Face to Face with our Faith
James 1:9-20
Max Lucado shares a story that happened in November 2004. A group of teenagers decided it would be fun to steal a car and go for a joyride. They find a credit card, get some groceries, a 20 lb turkey, and head to the video store. There they are caught on a surveillance charging $400 dollars worth of DVDs and video games.
They take off in a freezing rain in a silver Nissan, and cross paths with Victoria Ruvolo at approximately 12:30 a.m. They are going to come face to face with the reality of their lives.
Here in our text today the Bible tells us to come face to face with our faith. Trials come into the life of the believer so that we can examine our faith. All through the Bible God’s Word tells us to examine ourselves, and we see example upon example of God testing His people to see if we really are what we say we are.
Think of these verse with me, Proverbs 24:10, “If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!” James 1:3, “Knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.” It is beneficial to us to go through adversity in our lives. God as our heavenly Father knows what is best for us and He is trying to mature us in our faith.
Adversity brings reality into our lives. Romans 12:3 reminds us, “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.” Lets face it we get prideful, we forget God is God and we are not in control.
We all need reality checks in our lives. I heard a story about a lady who was a hypochondriac, and lying in her hospital bed. She prayed God please let me live a few more years. God said, “You are fine you will live many more years.”
She got a face lift, tummy tuck, lypo, the works. Walked out of the hospital and got hit by a car and died. She stands before God. She said, “God I thought you said I would live many more years?”
God said, “I’m sorry, to tell you the truth I didn’t recognize you.”
Let’s face it we don’t know what we need, why this happened or who we are. God however, has a perfect plan to mature our faith. Faith needs testing and trials to learn to trust. We must come face to face with the reality of who we are, what we believe, and why we believe it. As someone once said, “A faith that can’t be tested can’t be trusted.” Sometimes my dear friends we must strip off the makeup take off the masks and come face to face with who we are.
So today let me give you the three reasons God allows trials in our lives.
I. The Right Perspective—(v.9-11, 17) God wants us to gain the right perspective. What we have here in these verses is a contrast between God’s perspective and the world’s perspective. The term lowly brother means of low estate. It’s the same word that is used to describe Mary the mother of the Lord Jesus. The world would have called her nobody but from God’ perspective she was somebody. Why? She was more concerned about God’s kingdom than her own situation.
But America today and the church today have a hard time with this concept. Americans shell out more for garbage bags than 90 of the 210 countries spend for everything. America has double the number of shopping malls as it does High schools. Cure for the Common Life, Max, (pg.42)
See God is trying to help us see that we must have a right perspective and money seems to be where our perspective often times looks just like the worlds. Jesus spoke more on money than He did heaven or hell. Jesus said in Matthew 6:21, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (KJV)
John D. Rockefeller was once asked, “How much money does it take to satisfy a man?” His answer was, “Just a little more.” If we really want to know a person we need only look at their checkbook. Where we spend our money definitely tells us what we really love.
The Right perspective tells that we are satisfied with what we have. Contentment is the key to unlocking the principles of money management. The Bible says in Proverbs 30:8-9, “Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the LORD?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.”
The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4:11-12, “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” (NIV) Paul died with nothing and yet he was one of the greatest men who ever lived.
However, we are easily discontented. There is a story about a farmer that has become discontented with his farm. He was sick of feeding the cows, repairing fences, the bumpy dirt roads and the lake that was stocked with fish.
He decided to sell so he contacted a real-estate agent. A few days later the agent called to get approval of the advertisement she had written. She read the add to the farmer. It described a lovely farm in an ideal location, quiet and peaceful gentle rolling hills, well bred livestock and a nourished by a fresh lake.
He said read that add again. After hearing it the second time the farmer said, “I’ve changed my mind. I’m not going to sell. I’ve been looking for a place like that all my life.”
When we gain God’s perspective that’s when blessings begin to flow. This is where v.17 comes in.
Everything we have comes from God. You believe that say Amen! We are blessed to be God’s children and when we see money as a tool to use for God’s glory that is when real blessings happen. Someone once said “You can’t take it with you.” And one thing I see in v.9-11 is people won’t remember us for how much money we had. What they’ll remember is what kind of character we had.
When I understand that living for God and giving to God focuses me on what is important in the kingdom of God. Then my perspective becomes God’s perspective and that will always be the Right Perspective.
II. The Right Purpose—(v.12-18) The purpose of the trial, of the test is to win God’s approval. The word approved means to be acceptable. Remember this is speaking of our faith not us. When trials come it is our faith that is being tried, tested and winning the approval of God.
The word blessed means to make large or make happy. It’s living large for God. It is the same word used at the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus laid down the principles for holy living. Here James outlines the principles for living the Christian life and this principle is learning to understand we will be tried and tested and even tempted to sin.
The Bible says in 1 Peter 4:12, “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you;”
(NKJ) Many times when trials come we think we have sinned or we’re being punished or we blame God. We say God I’m doing all these things and this happens to me?
