Scripture Text (NRSV)
James 5:7-10
5:7 Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord.
The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient
with it until it receives the early and the late rains.
5:8 You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the
coming of the Lord is near.
5:9 Beloved, do not grumble against one another, so that you may
not be judged. See, the Judge is standing at the doors!
5:10 As an example of suffering and patience, beloved, take
the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.
Comments:
The coming of the Lord is near...
Since 9/11 there seems to be an upsurge in tracts and church marquees
(and even mailings to my office) about our living in the last days.
How can something be promised to be near, and yet so far from our
grasp, so far from our expectations? Does "near" mean, as the early
church expected, that Christ would come next week? or is "near" a
philosophical concept? The trial is belieiving in God's promises
without expectation.
Sally in GA
Hi Sally!
Could it be that FAITH is believing in God's promises without
expectation?
Just a thought. And thank you especially for yours--you got me little
brain a workin' ;~)
Pastor Dave in BC Canada, eh!
Nouwen, McNeill and Morrison wrote a beautiful book called
"Compassion." Chapter 7 is titled, "Patience." It begins: "The
compassionate way is the patient way. Patience is the discipline of
compassion. This becomes obvious when we realize that the word
"compassion" could be read as "com-patience." the words "passion" and
"patience" both find their roots in the Latin word "pati," which means
"suffering." The compassionate life could be described as a life
patiently lived with others.
Later on they write, "Clock time always makes us depart. It breeds
impatience and prevents any compassionate being together.... Patience
dispels clock time and reveals a new time, the time of salvation...
the time lived from within and experienced as full time."
It's been a long time since I've read the whole book. Looks like this
might be a good week to do so. Blessings - Kay
"But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for
it." (Romans 8:25) "I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in his
word do I hope." (Psalm 130:5) The contemplative act requires
"waiting" and "listening" for the word of God. In our impatience, and
lack of sensitivity to the meaning of suffering as a servant of the
covenant, we often tighten our grasp on God and rush on into our
monologue of empty one-way communication/prayer. Paul Tillich reminded
us that "waiting means NOT having and having at the same time"..."The
condition of man's relation to God is first of all one of not having,
not knowing, not seeing, and not grasping. A religion in which that is
forgotten, no matter how ecstatic or active or reasonable, replaces
God by its own creation of an image of God."..."I think of the
theologian who does not wait God, because he has Him, enclosed within
a doctrine. I think of the Bibblical student who does not wait for
God, because he possesses Him, enclosed in a book. I think of the
churchman who does not wait for God, because he possesses Him,
enclosed in an institution.",,,,,,,,Advent reminds us of our finitude,
our limitations, our helplessness and need for a "suffering servant"
God of grace who feels the pain of the universe, our need for the
other side of dialogue in the reciprocality of "waithing" upon the
Lord to renew our strength and to speak the Word begetting creation,
raising the dead to restored life, and giving birth anew to the valley
of dry bones. PaideiaSCO in LA.
What a great quote from Tillich about our limitation in knowing God.
It leads me once again to the need to surrender and sumbit to the
Mystery. As one of our 16 small groups meeting this semester there is
a group called "The Search for the Historical Jesus." They have been
reading Crossan, Borg, etc. Next Monday my husband and I, who serve as
the co-pastors, are being invited in to talk to them about the Christ
of faith. This quote is so powerful, for it reminds us all that we do
start at an uncomfortable, unknowing place. And yet, by grace, I can
say that there are things (at least some days) that I know in "my
knower," that (at least on some days) I would be willing to die for.
This is only by grace. It is a gift from the God who decided not to
staf afar off but to come near. I need patience to wait on those days
when I am not feeling the nearness of God and it feels like maybe I
have made the whole thing up. I need patience then to take time in
God's word and let it speak to me from beyond the now. Patience itself
is a gift from the Holy Spirit. Of course I want it, and want it NOW.
MEM in CT
Paideia:
Thanks for the reminder about Tillich. For anybody with access to it,
his little book "Waiting" would be well worth rereading to prepare to
deal with the passage. (It's a thin volume and very readable.)
Jim, Tulsa
To PaideiaSCA in LA:
A question - is your Tillich quote from his book "Waiting"? The theme
of patient waiing and compassion is interesting. I find that, often
during the week, my scheduled day gets interrupted. i am learning to
pay attention to the interruptions as ways in which God breaks into my
well-scheduled and well-clocked life. It is in those moments that the
surprise of God has come lately. it is in those moments of waiting
upon the kairotic moment, that I might experience the compassion of
God. How many turned from their regular routined ways to see the Holy
Infant? Not many, I guess. Odes Advent invite my attnetion to the
"interruptions"? Do the interruptions become the "main event"? I know
that when theis happens, my carefully laid plans get thrown to the
wind, and sometimes at the end of the week I feel pressured to get the
things done that need to be done, but perhaps this is where "real"
ministry takes place.
