JAMES 5:7

The Bible says in James 5:7, “Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waits for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.” In reminding us of the importance of patience, James reminds us of exactly what we are waiting for: the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Believers in Jesus are not supposed to have their hopes in anything that this world can bring. Our hope is not like the hopes that those of the world have. Our hope is not in having a good retirement, or seeing growth in mutual funds, or enjoying the growth and prosperity of our family, or living a long life and having good health. Our hope is in the return of Christ. Jesus will return just like He promised. Jesus said to the disciples in John 14:3, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again.” Just after the resurrection and the ascension of the Lord Jesus to heaven two angels said to the disciples in Acts 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.” Just as a farmer must wait from the time of planting until the time of harvest, even so must believers wait from the time of their conversion to Jesus until he returns to see all the promises fulfilled. Our hope and the basis for being patient is in the return of Christ.

The word that is translated “patient” in this passage comes from two different Greek words that mean “long” and “angry.” In other words go a long time before becoming angry. If you are patient, you are willing and able to bear up under certain things and to suffer certain things without getting angry. As believers we should be able to be more patient with whatever comes our way, knowing that what we are waiting on is the return of the Lord. We know that people are not going to be what they should be and things are not going to happen the way they should happen until the Lord returns and fixes everything and straightens everything out.

The Bible says in James 5:8, “Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.” In verse 7 we were told, “Be patient.” In verse 8 we are told, “Be you also patient.” In both verses we are told that it is the return of the Lord that we are hoping for and waiting for. The same Greek work is used for “patient” in both verses, but there is a somewhat of a different emphasis in the two verses. Verse 7 says, “Be patient therefore.” It is related to the verses that came before in James 5:1-6. Those verses were telling how the rich oppress the poor. In such situations, we are told to be patient. We should not get angry or impatient with those who oppress us. Our hope is not and should not be that they will stop oppressing us. Our hope is the return of the Lord Jesus Christ in power and great glory. Jesus said in Luke 6:20, “Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God.” The blessedness of the poor will be manifest in the next life, not in this life.

In James 5:7 we are told to be patient towards those who are around us. The emphasis is on what is taking place around us and outside of us. In James 5:8 when we are told to be patient, the emphasis is on what is taking place inside of us. It says, “Stablish your hearts.” Like other spiritual qualities, it is not really what is taking place on the outside that makes the difference; but what is taking place on the inside. If our hearts are established such that we have patience in our hearts, then we will have the patience that we need in regards to what happens around us. Someone might say, “The things that happened around me made me lose patience.” No, what happened inside of you is what made you lose patience. Remember what we are really waiting for is the return of the Lord, and we are going to need a lot of patience in order to truly be waiting for Him. There is a good chance that the problems we see around us are going to continue and even get worse until He returns.

One example of what will happen when we have a lack of patience is given in James 5:9. It says, “Grudge not one against another, brothers, lest you be condemned: behold, the judge stands at the door.” To grudge means to complain. Do not complain. Do not complain about other people, and especially do not complain about other Christians. When I first became a student at Bob Jones University in 1973 I was told ahead of time that they had a lot of rules to follow, and when I arrived on campus one of the first rules that I heard was: Complaining is against the rules. That is a good rule. I hope it is a rule that you try to live by in your Christian life. When you see things that are not quite the way you think they should be, remember that a little patience might be what you need instead. The world is an imperfect place, and other Christians are imperfect also. Do not go about complaining about it. Just be glad that Jesus will fix it all one day when He returns.

One of the good things about the scriptures are the examples of people who in ages past had to go through some really tough times, and who did so with faith and patience. James 5:10-11 says, “Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. Behold, we count them happy which endure. You have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.” Notice the progression of events that takes place. It happened in the time of the prophets and it still happens today. 1. Someone speaks in the name of the Lord. There will be a price to pay for doing so. “They that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” 2. That is why there will be affliction that follows. Of course, some affliction is common to all inhabitants of this earth. Jesus said, “In the world you shall have tribulation.” 3. Once the affliction comes our way we will need patience to endure it. The goal is to endure the affliction until it ends. One of the good things about bad times is that nothing stays the same and even bad times have their end, and good times follow. Jesus said, “He that endures until the end shall be saved.” He was not talking about the salvation of the soul. He was talking about the same spiritual principle that James was talking about: the way to be saved from an affliction is to endure until it ends. Do not run away from it, and do not take things into your own hands. “Let patience have her perfect work.” The only ones who win the prize are the ones who are there at the end of the race. 4. The end will be very good for those who endure. James said, “We count them happy which endure.” The word that is translated “happy” comes from the same word that is translated “blessed” in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus said in Matthew 5:10, “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake; for their’s is the kingdom of heaven.” If you want to gain the crown, then you must bear the cross. Paul said at the end of his life in Second Timothy 4:7-8, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness.”

