“Confident Stand” – James 1

 I saw a sign the other day that said, “Becoming an adult is the dumbest thing I’ve ever done.”  Some of you can relate to that, I’m sure.  Some of you may miss your carefree days of youth.  Some of you may still be there.  Some of you can’t even remember back that far.  And some of you just act like you are still young and you are the ones I really want to talk to today.  There is nothing wrong with having a youthful attitude but for too many of us it is time to grow up.

Nobody likes an old grouch but we all know of some people who, whatever their age, need to start growing up and acting their age, right?  Some of you are thinking, “Yea, I’m looking at one!”  Well, I’m preaching to myself today, as I usually do.  And I’m preaching about maturity because James preached about it in his letter.  And we are starting a 5-week series on the book of James today.  5 chapters in 5 weeks.

There is just something special about the book of James.  It is a brief letter, comparatively speaking, but he packs a lot into a little space, much like Paul did.  There were several people in the Bible named James but this one is the brother (or half-brother, if you want to look at it that way) of Jesus, not the disciple.  For me, reading James is almost like eating comfort food.  You know, when you eat like you used to eat at Mama’s house?  You know how it tastes so good you just want to stick your face down in the bowl of mashed potatoes?

James is that way for me.  Sometimes when I need something, whether it be wisdom or encouragement or the right word at the right time, I just turn to James and stick my face down in there and let it get all over me.  It’s one of those books you can just roll around in.  Start anywhere, beginning, middle or end and you are guaranteed to get something good.  And when you put it all together, the reason James was writing was to help us to mature in the Lord.  This is a book written to Christians who are not babies any longer but need this word to help them mature into the believers that God would have them be.

And I continue to be amazed at the relevance of scripture for us today.  James was one of the first New Testament letters written, probably just a few years after the death of Jesus and yet it is as practical and useful for us at Christ Fellowship as if it had been written last week.  So, let’s jump into this beautiful book face first with chapter one.  James is just after Hebrews and before 1 Peter.  Let’s look at verses 1-18 of chapter one.  I hate to leave any word of any verse out of our study of James but so that we can finish the book sometime this year, let’s look at just those verses.

James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes scattered among the nations: Greetings. ² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. ⁶ But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷ That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. ⁸ Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. ⁹ Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. ¹⁰ But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower. ¹¹ 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 will fade away even while they go about their business. ¹² Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him. ¹³ When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; ¹⁴ but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. ¹⁵ Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. ¹⁶ Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. ¹⁸ He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

Wow!  There’s a bunch of good stuff in there!  See what I mean?  It’s like sitting down to Mama’s table.  There’s the fried chicken and biscuits and mashed potatoes and gravy; the corn on the cob, the mac and cheese, the green bean casserole and the sweet potatoes that taste like dessert.  And just when you think you can’t eat any more she brings out the pecan pie with ice cream.  Oh, my, now some of your stomachs are starting to growl and you are thinking about what you’re going to have for lunch but don’t go there just yet.  Hear me out.

Because if you sat down to that great meal with an infant, that baby is not going to want to eat any of that good stuff.  All that baby is going to want to have is milk.  But as we mature we start to eat other things.  We eat solid foods just like what James is feeding us here.  This is for Christians who want to mature to become more like Jesus.  And to do that I want us to see something special in this passage.

What is one of the things that a baby does to let you know they are maturing?  One of the things they do is to stand.  That’s a big deal for a baby.  The day a baby stands up on his own is a day that Mama will mark on a calendar.  It’s a special thing to see a baby stand.  But when he does it the first time, he is wobbly and shaky and unsure.  Pretty soon his legs give out and he falls down.

But if we can devour and digest what James is giving us here, I want us to see that we can stand with confidence.  We can have a confident stand against trials that come from without and against temptations that come from within.  1 Peter 5:8 says the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  And if you put a baby in front of that lion, that baby is going to fall over and curl up in the fetal position and start crying.  But we as mature Christians can stand confidently against that prowling lion and in the name of Jesus we can overcome him.

Paul says in Ephesians 6 that we are to put on the full armor of God and when we do we are to what?  We are to stand.  He says it several times.  Put on the belt of truth, the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness and stand your ground.  He says when we have done everything we are supposed to do, then we stand.  And we can stand confidently, not because of who we are or what we have done but because we are standing behind the One in whom we have confidence.

And James says we can stand confidently when trials come our way.  He says in verse 2 to consider it all pure joy when we face trials of many kinds.  Now how is that possible?  We have all read this scripture a hundred times.  We use it to comfort each other, as we should.  We quote it and claim it; use it, peruse it and lose it.  But what does it mean and how do we do that?

James is writing from the church in Jerusalem.  He says he is writing to the 12 tribes scattered among the nations.  It’s not literally just to the 12 tribes.  It is to all the Christians that have been scattered since the first church started.  When Stephen was martyred, the church really started to see oppression.  They were suffering loneliness, grief, hardship, rejection and frustration.  Does any of that sound like what you are going through today?

We know that going through a trial is not a sin.  In fact, God allows us to go through trials to make us more mature.  Whether it is a trial that comes from the outside or a temptation that comes from within, that is not sin.  The sin comes from handling the trial or temptation incorrectly.  The King James says it well that we “fall into” these trials.  The picture is of a man walking along feeling fine – high, wide and handsome as Adrian Rogers would say - and then he falls into a hole.  That happens to all of us and not just Christians but unbelievers as well.

