WEBVTT 00:00:00.280 --> 00:00:07.799 Thanks so much for reading, Margot. Keep your Bibles open, and you'll need those verses in front of you. 00:00:08.000 --> 00:00:10.080 And let me pray before we begin. 00:00:13.759 --> 00:00:18.859 Heavenly Father, I pray that your spirit would be at work in this room this evening, 00:00:19.620 --> 00:00:28.400 that you'd be at work in me as I preach, and at work in all of us as we hear your word for us this evening. 00:00:28.399 --> 00:00:33.359 Would it be challenging? And would it be comforting? 00:00:35.280 --> 00:00:39.019 We pray in your son's precious name. Amen. 00:00:41.960 --> 00:00:44.599 Life is hard, isn't it? 00:00:45.640 --> 00:00:49.239 Whether you're a Christian here tonight or not, we know this, don't we? 00:00:50.359 --> 00:00:54.759 We all in this life face trials of many different kinds. 00:00:54.759 --> 00:00:58.059 Maybe you're chronically ill. 00:00:59.399 --> 00:01:02.659 Maybe you've just got a bit of a sore back as you sit there in that pew. 00:01:04.620 --> 00:01:08.599 Maybe each year you find it very difficult to fill in your tax return. 00:01:10.179 --> 00:01:15.780 Or maybe you're just not sure where the money's going to come from to pay for your weekly food shop next week. 00:01:15.780 --> 00:01:23.079 Maybe you've had a disagreement with your husband or your wife or your children or your siblings. 00:01:24.519 --> 00:01:27.260 Maybe you haven't spoken to them for years. 00:01:30.019 --> 00:01:32.960 Maybe your trials are actually just quite hard to put a finger on. 00:01:34.120 --> 00:01:35.319 Maybe they're secret. 00:01:36.819 --> 00:01:38.180 Or they're in your head. 00:01:38.180 --> 00:01:41.780 But they're nonetheless very real. 00:01:43.860 --> 00:01:47.180 The truth is, sometimes we put ourselves through trials, don't we? 00:01:49.300 --> 00:01:52.000 But other times they just seem to happen to us. 00:01:54.100 --> 00:01:56.580 Well, whatever it is that we face. 00:01:56.640 --> 00:01:57.800 Whether we're in it now. 00:01:58.400 --> 00:02:00.940 Or we're preparing to face trials in the future. 00:02:01.719 --> 00:02:05.260 Or we're looking back on trials that we've faced in the past. 00:02:05.260 --> 00:02:09.039 James wants us to ask this question. 00:02:10.400 --> 00:02:14.460 How does our faith work when the going gets tough? 00:02:15.640 --> 00:02:19.680 And I think in our passage this evening, James helps us answer that question. 00:02:20.819 --> 00:02:21.740 I think James says, 00:02:22.480 --> 00:02:24.560 Faith gets growth. 00:02:25.400 --> 00:02:27.400 Faith wants wisdom. 00:02:27.939 --> 00:02:30.420 And faith possesses perspective. 00:02:30.419 --> 00:02:32.259 Gets growth. 00:02:32.579 --> 00:02:33.539 Wants wisdom. 00:02:34.159 --> 00:02:35.739 And possesses perspective. 00:02:35.939 --> 00:02:36.500 We'll get there. 00:02:37.000 --> 00:02:40.279 But first, since we're starting a new series in this letter, 00:02:40.359 --> 00:02:43.379 I want to just spend a little bit of time getting our heads into the book. 00:02:44.219 --> 00:02:46.619 So let me illustrate how I think this book works. 00:02:46.679 --> 00:02:48.419 It's been a bit of a trend this year. 00:02:48.479 --> 00:02:49.599 I don't know if you've noticed it. 00:02:49.659 --> 00:02:52.739 Maybe you have yourself picked up a new skill. 00:02:53.419 --> 00:02:55.759 We've all spent a little bit more time at home. 00:02:56.279 --> 00:02:57.259 I've been in the kitchen. 00:02:57.259 --> 00:02:59.859 I've been learning how to make sourdough bread. 00:03:00.359 --> 00:03:03.419 It's a notoriously difficult thing to get right, sourdough. 00:03:03.620 --> 00:03:06.599 It takes 36 hours from start to finish. 00:03:06.739 --> 00:03:08.719 It's quite a complicated thing. 00:03:09.739 --> 00:03:11.899 And yet really, it only has two ingredients. 00:03:12.479 --> 00:03:14.199 Well, three if you include a pinch of salt. 00:03:14.259 --> 00:03:16.399 But really, it's just flour and water. 00:03:17.739 --> 00:03:22.060 A complicated thing, but with relatively few ingredients. 00:03:22.060 --> 00:03:26.819 And I think the book of James, this letter that we're about to dive into, 00:03:26.920 --> 00:03:28.420 I think it's sort of the opposite. 00:03:29.680 --> 00:03:31.920 See, this book, it has many ingredients. 00:03:32.140 --> 00:03:34.920 It covers lots of topics, loads of themes. 00:03:36.180 --> 00:03:39.420 Maybe if you just flick through it, you'll notice some of those headlines. 00:03:39.599 --> 00:03:42.340 And they really do seem quite different to one another. 00:03:43.219 --> 00:03:47.460 Trials, listening, favoritism, faith, the tongue, wisdom, boasting. 00:03:47.460 --> 00:03:53.800 All these things that James wants his readers to do, there's loads of imperatives in this letter. 00:03:54.719 --> 00:03:57.500 But it can seem quite random. 00:03:58.379 --> 00:04:00.120 There are many ingredients. 