This lesson was taught on the Sabbath of September 26, 2026, at Israel Church of the Firstborn in Indianapolis. Brother Obadiah calls patience the one area where most of us are weak: when we want something done, we want it done right now. His warning is the thread through the whole lesson. When you ask God for patience, you have ordered a boatload of tribulation along with it, because tribulation is how patience is worked. He teaches that the New Testament's patience is the Old Testament's longsuffering, and he follows it through Romans, Second Corinthians, the Psalms, Moses on Sinai, Jeremiah, the parables of the unforgiving servant and the sower, James, the woman bowed for eighteen years, Paul's thorn in the flesh, and Jacob wrestling at Peniel. He ends in the last days, where Jesus says, In your patience possess ye your souls. Every passage is read in the King James Version.
Watch the full lesson on YouTube.
The morning reading was Psalm 103:11-15, that as for man his days are as grass. Brother Obadiah said it was a reminder that none of us are here for long, and that no matter how old or young you are, you have to be ready to serve the Lord at all times. He then opened the Sabbath script with Leviticus 23:1-3, noting that even the weekly Sabbath is a feast day, a day to rejoice, on which the congregation eats cold food so no one has to work. Then Revelation 22.
Revelation 22:14-16 KJV14Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
15For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
16I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
"Blessed are they that do his commandments. You got to do the commandments. You just can't hear the commandments. That's what Israel did. Israel heard the commandments, but Israel would not follow the instructions."
"If you involved in any one of these things in this verse 15, the Lord has got you alive for a reason. He got you alive to change it. As long as you are alive, you still got a chance with the Lord."
"I am the root and the offspring of David. He is the root because he came before David, and he came out of the house of David."
1.Lord, I Want Patience, and I Want It Now
"One thing about man and man's nature is, when you want something done, you want it done right now, but you don't have the patience to do it. And so you start losing your temper. Have you ever said, Lord Jesus, I want patience, and I want it now?"
"Once you get that patience, you got to understand one thing. You just ordered yourself a boatload of tribulation when you asked for it. You going to have patience, but with patience is going to come tribulation."
"Being a servant of God, that's one thing that God requires for you to have. You got to have patience with others. You have to have patience with your children, with your wife, your husband. You going to have mean bosses, mean people. All these things to demonstrate how patient you really are."
He reads from his notes what the words mean. In the New Testament it is called patience, and in the Old Testament it is called longsuffering. Patience is enduring trials, waiting on God's timing, and showing self-control with others. Longsuffering is being slow to anger, choosing to tolerate insults or unfair treatment without striking back. Endurance and steadfastness go with them: staying power that refuses to quit when facing hard times.
"This is your temple. This is your body. This is what God gave you. And you got to possess it with patience. You cannot overreact. You cannot fly off the handle. You cannot have a bad temper all the time."
"Think about how patient that he was with you. Some people in our families, they ain't got the word of God. What we going to do, turn away from them? God don't operate like that."
2.Tribulation Worketh Patience
Romans 5:1-8 KJV1Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
2By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
3And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
4And patience, experience; and experience, hope:
5And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
6For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
7For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.
8But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
"Sometimes when you read the Bible, you got to read it one verse at a time. First of all, you got to have faith, and you got to be justified by your faith. And what does faith bring? Faith brings peace. And that's who you get it from. The only peace that you going to have is through Jesus."
"In the world ye shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. So Jesus was the one that overcame all of the things that you going to go through."
"We glory in tribulations also. See, this where we got to get to. You cannot be a true Christian and you ain't got no patience. And you cannot be afraid to face hard times when it comes. You got to be able to stand firm in it."
"And patience, experience. I've been through this before. I know how we going to make it through this. This is what God want you to see."
"It's good when you cry out to people around you, but it'll be better if you cry out to the Lord first."
"While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. The Father could have killed you. But Jesus died. So what was Jesus doing for us when we was without Christ? He was being patient with us. He was giving us time to get it right."
3.Approving Ourselves in Much Patience
Second Corinthians the sixth chapter.
2 Corinthians 6:1-5 KJV1We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.
2( For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)
3Giving no offence in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed:
4But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses,
5In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings;
"Don't receive this grace in vain. Once you receive the grace of the Lord, don't go back out here doing it again. That's when you take his grace in vain, and he'll take it away from you."
