James 5:7-11
7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. 8 You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
9 Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door! 10 My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. 11 Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.
If there was ever a profession or vocation that calls for almost super-human amounts of patience and prayer, it is that of the farmer. People who farm the land and produce food for others need to be chemists, mechanics, weather-watchers, mathematicians, and human computers. But for all their intelligence and expertise in all those areas, once the seed is in the ground, it is a matter of faith, patience, and no small amount of prayer on the part of the farmer. They must be patient and wait for rain and favorable weather that God, in His time, will bring. And then until harvest time comes, they must be patient and wait for the crops to come to maturity until they are able to get the produce out of the ground and on to the bins, silos, and stores.
In our reading today, James exhorts the brethren to “be patient until the coming of the Lord.” These, of course, are Advent words; they are words which point us to the patient waiting that all of us as God’s people are given to engage in not only during the Advent season, but for our entire lives. We have the certainty from Jesus Himself that He will return to take us to be with Him on the Last Day, but we are not given the exact day or hour. Only God knows when that Day will be; He has set it on His divine calendar of events, and it will most certainly happen. Until then we pray for patience to wait for that great Day when our Lord will destroy this sinful world and make a new heaven and earth where righteousness dwells for eternity, and we will be with Him in glory without the ravages and effects of sin.
Oh, what a day that will be! “Therefore, be patient.” Until that Day, our Lord gives us the patience and strength we need through His holy Word and Sacramental gifts to keep us watching, waiting, and faithful to the end.
Let us pray: Lord, we pray You, give ear to our prayers and lighten the darkness of our hearts by Your gracious visitation; who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
