Is impatience a sin?

[tonychanyt]

1 Corinthians 13:

4a Love is patient, love is kind.

Patience is a virtue.

Is being impatient a sin?

The Bible does not exactly say that impatience is a sin, English Standard Version, Zechariah 11:

8 In one month I [Zechariah] destroyed the three shepherds. But I became impatient with them, and they also detested me.

But impatient feeling can cause you to act in sin, Numbers 21:

4 From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. 5And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.”

Is impatience a sin?

By itself, impatience is a feeling. As such, it is not technically a sin. However, it can cause you to act in sin if you let it lingers.

On the positive side, when one sees suffering, he could sense an urgency, an impatience, to help immediately.

I would define impatience in two senses: feeling and action. As an avoidable physiological feeling, it is not a sin. As a deliberative action, it could be a sin. It is important to distinguish these two senses. For another example, failure to experience romantic love feeling is not a sin, but failure to love in action is.

 

[Jesse Dornfeld]

It is if it is not loving to do so.

The Lord is long-suffering wishing that none should perish. He is patient towards us, so we should be patient towards others.

Sometimes it does not need to be a command for it to be wrong. Patience is part of the Fruit of the Spirit so anything that is not patient is not of the Spirit.

 

[tonychanyt]

Patience is part of the Fruit of the Spirit so anything that is not patient is not of the Spirit.

Zechariah 11:

8 In one month I [Zechariah] destroyed the three shepherds. But I became impatient with them, and they also detested me.

Did Zechariah sin?

 

[Jesse Dornfeld]

Did Zechariah sin?

Nothing says he didn't is there?

Description does not mean prescription.

 

[tonychanyt]

Nothing says he didn't is there?

Description does not mean prescription.

Zechariah 11:

4 Thus said the LORD my God: “Become shepherd of the flock doomed to slaughter.

Zechariah was acting for the LORD.

5Those who buy them slaughter them and go unpunished, and those who sell them say, ‘Blessed be the LORD, I have become rich,’ and their own shepherds have no pity on them. 6For I will no longer have pity on the inhabitants of this land, declares the LORD.

Time's up according to the LORD.

Behold, I will cause each of them to fall into the hand of his neighbor, and each into the hand of his king, and they shall crush the land, and I will deliver none from their hand.”

It was a prophecy. Zechariah acted according to the LORD.

7 So I became the shepherd of the flock doomed to be slaughtered by the sheep traders. And I took two staffs, one I named Favor, the other I named Union. And I tended the sheep. 8In one month I destroyed the three shepherds. But I became impatient with them,

Zechariah demonstrated God's impatience with them.

and they also detested me. 9So I said, “I will not be your shepherd. What is to die, let it die. What is to be destroyed, let it be destroyed. And let those who are left devour the flesh of one another.” 10And I took my staff Favor, and I broke it, annulling the covenant that I had made with all the peoples.

Did Zechariah sin by annulling the covenant?

11So it was annulled on that day, and the sheep traders, who were watching me, knew that it was the word of the LORD.

Zechariah acted according to the word of the LORD.

Did Zechariah sin?

 

[Jesse Dornfeld]

Zechariah 11:

Zechariah was acting for the LORD.


Time's up according to the LORD.


It was a prophecy. Zechariah acted according to the LORD.

Zechariah demonstrated God's impatience with them.

Did Zechariah sin by annulling the covenant?

Zechariah acted according to the word of the LORD.

Did Zechariah sin?

You are going to have to tell me if God is long-suffering or not first.

 

[tonychanyt]

You are going to have to tell me if God is long-suffering or not first.

Define long-suffering.

 

[Jesse Dornfeld]

Define long-suffering.

Exodus 34:6; Numbers 14:18; Psalms 86:15; Jonah 4:2; Romans 2:4; Romans 9:22; 1 Timothy 1:16; 1 Peter 3:20; 2 Peter 3:9, 15.

There are more verses on God's patience.

Frankly, it is absurd to think being impatient is not a sin. It is commanded over and over in the Bible for us to be patient.

