God is Patient
Texts: Romans 2:1-4, 2 Peter 3:8-9
Pastor Phil Hughes, American Fork Presbyterian Church, Utah
January 22, 2023
God is.
God is big. God is love. God is good. When I say God is big, or God is love, or God is good, or as I will preach today, that God is patient, understand that these things aren’t just qualities that come from God. They are what he is. Patience is not just something God has, but it is his very nature. His patience is uncreated because he is uncreated. God doesn’t develop patience. He doesn’t grow patience. Patience is part of his very makeup. He can’t help but be patient.
We are taking just a few of God’s attributes and thinking about them so that we might know God better. We want to know God better so that we can live with him better.
And he is big, love, good and patient – and many other things - beyond what we can comprehend. When I say God is patient it has to be put in terms that speak of patience in our human experience. Our idea and experience of patience is tainted and fallible. God is patient in perfection. He is patient – and love, and good – in a way we really can’t fully comprehend. His patience is beyond our imagining. Human language and imagery can only grasp at it.
That’s always how it is with God. God is so far beyond us that if he hadn’t spoken to us in the Scriptures and in Jesus Christ, we wouldn’t know this about him. But God has spoken through the Scriptures. It is in the Bible he tells us about himself. So we go there to discover something of him.
There is a common affirmation we find in the Hebrew Scriptures. The books of the Hebrew Scriptures (or the Old Testament) span hundreds of years and this affirmation about God is found again and again. It is something ancient Israel repeated, passed along and owned as part of their faith. It is this:
“The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.”[1]
It first appears in the book of Exodus where we read about God delivering Israel from slavery in Egypt. You will find these words repeated when you read Numbers, Nehemiah and the Psalms.
It says God is gracious and merciful and “slow to anger.” “Slow to anger” is the Old Testament way of speaking of God as patient. But God’s patience isn’t about him refraining from blowing up. He is not barely restraining his rage against the rebellious world, hardly able to contain himself for our rebellion, waiting for the timer to go off when he absolutely lets it go.
Again, all language about God is limited, and conditioned and made sizable for we humans. But it takes a lot to get God angry. Mercy. Grace. Abundance of steadfast love and faithfulness are who he is. And when you are that, anger doesn’t come easily.
We might say God has a long fuse. A loooonng fuse. It can go hundreds of years.
Maybe a good picture is of that mother who is so patient with that son who just keeps breaking her heart, manipulating, and taking. And she just keeps loving him, maybe even doing what we would call enabling. And everyone can’t figure out why she doesn’t call the cards on him and send him a message to straighten him out. Why doesn’t she cut him off, totally. Really come down on him once and for all. She is so soft. Does her patience have no limits? Clearly she is being taken advantage of.
But her heart just loves him so, it almost blinds her to the reality of his lostness. And so she continues to suffer, hope, long for and give.
No illustration of God is ever perfect, but in some ways, God is like that. Remember Jesus’ parable of the prodigal father?
Many people read certain parts of the Old Testament and see God as anything but patient. He seems Cranky. Angry. Destructive. But if you do a careful and responsible reading of those Old Testament passage where God seems angry, you find there have been centuries of waiting through evil, brutality and human cruelty.
God let 400 years go by while the Hebrews suffered under Egyptian cruelty, waiting for Pharaoh and Egypt to change before he intervened. That’s patience.
We read those stories where God tells Israel to destroy the Amalekites and Canaanites. The stories are extremely violent. The Amalekites and the Canaanites were like what the Third Reich or ISIS is for us, and maybe worse. If we saw some of their practices on our news shows today there would be an outcry for action. Yet, we often read these Old Testament passages judging God as too harsh, and we think he is too impatient, though it is in the face of extreme evil.[2]
God didn’t take pleasure in having to deal with all the evil. Hear what God says in one place in the Old Testament: “‘Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked?’ declares the Sovereign Lord. ‘Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?’”[3] God wants people to turn to him.
But then, on the other hand, we cry out to God and wonder why he isn’t dealing with all the cruelty in this world. Here is where we are a little uncomfortable with God being patient. All this bad is happening and we wonder why God isn’t doing something, and doing it now. We complain that God is too patient.
But then, to turn it again, we read about a day when God will do something, when his ultimate judgment and wrath will come on all that has hurt and been wrong, and we don’t want to hear about that. We skip over all the talk about the day of the Lord and judgment.
Add on to this that we want God to be patient with us in our flaws and mistakes. Because they aren’t that big of a deal, right? We don’t do what those people do.
We are kind of fickle. We want God to be patient in some ways, and in other ways we blame him for being too patient.
In Romans chapter 2 Paul writes of God’s patience. He asks, “Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, forbearance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?”[4]
Paul had been pointing out the immorality of those in society who could care less about God. But then he turns to Christians who were judgmental of people who lived immoral lives. Yes, there are people who have no regard for God and live to fulfill their own desires. But there are also people who have faith in the Lord but point their fingers in judgment at others. Paul says Christians who point the finger are just as guilty before God as those who live opposed to him.
But Paul says that God is kind, forebearing, and patient. God is kind and his kindness is seen in the fact that he is patient. God is patient in hopes that people will turn from wrong and turn to him, whether Christians or those who don’t believe. We waits for all people to wake up. He patiently waits for people to come to him.
Paul goes on to write that a day will come when God – and only God – will judge all people and all things. No one knows every human heart and situation except God. But until then he is patient, hoping for everyone, to repent, change and come to him.
John Stott, who was a pastor and Bible teacher at All Souls Church in London for many years, comments on Romans 2 saying, “We are often as harsh in our judgment of others as we are lenient towards ourselves. We work ourselves up into a state of self-righteous indignation over the disgraceful behaviour of other people, while the very same behaviour seems not nearly so serious when it is ours rather than theirs.”[5]
It is amazing how we can know so much about others and so little about ourselves. Yes, it is amazing how much expertise I have into that person but so little about myself. Jesus said something about seeing the speck in another eye while missing the log in our own, did he not?