"How do you prove yourself a minister of the Lord? In much patience. But notice what came behind it. In afflictions. Some of us going to be afflicted with diseases. Some of us going to have to deal with broken bones. But if you trust in the Lord, Jesus going to bring you out of all of it."
"In necessities. You might be in need, and you ain't going to have it your way. In stripes. That means sometimes you might even get beat for the word of God."
2 Corinthians 6:6-10 KJV6By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,
7By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
8By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true;
9As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;
10As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.
"By honour and dishonour. Some people going to honor you and some people going to dishonor you. But you still can't give up your patience with that person. Satan want to make you hate the person. You cannot hate the person. You got to hate the spirit that's in the person."
"As deceivers, and yet true. Everybody think we lying. They say we interpreting the Bible the way that we want to. But we not doing that. We read the word of God, and we going to let it interpret itself."
"As unknown, and yet well known. I ain't worried about being famous. We trying to change one life at a time. You might not be famous, but we know who you are up in the third heaven."
"As chastened, and not killed. God going to chasten you, but he going to still keep you alive. Why? Because you believe him."
"As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing. There ain't a day that go by that I don't cry, but yet I'm always rejoicing."
2 Corinthians 6:11-12 KJV11O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged.
12Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels.
He admits he used to always tear the Corinthians down. But by Second Corinthians, he says, they were on fire for the Lord, and Paul had to write and tell them to receive back the people they had put out of the church.
"Don't throw nobody out of the church. Anybody can get saved. That's what longsuffering and patience is all about. Being patient with one another, because everybody don't have the same faith that you have."
4.The God of Patience and Consolation
Romans 15:1-7 KJV1We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
2Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification.
3For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.
4For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
5Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
6That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
7Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.
"We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak. That's why you got to be patient with people."
"Everything that you see written in this book was written for your learning. The good and the bad, the positive and the negative."
"When you learning the word of God, you learning something that you thought you knew but didn't know nothing about at all. You didn't know how to please God. But what did God do? He kept you alive so you can learn. And with this patience, you going to start to get comfort in the scriptures, that you might have hope."
"The God of patience and consolation. We see another name that he got. He is the God of patience. And consolation means comfort."
"You can't cast people out because they don't know as much book as what you have. You going to have people that's been in the word for 20, 30 years, and some people that's been in the word for a year. You still got to be able to bear with where they are."
He explains why the class has been getting exhortation lessons lately instead of history: people are hurting, and once they leave these walls they need the consolation of the scriptures to live their everyday lives.
5.The Fruit of the Spirit Is Longsuffering
"Satan want to knock you off. He said, look at that lie you told. You ain't nobody. You break your promise all the time. That's the devil talking to you. But you go back and tell that rascal, whatever good he see in me, he got me alive this day."
Galatians 5:22-26 KJV22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
23Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
24And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
25If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
26Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.
"So we back to that word longsuffering. Once you start dealing with patience and longsuffering, that's the fruit of the spirit."
"Gentleness. I had to learn that the hard way. I wasn't a very gentle person in my life."
"Temperance is self-control. If you ain't got no self-control over your spirit, the book say that you like a city that's broken down and ain't got no walls."
"You got a lot of people in the word of God that's seeking vain glory. They just want to be known. They want to be famous. But that's not what the word of God is for. We in this thing to cast out demons. We in this thing to make sure that we giving people deliverance."
6.Teach Me Thy Way, O Lord
"I'm working on my patience a little bit more. I used to be, Lord, when the church going to grow? The Lord said, when you shut up and leave me alone and quit asking about it. I gave you the people that's in front of you, no matter how many. Those are the people you better take care of. I'll let the people walk through the door."
Psalm 86:1-7 KJV1Bow down thine ear, O LORD, hear me: for I am poor and needy.
2Preserve my soul; for I am holy: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee.
3Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily.
4Rejoice the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
5For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
6Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications.
7In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.
"Bow down thine ear, O Lord, for I am poor and needy. That's all you got to tell the Lord, and he going to take care of you."
"Be merciful unto me, for I cry unto thee daily. I make sure that I shed a tear in some kind of way, whether it's for the world or I'm thinking about my family or the church."