00:04:01.560 --> 00:04:04.960 But I hope as we spend some time in this letter this summer, 00:04:05.340 --> 00:04:08.700 that we will see that James actually has a relatively simple message 00:04:08.700 --> 00:04:12.439 and a surprisingly narrow purpose. 00:04:13.400 --> 00:04:14.879 Have a look at verse 1 with me. 00:04:14.879 --> 00:04:20.699 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:04:20.959 --> 00:04:24.420 to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations. 00:04:24.879 --> 00:04:26.139 So we have this letter. 00:04:26.259 --> 00:04:28.319 It's obviously a letter from the greeting there. 00:04:28.420 --> 00:04:30.259 And it's written by James. 00:04:30.800 --> 00:04:33.939 We can be fairly confident that that's James, the brother of Jesus. 00:04:34.219 --> 00:04:37.699 And at this time, he was the leader of the church in Jerusalem. 00:04:38.819 --> 00:04:41.959 But the question is, who is he writing to? 00:04:41.959 --> 00:04:47.139 Who are the twelve tribes scattered among the nations? 00:04:48.379 --> 00:04:52.339 Lots of the commentators think that James is writing just to Christians, 00:04:52.560 --> 00:04:57.519 a sort of very general letter to all Christians everywhere. 00:04:58.719 --> 00:05:03.459 The twelve tribes then referring to the true spiritual Israel. 00:05:04.579 --> 00:05:07.139 Christians who are in exile in this world, 00:05:07.299 --> 00:05:11.060 scattered among the nations because heaven is their real home. 00:05:11.060 --> 00:05:14.699 And I think that there's definitely some truth in that. 00:05:14.780 --> 00:05:19.220 This letter is certainly, we will see, applicable to all Christians ever. 00:05:20.759 --> 00:05:26.720 But for what it's worth, I think that James' audience is much more specific than that. 00:05:27.340 --> 00:05:31.000 I think that he's writing especially to Jewish Christians. 00:05:31.939 --> 00:05:35.759 The letter is just littered with very Jewish references. 00:05:35.759 --> 00:05:41.579 And specifically, I think that these are Jewish Christians who have scattered from Jerusalem 00:05:41.579 --> 00:05:43.779 in the wake of a great persecution. 00:05:44.560 --> 00:05:50.240 A great persecution that we'll see just the beginnings of next Sunday in our series and Acts. 00:05:50.719 --> 00:05:52.819 In the wake of Stephen's stoning. 00:05:52.939 --> 00:05:56.560 If you want a preview of that, go check out Acts chapter 8. 00:05:56.620 --> 00:05:59.300 The first few verses there will help. 00:05:59.300 --> 00:06:05.160 But more than that, I suspect that James is writing to tackle a very specific problem 00:06:05.160 --> 00:06:08.040 among these early Jewish Christians. 00:06:08.460 --> 00:06:10.100 Again, from the book of Acts. 00:06:10.660 --> 00:06:14.639 You see, Paul, the apostle Paul, he's converted in Acts chapter 9. 00:06:15.600 --> 00:06:18.699 And immediately we read there that he begins preaching the gospel. 00:06:20.040 --> 00:06:25.939 But we then don't hear much from him until he heads off on his big journey in Acts chapter 13. 00:06:25.939 --> 00:06:30.100 And it's not obvious in the narrative of Acts, but that's 10 years later. 00:06:31.740 --> 00:06:35.939 10 years from Paul being converted to his first big journey. 00:06:36.079 --> 00:06:40.839 10 years, more or less, that Paul is preaching to these scattered Jewish believers. 00:06:42.319 --> 00:06:45.000 And we know, don't we, from Paul's letters, 00:06:45.560 --> 00:06:50.620 that his emphasis in the gospel was on justification by grace through faith. 00:06:50.620 --> 00:06:56.399 That it's not what we do, but what God has done that saves us. 00:06:56.959 --> 00:07:00.660 That's the gospel that if you're a Christian here today, you delight in, don't you? 00:07:02.019 --> 00:07:04.879 But it's also a gospel that is very easy to abuse. 00:07:06.480 --> 00:07:09.720 And maybe that's what's going on with these early Jewish Christians. 00:07:09.920 --> 00:07:13.459 They've heard this gospel and they're abusing it. 00:07:13.459 --> 00:07:18.319 But if they're saved by grace through faith, then surely they can just do whatever they want. 00:07:20.319 --> 00:07:22.379 Maybe sometimes we live like that too. 00:07:23.819 --> 00:07:24.579 I'm forgiven. 00:07:26.060 --> 00:07:26.939 I'm free. 00:07:28.060 --> 00:07:29.919 And so my sin is no big deal. 00:07:31.379 --> 00:07:37.740 Well, this book we will find is going to be a real challenge to that sort of thinking and that sort of living. 00:07:37.740 --> 00:07:42.980 See, at this stage, Paul, he also hasn't written any of his letters yet. 00:07:43.079 --> 00:07:46.060 He hasn't had a chance to clarify, to explain the implications, 00:07:46.680 --> 00:07:50.300 to show them how to live as a result of that gospel. 00:07:51.100 --> 00:07:57.960 And it seems in James's letter that the result of that is some seriously bad behavior. 