Well, praise the Lord. If you take your Bibles and turn with me to the book of James, We are continuing our preaching through this book and we're calling the series life after faith life after faith. If you take your Bible term to James chapter one, if you're able, please stand together and let's read the scriptures together. James chapter number one, and we'll begin reading in verse one. says James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ to the 12 tribes which are scattered abroad greeting. My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into diverse temptations, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience, but let patience have her perfect work That ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. I wanted to speak to you this morning on the thought turning trials into triumphs. Turning your trials into triumphs. You may be seated and may the Lord bless the preaching of his word. Josiah Henson was a former slave who escaped to Canada back in the 1800s. He became a very important figure in the abolitionist movement. But once Henson was introduced to the Archbishop of Canterbury, And the bishop was so impressed with Hanson's manners and his speech that he asked which university he had had Henson attended. Henson responded that he attended the University of Adversity. Have you enrolled in that particular university? The University of Adversity? While it is natural not to enjoy or not to appreciate adversity, for God's people, the things which try us and the things which test us are the things that make us spiritually strong and eventually form us into the people that we should be. And maybe this morning you have found yourself Encased in troubles encased in trials and you're surrounded with much adversity You are surrounded with much affliction Well in the opening verses of James he speaks to us about our trials and he shows us how we can turn our trials into triumphs and how we can turn our defeats into victory Now remember, as we looked at last Sunday morning, we looked at just that one verse, and we saw that James writes this letter to Jewish Christians who had been dispersed in the first century. And if you recall in Acts chapter 7, that after Stephen was killed just outside of Jerusalem, Believers were scattered throughout the Roman world at that time. Acts chapter 8 tells us that there was a great persecution that took place against the early church. And you see, James is writing to Christian Jews scattered outside Palestine. He was writing to those who had been dispersed. He was writing to those who had to leave their homes. He was writing to folks who had to leave their jobs and leave their houses and their property. It was writing to those under persecution in order to teach them how to deal with the stress and pressures of life. The people who read this letter were literally hanging by a thread. Men had lost their jobs and their source of dignity. Women were at their wit's end. losing a sense of security. And consequently, James' first words to them were about how to deal with stress and how to deal with pressures and trials. You see, James seeks to show them and to us that trials should not be viewed as a foe, but as a friend. If we're going to turn trials into triumphs, there are some things we need to take heart this morning. Number one, we need to know and realize that there is a reality that we must face. There is a reality we must face. Did you notice what James says? He says, my brethren counted all joy when Not if, but when. And you see, the Christian who expects the Christian life to be easy is going to be shocked. And even the Lord Jesus himself, Jesus warned his disciples, he said, in this world ye shall have tribulation, John 16, 33. Paul told his converts in Acts chapter 14 that we must through much affliction Enter into the kingdom of God so because we are God's scattered people as verse 1 tells us and Not God's sheltered people we must experience trials The fact is There are three kinds of people in the world. There are three kinds of people in this room this morning. There are those who are getting ready to go into a trial. There are those who are just coming out of a trial. And there are those in here this morning who are smack dab right in the middle of a trial. That is a reality that we must face. Now I know that there is a popular teaching today that states once you become a Christian, it's all honey and no bees. It's all flowers and no trees. But being a Christian does not exempt us from troubles and trials. Notice that word temptations there. That word temptations speaks of trials and testing. You see in trials, And in testing, God is aiming at your maturity. God always tests us to bring out the best in us. Now in James chapter one and verse two, James is using the word trial to mean outward trial or test. James tells us that these trials are many times stressful. And he teaches us so vividly here that trials are definite. They're definite. Again, he says, my brethren counted all joy, when? The point is that trials are predictable. They are inevitable, they are unavoidable. And that is what the Bible teaches. Now some present day preachers, are propagating a theology that is absolutely foreign to the Bible. They tell their followers that the cause of their sickness or the cause of their trial is because of some sin in their life or the classic lack of faith. But yet all the New Testament writers remind us that trials will come. Peter puts it like this. Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial, which is to try you as though some strange thing happened unto you. Peter tells us not to think it strange or be surprised when trials come your way. And do you remember what Paul said to young Timothy? Second Timothy chapter three, verse 11. Persecutions, afflictions, which come unto me at Antioch and Iconium, at Lystra, what persecutions I endured, but out of them all the Lord delivered me. You see, the Lord delivered Paul out of trials, not from the trials. Do you understand me this morning that we will never grow out of the possibility of facing trials? Joseph in the Old Testament was a man of unquestioned integrity. Yet he was thrown into a prison for a crime which he did not commit. Job was a righteous man, an upright man, a man who feared God, yet in one day he lost everything. He lost his family, he lost his fortune, he lost his finances, he lost his friends. Daniel was a man totally committed to God, who prayed three times a day, yet all he got for praying was a free trip to the lion's den. You see, trials are absolutely unavoidable. So do you realize that no matter who you are or how long you've been walking on the pilgrim's pathway as Bible believers, you're going to face stressful