"Rejoice the soul of thy servant. That's why he said, in your patience possess ye your souls. Because if your soul is always in torment, you are opening the door for demons to come into your life."
"When you fall down, get up. Don't stay on the ground. Don't bother with self-pity. Self-pity, that's another way that Satan like to slip into your life."
Psalm 86:8-13 KJV8Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works.
9All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name.
10For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.
11Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name.
12I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore.
13For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.
"Teach me thy way, O Lord. If he going to be the God of patience and consolation, that's his way. So you got to ask the Lord to teach you his way."
"Unite my heart to fear thy name. That's what's missing with the average Christian. You have not united your heart to fear God."
Psalm 86:14-17 KJV14O God, the proud are risen against me, and the assemblies of violent men have sought after my soul; and have not set thee before them.
15But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.
16O turn unto me, and have mercy upon me; give thy strength unto thy servant, and save the son of thine handmaid.
17Shew me a token for good; that they which hate me may see it, and be ashamed: because thou, LORD, hast holpen me, and comforted me.
"This is Jesus speaking through the mouth of David. The assemblies of violent men have sought after my soul. They wanted to kill Jesus."
"Thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth."
7.The Lord God, Merciful and Gracious, Longsuffering
To show that the Lord is longsuffering no matter what you have done, he goes to Moses on Mount Sinai, after the first tables were broken, in Exodus 34.
"If you gonna be longsuffering and have patience, you gonna have to be just like Jesus. You can't fly off the handle on everybody. Don't give up on everybody. Have patience with yourself. Have patience with your Christian walk. Because the only person that can walk your walk is you."
Exodus 34:1-4 KJV1And the LORD said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest.
2And be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning unto mount Sinai, and present thyself there to me in the top of the mount.
3And no man shall come up with thee, neither let any man be seen throughout all the mount; neither let the flocks nor herds feed before that mount.
4And he hewed two tables of stone like unto the first; and Moses rose up early in the morning, and went up unto mount Sinai, as the LORD had commanded him, and took in his hand the two tables of stone.
Exodus 34:5-9 KJV5And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD.
6And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
7Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.
8And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped.
9And he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us; for it is a stiffnecked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thine inheritance.
"That's the God that you serve. We just read this in Psalms. So now you see who he got it from. He got this from Moses. Everything in the Bible is the same."
"That's why we say, when you fall down, get back up."
"It is a stiffnecked people. Moses got a little weary dealing with the people, but Moses was still patient with the people."
"Pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thine inheritance. That's all you got to pray to the Lord, and the Lord going to remember you."
8.Take Me Not Away in Thy Longsuffering
Jeremiah the 15th chapter. Even while the whole nation was about to go into captivity, he says, God remembered Jeremiah, who was kept back in the land with the poor instead of being carried to Babylon.
Jeremiah 15:1-4 KJV1Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people: cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth.
2And it shall come to pass, if they say unto thee, Whither shall we go forth? then thou shalt tell them, Thus saith the LORD; Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.
3And I will appoint over them four kinds, saith the LORD: the sword to slay, and the dogs to tear, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the earth, to devour and destroy.
4And I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem.
"Once God passed sentence, he cannot let it return unto him void."
"Such as are for the captivity, to the captivity. You was dealing with captivity as well. We always like to cry about slavery, but don't you understand that you was for the captivity before you came over here in chains and shackles? That was the nature of our people."
"I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth. This has happened to no other people but the children of Israel."
Jeremiah 15:10-14 KJV10Woe is me, my mother, that thou hast borne me a man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth! I have neither lent on usury, nor men have lent to me on usury; yet every one of them doth curse me.
11The LORD said, Verily it shall be well with thy remnant; verily I will cause the enemy to entreat thee well in the time of evil and in the time of affliction.
12Shall iron break the northern iron and the steel?
13Thy substance and thy treasures will I give to the spoil without price, and that for all thy sins, even in all thy borders.
14And I will make thee to pass with thine enemies into a land which thou knowest not: for a fire is kindled in mine anger, which shall burn upon you.
"This is Jesus speaking through the mouth of Jeremiah. A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth. Jeremiah was only in Jerusalem. He did not go to all of the kingdoms of the earth. That's how you know this is Jesus that's speaking."