00:07:59.139 --> 00:08:03.860 I think then that James is writing as the leader of the very early Jewish church 00:08:03.860 --> 00:08:10.060 to combat that misunderstanding, to remind the believers that the way that they live is still incredibly important. 00:08:11.379 --> 00:08:17.000 In particular, as we go through this letter, we'll see that it's as though these believers are behaving badly, 00:08:17.220 --> 00:08:18.819 especially towards one another. 00:08:20.560 --> 00:08:25.920 Now, I can't prove that stuff about Paul, but I am convinced by it as I've done my reading. 00:08:26.020 --> 00:08:28.660 If you have questions about that, do come and chat to me. 00:08:28.660 --> 00:08:34.940 But I think that relatively narrow purpose might help us make sense of those apparently random themes, 00:08:35.040 --> 00:08:36.639 that long list of ingredients. 00:08:37.620 --> 00:08:41.519 And it also gives us a relatively simple message for the book as a whole. 00:08:42.399 --> 00:08:45.480 James, I think, says to these scattered Jewish Christians, 00:08:46.540 --> 00:08:48.379 faith works. 00:08:49.040 --> 00:08:49.879 Faith works. 00:08:51.220 --> 00:08:55.019 And this evening, he asks an even more specific question. 00:08:55.540 --> 00:08:56.560 We've already asked it. 00:08:56.559 --> 00:08:59.939 How does faith work when the going gets tough? 00:09:01.159 --> 00:09:05.479 How does the Christian navigate the challenges of life? 00:09:05.599 --> 00:09:07.679 Trials, as James calls them. 00:09:08.500 --> 00:09:09.839 Have a look at verse 2 with me. 00:09:11.939 --> 00:09:18.000 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds. 00:09:19.359 --> 00:09:21.619 Just notice there that James says whenever. 00:09:21.620 --> 00:09:26.480 Not if you face trials, but when you face trials. 00:09:27.700 --> 00:09:33.879 It's desperately sad, isn't it, that some Christians have been taught and will teach 00:09:33.879 --> 00:09:38.639 that the Christian life should be one where trials are non-existent. 00:09:39.080 --> 00:09:42.759 That as Christians, we should expect an easier ride in life. 00:09:42.860 --> 00:09:44.759 But friends, that simply isn't true. 00:09:44.759 --> 00:09:47.580 We know that isn't true. 00:09:48.620 --> 00:09:50.539 I mean, maybe you're suffering today. 00:09:51.639 --> 00:09:54.299 Or you face a difficult situation at work. 00:09:54.779 --> 00:09:56.360 Maybe your own ill health. 00:09:57.080 --> 00:09:58.740 The loss of a loved one. 00:09:59.700 --> 00:10:01.899 Whatever your trials are, I just want to say, 00:10:02.039 --> 00:10:05.960 please do not be ashamed of your suffering as a Christian. 00:10:06.559 --> 00:10:07.879 Because James is clear. 00:10:07.960 --> 00:10:09.059 The Bible is clear. 00:10:09.200 --> 00:10:12.439 Christians are not exempt from suffering. 00:10:12.440 --> 00:10:17.660 And so how does James say we are to approach our trials? 00:10:18.700 --> 00:10:20.480 Well, in this verse, what does he say? 00:10:20.860 --> 00:10:22.540 Consider it pure joy. 00:10:23.980 --> 00:10:26.400 Which is a really strange thing to say, isn't it? 00:10:27.920 --> 00:10:29.400 Joy in trials? 00:10:31.180 --> 00:10:33.980 Let me quote from Sam Albury as we think about this. 00:10:34.020 --> 00:10:36.460 He's written this very helpful little book on James. 00:10:36.540 --> 00:10:37.580 I'd commend it to you. 00:10:37.660 --> 00:10:39.660 It's called James for You by Sam Albury. 00:10:40.240 --> 00:10:41.180 Do pick up a copy. 00:10:41.260 --> 00:10:41.640 It's brilliant. 00:10:41.639 --> 00:10:43.019 And in it, he says this. 00:10:44.399 --> 00:10:49.360 He, that is James, is not telling us so much how to feel as how to think. 00:10:49.860 --> 00:10:51.879 He's not saying pretend this is fun. 00:10:52.220 --> 00:10:56.879 Nor is he calling us always to have a sickly grin or a stiff upper lip. 00:10:57.939 --> 00:10:58.299 No. 00:10:58.679 --> 00:11:02.340 James is telling us to think about our trials in a certain way. 00:11:02.779 --> 00:11:04.620 There is a point of view we need to adopt. 00:11:04.699 --> 00:11:08.159 A particular way to consider what is going on. 00:11:08.159 --> 00:11:11.799 I think that's exactly right. 00:11:11.799 --> 00:11:19.799 You see, James is telling us that though Christians will face trials, just as anyone in the world might, 00:11:20.799 --> 00:11:27.059 our faith really does make a real difference to the way we think as we face those trials. 00:11:27.059 --> 00:11:31.459 How does faith work when things get tough? 00:11:32.539 --> 00:11:34.019 Well, I alluded to it at the start. 00:11:34.199 --> 00:11:35.299 Faith gets growth. 00:11:35.979 --> 00:11:36.979 Faith wants wisdom. 00:11:37.619 --> 00:11:39.299 And faith possesses perspective. 00:11:39.299 --> 00:11:43.299 So let's unpack each of those as we go through this passage. 00:11:43.299 --> 00:11:49.379 First way to think about our trials, to see how faith works in them, 00:11:49.899 --> 00:11:54.319 is to know that through them we get growth. 