Be Patient with One Another

Being patient and bearing with one another are talked about in context here in Ephesians 4:2. Paul wants them to live a life they are supposed to live, living like Jesus followers should. One of those ways as he explains in verse 2 is to be humble, kind and patient with one another. This word for patience is one that means “endurance” or “perseverance”. In layman’s terms, it means we “stick it out” with one another. We stand by one another even in the midst of persecution or frustration with one another. This kind of patience leads to anechō in the Greek which means to “hold up”. By being patient with one another we are able to hold one another up through love in trials. It can also have the meaning of tolerating one another since we will not agree or like what each other does all the time, patience can help us tolerate one another which shows the love of Christ. Along with this idea is also the idea of forgiveness if we are wronged by another (Col 3:13). Part of tolerating and bearing with one another is forgiving them. The whole reason we have patience and forgive one another is because God showed us these things first. Romans 2:4 says that God showed us patience and tolerance and it was to lead us to repentance. Since God showed us this same kind of grace, we are to reflect God’s character in our own lives and being patient is one way to do that.