Growing Faith through Trials

James, the book we are going to be studying in the Sunday Morning Bible Study, is a rich book. This daily devotional looks at faith and trials.

Nuggets

  • James was an important man in the life of the early church.
  • Instead of saying the standard Hebrew greeting of peace, James used the Greek greeting of joy.

Devotions in Living Out Our Faith series

My Ladies and I studied the book of James probably five years ago. Now, I am teaching a different class in a different series. I get to go through it again.

On Sunday mornings, we will be going through most – but not all – of the book. I haven’t decided what I am going to do here. I think I am going to try to hit everything. I do prefer doing devotions that way.

But we’ll have to see what shakes out.

For this devotion, we are going to start at the very beginning. James must have taken a page out of Paul’s book. I didn’t get off verse 2 before I had enough for the devotion.

Let's Put It into Context #1

Here is a running list of nuggets for the series.

Greetings, My Friends

“James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings” (Jas. 1: 1 ESV)

James was an important man in the life of the early church.

This James is identified as Jesus’ brother (Mt. 13: 55). No, we don’t hear about James much while Jesus was alive. He must have become a believer after the resurrection.

We shouldn’t bite on James for not believing from the get go. Remember, those The Twelve who had walked with Jesus daily for three years were struggling with the believing part.

Paul included James as one whom Jesus visited after the resurrection (I Cor. 15: 7). It seems logical to me that someone in Jesus’ family would take a leadership role after His ascension.

Jesus’ resurrection must have made a strong impact on James – in fact, all of his family. “All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers” (Ac. 1: 14 ESV).

James didn’t claim preferential treatment because he was Jesus’ brother. He knew only salvation brought immunity from our sins.

We could see where James could have the title apostle. When we think of the term meaning those who personally knew Jesus and knew His teaching, James would fit that definition.

Even if James didn’t join in the three-year road trip, we know the family knew what was going on with Jesus. “And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him” (Mk. 3: 31 ESV).

It is interesting that James didn’t use the term apostle. He could have.

But James became a strong minister for Jesus. He was humble and secure in his faith and ministry. He was obedient to spread the message.

James didn’t need that title.

We have to realize that the message the apostles were spreading was not trying to get rid of the Jewish religion. Just as Jesus didn’t abandon the law, the apostles were not selling a new God.

They were saying our religion should be taken to the next level.

Isn’t that logical? God reveals Himself to us in Scriptures – but it isn’t a total reveal.

God does that reveal Himself through the Holy Spirit’s promptings while we navigate the Sanctification Road.

Think about James a second. He was probably a very strong Jew. Then he became a very strong Christian. He started his letter identifying himself as “… a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ …” (Jas. 1: 1 ESV).

James gave Both his allegiance.

We do know that James led the church in Jerusalem until his death in AD 62.

Greetings to the Tribes

How did the dispersion happen? Remember back when the Israelites were sent into exile by the Babylonians? They were there for 70 years.

When God allowed the Israelites to come back to Jerusalem, only a handful came. The vast majority of the nation stayed in Babylon.

Regardless of location, God blessed His people with growth.

Cox discussed how the Israelites were assimilated into the world. He wrote, “Though they retained the faith and the Scriptures of Moses, they read them in a more philosophical and cosmopolitan spirit.”

Resource

Hmmm. That is a great description of how we compromise with the world. We are reading Scriptures through the lens of society instead of through God’s eyes.

When we do that, it gets us into trouble. Our focus is no longer on God. It is on blending in with the world in which we live.

We are called to be different from the world. Yes, that is hard and many times painful.

That is what we agree to do when we ask for salvation.

Finding Joy in Trials

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds” (Jas. 1: 2 ESV)

Counting the Joy

Instead of saying the standard Hebrew greeting of peace, James used the Greek greeting of joy.

Yet, he augments the regular joy to you with count it joy. James was telling us that the only thing we should count is joy.

But then James had to go and hook it on to “… when you meet trials of various kinds” (Jas. 1: 2 ESV). Yes, even during trials, we should look for joy.

In all things, God wants us to make a conscious decision. We decide to accept the gift of salvation. We also choose to experience His joy.

How can we have joy in the hard things?

Well, for one thing, the joy that James wished for them was the joy of the Lord. “Then he said to them, ‘Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength’” (Neh. 8: 10 ESV).

This joy is built on knowledge of God. It is not just head knowledge.

It is heart knowledge.

James called the readers of his letter his brothers. (Sisters are included here, too). Upon conversion, we are welcomed into the family of God.

Trials of Various Kinds

We know that trials come to all of us. Really, trials are sometimes temptations.

Satan is tempting us to disobey God through what we call trials.

