Patience At Christmas

Are you a ‘patient’ person? And what do we really mean when say someone has ‘patience’?
Don’t we usually just assume ‘patience’ has to do with how someone ‘bears up’ under an unpleasant circumstance? You know - it takes ‘patience’ to pleasantly wait in line at the checkout at Walmart; it takes ‘patience’ not to sit on your horn in a traffic jam that is keeping you from getting to work on time; it takes ‘patience’ not to rudely slam the phone down on the telemarketer calling during dinner.
The following are some definitions of ‘patience’ I found: good-natured tolerance of delay or incompetence; the state of endurance under difficult circumstances, which can mean persevering in the face of delay or provocation without acting on annoyance/anger in a negative way; exhibiting forbearance when under strain, especially when faced with longer-term difficulties; the capacity to endure hardship, difficulty, or inconvenience without complaint; calmness, self-control, and the willingness or ability to tolerate delay.
Do you see how much we place the emphasis of ‘patience’ on enduring ‘negative’ things - things that would cause an ‘impatient’ person to lose control, get angry, become annoyed, etc.? But there are many areas where ‘patience’ is required to obtain something good, or to await the arrival of something good, or to allow something to come fully into fruition.
As the Christmas holidays are upon us, I see so many areas where our ‘patience’ gets tested. There are lines and crowds of people everywhere – not just at malls, but on the roads, in the grocery stores, etc. Everyone is in such a hurry and our lives become so hectic. We have children who are barely able to wait for Christmas to arrive. Our anticipation of seeing loved ones builds and builds. We look toward gatherings with family and friends. And still others may have a difficult time not ‘loosing it’ because loved ones won’t be there this year.
So much ‘patience’ is required to make it through the holidays. But I’ve been thinking about how much the whole concept of Christmas epitomizes ‘patience’. Let me explain.
All the way back to the Garden of Eden, man has been inventing ways to go his own way, turn his back on God, disregard the ‘perfect plan’ that had been envisioned. And all the way back to the Garden of Eden, God has had His mind on the plan to reconcile man to Himself.
Yet, in His perfect patience, God revealed only glimpses of His plan through generations and generations of His people. Through the patriarchs, the judges, the kings, the exiles and captivities, He patiently continued to reveal portions of what He had planned – hints of the glorious plan of salvation He had conceived.
But the time wasn’t yet perfect.
So He waited.
Patiently.
And then the time arrived. And the Plan conceived in eternities past was born.
But still – patience.
The glorious majesty of Almighty God was wrapped inside the flesh of little baby. And He patiently endured the application of time, His environment, and physical needs to the body He occupied. He patiently waited 30 years before even starting to spread His message of redemption to those to whom He came. In perfect patience He served, taught, healed, touched, and loved. Knowing the depth and richness of the grace and mercy that was to come, He patiently tolerated, turned the other cheek, endured, and bled.
So, in my mind’s eye, when I see that Infant in the manger, I’m awestruck with the thought of the patience that was demonstrated. Knowing the plan of redemption that was unfolding, the God Child waited patiently until the time was perfect.
And when I see the God Man hanging on the cross, I’m overwhelmed with the thought of Him patiently enduring thousands of years of rebellion by His creation, culminating in the prolonged torture and brutal murder of the body He occupied.
Patience. Isn’t that what Christmas is really all about?
God patiently endured us. And He patiently allowed the unfolding of His perfect plan to restore us to Himself. He didn’t rush it. He never got behind schedule.
God had a plan. A perfect plan.
He patiently saw it through.
For a child has been born - for us! The gift of a son - for us! He'll take over the running of the world. His names will be: Amazing Counselor, Strong God, Eternal Father, Prince of Wholeness. (Isaiah 9:6, MSG)
I don’t think that I’ll be as quick to pat myself on the back next time I think I’m being ‘patient’ by pleasantly smiling at the lady in front of me who is fumbling with her keys in the checkout line when she should be taking her change and receipt and moving on.
O LORD, I will honor and praise your name,
for you are my God.
You do such wonderful things!
You planned them long ago,
and now you have accomplished them.
Isaiah 25:1, NLT

A Tale of Two Fathers

Has there ever been a father who didn’t swell with pride and hope while embracing sky-high aspirations for the newborn baby he held in his arms? After getting home from the hospital, away from all the excitement and holding that brand-new little baby, sleeping in peace – fathers tend to start looking way out into the future to imagine what is to come:
Maybe they see their son striking the familiar pose of the Heisman trophy as he leads his college football team to the national championship.
Perhaps they see their daughter in a lab coat winning the Nobel Prize for inventing the ultimate cure for cancer.
They may envision their child being the biggest box-office draw in Hollywood, or chairing the Joint Chiefs of Staff, or writing the ‘great American novel’, or walking on Mars, or singing at the Grand Ol’ Opry. They have dreams – big dreams for the little miracle they hold in their hands.