"Verily it shall be well with thy remnant. Jeremiah was one of the remnant that actually believed in God."
Jeremiah 15:15-18 KJV15O LORD, thou knowest: remember me, and visit me, and revenge me of my persecutors; take me not away in thy longsuffering: know that for thy sake I have suffered rebuke.
16Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts.
17I sat not in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced; I sat alone because of thy hand: for thou hast filled me with indignation.
18Why is my pain perpetual, and my wound incurable, which refuseth to be healed? wilt thou be altogether unto me as a liar, and as waters that fail?
"Take me not away in thy longsuffering. Remember me. Give me time. Be longsuffering with me."
"When Jeremiah testified to the people standing in the gates of Jerusalem to remember the Sabbath day, he got reproached for that. They let Jeremiah down in the mire, in the mud and in the dirt."
"Thy words were found, and I did eat them. Didn't the Lord say that his word was going to be a consolation unto you? That's what the word of God is. It's your comfort."
"I sat not in the assembly of the mockers. I didn't laugh at one of their jokes. Sometimes you got to get away from people."
"The Lord don't mind when you be straight up with him. The Lord want you to be straight up with him."
Jeremiah 15:19-21 KJV19Therefore thus saith the LORD, If thou return, then will I bring thee again, and thou shalt stand before me: and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth: let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them.
20And I will make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall: and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith the LORD.
21And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible.
"So I ain't going to let you go down with them into Babylon. When Jeremiah was telling them all through the book, y'all going to go into captivity, Jeremiah already knew he wasn't going nowhere, because God was going to be patient and God was going to be longsuffering with him."
9.Until Seventy Times Seven
Saint Matthew the 18th chapter.
"Be patient with one another. Be patient with yourself. Be patient with the Lord too. Because the Lord ain't ready to do it for you yet, because you not ready for it. If I give it to you and you use it wrong, then I'm gonna have to punish you for using my gift wrong."
St. Matthew 18:18-20 KJV18Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
19Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
20For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
"If you loose demons out of your life, they got to go. And if you bind the Holy Spirit in your life, he got to stay. And the church got to touch and agree on that."
"Let's forget all the drama and everything else that's going around, and let's get together to loose demons out of our lives, to deliver people from the bondage of Satan. That's what church is about."
"Two or three gathered together in my name. If you expecting a real big old church in these last days, you got another thing coming. He know that in these last days it's going to be harder and harder for people to come to class, especially on a Saturday."
St. Matthew 18:21-22 KJV21Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?
22Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
"And you think you don't need no patience for that? When somebody do you wrong, you got to turn around and forgive them. If they sin against you 490 times, you still got to forgive them."
St. Matthew 18:23-27 KJV23Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.
24And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.
25But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
27Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.
"His lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife and children. That's what we just read about in Jeremiah. We read about captivity and slavery. This is what happened to the children of Israel."
"Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. So God is going to give you time, whatever you struggling with in your life, to get it right."
"Our lessons be about life. It's when you leave these walls, when you go out to Babylon right outside, that you going to truly have to put this book into action."
St. Matthew 18:28-35 KJV28But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.
29And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
30And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.
31So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.
32Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:
33Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?
34And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.
35So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.
"God forgave you, but now you want to jump on everybody else. You don't want to forgive nobody. You don't want to be patient with nobody."
"What's the tormentors? The tormentors is the lake of fire. So he took it past captivity."
"Forgiveness is the children's bread, like deliverance is the children's bread. You got to be able to forgive, because God forgave you."
10.Bring Forth Fruit With Patience
Saint Luke the eighth chapter. He says the Lord keeps leading him to the parable of the sower, which has been in his last three lessons.
St. Luke 8:9-10 KJV9And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?
10And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.
"If you throw this parable to anybody else in the world, they're not going to understand it. That's why they think they going to heaven, when God say he going to set the kingdom on the earth. But you gonna stand in judgment because of these parables, because you know it."
St. Luke 8:11-15 KJV11Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
12Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
13They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.
14And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.
15But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
"These are the people we really got to pray for and be patient with. All these people we invite, come to class. They ain't showed up yet, but you got to be patient with them, because we want to get these people out of the snare of the devil."
"They that have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. We want to pray that once you get the word of God, you have root in yourself to endure."