00:11:54.779 --> 00:11:56.779 Have a look at verses 3 and 4 with me. 00:11:58.639 --> 00:12:02.359 You know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 00:12:03.359 --> 00:12:09.359 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 00:12:09.360 --> 00:12:18.539 In a sense then, the trials that these believers were facing were intended to test their faith. 00:12:19.080 --> 00:12:23.360 Not to call their faith into question, but rather to draw it out. 00:12:23.620 --> 00:12:26.700 To improve and perfect their faith. 00:12:27.259 --> 00:12:28.860 We know how this works, don't we? 00:12:28.879 --> 00:12:35.860 If you're at all sporty or you understand sport, you'll know that by pushing yourself, testing yourself, 00:12:35.860 --> 00:12:37.139 that's how you improve. 00:12:37.899 --> 00:12:42.259 That's how you get fitter and stronger and refine your skill. 00:12:43.399 --> 00:12:48.159 And this refining process in terms of faith is supposed to bring out perseverance. 00:12:48.899 --> 00:12:49.720 Do you notice that? 00:12:50.080 --> 00:12:53.480 The testing of your faith produces perseverance. 00:12:55.320 --> 00:13:00.960 In other words, as their faith is tested and refined, it is strengthened. 00:13:00.960 --> 00:13:07.160 And so as they come across more trials in life, it will be stronger than it was before. 00:13:07.300 --> 00:13:10.980 It will be, their faith will be more able to weather those storms. 00:13:12.200 --> 00:13:16.900 More than that, in verse 4, the goal of that process, do you see it? 00:13:17.700 --> 00:13:20.440 Is maturity and completeness. 00:13:21.019 --> 00:13:23.840 The sense of both of those words is perfection. 00:13:23.840 --> 00:13:28.080 The goal is Christian perfection. 00:13:28.240 --> 00:13:30.019 In other words, Christ-likeness. 00:13:30.139 --> 00:13:31.800 To be like Jesus. 00:13:33.500 --> 00:13:38.180 And for a group of dispersed Jewish Christians who are behaving particularly badly, 00:13:39.100 --> 00:13:41.660 isn't that just such an important place to start? 00:13:43.139 --> 00:13:49.040 Life might be hard, James says, but that is no excuse to stick your faith into neutral. 00:13:50.259 --> 00:13:52.340 No, your faith must be at work. 00:13:52.340 --> 00:13:57.040 And as it works, as you navigate these trials with it, 00:13:57.100 --> 00:14:00.440 you will continue to grow into Christ-likeness. 00:14:01.060 --> 00:14:03.720 Not that you will achieve that perfection in this life, 00:14:03.820 --> 00:14:08.200 but that that will be the direction of your lives, growing through trials. 00:14:10.180 --> 00:14:13.580 And for us, in the trials that we face day to day, 00:14:13.720 --> 00:14:15.720 here is James' first helpful pointer. 00:14:15.899 --> 00:14:18.240 Allow yourself to grow through them. 00:14:18.639 --> 00:14:21.620 And witness yourself grow through them. 00:14:22.340 --> 00:14:27.040 But look, maybe you're here this evening and you're right in the thick of it. 00:14:28.300 --> 00:14:31.320 Even today, maybe facing the trials of life. 00:14:31.399 --> 00:14:37.460 Maybe you're finding it really difficult to see how these trials are refining you, 00:14:37.540 --> 00:14:41.899 refining your faith, helping you to persevere, growing you to perfection. 00:14:42.040 --> 00:14:43.580 Maybe you just can't see that. 00:14:43.580 --> 00:14:46.020 If that's you, stay with me. 00:14:46.120 --> 00:14:49.020 There's more from James in these verses that I think will help you. 00:14:49.240 --> 00:14:52.840 But also, I want to say, make sure that you have people around you who know you, 00:14:53.960 --> 00:14:57.540 who have seen you grow, who can encourage you in that. 00:14:58.040 --> 00:15:01.200 This life of faith, it's not meant to be done in isolation, 00:15:01.200 --> 00:15:04.920 but it's a life of community because we grow together. 00:15:04.919 --> 00:15:08.839 Just like Andy was saying this morning, things that are alive grow. 00:15:09.899 --> 00:15:10.799 We do that together. 00:15:12.339 --> 00:15:14.719 Maybe you've been a Christian for some time. 00:15:15.559 --> 00:15:18.379 I wonder, could you be playing that role in someone else's life? 00:15:20.299 --> 00:15:23.240 Maybe it's also worth casting your mind back. 00:15:23.620 --> 00:15:27.159 Many, I know, find it helpful to keep a diary or a journal. 00:15:27.159 --> 00:15:31.980 And I'm sure that is a really helpful way to record and to witness your own growth. 00:15:33.559 --> 00:15:38.799 But whatever you do, be asking yourself, how have I grown through my trials? 00:15:39.600 --> 00:15:42.139 What has God been teaching me through this? 00:15:43.679 --> 00:15:47.299 This is James' first helpful pointer for putting faith to work. 00:15:47.620 --> 00:15:51.339 Recognize that through your trials, you get growth. 00:15:51.340 --> 00:15:57.940 Next, in verses 5 to 8, James says that we should want wisdom through trials. 