that, my comfort is from Jesus, fixing the problem, not in feeling stronger or more capable. Not that this allows me to curl up in a ball and quit, for the text says to admonish the idle. I am told to serve others even if my sense of weakness and being faint-hearted comes from doing so. That means both those served and those who He calls to serve them may experience this sense of being unable. We do not like it. I constantly need to remember what Paul heard from God when he prayed for his own weakness to be removed:

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

God’s grace is sufficient and because of that, Paul not only quit asking for his weakness to be ‘fixed’ but began to glory in it because it meant that the power he experienced was not his own but from Jesus Christ.

This is the glory of being a disciple of the Lord. He is far more aware of my weaknesses and inabilities than I am, and allows trials, like a bout with pneumonia, to show me how little I know about weakness. Not only that, He used the kindness of medical people to show me how little I know about comforting others who are weak.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. (2 Corinthians 1:3–5)

This applies to my attitude toward those who sin. I’m not to judge them but be like Jesus to them.  Some people refused to receive him, and when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But he turned and rebuked them. (Luke 9:53–55) He welcomed sinners that others rejected.

PRAY: Jesus, You are always on the side of sinners for whom You came to save. You died for us. Yes, many say NO to You, yet You always say YES to all who realize their need of You and turn toward You. May I always realize that weakness is an opportunity to experience Your power, and may my life demonstrate Your loving comfort to others, today and always.