I invite you to take your Bibles and turn with me to James chapter 1. James chapter 1 and we'll be reading verses 1 through 15. James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the 12 tribes in the dispersion, greetings. Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds. For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 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. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. He's a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. Let the brother of low degree boast in his exaltation and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass, he will pass away. 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. Blessed is the man who remains steadfast on the trial for when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love him. Let no one say when he's tempted, I'm being tempted by God. For God cannot be tempted with evil. and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully grown, brings forth death. Like everyone else, the believer in Christ encounters crises, difficulties, troubles of one kind or another. There is absolutely not a single person who is exempt from bitter, unpleasant experiences. But what is God's purpose And here we are asking specifically, what is God's purpose in allowing his people to go through such experiences? Are such crises and difficulties really necessary in the life of the Christian? Especially today when pop Christianity is proclaiming A gospel which says that the Christian is to know nothing of suffering, nothing of want, nor any of the ills that plague humankind. This question clearly needs to be answered. Can the Christian in any way be exempt from suffering? And to answer this question, let's call on an expert who will tell us definitively this morning who will settle this question for us. In terms of his credentials, he was a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, he was one of the 27 authors, one of the 27 authors of the 27 books of the New Testament. His name? Yes, James. The Apostle James. It's very likely, but not an absolute certainty, that he was that James who was the brother of our Lord Jesus. James is very resourceful when it comes to expounding on the subject of suffering, on the subject of trials in the life of the believer. But what would James have us understand concerning this matter of trials, of sufferings? Those bitter experiences that we from time to time go through as Christians in the course of our walk with the Lord. And to begin with, notice here in James chapter 1 that like the Apostle Peter in 1 Peter chapter 1, 6 and 7, 1 Peter chapter 4, 12 and 13, James characterizes such bitter experiences, such experiences as trials, as suffering, hardships, as trials. He characterizes those bitter experiences as trials. Now let's be clear on this, there are times, there are times when a believer might be undergoing suffering. Suffering of one kind or another and such suffering is not, properly speaking, a trial. What that believer is going through is divine chastisement for sin. And that's suggested to us, for example, in 1 Corinthians 11, 32, Hebrews 12, verses 7-10. A believer might well be suffering not for his or her faith, but for his or her folly. In fact, the Apostle Peter addresses this matter in 1 Peter 4, verses 12 through 16, where he writes, Beloved, do not be surprised that they fire a trial which comes upon you to test you as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's suffering, that you also may rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or an evildoer, or as a meddler. Yet if anyone, here's the qualifier, yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God on his behalf. There is suffering as a Christian, and there is suffering as one who is dabbling in sin. Now what does James tell us about trials by way of suffering, by way of difficulties in the life of the Christian. And I submit to you that all that James says here in these 15 verses, verses two through 15, actually 14 verses, not 15 because we've taken out verse one, fall under three main headings. And we wanna consider each of these in turn this morning. And the first is that trials are inevitable. Trials are inevitable. Note verse 2, James says there, count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds. To begin with, notice James suggests here that trials are multifaceted. They come in various kinds, various forms. And James is saying that for the Christian it's not a question of if, but it's a matter of when a believer will encounter trials. Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds. He's essentially saying, James is essentially saying that the Christian is not exempt from, cannot escape, nor evade troubles and trials. that every believer in Christ will at some point or another be met with trials of one kind or another during the course of the Christian life. Time and again scripture makes it clear the inevitability of trials in the life of the Christian. Our Lord Jesus is speaking in John chapter 16 verse 33, and there he says, These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace, in the world you will have tribulation. He's alluding there to the test that we will encounter in this life as Christians. The book of Acts outlines many instances of persecution which the apostles and early Christians suffered on account of their faith in Christ. In Acts 14.22, we read of Paul and Barnabas, how they returned to the churches where they had preached the word, and here was what they did. I tell you, this was really counterintuitive. Many would not do that kind of thing today, but here's what Paul and Barnabas said to these Christians. Well, what did they do? They were strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, we must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God. We must through many tribulation, much tribulation, enter the kingdom of God. Paul writes in Romans chapter 5 verses 1 and 2 of the glorious, wonderful benefits that accrue to us on account of our being justified, declared righteous by faith. And Paul says there in verse 2, we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. You would think Paul would put up an exclamation point there. That would be it, but then he goes on to say in verse three, went on to say, and not only so, but we also glory in tribulations. And consistently, Paul not only referred to his own experiences of trials and sufferings, but he taught his converts to expect the same. To the Philippians, he wrote in Philippians 