00:15:59.320 --> 00:16:02.440 Do you notice how verse 4 finished? 00:16:02.879 --> 00:16:06.480 James said the goal of growth in trials was to be not lacking anything. 00:16:07.480 --> 00:16:10.060 But James says, have a look at verse 5 with me, 00:16:10.200 --> 00:16:13.660 if any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, 00:16:14.200 --> 00:16:18.360 who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 00:16:18.360 --> 00:16:23.860 I think the implication here is that just because you will be growing through your trials, 00:16:24.560 --> 00:16:28.180 that does not mean that you will always know what to do through your trials. 00:16:29.279 --> 00:16:31.120 Again, we know that's true, don't we? 00:16:32.320 --> 00:16:34.500 And you can imagine for these scattered believers, 00:16:35.259 --> 00:16:37.940 James and the apostles are still in Jerusalem, 00:16:38.100 --> 00:16:40.759 and these scattered believers, without their teaching, 00:16:40.860 --> 00:16:42.759 they know that they're saved by grace. 00:16:43.279 --> 00:16:46.500 But as the heat is turned up in their trials, 00:16:46.500 --> 00:16:48.840 they might be thinking, why does it matter how we live? 00:16:50.259 --> 00:16:54.379 Well, James is saying, true faith does work when the going gets tough, 00:16:54.419 --> 00:16:56.960 and you can ask God for wisdom in that, 00:16:57.460 --> 00:17:00.580 because he loves to give gifts to his people. 00:17:01.759 --> 00:17:04.339 Indeed, he does so without finding fault. 00:17:04.440 --> 00:17:06.640 I love that. Don't you love that about our God? 00:17:07.660 --> 00:17:10.460 We're often told by the secular world around us 00:17:10.460 --> 00:17:13.860 to think of our God as some sort of bewigged judge in the sky, 00:17:14.340 --> 00:17:18.660 watching our every move, rewarding and chastening us based on our performance. 00:17:19.180 --> 00:17:21.079 But our God is not like that. 00:17:22.059 --> 00:17:26.360 He gives generously to all without finding fault. 00:17:27.779 --> 00:17:32.059 And if we ask, he will help us to know what to do through our trials. 00:17:32.180 --> 00:17:33.819 He will give us wisdom. 00:17:33.819 --> 00:17:38.259 But James says, and have a look at verse 6, 00:17:39.539 --> 00:17:42.399 when you ask, you must believe and not doubt. 00:17:44.639 --> 00:17:47.799 Is James saying that if we have sufficient faith, 00:17:48.159 --> 00:17:51.359 if we believe with all our hearts and all our minds, 00:17:51.460 --> 00:17:54.599 then God will answer all our prayers and give us all wisdom 00:17:54.599 --> 00:17:56.619 and indeed all the good things? 00:17:58.240 --> 00:18:01.439 Again, sadly, there are those who teach that you can claim 00:18:01.440 --> 00:18:03.600 more or less anything in the name of Jesus. 00:18:03.799 --> 00:18:06.640 And if you have enough faith that will be given to you, 00:18:07.259 --> 00:18:10.440 a new car, a new job. 00:18:11.500 --> 00:18:12.960 Do you need some physical healing? 00:18:13.519 --> 00:18:14.680 Maybe even smaller things. 00:18:14.720 --> 00:18:15.980 I've lost the TV remote. 00:18:17.519 --> 00:18:21.240 And look, God may well give such good things to his people. 00:18:21.340 --> 00:18:22.759 We know that he loves to do that, 00:18:22.759 --> 00:18:26.220 but not because we ask with a particular measure of faith 00:18:26.220 --> 00:18:27.539 and claim it in his name. 00:18:27.620 --> 00:18:29.279 That's not what James is saying here. 00:18:29.279 --> 00:18:33.539 We're going to come across this kind of thing again in chapter 5. 00:18:34.519 --> 00:18:36.539 But for now, what is James saying? 00:18:37.940 --> 00:18:41.180 I think what he's saying is when he talks about doubt here, 00:18:41.519 --> 00:18:45.079 I think he seems to be referring to inconsistent lives 00:18:45.079 --> 00:18:47.579 more than inconsistent thoughts. 00:18:48.160 --> 00:18:50.039 Do you see that at the end of verse 8? 00:18:50.579 --> 00:18:51.279 What does it say there? 00:18:51.359 --> 00:18:55.220 They are double-minded and they are unstable in all they do. 00:18:55.220 --> 00:18:58.779 In other words, they have split allegiances. 00:19:00.579 --> 00:19:02.079 They might profess faith. 00:19:02.200 --> 00:19:04.319 They might even really believe. 00:19:05.360 --> 00:19:07.440 But they're not putting their faith to work. 00:19:08.259 --> 00:19:10.100 They're like a wave of the sea, 00:19:10.299 --> 00:19:12.140 blown and tossed by the wind. 00:19:13.180 --> 00:19:15.319 They're allowing their circumstances, 00:19:15.640 --> 00:19:18.700 their trials, to dictate their actions. 00:19:18.700 --> 00:19:22.160 For those that James was writing to, 00:19:22.240 --> 00:19:25.140 he says your faith should want wisdom, 00:19:25.319 --> 00:19:27.940 want God's wisdom through your trials. 00:19:29.360 --> 00:19:33.460 Do not use your trials as an excuse to behave badly. 