Rev. John Blankespoor is pastor of the Pine Creek Christian Reformed Church of Holland, Michigan. ]n this article, the first in a series on In the School of Patience, he writes: “Obviously, there is only one textbook in this school—the Word of God. And when we begin to learn this lesson [patience], we begin to experience the peace that surpasses all understanding and in that measure we become contented and happy Christians.”

Adversities and sufferings in life are some of the greatest problems that perplex people. Unbelieving people have often denied the very existence of God because such experiencs surely cannot come from a loving God, they say. Perhaps the biggest question of all is: why does God bring these things upon us, or why does He let them happen? Why must His people suffer?

And why, so often, do good people have to suffer? And some of His children have very heavy burdens to bear? Why so many heartaches, sorrows and pains in life? And with many of them it is of such long duration, being on sickbeds for years and years, or having adversities that last throughout all of their lives. Then also there are and have been Christians in persecution for the sake of the Lord for years. Why all this and why so long? Many children of God have felt at times, and also expressed in prayer, “Lord, I can‘t take it any longer.”

   

The Bible says in more than one place, “Despise not the chastening of the Lord.” This could just as well read, “Despise not the training program of the Lord.” God is training us as children who have to be trained. As Christians, we have become His children through the blood and Spirit of Christ, with renewed hearts. But we are adopted children. By nature we are aliens and strangers, so radically different from our heavenly Father. Also, we know so little who our heavenly Father really is. And we know so little as Christians, about His life and blessings.

Therefore the Father puts us in the school of life, and we certainly begin as kindergartners. We must be delivered from sin which involves so milch in a11 of our lives. We must be delivered from ourselves. We must learn to th ink differently and live differently. We must also learn to believe, really to have faith and trust and learn to love the Lord and His commandments. We have to learn to know God Himself as our great heavenly Father in Christ. He wants to teach us about the wonder of His life, blessings, and the inexpressible riches of belonging to our faithful Savior, Jesus Christ.

We have to learn so much. It should not surprise us therefore that this training program in God’s school is of such long duration. In fact, it is life long in one form or another.

One of the greatest, but also one of the most beautiful lessons we have to learn is patience. Take note, not only that we are to be patient in affliction, but we must learn to know by experience what patience is—the patience that is spiritual.

The most natural result of being chastised is that we become weary and faint. We complain so easily. We murmur so much as weak Christians, we often act like cowards and even criticize God. But God does not want us as His children, who are His image bearers, to be that kind of children. He wants us to be like Him. He wants us to know Him, in depth, in love, and with genuine faith. He wants us to be contented, to have peace of mind and heart, and to be encouraged in the midst of life with all that it brings upon our ways.

Therefore one of the greatest lessons in this important school of life is patience. Obviously, there is only one textbook in this school, the Word of God. And when we begin to learn this lesson we begin to experience the peace that surpassed all understanding, and in that measure we become contented and happy Christians.

People confined to a hospital are called patients. Why? Because they usually have to exercise patience.

What is patience? According to Webster, patience is a quality or power that enables one to be Iongsuffering, to wait, to bear strain and stress, and to endure. Spiritual patience is something like this, only it is a spiritual exercise made possible by the power of the Word and the Spirit through faith. The Bible often uses the Word patience. Some passages are well known to Bible-reading Christians exactly because they speak of and emphasize this subject.

In your patience ye shall possess your souls (Luke 21:19).

Strengthened with all power, according to the might of his glory, unto all patience and longsuffering with joy (Col. 1:11).

Therefore let us also, seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race set before us . . . (Heb. 12:1).

Count it all joy, my brethren, when ye fall into manifold temptations; knowing that the proving of your faith worketh patience. And let patience have its perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, lacking in nothing (Jas. 1:2–4).

What is the Bible talking about when it speaks of patience in these and many other texts? You can be sure that it is not speaking of weaknesses in these people of God. Spiritual patience is by no means a weakness, but a marvelous power of God in His people.

This patience is a powerful act of perseverance in faith under misfortunes and trials. Different words are used in different versions and paraphrasings to describe this spiritual activity and strength of faith. Patience means to endure in faith, or to have the ability to endure and willingly to continue in our present way of life. Patience is perseverance and steadfastness.

Remember that our reactions to the Lord‘s ways with us are always very important, and surely when He is chastising us. So often we rebel, we murmur under the heavy hand of the Father. We don‘t want it this way. With a rebellious spirit we often ask: why, why Lord? Why is this being done to me? Spiritual patience is that exercise of faith in which we fight against this kind of reaction, and instead try to be willing to have it so, and to persevere, by the power of the Spirit, in this way of the Lord. When we have spiritual patience we try to endure and to be steadfast in faith in this way of life.

