A Digital Newsletter from Living Stream Ministry
[James 5:7] uses the illustration of a farmer awaiting with longsuffering the precious fruit of the earth. We have seen that the Lord Jesus is actually the real Farmer, the unique Farmer. As we are awaiting His coming, He, as the real Farmer, is awaiting our maturity.
We may pray, “Lord, come back quickly.” However, He may say, “My children, mature quicker. While you are awaiting My coming back, I am awaiting your maturity. Do you know why it has been nearly two thousand years and I have not yet come back? The reason is that My people are not yet matured. Only your maturity can hasten My coming back. You exercise your longsuffering, and I exercise My longsuffering.”
For the Lord’s coming back, we need longsuffering, endurance, and the growth in life. As we are exercising longsuffering toward those who persecute us and endurance toward afflictions, we need to grow in life. Then we shall be able to say, “O Lord Jesus, come back sooner. Lord, can’t You see that I am growing in life? Today I am growing faster than yesterday. Because I am growing, Lord, I ask You to speed up Your coming back.”
We need to realize that the Lord’s coming is related to our growth in life. If we fulfill the condition of growing in life, the Lord will fulfill the condition of coming back sooner. Therefore, we need to grow in life, and as we are growing, to exercise longsuffering and endurance. This is the proper way to await the Lord’s coming back. (Life-study of James, pp. 98, 100)
Peter says that we do well to give heed to the prophetic word until the day dawns and the morning star arises in our hearts [2 Pet. 1:19]. This…is a metaphor, illustrating a time coming which will be full of light, as a bright day dawning, with the morning star, before dawn, rising in the hearts of the believers, who are illuminated and enlightened by giving heed to the shining word of the prophecy of Scripture.
In the time of apostasy the believers do well to give heed in this matter so that the prophetic word, as a lamp, may shine through the darkness of apostasy until such a day dawns upon them. This will cause and encourage them to seek earnestly the Lord’s presence and be watchful that they not miss the Lord in the secret part of His parousia, when He comes as a thief (Matt. 24:27; 2 Thes. 2:8). Hence, this metaphor should allude to the coming age, the age of the kingdom, as a day that will dawn at the appearing (the coming) of the Lord (2 Pet. 1:16) as the Sun of righteousness (Mal. 4:2), whose light will shine to break through the gloom of the dark night of this age. Preceding this, the Lord will appear as the morning star (Rev. 2:28; 22:16) in the darkest hour of the night to those who are watchful and looking for His dear appearing (2 Tim. 4:8). They have been enlightened by the shining of the prophetic word, which is able to lead them to the dawning day. (Life-study of Second Peter, pp. 70-71)
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