Part 10 – Passion and Patience: Which Treasure Are We Seeking?
"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves
the world, the love of the Father is not in him." 1 John 2:15 (ESV)
Having
shown Christian that the Law can expose sin but cannot cleanse the heart, the
Interpreter leads him into another room. There, Christian sees two young
children seated in chairs. One is called Passion, the other Patience. At first,
there seems little to distinguish them, yet Bunyan is once again using a simple
image to reveal a profound biblical truth.
Christian
is told that Passion can no longer wait for his inheritance. He demands it
immediately. His request is granted, and for a short time he delights in all he
has received. Yet his joy is short-lived. Before long, his riches are gone, and
he is left with nothing but rags and regret.
Patience,
however, is willing to wait. He refuses to demand what has not yet been given,
content to receive his inheritance in the proper time.
Why would
Bunyan place this lesson before Christian reaches the Cross?
The answer
goes back to one of the oldest temptations recorded in Scripture. Ever since
the Garden of Eden, mankind has desired to grasp now what God has appointed for
later. Eve saw that the fruit was desirable, and rather than trusting God's
wisdom, she reached out to take what had been forbidden. The immediate seemed
more attractive than faithful obedience.
Has
anything really changed?
Our world
encourages us to seek immediate satisfaction. We are taught to pursue comfort,
success, wealth and happiness now. Patience has become a rare virtue because we
have been conditioned to believe that fulfilment must not be delayed.
The Apostle
John warns believers,
"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves
the world, the love of the Father is not in him." 1 John 2:15 (ESV)
He
continues by reminding us that,
"...the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever
does the will of God abides forever." 1 John 2:17 (ESV)
Is this not
exactly what Bunyan is showing us?
Passion
lives for what is temporary. Patience lives in light of eternity.
The
contrast is not merely between two personalities. It is between two kingdoms,
two hopes and two treasures. One seeks satisfaction in the present world, while
the other waits in faith for what God has promised.
Our Lord
spoke in similar terms when He said,
"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and
rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves
treasures in heaven..." Matthew 6:19–20 (ESV)
Bunyan's
lesson remains as relevant today as it was in his own generation. Every day we
are encouraged to value the immediate over the eternal. Yet Scripture
continually calls God's people to look beyond the passing pleasures of this
world and to fix their hope on the inheritance that can never perish.
Perhaps
that is why the Interpreter shows Christian these two children so early in his
pilgrimage. Before he encounters the attractions of Vanity Fair, the hardships
of the journey, and the many temptations to abandon the narrow way, Bunyan
teaches him to distinguish between what is transient and what is enduring.
In our next
study, the Interpreter leads Christian to another striking scene. This time he
sees a fire burning against a wall, while someone continually pours water on it
in an attempt to extinguish it. It is another lesson that reminds us where the
believer's confidence truly rests.
Signing off
Tyrone
Scripture References: 1 John 2:15–17; Matthew 6:19–21; Genesis
3:1–6; Hebrews 11:24–26; Colossians 3:1–4.
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