November 23, 2003
Morning Worship
Text: James 1:2-8
Subject: True Faith
Title: What Have We Missed?
A story is told about a mountain climber with great ambition who had a lofty goal of climbing a mountain near his home. He was desperate to complete his climb and after years of training and planning began the climb. But seeking to gain glory for himself alone, he decided to make the climb alone. As he climbed, he began to realize that he would not complete his feat before dark. He was not prepared to camp so he decided to continue climbing. Soon it was dark. There was no moon. Clouds obscured the stars. All that he could see was all consuming darkness that enveloped him. As he groped his way toward the top, nearing the completion of his climb, his feet slipped on some loose granite and he fell into the vast darkness. Just as he was sure death had come, he was jolted to reality. Like any good mountain climber, he had driven a peg and tied off the safety line, which, though nearly tearing him in half, had just saved his life. Suspended in darkness, he did the only thing he knew to do – he held on to the rope with all he had and cried out “God save me – help me!”
God heard his cry and answered with, “Do you think I am able to save you?”
“Of course. You are God. Save me!”
“Then take your knife and cut the rope that is holding you up.”
The man stared blankly and silently into the darkness, holding on to the rope more tightly than before.
The next morning the rescue squad found the man, frozen to death, suspended at the end of his safety rope – two feet off the ground.
One of the things that I am concerned about – both personally and as a pastor – is, how much are we missing out on because we can’t see what God has in store for us? Paul tells us that as Spirit filled believers we are to walk by faith and not by sight. But I wonder if we have ever been left stranded just a few feet from safety because we wouldn’t let go of the rope.
This morning I want to take you to James chapter 1 to look at the things that might limit us in receiving all that God has for us.
First - We can be blinded by our circumstances.
Second -We are definitely limited in our knowledge.
Third -We are often restricted by our doubts.
I don’t have any doubt that when we begin to operate in the spiritual realm the way this passage says we can, there is nothing that can stop us from being everything God wants us to be.
I. BLINDED BY OUR CIRCUMSTANCES (2-4)
A. You will fall into trials. Notice that James understands trials as inevitable. He does not say if you fall into trials, but “when” you fall into various trials. The Greek word for trials peirasmois refers to persecution or troubles brought on by the world or Satan. If anyone ever told you that when you became a Christian that all your troubles would come to an end, they were mistaken. Actually, when you accept Christ your troubles with the world are just beginning. Romans 5:1-5a, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character, and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint…” Once you are a Christian you don’t have to go looking for trials – they will find you. There is nothing that Satan would like better than to steal away one of these baby Christians. Our faith can only reach maturity when faced with difficulty and opposition. Perhaps that is why Christianity in America is in a decline. In this land of the free there seems to be no opposition. Therefore, we are not maturing at the rate that the church needs to. Trust me, when you begin to feel pressure from the world, you can take that as a good sign. Consider it all joy.
B. You will benefit from trials. (vs 3) Paul says that trials produce perseverance. Romans 5:3. James says it produces patience. It is interesting to note that the word translated “patience” is actually carries a more forceful meaning. It refers to tenacity – the ability to hang on. It is what I call the “bulldog mentality”. William Barclay says, “It is the quality that enables a man to stand on his feet facing the storm”. It is only in the struggle against the opposition that arises that spiritual stamina is developed. We don’t necessarily rejoice in the trials themselves, but in the results that they bring. Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:6-7, “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory, at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” .
C. Riding the storm out. (vs 4) Patience or perseverance has a work to accomplish. This work is only accomplished through perseverance. As Jesus spoke to the seven churches in Revelation, He encouraged each one to be “overcomers”. This word means to gain the victory. How do you gain the victory? By persevering. When patience has its perfect work, we become mature (sanctification). We aren’t made perfect through this perseverance but we are continually moved toward perfection. Nowhere does the Bible indicate that we become perfect in this life. In fact, Paul tells us that perfection doesn’t come till we see Jesus “face to face”. 1 Corinthians 13:12, “Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.” When is that? “When that which is perfect has come…” (verse 10) So, perseverance brings maturity and helps us to gain a balance of all the graces and strengths needed to walk the Christian walk. Often we get so caught up in our circumstances that we fail to see that there is a benefit to be gained by them. We try to stand in the face of opposition in our own strength. That does not bring maturity. It brings failure. But when we recognize our own weakness and then stand in God’s strength, it is then we can honestly say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
II. LIMITED IN OUR UNDERSTANDING
A. Ask God. Are you lacking in wisdom? James is still talking about getting through trials. The inference is that if you are going through trials, you do lack wisdom. How many of us have gone through difficult times and the first thing that comes to mind is, “Why?”. If we had the wisdom we needed the first thing we would say is, “God, How can I get through this?”. Our sinful nature continues to move us to place the emphasis on self. Once we understand how our sinful nature affects our thinking, we can turn from it and ask God for wisdom. What do we miss out on simply because we don’t ask? James says, “You have not because you ask not…” Jesus instructed us to, “ask, seek, knock…” and “Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” And, “whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” So, our scriptural instruction is to ask! Notice that we don’t ask God to bail us out, but that He would get us through our trials.