James has already shown how a lack of patience can be manifest by what we say, especially in complaining against other believers. Another matter about our speech is brought up in James 5:12. It says, “But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.” Concerning our speech, in James 5:9 we were told to “grudge not,” and now we are told to “swear not.” Evidently in the first century it was a common thing to take an oath in order to affirm that one was telling the truth. James is saying that believers should always tell the truth, and so oaths should not be necessary in their daily conversations. Do not complain and always tell the truth. If we do these things faithfully, we will be much better servants of Jesus Christ.

In James 5:13 we return to the subject of Christians who are under some kind of affliction, and then James zeros in on Christians who are in three different conditions: those that are afflicted, those that are merry, and those that are sick. Concerning the first two it says, “Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.” In the previous verses we were told to make sure that we have the patience to endure afflictions. Now we are told to make sure that we pray if we are afflicted. We will not be able to endure some kind of evil affliction that comes against us in our own strength. The number one reason for spiritual failure is because we did not take hold of the strength that Christ supplies in our hour of need. Too little prayer will mean too little strength.

Thank God, eventually the affliction will end. Suffering afflictions is part of the Christian life, but that does not mean that every day or every week or every month that we will have to suffer something. There are times of peace and times of cheerfulness also that God allows to come into our lives. If that is your current condition, then the Word of God says for you to sing psalms. Some people are good at turning to the Lord when things are going wrong, but not so good at turning to Him in times of prosperity. That is what happened to the Children of Israel over and over again. Do not let the good times be your undoing. Make sure to sing songs of praise to the Lord for such times.

James 5:14, 15, and the last part of 16 says, “Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.” There is a biblical solution for sickness. All of the necessary elements for recovery from sickness are given here: 1. Prayer. Prayer changes things. God answers prayer. God can supernaturally heal from any sickness. Some people have physical problems simply because they have not asked God for help. 2. But do not just pray. Also do that which is practical. Use whatever modern medical science can provide. That is the real significance of the phrase “anointing them with oil.” Olive oil was used extensively for medicinal reasons in the first century. Of course, we have better medicines now. 3. Faith. It will not do much good to pray unless you have faith. “Pray with faith believing.” Use the doctors and the medicines the best that you can, but do not trust in them. Trust in the Lord. He knows what he is doing. Trust in His providence and care and wisdom. What really matters is that the will of the Lord be done. 4. Confession of sin. We are not just physical beings. We are spiritual also. You will not be everything that you can be physically unless you are everything that you can be spiritually. Some sickness is the result of sin, and part of the solution for that is to confess one’s sins.

While on the subject of prayer and healing, James had one last thing to say to emphasize the value of our prayers. The last part of James 5:16-18 says, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.” Elijah was a great prophet, but he is described by James as “a man subject to like passions as we are.” The emphasis is on the fact that Elijah was no different than we are. If so, how will we see some of the same kinds of things happen in our lives that happened in Elijah’s life? Fervent prayer is the answer. “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”

In the last two verses of James chapter five, James returns to the subject of the forgiveness of sins. He had already emphasized its importance in reference to physical healing. Now James points out the fact that sometimes one believer can help another believer see the error of his ways, and thus go to Jesus for forgiveness. In order to walk faithfully with the Lord on this earth, there may be nothing more important than going to Jesus for the forgiveness of sins whenever necessary. It is critical for a Christian to stay in fellowship with God through daily confession to Jesus. Sometimes another believer can help a Christian see the error of his ways. The Bible says in James 5:19-20, “Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.” Of course, these verses could also be applied to the salvation experience. If so, the question is: have you been converted from the error of your way? If not, turn to Jesus for forgiveness and salvation while there is still time.

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