Tabor Baptist Church

Introduction

Starting with 1 Cor 13

A passage about love
The world ‘loves’ love
Paul speaking as an inspired poet – a love poem

Context: Paul is writing to Christians who are failing to love each other in Church

It is a practical passage
Immensely challenging

It is good to slow down and study this in details

This morning: v4 – love is long suffering / patient – explanation
Showing patience is a strength – example
Patience is incredibly difficult to put into practice
Looking at 4 truths

God is Patient

This is where we start – patience is a Divine quality (Ex 34:6)

However we see the people of Israel sin against Him

Think about your conversion and how you lived before you came to know Christ

Yet God responded in patience
Example
How many years did it take us to believe?
If it were not for the patience of God you would not have come to believe

Think about God’s patience towards us since we were saved?

Example
We must continually seek forgiveness from God

God has been patient with us

However, there is a day when God’s patience will stop
This is why we need to come to Jesus today

We fail to be Patient

We do not need to be persuaded of this

We know our own impatience – examples

Being patient means not reaching, lashing out or writing people off

Situations can make us impatient

We need to wait – examples

How quickly and regularly do we fail – examples

Jesus is Patient

1 Cor 13 describes God but it also describes Jesus
Jesus has perfect patience

1 Tim 1:16

Yet Paul hated Christians and hated Jesus Christ

His patience is seen throughout His life

Coming as a baby

Being completely reliant on others

The growing years

Having sinful parents

With His disciples

They were very slow to understand

At the cross

1 Pet 2:23 – He could have summoned the angels or taken all sorts of actions

Jesus teaches us to be Patient

We are given the Holy Spirit when we believe
The fruits of the Holy Spirit are love and patience / long suffering

God promises that He will produce this in our life

Some fruits only grow in certain locations

Patience is a fruit that is grown in pressured situation
God puts us in situations where patience can grow – John 11

John 11 – the Example of Lazarus

Jesus is teaching Mary and Martha
There is great temptation to be impatient

v21-22
Martha puts great trust in Jesus

Why does Jesus put us in these situations – He is teaching us patience

He is making us more like Himself

Closing Remarks

Ps 30:5 – There will come an end to these things

There will be an end in heaven