He says “when” you fall, not “if” you fall into trials of all kinds.  My trials are not like your trials necessarily.  1 Peter 4:12 says, “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.”  Be ready for it.  Have a plan now for how you are going to react to it because it is coming. And this kind of testing is sent by God to cause you to stand.  But you have a choice.

 

My friend Robert Miller had a choice.  Y’all prayed for Robert many times.  He was going through a trial that way too many fall into.  He was going along, high wide and handsome as anybody and then one day the doctor told him he had cancer.  Robert and I would call each other pretty often as the cancer worsened.  And every time I would ask him if there was anything I could do for him and he would say that he didn’t need a thing.

Robert was, as verse 4 says, “mature and complete, not lacking anything.”  But do you know what he would ask for?  He would ask for me to pray for wisdom for him.  He didn’t ask for me to pray for healing, although I did.  No, he asked for wisdom to know how better to make the name of Jesus famous through this trial.  And do you know where he got that idea?  Look at verse 5.  We sometimes separate verse 5 from verse 4 but James makes it all one thought. 

Verse 5 says that if you lack wisdom, you should ask God for it.  And we can separate those verses and just ask God for wisdom because we know that God wants us to have wisdom about every aspect of our lives but James says it in context of our going through trials and wanting to be mature.  “God please show me what you would have me to do in this.  How can I become more mature through this?  Tell me, Lord, not when am I going to get through this but what am I going to get through this and how can I become more like Jesus as I persevere through it?  Give me wisdom.”

When we can honestly say that, we can stand confidently against any trial.  And I am telling you right now that is not something that a baby Christian or especially a non-Christian can do.  That’s why when you see it in somebody it is so rare.  And that is what is most attractive about Christians to non-Christians.  We wonder why people are not drawn to the church like they used to.  It’s because when most Christians fall into trials they fall over into the fetal position and start crying like everybody else.

James says that when trials from without come then we can stand confidently.  And then do you know what happens?  Look at verse 12.  “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.”  Revelation 2:10 says, “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor's crown.”

I’ll be honest with you.  I don’t know what the crown of life is.  I don’t believe anybody really does this side of Heaven.  I believe it is a gift or a reward that God will give to those who stand confidently in the face of trials but I can tell you what it is not.  It is not eternal life.  We can’t work our way to Heaven.  We can’t deserve eternal life in Heaven.  That is given by grace to all who believe in Jesus and call on His name for salvation.

But think about this.  Jesus understands what you are going through.  He knows trials and temptations we face and He knows how tough they can be.  So when He says He is going to give you a reward for standing confidently, that is all He has to say.  It tells me that when we stand confidently against the trials that we fall into that we can be mature and complete, not lacking anything on this side of Heaven and we will be rewarded on that side.  That’s enough for me to know.

Now let’s look at what it means to stand confidently against the temptations that come our way.  Look at verses 14 and 15.  “but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. ¹⁵ Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”  Now while trials come from without, temptation comes from within.

Now you may say that person tempted me.  He tempted me or she tempted me but James says that temptation comes from our own evil desires.  That’s why some things are tempting to me and not to you and vise-versa.  And as a mature Christian we sometimes still sin.  I sometimes hear people say that we all sin every day.  Really?  Well we don’t have to.  In fact, if you sin every day you are not a mature Christian.  But sometimes even mature Christians do sin but when you do, how do you feel?  It should really bother you.  Some of you know.  You didn’t want to sin before you did it.  You didn’t want to sin while you were doing it and you regretted doing it when it was done.  You know how it feels when James talks about being dragged away and enticed.

It’s a bad feeling.  You regret it.  You don’t want to do it again.  So you repent of it; you agree with God that it is sin and you turn away from that sin to go in the direction God wants you to and you ask Him for forgiveness of that sin.  But some of us have to do that way too often.

Did you ever get caught red-handed doing something wrong as a kid?  I sure did.  When your parents confronted you about it what did you say?  You blamed it on anything or anybody that you could, didn’t you?  He made me.  I couldn’t help it.  Everybody else is doing it.  I had too.  Right?

And we do the same thing sometimes with God.  And like the good Father that He is, He gently reminds us of 1 Corinthians 10:13 that says, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”  In other words, all your protests are invalid.      

When James says in verse 16, “Don’t be deceived”, he is saying quit deceiving yourself.  God didn’t tempt you and you didn’t have to do it.  You made the choice to sin.  Sin is always a choice.  God doesn’t give us temptation.  James says what we get from God is always good and perfect, like that crown of life that He promised us.

In his book The Weight of Glory, C.S. Lewis notes how believers often underestimate the full riches God has for His children.  "...If we consider...the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that our Lord finds our desires, not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures...like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased."

James tells us we can stand confidently against the trials from without and the temptations from within.  And when we do we have everything we need in this life and rewards in the next life.  You can have confidence in that fact and when you do you show rare maturity.

But you will never have any of that if you never give your life to Jesus.  You will struggle with no hope all your life only to find that when you stand before God at that frightening judgment seat that He is also a just judge.  And that whatever decision you make on this earth will affect your eternity.  Please don’t wait.  We are not guaranteed another breath.