1, verse 29, For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for his sake, having the same conflict which you saw in me, and now hear that is in me. In fact, he informed Timothy, his young prodigy, Timothy that suffering is part and parcel of what it means to be Christian, because he says there in 2 Timothy 3 verse 12, Indeed, all who live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. It's not a matter of maybe. It's not a matter of perhaps. They will suffer persecution. They will be tried. They will be tested. And then to the Thessalonian church, here's what he wrote in 1 Thessalonians 3, 3 and 4, that no one of you should be shaken by these afflictions, for you yourselves know that we are appointed to this. For in fact, we told you before, when we were with you, that we would suffer tribulation just as it happened to you. And you know, And so it is, James is establishing the truth here, that in the life of the believer in Christ, trials, by way of afflictions, by way of adversities and the like, are inevitable. Count it all, Joe, he says, when you fall into various trials. Perhaps you are going through a season of trial this morning. Perhaps all along you have been saying, well, things have been going smooth, all rosy, but then here it comes. It was not a matter of if, but only when, only a matter of time, there you are going through that season of crises, of testing, of trial. And the question naturally arises, we need to consider this question this morning. Why, question why, are trials inevitable for the believer in Christ? Why are trials unavoidable? And this brings us to our second main point this morning, that not only are trials inevitable, but trials are invaluable. Trials are invaluable. As James intimates, trials are invaluable. They are very valuable. Why? Because of the purpose they serve in the life of the believer. Listen, first of all, James suggests in verses 3 and 4 that trials mature us as Christians. Trials mature us as Christians. First of all, as part of our maturation as Christians, trials James suggests, in fact he actually says it, prove our faith. Test our faith. Note that in setting forth reasons as to why you can count it all joy when you fall into various trials. James speaks in verse 3 of the testing of your faith. The testing of your faith is crucial. Our trials represented by the sufferings we encounter in this life, James is saying, serve as a means of proving, of trying, of testing our faith. Why so? To test the reality, the genuineness of that faith. In addressing suffering believers, Peter brings out this very idea in 1 Peter 1, 6 and 7. He says there to his readers in this, that is, speaking of salvation, you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. We are seeing through a mirror dimly, darkly. We can't understand many times what God is up to, what God is doing. But what God tells us here, that part of the reasons we go through the mill of suffering, we endure trials, is so as to test, to prove the genuineness, the reality of our faith. Christian young people, is your faith a borrowed faith? Is it the faith of mom and dad? You're off to college, going off to college in the fall. Here's the point. Unless you have a faith, a faith that can stand and withstand the storms of trials, the testings, the temptations, you will not be able to endure the Christian life on college campuses. And so trials, James is saying, are invaluable because trials mature us. As part of the maturation of Christians, trials prove or test our faith. But second, as part of our maturation as Christians, trials produce fortitude. Trials prove our faith, yes, but trials produce fortitude. Look at verse 3. James says, therefore you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. Paul brings out very much the same idea in Romans chapter 5 verse 3. We rejoice in our sufferings knowing that suffering produces endurance. Now this word endurance is a very interesting word. In the Greek it is a compound word which the two words together literally means to remain or stay under. And the idea there is that of remaining under pressure, staying under pressure, even against the urgings, even against the promptings of the flesh to throw in the towel, so to speak, to call it quits. The underlying idea of this word is stamina of mind and will. to remain true to the Lord, enduring the pressures and challenges we encounter in living for Him. And living for the Lord can be quite testy. You know that very well. What do we do in those times when we are tempted to say the easy way out? The easy way out is to just simply escape. Get away from the situation. But James is saying here that part of what trials do in our lives is to develop within us the capacity for what? Fortitude. The word hupomone in the Greek translated here as endurance or steadfastness. It speaks then of staying power. It speaks of what is sometimes referred to as stick-to-itiveness. Stick-to-itiveness. It speaks of that gusty determination to keep on keeping on, even in the face of the most turbulent trials. And brethren, what James is saying is that that's precisely what our trials do for us. They generate in us what? Staying power. They generate in us stamina. to face even tougher trials. You know, trees that are tossed about by severe winds that threaten to uproot them, and you have seen some of that, especially during stormy hurricane or, you know, seasons. What usually happens to those trees, they end up being the strongest of trees. And why is that so? Because you see, those boisterous, turbulent winds force, as it were, that tree to push its roots down, deep down, to anchor those roots deep in the soil. And the point here is this, so it is that when the winds of adversity and affliction blow upon our lives, God's intention is that by these pressures, you and I would sink our roots deep, we would anchor our roots deep in Him so that we can be strengthened to face even tougher adversities. And so suffering then builds our spiritual stamina and endurance of the Christian life. As part of our maturation as Christians, trials first of all prove our faith. Trials produce fortitude. But notice thirdly, as part of our maturation as Christians, trials perfect our character. Trials perfect our character. Look at verse 4. And let steadfastness have its full effect that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. See that word let, you could underline that word. Not insulting you by any means, but that word let as you know it means to allow. I'm going somewhere with