The architecture, structure and the unshakable durability of patience or longsuffering finds its origin in the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ Himself. It is doubtless, and only fitting and proper that this message highlights Humankind's one and only living and life-sustaining source, and the one and only Son of the living God!!! Jesus came down as God Himself in skin to deter and destroy the agents of suffering and eternal damnation: Satan and sin.
What longsuffering, love and thus providential care was consistently and persistently demonstrated by the author and finisher of our faith. As he walked this earth, He blessed, blessed others to bless, he healed, gave sight to the blind and more. Here's Jesus' account of His truth: "And John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another? When the men were come unto him, they said, John Baptist hath sent us unto thee, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another? And in that same hour he cured many of their infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many that were blind he gave sight. Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached."
As we witness above narrative, Christ's motives were genuinely and clearly spoken for by His actions. This wonderful account of what was unquestionably driven by His LOVE for all and others. His PATIENCE or LONGSUFFERING and His PERSISTENCE brought to bear the path to the CROSS.
Then, I was drawn by the following biblical characters of the Hebrew Bible: (1) Abraham, (2) Job and (3) Nehemiah. A common thread noteworthy among them was the act of these three men of faith, and in unique instances, fervently calling out to the Lord God Almighty in fervent prayer: Additionally, and as in the case of Christ in the above narrative, these examples are no less than images of patience, perseverance or longsuffering in the interest of judgement, righteousness or even a construction project :
(1) Genesis 18:20-32 "And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein? That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? And the Lord said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes. And Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes: peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there forty and five, I will not destroy it. And he spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty's sake. And he said unto him, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will not do it, if I find thirty there. And he said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord: Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for twenty's sake. And he said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not destroy it for ten's sake."
Nevertheless, the language of the scripture is clear and the verdict inevitable. The Divine Judgement rendered by God resulted in the utter and literal incineration of Sodom and Gomorrah Even the patience (waiting) God demonstrated on behalf of Abraham's efforts to spare or even delay such unspeakable atrocities would nowise alter the fate of these wicked cities of the plain.
(2) Job 33:26-30 "He shall pray unto God, and he will be favourable unto him: and he shall see his face with joy: for he will render unto man his righteousness. He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it profited me not; He will deliver his soul from going into the pit, and his life shall see the light. Lo, all these things worketh God oftentimes with man, To bring back his soul from the pit, to be enlightened with the light of the living." In the recesses of his heart and in the pit of his very soul, Job was not wanting in his ability to rise out of the ashes while patiently and faithfully persevering! Though the misery that confronted him, and in the company of his so-called "...miserable comforters (Job 16:2), added his loving and longsuffering God NEVER left his presence. However, we all know that that's what a God who loves with an "everlasting love" does (Jeremiah 31:2-4).
(3) Nehemiah 4:4-9 "Hear, O our God; for we are despised: and turn their reproach upon their own head, and give them for a prey in the land of captivity: And cover not their iniquity, and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee: for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders. So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof: for the people had a mind to work. But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Arabians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the walls of Jerusalem were made up, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth, And conspired all of them together to come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to hinder it. Nevertheless we made our prayer unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night, because of them." Nehemiah was granted the authority, resources and ingenuity to resurrect the walls of Jerusalem. His God ordained perseverance lead the charge and he persisted despite the attempts his overbearing critics and enemy forces. What a glorious example of how one is nowise subject to failure, if one's focal remains fixed on God.
These were the hall-mark of spirit-driven virtues exemplified, priceless opportunities, and thus lessons to be learned and lived by. And as the above stories reflected, glory and honor and praise will saturate the hearts and minds of others who choose to persevere amidst the fiery trials of similar circumstances! Why? Because our God comes to us with the GREATNESS of HIS FAITHFULNESS: "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness." (Lamentations 3:22-23).
"And there came thither certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium, who persuaded the people, and having stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead. Howbeit, as the disciples stood round about him, he rose up, and came into the city: and the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe." (Acts 14:19-20).
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