The normal Christian life is filled with adversity. It is a daily battle of temptation and sometimes even tragedies. What God is saying here is through tragedy can come great triumph. The word for crown here is stephanos, the victor’s crown, the crown of triumph. God wants us to win to be more than conquerors and receive the victor’s crown.
Notice two truths here:
A. Temptation is from the enemy—(v.11-16) God is trying us to mature our faith and Satan is tempting us to sin. It is the battle between the old sin nature and the new nature we have because of what Jesus did for us on the cross.
**v.13**
No one can say well God must have wanted me to sin or else He wouldn’t have let that happen. You might have heard about the guy who was trying to lose weight, but came to the office one day with 2 dozen donuts.
His co-workers asked him why he got those donuts when he is trying to diet. He said, “Well, as I came to the corner where the donut shop was, I told God that if He wanted me to buy some donuts to have a parking space right in front of the donut shop. And sure enough the eight time around the block there it was.”
No folks, Satan tempts us not God. The temptation feeds our flesh and appeals to us. The enemy knows what to use against us. These verses make it clear that when the temptation takes root sin is born.
B. Trials impact Eternity—(v.17-18) Notice the phrase Father of lights. This is the only place in God’s Word this phrase is used. It means that God brings everything into the light. It was the first miracle of creation to command the light to shine out of the darkness. That’s precisely what God is doing in the life of the believer. He has called us out of darkness of sin and He transforms us into new creatures that radiate the light of Jesus Christ in our lives.
What we do everyday impacts eternity. How we respond to people, how we interact with others, how we endure hardships, reveal the new nature, the regenerated, recreated image of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Notice another phrase: v.18, “Word of truth.” Not only is God bringing us into the light through the fiery trial but the Word of truth exposes our obedience to Him through the trial. Now often times we don’t want the truth to be told, or exposed. Because when we are face to face with the truth about us it can be painful.
I heard a story about a lady who went on a trip to Europe. She called her husband, and asked, How’s my cat? He said, DEAD. She said, “Honey why do you have to be so honest. Why didn’t you break the news to me slowly? You’ve ruined the whole trip.”
He said, “What do you mean?” She said, “You could have told me he was on the roof. Then when I called from Paris, you could have said, he’s acting sluggish. Then when I called from London, you could have said he was sick, and when I called from New York, you could have said, he was at the vet. Then when I got home you could have said, he’s dead.”
The husband wasn’t used to this line of truth but he was willing to learn, so he said, okay I’ll do better next time. She said, “Good, by the way how’s mom?” There was a long silence, and he said, “Uh, she’s on the roof.”
The Father of lights brings us face to face with the Word of truth. This reality of who we are and where we stand with God, determines how well we understand the purpose of the trial we’re in. When we see God’s purpose we can grow in our faith and trust in Him.
I. The Right Perspective
II. The Right Purpose
III. The Right Person—(v.19-20) Just as trials come to mature us and effect the quantity of our faith, here we see that trials also effect the quality of our faith. When we face these trials in our lives we come face to face with our righteousness vs. God’s righteousness. Remember the reality of faith is not how much better we are spiritually than the next guy, mature faith, real face is how much we act like, talk like and walk like the Lord Jesus Christ.
This is a surrendering of personal rights. Many times we say I have a right to be angry, don’t you know what they did to me. I have a right to say what I think. I have a right to feel this way.
When self comes into our words and deeds, pride and anger engulf our spirit. We come face to face with who we really are and what we really believe.
Which leads us back to Victoria Ruvolo the teenagers and that 20lb. turkey. Victoria was on her way home from her 14 yr. old niece’s vocal recital. She world never remember what exactly happened but as her car approached the intersection she came face to face with the greatest trial of her life. The teenagers thought it would be funny to take that 20lb. turkey and throw it into someone’s wind-shield.
It smashes threw her windshield bends the steering wheel, and smashes her face. Eight hours of surgery, and three weeks of recovery Victoria still lay in the hospital listening to the details of her trial. Her face now stapled together by titanium plates; an eye affixed by synthetic film; a wired jaw; a tracheotomy.
The public outcry was enormous. All through Thanksgiving and Christmas the story topped the headlines. Everyone wanted just a few minutes in the room with those punks. They especially wanted Ryan Cushing, the 18 yr. old who threw the turkey.
On August 15, 2005, Ryan and Victoria met face to face in the courtroom. Nine months of reconstructive surgery on a scarred, mangled face. A trembling Ryan Cushing pleads guilty—to a lesser charge. Sentence: six months behind bars five years probation, a bit of counseling and a dash of community service. People shake their heads in righteous indignation. Is that all he gets? Let’s lock up those criminals and throw away the key! Who is responsible for this pitiful plea bargain? The victim. Victoria requested it.
Ryan weeping uncontrollably, the tough teen image washed away, enters his plea. His lawyer leads him over to Victoria, who hugs him, strokes his hair and says, “I forgive you.” “I want your life to be the best it can be.”
From God’s perspective the Cross of Calvary says to all of us I forgive you. The purpose of the trial is that the right person will shine through in the trial because Jesus died to say, I want your life to be the best it can be.
PRAY