"The real problem is they love this world more than they love God. I had a bad night, I got into it with my wife Friday night, so I ain't coming to class today because I'm stressed out. That's exactly what Satan wants you to do."
"Notice what the good ground is. An honest and good heart. That's number one. And bring forth fruit with what? Patience."
St. Luke 8:16-18 KJV16No man, when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it with a vessel, or putteth it under a bed; but setteth it on a candlestick, that they which enter in may see the light.
17For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad.
18Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have.
"Whatever you doing in the dark, one day is going to come to the light. You can cover yourself and look all holy in here, but God know what's truly in your heart."
St. Luke 8:19-21 KJV19Then came to him his mother and his brethren, and could not come at him for the press.
20And it was told him by certain which said, Thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to see thee.
21And he answered and said unto them, My mother and my brethren are these which hear the word of God, and do it.
"You can't forget about your family. You got to remember them. Jesus didn't give up on his family. The one that wrote Jude, that was Jesus' brother. James was Jesus' brother. In the end they ended up believing in the Lord. Once their brother died on that cross, they changed."
11.Be Patient Unto the Coming of the Lord
James the fifth chapter, starting with a word for the rich.
"God ain't got no problem with you having money. But he have a problem with you having money and you don't know how to use your money. The Lord ain't going to give you no money until he give you the spirit to know how to control the money."
James 5:1-6 KJV1Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.
3Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.
4Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.
5Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.
6Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.
"All that stuff that you going to have, it's going to burn right along with you."
"Ye have condemned and killed the just, and he doth not resist you. You either going to take this mark of the beast, or we going to cut your head off. Well, go ahead and cut my head off. That's why he said he did not resist you."
James 5:7-11 KJV7Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
8Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
9Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.
10Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience.
11Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.
"We waiting on the Lord to return to deal with all of this stuff."
"The husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Once you know what the early and the latter rain is, the feast days going to fall in your lap."
"Grudge not one against another. When you grudge against one another, you are making yourself to be condemned."
"Ye have heard of the patience of Job. The Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy. We read it in Psalms 86, in Exodus 34, in Jeremiah 15, how longsuffering that he truly is."
James 5:12-16 KJV12But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.
13Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.
14Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
15And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
16Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
"Sometimes you got to be patient when you dealing with an ailment or a sickness. If you got faith that you going to be healed, the Lord will heal you."
"You see how compassionate and how patient the Lord is. The Lord had this person probably on their deathbed. I know you going to fall off the wagon. Me too. But you got to get up and pray once you fall. You can't stay on the ground."
James 5:17-20 KJV17Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.
18And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
19Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;
20Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
"That was also part of his patience. God was showing his mercy and his power when he took care of Elias. When there was no rain, he allowed the ravens to come feed him. A raven eat meat. Normally that raven would have ate that piece of meat. That's a spiritual act that God was doing."
"That's why I ain't worried about no whole lot of people. If you convert one sinner, you going to hide a multitude of sins."
12.A Spirit of Infirmity Eighteen Years
"The Lord gonna fix it in his time. He could have fixed it immediately, but this woman had this infirmity for 18 years. That's why you got to be patient with yourself, and you got to be patient with the Lord."
St. Luke 13:10-17 KJV10And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath.
11And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.
12And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity.
13And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.
14And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not on the sabbath day.
15The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering?
16And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?
17And when he had said these things, all his adversaries were ashamed: and all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by him.
"Jesus taught on the Sabbath. So if you going to come to class, you got to come to class on the Sabbath."
"You know what infirmity is? It's a spirit. And we got to cast that out."
"Whom Satan hath bound. So who bound her? Satan had bound her."
"He called him a hypocrite, in the synagogue. You going to lead your animals out to make sure they got some water on the Sabbath. And not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham?"
13.My Strength Is Made Perfect in Weakness
Second Corinthians the 12th chapter. Even Paul, he says, was dealing with an infirmity, and some of us have mothers and fathers dealing with one. All we can do is keep praying and be patient for the Lord to bring them, or us, out of it.
2 Corinthians 12:1-6 KJV1It is not expedient for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord.
2I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, ( whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.
3And I knew such a man, ( whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;)
4How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.
5Of such an one will I glory: yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities.
6For though I would desire to glory, I shall not be a fool; for I will say the truth: but now I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to be, or that he heareth of me.
