Fracture
Part 3- Yay, My Life Stinks!
Pastor Ryan Akers
Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do. Believers who are poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them. And those who are rich should boast that God has humbled them. They will fade away like a little flower in the field. The hot sun rises and the grass withers; the little flower droops and falls, and its beauty fades away. In the same way, the rich will fade away with all of their achievements. God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. James 1:1-12
Max Lucado, In the Eye of the Storm, Word Publishing, 1991, p. 11.
Chippie the parakeet never saw it coming. One second he was peacefully perched in his cage. The next he was sucked in, washed up, and blown over. The problems began when Chippie’’s owner decided to clean Chippie’’s cage with a vacuum cleaner. She removed the attachment from the end of the hose and stuck it in the cage. The phone rang, and she turned to pick it up. She’’d barely said "hello" when "ssssopp!" Chippie got sucked in. The bird owner gasped, put down the phone, turned off the vacuum, and opened the bag. There was Chippie -- still alive, but stunned.
Since the bird was covered with dust and soot, she grabbed him and raced to the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and held Chippie under the running water. Then, realizing that Chippie was soaked and shivering, she did what any compassionate bird owner would do . . . she reached for the hair dryer and blasted the pet with hot air. Poor Chippie never knew what hit him. A few days after the trauma, the reporter who’’d initially written about the event contacted Chippie’’s owner to see how the bird was recovering. "Well," she replied, "Chippie doesn’’t sing much anymore -- he just sits and stares." It’’s hard not to see why. Sucked in, washed up, and blown over . . . That’’s enough to steal the song from the stoutest heart.
For months we as American’s have learned the hard way what it means to get sucked in, washed up and blown over. I imagine there are some here today who are feeling like this. Life has not been easy. Turn on the television and all you see is negativity. Negativity in the stock market, politics, negativity in job reports, negativity in the lack of consumer spending. Left and right people are hurting. They are losing their jobs, retirement funds have vanished. Within our own church it pains me to watch many of you get sucked in, washed up and blown over with the difficulties and the uncertain futures you are facing. Some of you have had to deal with the realities of being laid off and wondering how your bills are going to get paid, how your going to put food on the table. And what hurts the most is when you come to me and I don’t know what to say to you.
I can look at you and say, “Well brother cheer up! God is good! Everything will be alright!” Then I can pray for you, but deep down I know what your probably thinking is, “Well prayer is fine but how is that going to pay my mortgage or put food on the table?” When these difficult times hit us then we usually start blaming God. And we look at God and say, “God, what in the world? I believed in you, I put my hope and my faith in you but look where I am. I lost my job, I can’t pay my bills, I am constantly fighting with my spouse. Where are you? If you are such a great and awesome God and a God that says you love me so much then why aren’t you helping me!? Why do I feel like you are so far away? Why do I feel like you have left me alone to fend for myself?”
If we are honest with each other today I think most if not all would say that either right now or at least some time in our lives we have felt exactly like this. That when life stinks God feels so far away. Why? We know God is powerful. He created all that is good. We know He has plenty. God doesn’t run out of money. All God would need to do is speak and our problems could go away. A job would magically appear, money would just show up in our mailbox, our cancer would be healed.
But he doesn’t work like that does he? And because we know God doesn’t work like that we tend to lose hope and faith. And instead of getting on our knees in repentance and prayer we run to the first thing that will take our pain away. “Well if God won’t help me get rid of the pain then I need something that will at least dull it.” And so we run to all this stuff….drugs, alcohol, pornography, shopping, work, TV, or we just do our best to totally avoid anything God might be associated with. We put these things in place of where God should be because these things will bring us instant pleasure. They help us forget about the pain that we are facing in our realities.
Let me give you a truth that is really hard for us to believe. Bad things happen to people because of sin. And the only one to blame for sin is us. We are the ones who choose evil. We are the ones who chose to separate ourselves from God starting at the Garden of Eden. And because of that choice life stinks. People will struggle and hope will seem forever away at times. But I am so thankful that despite my sin and my wickedness God has given me something that will always overshadow the pain that creeps up in life. Salvation in Jesus Christ. If you have ever challenged God in whether he really loves and cares about you and your life then you have never heard about His son dying on the cross for our sins. There has never been a greater act of love for a sinful people such as us than when God’s only Son took on human flesh and was willingly nailed to a tree so that none would perish but that all would come to repentance. A perfect sacrifice who took on all the sins of all the world for all time so that every single person sitting in this room would have an opportunity to spend eternity in the presence of God and ALL His glory instead of the depths of Hell and eternal suffering. He has saved us from what we deserve. “Well I don’t deserve that I’m a good person.” No your not. You and I will never ever be good. Why? Because no matter how hard you try you cannot quit sinning. You cannot stop breaking God’s law.
