“Be patient with one another. If any one has a complaint against another, forgive that one. Christ forgave you. So you should forgive each other” (Colossians 3:13 WE).
Patience is closely related to the concept of longsuffering that appeared earlier in Colossians 3:12. While these words may seem interchangeable, “patience” is somewhat more nuanced: “Patience is the quality that does not surrender to circumstances or succumb under trial; it is the opposite of despondency and is associated with hope…” (1)
This characteristic becomes important when we acknowledge the fact that there are other Christians who differ from us in terms of personality, maturity, and/or emotional makeup. These other members of God’s family may not process information as we do or communicate in a way we can easily understand. They may hold different attitudes or opinions or make decisions that may seem inexplicable to us. Because of this, there may be some (or perhaps many) who respond to us in ways that test our patience.
We might find a Biblical example of this idea in two of Jesus’ original twelve disciples. The first is Simon the Zealot (Luke 6:13-15). The word “zealot” probably means that Simon was a member of a first-century political party known by that name. The Zealots vigorously opposed the Roman occupation of Israel during that time and actively sought to overthrow the Roman government.
But this selection becomes even more intriguing when we stop to consider another member of Jesus’ original group of twelve disciples: Matthew the tax collector (Matthew 9:9-12). You see, tax collectors were considered to be among the very lowest members of society during that period. If that wasn’t bad enough, Matthew had previously served as an agent for the same Roman government the Zealots were trying to overthrow.
While Simon and Matthew probably disagreed in political matters, there is no mention of any rivalry between them in the Scriptures. From this, we trust that they patiently endured with one another and put Jesus’ message from John 13:34 into practice: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (NIV).
Finally, one source leaves us with an important observation on this subject…
“Bearing with one another describes the patience we should have with the failings and odd ways of our brethren. In living with others, it is inevitable that we will find out their failures. It often takes the grace of God for us to put up with the idiosyncrasies of others, as it must for them to put up with ours.” (1)
(1) Forbear, Forbearance Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words with Topical Index, W.E. Vine, © 1996, Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee. All rights reserved.
(2) William MacDonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary Colossians 3:13, pg.2011