00:19:34.980 --> 00:19:36.900 Isn't that so often the temptation? 00:19:37.160 --> 00:19:39.799 Certainly I find when I face challenges in life, 00:19:39.840 --> 00:19:41.539 whether they're big or small, 00:19:41.840 --> 00:19:45.759 it's very easy to become unstable in all I do. 00:19:45.759 --> 00:19:49.680 Especially, and I think this is a really big problem in this letter, 00:19:50.299 --> 00:19:52.259 in the way that I relate to other people. 00:19:53.759 --> 00:19:54.420 Do you find that? 00:19:54.480 --> 00:19:56.980 Don't you find that when you face trials in life, 00:19:57.019 --> 00:19:59.359 it very quickly starts to affect your relationships? 00:20:01.180 --> 00:20:03.220 Maybe you start blaming other people. 00:20:04.220 --> 00:20:07.559 Or you just become short and snappy with those that you love. 00:20:07.619 --> 00:20:09.859 I am rubbish at that. 00:20:11.619 --> 00:20:14.400 Forgetting to put your faith to work through trials. 00:20:15.759 --> 00:20:19.839 And so friends, instead of running away from God in those moments, 00:20:20.059 --> 00:20:24.700 with our trials, let's run to him and want for his wisdom. 00:20:25.200 --> 00:20:28.960 And the wisdom that he gives us in this book, 00:20:29.140 --> 00:20:31.079 we'll come across it again in chapter three. 00:20:31.220 --> 00:20:32.180 But there James says, 00:20:32.299 --> 00:20:35.920 God is the wisdom of humility. 00:20:37.220 --> 00:20:39.740 A wisdom that forces us to look in the mirror 00:20:39.740 --> 00:20:42.079 before we look out of the window. 00:20:42.079 --> 00:20:49.039 To ask, how are my trials and my sin affecting this situation 00:20:49.039 --> 00:20:51.199 and the way that I feel about it? 00:20:51.460 --> 00:20:56.299 Before we ask, how are they and their sin affecting this? 00:20:57.179 --> 00:20:59.960 Look in the mirror before we look out of the window. 00:21:01.460 --> 00:21:04.759 Again, maybe that's just a small preview of what we're going to get in chapter three. 00:21:04.759 --> 00:21:11.420 But here in chapter one, James first tells us to see how we are growing through our trials. 00:21:12.460 --> 00:21:16.259 And he also says, want wisdom through our trials. 00:21:17.500 --> 00:21:20.379 Finally then, and most importantly, I think, 00:21:20.519 --> 00:21:25.379 James tells his readers that they can possess perspective in their trials. 00:21:26.200 --> 00:21:29.339 And firstly, the perspective that they will not last forever. 00:21:30.099 --> 00:21:31.400 Have a look at verse nine. 00:21:31.400 --> 00:21:38.120 Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. 00:21:39.180 --> 00:21:42.180 But the rich should take pride in their humiliation, 00:21:42.180 --> 00:21:46.019 since they will pass away like a wildflower. 00:21:48.480 --> 00:21:51.380 The gospel is a great leveler, isn't it? 00:21:53.060 --> 00:21:55.720 And how important are these verses then? 00:21:56.540 --> 00:21:59.100 For these first century Jewish believers, 00:21:59.099 --> 00:22:01.379 the world around them, just like ours, 00:22:01.419 --> 00:22:03.759 it placed a huge value on the material. 00:22:04.980 --> 00:22:09.119 You were given worth based on your accumulation of wealth. 00:22:09.299 --> 00:22:13.599 And that created, as it always does, huge societal tensions. 00:22:14.879 --> 00:22:17.559 Especially, I think, in this letter within the church. 00:22:18.519 --> 00:22:22.839 We end up with believers behaving badly towards one another. 00:22:24.379 --> 00:22:28.480 James picks this up again at the end of chapter four and into chapter five. 00:22:28.480 --> 00:22:32.779 But here he has something to say, both to poor and to rich. 00:22:34.019 --> 00:22:36.720 He's saying that if you have very little in this world, 00:22:37.839 --> 00:22:40.599 consider how much you have in Christ. 00:22:42.799 --> 00:22:46.500 Just as he died and was raised to glory, 00:22:47.460 --> 00:22:50.640 so too, in as much as you died with him, 00:22:50.900 --> 00:22:54.579 are you a citizen of that heavenly city. 00:22:54.579 --> 00:23:00.699 And so take pride in your position as a follower of Christ. 00:23:01.899 --> 00:23:03.500 But for the rich, 00:23:05.099 --> 00:23:08.899 and I take it that's most of us living in this city as we do, 00:23:10.359 --> 00:23:14.480 he says, forget all you have in this life. 00:23:15.339 --> 00:23:17.439 All your material wealth. 00:23:17.440 --> 00:23:31.700 Again, just as he came from heaven to earth, 00:23:31.820 --> 00:23:36.120 God become man and humbled himself even unto death. 00:23:36.119 --> 00:23:40.279 So you who are rich, 00:23:40.279 --> 00:23:42.919 who though you look impressive, 00:23:44.359 --> 00:23:47.759 humble yourselves in the eyes of this world 00:23:47.759 --> 00:23:53.319 and receive instead the unimpressive looking blessings of Christ. 