The Testing of a Pilgrim's Faith

The Testing of a Pilgrim's Faith

Produces Perseverance

James 1:2-4

Preached by L Going at WACC – October 29, 2000

“Consider it all joy whenever you face trials.” What a way to begin a letter! Now really what is your initial reaction to this admonition? Are you not a little incredulous? "Come on," you say, "the last thing I would do is consider personal difficulties to be a joy." The word consider needs to be explained. It means to view as in a certain relation, to judge, to make an assessment. The word "trials" also needs to be explained. It describes a period or process of testing. It may be translated trial, test or temptation. In fact there are three different words the New Testament uses to describe the ordeals believers go through.

HOW YOU ARE TO SEE SUCH TESTS

The nuts and bolts word is found in Romans 5:3. “And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance…” Here the word “tribulation” points to the particular sufferings or hardships you encounter. The word doesn't merely apply to the idea of persecution, but to the hardships and sufferings that are part of our fallen condition. It may be translated as trouble, distress, hard circumstances, or suffering. It emphasizes the difficulties and pain of particular afflictions.

When such things occur how are you as a Pilgrim, to view them? Are they mere chance happenings? No, they are tests. The word James uses in verse two helps us to see that the particular troubles are really tests. “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials…” They come to us ultimately by the hand of God as tests. We take tests in school to measure our learning. Tests reveal something about us. However, knowing that life's hardships are really tests, doesn't help either. Most people don't enjoy tests. I have taken many tests and I also have given tests. Even those who have prepared and studied often view tests with anxiety.

But there is another word and it is found in verse three, “knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.” This word points to the purpose of the testing. Remember, I said that tests reveal what we know or reveal something about us. Tests also can be a means to help us grow. We can speak of the testing of metal. What is meant is that the testing purifies the metal by removing the impurities and dross. This is what you have to consider whenever you face hardships. Hardships are tests designed to strengthen your faith and show it to be genuine faith.

SEEING THE VALUE OF YOUR FAITH.

Yet unless you see and believe the value of growing faith, you will have great difficulty considering hardships, troubles and suffering as tests. How valuable is your faith? Remember the tests are for the purpose of proving your faith to be genuine. Trials are tests of your faith. Remember, we said in the previous sermon on verse one that you as a Pilgrim people are to be a people of faith. This means that your strength lies not in yourselves but in the Lord God. You need to depend on him, look to him, hold fast his Word, and keep your gaze upon Christ Jesus. To do all this you need faith.

Faith is dependence upon God. When you are under pressure, if you truly have saving faith, you will be driven to whom? You will be driven to God. Faith is the means of relating to God who is invisible. By faith you can be sure of your future hope and certain of the reality of the Spiritual realm. Faith pleases God, because faith affirms in your heart that God is real and can be pursued for help. Faith really is affirmation of the faithfulness of God. This is how we really honor him.

Peter gives us one of the clearest statement of the importance and value of Faith. 1 Peter 1:7. "Faith is more valuable than gold." Gold can take a lot of testing. In fact gold needs fire to be made pure. Yet Peter says that even purified gold is destructible. It will not last forever. But a tested and proven faith results in praise, glory and honor, when Christ is revealed. How is this so? Faith is the grace to really see who is of ultimate worth and value. God is honored when we believe Him. And on that day when history reaches its climactic point, your faith will redound to the honor and glory of the triune God.

PROVEN FAITH HONORS GOD

We often talk like this: "he/she has great faith." We are impressed with people (Christian people) who evidence faith in God and his word. It is odd that we would be so. Let me put it in a different light. What if I was to say to you that I trust Bill? Would your focus be on me or on Bill? Would you say, "Gee, Lou it is great of you to have such faith in Bill?"

Or would you respond, by saying, "I don't know Bill, but he must be some kind of person, if you can trust Him." The praise for my faith in Bill would be given to whom? It would be given to Bill. So this is the case with faith in God. Trials and tests force us to exercise trust in God and when this happens we really grow in our confidence in Him. He keeps his word. Hence He is indeed worthy of praise and glory and thanks, and honor, and power and strength. (Revelation 7:12).

PROVEN FAITH IS A FAITH THAT PERSEVERES, IT BRINGS GOOD TO YOUR LIFE

So a tested faith is valuable because it brings great honor and glory to God. But a tested faith is valuable because of what the testing produces within us. It produces patient endurance or perseverance. Such endurance is needed because we are an alien people. There is no escaping the fact that as followers of Christ, you will experience tests and trials. You are like salmon, swimming against the current. Yet under the sovereign grace and providence of God, He turns such hardships into an obstacle course that is designed to build your faith. You know that your faith is growing as you see increasing endurance within you.