B. Understand God. God gives to all… liberally. Liberally means “bountifully”. God doesn’t hold anything back. If you ask, He will give it – abundantly. We tend to look at things from a human perspective. We ask and our vision becomes clouded. We settle for far less than what God wants to give. This passage refers particularly to wisdom, but later on, we’ll see that it is not limited to wisdom. Jesus said, “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.” We understand this to mean the baptism in the Holy Spirit, but it is not limited to that. It is true for all spiritual gifts. God gives liberally and without reproach. That means that God doesn’t get angry when we ask. Whether it is wisdom or spiritual gifts or our perceived needs, he wants us to ask. Because He gives liberally then, the problem seems to be on our end. We don’t ask for everything He wants us to have. “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” What God has prepared He wants us to have. Paul wrote, “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly, abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us. Now, seeing God’s nature when it comes to giving, we can ask for whatever we desire and it shall be ours. If we really love the Lord, our desires line up with His will for our lives.
C. Then we can trust God. The bumper sticker says, “God said it, I believe it, and that settles it.” The end of verse 5 says, “and it will be given to him.” Again, James is speaking of wisdom. Do you want to understand about the trials you are going through? Do you want to be able Stand against the wiles of the devil? Do you want to be an overcomer? God says you can. If you ask it will be given to you. We ought to live our lives just the way the bumper sticker says. If God said it, you can believe that it is true. One thing that can keep us from receiving when we ask is asking with wrong motives. That means not asking in God’s will. Another thing that will prevent us from receiving is asking half-heartedly.
III. RESTRICTED BY OUR FAITH (vs 6-8)
A. Asking in faith. Verse 6 says we should ask in faith with no doubting. Needless to say, real faith has no doubt. Faith is more than just acceptance to some creed or religious dogma. Faith is believing that the One who promises is able to give what has been requested. “No doubt” emphasizes the strength of the faith we are to have. The power to receive is not in our faith but in the giver. The word doubt here in the Greek describes one who is torn between two opinions. One moment he is giving a whole-hearted “yes” in faith, the next minute the “no” of unbelief. He is like the wave of the sea who one minute is riding the highest crest and the next is in the deepest trough. The prayer of faith the moves God to respond is unwavering faith. Edna Butterfield writes, “My husband, Ron, once taught a class of mentally impaired teenagers. Looking at his students’ capabilities rather than their limitations, Ron got them to play chess, restore furniture and repair electrical appliances. Most important, he taught them to believe in themselves. Young Bobby soon proved how well he had learned that last lesson. One day he brought in a broken toaster to repair. He carried the toaster tucked under one arm, and a half-loaf of bread under the other.” That is faith.
B. Receiving in faith. (vs7) This is the passage that tells me that this concept does not apply to wisdom alone. “For let not than man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord.” That does not limit us to asking for wisdom only. We can ask anything. This just reinforces what Jesus taught us in Mark 11:24 and John 14. I think this is the most exciting thing that we can get out of scripture. We can ask in faith, without doubting and believe that God will answer prayer. Do you want to receive healing? Ask for it in faith. Do you want to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit? Ask the Father! Do you want to receive provision? You get the picture. But don’t let doubt enter in. Remember the story in Mark 9 about the boy who was demon possessed? Jesus told the boy’s father, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes. Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, ‘Lord I believe. Help my unbelief.” This is not to be confused with being double minded. The double minded person is one who says “I believe” one minute and then turns around with, “I’m not sure.” Or, “I believe, but…” The one who said, “Lord help my unbelief” was not bouncing back and forth between belief and unbelief. He recognized the weakness of his faith and was intent on believing so he asked the One who could help him. In spite of his weak faith, he had set his mind to believe. And Jesus responded to his faith and healed his son. But the double minded is unstable in all that he does. Not just in his spiritual life but in his personal life, his business life and his social life. Indecisiveness negated his effectiveness. Now we can definitely see the need for God’s wisdom. Not just for perseverance in our spiritual lives but in every aspect of our life.
Perseverance through trials helps mature us. Satan will attack when we are being effective Christians. We go through trials that are the course of nature i.e. the loss of a loved one or personal injuries. When we attempt to run the course on our own, we miss out on the growth process that the Lord wants us to go through. He does not bring bad things on us, but He wants us to rely on Him by asking for His wisdom to get us through. His wisdom comes through revelation of His word. It comes to us through supernatural gifts. It comes to us and all we have to do is ask in faith.
When a traveler in the early days of the west, came to the Mississippi, he discovered there was no bridge. Fortunately, it was winter and the great river was sheeted over with ice. But the traveler was afraid to trust himself to it, not knowing how thick it was. Finally, with infinite caution, he crept on his hands and knees and managed to get halfway over. And then he heard--yes he heard singing from behind. Cautiously he turned, and there, out of the dusk, came another traveler, driving a four-horse load of coal over the ice, singing as he went!
Faith doesn’t creep along on the ice on all fours. Faith believes that God has made promises and that He alone is able to perform what He has said He will do. We will fail but God’s word is trustworthy to the end.
