Being Faithful In An Unfaithful World Series

Cell #17-- James 1:2-4

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,

3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.

4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. (NIV)

4. In James 1:3, I want you to circle the word, "faith." It speaks of more than just faith as we typically think of it. Could it be that part of the issue here is not only the testing of our faith, but also of our faithfulness. Let me show you what I mean.

Cell #18--

The word translated "faith" is the same word as Faithfulness.

5. While it’s true that the testing of our faith produces perseverance, it’s also true that the testing of our faithfulness produces perseverance as well. We are not only called to be people of faith, we are also called to be people of faithfulness. When we withstand the temptation to be unfaithful we’re taking a step toward the perseverance spoken about in James 1:3.

6. We each face the challenge of being faithful. Many couples decide to live together without the benefit of marital commitment. They want to keep their options open & they don’t want to get hurt. Ironically, they nearly guarantee the very thing they are so anxious to avoid. Even secular studies show that couples who live together before they marry are significantly more likely to end up divorced.

7. Faithfulness is doing the right thing, whether it’s in style or out of style. It’s being faithful to remain sexually pure, whether it’s currently in style or not. I frequently hear of adults who want their children or grandchildren to have high standards sexually, but who aren’t faithful to those same standards themselves. We all need to be morally faithful!

8. Faithfulness is doing the right thing when it comes to our spiritual commitments as well. Now is the time when we are faced with the challenge of whether we’ll be faithful to the things we’ve learned during the last 40 days. The benefits of 40 Days of Purpose will become evident if we are faithful to what God has challenged us to do. Faithfulness is reading your Bible & setting aside time to pray & let God speak to you. We often lose sight of the big picture. We may never be rewarded for our faithfulness here, but in eternity, we will be given our due.

In his book, Talking to My Father, Ray Steadman tells the story of a missionary couple who served abroad many years ago. They eventually returned to the United States with their health gone & broke. They happened to be on the ship that former president Teddy Roosevelt was on as he returned from a big game hunt. When their ship docked in New York, the former president received an exceptional homecoming. The missionary work was much more significant, but no crowds greeted them. When the man told his wife how he felt overlooked she encouraged him to go into their bedroom & tell the Lord. When he came out a short time later he had a completely different attitude about the whole thing. He said, "The Lord settled it with me by showing me that we aren’t home yet. They too would experience a homecoming one day. It wouldn’t be crowds who greeted them when they arrived. When they got to heaven, the Lord Himself would greet them. 6 That realization makes all the difference for us!