AMAZING LIFE-CHANGING PATIENCE
HANDOUT FOR SERMON: AMAZING LIFE-CHANGING PATIENCE. June 26th, 2022, Manchester, TN. 9:30 a.m. service
INTRODUCTION: Open your Bibles to Galatians 5 as it is in this text we learn about the value and help of the Holy Spirit specifically in the production of “fruit” in the individual Christian’s life. These nine qualities that are listed are exemplified in the life of the apostle Paul. You can see the amazing transformation that took place in his life. In the letter to the Philippian Christians, Paul encourages the Christians to be like him. Scripture: Philippians 3:17, 1 Corinthians 4:16-17, 1 Corinthians 11:1.
The question for us today is: DO YOU HAVE THE USEABLE, BEAUTIFUL CHARACTER OF PAUL?
Scripture: Romans 12:1-2, Galatians 5:16-22 God can transform us, and the Holy Spirit can renovate your character to have the character listed in Galatians 5. It is our submission to be molded and shaped by God, Jesus, and the Holy spirit that in turn makes us like our heavenly Father.
The fleshly world is out to get us. So, God through ‘walking in the Spirit” and being “led by the Spirit,” develops nine qualities that will help us deal with the day with all it’s struggles. Today we will pick just one of these and study it more closely.
LESSON: 1. UNDERSTAND THE WORD PATIENCE. Patience is beautiful but why does God want me to possess it? There is a great need for us to have the proper understanding of what it is.
Oxford definition: The capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble or suffering without getting angry or upset. (Modern definition of the word from Google.)
Thayer’s Lexicon: Patience, forbearance, longsuffering, slowness in avenging wrongs.
Vine’s expository dictionary: The quality of self-restraint in face of provocation which does not hastily retaliate or promptly punish. It is the opposite of anger, and it is associated with mercy, and it is used of God.
It is not sinful to feel things or have emotions. Feeling is not sin, but what we do with the feeling can be sinful. James 1:12-15
Does your patience have a purpose or end game or goal? If not, it is not godly patience.
Patience is part of God’s plan to create and maintain unity.
Patience helps us turn anger into mercy!
Consider how God reacts and responds in your life with your shortcomings, your weaknesses, your lack of growth, your sins of omission and your lack of knowledge!
GOD IS A GOD OF PATIENCE. Patience comes from God. We need to learn from Him. We have a need to get to know and understand how the heart and mind of God works. Experience first the Lord’s longsuffering or patience with YOU and remember that is it ongoing!
Romans 2:2-4 & Romans 3:23 Everyone sins, even religious people!
Whatever is broken in your life or in any kind of relationship – our goal must be to fix or mend it. If this is not your goal, then you do not possess godly patience!
All of God’s patience with humanity, including us, is because of His MERCY!
1 Timothy 1:12-17 Consider the example of Paul.
1 Peter 3:20 Consider the example of the Lord in the days of Noah.
2 Peter 3:9-10 God is not slow about His promise. God does not want to get rid of you, He is patient hoping and wanting you to repent.
How do you think God feels about your sin? How do you think God feels when people kill other people (those whom God is being patient with)?
For us to be patient people we must have the goal of redemption and salvation for ourselves and for all others.
HOW CAN I BECOME PATIENT LIKE GOD? I am a child of God; I am to be like my Father! This room is filled with fantastic people who love God, yet how many of us live a sinless life? Can you make it one day, one week or one month without sin? Why do these good people sin? Why do I sin? Why don’t we stop testing God with our sin, our omission, and our transgressions?
Thank you, God, for NOT giving me what I deserve. God is calling us to patience and the reason we can eventually learn to have His patience is because of WHO GOD IS!
Colossians 1:9-12 God’s call to patience.
How do we get there? 11-14 because of what He has done and can do: He qualifies us, delivers us, conveys us, redeems us, and forgives us.
We need to grow in steadfastness and in longsuffering (patience & longsuffering).
Colossians 3:10-14 Key words: longsuffering, bearing with one another, forgiving one another and no complaining against another! To do this you must have patience.
Members of the Church must have patience because we will upset each other, argue with one another, disagree with one another, and even sin against each other!
One of the hardest things to do is to forgive just as Christ forgave us!
1 Thessalonians 5:12-18 Christians are to be different from people in the world.
All anger is and will be dissolved in MERCY! That is why we are to be merciful as our Heavenly Father is merciful!
It is just a matter of time and someone in the Church is going to be unruly, fainthearted, and weak. The solution is GODLY PATIENCE!
James 5:7-11 Do not grumble or complain against one another. Consider Job!!
Our feelings in comparison to God feelings! God tells us do NOT GRUMBLE OR COMPLAIN so why do we?
Conclusion: MAKE A PLAN: Patience is how we find a way to love, and patience is the start to working on a plan to get back together again. So, this week start making your plan. My plan: This week I will meet lost people, condemned people, difficult people. I will meet people that will test me, upset me, and frustrate me; therefore, I must be patient and show them mercy. That’s what God wants me to do! Our problem is: we are often ignorant of who and what is truly going on in the lives of others, even our brethren! Without learning about them and what is troubling them you will NEVER master being patient and merciful!