Why Faith and Patience Makes You Victorious

Have you ever pretended to be patient? Perhaps the partner you were courting kept you waiting or a colleague delayed the start of the meeting. You smiled and told the person that it didn’t matter as you prided yourself on your calm endurance. But patience is not just blind resignation to unavoidable facts. During the shock and numbness of tragedy, many adopt a fatalistic acceptance that whatever will be, will be. But that acceptance is made in defeat rather than in hope. The patience that God wants to build in us must be more dynamic than resignation to the inevitable; it must be authenticated by true peace.¹ Patience that depends on a particular temperament or personality is doomed to failure. There was an impatience survey of 1,003 adults done in 2006 by the Associated Press and Ipsos and they discovered: While waiting in line at an office or store, most people take an average of seventeen minutes to lose their patience. On hold on the phone? — most people lose their patience in nine minutes. Women lost their patience after waiting in line for about eighteen minutes. Men lost it after fifteen minutes. People with lower income and less education are more patient than those with a college education and a high income. That’s what the survey said. People who live in the suburbs are more patient than people who live in the city.² I put the link in the podcast notes for this survey. We need patience the inspired writer of Hebrews declares so that we can inherit God’s promises. That’s why it’s vital for us to take a look at Why Faith and Patience Makes You Victorious all on this week’s Light on Life.

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Why Should You Embrace Patience to Overcome Trials? – [James 1:2-4]

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Each week’s podcast contains a call to action. The Word of God will not produce in your life unless you put it into operation.
This week’s call is:

Staying power or hang in there power when dealing with tests and trials designed by the enemy should be our calling card. Practice having a steadfast mindset.

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Testimony is vital to a believer’s life. We overcome by it (Rev. 12:11). Each week’s podcast also contains a question designed to encourage testimony.
This week’s question is:

Question: Do you have a testimony of how you resolutely refused to quit until God delivered you? Please share your testimony in the comments section below.

Episode Resources:How Jesus Style Perserverance Can Make You a Winner

We are currently teaching on the subject of Divine Healing. You can click on the links below to listen to more podcasts or read blog posts along this line.

About Emery

Emery committed his life to the Lord Jesus Christ over 48 years ago and has served as both a full-time pastor and an itinerant minister. He and his wife Sharon of 44 years emphasize personal growth and development through the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is the focus and the hallmark of their mission. Read more about them here.

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Prayer

Well, welcome again.
Let’s pray.

Father God, thank you for showing us the way in which we should walk — the way in which we must conduct ourselves as children of the Most High.

Patience: The Greek Word ‘Hypomonē’

In the last couple of podcasts, we have understood the mindset that Jesus’ followers must strive to walk in.
Now, the word ‘hypomonē’ is a word that comprises two words, the word (hypo) which is usually a preposition and means under and depicts, one under a heavy load, and the word (meno) depicts the resolve to stay put, abide, and not move. When these two words are compounded, the word hypomone means to stay, to abide, to remain in one spot, to keep a position, or to resolve to never surrender, but to steadfastly maintain territory gained.³
To get a visual of this picture yourself getting ready to walk to your car from the grocery store.
You’ve been in there — you’ve been shopping and now your mission is to get to the car.
Let’s say you have a ton of of groceries.
You’ve purchased a lot of meat, a couple of watermelons, several half gallons of milk, on and on.
You have no shopping cart – all you have is a big backpack.
The clerk loads your backpack up and helps you hoist it onto your back.
You are now ‘under a heavy load.’
I mean, it’s heavy man.
But, your mission hasn’t changed — you still have to walk to the car.
It’s a trying situation — you must remain under the burden and get to the car.
It’s either that or quit.
Having a ‘hypomonē’ mindset means there’s no way I am quitting.
I’m going to get through this and make it to the car, even though I am under a heavy burden.
Lovers of God ought to have a steadfast, enduring, persevering, and refusing to quit mentality.
That’s the mentality Jesus had.
That’s the attitude we must have.
Staying power or hang in there power when dealing with tests and trials designed by the enemy should be our calling card.
We have three different Greek words in the New Testament that point to this word.
The first word is ‘hypomonē’ which is steadfastness or patience amid tests and trials.
Makrothumeo is the second word, which is long-suffering or patience in dealing with people.
And last, ‘heridos’ which is steadfastness as it applies to maintaining your position or opinion.
We have looked both at the book of Revelation and the book of Romans in pursuit of understanding the critical nature of having a patience mindset.

Patience — Steadfastness: A Prayer Paul Prayed for Others

As we continue our search, we can see that Paul prayed a certain prayer for steadfastness for the Thessalonians.

