Momentum – Week 2 – Navigating Trials (Chapter 1)
Passage:
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings.
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you would be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1:1-4)
He is surveying the culture of the church at that time – and he is noticing some things where people have grown comfortable and he writes this letter to tell them things that they NEED to hear – rather than maybe what they want to hear.
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
- this is not James the disciple this is James the half-brother of Jesus. James did not believe in Jesus until after he rose from the dead
- However – very quickly after James became a believer – he became a pastor – and had this GIANT church in Jerusalem – in fact it was known as the largest church in Jerusalem at that time
- So James has a very strong pulse where the church is at
and the church is at an interesting spot when this letter was written –
Most scholars estimate that this book was written around 40-50 AD – so we are talking 15-20ish years after Jesus ascended back into heaven.
This letter is kinda unique – it isn’t written to one church – like Philippians or Corinthians
- It is written to THE church – that has been spread out due to cultural pressure – and James is calling out issues in the Christian culture that many needed to hear
In this section – James wants us to see two things with our trials
- Reframe our Trials
- Embrace our Trials
REFRAME TRIALS.
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.
- Now the first thing that stands out to me here is that suffering – the trials are unavoidable.
The uncomfortable truth – is that we live in a world that is trembling in the wake of the fall – and that means on this side of glory – we are going to encounter suffering as we walk this road
when we encounter the trials and difficulties in our lives – it should not be a surprise – in fact – it should be expected.
The second thing that stands out here – is that WHEN these trials occur – we should consider it “joy”
- when we encounter trials – we view them as an interruption – this is the thing that is in the way of my comfort – so it needs to go –
- So when James says to consider our trials JOY – that doesn’t compute with us – we don’t relate with that – because we don’t really understand what joy is –
“Joy is resting in God’s definition of Good.”
- so When James say “consider it joy” he is not talking that you be happy your life fell apart – but rest in God’s character that there is a larger purpose
And he doesn’t just tell us to consider it joy and not give a reason – he says “consider it joy when you encounter trials – because you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.”
- The beautiful thing about the gospel is that Jesus is not just big enough to forgive you from the penalty of your sin – he is powerful enough to redeem your circumstances and redeem your pain.
The enemy may have placed scenarios in your life to cause you despair – But what James is saying is that God is taking those same exact scenarios and is using them to make you more like him.
- what the enemy may have meant for evil – He can make beauty out of it.
We can consider it joy and embrace what God is doing in our lives – because even though we may not understand at the moment we walk through it – that God is going to use those situations to make you more like him and make you more of a light to other people.
Embrace our Trials
And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you would be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
- Not only are we supposed to embrace the trials as joy – by seeing their greater purpose – but we are also supposed embrace the process to grow in the midst of them – even when it’s uncomfortable
- The whole reason that we even get to be here on a Sunday and celebrate communion in a couple minutes is because Jesus embraced the Father had for him even though it was hard.
- Hebrews 5:7-10 “In the days of this flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him,
- In the Garden before he was betrayed – he knew what was coming – he knew it was going to be hard and he asked for any other way – but he resigned to walk through what the Father had for him. And because of that we have access to salvation
In fact, Jesus becomes the model for us of how we are are supposed to live as we walk through life’s difficulties – the writer of hebrews continues and says,
Hebrews 12:2 “Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”
- The text says – that Jesus moved forward because of Joy
- He was able to rest in God’s definition of Good – as being worth more than the comfort he craved in the moment.
And because of that – we have access to eternal salvation