With patience to work

408 with patienceWe all know the saying "Patience is a virtue". Although not in the Bible, the Bible has a lot to say about patience. Paul calls them a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5,22). He also encourages us to be patient in adversity2,12) to wait patiently for what we don't have yet (Romans 8,25) to bear one another patiently in love (Ephesians 4,2) and not getting tired of doing good, because if we are patient we will also reap (Galatians 6,9). The Bible also tells us to "wait in the Lord" (Psalm 27,14), but unfortunately this patient waiting is misunderstood by some as passive waiting.

One of our regional pastors attended a conference where every contribution to the discussion regarding renewal or mission was met with the response of church leaders: "We know we must do this in the future, but for now we wait on the Lord." I'm sure these leaders felt they were exercising patience by waiting for God to show them how to approach non-church people. There are other churches waiting for a sign from the Lord as to whether they should change the days or times of worship to make it more convenient for new believers. The regional pastor told me that the last thing he did was ask the leaders, "What are you waiting for the Lord to do?" He then explained to them that God was probably waiting for them to join in His already active work. When he finished, an "Amen" could be heard from different quarters.

When faced with difficult decisions, we would all like to receive a sign from God to show others—one that tells us where to go, how and when to start. This is not how God normally works with us. Instead he just says "follow me" and exhorts us to take a step forward without understanding the details. We should remember that both before and after Pentecost, Jesus' apostles occasionally struggled to understand where the Messiah was leading them. However, although Jesus is a perfect teacher and leader, they were not perfect students and disciples. We, too, often struggle to understand what Jesus is saying and where He is leading us—sometimes we are afraid to go further because we fear we will fail. This fear often drives us into inaction, which we then mistakenly equate with patience—waiting on the Lord.

We need not fear our mistakes or lack of clarity about the path ahead. Though Jesus' early disciples made many mistakes, the Lord kept giving them new opportunities to join His work—to follow Him where He led them, even if it meant making corrections along the way. Jesus works in the same way today, reminding us that any "success" we experience will be a result of his work and not ours.

We should not be alarmed if we cannot fully understand God's purposes. In times of uncertainty, we are asked to be patient, and in some cases that means waiting for God's intervention before we can take the next step. Whatever the situation, we are always Jesus' disciples who are called to hear and follow him. As we take this journey, remember that our training is not just about prayer and reading the Bible. Practical application takes up a large part - we move forward in hope and in faith (accompanied by prayer and the Word), even when it is not clear where the Lord is leading.

God wants his church to be healthy and thus bring about growth. He wants us to join his mission for the world, to take the gospel-based steps to serve in our homes. If we do that we will make mistakes. In some cases, our efforts to bring the gospel to church strangers will not be as successful. But we will learn from the mistakes. As in the early Church of the New Testament, our Lord will graciously use our mistakes if we entrust them to Him and repent, if necessary. He will strengthen and develop us and shape us to resemble the image of Christ. Thanks to this understanding we will not consider the lack of immediate results as a failure. God can and will bring our efforts to fruition in his time and in his own way, especially when those efforts are directed to leading people to Jesus by living and sharing the good news. It may be that the first fruits that we see will affect our own lives.

Real "success" in mission and service comes only one way: through faithfulness to Jesus accompanied by prayer and the biblical word whereby the Holy Spirit guides us to truth. Remember, we will not learn this truth right away, and our inaction can hold back our progress. I wonder if the inaction might be due to fear of the truth. Jesus repeatedly announced his death and resurrection to his disciples, and in the fear of this truth they were temporarily paralyzed in their ability to act. This is also often the case today.

When we discuss our involvement in Jesus' reaching out to those outside the church, we quickly have reactions of fear. We need not fear, however, for "greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world" (1. John 4,4). Our fears disappear when we trust in Jesus and his word. Faith is truly the enemy of fear. That is why Jesus said, "Fear not, only believe" (Mark 5,36).

When we actively engage in Jesus' mission and service in faith, we are not alone. The Lord of all creation stands by us, just as Jesus did long ago on the mountain in Galilee (Matthew 28,16) had promised his disciples. Just before he ascended into heaven, he gave them what is commonly known as the commission: "And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations: baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to obey all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28,18-20).

Notice the closing verses here. Jesus begins by saying that he has "all authority in heaven and on earth," then concludes with these words of assurance: "I am with you always." These statements should be a source of great comfort, great trust and great freedom for us in what Jesus commanded us: Make disciples of all nations. We do so with boldness - knowing that we are participating in the work of the One who has all power and authority. And we do it with confidence, knowing that he is always with us. With these thoughts in mind—instead of those who understand patience as idly waiting—we patiently wait for the Lord as we actively participate in His work of making disciples of Jesus in our communities. In this way we will participate in what we can call working with patience. Jesus commands us to do such things, for this is his way - the way of faithfulness that bears the fruit of his omnipresent kingdom. So let's get to work together with patience.

by Joseph Tkach


pdfWith patience to work