Longsuffering Ezekiel 14:12-23

What Is Longsuffering? Patience Steadfastness Bearing up under Ability to “stick with it”

Text Three great men –All were longsuffering –From each we learn something

Job: How To Acquire It Loss of his prosperity –Wife and friends discourage him (2:9) –Spoke to his friends after seven days (2:13) –Two grand verses (13:15; 28:10)

Job: How To Acquire It Longsuffering is learned –Job’s teacher was tribulation –Consider these passages (Romans 5:3; James 1:2-4; 1 Peter 1:6, 7)

Job: How To Acquire It Are we developing longsuffering? –Have we begun to suffer like Job? (Hebrews 12:4) –We need to learn to endure

Noah: Longsuffering In Obedience Merriment all around him –He went to work (Genesis 6:1-8; 7:1-5) –Did they try to discourage him? –Mocking –Despised him (Hebrews 11:7)

Noah: Longsuffering In Obedience Need to be longsuffering –Assemble even if others do no (Hebrews 10:25) –Teach the lost without compromise (2 Timothy 4:1-4) –Restore the fallen (Romans 15:1; Galatians 6:1)

Noah: Longsuffering In Obedience Are we longsuffering? –Our friends will make fun of us (1 Peter 4:4) –We need to “man up” (1 Corinthians 16:13)

Daniel: Remaining Faithful Lived and worked in a palace –Brought praise from the enemies (1:8) –Didn’t compromise for seventy years –Unpopular with some (6:4-25)

Daniel: Remaining Faithful We need this in our lives –Our faith (Colossians 1:23; 1 Thessalonians 3:22) –Our prayer (Romans 8:31; Ephesians 6:18) –In opposing evil (Galatians 1:10; Ephesians 6:10-12)

Daniel: Remaining Faithful What measure do you have? –Do we resist Satan (James 4:7) –God has restrained him (1 Corinthians 10:13)

Conclusion They had one thing in common- hope We must be longsuffering