Do you think it would have been any different for Joseph when he first held Jesus in his arms in the stillness and quietness of that Bethlehem night? Even though Joseph knew he wasn’t Jesus’ ‘biological’ father, I’m certain that he had the same feelings of pride in anticipation of what his ‘son’ would become.

Of course, Joseph had an added advantage of having been told by an angel: “[Mary] will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." (Matthew 1:21) And his wife had been told: “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." Luke 1:32-33

So Joseph had more than just ‘fatherly pride’ to fuel his imagination of what the future would hold for Jesus – he had the angel’s prophecy to bank on. However, Joseph’s anticipation of Jesus “saving his people”, “being great”, being given the “throne”, and “reigning forever”, was probably much different from what actually took place.

As Jesus grew, I’m sure Joseph experienced the same things most fathers go through as the mundane, day-to-day aspects of life tend to crowd out those euphoric dreams and visions of what was going to be. It’s not that fathers ‘lose hope’ or ‘settle for something less’ for their children. Rather, most fathers learn that enjoying those daily experiences and accomplishments pushes those ‘future’ dreams out of focus. They learn to treasure the ‘here and now’ of their children rather than looking to the ‘maybe someday’. And as we participate in our children’s lives, we don’t lower our aim, our goals just morph toward what is most important to them.

Joseph surely cherished the time he had with Jesus as Jesus learned his father’s craft, was perfectly obedient to Mary and him, and assisted with the responsibilities of rearing his brothers and sisters. Joseph didn’t have to look to what he may have wanted or thought Jesus might become – he knew he was truly blessed to have him as his son.

What about Jesus’ ‘other’ Father? What do you think He may have felt as He cradled Jesus in His arms on that first night in that lowly stable?

Well, being eternally omniscient and not constrained by the limits of time as Joseph would have been, the Father would have had no unrealistic hopes or expectations for the life of that Child. While His expectations were impossibly high (the perfect salvation of man), they were certainly not unrealistic since He knew they would be totally fulfilled.

In that very moment the Father saw not only the ‘mundane’ day-to-day events His Son would experience over the next 33 years, He saw the extraordinary - and He knew the significance of each and every one. Yes, Jesus was pre-existent with the Father, but as the Father cradled this Baby, He saw the Baby:
● As an adolescent boy being perfectly obedient and submissive to the earthly parents to whom he was entrusted.
● As a young man with the same struggles as his peers but never violating a single commandment.
● As a missionary choosing to follow the Father’s plan wherever it led.
● As a rabbi teaching, healing, loving.
● As a Jew living the spirit of the Law rather than manipulating the letter of the Law.
● As a preacher offering hope and salvation.
● As a servant being betrayed by friends.
● As a prisoner being spat upon, beaten, mocked, and murdered.
● As a lamb taking on all of the most foul, repugnant, obscene, heinous sins ever committed in all time.
● As a victor defeating death and rising again.
● As a Savior bringing multitudes back to the Father.

The Father saw the ‘tragic’ from the perspective that turned it to the ‘glorious’. He knew what lay ahead and He knew His Son would do all that was necessary. Perfectly. The Father knew the pain, suffering, and separation His Son would endure. Flawlessly.

The Father knew He was truly blessed to have Jesus as His Son.

And He gave Him to us.

And we are blessed beyond imagination to have Him as a Savior.

A child has been born to us; God has given a son to us.
He will be responsible for leading the people.
His name will be Wonderful Counselor, Powerful God,
Father Who Lives Forever, Prince of Peace.
Power and peace will be in his kingdom
and will continue to grow forever.
He will rule as king on David's throne
and over David's kingdom.
He will make it strong by ruling with justice and goodness
from now on and forever.
The LORD All-Powerful will do this
because of his strong love for his people.
Isaiah 9:6-7 (NCV)