“Longsuffering” is a fruit of the spirit and it basically means patient and slow to anger. The original words are more related to the idea of breath as in, “taking a deep breath” rather than huffing and puffing in anger.
I kind of like the literary definition, the imagery to be found in the visual of a much beleaguered and longsuffering wife, or a faithful servant or a caregiver. “Beleaguered” it means under siege, beset with difficulties and longsuffering, perseverance! Enduring it all with some grace and good humor.
Almost nobody choses to follow Jesus Christ and as their gift, their superpower, eagerly awaits the fruit of the Spirit we call, longsuffering. Especially not true in today’s world of anxious toe tapping because the microwave is taking too long.
If you have ever cried out for vindication, for justice delayed, justice deferred, justice lost in the system somewhere, or lamented and wailed at sheer futility of it all, or waffled somewhere between complete despair and outrage at God for allowing such things to drone on, you may have encountered longsuffering.
It sometimes gives birth to some gallows humor and the ability to roll your eyes so hard they are in danger of getting stuck in the back of your head for all of eternity.
Once I was pouring out all my frustration over this constant, perpetual, never ending injustice, and the Lord said, “justice,” it means Just-us.” He and I. More of Him, less of me. What you want isn’t “justice,” it is more of, “Just Us.” Healing. Grace. The binding up of your wounds. Soul care. Personal time with the Lord. Restoration of the ten fold kind, where I replace what was taken, what was stolen, ten times over.
There are a lot of lessons to be learned in there like, why do you seek justification when I have already justified you?
Vindication it means, “the action of clearing someone of blame or suspicion.” Salvation, grace, mercy, means Jesus has cleared you of all blame and suspicion. ALL. Your sins are forgiven, even forgotten, as far as the East is from the West.
Validation, confirmation that your perceptions of reality and your feelings are somewhat accurate and righteous is also to be found resting at the feet of the Lord and not in some external, arbitrary thing called, “justice.”
Which just leaves a wee bit of residual vengeance which, yes, I still do crave at times! The Lord has said vengeance is in His lane, and not our territory. “Vengeance is mine, says the Lord.” Just the same, once somebody said something nasty to me and then turned around and walked face first into a pole and my little dark heart just sang praises. That was awesome and also the Lord’s doing, not mine.
Proverbs 16:32 says, “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.” Amen! Learn to rule your spirit and you become more mighty than he that takes a city. Also one of my favorites, Proverbs 25:28, “He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.”
I still want some justice, I want the things I count on to be stable, I want some order in my society, I want to live in a world that makes a tiny bit of sense, and I want to enjoy the fruits of my labor.
A bit comical, socialism is very popular here, this idea that we’re all going to share and share alike, and recently someone had their car stolen. You’d be quite proud of me, I resisted the urge to say a single word, but others did not and I found it all outrageously funny. In a socialist system without property rights, one can’t really have their stuff stolen. “From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.” Guess someone just had need of your car? Tough luck, suck it up buttercup.
Also, no calling those cops you just went and defunded.
Don’t “wait” for justice. Don’t “wait” for vindication. Don’t “wait” for validation. Justice is seated in victory at the right hand of the Father and our enjoyment of Him begins with that “just us,” where we turn to Him with our wounds, our lamentations, and our questions.
Our whole country seems to be perched on the edge of waiting, waiting for the lockdowns to be over, waiting for a covid vaccine, waiting for the economy to crash, waiting for the election to be settled, waiting for darkness to be exposed, waiting for the next shoe to drop, waiting for Jesus to return.
First rule of Longsuffering Club is an ironic one, a bit of a paradox, but it is, Don’t wait. Step into what you’ve already been given. Advent arrived a few thousand years ago and our time of waiting is over.
unitedpastor said:
Does “long suffering” apply to people who don’t happen to see mask wearing, etc., as you do? Or ought they be subject to outbursts of anger?
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insanitybytes22 said:
Do you have evidence of any mask wearers being fined, arrested, or assaulted for wearing a mask? You do not, what you have is some pretty narrow minded bigotry that runs about like small child trying to justify itself by saying, “I know I am but what are you?”
