March 30, 2023

The Bible Edge

Everyone needs an Edge, Believers can have the Bible Edge

James 1:4

But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

So often, in our human condition, we fight against patience instead of letting her perform her perfect work. It seems that James, under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost of God, is trying to communicate some very deep thing. He states that there is such a thing as a perfect work. Frankly, this is difficult to believe. Not concerning Christ, or God the Father, or the Holy Spirit for all that they do is perfect. But concerning a human being, no matter what type of work we do it is usually far from perfect.

But patience wants to have a perfect work in our life. Look at it like this. A situation crops up. Perhaps it is an interpersonal relationship issue, or a health issue, or some other problem that is not able to be resolved quickly. It lingers, dawdles, loiters, and hangs around until it becomes an overriding problem. Usually, a person’s immediate desire is to have that situation come to an end. Fix it, change it, stop it, alter it but all to no avail. We pray about it, plot solutions for it, and put a plan into action for it, but it’s still there. Preying on the mind, affecting the heart, sometimes causing stress related health conditions, confusing our purposes, and stifling the forward moving momentum in our plans, hopes and desires. All the while during this agonizing process, patience is there. She desires to perform a perfect work in us.

This perfect work once accomplished makes us perfect, entire, and wanting nothing. If asked, isn’t that the state for which we strive, to be perfect, entire, and wanting nothing? What a state of bliss that would be! To be perfect, to be entire, to want nothing, meaning everything we want is in our possession! That is the state that God desires for His children and it is possible. So, He created patience. The one thing most lacking is the one thing most needed: patience. The one thing we fight against and hate to endure is the one thing we need: patience. The one thing some have prayed for, yet when she makes an appearance, is needed, and must be employed we do all we can to eliminate her from our presence. Patience is a powerful perfect work of God given to His children to assist them in life, heart, mind and soul.

But she must be let to have her perfect work. When she appears, when she is needed, when she is dispatched by our loving Father in Heaven to do a perfect work in us, we must let her do that work. This means our impatience must be held in check, we must stand aside, cease from our own devices, and let her work. Give her permission coupled with the power of enablement to let her work her perfect work. Difficult as this is, patience must be let to do her perfect work. That is a Bible Edge for dealing with life’s issues.

William Howe, Ph.D.