The Bible has a universal application…it’s a book addressed to all humanity…a book that everyone can understand….but as we continue on in the book of James something I’ve mentioned and will continue to remind you of is although the Bible has a universal application…parts of the Bible were written to specific individuals…and other parts to specific groups…the book of James is such a book…his focus is on those who are already Christians rather than on those who are not.
This book is encouraging God’s people to act like God’s people…Christians evidence their faith by how they conduct themselves…we always hear the phrase… ‘Don’t judge someone’ but if a person’s lifestyle doesn’t reflect Godly living then we can question their commitment as a Christian.
If those who call themselves God’s people truly belong to Jesus, their lives will produce the results of a life lived like a Christian.
Throughout the entire book of James, he reveals those traits that should be evident in the life of someone who identifies themselves as being a Christian.
James’s purpose throughout this epistle is for professed Christians to test their faith to find out whether it is genuine or false.
For the past two weeks we’ve looked at the importance of trials…troubles…and tribulations that come into our lives…and although they may not seem to have any importance in our lives…they do.
Many times they come as a result of God wanting to teach us something…that’s why James writes:
2 Consider it all joy…when you encounter various trials
The word we translate in English as ‘consider’ in the Greek is ‘esteem’… meaning to highly regard…so WHY would we highly regard problems in our lives?
Because God’s ultimate goal for your life on earth is not comfort, but character development.
Trials don’t produce faith…but when trials are received in unbelief and grumbling trials can produce bitterness and discouragement…that is why James exhorts us to count it all joy…joy is faith’s response to a time of trial.
So how do we turn trials into joy?…three ways.
God’s Word provides the truth we need to grow…God’s people provide the support we need to grow…and circumstances strengthen our endurance.
Here’s how God’s people provide the support we need to grow…this emphasizes the importance of Church attendance…many people assume all that is needed for spiritual growth is Bible study and prayer…unfortunately most don’t even do that very well.
Here’s why church attendance is important…it’s not just so the church can get more money…God prefers to work through people…so we can depend on each other for fellowship…so we can grow together…hence the importance of church attendance.
You cannot grow in Christlikeness in isolation…you must be around other people and interact with them…you need to be a part of a church because you can’t develop a Christlike attitude without being in a relationship with other people.
(Purpose Driven Life pp 176)
…Fellowship makes us stronger by providing us with opportunity to learn and grow in our faith with other believers.
…Fellowship provides encouragement by lifting us up during difficult times.
…Fellowship reminds us we’re not alone…it allows us to build relationships so we’re never by ourselves.
…Fellowship helps us to grow when we collectively share our gifts for the building up of the entire church.
The issue is…what do you do when tragedy strikes…what do you do when a test comes…what is your first response?…with regards to the problem facing you right now…everybody has one…do you complain…blame… maybe try to reason your way out?
Here’s where we really go wrong…we sit down at the door of God’s purpose for our life and enter into a life of self-pity.
Here’s what’s important to know regarding trials…not everything that happens is God’s will…that is a terrible misunderstanding…to say that everything that happens is the will of God is a religious statement… not a Biblical truth.
If everything that happened was God’s will then nothing would be a sin… murder…stealing…lying…adultery…no such thing as a sin because it was all God’s will.
When we just arbitrarily respond with ‘Well, must have been God’s will’… regarding something happening, it doesn’t allow for people to accept responsibility for their actions or hold others accountable for their wrong actions.
Not everything that happens is God caused…God gets credited for things He doesn’t do…and gets blamed for things He doesn’t do.
We need to be careful what we credit God with and what we don’t…some things occur in life that are the result of being human…there are some circumstances in life that are common to man…natural disasters…thoughtless behavior.
The true source of human suffering is the devil…it’s not God punishing people…something that was not known until Jesus first revealed the true source of mankind’s suffering…it is Satan who is the instigator of much of humanity’s misery…(Ephesians 2:2 / 2 Corinthians 4:4 / 1 Peter 5:8).
SO…how does God develop our character?…God’s Word provides the truth we need to grow…God’s people provide the support we need to grow…and circumstances strengthen our endurance.
It’s what James is referring to [4]:
VERSE 4 – “and let endurance have its perfect result…”
TWO THINGS
FIRST…when we think of endurance it’s usually applied to the ability to sustain a physical activity for an extended period of time like running a marathon, BUT the meaning here is different.
Character development is the result of testing and testing results in endurance … so what does that mean…and what is the benefit?
Endurance is pictured as a test…instead of trying to escape because it’s just too uncomfortable…you make the determined resolution to remain there to see it through to the end…that growth helps to stay steadfast through the next trial.