"Why do you think he said he couldn't tell whether in the body or out of the body? Because no man can see God in his glory and live. When they stoned Stephen, he saw Jesus standing on the right hand of God, and then he died. That's the reason why he had to keep Paul alive for a little bit longer."
"Some things that we cannot know. Only they know."
2 Corinthians 12:7-10 KJV7And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
8For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
9And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
10Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.
"They was going to try to make Paul really big, and Paul did not want that. They even call it the Pauline doctrine now."
"When you read about an infirmity in your body, it's a messenger of Satan to buffet you."
"When you weak, that's when you know you strong. When you think you at your weakest, you need to speak peace unto your soul and say, no, Lord, I'm at my strongest when I'm thinking I'm at my weakest. That take you back to the title of the lesson. In your patience possess ye your souls."
"Paul was a little impatient with the Lord. That's why he asked God three times, but God wouldn't do it. You ain't patient enough yet, Paul. My grace is sufficient for you."
14.I Will Not Let Thee Go, Except Thou Bless Me
Then another man who dealt with an infirmity: Jacob, on his way home to face Esau, who had vowed to kill him, in Genesis 32.
Genesis 32:1-8 KJV1And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him.
2And when Jacob saw them, he said, This is God’s host: and he called the name of that place Mahanaim.
3And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir, the country of Edom.
4And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye speak unto my lord Esau; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojourned with Laban, and stayed there until now:
5And I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight.
6And the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to thy brother Esau, and also he cometh to meet thee, and four hundred men with him.
7Then Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed: and he divided the people that was with him, and the flocks, and herds, and the camels, into two bands;
8And said, If Esau come to the one company, and smite it, then the other company which is left shall escape.
"Mahanaim means two bands, or two companies. When Jesus come back, he going to come back with Mahanaim. He going to come back with an army of angels, and he going to come back with an army of saints."
"Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed, because he knew the nature of his brother he grew up with."
Genesis 32:9-12 KJV9And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, Return unto thy country, and to thy kindred, and I will deal well with thee:
10I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies, and of all the truth, which thou hast shewed unto thy servant; for with my staff I passed over this Jordan; and now I am become two bands.
11Deliver me, I pray thee, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau: for I fear him, lest he will come and smite me, and the mother with the children.
12And thou saidst, I will surely do thee good, and make thy seed as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.
"I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies. Who in this room feel like you're worthy of anything from God? I know I don't. But God don't feel that way about it. God see a vessel that he left alive, that he's gonna take care of with tender mercies if you come to him. When you at your weakest, the Lord sees something totally different."
Genesis 32:24-30 KJV24And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
25And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.
26And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.
27And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.
28And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.
29And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.
30And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.
"We know this was none other than Gabriel. He always bringing a name. He brought the name of Israel."
"Jacob was no pushover neither. He still fighting with this angel with a hip that's out of joint."
"What was God doing with Jacob at this time? He was showing Jacob the frailty of man, but also showing you the power of God. No matter how great you are, you still ain't no greater than me."
Genesis 32:31-32 KJV31And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh.
32Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew that shrank.
"Jacob had to walk with a limp. He had to deal with that for the rest of his life. When you read the next chapter, he was on that staff walking all the way to the land."
15.Godliness With Contentment Is Great Gain
1 Timothy 6:3-8 KJV3If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness;
4He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, where of cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings,
5Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.
6But godliness with contentment is great gain.
7For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry no thing out.
8And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
"A lot of people think, oh, it's a whole lot of people in this church, the spirit of God got to be in here. But I learned otherwise. Where there's more people, that's where more devils at as well."
"Whatever you have, that's what you be thankful for. You might not have a whole lot of clothes or shoes or jewelry or money. But what you have, the Lord gave it to you."
1 Timothy 6:9-12 KJV9But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
10For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
11But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
12Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, where unto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.
"Follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. That word patience again. All of these are the fruits of the spirit."
"Fight the good fight of faith. Lay hold on eternal life. You got to lay hold on it."
16.In Your Patience Possess Ye Your Souls
At last he turns to the tribulation period, the worst time that will ever be on the earth, in Saint Luke the 21st chapter, where the title of the lesson comes from.
