James 1:12

“God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.”

Verse 12 is the encouraging conclusion to the tough topic of trials that James began in verse 2. James closes this section on times of testing with a promise for Christians who are facing the challenges that come from difficult trials by reminding them of God’s rewards for those who remain faithful. Scripture makes it clear that the promised blessings are not based on our backgrounds or socioeconomic status, but rather have to do with our faithfulness to the Father. James tells us that this reward is three fold. For those who remain faithful the first reward is:

1. Blessing

Though going through trials may not be a blessing, verse 12 teaches us that enduring trials does brings blessing. God blesses those who persevere under pressure. The word blessed means “fortunate,” and speaks to an inner quality of joy, contentment in the midst of challenging circumstances. This blessing is a joy that the world cannot steal because it is a joy that is found in the depths of your heart. Joy is not based on your circumstances it is based on Christ. Circumstances change but Christ is the corner stone. Joy is a choice; you can focus on Jesus or the junk. You have a choice in this life, you can allow yourself to be miserable, or you can choose Christ in the midst of the challenges and face life with joy. Our joy flows from our relationship with the Redeemer and results in us faithfully following Him. Not just in the good times but also in the trying times. Inner blessedness is the result of faithfully following Jesus even through the trials and tribulations of life. Trials will come to the Christian but it doesn’t mean that we are not blessed. There is a story told about a young Christian that worked for a rich man who told his boss that satan was constantly battling him, and desired to beat him. His boss laughed and made fun of him, saying that satan never bothered him. How was it, that the devil should bother the boy but not his boss? He would ask. But the poor young Christian could not answer him. One day however, they went hunting together. The boss shot at some wild ducks. Some he killed and some he just wounded. “Run and catch the wounded ones first before they run away,” he told the boy. The young Christian came back smiling for now he had the answer to the bosses big question. “You know sir,” he said, “why satan does not tempt you? Because, you are dead to God, just like those ducks. He goes after the live ones, ones like me.” As my mother would often say, “If you are not being tempted there is a good chance you’re already doing what the devil wants you to, and he has no need to bother you.  James proclaims that the blessed man is the one who steadfastly endures trials and temptations and has stood the test. The word persevere here comes from two Greek words. The first means “to remain” and the second means “under.” To persevere means, “to remain under.” The connotation is the one who perseveres under pressure, who remains under trials and doesn’t crack. What James is pointing to is the fruit of faithfulness. Perseverance is standing steadfastly in the midst of trial. How do we face the tough trials of this life, by focusing on Jesus. We face trials by faith. God’s plan is to bring us to the place where we patiently wait upon Him to do His work in us and through us. Trials while not fun can be very fruitful, something a blacksmith came to realize. About eight years after he had given his life to the Lord he was approached by an observant but unsaved man who had a challenging question: “why is it you have so much trouble? I have been watching you. Since you joined the church and began to faithfully follow God you have had twice as many trials and difficulties as you had before. I thought that when a man gave himself to God his troubles would be over. With a thoughtful but smiling face, the blacksmith replied: “Do you see this piece of iron? It is for the springs of a carriage. I have been ‘tempering’ it to soften the hardened steel for some time. It gains elasticity through adding or absorbing carbon. I do this by heating it red-hot, and then plunge it into a tub of ice-cold water. This hot to cold process must be done many times. If I find it taking ‘temper,’ I heat and hammer it unmercifully. In trying to get the right piece of iron I found several that were too brittle. So I threw them in the scrap-pile. While those scraps are worth very little, this carriage spring is very valuable. He went on to explain that God saves us for something more than to have a good time, He saved us for service. Just as I want this piece of iron to be more than just a scrap of metal so He too wants to tune me for His service. To do that He often has to temper us in the fiery forge of trials. Ever since I understood this I have been saying to Him. “Test me in any way you choose Lord, so that I become useful for service and not for the scrap pile.” The point here is not the mere experience of trials, for that does not necessarily bring about blessedness. The truth is that many come out of their difficulties not softened, or tempered but hardened and brittle. Instead of blessing there is only bitterness. In the 1996 summer Olympics, sprinter Michael Johnson set records in the 200-meter and 400-meter races, shattering his own world record by a staggering margin. To do so he had trained for some ten years to cut a mere second or two from his time. In Slaying the Dragon he writes: Success is found in much smaller portions than most people realize. A hundredth of a second here or sometimes a tenth there can determine the fastest man in the world. At times we live our lives on a paper-thin-edge that barely separates greatness from mediocrity and success from failure.  Life is often compared to a marathon, but I think it is more like being a sprinter: long stretches of hard work punctuated by brief moments in which we are given the opportunity to perform at our best. The reality is that the Christian life also resembles the life of a sprinter, long stretches of obedience and spiritual disciplines punctuated by great tests in which God gives us the opportunity to choose His eternal best. What about you are you focused on the trial or on the treasure hidden within the trial?

