Session 2 - Lesson, Patience

Webster defines patience as having the capacity, habit or fact of being patient. I guess that makes sense. I was looking for more of an example, I suppose, when going to a master source to look up this word. Ok, so I need to look up the word patient first.

Hmmm, Patient: Bearing pains or trials calmly or without complaint. It seems to me that this implies a short term trial. Also, manifesting forbearance under provocation or strain. Not hasty or impetuous, steadfast despite opposition, difficulty or adversity. Wow, sounds like something I wouldn’t jump into willingly on a Saturday afternoon when the sun is shining and the wind is calling my name.

We find examples of women in the Bible who did and didn’t have these characteristics. We highlight in this lesson the lives of sisters Mary and Martha and also of Sarah. Patience and long-suffering are not traits we can learn overnight. In fact, the first several times we are confronted with an irritating situation we can snap. Unless addressed, it can be a life-long bad habit.

This is exactly what Martha did when Mary was listening to Jesus while he was teaching in their home. And, boy O boy, did she snap. She was also publicly corrected for it. The account is given in Luke 10:38-42 and shows two different ways these women were serving Christ.

John Macarthur’s book, Twelve Extraordinary Women, goes into a lot of detail about what we can learn from the several Bible passages where this family was mentioned. John 11 tells about the death and raising of Lazarus. In John 12 (and also parts of the story are in Matthew 26 and Mark14, Mary anoints the feet of Jesus.

Jesus and several others were visiting Mary and Martha in their home. Martha was very busy preparing and serving the meal while Mary was sitting listening to Jesus’ teaching. Martha complained openly to Jesus that Mary wasn’t helping. This Luke story is a great example of sisterly relationships and how they can be strained.

John Macarthur brings out some clear observations about Mary. She had traits that included: worship, gratitude, she was consumed with Christ, oblivious of anything other than Him when he was around and she portrayed being perceptive of the political stress on Jesus.

Martha also was a devoted Servant, however, she stopped listening to Christ. Her perspective became self-centered and she watched Mary with a critical eye. Perhaps she harbored some bitterness against her younger sister. And then, her patience snapped. If you go back and read this account in Luke, you can read the loving but firm response Jesus gave her in correction.

Martha is mentioned later in John 12 in another hosting incident and seems to have learned the ability to serve with a loving spirit. It's as if God gave her a chance to be mentioned again later on in the Bible to redeem herself and to show that she could change perhaps.

Macarthur describes an additional lesson from this story that the priority of worship is over that of service. And, that the priority of faith is over works.

Here is the patience and long-suffer presentation for this lesson if you would like to use it.