St. Luke 21:1-4 KJV1And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury.
2And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites.
3And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all:
4For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had.
"Riches don't impress the Lord. Riches impress men, but it does not impress the Lord."
St. Luke 21:5-11 KJV5And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said,
6As for these things which ye behold, the days will come, in the which there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
7And they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? and what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass?
8And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them.
9But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by.
10Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:
11And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.
"It's going to come a day, which was in 70 AD, that they going to tear the entire city down, and it ain't going to be one stone left upon another."
"It's going to be a lot of antichrists in the world that's going to hold on to the name of Christ, but they going to be deceiving the people."
"You go look at Facebook. Oh Lord, here come the Lord, it's the end of the world. But the believers already know. Don't be terrified when you see these things, because the end is not by and by."
St. Luke 21:12-19 KJV12But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name’s sake.
13And it shall turn to you for a testimony.
14Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer:
15For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.
16And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.
17And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.
18But there shall not an hair of your head perish.
19In your patience possess ye your souls.
"This is going to apply once they start administering the mark of the beast, which is going to be in the future."
"Your family. These people that love you. You going to be betrayed by the people that love you the most."
"But there shall not an hair of your head perish. I'm going to do to you what I did to Jeremiah. While I'm punishing everybody else, ain't nobody going to put their hands on you."
"In your patience possess ye your souls. Finally we got down to the title of the lesson. That's why we said, when you ask for patience, you're gonna get a bucketload of tribulation that's gonna come along with it."
St. Luke 21:20 KJV20And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh.
17.Here Is the Patience and the Faith of the Saints
Revelation 13, on the beast of the last days.
Revelation 13:1-4 KJV1And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
2And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
3And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.
4And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?
"Like unto a leopard. We know that is the Greek empire. The feet of a bear, that's the Medo-Persian empire, and in modern terms that is Russia and Iran. The mouth of a lion, that is the Babylonian empire."
"This wound was talking about when Rome was destroyed in 476 AD. But it was never fully destroyed, and it is going to come back together in the last days. You got the European common market, about 28 nations in it right now. When it come down to the end of the line, it's going to be only 10 nations."
"He going to say, the Sabbath day ain't on the seventh day. It's on Sunday. That's blasphemy. You say Jesus was born on December the 25th. That's blasphemy."
Revelation 13:5-10 KJV5And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.
6And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
7And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
8And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
9If any man have an ear, let him hear.
10He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.
"He going to make war with the saints and overcome them. These are going to be the people that's not in the wilderness during the time of the tribulation period."
"He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity. He quoting again what we quoted in Jeremiah 15. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints."
Revelation 14:11-12 KJV11And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.
12Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
"Here is the patience of the saints. That's what your patience going to be in the end. That's what we all waiting on."
18.Through Faith and Patience Inherit the Promises
Hebrews 6:10-15 KJV10For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.
11And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end:
12That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
13For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself,
14Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.
15And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.
"Everything that is written is written for your learning. Followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Not only was Job patient. We see that Abraham was patient as well. After he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise."
Hebrews 10:35-39 KJV35Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.
36For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
37For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.
38Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
39But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.
"Abraham waited patiently, and he received the promises of God. Perdition means destruction. But we are of them that believe to the saving of the soul."
He closed the way he started, back in Saint Luke 21.
St. Luke 21:19 KJV19In your patience possess ye your souls.
Closing Word
"In your patience possess ye your souls. And I hope you got some understanding in Jesus name."
Brother Obadiah's lesson was that patience is not something God hands you. It is worked in you, and tribulation is how it is worked. The Lord proclaimed himself to Moses as merciful, gracious and longsuffering, and he was longsuffering with Israel, with Jeremiah, and with every one of us while we were yet sinners. So we have to be longsuffering with our families, with new believers, with people who wrong us seventy times seven, and with ourselves. Jacob limped for the rest of his life after the night he would not let go, Paul carried his thorn, and the woman waited eighteen years, but the Lord's strength was made perfect in their weakness. And in the last days, when the saints are hated and betrayed, the patience of the saints is to keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, and to possess your soul in patience until he comes.
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This lesson was taught at our Sabbath service at Israel Church of the Firstborn in Indianapolis, IN. Join us every Saturday at 12PM, or watch the Sabbath live online.