We also know that we all experience the same trials. “No temptation has come upon you except what is common to humanity. But God is faithful; he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to bear it” (I Cor. 10: 13 CSB).

We are going to chase a rabbit for a second. Do misunderstand what “… tempted beyond what you are able …” (I Cor. 10: 13 CSB) means.

No, it doesn’t mean we won’t get the hard trials because we think we can’t bear it. It isn’t really talking about what we can handle.

It is talking about what we can handle because God is handling it with us — and for us. Nothing is impossible for Him (Mt. 19: 16).

Back on track.

James meant a specific type of trials. He was not talking about a simple suffering. James was talking about the trials that test our faith.

A friend of mine posted a quote that he attributed to Tony Evans. The quote says, “Trials are to see if you really believe what you say you believe.”

Peter talked about this in his first letter. “These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith — of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire — may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (I Pet. 1: 7 NIV).

That is really important to know. Is our salvation genuine? We don’t want to live with the doubt of not knowing how secure our faith is.

We want to make sure we are obedient to God. We don’t want Matthew 7: 21 to happen to us.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Mt. 7: 21 ESV).

The trials show the change. They show how they have built our character.

That is logical, isn’t it? Working out our salvation involves changing our character to imitate God’s character and then proving we believe what God says.

That is God’s priority — ensuring our spiritual condition is right. That makes trials necessary.

If everything is going well, we are going to cruise along as we are. We won’t see a need for making any changes.

Who likes to change? Who wants change?!?

Disciples know we should. Christianity is all about change.

Trials, also, can be a form of persecution. “And some of the wise will fall victim to persecution. In this way, they will be refined and cleansed and made pure until the time of the end, for the appointed time is still to come” (Dan. 11: 35 NLT).

Do you realize all this means that God wouldn’t care about us if He stopped giving us trials?

We know that these trials are in our best interest. “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Rom. 8: 28 ESV).

The good means we grow our faith.

If we are going to grow in our faith, we will have to make changes in our lives. We have to have the character of God and follow His laws and commandments.

This faith in God has to be a genuine faith. Do we trust God as we say we do? Is that trust real, or is it just a habit?

These trials are going to be of various kinds. We are going to lose jobs and lose loved ones. We are going to have to choose between doing things God’s way and doing them the way the world does it.

They are going to be small, annoyance trials. They are going to be gut-wrenching trials.

We are shown grace in action during our trials and are to show grace in our trials. We know they are going to be hard and seem unending. Grace will get us through, so we should exhibit it.

Think of what a testimony we give when we continue to praise God in our trials. Other see how we can be constant in times of trouble and heartache – just like they are going through.

Trials evaluate where we are in our faith. Is it weak or strong?

Manton said it this way. He wrote, “We are proved, and religion is proved, when we are called to sufferings.”

Resource

How is the proving going to take place? “He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD” (Mal. 3: 3 ESV).

Yes, God is the He referred to in Malachi 3: 3.

When we are going through the trials, it is hard to realize that the trials will end. “… In this way, they will be refined and cleansed and made pure until the time of the end, for the appointed time is still to come” (Dan. 11: 35 NLT).

We think they will go on forever when we are in the throes.

We forget that at any moment, we are in a trial, just ending a trial, or fixing to begin a trial.

So many times, we feel that trials are the result of ours’ and other’s sins. Unfortunately, some want to address what they see is our sins that precipitate the trial.

Rutherford gave some great advice. He wrote, “If you see it to be your duty to point out a man’s sins to him, do not do it till you are quite sure you have let him see that you feel for him with all your heart, and that you have no other wish than to do him good.”

Resource

We become a stronger person when we go through trials. More importantly, our faith becomes stronger.

Remember, James told us to count it joy that we get the trials. That fosters humility.

What is the first thing we do when trials show up? We scream to high heaven about the unfairness of the trials, our inability to cope, and our desire for them to be over NOW!

What it sometimes takes is a minute to remember that we are to submit to the Lord from the very beginning of the trial, during the persecution, and at the end of the trial to beyond.

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Making the Connections

The Book of James tells it like it is. It has several different themes running through it: unity, faithfulness, purity, perseverance, and compassionate care. We are mainly going to concentrate on the faith part and living that out.

How Do We Apply This?

  • Look for God to reveal Himself to us.
  • Give both God and Jesus honor.
  • Find our joy in God, even in the midst of trials.
  • Don’t compromise with the world.
  • Really believe what we say we do.
  • Make needed changes to obtain God’s character in us.
  • Grow in patience and humility.

Father God. We know You allow trials to come our way so that we may grow in You. Help us to endure and gain patience and humility. Amen.

What do you think?

Leave me a comment below (about this or anything else) or head over to my Facebook group for some interactive discussion.

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