this. James is saying here that in order for us to attain to this grace, this virtue of steadfastness, we are gonna have to what? Allow the process to take effect. We are gonna allow God to do what he's doing in our lives. What is James saying here? James is saying as it were, look, if you're gonna develop the grace of steadfastness, hands off, hands off, Get out of the driver's seat and let God do that work of producing in you this needed grace. There are different ways in which you and I can interrupt, hinder, not allow, not let patience to have its full effect. We can do that by having a bitter disgruntled spirit murmuring. We can do that by trying to squirm our way out of the situation, by trying to run away from the situation. And all the while God is saying, let patience have its perfect work. Take your hands off, get out of the driving seat, and allow the process to take full effect. One man says this, we need to vacate the driving position and let God have the wheels as he knows what is best for us and can be trusted to steer us in the right direction. That's what we need to do. All this to say that we are to let steadfastness have its full effect not by harboring a sour, disgruntled spirit, murmuring, complaining about the Lord's ways and about the situation we are facing. We just need to be hands-off. And what will be the result? Notice what James says there. He says that you might be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. Now James is not speaking here of sinless perfection. You and I know that no amount of suffering, no amount of adversity will ever bring us to the place of perfection. Truth is, it would tend to do the opposite. What he is referring to here, rather, is maturity or roundedness of character. Again, the Apostle Peter alluded to this very idea of endurance producing this grace, whereby we come to a state of maturity, of wholeness, because the Apostle Peter says in 1 Peter 5.10, he wrote, But the God of all grace, who called us to his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, here it comes, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. First, it's one thing to have strong points of Christian character. Many of us might be good in the area of love. Some of us not good in the area of patience. We are strong in this area but weak in that, but it's quite another thing for our spiritual growth, our spiritual maturity to extend to areas of our lives in which we are genuine, generally weak. God is saying here that when we stay under the trial and we allow, we take our hands off and let patience, endurance have its perfect work, then we'll get to that stage where having completed his work, God will bring us to that place where we are perfect, that is rounded, mature, and complete. Such is the extent to which the Lord desires to mature us in the Christian life. And so far from breaking and destroying us, trials, we could say, then serve to build and develop our character as Christians. What it means, as someone has well said, is, quote, a trial is not something to be tolerated, but a trust to be treasured. Suffering trials are invaluable. Trials are invaluable, first of all, because trials mature us as Christians. Trials are invaluable, secondly because, as suggested by James, trials... motivate us to pray. Trials mature us but trials also motivate us to pray. Trials prompt us to the need for prayer. Look at verses 5 through 8. James says here, if any of you lacks wisdom let him ask God who gives generously to all without reproach and it will be given him 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 for that That person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. He's a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways." And we notice in those verses a suggestion that one of the reasons why we need to pray particularly in times of trials, in times of testings, in times of adversity, is because we need what? Wisdom. We need wisdom. You know very well that we are most vulnerable during those times, vulnerable to do, can I say this, stupid things, rash things, speak unadvisedly like Moses with our lips, and we need wisdom, we need the kind of wisdom that whereby we'll be able to discern and detect precisely what God is doing in those trying situations with specific areas of our lives. We need wisdom. Psalm 119, 107, the psalmist used his time of trial and suffering for prayer. Suffering trials drive us to pray, motivate us to pray. In Psalm 119, 107, he says this, I am severely afflicted. Give me life, oh Lord, according to your word. Psalm 119, 153, 154, look on my affliction and deliver me, for I do not forget your law. Plead my cause and redeem me, give me life according to your promise. You see, trials are doing what? Trials are driving us to prayer, driving us to seek the face of God, driving us to cry out to Him for what? Wisdom? To apply ourselves to the situation we're going through? To learn from it? You see, trials drive us to prayer when we understand that there's really no one who knows our pain and our suffering and the trials we are going through as God does. That's why we need to pray. Our trials should drive us to prayers we realize that he's in control of all that befalls us. and that he will bring a good result from them as well, or trials should drive us to prayer, knowing that it is by his providence that we are brought into them. You see, there's grounds for us to pray in times of trials, many grounds. Why? Because we need wisdom. Why? Because we know that God is the one who in his providence has orchestrated where we are at any given point in time. And so we need to call upon Him. We need to say, Lord, give me wisdom that I might be able to discern from Your Word and discern through various areas of my lives what this trial is intended to do. We need to pray for wisdom so that we might not act rashly and impulsively. Trials are invaluable because trials motivate us to pray. But thirdly, according to James, trials are invaluable. Why? Because they make clear our priorities. Look at verses 9 through 11. Trials make clear all priorities. Let the brother, lowly brother, boast in his exaltation and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass, he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat, and withers the grass, its flowers fall, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits." And the passage here contrasts wealth and riches. It contrasts a state of humility and a potential state of arrogance. And what the word of God is saying here is that