The Trial of Life

James, the brother of Jesus and a servant of God, wrote a letter to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations. In this letter, he encourages believers to consider it pure joy when facing trials, as it strengthens their faith and develops perseverance. He also emphasizes the importance of asking God for wisdom, believing without doubt, and not being double-minded. James reminds believers in humble circumstances to take pride in their position, while warning the rich that their wealth will fade away. The letter of James is written to the church and carries apostolic authority. James' main message is to find joy and victory in the midst of trials. of Scripture. We are in James as we start our new series in that book. James chapter 1 verse 1 through verse 11. The Apostle, the brother of our Lord, the writer of this of this letter, of this epistle, are privileged to study this word and learn from it. So James chapter 1 verses 1 through 11, and this is God's Word. James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations, greetings. Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. But if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord. He is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his humble condition, his humble position, but the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he will pass away like a wildflower. For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant, its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich man will fade away, even while he goes about his business. The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Please be seated. So our sermon series as we start today, the Gospel according to James. You say, wait a second, James didn't write a gospel, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John wrote a gospel. Why are we calling it the gospel according to James? Well, James has a message not only for the early church in the first century, but a message throughout the centuries, a message for us today. It's truth from the Word of God, and we will see as we study James that James indeed is founded in, grounded in, finding foundation on the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. And today we're in this first passage of James, and we'll see the text is titled, The Trial of Life, and here's how we'll study the text. Verse one, both apostle and servants. Verse two, joy and victory. Verse three through four, the real test. Verses five through eight, the provision of wisdom. And then verses nine through eleven, the provision of resources. His name was James, and he was a half-brother of Jesus, as Mary was both Jesus' mom as well as James' mom. And during the ministry of Jesus, this James was not considered as one of the disciples. The apostle John records that James and his other brothers did not believe that Jesus was the Christ. So we don't know what it was that James came to place his faith and his trust in Jesus for his salvation, but we do have certainty about James' profession of faith, and we find it right here in the first half of the first verse of the first chapter of James. Notice again, verse one, James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. Here James delivers his very firm theological conviction concerning the deity of Christ. Jesus declared during his earthly ministry, I and the Father are one, and if you have seen me, you have seen the Father. And there was a time when James was not willing to accept this truth. He denied Jesus' deity. But now we read that his profession has changed. Now James affirms that he, James, is a servant of Christ, and he is therefore a servant of God. So we recognize here that James doesn't claim in his introduction to be an apostle. He refers to himself only as a servant. Notice particularly here in the opening introduction, the letter is written by whom? James, a servant. It's important to note that James was indeed an eyewitness to the resurrected Christ. Recall the words of the apostle Paul as he testified to post-resurrection appearances of Jesus. We find this in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verses 4-8. Paul wrote, he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures, and he appeared to Peter and then to the twelve. Now these are the original disciples, commonly called the twelve, although with Judas out of the way, now there's eleven instead of twelve. And this group would have included James, the brother of John, the sons of Zebedee, but not the brother of Jesus. So let's get that out of the way right away. After that, verse 6, he appeared to more than 500 of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, and it's this James that is the brother of Jesus. He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all, he appeared to me also. Now admittedly, we're not at all certain as to when James was called to the ministry, and we've argued for centuries whether James should be regarded as an apostle. Perhaps the realization that this argument does not appear in scripture anywhere, but only bubbles up to the surface with the Church in later centuries, tells us that maybe it's an argument that we shouldn't waste our time on. So let's dispatch it quickly. One of the primary qualifications, of course, of apostleship seems to be the person recognized as an apostle was indeed an eyewitness to the resurrected Christ. And Paul affirms that James certainly was an eyewitness to the resurrected Jesus. He said so in the passage we just read. So the Church historically has been a little fuzzy on James' status as an apostle, and yet for all those who want to discount James' apostolic authority, this truth remains. And here's why we say that he's an apostle. His letter is in the Bible. The Holy Spirit inspired James to write this letter. The Holy Spirit included it among the canon, and the Holy Spirit has preserved this