Christ crucified is our reminder of hope. It’s our reminder of a God who loves us so much that He sacrificed his own to save us. When the trials of life are just tearing you apart Christ crucified should always be the first thing you go to in your moment of doubt. That one event is instant proof of His unconditional love for us. It is the event that gives us hope in our most difficult times of life. It is what all believers should be leaning on right now as we face an uncertain future in America. Men and women are quickly learning what Jesus taught us which is that no one can guarantee tomorrow. No one knows for certain what will be and no one can make promises they can’t control. Money and jobs vanish, but the one constant is Christ crucified. Disease and war destroy, but the one constant is Christ crucified. Homes are foreclosed and vehicles are repossessed and tragedy happens in our families but the one constant is Christ crucified.
That is why James says, “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.” Did you catch that key word? When. James guarantees problems. He is not talking about mere inconviences here. He’s not saying, “listen, make sure you remain faithful and joyful in the inconviences of life. You know like if the red light is taking forever to turn green. Just make sure you say, ‘God you are good. I am going to praise your name on high even though this light is taking forever.’” No, he is talking about having real joy in the midst of hell on earth.
This is the most backward thinking you could imagine. To have joy in the midst of tragedy. To find the good in the struggle. To give praise when you are weak. That is so backwards from any normal person’s thinking. But we are not normal. I am convinced that when Christ enters your life the definition of the word normal, according to our dictionaries, goes out the window. We are now a peculiar people. Where we don’t rely on intellect and science alone, but where we are controlled by faith. We believe in the unseen. We have hope in a higher authority. I believe that every single trial that comes to your life and mine is a test of our faith in God. Ask yourself… If life always worked out for you would you really need God? If you never had any problems what kind of faith would you really have? You wouldn’t have any because it’s only in our weak moments, our painful moments where our faith can truly grow and explode. Its in the trenches of the war where we either get exposed as spiritual frauds or are reavealed as being true soldier’s for Jesus.
Its these truths that are found directly in the bible about the guarantee of life’s difficulties that causes me to be so perplexed as to why we hear sermons that God’s desire is for you to always be happy, healthy and wealthy. Let’s look at what the bible really says…
I Peter 4:12-16 Dear friends, don’t be surprised at the fiery trials you are going through, as if something strange were happening to you. Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world. So be happy when you are insulted for being a Christian, for then the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you. If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs. But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name!
Matthew 5:11-13 “God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.
Matthew 24:9 “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers. And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other.” And my favorite is…
Romans 8:34-37 Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep. No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.”
You read scripture like that and it’s no wonder James would say, “Be joyful in your suffering.” Nobody looks forward to struggling and hurting in life but if he have any hope of having a growing relationship with God, if we have any desire to let God mold us to be who He wants us to be then we MUST struggle. It has to happen! And when these times come and we put all our hope, all our trust, all our strength into faith in God then we will have joy in pain. Because we have learned to release our burdens on to him. Jesus says in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Does that not describe some of you this morning? You are tremendously burdened. You are stressed out, tired, discouraged. Christ says, “Come to me. Let me give you rest. Find joy through your faith that I will help you through your struggles.” We need to always remember in the front, back, top and bottom of our minds that Christ has already overcome the world by conquering death and hell. Now listen to me…If Christ could conqueor death and hell, If Christ could take on the sins of the world yet come out blameless and perfect don’t you think he could handle any problem you are going through right now? If Christ has overcome death don’t you think that your problem that is causing so much pain and discouragement in your life, causing you to question your faith or question whether God is with you or not would be nothing for him? Think about that. Our problems are so easy compared to what he has conquered. What we need to be working on is our faith. Where is our faith? Christ never promised there wouldn’t trials. He promised that trials would come but when they come if we put our faith in him they will be conquerored.
