Following on the heels of James's denunciation of the wicked rich, James calls those who suffer to be patient. So important is this admonition that he mentions patience six times in five verses.
As an example of such patience James uses the illustration of a farmer. The farmer is faithful to work, to till the soil and plant the seed, but he is powerless to do anything else. He cannot bring the rain and make the seeds grow. He must wait on the Lord and submit to His calendar. And what is the farmer waiting for? The rain. Specifically, the early and latter rain. This phrase would resonate with James's readers for it is a well-used phrase in Scripture to describe the faithfulness of our God. He is faithful to send the rain, to bless our work, to provide for our needs.
With this in mind we are to establish our hearts – grounding our lives in the Christian faith by reading the Word, offering prayers, using the sacraments, attending to the preaching of the Word – so that we might be patient while we endure persecutions and sufferings.
Often, we forget or overlook the doctrine of the Second Coming of Christ, yet it is an essential part of the orthodox Christian faith. For James, this doctrine is central and is key to being patient. As such, it is important to recall the basic tenets of the doctrine: that it is secret, sudden, spectacular, and will cause separation. Taking to heart this doctrine will help us be patient and endure our sufferings for it gives us the right focus, timeline, priorities and comfort.
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Kurt Snow serves as a ruling elder at Covenant Reformed Church of Sacramento (RCUS). He served as a member of the Board of Governors of City Seminary of Sacramento from 2000 to 2020.
