Managing Christian Trials-3

MANAGING CHRISTIAN TRIALS-III—James 1:1-27

Attention:

A Shipping Clerk at a factory, discovered a box that was left on the loading dock with this warning printed on it: DANGER DO NOT TOUCH!

Management was called & all employees were told to stay clear of the box until it could be analyzed.

When the foreman arrived, he donned gloves & safety glasses, & then, very carefully opened the box. Inside were 25 signs that read: DANGER! DO NOT TOUCH!

Likewise, Christians are expected to effectively manage their difficulties.

James divulged the proper management of trials which were endemic/common to Christians.

There are proper ways of managing the those difficulties.

How are Christians to manage their trials properly?

In previous weeks, we have seen that Tackling trials properly, involves managing...

1—SOURCES of GUIDANCE(:1)

2—JOY(:2-3)

3—PATIENCE(:3-4)

4—WISDOM(:5)

5—DOUBT(:6-8)

6—STATUS(:9-11)

7—ENDURANCE(:12)

8—Tackling trials properly, involves managing...

TEMPTATION(:13-18)

Explanation:(:13-18)

:13—“Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.”

Parallel: Rom. 9:18-24—“Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, & whom He wills He hardens.[He brings about “mercy” &/or “hardening” by a person’s faith] You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?” But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor & another for dishonor? What if God, wanting to show His wrath & to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, & that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory, even us whom He called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?”

In facing spiritual trials, the Christian must endure the temptation without directing blame toward God. When one falls into circumstances that challenge his physical & spiritual existence, one is further tempted to say that God is at fault for allowing or engineering the difficulty. & thus by association/default, that God Himself is somehow “tempted by evil” to act.

No one should ever reach the above conclusion for it glorifies human reasoning—denying the truth— & is thus blasphemous. This is because the fact remains that “God cannot be tempted by evil”. That is, an outward force of evil cannot “tempt” God to act.

We immediately are reminded of Job 1:6-12 & 2:1-6, where Satan(in sin) seemingly ‘tempts’ God...to act. However upon further examination, this is not true. It is a half-truth. Rather, God is confident of Job’s trust & declares it. God then acts within His perfect knowledge of Job’s faith, his situation & the many future blessings which will arise/blossom(Job’s as well as untold numbers of his experiencers & readers)because of it. However, God does not act out of temptation by Satan. He acts out of His knowledge of the strength of saving faith.

God gives Satan limited & restricted permission who then takes everything he can squeeze out of it regardless of life. Satan has no qualms about destruction. But faith overrides destruction.

Likewise we can respond to temptation properly within God’s desire.

Consequently, God does not “tempt anyone”.

Gen. 3:6, 12, 17—“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, & a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit & ate. She also gave to her husband with her, & he ate.”....“Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, & I ate.””....“Then to Adam He said, “Because you have heeded the voice of your wife, & have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it’: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil you shall eat of it All the days of your life.”

“Tempted”(See :12)—peirazw v.—1)To try whether a thing can be done—1a)To attempt, endeavour; 2)To try, make trial of, test: for the purpose of ascertaining his quality, or what he thinks, or how he will behave himself—2a)In a good sense, 2b)In a bad sense, to test one maliciously, craftily to put to the proof his feelings or judgments, ...by enticement to sin...By impious or wicked conduct to test God's justice & patience, & to challenge him, as it were to give proof of his perfections.

“Cannot be tempted” (used here only)—apeirastov—That can not be tempted by evil, not liable to temptation to sin.

“Evil”—kakov—1)Of a bad nature—1a)Not such as it ought to be; 2)Of a mode of thinking, feeling, acting—2a)Base, wrong, wicked; 3) Troublesome, injurious, pernicious, destructive, baneful.