It is a familiar old saying. However, a recent study found that, despite 95% of respondents acknowledging that patience is a virtue, readiness to implement it in real-life situations told a different tale. On average, people started to grumble after waiting twenty-five seconds for a traffic light to change and sixteen seconds for a web page to load. In our modern world, patience is a daily struggle for many, myself included. With fast food, instant payments and next day delivery, we are becoming increasingly unaccustomed to having to wait.
But God doesn’t operate like us; He wants us to be patient. In Colossians chapter 3, patience is among the list of attributes we are instructed to “put on”. The challenge isn't just to wait for things, but to embody patience in our interactions with others and in our trust in God's plan.
Patience with Others
The word for patience in Colossians 3 is sometimes translated as “longsuffering”. The idea is that we remain calm despite continued provocation. As members of a local church, we gather with a variety of people, where the only common thread among many is our shared faith in Christ. Therefore, it is almost inevitable that we will test each other’s patience.
Patience bears with other people when they don’t share our practices, priorities or sense of timing. In 1 Thessalonians 5:14 (NASB) Paul instructs the Christians to “admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone”. Often it is tempting to give up on those fellow saints whom we find challenging but if we are to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which [we] have been called” we are told to do so “with patience, bearing with one another in love” (Ephesians 4:1,2 NASB). After all, the first attribute of love identified in 1 Corinthians 13 (NASB) is “love is patient”. Patience is an integral part of the love we are to show towards our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Patience with God’s Plan
Another area of our Christian “walk” which requires patience is waiting for God’s will to unfold in our lives. There are many examples of men and women in the Bible who were required to wait for God to work within their life experiences. The Psalmist states that he “waited patiently for the Lord” (Psalm 40:1); Abraham is described as someone who, “having patiently waited”, “obtained the promise” (Hebrews 6:15 NASB); Joseph waited in prison; Elijah waited for rain; Hannah waited for a child; Simeon and Anna waited for the Messiah; the list goes on.
We will not fully understand God’s plan for our lives until we reach heaven, but sometimes He asks us to wait. This could be for many reasons but it may be to develop our Christian character and produce patience in us. There are many characters in the Bible who could not wait for God’s plan and impatiently took matters into their own hands. We can learn from the mistakes of Abraham and Sarah, King Saul, Peter and others whose impetuous decisions ended in disaster. To those who waited, God was faithful and fulfilled His promises, and He is no different today.
We are also called to wait for the Lord’s return with patience.
“But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience” (Romans 8:25 ESV).
Our hope and longing is to see Jesus face to face. James 5:8 (ESV) says “You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.” This is not an apathetic response to the Lord’s return, but the truest form of patience is seen while we remain patient but yearn for His return. The Apostle Paul demonstrates this in Philippians ch.1 for, although his desire is to be with Christ, he patiently remains to serve on earth.
Patience Exemplified
There is no greater example of patience than the Lord Jesus. His perfect patience was displayed throughout His life on earth. It was seen with His disciples when they lacked faith or understanding, with the multitudes, with those who sought healing, and even with little children. He displayed the patience of God the Father, of which we are all beneficiaries.
This patience is described by Paul: “Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost sinner Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life” (1 Timothy 1:16 NASB). God shows immense patience towards us, first in salvation and then in our Christian walk. We often fail and stray away from Him but He never gives up on us. Like the father of the prodigal son, He is always waiting to welcome us back.
With such great patience being shown to us, we are compelled to cultivate this characteristic in our lives as Christians. Ecclesiastes 7:8 (NASB) states that “Patience of spirit is better than arrogance of spirit” and Proverbs 14:29 (NIV) states “Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly.”
“Putting on” patience, as we are instructed to do in Colossians ch.3, is beneficial for our relationships with our fellow Christians; it allows us to be content with the pace of God’s plan for our life and to wait for the coming of the Lord with great anticipation. Most of all, putting on patience brings us closer to Christ-likeness and brings glory to God, which is our ultimate goal.
“So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on . . . patience” (Colossians 3:12 NASB).