Here it means to patiently remain…it’s not describing a situation where we just give up and pout…or complain…run in circles screaming and shouting…nor is it a passive ‘grin and bear’ it attitude…that is not what God intends for us to do…it’s triumphantly facing difficult circumstances…and enduring them to the end.
Endurance is the key for James…he’s referring to our ability to lean on God for strength through the trials of life…it’s accepting and submitting to the trials without compromising or wavering in your Christian commitment.
It’s relying on God for strength and guidance to endure when circumstances are difficult.
SECONDLY…in the Greek the word is not “result” …BUT… “work” … let endurance have its perfect work…it means any effect produced by a cause.
That’s what work is…something that is being done…for example…the result of work is some type of payment…at times it’s hard work to maintain our faith during trials…troubles and difficulties…but when we do…the effect—the work—produced is endurance.
The work of patient endurance is the mark of a person who is perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
It’s like someone training for a race…if you’re training to run a 5K…about 3 miles…you don’t just train running 3 miles…you train running farther than the race distance so when you run the actual 3 miles in the race it will seem easier because you’ve been training at a longer distance.
In the same way when we endure trials by faith…our faith grows…we gain endurance…we become stronger for the next trial…we know we can endure that one because we’ve already been through previous trials…with the result being
VERSE 4- that you may be perfect and complete lacking in nothing.
So how’s that work…being perfect and complete lacking in nothing…where’s the signup sheet for that?…I‘ll take some of that…put my name near the top of the signup sheet…being perfect and complete lacking in nothing.
‘Perfect’ here does not mean what we normally think of when we think of ‘perfection’ …being morally…physically…sinlessly…or spiritually perfect because it’s impossible to achieve sinless perfection in this life.
The word is better rendered “mature” referring to being full grown…referring to spiritual maturity…meaning the completeness of your Christian development.
Oswald Chambers- God’s purpose is not to perfect me to make me a trophy in His showcase…He is getting me to the place where He can use me.
Notice James doesn’t say a thing about prayer…his focus on what is involved in creating mature Christians…it’s not a lesson on trials…or how they make us perfect…the emphasis is that God uses trials to refine us so we will be spiritually mature…to be well equipped for the purpose He created us for.
James then uses a word that is only used twice in the entire New Testament… ‘complete’…this is the same word that is used to described Job but is translated as ‘blameless’ meaning complete.
What does it mean to be complete or blameless?…it is not intended to imply that Job was absolutely perfect in his conduct at all times and in every circumstance… in Scripture ‘complete’ refers to those who are exceptionally obedient to God…in every aspect of their life.
Again…this does not mean that you can arrive at a state of sinless perfection or perfect spiritual maturity in this life…rather…the idea is that you will be well-equipped and knowledgeable for the purpose that God created you for…that’s the importance of wisdom.
VERSE 5 – 5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.
First of all the reference is to Godly wisdom…and secondly…it’s the divine knowledge or understanding that comes from God…a gift that He freely offers whenever any believer asks.
It’s just most of us don’t bother to ask even though the Bible says: [Prov 1:20-33]
Wisdom cries aloud in the street…in the markets…at the entrance of the city gates she speaks…‘How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple?
I’m not talking about being smart…there’s a difference between being smart and being wise…it might just sound like a question of semantics but there is much more to it than that.
Being smart refers to intelligence…in my former life I was an aircraft electrical design engineer…I worked around some guys who were really smart…if you’re designing an aircraft that has the potential of falling out of the sky you really need to ensure your design is flawless…smartness is figuring things out.
Whereas being wise refers to someone with good judgement…that’s why the Bible speaks so much on the topic of wisdom…being wise refers to a person’s ability to understand the difference between right and wrong.
Here’s where things fall apart fast
6 But let him ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind 7 For let not that man expect that he will receive anything from the Lord,
TWO THINGS
FIRST…this verse is conditional…we are to ask in faith without any doubting because if there is any hint of doubt
7 let not that man expect that he will receive anything from the Lord
SECONDLY…let’s go back to square one…the trials we face are designed to test our dependence upon God…to strengthen our faith in Him and by giving us the wisdom to know that our prayer or request will be in accordance with God’s will.
We should not pray so much for the removal of affliction…as for the wisdom to make the right use of it.
Wisdom is praying in faith being certain…without any doubting…that God is able to answer your request in a manner that will…not necessarily be in compliance with your request…or even benefit you…but will always bring glory to Him.
Wisdom is trusting God to provide the answer and the guidance you need to make the right decision.
When we do a casual reading of the first seven verses of James it seems like common knowledge…a guide for successful prayer…that consists of what to do in times of distress…but the central focus is what James will be highlighting throughout the book…that as Christians everything we do should be focused on doing it without any doubting, because faith is the basis for every encounter we have with God…and therefore without faith we should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.