Sometimes patience is a virtue absent in the holiest of saints. On the last day of the Papal visit to the UK in 2010, there was a little known incident on his way back to Heathrow. The Pope was delayed due to meetings and was going to miss his flight. When the limousine arrived, the driver was overjoyed to be carrying the Pope. But he was nervous and drove very slowly. The Pope asked him to speed up. But the driver went slower; he wanted to keep the Pope in his limousine as long as he could. The Pope insisted on driving the limo himself. The Pope sped off and was clocked by a speed camera doing 85 mph.

The policeman who stopped him was shocked when he discovered the famous personality behind the wheel. He frantically phoned his police chief and said, “Chief, I have stopped a very important figure for speeding. I don’t know what to do?”–“What do you mean? Give him a speeding ticket!” –“Sir, in all honesty, I can’t.”–“Why can’t you? The law is the law. Who is it anyway that you stopped? Is it the mayor of London?” –“No, sir.” –“Is it the Prime Minister?” –“No, sir.” –“Is it the Queen?” –“No, sir.” –“Well, then, who is it?!” –“I don’t know sir! All I know is that the Pope is driving him to the airport.”

“Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming.” (James 5:7a).

Two different words are used for patience. In James 5:7–8, 10 it is the word “long-suffering” and probably refers to people with whom you need patience. The words “endure” and “patience” used in James 5:11 mean something different – literally “to remain under” meaning endurance under great stress suggesting stressful situations or conditions. As a whole, ‘patience’ means “to stay put and stand fast when you’d like to run away.” But why be patient?

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How can you be sure that you are a Christian? How can you know that you know? This is one of the most important questions you can ever answer in life. It is foundational to your life and growth as a Christ follower. Without the peace of mind that God loves you and that you are a child of God, you will never feel secure. You will always be tempted to doubt your faith. You will fear that you are not good enough. You will worry that you might lose your faith. Tonight I want us to answer the question once and for all. Please turn with me to 1 John 5. In verse 13 John writes,

“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” (1 John 5:13).

The Apostle John uses the word “know” almost 40 times in this short letter.  Why? because the Lord wants us to know him and know that we know him. That we know our sins are forgiven. That we know we have been adopted into his family. That we know we have eternal life. That we know we will be with God for ever and ever. So how can we know? Let’s consider three tests. Three simple tests so that you can know you know.

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“A little boy is on the beach. On his knees he scoops the sand with his plastic shovel into a bright red bucket. Then he upends the bucket on the surface and lifts it. And, to the delight of the little architect, a castle tower is created.

All afternoon he will work. Spooning out the moat. Packing the walls. A sandcastle will be built. Bottle tops will be sentries. Lollipop sticks will be bridges. Big city. Busy streets. Rumbling traffic. A man in his office. At his desk he shuffles papers into stacks and delegates assignments. He cradles the phone on his shoulder and punches the keyboard with his fingers. Numbers are juggled and contracts are signed and much to the delight of the man, a profit is made. All his life he will work. Formulating the plans. Forecasting the future. Annuities will be sentries. Capital gains will be bridges. An empire will be built. Two builders of two castles. They have much in common. They shape sand into structures. They create something from nothing. They are diligent and determined. And for both the tide will rise and the end will come. Yet that is where the similarities cease. For the boy sees the end while the man ignores it. Watch the boy as the dusk approaches. As the waves near, the wise child jumps to his feet and begins to clap.

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“During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

As a young lawyer, Nelson Mandela was repeatedly arrested for what were seen as seditious activities and, with the ANC leadership, was prosecuted in the Treason Trial which lasted six years from 1956 to 1961. Found not guilty, in 1962 he was re-arrested, convicted of sabotage and conspiracy to overthrow the government, and sentenced to life imprisonment. Mandela served 27 long years in prison because he opposed apartheid. This weekend the world is reflecting on the accomplishments of this frail gentleman, just one month short of his 95 birthday. Nelson Mandela surely embodies the spirit of the Nobel Peace Prize he was awarded in 1993. In Leviticus 19, God says,

“Stand up in the presence of the aged, show respect for the elderly and revere your God.”  (Leviticus 19:32).