00:23:54.479 --> 00:23:59.419 For they cannot be withered and scorched by the rising sun, 00:23:59.839 --> 00:24:02.899 and their beauty shall never fade. 00:24:02.900 --> 00:24:12.200 Very often, I think, we equate trials with material poverty. 00:24:13.220 --> 00:24:14.340 I don't know if you do that. 00:24:14.380 --> 00:24:15.340 I definitely do that. 00:24:15.880 --> 00:24:18.380 Something I found especially challenging this week. 00:24:18.720 --> 00:24:20.740 I think if I just had enough money, 00:24:21.019 --> 00:24:23.880 then I'd be able to fix all my problems, all my trials. 00:24:26.060 --> 00:24:30.400 We certainly don't think of having lots of money as a trial, do we? 00:24:30.400 --> 00:24:36.100 But I think James is saying that to be rich can be a trial in and of itself. 00:24:36.820 --> 00:24:41.400 Yes, in this life, but more significantly, it's spiritually precarious. 00:24:42.100 --> 00:24:46.620 For all of us, our wealth is a trial of faith. 00:24:47.600 --> 00:24:52.019 Because on one hand, it is very easy to become self-reliant 00:24:52.019 --> 00:24:54.599 when your wallet is full. 00:24:56.359 --> 00:25:00.980 To feel as though we don't really need Jesus in our trials. 00:25:01.619 --> 00:25:03.900 To seek to put our wealth to work, 00:25:04.440 --> 00:25:06.639 rather than putting our faith to work. 00:25:08.099 --> 00:25:10.579 And on the other hand, ironically, I think, 00:25:11.099 --> 00:25:14.700 riches actually do very little to solve our trials in life. 00:25:15.279 --> 00:25:16.420 We know, don't we? 00:25:16.839 --> 00:25:19.299 Don't we know that money doesn't make us happy? 00:25:19.299 --> 00:25:26.000 And money often brings trials of its own. 00:25:27.079 --> 00:25:28.680 Particularly relational trials. 00:25:28.819 --> 00:25:30.220 Again, it's all over this letter. 00:25:30.899 --> 00:25:32.859 With friends and family, 00:25:33.379 --> 00:25:36.319 the way that society around us sees you, 00:25:36.500 --> 00:25:37.279 it changes. 00:25:39.299 --> 00:25:43.519 Even the anxiety of knowing that your wealth cannot last. 00:25:43.519 --> 00:25:49.839 And not only will your material wealth fail to last, 00:25:50.519 --> 00:25:53.139 but in verse 11, have a look at verse 11, 00:25:53.920 --> 00:25:56.900 the rich will fade away. 00:25:58.980 --> 00:26:02.240 You yourself will not last forever. 00:26:03.539 --> 00:26:05.180 There's no escaping that. 00:26:06.180 --> 00:26:07.619 I hope that's not a surprise. 00:26:08.319 --> 00:26:09.980 But we will all die. 00:26:09.980 --> 00:26:14.920 And when we do, what's the point of it all? 00:26:15.940 --> 00:26:18.299 What was it that Margo just read for us 00:26:18.299 --> 00:26:20.360 in Ecclesiastes chapter 2 just now? 00:26:21.079 --> 00:26:23.579 At the end of that passage said this, 00:26:23.640 --> 00:26:26.720 Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done 00:26:26.720 --> 00:26:28.579 and what I had toiled to achieve, 00:26:29.099 --> 00:26:30.339 everything was meaningless. 00:26:31.900 --> 00:26:33.200 A chasing after the wind. 00:26:34.160 --> 00:26:36.099 Nothing was gained under the sun. 00:26:36.099 --> 00:26:39.519 That's the same sort of perspective 00:26:39.519 --> 00:26:41.899 that James is reminding his readers of here. 00:26:42.879 --> 00:26:44.779 You will not last forever. 00:26:46.379 --> 00:26:48.099 And it all seems like a bit of a downer 00:26:48.099 --> 00:26:49.119 at this stage, doesn't it? 00:26:51.259 --> 00:26:53.639 You might face trials, James is saying, 00:26:54.039 --> 00:26:55.240 but one day you'll die, 00:26:55.339 --> 00:26:56.679 so none of it really matters. 00:26:57.939 --> 00:26:59.759 What an unsatisfactory end. 00:27:01.339 --> 00:27:03.699 But James doesn't simply offer the perspective 00:27:03.700 --> 00:27:05.720 that you won't last forever. 00:27:06.500 --> 00:27:08.180 Because also, wonderfully, 00:27:09.580 --> 00:27:10.519 in verse 12, 00:27:11.680 --> 00:27:12.759 let's bring it home with this. 00:27:12.819 --> 00:27:13.940 He offers the perspective 00:27:13.940 --> 00:27:16.700 that they can live forever. 00:27:18.039 --> 00:27:19.279 Possess that perspective. 00:27:19.960 --> 00:27:21.319 Read it with me in verse 12. 00:27:22.319 --> 00:27:25.180 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial, 00:27:25.480 --> 00:27:27.100 because having stood the test, 00:27:27.180 --> 00:27:30.880 that person will receive the crown of life 00:27:30.880 --> 00:27:34.600 that the Lord has promised to those who love him. 00:27:35.700 --> 00:27:37.560 The crown of life. 00:27:37.940 --> 00:27:39.960 That's eternal life. 00:27:41.160 --> 00:27:42.680 Though you will not last forever, 00:27:42.800 --> 00:27:45.340 you can live forever. 00:27:46.760 --> 00:27:49.200 This is what James really wants his readers to see. 00:27:49.380 --> 00:27:51.540 As they face the trials of life, 00:27:51.620 --> 00:27:53.560 the trials that will come, 00:27:54.220 --> 00:27:57.820 as they put their faith to work in those trials, 00:27:57.819 --> 00:28:00.359 he wants them to see that, 00:28:00.619 --> 00:28:02.799 actually, it will all be worth it in the end. 00:28:03.299 --> 00:28:04.939 Because he wants them to possess 00:28:04.939 --> 00:28:06.899 an eternal perspective. 