GOD GRANTS PERSEVERANCE
Persevering faith can be seen by examining the elements that are present without it. 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 describes how the Children of Israel, reacted to their wilderness wanderings. Remember that God led them by way of the wilderness. It was in the wilderness that they experienced hardship and testing. Yet how did they respond, did they endure. No. Why? They did not believe God; they did not look to Him and affirm His promise. The result was no staying power, no endurance. It is interesting that endurance is both the evidence of genuine faith and the fruit of genuine faith. If they had looked to God during the tests, they would have been able to endure the tests. Endurance was going to be necessary if they were to make it through the wilderness. So we need perseverance if we are to make it through the wilderness too. Such endurance comes by faith. This means that as we experience the ordeal of being an alien people, we look to God, humble ourselves before Him, claim His promises, affirm His faithfulness, we will find the grace to persevere.

Perseverance is not simply what you are called to do; it is also what God promises to produce. The text suggests that such tests are under the design of God. Note also James speaks of various tests. You are a Pilgrim people. What you all have in common is the fact that you will be tested. What is unique is that the tests vary. There is not one standardized test. Rather, the tests are tailor made for each of you. God knows exactly what kind of test you need, how many you need, when you need them etc. Also, God is the ultimate author of the tests. They may seem hard and even overwhelming; it may seem that they will be too difficult to handle; yet endurance is also the promise of God. He keeps his own and he keeps them through trial and fire.

You are called to persevere. Perseverance is the ultimate evidence of the presence of genuine saving faith. Perseverance is what God promises to give to his own.

ISA 43:1 But now, this is what the Lord says--he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. ISA 43:2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. ISA 43:3 For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior;

These words are expressed in the hymn How Firm a Foundation:

When through the deep waters I call thee to go,

The rivers of sorrow shall not thee o'er flow;

For I will be near thee, thy troubles to bless,

And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,

My grace, all sufficient shall be thy supply

The flame shall not hurt thee;

I only design thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

It is by the power of God that you are enabled to persevere through faith.

JOH 6:39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. JOH 6:40 For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

1PE 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 1PE 1:4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade--kept in heaven for you, 1PE 1:5 who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

JUD 1:24 To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy--

PHI 1:6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

So perseverance is the work of God. He gives to believers the grace to persevere, to remain faithful in the midst of the difficulties of this Pilgrim journey. Indeed, the difficulties are God-ordered trials and tests that purify our faith. So we persevere by faith.

We don't have time to bring out the role that the Scriptures have in helping you to endure and persevere. All I want to say on this point is that the Scriptures are a primary means (source) God uses to help us to endure. Turn to Romans 14:4-5.

Romans 15:4 For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. 5 Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus,

The expression “through the endurance and encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope” may be read “through the endurance and encouragement that comes from the Scriptures.” Then notice in verse 5, “May the God who gives endurance and encouragement.” How does God give you what he promises? He does this through the Scriptures. Indeed your faith in God must be directed toward His revealed word. What say the Scriptures? Do you hold fast to His word? There will be no endurance apart form the receiving, application and obedience of the Word.

Now we must also see that perseverance brings certain results into our lives. Perseverance must finish its work. Perseverance must reach its intended goal. When it does you will be mature and complete, lacking nothing. This will be realized only at the Second Coming of Christ. Nevertheless, perseverance will make a difference in your life now. It brings growth and maturity to us. Paul writes that perseverance produces character and character hope (Romans 5:4). It seems to me that James goes on in the first chapter and gives some of the marks or evidences of perseverance in the life of a believer. We want to look at each of these.

The Marks of a Persevering Faith, 1:5-18.
1. Sees the need for Wisdom, 1:5.

2. Believes if asked, God will give Wisdom due to His character, 1:6-8.

3. Understands the true status of being God's Pilgrim people in a foreign place and

time and longs for the age to come, 1:9-12.
4. Understands that temptations to sin do not come from God, but from one's own

evil desires, 1:13-15.
5. Affirms the Goodness of God in the midst of trials and temptations, 1:16-18.

In another sense the entire letter, paints a picture of what perseverance looks like, in the way believers respond to circumstances and to people.

Sermon Series on The Epistle of James

"A Letter to God's Pilgrim People about Practical Issues of Faith"