letter over the centuries. So the letter bears apostolic authority, and thus we would do well to regard James, the brother of Jesus, as an apostle. So James could have begun this letter with a title of his authority. He could have started the letter with something like, James an Apostle. Other epistle writers do that. Paul votes the apostolic title in Romans, in both letters to the Corinthians, as well as the Galatians, the Ephesians, the Colossians, in both letters to Timothy, and also to Titus. And Peter uses it to begin both of his letters. James could have done so too, but instead he starts his letter simply and humbly with the signature, James, a servant. Despite the characterization that has hung over this letter over the centuries, James, we will see in our study, is not attempting to authoritatively pummel us with his words. James is a servant of God, and a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. James serves Jesus by serving us, and by blessing us, and by communicating truth to us in a manner which is certainly straightforward. We'll give him that, but it's also compassionate. James is not lording it over the believers. He's not pontificating in his apostolic status. Rather, he is sharing his faith by expressing God's truth. So let us study the letter of James in this light. May we receive God's truth contained herein with open and receptive hearts. It's important for us to wrestle with the second half of verse one as well. Here we find that James brings greetings in the letters addressed to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations. Remember that when the Assyrians conquered the northern tribes, this is in 722 B.C., they pushed the citizens out of the region, scattering them throughout Asia. And a second dispersion, this time among the residents of Judah, occurred after the destruction of Jerusalem, that's 586 B.C., by the Babylonians. So here's the question. If this letter is written for people of the Jewish diaspora, why does it appear in a Christian Bible? If it's written for the people of the Jewish diaspora, why is it appearing in the Christian Bible? Well, let's remember something that we just studied. We just studied this in Ecclesiastes, Solomon, chapter three of Ecclesiastes. There's a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven. So as it turns out, the people of the Jewish diaspora, though carried out by the ungodly enemies of God's people, was nevertheless ordained by the sovereign God, so that when the church began to grow after the Day of Pentecost, those who heard the gospel in Jerusalem at Pentecost would carry it to the Jewish communities scattered throughout Asia, and then even to Europe. The Apostle Paul would later confirm that the ministry of James, along with Peter and John, would be primarily to the Jews, while Paul and Barnabas would evangelize among the Gentiles. So James writes his letter to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations, as he knows that from these locations, Jewish Christians would carry his message forward. Amazing how God works it that way. The Epistle of James is addressed to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations, but certainly is a letter written for the church, for all who would believe in Jesus. And this means that the Epistle of James is a letter written also to Grace Point Church. It is written to you and to me. James commanded that the gospel would go forth from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria and then to the ends of the earth. You and I are the beneficiaries of this divinely written, divinely distributed plan, a plan in which both Paul and James play a decisive role. And thus we are beneficiaries of this letter, the communication of the truth of God, delivered to us by the Holy Spirit, and delivered to us through this One who is both Apostle and Servant. So we come to verse 2, and here we find the big idea behind James' letter, the message he communicates to believers around the world. Now, I'm reading this verse, and I'm wondering how much James knows about the weight of this verse. And also at the same time I'm reading this, are we not thankful that we have a Lord who knows and understands the cares, the concerns, the trials, the challenges, the difficulties of our various lives? Listen to verse 2, the way he starts out, and this is the big claim that James makes. He says this, Not if, whenever. Whenever you face trials of many kinds, consider it pure joy. Here James is encouraging believers anywhere, everywhere, who are facing persecution for their faith to nevertheless persevere in the midst of trial. And is it not clear that the letter's audience is everyone? Why do we say this? How do we glean this understanding? It's simply this, everyone faces trials of many kinds. This is nothing new for you, but here we go. Everyone faces trials of many kinds. Everyone faces trials of many kinds. Nothing in God's Word argues for the exemption of the children of God from the trials and the challenges and the difficulties of this life. Don't fall for a minute. Never, ever, ever fall for the lie that says that the trial that you are experiencing in your life is somehow due to your sin and due to your displeasing God. Folks, we all sin. There are none that are righteous, no, not one. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. So when it comes to displeasing God, we're all guilty. Also, never, ever fall for the baloney that holds that only some people experience trials while others seem to escape the whole trial thing altogether. That's not true either. As James notes, the experience of trials is not an if, but rather it is a when. The trials will come. They most certainly will. And so James stands as a great testament to us. Right off the bat, the first couple of verses, you've got trials, you've got challenges, you've got difficulties. Yeah, that's everybody. Yes. Great. Let's talk about it. How must a believer face the trials of life? And here's James' argument. On the surface, it sounds very simple. Whenever you face the trials, consider it pure joy. Now on the surface, that does sound, of course, way too simple. And Pastor, you have no idea what I'm going through. And you know what? You're right. I have absolutely no idea what you are going through. I can't possibly, and so I'm not going to pretend that I do. I'm never going to, we should never say to each other, well, I feel your pain. Because we don't. And we can't. So the trial you're going through is real. The trial you're going through is big. The trial you're going through is right in front of you. And we're not going to pretend that we know what that's like, because I can't possibly understand what that's like. I know what my trials are like, but I don't know what yours are like. We're not going to pretend that it doesn't hurt. We're not going to pretend that the trials of our life, that they don't have a weight to them that we can feel, that burdens us, that weighs us down. We're not going to pretend for a minute that those things don't exist. They do exist. These are trials of many kinds. And so they run the gamut, of course, from a slight annoyance or inconvenience to the complete opposite end of the spectrum. To what you're experiencing is really real, and it really hurts. And when the presence of it seems overwhelming, when the weight of it is unbearable, when it is absolutely draining you of all the energy you have, when you're resigned to the understanding that you don't have what is required to get you through. We think that way, don't we? We think that we have what we need to get through until someday we realize, I don't have what I need to get through the challenges that are facing. This is the promise of God's Word. Psalm 126, Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. There is joy available. It's going to be a difficult road. We're not saying anything that discounts that in any way whatsoever. James says that in the midst of the trials of many kinds, there is yet available a pure joy that will enable you to endure. Not just joy, but pure joy. Notice the text. Pure joy. Where does this joy come from? This joy of which James speaks. And the Bible certainly lays claim to it. Joy in this measure, of course, is a divine blessing. Recall the Apostle Paul tells us that joy is a fruit of the Spirit. So it's not phony. Joy is not phony, and it's not superficial. Joy, in fact, is supplied by our Heavenly Father. And it is so deep, and it is more than sufficient. We would say the joy that God provides is not flimsy. And it's not weak. Rather, the joy that God provides is real, and it is complete, and it is perfect. Notice what the psalmist says. Psalm 118, verse 15. Shouts of joy and victory. Notice the connection here, the connection of joy and victory. Here the psalmist is bold to speak of both together. Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous. As we know, the righteous, of course, are the children of God, made righteous by Christ and through Christ. And then notice the joyous and victorious shouts of the righteous. What do the righteous say? They say this. The Lord's right hand has done mighty things. The Lord's right hand is lifted high. The Lord's right hand has done mighty things. I will not die but live, and I will proclaim what the Lord has done. This joy that God has given, this joy supplied to us by a gracious and merciful Father, sustains us indeed, sustains us through the trial. The trial indicates to us that God is at work. And because God is at work, we know that the completion of that work is at hand. This labor is not in vain. Consider it pure joy, my brothers. Whenever you face trials of many kinds. We come to verses 3 and 4, and we see here that the promise of God's word is in fact a description of the completion of the work of God, the trial that we face. Notice here the completion is made manifest. Notice verses 3 and 4. You know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. You see here what God is doing in each of us in the midst of the trial. He brings perseverance and maturity and completeness and sufficiency. And so how do we not thank Him for this? Because this is what He has promised for us. There is much we must admit, much we do not know, much we are yet to learn. The work of sanctification in our life continues. God is yet readying us for glory. But this means that He's not given up on us. He's still at work. Our God is still at work. Because He doesn't give up. Now, sure, you might be a little stubborn. In fact, some of us might admittedly be very much downright cantankerously stubborn. Well, maybe that's just me. Maybe none of you fit that bill. That was a joke. Verse 4 tells us that this has to occur. Perseverance must finish its work. God's working, and He's working in these areas. He's working in these ways. Here, James makes reference to the testing of our faith, the testing of your faith, the testing of my faith. Now, admittedly, I've always been hung up here, in this place and other places in Scripture, in which the work of God in the life of the believer is referred to as a test. Because, of course, my little brain goes right to school, and I never liked tests, especially math tests. I mean, I went to seminary saying, I'm going to come, but tell me there's no math tests. I don't know about your seminary, but there were none of mine, thank goodness. Greek and Hebrew tests, but no math tests. I don't like math tests. I can't stand them. I hope I'm not stepping on the toes of any former math teacher in this room, so I apologize if I am. I don't like math tests because, to me, they're so arbitrary. I've never yet been to the grocery store and been thinking things up and said, hey, wait a second, I had this problem 20 years ago in school, and I know