00:28:08.480 --> 00:28:10.539 For these early Jewish believers, 00:28:11.720 --> 00:28:14.379 those who seem to be behaving badly 00:28:14.379 --> 00:28:15.439 towards one another, 00:28:16.500 --> 00:28:17.779 though they seem to have missed 00:28:17.779 --> 00:28:19.339 the implications of the gospel, 00:28:19.740 --> 00:28:20.939 though they haven't realized 00:28:20.939 --> 00:28:22.500 that real faith works 00:28:22.500 --> 00:28:23.939 when the going gets tough, 00:28:23.940 --> 00:28:26.360 what they really need to know, 00:28:26.420 --> 00:28:28.420 what we really need to know, 00:28:29.019 --> 00:28:31.680 as we face the trials of life, 00:28:32.440 --> 00:28:34.500 is that they will not last forever, 00:28:35.720 --> 00:28:39.680 but we can live forever. 00:28:41.580 --> 00:28:43.279 And so this is where we land. 00:28:44.340 --> 00:28:46.340 As you face trials in life, 00:28:46.400 --> 00:28:48.120 as your Christian brothers and sisters 00:28:48.120 --> 00:28:49.840 around you face trials in life, 00:28:49.880 --> 00:28:50.960 it's important, isn't it, 00:28:50.960 --> 00:28:52.600 to put our faith to work. 00:28:52.599 --> 00:28:54.379 Because yes, we can grow 00:28:54.379 --> 00:28:56.039 through our trials. 00:28:56.339 --> 00:28:57.579 Yes, we can navigate them 00:28:57.579 --> 00:28:58.759 with God's wisdom. 00:28:59.699 --> 00:29:00.619 But ultimately, 00:29:01.240 --> 00:29:02.240 we can know 00:29:02.240 --> 00:29:04.119 that one day they will pass, 00:29:04.199 --> 00:29:05.419 and not just temporarily, 00:29:06.379 --> 00:29:07.419 not just in place 00:29:07.419 --> 00:29:09.500 of some other trial, 00:29:10.399 --> 00:29:12.459 not just in place 00:29:12.459 --> 00:29:14.199 of the nothingness of death. 00:29:14.559 --> 00:29:15.319 Because yes, 00:29:15.500 --> 00:29:16.039 one day, 00:29:16.139 --> 00:29:17.219 though we will die 00:29:17.219 --> 00:29:19.219 through faith, 00:29:19.539 --> 00:29:20.459 we will nevertheless 00:29:20.459 --> 00:29:22.219 live forever. 00:29:22.220 --> 00:29:23.160 that we will wear 00:29:23.160 --> 00:29:25.000 the crown of life 00:29:25.000 --> 00:29:26.519 in a place 00:29:26.519 --> 00:29:28.299 where trials are no more. 00:29:29.720 --> 00:29:31.079 Let's wait together 00:29:31.079 --> 00:29:32.839 in eager anticipation 00:29:32.839 --> 00:29:34.039 of that day. 00:29:35.740 --> 00:29:37.360 How does faith work 00:29:37.360 --> 00:29:40.000 when the going gets tough? 00:29:41.200 --> 00:29:42.420 Well, it gets growth. 00:29:42.960 --> 00:29:44.579 It wants wisdom. 00:29:44.579 --> 00:29:46.079 but really, 00:29:46.759 --> 00:29:48.019 it possesses 00:29:48.019 --> 00:29:49.960 an eternal perspective. 00:29:51.619 --> 00:29:52.599 Let me pray. 00:29:55.839 --> 00:29:56.720 Heavenly Father, 00:29:56.819 --> 00:29:58.859 we thank you so much 00:29:58.859 --> 00:30:01.500 for the cross of Christ. 00:30:03.500 --> 00:30:06.000 Thank you that as we look to Jesus, 00:30:06.240 --> 00:30:07.079 we can know, 00:30:07.720 --> 00:30:08.460 by faith, 00:30:09.079 --> 00:30:10.399 that all our sins 00:30:10.399 --> 00:30:11.839 have been dealt with there. 00:30:11.839 --> 00:30:16.819 Lord, 00:30:16.859 --> 00:30:18.179 we thank you for this letter, 00:30:19.179 --> 00:30:21.099 for James' insight 00:30:21.099 --> 00:30:23.059 as he helps badly behaved 00:30:23.059 --> 00:30:24.359 believers like us 00:30:24.359 --> 00:30:26.419 put our faith to work. 00:30:28.919 --> 00:30:29.419 Lord, 00:30:29.459 --> 00:30:30.799 I pray that by your spirit 00:30:30.799 --> 00:30:32.259 you would help each of us 00:30:32.259 --> 00:30:32.799 to grow, 00:30:32.939 --> 00:30:34.159 to be more like Jesus 00:30:34.160 --> 00:30:36.680 as we tackle 00:30:36.680 --> 00:30:38.180 the many various trials 00:30:38.180 --> 00:30:38.980 of life 00:30:38.980 --> 00:30:41.800 or be with us. 00:30:43.540 --> 00:30:44.820 Give us your wisdom. 00:30:46.820 --> 00:30:48.040 Help us recognize 00:30:48.040 --> 00:30:49.400 how much we need you. 00:30:52.080 --> 00:30:53.100 And ultimately, 00:30:53.259 --> 00:30:53.380 Lord, 00:30:53.440 --> 00:30:54.560 help us persevere 00:30:54.560 --> 00:30:55.279 in faith 00:30:55.279 --> 00:30:56.340 to the very end 00:30:56.340 --> 00:30:58.820 so that one day 00:30:58.820 --> 00:30:59.580 we might live 00:30:59.580 --> 00:31:00.640 together with you 00:31:00.640 --> 00:31:02.880 forever. 00:31:02.880 --> 00:31:04.920 in your kingdom. 00:31:07.260 --> 00:31:08.140 We pray 00:31:08.140 --> 00:31:09.540 because we can 00:31:09.540 --> 00:31:10.580 in your son's 00:31:10.580 --> 00:31:11.600 precious name. 00:31:11.600 --> 00:31:13.160 Amen.