Now when we are afflicted and can see the end, or know, for example that our sickness or period of hospitalization will not be too long, it is not so difficult to be patient. But when we do not know how long it will be and simply just have to wait and see “how things will turn out,” it is quite different. There is a world of difference, for example, between going to a hospital with a bone fracture, which will heal in a limited period of time, or going to a hospital when the physicians just can‘t determine what is wrong, and according to all indications our condition is serious. We may just have to wait and wait for the final diagnosis.

Spiritually it is often just like that. The Lord often doesn’t give us any idea how long we will be afflicted. The paint is that He doesn’t want us to know how long it will be. And some people know that the burden they bear wi1l be theirs the rest of their earthly lives. At such times the good Lord wants to teach us important lessons in His school of which one of the greatest is the lesson of patience. He wants to give us the power of spiritual endurance.

Every Christian who knows by experience even a little of what all this means is bound to ask the question how it is possible so to live. How can I accept these adverse ways of the Lord?

The answer is always the same, namely, through faith in Him, through the Word and the Spirit. Faith we must have in the great trutbs of God‘s love, wisdom, and wonderful promises. Patience is possible with “blind” and childlike faith in the great truth that what God does is always good, and that His ways are always ways of infinite wisdom and love in Christ.

Patient Christians we can be when we increasingly learn to know the rock-solid faithfulness of God in all His covenant promises at His people. We are to know that God always loves His children and that He always causes all things to work together for their good. Possessing such faith, we can accept the ways of the Lord in our lives and be willing to continue in these ways in submission to Him. And what a peace He gives with such submission and trust!

Where do we generally or nearly always find the most spiritually-patient people? With those who are healthy and prosperous? No, but with those who have great trials and who over a period of years perhaps have learned to pray more whole-heartedly and to trust in their Lord. And their patience often blossoms into beautiful peace and joy.

I think of Christians who have been bedridden for years, of others who have afflictions from which they will never recover in this life, and of others who have heavy spiritual burdens to bear. Tremendous faith many of these people often display! Their beds are often the greatest “pulpits.” They have learned in their spiritual battles the spiritual exercise of patience, and they have accepted the ways of the Lord with them. Often they put to shame others who are healthy and well and have fewer trials.

Marvels of life such believers are! Tremendous power of the Spirit they possess. Why? With patience their hearts are at peace with God. They have learned to endure and persevere in their trials in the great school of life. By all means, let us be thankful for all the prosperity the Lord gives us and never forget to say thank you. But when He leads us in different ways, which He so often does, He wants to teach us lessons in His school, the lessons of patience and endurance.

In approximately the middle of the 19th century a Mr. and Mrs. Horatio G. Spafford, living in Chicago, felt it to be their calling to help the Jews in their plight in the land of Israel. The fruit of their labors later was the establishment of the American Colony  in Jerusalem which many visitors to that country have since then seen and which can be seen to this day.

Many trips were made by the Spaffords crossing the ocean by boat. On one of these trips Mrs. Spafford, traveling with her four young daughters, suffered shipwreck. She had the horrible experience of losing all four children. Desperately she tried to save one of them, but finally lost her grip of the child’s dress as she too went under in the mighty waves of the Atlantic. Needless to say, the parents suffered untold  sorrow and grief. They were almost beside themselves. But the most important thing for them was not to lose their faith in God. In their personal struggles, which naturally followed, the question often arose: Is God dead?

Taking a positive attitude, which is always good, with much internal strife, these bereaved parents aimed to come to the point where they could say that all was well. Pity they refused to accept. They reminded themselves again and again that the loss of their children had a divine purpose. To put it all in different words, they were struggling to persevere, to endure and to learn the great lesson of patience.

Some time later, when Mr. Spafford crossed the same Atlantic and came to the general area where his children had drowned he composed the well-known song: “When Peace like a River.”

When peace like a river, attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea-billows roll, Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say: It is well, it is well with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, That Christ has regarded my helpless estate, And has shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin – O the bliss of this glorious thought!– My sin, not in part, but the whole, Is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more; Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

O Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, The clouds be rolled back as a scroll, The trump shall resound and the Lord shall descend; Even so—it is well with my soul.

What a testimony of spiritual patience! But also, what an example of the power of faith, also for us, when we endure and are submissive, and exercise patience.