2 Thessalonians 3:5 (ESV) — 5 May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.

The Greek word ‘direct’ means to so influence others as to cause them to follow a recommended course of action.⁴
To direct means to influence and cause others to follow.
Since leadership is influence, we could easily translate this prayer as ‘May the Lord influence your hearts — may He lead your hearts to the patience of Christ.
God can influence you to walk in steadfastness or patience — but He won’t make you walk in it.
Notice this portion of the definition we just heard — to direct is to ‘follow a recommended course of action.’
It’s recommended that you walk in ‘patience’ or ‘steadfastness’, but know that the Lord won’t force you to do it.
This is where your faith comes.
Faith says, ‘I believe that God’s way is the best way. If He says I need this, then I will apply myself to it.’
The decision to operate in any portion of God’s Word is your decision.
Just know that to side in with God is the smartest of moves.

Pursuing Patience / Steadfastness

1 Timothy 6:10–11 (ESV) — 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. 11 But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.

A man of God, a woman of God, can we say a child of God — that covers everybody, right? — is to be in pursuit of steadfastness or patience.
And, per this verse, a bunch of other spiritual things while they are at it.
Look at the list — there are four other areas worthy of our time.
Righteousness, godliness, faith, love, gentleness.
It’s quite a list.
This pursuit will keep you busy, that’s for sure.
We should never think we don’t have room to grow because there is more than enough right here in this one verse to keep our attention.
The word ‘pursue’ is a word of intensity.
The Greek word means to move rapidly and decisively toward an objective⁵
It means to do something with intense effort and with definite purpose or goal—‘to do with effort, to strive toward.’⁶
Now, as I thought about this, I asked myself this question and there’s no doubt that some of you out there may ask the same question.
Since that’s true, let’s just make this the Question of the Day.

As we have already stated: This is quite a list to pursue — righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. These are all vast areas and our pursuit is intense. So, here’s the question: What about the time factor? How do we have the time to pursue all these areas?

Well, spiritual life is a journey.
Which means you’re not going to become mature in these areas all at one time.
Physical life is not that way and neither is spiritual life.
This is a journey.
We are walking with God.
He leads by the still waters.
The Lord will say to us.

Isaiah 30:21 (ESV) — 21 And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.

You have a leader on this life long walk and this leader, the Holy Spirit…

John 16:13 (ESV) — 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.

This Holy Spirit bears witness with your spirit in the everyday affairs of life.
That’s Romans 8:16.
You’re not alone in your pursuit of patience and steadfastness.

1 John 2:27 (ESV) — 27 But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie—just as it has taught you, abide in him.

So, it’s not a matter of spending all this time.
It’s a matter of what is God dealing with you about right now?
Maybe you can see a need to work on the patience/steadfastness piece in your life.
If there’s a stirring in your heart than go for it.
That’s what these podcasts are for.

The Mindset for Pursuing Patience: Earnestness

Now, while you are in hot pursuit of ‘hypomonē’ patience and steadfastness, there’s a couple of words you should know about.

Hebrews 6:11–12 (ESV) — 11 And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, 12 so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

Do you remember this verse from Hebrews?
Faith and ‘hypomonē’ steadfastness, translated here as patience, helps us to realize the promises of God in our life.
But, look at two key qualifying words here: ‘earnestness’ and ‘sluggishness.’
To be partners with steadfastness so we can inherit God’s promises, we must show ‘earnestness’ and not be ‘sluggish.’
This is the mindset of a Jesus follower.
That is what the scripture said.
So, we need to know what all ‘earnestness’ and ‘sluggishness’ is all about.
What is earnestness and what does it mean to not be sluggish?
Do these words shed any light on pursuing steadfastness?
Again ‘pursuing’ the things of God requires intense effort.
But, let’s unpack that for a moment.
Pursue steadfastness — what does that look like?
The intense effort can’t be an ‘every moment of every day’ kind of thing.
I mean — who can physically go at max intensity for hours on end — and then repeat that the next day and the next?
Nobody can do that except God.
Now, humans can go for short bursts of high intensity exertion.
There’s an old saying, ‘a bow that is always bent will break.’
Isn’t that right?
Well ‘earnestness’ must imply a level of intensity, right?
What does the word ‘earnestness’ mean, anyway?
The Greek word earnestness is one we want to look at and with that thought, here is the Definition of the Day.
The Greek word ‘earnestness’ has several nuances attached to it.
Basically, the word means zeal or urgency, haste, fervor, or eagerness.
The word has in it the sense of applying oneself to something or, actively involving and devoting yourself to whatever you are taking part of.
There’s an element of diligence when applying yourself.
Also, there is a seriousness or conscientiousness involved.
With all of this comes the thought that whatever you are pursuing, you do so because you care about what you are doing.
With this word, comes an element of putting your whole heart into something.⁷
So the person who obeys the Word of God by pursuing ‘hypomonē’ with intensity is serious, conscientious, and has his whole heart into what he is doing.
For me, I am doing the work of writing a commentary on the New Testament and publishing it as my life’s written work but I have to ask myself the question, ‘am I earnest about it?
You see it’s not just about doing the physical work of studying and writing.
It’s not about the time expenditure involved in doing the work.
Doing the work is easy. That’s physical.
What pleases God is not just doing the work, but having a sense of the seriousness about what you are doing.
It’s about being conscientious about what you are doing.
Putting your heart into what you are doing with your energy and time expenditure.
If you are a systems-oriented person — that is, you find ways to do things efficiently — it’s easy to disconnect your heart from what you are doing because you are being carried along by routine and schedule.
I’m a great one to set up routines to help me expedite things so I can get the most done in the least amount of time.
Now there’s Bible for this because the scripture talks about ‘Redeeming the time because the days are evil.’
Redeeming the time is being a good steward of your time.
But in doing these things, we must never disconnect the heart from what we are doing.
Jesus is more interested in the expression of your heart than the exertion of your muscles.