Tom in TO
I am drawn to this passage and thinking that it might be the text of
my message this week. The idea of patient waiting as a theme of Advent
is intriguing. Advent does look forward to Christmas, but it also
delays the impatient, eager-to-begin fervor of the commercial event
know as the "Christmas Shopping Season." Before we can get to
Christmas, we must first wait through Advent. The journey is at least
as important as the destination.
Here it will be the third week, Christmas is only two weeks away and,
in my church, we have yet to sing one Christmas carol. I'm waiting for
someone to ask why. Then I can answer that I have done it deliberately
-- because waiting is good for you.
-- Rod in Pixley
I think the repeated posting is very appropriate for this time of
year, especially this year, with its very unseasonable weather, which
makes it seem more like Lent than Advent in many ways. Don't we cycle
through the same messages again and again as we sift through the
things around us? Sometimes patience comes in the way we sift through
repetition. In the middle of the same old thing God acts and something
new takes shape. Meanwhile, I am sitting here reading James and
praying, "Lord, give me patience and give it to me now!" GF in SC
Thanks for the vote of confidence, Rick and GF. It strikes me that
even John the Baptizer was not that patient. Even the one who had seen
the advent of Jesus was still asking whether Jesus was the one, or
whether they were still going to have to wait for another. It seems to
me that John was getting impatient. Perhaps Jesus was not what he had
expected. Maybe in our waiting, we miss the coming because our
expectation is met with something so surprising, something so "outside
our box", that we miss seeing it altogether. Would John had asked his
question, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to await for
another?" if the Jesus who had come had fulfilled his personal
expectations completely? So, our waiting is patient because it
involves us in some personal change (conversion) that allows us to
"see something different". Patience with ourselves -- is this not the
idea. Christ will come, with or without us. .... more musings from
Tom in TO (Toronto)
I am thinking about an old Stones' song from my youth -- not that I am
in the habit of doing thology ala Mick, but anyway: You can't always
get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you just might find, you
get what you need....
I am thinking that we want a magnificent, enthroned, safe and fully
knowable Jesus. A bit distant, not up-close-&personal. Surely not
someone who hangs out with people with aids. We get a Jesus that
demands our patience, our waiting, our sincerity, and our effort --
that we hang out with people with aids. God hears our prayers and does
not say (like good old Samta) --"Let me give you what you want." But
rather, "Let me show you what you need." We needed the Jesus who gave
sight to the blind. Maybe we can wait around long enough to learn what
it is we need today.....
HW in HI
Tom in TO...The reference is from Paul Tillich's THE SHAKING OF THE
FOUNDATIONS, Chapter 18, "Waiting", pgs. 149-152, New York; Charles
Scribner's Sons, copyright, 1948......PaideiaSCO.
Well, if one can think of the "Stones" I guess it's OK for me to think
of Carly Simon:
Anticipation, Anticipa-ya-tion is makin' me wait... is keepin' me way-yay-yay-yay-yayating......
Bro. Ken
I want to build my sermon around the experience of farmers waiting for
the crop. Most of my congregation are farmers. But I am not! Would
appreciate any thoughts, experiences from anyone who knows from
experience what that type of waiting is like, what that type of
patience is. Any illustrations for me? Mary
On second thought, maybe those of us in rural charges could try
this...asking the farmers during the sermon what it is like to wait
for crop, to be patient with their crops.
Mary,
I, too, serve a rural parish. Most of my people are farmers also. And,
like you, I am not. But a little insight anyway. For most farmers the
waiting goes beyond waiting for the crop. They must wait until the
crop is harvested and taken to market before they know whether they
had a "good year" or not. That means they must continue to work
through the long season of growth not really knowing whether their
efforts will be rewarded or not. I suppose that is why James uses
farmers as examples of patience.
--Rod in Pixley
My brother is a hog farmer in Ontario. Prices are so low, many farmers
are wondering about losing everything -- they are not making enough
money to pay for the feed bills. Some are killing hogs because they
cannot afford to take them through their growth period and on to
market. My brother knows what waiting is all about, as he waits for
hog prices to go up, waits for the answer about his survival as a
farmer.
Tom in TO
10 DEC 98 During yesterday's pre-school chapel I thought I was going
to use presents for an illustration so I had a couple under the tree.
(I opted to hold the gifts for Sunday's children sermon--some of the
same children will be present for each day, so I can't repeat!).
Reviewing some of the seasonal changes in our chancel and sanctuary
one lad observed: "There's some presents... let's open `em!" Of
course! (Children don't always understand that we're blessing them by
teaching them patience! On the other hand, if Christ invites us to
have the "faith of a child", what the relationship there?). Re farmers
and crops, my problem is reversed: I grew up on a farm and pastor an
urban church...we've got a few gardeners but I'm thinking of other
images of waitfulness... This is So. California; we're planting and
harvesting year round... Waiting for a child is certainly anticipation
(I mean, one's own baby), but most of my members are some 40 years
removed from that and other haven't had children, are single, etc. You
can see I'm running late here, but if you have some other good
anticipation ideas, send them in! Carly Simon... mmmm... Peter in CA