trials? And the sooner you realize that, the sooner you realize that, the more quickly We'll be able to deal with them. So trials are definite trials are devastating James uses a very interesting word in verse 2 when he talks about falling into that word fall there it's the same word that is used by the traveler in the story of the Good Samaritan and Luke chapter 10 in verse 30, we read that that Good Samaritan he fell among thieves So here was an attack that was not only savage. It was not only serious, but this attack was sudden There was no warning. There was no time for him to run. He was no time to avoid the issue He just rounded a court corner and suddenly wham He was attacked now the word fell in verse 2 The word fail there in Luke chapter 10 is the same word fall in verse 2 of our text And beloved is this not how trials come Suddenly, I mean we're sailing through life on calm seas Things are looking so good We have not a care in the world and then we turn a corner and wham. I And naturally, we're absolutely devastated. It's a knock at the door, our phone rings, a doctor's visit that absolutely changes our life completely. Trials can be devastating. We notice also trials can be different. He says they're diverse temptations in our text. Simply means various trials. The Greek word translated diverse means various or multicolored. Peter uses the same word when he says this, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations. You see, the trials of life are not all alike. Some trials are job-related. Some trials are financial-related. Some trials are domestic-related, in the home. But the point is that we are faced with trials of all sorts and all kinds. Some trials are natural. They come from sickness, from an accident. Just storms and tornadoes do blow, don't they? These trials are natural because we live in fleshly bodies and we live in a sin curse world. But some trials are supernatural. They come upon us because we are believers. And now we line up against this present world system. Now that we line up with Christ. And we will be tested as believers. But let me tell you something this morning, praise the Lord, there is hope. There is hope. For these trials the Bible teaches us are brief in duration. Peter uses the phrase, but just for a season, just for a season. One of the most common phrases in the Bible is this phrase, and it came to pass. Amen? Listen, are you faced with stressful trials right now? Listen, it is something, is it something to do with your job, at home, with your children? Listen to this, it shall come to pass. You see, there is a reality that we must face this morning. But then also notice there is a ministry we ought to find. A ministry we ought to find. You see, even in the midst of our trials, God is ministering to us. Look now at verse three. James tells us to consider it a joy. Consider it a joy to face a trial. It says knowing this That the trying of your faith worketh patience And that word patience in our vocabulary is a the simple meaning is just the ability to wait however, the word that James uses means much more than that the word James uses speaks of endurance and The word translated patience in verse three was used in a military sense to describe soldiers who were ordered to hold their positions even in the face of a fierce combat. In other words, James tells us that we can be glad when a trial comes because its end result will be the development of endurance in our lives. We will be better able to stand against the battles of life when we have gone through them before. Notice a couple of things that James teaches us in verse three about the patience we get through our trials. Notice that he reminds us of why we should desire patience. Why we should desire patience. I look again at verse three, notice the word trying. It speaks of proving something. It speaks of testing something. In other words, when a problem comes into our lives, whatever shape or shade it may be, it is an opportunity for God to prove us. It is an opportunity for God to test us and to authenticate our faith in him. You see, the truth is, it is very easy to proclaim your love for God. It is very easy to proclaim your faith in God when your world is good, when your job is good, when your finances are good, when your health is good. It's easy to proclaim your love for God when there's no difficulties affecting you. However, true faith, true faith is not proven in the seasons of our comfort. True faith is proven in the stress of a crisis. None of us enjoy the stress of a trial, but all of us should desire to prove the authenticity of our faith in God. Somebody has wisely said, a faith that cannot be tested is a faith that cannot be trusted. That's so true. You see, we don't like things that irritate us, but we must recognize that those irritations produce some of the most valuable virtues a believer can possess. You know sand is an irritant, don't you? You know that. You get a grain of sand, just one grain of sand in your eye, it hurts so bad. Sand is an irritant. As a matter of fact, whenever an oyster gets a piece of sand inside of it, to that oyster, that sand is an irritant. And yet that oyster does not spit it out. Instead, the oyster covers that sand with fluid from inside its shell. And after several weeks and after several months of covering that irritant, it is no longer a tiny, worthless piece of sand, but it becomes a priceless pearl. See, while we know that trials and tests are absolutely uncomfortable, and irritating. We welcome them. We welcome them because we desire the pearl of patience that is produced in our lives. With that being said, think not only of why we should desire patience, but think also where we can develop patience. Where we can develop patience. And look again at verse three. Knowing this that the trying of your faith worketh patience Listen if the pearl of patience is what we desire Then James reminds us that it is only developed through what through the testing and trying of our faith And unfortunately this morning listen There are no shortcuts to developing the patience we need for the Christian life. Without the experience of trials, we cannot have the strength of endurance. We must remember that. Now it is unfortunate that America's favorite pastime has become the cheater's favorite playground. In baseball, it seems you can't trust anybody's performance anymore. I mean, it broke my heart when I realized that Mark McGuire was using steroids, and Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds. It broke my heart. But the steroid era gave us, no doubt, super players with much bigger muscles and numbers that made Ruth and DiMaggio and Mantle look like little leaguers. But now that we have found out that