The Mindset for Pursuing Patience: Not Being Sluggish

Now, we come to the word ’sluggish.’
The text warns about being sluggish when it comes to inheriting the promises with ‘hypomonē’ steadfastness.
The Greek word’ for sluggish’ means having a lackadaisical — ‘no interest in what you’re doing,’ half-hearted kind of attitude.
It means to be listless, in a depressed state like people weakened by sickness and fever.
The word speaks of a lower intensity in spiritual things.⁸
For example, you’ve established a daily routine of reading your Bible.
You can go at this task in a listless, half-hearted manner just to check the box off of your spiritual to-do list.
It’s the absence of heart that the word sluggish puts its finger on.
Instead of checking off the box, where you kicked the can down the road, — do you understand that expression, where you kicked the can of your intensity down the road, instead of doing that, you approach the Word of God for all that it should mean to you.
You want to be a doer of God’s Word.
This is your opportunity to feed on the Word because you understand that it’s Bible feeding not Bible reading.
When pursuing, you must be all in with your heart.
When you pray, when you talk to God, you are all there — your heart, your mind, everything is there.
Your work for God exhibits a conscientiousness — this work you are doing is important to God — important enough for Him to speak to you about it and since He did, you take it serious.
I’m talking about a day-by-day seriousness, a day-by-day conscientiousness not an overall view.
We are not to be mostly conscientious mixed in with a little bit of lackadaisicalness.
A fire is on or it’s off.
You are in or you are out.
Hot but never lukewarm.

The Mindset for Pursuing Patience: Earnestness and Not Being Sluggish Compared

So, knowing the sense of these two words’ earnestness and sluggishness, let’s read this passage again.

we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness, [the same zeal, the same conscientiousness, the same seriousness, the same putting our heart into] — that you may not be sluggish, [half hearted, no drive, going through the motions, lackadaisical, lukewarm, listless, no interest in the task at hand] but imitators of those who through faith and patience [‘hypomonē’ steadfastness] inherit the promises.

Now is it a stretch to point out that these two words are opposite each other?
The word earnestness and the word sluggish are at different ends of the spectrum.
So, being sluggish is not being earnest.
To be one is not to be the other.
Another way of saying this is that to be sluggish is to be anti-earnest.
Being sluggish means not to be in haste; this person doesn’t have his heart in what he is doing.
He is not conscientious or serious — he’s on autopilot in the work of God.
We are to pursue [‘hypomonē’ steadfastness’].
This is a big thing we are being asked to do.

Patience and Old Age

As time goes on and your walk with God increases, there should be a maturing that takes place.
I say ‘should be’ because age doesn’t always lead to maturity.
Sometimes age comes alone.

Titus 2:2 (ESV) — 2 Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness.