If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do. James 1:5-8
The link between this request and successfully persevering through our trials is wisdom. By “wisdom” James means both the understanding of God’s ways and the approach we take to life that comes with this understanding. If we ask God for wisdom then he can give us the knowledge we lack in understanding our maturing process and why he allows us to go through the difficulties we do. One pastor wrote, “Wisdom is the ability to understand the ways of life and how God utilizes them for our redemptive good.” If you look at this text carefully James give a warning. Basically he says when you ask do not doubt. Asking God to supply to us what is lacking in our understanding of why things are the way they are cannot be made or given while we are in a state of unbelief. When we doubt God James says we are like an unsettled wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Our loyalties are divided between God and the world. We are always going back and forth saying one day, “God is good and awesome and I love him.” Then the next day, “God hates me and isn’t there for me, where is God?” How could God ever work in someone whose faith waver’s all the time? He can’t.
Being a person that waver’s towards God and away from God will put you in danger of being vulnerable to external forces. We will be filled with doubt and there will always be this constant inward debate within ourselves as to whether God can really provide what we are asking for in prayer. A person who has wavering faith is a person who will keep their options open. If God doesn’t answer their prayer then God must not be there and God doesn’t care so I will now try to fix my problem my way or I will dull the pain through drugs, alcohol, shopping, work etc… They’re thinking is if God doesn’t answer when I want or do it when I want then I will go to something else. But the person of true faith is the one who says regardless of how long it takes I will trust God and persevere. I will not waver. Those are the people that God is able to put His wisdom in and those are the people who will have full understanding of what it means to have joy in difficult circumstances.
One author also says, “The mere existence of doubts about life and about God does not make us double-minded people. What James is talking about here is doubt that is produced by halfheartedness or divided affections. The failure to fully commit ourselves to God and to His way for our lives is to choose a life of instability, ups and downs—not unlike the waves of the sea.” Everyone in this room will have times of doubt especially when we are going through real struggles that cause high emotion and stress. But the doubt that condemns us as believers is the doubt that arises because our hearts are divided. A faith that is not fully committed to God is not a faith at all. It is a false religion. It is always doomed to fail. Jesus said it clearly you cannot serve two masters. You must love one and despise the other. He said you can’t love God and love money. He said if you want to be his disciples you must be willing to hate everything of this world including your family. A fully committed disciple of Christ is one that allows nothing to stand between you and God.
Believers who are poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them. And those who are rich should boast that God has humbled them. They will fade away like a little flower in the field. The hot sun rises and the grass withers; the little flower droops and falls, and its beauty fades away. In the same way, the rich will fade away with all of their achievements. God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. James 1:9-12
James throws this final part in to remind us that the wealthy are not exempt from trials themselves and that wealth is not something we should think would solve all our problems. Poverty and wealth are not signs of God’s disapproval or approval. Both groups face tremendous trials. Both wish they had the problems of the other. James want to assure those that are financially struggling that changing your material circumstances is not the answer to your problems. The answer to life’s greatest challenge is to develop perseverance in the midst of those trials. And we might think, “Yeah but if I just had enough to pay off my debt.” The problem is because we are sinners we will never have enough. We will never be happy. We will always want more. Money comes and goes, it can be taken just as fast as it was earned so to put our hope in money is only setting us up for dissapointment and failure.
If we would just put our full faith in God then we wouldn’t need to “borrow” our way through it. If we would ask for wisdom we wouldn’t need to search out self-made solutions. Its about fighting against that inner debate that inner doubt and learning to fully embrace faith. To really depend on God to meet our needs. To help us survive through all struggles that are thrown at us. James closes this passage with a promise to us. To the one who perseveres there will be a crown of glory. To the ones who put all their heart, soul, mind and strength in Jesus there will be great reward.
Those are the people who will pass the test of perseverance through trials. When you pass the test you will be a blessed and happy person because you were able to stand firm. You didn’t waver. By standing firm you have been approved to receive that crown in heaven. There is no way to pass the test apart from allowing God to use trials and test in life to shape us and mature us into complete persons. If you don’t have the cross you can’t have the crown. Your struggles are difficult now, to some of you they seem unbeatable but they must happen. This is God’s method to help us persevere. There is no alternative to perseverance for those who follow the path of true religion. But this hard truth is balanced by the promise of eternal blessing in the form of the crown of life. Meaning there is something far greater for us to work towards then anything this world has to offer. Revelation 2:10 says, “Don’t be afraid of what you are about to suffer. The devil will throw some of you into prison to test you. You will suffer for ten days. But if you remain faithful even when facing death, I will give you the crown of life.” Wealth will pass away, earthly possessions will pass away but the blessings of true religion will always remain. I hope and pray you will put your complete faith and trust in God this morning. Let Him be your guide, your rock through your trials. “Trust in God with all your heart, do not lean on your own understanding and he will make your paths straight.”
Prayer