James 1:2-8

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. 5 If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. 6 But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. 7 Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.

When we are going through the trials of life James tells us not to rely on ourselves but to turn to God and ask Him for wisdom. But James also instructs us to ask only if we are willing to place our full confidence in Christ. It’s here that he warns us about being a fickle follower who flip-flops around in our faith. This is not just about turning to God it is about trusting completely in God. Many of us turn to Him in times of crisis but we don’t fully trust in Him. We try to straddle the fence of faith with one foot resting on the Savior and the other firmly planted on the side of self. Life’s challenges create a demand for wisdom, and God desires to supply us with all the wisdom we ask for but we have to be willing to ask in faith. Faith is the key to God’s treasure chest of wisdom and doubt is the lock. James tells us that we need to ask in an attitude of trust. Only faith can dispel the dark cloud of doubt that lingers over us during times of trials.  The doubt James refers to here is not intellectual doubt, or doubting the existence of God or His ability to answer prayer. No it is the doubt of divided loyalties, where the vacillating Christian cannot decide from one trial to the next whether they will really trust God and follow His wisdom. Doubt bars the way to blessing and the on again-off again Christian should not expect to receive anything from God. The doubting Christian is the one who disputes with themselves, it is a kind of “he loves me, he loves me not” game that goes on in the heart. The decision to doubt in the midst of the trials leads to further trouble, where the believer becomes like a wave of the sea that is tossed to and fro by the wind. The imagery that James uses here depicts a storm, where the heart is caught in a hurricane of indecision which leads to instable and insecurity. James reminds us that those who dabble in doubt should not expect to receive anything from God. Instead of wisdom which shines light on our struggle’s we end up with wind that just adds to our storm. The doubter becomes a double-minded person, who is unstable in all they do. Abraham Lincoln is arguably one of our greatest presidents of the United States. He is remembered for so many great decisions, including the emancipation proclamation and the freeing of so many who were in bondage to slavery. He served during very tumultuous times and had to make many difficult decisions and I love what he said about those difficult times, “I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My wisdom and that of all about me seemed insufficient for the day. ” Abraham Lincoln was a president of prayer who freely admitting that there are times when the only place we can turn to for truth is to God. That no matter how powerful the position we occupy we need to learn to lean into the divine wisdom that can only come from God because neither us nor anyone around us has the wisdom sufficient for the storm we are struggling through. Can you identify with Lincolns words today? Are you facing a problem which has exhausted your best efforts to solve it? Are you in need of answers that seem to evade you? Has your wisdom and the wisdom of those around you fallen short? Then talk to and trust in the One who delights in granting wisdom. The truth is that everybody has wisdom to share, but not all wisdom is actually wise. Who are you turning to in the tempest, are you relying on self or the Savior? How typical is it for us to lean on our own wisdom to get us through each day. We love to lean into the wisdom we have gained through living this life because it makes us feel smart and important. Sometimes we turn to friends and family or even strangers for wisdom or advice as we face trying situations. And while this is not necessarily a bad thing there are times when we need more than friends and family can offer, what we need is the Father. We need wisdom for our marriages; we need to wisdom in parenting our kids. We need wisdom in the workplace; we need wisdom to deal with difficult relationships. James tells us not only what to pray for, wisdom, but he also tells us how to pray, confidently, specifically, and with an unwavering faith. What about you are you seeking Godly wisdom or the worlds wisdom? Are you placing your faith in God alone or are you stuck straddling the fence between trusting self and trusting the Savior? If you are walking through the waves of worry turn to God and don’t just ask Him for wisdom, trust Him and walk in His wisdom. You have a choice you can live in the worry or you can live in the wisdom of the Lord.