how that worked out. Never! That never happens. So, I don't like math tests because they don't feel like they're reflective of anything I'm going to use in real life. Of course, that's the big argument we all use. Now, I know I'm wrong on that, but just go along with me here. So, I have this idea in my mind that this test is an arbitrary thing. It sounds like it that way when it says that it's the testing of our faith, and it sounds arbitrary. Like it's God sitting around saying, well, I'm going to see how they're going to do with this. I'll throw this thing in the mix and see what happens. I think that's what we kind of think when we think about God testing. Now, this is not an arbitrary exam. Because with God, my friends, nothing, nothing is arbitrary. The testing of our faith is a real situation, and it's a circumstance of our life. And in this real test, the believer faces many trials of many kinds, but God promises completion in the midst of the test. And notice being here what's being tested. It's not a test of our own ability. It's not a test of our own power or our own cunning or our own knowledge. It's a testing of our faith. It's saying to Jesus, to each of us in the midst of the trial, lean on me. Rely on me. Trust in me. So, it's actually a test that we welcome, finally, because it's a test that develops perseverance, and it moves us forward to maturity in Christ, to completion. Would we be so bold in the midst of the trial and the circumstance to seek this test of God? So, whatever circumstance, trial, challenge, difficulty, hell you're going through, can you lift it to God? Be so bold to lift it to God and to seek this test of God. Recall the words of David, Psalm 26, Test me, O Lord, and try me. Examine my heart and my mind, for your love is ever before me, and I walk continually in your truth. So, when the trial comes, and the trial does come, and the trial has come for some of you, it's there and it's right in front of your face, and it's slapping you upside the head, and I know it, and it's real, and it's deep, and I'm sorry that you're having to go through this. But here, let's be so bold to seek out this test of God, and to lean in on Him, and say, God, what are you trying to teach me through this thing? What are you showing me through this thing? What are you telling me through this thing? The testing of our faith. It's not shallow, it's not phony. It's the real test, indeed. So, we come to verse 5, and here we find a connection in the text, a bridge from verse 4 to verse 5. So, notice again, verse 4, it says, Perseverance must finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete. The last little phrase, not lacking anything. And now connect the beginning of verse 5, but if any of you lacks, James says that this is designed so that you won't lack anything, but in the meantime, when you do find that you do lack something, then here's what we're going to do. So, an interesting little word game that James has played here for us. We find here that James is addressing those concerns specifically in two areas. Some people may sense that they lack wisdom, and James addresses this in verses 5 through 8, and some may sense that their worry is over resources, and then we read how James speaks to those fears in verses 9 through 11. And in both of these areas, James is giving very practical instruction to the believers, and very practical instruction to you and to me. So first, James offers insight for those who would sense that they would lack wisdom from God concerning the circumstances they are facing. Look at verse 5. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God. James is reminding the believers that it is quite okay, and it is certainly necessary to be as specific as possible when petitioning God for direction to a particular circumstance. Perhaps the situation is so big, and so confusing, and so dark, that it is the general confidence of the comfort we seek. So we pray for God's help through the trial, that God would demonstrate His sovereignty over the whole thing. A simple yet good example would be concerning our current engagement with the city, right? We pray, and we must pray, and we can pray. We pray generally that the Lord would rule and reign over the entire transaction, and we would profess our trust in God to lead us through to a successful conclusion. Or perhaps, we sense that we would pray for specific details of the transaction. So we pray for favor with the city, and with the title company. We pray that God would grant wisdom to our real estate agent, that we would accurately navigate the legalities of the situation. I'm learning more about real estate law than I ever hoped to do so. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God. Let us not have a fatalistic attitude of, well, whatever's going to happen, that's what's going to happen. Folks, such an attitude is clearly counter to the Word of God and to the practice detailed here by the Apostle. Think about that. When someone says, whatever's happened has happened, that's what's going to take place, and there's nothing I can do about it, and I can't be involved in it in any way, and I can't really... No! Right here, the Bible says, if any of you lacks wisdom, ask God. Folks, such an attitude of that fatalistic attitude is clearly counter to the Word of God and to the practice detailed here by the Apostle. This is an imperative. It is a command, and the command is followed by a promise. Notice again verse 5, if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God. That's command. God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. And this is a serious promise here. And we know that it's a serious promise because there's a little quirk in the text, the communication of which is a little fuzzy in English. The New International Version describes God here as God who gives generously. And linguistically, that's correct, and that reads cleanly for us. But in the original language for this particular verse, it reads this way. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask the giving God. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask the giving God. Notice how James is describing God. But also remember that this is God's Word, so this is how God describes himself. Right? This is how God describes himself. Here God says, you can't ask me. Why? Because I'm the God who gives. I am the giving God. And this is why we have this well-known admonition in Pearson verses 6 and 7. Notice the text. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord. He's a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. So we finally run into James and his rough texts, his rough verses that we kind of have to wrestle with and aren't too sure about where they go. The verses here describes the person who prays for wisdom, who does indeed take the time to go before God in prayer to take his petition to know God, and then yet doubts God's inability or unwillingness to answer the prayer. And that person, James says, the person who would pray and yet doubt, James regards as a double-minded man. One whose trust and reliance is not fully on God. One who perhaps wants to still maintain some confidence in his own ability. One who will go through the motions of asking God for something, but not really trusting in that God to whom he's asked. James further argues this man is unstable in all he does, not really confident in anything. And for all this, James holds that it is imperative that one must believe in God, that he is real, and further that one trusts in his lordship. The question before us is not do we know about God? Or are we acquainted with the things of God? No, the question is are we one with God? Are we surrendered to him? Is he indeed Savior and Lord? That's the real question. If he's not, then it's no wonder that we are confused and we are unstable. But if he is, if he truly is, then let us follow where he leads. For God offers his children the provision of wisdom to respond faithfully to God for wisdom and then go forth in the wisdom that he gives because he is indeed the giving God. Alright, we come to verses 9-11 and here James offers wisdom with regard to the provision of resources. James here doesn't say if any of you lacks resources, but the thought is kind of inferred here in the text. Material or monetary wealth does not solve all of our problems and certainly it brings more problems to bear. Verses 9 and 10. The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position but the one who is rich should take pride in his low position. Both wealth and scarcity provide blessings and they provide challenges. And neither will deliver one through the trials and circumstances of life. Now, of course we tend here to put on our cynical hats and say something like, yeah, but life's a whole lot easier when you've got some money in the bank. And James here responds with the wisdom that we know is true. Wisdom concerning the brevity of life and the fragile status of accumulated wealth. Here in verses 9-11, James says, you know, the rich guy better be careful for here's the reality. He will pass away like a wildflower for the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant. Its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed in the same way the rich man will fade away even while he goes about his business. So at the end of the passage, in this particular first 11 verses of James chapter 1, at the end of the passage, James has offered the contrast of poverty and wealth to illustrate the real test. Certainly there's much wisdom here, just as James could have offered other contrasts of life, right? Health or illness, marriage or loss of a spouse, family unity or family dysfunction, work or unemployment, dreams fulfilled or dreams that never materialized, friendship or loneliness, life or death. And the list of familiar contrasts continues. And each of these bring us right in the face of this question. So how can we possibly expect to consider it pure joy when we face trials of many kinds? We come back to that question again. How can we possibly expect that that is true? Well, here's how. We are among those who have been drawn unto God, purchased through the sacrifice of Jesus, forgiven of sin, delivered from darkness, and made new by and through Christ. So to borrow the words of the writer of Hebrews, let us not ignore such a great salvation. Let us not ignore such a great salvation. James tells us that he belongs to Jesus. And you and I, and everyone who has placed their faith and trust in Jesus, also belongs to Jesus. And for each person who belongs to Jesus, everything changes. Everything changes. And so no matter the trial or the circumstance, though the trial is real, and though the circumstance is absolutely overwhelming, our Lord rules and reigns over us. Our Savior goes before us. Our Jesus leads us. And thus the psalmist declares, I will not die but live. And I will proclaim what the Lord has done. Let's pray, shall we? Heavenly Father, we thank You that as we jump into the teaching that You have given to us through the Apostle, who has also made known to us that He is a servant, a servant of Yours, we thank You that He serves in this way by giving this letter and this word. And we thank You, Father, that we will study and learn from this letter that has been placed before us. Sometimes James' language is a little rough. Sometimes it hurts a little bit. Sometimes he kind of pokes at us in certain ways that we might not necessarily like. But he's speaking truth. He's speaking truth about who You are. And he's speaking truth about the joy that we can experience in Christ, which is far greater than anything this world has to offer. For this, Father, we praise You and we give You glory. It's in Jesus' name we pray, Amen.