It may be true that that person is on a wrong path, but to imagine that maybe we don’t need to change and come back to God is to show no regard for God’s patience.
The point is this: the goal of God’s patience is to give all people space to repent, to change and turn around, not to give an excuse for continuing to live against his will and way. We should not presume on his patience, thinking that God will never call into accounts. God’s not asleep. He sees it all. He knows it all. God’s patience is not to be confused with weakness or indifference. He knows very well the situation. But he is patient. God’s patience is intended for people to be right with him, not to be taken advantage of.[6]
Peter also mentions God’s patience in one of his letters. Peter responds to those who scoff at the return of Christ. They hear messages that Christ will return and ask “Where is he? Everything is continuing as it always has. God must be slow!” They continue to follow their own ungodly ways.
Peter writes, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” The Lord is “…holding back the End because he doesn’t want anyone lost. He’s giving everyone space and time to change.”[7]
Again, God’s patience is for those who are far from him to come to him, for no one to suffer the consequences of eternal separation. The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in love.
Peter says don’t confuse the patience of God with slowness. God is outside of time. For him a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. God could bring it all to an end right now. He doesn’t have a time problem. God isn’t stuck in first gear. His patience is a fruit of his mercy. It is an extension of his love. God’s goodness, love and kindness are all wrapped up with his patience.
The word for patience that both Paul and Peter use is makrothumia. The reason I am telling us about this strange word is that it might make some sense to you.
“Makro” should be familiar. It means big. It means large in scale. There are things such as macroeconomics and macrophotography. The reason there is such a thing as microbreweries is that there are macrobreweries. Budweiser is a macrobrewery. Uinta is a microbrewery. Makro can also mean long.
Thumia is the Greek word for “suffering.” So makrothumia means “long-suffering” which is the older way of speaking of patience. The old King James Version uses the term “long-suffering” instead of patient. And this long-suffering is applied to God.
Patience can have an aspect of suffering. We patiently wait for a situation to change. We patiently wait for a person to change. Sometimes it can hurt. It might be just a little hurt that carries on and on over time. Or it can be big hurt that pierces us for a long time.
Think about your long-suffering and those things about which you are being patient. And then think of how it is for God. With us and this world.
God is long-suffering. He is long-suffering with this world. He has suffered long over the centuries.
The word for God’s patience and long-suffering refers to “a long holding out of the mind before it takes action on passion.” God sees and knows the injustices, the wrongs and the evils of the world. A day will come when he will not hold out any longer. But until then he is being patient. When that patience will end only the Heavenly Father knows.
Jesus showed that God is long-suffering and patient. One time a father brought his son to the disciples. His son had a spirit that kept him from being able to speak. It would seize his son and throw him down as he would foam at the mouth, grind his teeth and become rigid. But the disciples couldn’t cast the spirit out of the boy. Jesus heals the boy.
But before doing that, after hearing that his disciples could not help this father, Jesus expresses his frustration. He says the people of his time are an unbelieving generation and says, “How long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you?”[8]
“How long?” Jesus asks. To put up with is a kind of long-suffering. In this event with the desperate father we see the patience of God-in-human-form holding but wearing thin. The Son of God got exasperated. He asked, “How long?” Long-suffering. Jesus showed how patient God is. Even when disciples are inept, he hangs with us.
We often ask God “how long?” People who suffer in the Bible ask God that. The Psalmist, Job, the prophets all asked God “How long? When are you going to act?”
We often hold God to our clock, our wants, our plans. Why isn’t the Lord doing this? Changing that? Making this happen? We grow impatient with God.
But do you ever think of God asking us, “how long?”
How long before we stop fostering injustice, oppression and violence?
How long before the hungry are fed, the beat down are cared for, and people stop accumulating for themselves and start giving themselves for others?
How long before we share the good news of God’s love with someone who is searching?
Does Jesus ask us “how long?”
How long are you going to hold that attitude?
How long are you going to do that when no one is looking?
How long before you start giving yourself in love instead of trying to hold on to your life?
How long before you place your life in my hands and really trust me?
How long until you turn from that hypocrisy and turn to me?
He’s a patient God. And his patience is for the changing of the world, and for our changing, too.
Every day I am a recipient of God’s patience. He is patient with my apathy, patient with my thoughtlessness, patient with my desires to change, and grow and become more like Christ. My debt to him is unpayable.
Let’s be profoundly grateful that God is patient because this world is severely broken and sinful. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but things are not good. And everyone – ev-er-y-one – is guilty before the Lord.
The good news is that Jesus Christ has lifted the guilty verdict. Jesus Christ has taken the judgment and wrath that would be due us. And if you know that there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus say, “Thank you God.”
And God is patiently waiting for others to know that, too. He patiently waits for others to respond to his grace and love. God patiently waits for others to come home. Maybe that’s you this morning.
Because ultimately the issue is how we will respond to the God who is so patient.
Prayer:
Holy Lord, you wait for people to respond to your grace. You wait for this world to turn from its violent, restless ways. You wait for us to come home to you.
You wait, and you wait, and you wait, because you are patient.
And you do so with such love.
Keep us from taking advantage of your patience, or from judgmentally wanting the patience we receive to be withheld from others.
Help us again to live for your honor and glory.
Through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
[1] Exodus 34:6
[2] Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry
[3] Exekiel 18:23
[4] V.4
[5] Romans: God’s Good news for the World, p.82
[6] Jim Edwards, Romans, p.66
[7] The Message
[8] Matthew 17:17