more and more of these sluggers took the shortcut of injection to inflate their biceps but also inflate their stats. What James tells us that there's no cheating. There's no shortcuts in the Christian life. There's no injection that can automatically give you patience and endurance. It is only through the trials of life that we learn to face the trials of life. I read about a young preacher who once asked an older man to pray that God would give him patience. The older man knelt down and began to pray that God would fill this young man's life with troubles and hardships. The young preacher was bothered and confused by the prayer, but the old man said to him, the Bible says that tribulation worketh patience. And that is my dear friend, the only way. Listen, we don't arrive at the goal of spiritual maturity by some great ecstatic experience, but through the ordinary trials of everyday life. Here's the third thing I want you to notice. Notice with me a spirituality we ought to foster. You see, James not only tells us that trials can be expected, and that they also, thank the Lord, have a purpose, but he tells us how we are to view them. How do we react in stressful trials? Do we grumble? Do we complain? Do we question God? Do we fail to see that every trial is a God-given opportunity to become more like Christ? What should our attitude be concerning trials? Well, James says we should have a prospective attitude. He tells us to what? Count it all joy. Count it all joy when we're facing trials. You say, Brother Wade, it is very, very hard. to have joy when you're going through difficult trials. And I would have to agree with you 100%. What James is saying is this, the word count is a word that means to look ahead and to look forward to. And James is telling us that our joy comes from looking ahead. You say looking ahead to what? Well, looking ahead to the end result of your trials. You see, James is not suggesting that we adopt some kind of a weird happiness in the hurts and in the losses of life. No, he is not saying that we are to enjoy being sick or enjoy losing a loved one or enjoy getting laid off of work. No, listen, it's not being happy about the trouble, but it's finding joy in what that trouble produces in your life. Listen, if I asked you this morning, would you like to go through that severe trial again? You would say, absolutely not. But if I asked you, are you grateful for what that trial produced in your life? You might say, well, Brother Wade, I would not trade the lessons learned and the character developed in that trial for anything. There is a prospective attitude that we must have, and that is looking to the end result of what that trial is going to produce in our life. And then notice also there is a cooperative attitude. Cooperative attitude do you see what James says in verse 4? He says let patience have her perfect work Let patience have her perfect work. He is calling for what our Cooperation and what God is doing No one likes trials No one enjoys trials, yet we must allow God to do what he wants to do with our lives. We must trust him. We must yield to his plan. We must submit to his work in our life, knowing that he is doing this for our good and for his ultimate glory. The roses taken from the Balkan mountains produce some of the world's finest perfume. But it's very interesting. In order to get that lovely fragrance, the workers must gather the roses in the darkest part of the night. And therefore, they start just shortly after midnight and conclude their picking just within two hours. The brevity of the work period is based on scientific tests that show during the interval the blossoms gave their most pleasant scent. Forty percent of the aroma fades with the coming of the day. Friend, listen to me. We will face dark times in our lives. But we must never forget that if we want to experience the sweetest aroma, the sweetest aroma, the dark times are absolutely necessary. He says, count it all joy. Count it all joy. Do we recognize that there is a purpose behind our trials and blessing in them? Could it be that, listen, you're here this morning and you feel almost overwhelmed by the stressful trials that you're going through. Some of those trials could be public and people know. Some of those trials are very personal and private and nobody else knows but you and the Lord. But they're very stressful to you. I wanna tell you something this morning. that God is faithful. God is faithful. And through our trials that, listen, God is developing us. Through our trials, he is maturing us and pushing us toward that place where we will have all the virtues and all the values that are so perfectly displayed in our Savior. Think about this. Everyone sees the glory of victory as an athlete waves at the medal stand with the gold medal hanging around his neck. Everybody applauds that, everybody sees that. But what they don't see is the hours and hours of intense training, exhausting workouts, endless sacrifices that were made to get that victory. And James says this, don't lose sight of the profit, the victory that can be gained at the end of the trying of your fate. A pair of little arms were one day stretched out while a father piled up goods for his small son to carry to the other side of the shop. This tiny boy had his hands stressed out and he was waiting for more from his father to give to him. An onlooker said to that little boy, son, you can't manage anymore. You can't manage anymore. But you know, that little boy told that onlooker, he said this, my father knows how much I can carry. My father knows how much I can carry. And my your heavenly father knows how much you can take. He knows how much you can carry and trust him for what he is doing or he is doing it for your good and for his ultimate glory. Let's pray. My father, Lord, we know there are times. Your hand tries us. And if we really understood. What you were doing? We would kiss that hand. We do not. We do not doubt. We do not dispute. We do not debate. Father, we long to accept the trials that produced Christ-likeness, that reveal the true character of our faith as genuine or false. Oh, Father, the trials that humble us, that Wean us from the world. And those trials that call us to eternal hope. And those trials that really show us. What we really love. Father, we thank you for such trials. And we counted all joy. Knowing you are faithful. And Lord, I pray that you would work your work in our hearts. Comfort us in our trial. Teach us this thing of humility. Teach us this thing of dependence upon you that we will become all you want us to be. In Jesus' name, we pray, amen. Preach the cross, preach redemption to a lost and dying world. Lift your voice, unashamed, of the gospel of His name.