The trying of faith worketh patience

“My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.” (Jas. 1:2,3).

I was listening to a YouTube video by a woman explaining that she had been through an over abundance of trials and battles, of late. And she quoted from a Bible version that read, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds; because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance”.

But, I want to challenge that Bible version. That interpretation of the word, “patience”, in that version leads the reader away from his Saviour and Deliverer. Using the word, “perseverance”, as opposed to “patience”, lends itself to a life of self-dependence. What James was meaning, I believe, when he exhorted the church was a reference to messages from Isaiah 30 and 40.

“He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (Isa. 40:29-31).

“And therefore will the LORD wait, that He may be gracious unto you, and therefore will He be exalted, that He may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for Him.” (Isa. 30:18).

Patience is not about counting to 20 in a stressful situation, or sitting around figuring out life all by yourself. Patience is about going to God in prayer, waiting there with Him. And His trials are all about giving us strong need to go to God in prayer. Patience is created by going to Strong Tower. It’s about learning to surrender to Jesus. It’s about putting all of our burdens upon Him, and waiting for Him to act so that we can cooperate with Him. “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time: casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you.” (1Pet. 5:6,7).

“For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him.” (2Chron. 16:9).

King Asa stopped doing this. He forsook his dependence on Jesus, therefore the prophet told him that his battles would become seriously compounded. “Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars.” (2Chron. 16:9).

Like Asa, dependence on Jesus is what Moses failed to have in his final trouble. It was 38 years of living in the wilderness, with no sight of ever coming out of it. The people were growing impatient, and the leaders were growing belligerent. They rose up against Moses, once again complaining about the lack of water, the abundant manna, the wish to never have left Egypt, and Moses’ ridiculous management of the nation. They went on and on. Every word, every syllable, was thickly laced with insulting, condescending, degrading assaults.

“By faith Moses…refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God” (Heb. 11:24).

Moses knew the experience of boldly approaching the God of grace. Moses knew moment by moment walking in the light of Jesus’ love, walking after the Spirit instead of the flesh, and finding mercy there and help from above whenever temptation would suddenly present itself.

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” (Heb. 4:16).

 “He endured, as seeing Him who is invisible.” (Heb. 11:27).

“Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.” (Heb. 11:25,26).

However, “the people of God” finally succeeded in jabbing Moses to the point of pushing his button. And, finally he broke. But, Moses had a habit of fleeing into the tabernacle to talk over his trials with God. So that is where he ran again. But, this time it was different. Previously Moses’ walk with Jesus was so good that all the insinuations of the people just rolled off of him like water off of a ducks back. Like charcoal that does not absorb toxins, but adsorbs them, Moses had never been affected by the people’s vitriol. Charcoal allows the toxins to cling to the surface of the charcoal, so that, with the help of water, the charcoal can carry away the poisons from the affected area and allow healing to take place. This is what the power of Christ does for the soul that He has reconciled and give peace with God.

But any time we let down our guard, by depending upon our own spiritual resources, we are left wide open to the overmastering power of Satan. Then when his temptations hit us, we have no protection from Jesus. We cannot adsorb the poisons Satan presents, but we can only absorb them. This is what happened to Moses. He absorbed the rage and hatefulness of the idolatrous and sin-loving, angry and hateful people. Now that he absorbed it, running to the tabernacle wasn’t running to the throne of grace.

Inside the tabernacle he couldn’t hear the self-sacrificing voice of Jesus. All he could hear was the poisonous venom of Satan. It must take time for the Spirit of Christ to wash away the polluting child of wrath that had been resurrecting in the man of God. he had become just like the unsanctified people around him. So true is the motto, “Even the best of us are capable of the worst”. Had Moses not rushed in and out of Jesus’ presence, the rest of the story would have been vastly different. But, Jesus told him what to do to remedy their anger, and Moses saluted Jesus and said, “Aye, Aye, Sir.” And off he went to remedy the situation his own way.

This must be the result of “perseverance” under fire when we don’t “wait for Him.” (Isa. 30:18). Fearing to spew self all over the place, we must learn this secret of success, this secret of the sealing. I wrote about the perseverance of Mother Teresa in a post on September 4, 2007, entitled, “The long dark night of a beautiful soul”.

Mother Teresa didn’t spew self all over the place. But, after the first five months of communion with Jesus, she could never get to Him again. For 50 years she “persevered” because her confessor priests and advisors had no advice on how to come to Jesus. Without the Law to convict her and lead her to repentance, she didn’t know how to “wait on Him.” She felt so lonely and dark in her heart, even though she received accolades and applause from the pope and so many others. She just wanted Jesus for she knew in Him she would receive the strength to do the unselfish service the people around her needed so badly.

Hers is the great need in the world today. As time advances and we draw nearer the condition of the human race when the Spirit of God is completely withdrawn from the Earth, darkness increasingly covers the earth and gross darkness the people. Greater and greater the emptiness will grow and the yearning to have peace from God. What we need is peace and rest.

“He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” (Isa. 40:29-31).

“And therefore will the LORD wait, that He may be gracious unto you, and therefore will He be exalted, that He may have mercy upon you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for Him.” (Isa. 30:18).

Will we be humbly, patiently wait under His condemnation of our sins, and let patience have her perfect work? will we admit our complicity in our troubles? Will we fall on the hard commander of heaven, and confess our filthiness to Him.

“And they that are left of you shall pine away in their iniquity in your enemies’ lands; and also in the iniquities of their fathers shall they pine away with them.

If they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, with their trespass which they trespassed against Me, and that also they have walked contrary unto Me;

And that I also have walked contrary unto them, and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of their iniquity:

Then will I remember My covenant with Jacob, and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My covenant with Abraham will I remember; and I will remember the land.” (Lev. 26:39-42).

If we will patiently wait for His grace in order for our admittedly hard hearts to be broken upon His mercy seat, then we will hear Him say to us,

“Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” (Matt. 11:28-30).

“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.

Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.” (Ps. 32:1,2).

We will be born again, we will renew our strength. We will mount up with wings like eagles, we will run and not be weary. We will walk and not faint. Blessed are all they that wait for Him.