Nelson’s life is indeed an inspiration to billions of people and probably this week, the obituaries of every newspaper in the world will tell us something that will be inspirational or motivational. But there is no reason for triumphalism or complacency. On September 2, 1945 General Douglas MacArthur spoke to a waiting world from the Battleship Missouri anchored in Tokyo Bay, “Today the guns are silent…the skies no longer rain death…the seas bear only commerce…men everywhere walk upright in the sunlight. The entire world is quietly at peace….” That long war cost sixty million lives and came only one generation after what President Woodrow Wilson called “the war to end all wars.”

South Africa may have turned its back on apartheid 20 years ago, but there are many other countries where it is still being perpetuated. We live in a world where racial prejudice, ethnic cleansing, tribal conflicts, riots, revolutions, civil disobedience and regional wars are proliferating as we discover more efficient, cost effective and deadly ways to wage war.  In our reading from James 4 today we find an explanation for why peace is so elusive.

The Cause of War: (James 4:1-5)
The Cure for Conflict (James 4:6-10)
The Channel for Peace (James 4: 11-12)

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On Thursday I attended a lunch in the House of Commons to honour the work of Elam Ministries. During the meal, Magda, a young Christian lady from Iran also gave her testimony. She shared how she had been lured into a marriage with a man pretending to be a Christian. When he divorced her and took their 2 year old daughter, Magda went to the court to gain custody. According to the Iranian constitution a little girl can stay with her mother up to the age of 9. But the judge told Magda that the law did not apply in her case.

“The judge told me: ‘There’s only one way you can take custody of your daughter: If you come back to Islam and recant your Christian faith, we will give you your daughter.’ My lawyer was very happy. He urged me to accept the court offer and pretend I was not a Christian. It was a nightmare moment. On the one hand I really loved my daughter and wanted to get her back at all costs, but on the other hand I loved Jesus and had felt His living presence with me throughout my life. There was no way I could bring myself to deny Jesus. Deep in my heart, I felt peace that God was in charge. During those tense moments, I felt as if Jesus was waiting for my answer. Would I choose Him over my daughter? I told the judge that I would never deny Jesus. So the court ruled in favour of my husband and took my daughter away from me. This was the darkest chapter of my life. I missed my daughter terribly. I spent my days smelling her clothes, thinking of what she might be doing, and weeping. I became more isolated and was easily offended. I felt wronged and became depressed. I spent hours alone in my room crying.”

What would you have done? What will you do if you are faced with that choice in the future? Deny Jesus or lose your children? Deny Jesus or lose your job? Deny Jesus or go to prison? Deny Jesus or lose your life? What is the wise thing to do? The Bible was given to make us wise. The Book of Proverbs gives us the key that unlocks wisdom:

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.” (Proverbs 1:7)

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A mother was out walking with her 4-year-old daughter when her girl picked up something from the ground and started to put it in her mouth. The mother tells what happens in her own words: “I took the item away from her and I asked her not to do that.” My daughter quickly asked, “Why?” “Because it’s been lying outside, you don’t know where it’s been, it’s dirty and probably has germs,” I replied. At this point, my daughter looked at me with total admiration and asked, “Wow! How do you know all this stuff?” I thought quickly and said, “All moms know this stuff. It’s on the Mommy Test. You have to know it, or they don’t let you be a Mommy.”  We walked along in silence for 2 or 3 minutes, as she pondered this new information. “Oh…I get it!” she beamed, “So if you don’t pass the test you have to be the daddy?” I smiled and replied, “Exactly.”

The Apostle John wrote this short letter, toward the end of his life, because he was worried these young Christians would not pass the maturity test. He were picking up some dubious practices contaminating Christianity with Greek religion.

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