Sermon -- 3rd Sunday of Advent (December 11, 2022)

JAMES 5:7-11

WE WAIT WITH PATIENCE.

In the name + of Jesus.

     John the Baptist preached the word of the Lord to Herod Antipas.  He had taken the wife of his brother, Herod Philip, for himself.  It did not matter if this marriage made both of them happy or if Herod Antipas claimed, “But we belong together.  She’s my soul-mate.  You can’t control whom you love.”  His marriage was against God’s word, and John told him so.  For upholding the word of God, John was imprisoned by Herod.

     While John sat in prison for preaching the word of God faithfully, Jesus continued to gain in popularity among the people.  John had foretold concerning the Christ: “The axe is laid to the root of the trees.  …He who is coming after me is mightier than I…  His winnowing fork is in his hand…” (Matthew 3:10-12).  But John was not hearing stories about the axe falling or sifting out the wicked from the righteous.  Jesus was acting meekly and mercifully.  John sat in prison with time to think, and he thought about Jesus.  Is he really the Christ?  It seems John expected more immediate and definitive action from Jesus.  As John sat in prison by the command of a wicked man, John’s level of patience for judgment seems to have grown short.

     St. James encourages all of God’s people, “Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord” (James 5:7).  That is much easier said than done.  We don’t face the same kind of persecution that John the Baptist did, but we know the frustrations of seeing wicked people who seem to get away with everything.  We would like to see that axe John spoke of to drop.  We would like the Lord to sift out of this world the evil that goes on in it.  We might rally behind someone who claims that he can make the world a safer, happier, and cleaner place.  But man-made solutions are met with man-made schemes to get around those solutions.  And the world remains wicked.

     We all get frustrated by all this wicked world.  Who wouldn’t?  Do you think that God is not grieved by the wickedness he sees?  When people do not listen to the word of the Lord, his patience gets abused.  His wrath is fired up.  In the past, God’s punishment included the banishment of Cain, the Plagues in Egypt, the oppression of Israel by the Philistines, the captivity of Israel by the Babylonians, and the Flood which destroyed the world.  All these judgments came for the same reason: People did not listen to the Lord.

     It’s not like we are innocent in this, either.  In Psalm 46 God urges us, “Be still, and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10).  Psalm 27 says, “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord” (Psalm 27:14)!  And of course, our reading from St. James calls for the same: “Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord” (James 5:7).  But we are not patient for the Lord to act in his time and as he knows best.  We complain that God does not act with immediate, harsh judgment, snuffing out the wicked.  We become just as frustrated with God as we do about the wickedness we see.  Some have even abandoned the Christian faith because of this impatience.

     We know that God can do something about every evil and yet does not.  God can put an end to violence.  God can cut down crooked rulers and violent nations.  God can nullify crime and COVID and car accidents and cold and flu season.  If God can do these things, and if God loves us, why does he let us suffer through these things?  These things go on and on, and the Lord directs us: Wait with patience.

     Part of the problem is that we fail to recognize that we are part of the problem.  Yes, God can stop people from making threats and being bullies.  Should he also cause your throat to swell shut when you speak ill of your in-laws?  Yes, God can remove the sickness that makes you cry by your child’s bedside.  Should he also remove the husband who made you cry with an insensitive remark?  Yes, God can assure you that you will not be affected by road rage.  Shall he take your car away?  We have a very selfish view of what needs to be done to make the world a better place.  We fail to recognize that our selfish works and sarcastic words cause problems for others.  Repent.  For, the axe is ready to fall.  Or, as St. James states is, “The coming of the Lord is at hand.  Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door” (James 5:9-10). 

     Our complaints and impatience show that we fail to remember that the Lord has dealt with the world, its wickedness, and its problems.  When John the Baptist asked Jesus if he were the one to come, Jesus replied, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them” (Matthew 11:4-5).  By his miracles, Jesus began his reversal of all the misery that sin has brought into the world.  Jesus was doing just what the prophets foretold, proving that he is the Christ.  This is the one who will save us from evil and restore all things.