 

[tonychanyt]

Exodus 34:6; Numbers 14:18; Psalms 86:15; Jonah 4:2; Romans 2:4; Romans 9:22; 1 Timothy 1:16; 1 Peter 3:20; 2 Peter 3:9, 15.

There are more verses on God's patience.

Frankly, it is absurd to think being impatient is not a sin. It is commanded over and over in the Bible for us to be patient.

Yes, God is patient, 2 Peter 3:9

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

Patience is a virtue. Is impatient a sin?

 

[Jesse Dornfeld]

Yes, God is patient, 2 Peter 3:9


Patience is a virtue. Is impatient a sin?

Can you find me a single reference of a positive reference of being impatient? Keep in mind description is not prescription. If it is commanded that we be patient, then what does that say about being impatient?

Regarding description and prescription: Abraham had more than one wife. Does that mean it is okay to have more than one wife?

This is where your method of interpreting the Bible falls short: You take things literally that are not meant to be literal. Whether Zachariah was being impatient or not does not matter. Jonah was a prophet but disobeyed the Lord. Same with Moses, etc. The list goes on. What about the precatory Psalms? Are we supposed to follow those too? If we take them literally it means we should kill people.

In short, you have to consider the genre that the book is written in, account for the understanding of the culture at the time, and then do your exegesis rather than defaulting to a literal reading of the text or you would get absurdities and contradictions in the Bible. Based on Jeremiah, God does not know the future. Based on Isaiah, God does know the future.

 

[tonychanyt]

Can you find me a single reference of a positive reference of being impatient?

No.

 

[Jesse Dornfeld]

No.

Then I am not sure why you think it is okay to be impatient unless you have changed your view, in which case, great!

But yes, the Bible commands that we be patient over and over, so thinking it is okay to be impatient would need some qualifications as to when and how.

 

[tonychanyt]

Then I am not sure why you think it is okay to be impatient

Can you quote my words where I assert that?

 

[Jesse Dornfeld]

Can you quote my words where I assert that?

You said,

Is impatience a sin?

By itself, it is not

And I am saying impatience is a sin. Nothing needs to be added to impatience for it to be a sin. There are no positive descriptions of being impatient in the Bible (as you said) which is much the same as homosexuality. So all the arguments for affirming LGBTQ+ lifestyles we can conclude are sinful as there are no positive examples of them in the bible and only negative ones. Likewise, we have no positive descriptions of being impatient and loads of scripture about it being good to be patient. So I conclude, which seems reasonable to me, that being impatient is a sin.

 

[tonychanyt]

And I am saying impatience is a sin. Nothing needs to be added to impatience for it to be a sin.

Are you not jumping to a conclusion? Can you show your reasoning/logic step-by-step for your conclusion?

 

[Jesse Dornfeld]

Are you not jumping to a conclusion? Can you show your reasoning/logic step-by-step for your conclusion?

I already did. There are no positive references to not being patient. There are tons of positive references to being patient. Maybe in some strange world, it's okay to be impatient but I cannot think of a situation where that would be something God would be more pleased with than if we were patient.

 

[Divide]

Are you not jumping to a conclusion? Can you show your reasoning/logic step-by-step for your conclusion?

See? More questions. Have you ever posted your testimony here anywhere? I'd like to read it...

 

[tonychanyt]

I already did. There are no positive references to not being patient. There are tons of positive references to being patient. Maybe in some strange world, it's okay to be impatient but I cannot think of a situation where that would be something God would be more pleased with than if we were patient.

Is impatience a feeling or an action?

 

[Jesse Dornfeld]

Is impatience a feeling or an action?

Depends. Can be a feeling can be an action. Depends on how it manifests. In any case, it starts with an emotion and then can change to a behavior. But there are some emotions God commands us to have and others he commands us not to have.

 

[tonychanyt]

See? More questions.

That's my style for debate. It is called the Socratic Method

Have you ever posted your testimony here anywhere? I'd like to read it...

See How did I come to Jesus: My Testimony.