The Greek here for ‘older men’ points to an adult male advanced in years ⁹
Next, those with advanced years should be sober-minded, that is restrained in manner, self-controlled, orderly, one who holds himself in.
That’s that restraint piece.¹⁰
Now comes the dignified piece.
Older men should carry themselves in a dignified manner, serious and worthy of respect.
Let’s move on with being self-controlled.
Self-controlled means to be moderate, sensible, having righteous judgment and being of sound mind. One who has mastered his passions.
Now this is not just for older men.
This trait of being self-controlled covers older men in this passage.
But, it’s mentioned for older women as well in Titus 2:5 and for younger men in Titus 2:6.
So really, being self-controlled is a trait needful for every child of God.
But, we need to finish this list of traits in this scripture.
Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love are the next two traits.
The word sound means to be correct in one’s views, or to be accurate.
Older men are to be accurate in faith and love.
We need to hit the bullseye where faith and love are concerned.
Then finally, the word of the day — the word of the month — ‘hypomonē’ steadfastness.’
We are to pursue patience, possess it, increase in it being full of earnestness, that is having zeal, conscientiousness, seriousness, putting your heart into it — not be sluggish, half-hearted, having no drive, going through the motions, lackadaisical, lukewarm, listless, having no interest in the task at hand.
What is the task at hand? — Being steadfast.
So now, you know what to do.
Steadfastness, patience, refusing to quit, having staying power must become a focal for your life.
Zero in on it.
Go over these podcasts — grab these references.
Read them.
Write them down in a journal.
Reread them again.
Turn these verses over in your mind.
Examine your life and see if you are compromising in some areas.
These areas are prime areas to decide to go a different direction — to go God’s way and solidify that decision by praying to God for strength and allowing steadfastness and patience to become king in your life.

Now, Father God, thank you for your goodness and your mercy. Strengthen us with might by your spirit in our inner man in Jesus, Name so that we might walk in patience and in the steadfastness of God. I thank you for that in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Why Faith and Patience Makes You Victorious.
You guys have a great God week and we will see you next time for another edition of Light on Life.

A Black-Necked Stilt and Your Vitally Serious Work for God

__________
References:

James Rye, Discipleship Journal, Issue 33 (May/June 1986) ↩
—Trevor Tompson, “Impatience-Poll Glance,” www.hosted.ap.org (May 28, 2006) Craig Brian Larson and Phyllis Ten Elshof, 1001 Illustrations That Connect (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 2008), 498. ↩
Rick Renner, RIV, pp. 23 ↩
Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 464. ↩
William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 254. ↩
Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 662. ↩
Ceslas Spicq and James D. Ernest, Theological Lexicon of the New Testament (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1994), 276–285. ↩
Ceslas Spicq and James D. Ernest, Theological Lexicon of the New Testament (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1994), 554.
Rick Renner says that the word describes something that is dull, monotonous, or unexciting; something that is slow and sluggish; or something that has lost its speed or momentum. This “something” is still moving, but it isn’t moving with the same velocity and aggressiveness it once had. It has lost the drive, thrust, impetus, pace, and speed it once possessed. This word therefore presents the idea of someone who was once zealous about something but whose zeal has now dissipated, replaced instead by neutrality. The Greek word nothros could be typified by a candle that no longer burns brightly as it once did; now its flame has dwindled to a mere flicker of its original intensity. The candle still gives light, but not the way it once did. Thus, the word nothros doesn’t present the picture of laziness; rather, it speaks of someone who has lost his zeal or his intense conviction about a matter that once was of great importance to him. It denotes a person who has become disinterested and whose zeal has been replaced with a middle-of-the-road, take-it-or-leave it mentality.[4. Renner, Rick. Sparkling Gems From the Greek Vol. 1 (p. 133). Harrison House Publishers. Kindle Edition. ↩
Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 107. ↩
Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 751. ↩

emeryhorvath.com

Equipping people to pursue God's glory

Why Faith and Patience Makes You Victorious

Podcast: Light on Life Season Twelve Episode Nineteen

by Emery Horvath

Listen to the Audio

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Read the Notes

Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Episode Resources:How Jesus Style Perserverance Can Make You a Winner

We are currently teaching on the subject of Divine Healing. You can click on the links below to listen to more podcasts or read blog posts along this line.

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Prayer

Patience: The Greek Word ‘Hypomonē’

Patience — Steadfastness: A Prayer Paul Prayed for Others

Pursuing Patience / Steadfastness

The Mindset for Pursuing Patience: Earnestness

The Mindset for Pursuing Patience: Not Being Sluggish

The Mindset for Pursuing Patience: Earnestness and Not Being Sluggish Compared

Patience and Old Age

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Listen to the Audio

Click to Listen | Right Click to Download |Subscribe to PlayerFM

Read the Notes

Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Episode Resources:How Jesus Style Perserverance Can Make You a Winner

We are currently teaching on the subject of Divine Healing. You can click on the links below to listen to more podcasts or read blog posts along this line.

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Prayer

Patience: The Greek Word ‘Hypomonē’

Patience — Steadfastness: A Prayer Paul Prayed for Others

Pursuing Patience / Steadfastness

The Mindset for Pursuing Patience: Earnestness

The Mindset for Pursuing Patience: Not Being Sluggish

The Mindset for Pursuing Patience: Earnestness and Not Being Sluggish Compared

Patience and Old Age

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