     But it is not enough that Jesus merely cures diseases.  Even if the whole world is healthy, we still face stress, poverty, earthquakes, and terrorism.  Even when we enjoy times of peace and prosperity, wickedness still goes on.  So, Jesus has come to address all of this.  He has taken the sin which corrupts this world, which corrupts our hearts, which affects our bodies, which wounds our consciences, which marks us for death and hell—he has taken all of it and rescued us from it. 

     Jesus delivered us from our sins by dying for every wicked thought, word, or work that stains our record.  Because we have faulted God for not doing more to make our lives better, Jesus was faulted for our impatience and complaints.  Because we complain about God’s failure to judge others, Jesus was put to death without complaint, judged for our failures.  Jesus was slain in humility to pay for our arrogance.  Thanks to Jesus, all is forgiven.  He has secured full pardon for our false judgment of God’s wisdom and love.  In fact, Jesus died for the wickedness of all people so that no one should have to be condemned. 

     So, now you are free—free from all guilt, free from every accusation, free to live without fear of God’s judgment, and free to live in peace.  You have the joy of knowing that Jesus will come again to deliver you out of this wicked world to the everlasting peace of Paradise.  There is an end to war and violence, of sickness and disease, of pain and sorrow, and of shame and regret.  We wait in patience for the full deliverance from these things, but we do not wait in vain.  As St James wrote, “You also, be patient.  Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand” (James 5:8).

     We must wait with patience because we have not been delivered from this sinful world yet.  We still struggle with temptations.  We still are burdened by guilt and shame.  We lose sleep because we have hurt other people.  And that is just what we have done to ourselves.  We also have sins done against us.  People lie and cheat and defraud and deceive us.  Even our loved ones fail us and wound us.  And then the world adds stress and fear.  Jesus warned us what we can expect as long as the world endures: “wars and rumors of wars … nation … against nation, kingdom against kingdom, and famines and earthquakes in various places” (Matthew 24:6-8).  And if that is not bad enough, we have this warning too: “You will be hated by all nations for my name's sake.  And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.  And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.  And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold” (Matthew 24:9-12).  Oh, how we long to be delivered from all of this!  But we wait in patience.  Even though it is hard, even though we struggle, even if we suffer, we wait in patience.  For, “The one who endures to the end will be saved” (Matthew 24:13).

     St. James, then, offers his encouragement to you while you wait with patience.  “As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.  Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast.  You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful” (James 5:10-11). 

     The prophets and Job both suffered, but in different ways.  The prophets preached the word of the Lord, like John the Baptist did.  People despised their preaching.  They would not repent of their sins.  They not only persisted in them, they also attacked the prophets who condemned them.  Cancel culture is nothing new.  To this point, we have not experienced that kind of intentional persecution.  Will that change?  Will we be oppressed or canceled for hate speech?  It seems to be trending that way, but only God knows for sure.  Nevertheless, “we consider those (prophets) blessed who remained steadfast” (James 5:10).  Although their sufferings were intense, even leading to death, they are forever free from all suffering now.  If we must suffer, we will call upon our God in prayer.  We will remain committed to each other.  And we will wait with patience.  The Lord does not forget his own.

     On the other hand, Job’s sufferings were not persecution.  He endured painful losses—friends, children, wealth, reputation, and health.  Job was reduced to a pathetic shell of his former self.  He felt like God abandoned him or that God’s curse was on him.  Even his friends who came to comfort him suggested to Job that he was getting what he deserved from God.  What else could Job do but wait in patience? 

     But Job did not wait without hope, and neither do you.  We wait with patience.  We trust that God is true to his word and steadfast in his love.  If we lived for this world, it would make sense that we would be discouraged.  If we only live for this life, we might be overcome by misery and despair.  But “our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 3:20). 

     We are eager to be forever freed from all our problems, pains, and pressures.  Fear not, “for the coming of the Lord is at hand” (James 5:8).  God remembers his promises, and he remembers us.  Meanwhile, we trust that God knows what he is doing while we wait.  And we trust that whatever God is doing, he is doing it for our eternal good.  Therefore, we can be still and know that he is God, he rules all things, and he is our Savior.  Jesus is coming soon.  We wait with patience.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.