At the end of the King’s Birthday long weekend, we drove our grandson back to his boarding school in Sydney.  Of course, it was very congested on the M1 Pacific Motorway.  Many people become quite impatient and angry in that situation.  I read the story of a man whose car stalled in heavy traffic just as the light turned green.  All his efforts to start the engine failed.  A chorus of honking and yelling behind him only made things worse.  He finally got out of his car and walked back to the first driver.  He said, ‘I’m sorry but I can't seem to get my car started.  If you’ll go up there and give it a try, I’ll stay here and blow your horn for you.’

 It is interesting to note that the Greek word for ‘patience’ (the fourth fruit of the Spirit after ‘love’, ‘joy’, and ‘peace’) literally means ‘slow anger’.  So, patience is handling anger slowly.  We are to be ‘long tempered’ instead of ‘short tempered’.  In the Old Testament God is described as “…the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.’  As we have previously noted the fruit of the Spirit is about producing God’s character in us.  We strive to be patient to reveal what God is like.  In fact, how he is dealing with the world right now.  There is an awful lot wrong in the world.  So why doesn’t God deal with it?  He is very patient.  ‘What if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath- prepared for destruction.’  Paul is saying God is incredibly patient with those who he will punish.  He is slow in his anger.  Being patient does not mean we turn a blind eye to wrong.  Or that we suppress everything, while seething inside.  ‘Patience is not an absence of action; rather it is timing.  It waits for the right time to act, for the right principles, in the right way.’  Why is God patient?  As Paul wrote ‘… I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who believe on him and receive eternal life.’ There you see the point of patience.  It runs hand in hand with grace.  Peter wrote, ‘Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation’.  This is the key to God’s patience.  This is what it is all about.  Judgement for sin will come, suddenly.  God’s anger for sin will be justly expressed.  But God is patient so there is time for witnessing and repentance and faith. 

‘Our Lord’s patience means salvation.’  That is the attitude we should take.  That’s how we reveal God’s character, in this case his patience.  How do we do that?  Ecclesiastes 7:8,9 gives us a few clues: ‘The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.  Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.’  The ‘end of the matter’ means if you want to develop patience keep your eyes on the goal.  The goal of our relationship with Jesus is for us to mature as Jesus and with him share eternal life on the new earth.  So, amid our struggles we can be patient because we trust that ‘God works all things for good for those who love him’.  The goal of our relationships in the church is to help each other mature spiritually and become like Jesus.  So, we will be ‘slow to anger’ because impatience with each other will not achieve the goal, namely, to help each develop the fruit of the Spirit. 

‘Patience is better than pride’ means put aside your ego.  Pride often generates anger.  Isn’t it pride that says, ‘What right have you to leave me waiting all this time for service?’  We think we know better than others, so we become impatient when things don’t go our way.  Impatience dissipates if we put aside pride and think of others before ourselves.  ‘Be completely humble and gentle, be patient bearing with one other in love.’  Don’t be ‘quickly provoked’ means take a deep breath and consider the consequences.  Don't be a ‘fool’.  One moment of uncontrolled anger can ruin things for a long time.  Consider these proverbs: (Greek proverb) ‘One minute of patience, ten years of peace.’  (Dutch proverb) ‘A handful of patience is worth more than a bushel of brains.’  (Chinese proverb) ‘One moment of patience may prevent disaster; one moment of impatience may ruin a life.’  (Augustine) ‘Patience is the companion of wisdom.’  Let’s be wise, attractive and reveal what Jesus is like.

Leo Douma