How Spiritual Growth is Connected to the Lord's Coming in James 5:7-8

   I'll never forget the first time I saw my grandparent's  farm.  I was eight years old at the time, and had grown up in a suburb of Los Angeles with no clue how food got to the grocery store. They had about 8 cows, 2 pigs, and lots of chickens.  

My grandparent's farm (A four generation farm!)

   My jobs were to slop the pigs, gather eggs, pick vegetables in the garden and help get them ready for canning. My grandfather would also let us help with the summer haying--we loved stacking the hay bails as he forked them into the wagon. 

    I watched him cultivate, plant, and harvest his fields of wheat, corn, and oats. So farmers have a special place in my heart.  1 Corinthians 3:9 tells us that the Lord is also a farmer. (Here's  the post on that.).  Last week I read chapter 11 in the Life-Study of James , and it  links the Lord's coming to His being like a farmer.

Therefore be long-suffering, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. Behold, the farmer eagerly awaits the precious fruit of the earth, exercising long-suffering over it until it receives the early and late rain. You also be long-suffering, establish your hearts because the coming of the Lord has drawn near. James 5:7-8

In this excerpt you can really see why the Lord needs us to grow: 

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 2,000 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.'….It is a great help for us to realize that if we are serious about awaiting the Lord's coming back, we need to grow in life….The illustration of a farmer in 5:7 implies that the farmer is waiting for the crop growing in the field to ripen….According to Revelation 1, the Lord is also waiting for the harvest to be ripe. When the harvest is ripe, He will come back ( Lee. Witness. Life-Study of James. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry. 23 November 2014 <http://www.ministrybooks.org/books.cfm?cid=0D>). 

   In the past years I have heard a lot of sharing on Living Stream Ministry's website on the subject of spiritual maturity.  Without this sharing I would not realize that the Lord's coming hinges on my growing and reaching maturity.  My grandfather never harvested a crop that wasn't ripe, and so I really get this parallel in the Scriptures.  

    And  Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 3:7 tthis growth depends on God -- So then neither is he who plants anything nor he who waters, but God who causes the growth. Only God can give us the experiences that we need that will make us grow all the way to maturity.  And we can ask Him to do that!  

I like to listen as much as I can to the Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee that goes along with the Life-Study that I am reading.  Both the excerpts from the spoken messages and the commentary are enlightening. 

Other Posts on the Life-Study of James: 
Why Does the Epistle of James Open Up With Trials?
What's the Way to Resist Temptation in James 1:21?
How Spiritual Growth is Connected to the Lord's Coming in James 5:7-8
What James 5:17-18  Teaches us About Elijah's Prayer