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Jon said:
“Just Us”. I love that message!
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insanitybytes22 said:
Amen. It’s good news! 🙂
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Michael Wilson said:
Ha! I want to be a member of the Longsuffering Club. Love this: “First rule of Longsuffering Club is an ironic one, a bit of a paradox, but it is, Don’t wait. Step into what you’ve already been given. Advent arrived a few thousand years ago and our time of waiting is over.”
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Rudy U Martinka said:
Insanitybytes22
The issue of Justice has been a controversial subject for thousands of years. However, this one statement seems to sum up the word justice in my opinion.
“Thrasymachus’s definition of justice reveals that justice is relative to the rulers of the regime.”
https://www.aresearchguide.com/definitions-of-justice-in-platos-republic-by-socrates.html
As for your statement “don’t wait for vindication,” in my opinion, we need religious faith to help us not get an ulcer in the USA. A society that teaches its children everything under the sun except to understand the truth that justice begins with their wise of foolish decisions and then carries on who to vote for based on his beliefs of justice rather than his campaign contributor.
If we as a Nation do not teach the philosophy of love and wisdom to our children, over time, they will grow up to believe they are entitled to justice while at the same time vote for leaders who grow up not understand the philosophical definitions of justice.
And over time, children will mature into leaders with beliefs they have the Right to riot to obtain the justice they believe is best suited to their beliefs of justice instead of the truth being that justice is “relative to the rulers” they support.
As for making a decision whether to wear a mask or not, if they contract coronavirus, they will obtain the justice of the choice they made based on their age, health, or philosophy of life who they voted for to be their leaders..
Regards and goodwill blogging.
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insanitybytes22 said:
Well said, Rudy, well said.
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Clyde Herrin said:
Christians should be waiting – waiting for Christ to return and straighten out this whole mess. But while we are waiting we are commanded to carry out the job he has given us to preach the gospel and make disciples.
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insanitybytes22 said:
Clyde, there’s two schools of thought on “waiting” and I really do think they are both right at the same time! The first is that Jesus already came and the waiting is over. We have been redeemed, NOW is the time to step into His grace as full sons and daughters and get about the Father’s business, as if heaven came down to Earth already, because He did. The other idea is that we are waiting for Jesus to return again, which is also true. 🙂
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Citizen Tom said:
Could be worse. Think about the apostles Paul and Peter. Because even an awful government is better than none at all, they had to encourage their followers to obey the rule of Emperor Nero.
When we contemplate Matthew 5:1-12, we have to remember something important. We will receive blessings, great blessings, but the righteousness we hope for is not something we will know in this life. In fact, if we each got the justice we deserve now we would not be happy with it. We need the grace and mercy of His forgiveness. I think I will happily settle for that from our Lord, and that as you say we can have now.
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insanitybytes22 said:
I hear that a lot Citizen Tom, about the disciples obeying Nero as your governing authority. I’m not so sure anymore, if that’s really accurate. I’ll let you know when I get it all figured out. 🙂
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Citizen Tom said:
@insanitybytes22
It is a confusing issue. That is particularly true if we try to reconcile whether the American Revolution can be justified as a Biblical act.
Was Nero the lawful authority? Think the apostles thought so? Did the apostles obey every edict from the Roman emperors? No. Because they put God first, they became martyrs.
Even if the election was stolen, Trump’s lawyers will have trouble getting the reported results thrown out. The Establishment has immense power, as did The Establishment in Nero’s day. In this life justice is a rarity.
I wonder which is more rare. Justice or being thankful to God. I don’t doubt they are connected.
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insanitybytes22 said:
Good points, Tom! It really is a complex issue. Needless to say, I have a lot more appreciation for the wisdom of our founding fathers than I do the Roman emperors. 🙂
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Citizen Tom said:
@insanitybytes22
Well, we have to give George Washington credit. He certainly didn’t want the job of monarch. It takes more sense than most have to realize the downside. To be an absolute ruler requires one to grab a tiger by the tail.
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