A Faith that Works...in Trials

REFLECTION QUOTES

“Peace does not dwell in outward things, but in the heart prepared to wait trustfully and quietly on Him who has all things safely in His hands.”

“The will of God is not something you add to your life. It’s a course you choose. You either line yourself up with the Son of God…or you capitulate to the principle which governs the rest of the world.”

~Elisabeth Elliott (1926-2015), author, speaker and missionary

“If you are poor in spirit (feel far from God), mourning, meek (humble, restraining temper), hunger and thirst for righteousness, and merciful…God’s favor is on you.”

“If dependency on a God is the goal, weakness is the advantage.”

~Lecrae, hip hop artist and songwriter

“Contentment is submitting and taking pleasure in God’s [will]. A contented heart looks to and submits to God’s [will], that is, he sees the wisdom of God in everything. In his submission, he sees His sovereignty; but what makes him take pleasure in God’s wisdom? [It is this:] the Lord knows how to order things better than I. I only see things at present, but the Lord sees a great while from now. And how do I know but that had it not been for this affliction, I should have been undone! I know that the love of God may as well stand with an afflicted condition as with a prosperous condition.”

~Jeremiah Burroughs (1599-1646), The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment

“Above all the graces and gifts of the Holy Spirit which Christ gives to His friends is that of conquering oneself and willingly enduring sufferings, insults, humiliations, and hardships for the love of Christ.”

~Richard J. Foster, author and theologian in the Quaker tradition

SERMON PASSAGE

James 1:1-12 (ESV)

1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,

To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion:

Greetings.

2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

9 Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, 10 and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.