trials have a way of putting perspective on what matters most. Let me illustrate for you. When someone is in the throes of deep crisis, of deep sorrow, It becomes far easier for them, at least I've observed, and you might have known this in your own experience, we tend to what? Hold less tightly to things. You see, let's say a person who was given to saving and doing all the business, some health crisis comes in and money doesn't matter, you see. And what James is saying here, listen, the rich in his humiliation refers to someone who was wealthy but lost their riches, possibly due to persecution. If we want to see people huddle together across social lines, across class lines, You want to see rich and poor melding together in unity and love. Let there be an outbreak of what? Persecution. You see? Persecution trials have a way of changing our perspective on the material things of this life. We come to see how fragile they are. Let the stock market crash tomorrow. And we come to see, in the throes of suffering, how that what we need more than material things would be what? Love, a sense of security, a sense of family, a sense of togetherness. The lowly brother in his material poverty is generally more in a position to appreciate God's ability to provide for his children. That's why the brother who is brought low, he's in his lowly condition, he is going to what? Rejoice in it. Because what? It brings him to a deeper, fuller, vivid realization that God supplies his needs. That God is his provider. James encourages this lowly person to find joy in trials, because trials are not really hurting, but helping him. James then turns to the rich brother who has been humbled by trials. The wise response of the rich is to recognize the transient nature of things material. So all in all, what we are saying here is this, that trials do what? Trials have this way of making clear our priorities. But then fourthly, and we're going to wind up, we're going to hasten along, trials mature. Trials measure our love for God. Trials measure our love for God. Look at verse 12. It's implied there. Blessed is the man who remains, who remains, steadfast on the trial, for when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life which God has promised for those who love him." Now, here's the point. In scripture, the expression, those who love God, is really a way of speaking of believers. Paul uses that idea. But in this context, an argument could also be made that by virtue of staying honored, remaining in the situation, the believer is thereby proving, as it were, his or her commitment, devotion to the Lord, love for the Lord, whereby that believer would not be bitter, would not be complaining, but would cooperate with God in the process of the trials. Again, Peter alludes to this idea of trials and our love for God, the interaction between trials and our love for God. Here's what he says, in this, that is your salvation, you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by a fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Look at verse 8, though you have not seen him, You love him. See? Trials have a way of measuring our commitment to God, the level of our commitment to God, the level of our love for God. And then, fifthly, trials are invaluable. Why? Because trials manifest what's within us. Oh, my friends, trials have a way of revealing us. Revealing to us who we really are on the inside. And in the context of James' discussion on trials, this is implicit in verses 13 and 14 because James says there, let no one say when he is tempted. I am being tempted by God, for God cannot be tempted with evil, and himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully grown, brings forth death. Of course there's an interplay here between the one Greek word. The one Greek word is pirasmos which can either mean temptation or trial. And what's the difference? From God's perspective we encounter trials which are designed to build us not break us. They're designed to develop us, not to destroy us. From the devil's perspective, temptations would be a solicitation to evil, meant to destroy and defeat us. What James is saying here is when one is facing some kind of suggestion to do evil, that's not from God. But what he's saying, however, what we need to understand, God can use that situation as a test. But that person must not say, God is tempting me in the sense of inducing me to do evil because God tempts no man in that regard. So look at what's happening in this person's heart. This person is saying, boy, God is giving me a rough time. He's being unfair. He's tempting me. James says, no, no, no. What's really happening when you're being tempted? You're being drawn away by your own lust. So the idea that testing really brings out what's in us, it brings out what we're thinking, what we're thinking about God, what we're thinking about ourselves. But we must hasten along. And I'm drawing down to a close now to say this. And of course, we see it in Job, how that trials, what did trials do for Job in the end? It revealed to him the depths of corruption that was within him, because he says, Job 42, five and six, I've heard you by the hearing of the air, but now my eyes see you, therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes. Okay, so coming down to the home stretch. Number one, what does James teach us this morning about trials? James says that trials are inevitable. Number two, trials are invaluable. Well, here's what he says to us finally this morning, and no more than a few seconds. Trials are intelligible. Trials are intelligible. That is to say that When stormy, turbulent times hit home to us, we need not see them as meaningless, unfortunate, random, chaotic events. The fact is the trials you and I encounter are what? They're meaningful. They are purposeful. And we can know that they are meaningful and purposeful. Why? Because of the revelation God has given us in his word. And based on that revelation we have in the word of God, we learn that our pain, our suffering, can be meaningful. They have an end in view. So notice what he says in verses 2 and 3 to show that suffering is intelligible. He says, count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds. Here comes verse 3, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. James is saying, my friends, our trials can make sense to us. They need not seem to be something fatal and tragic and chaotic and something we could do without. He says, when they come, we can reckon, count them as an occasion of joy. And the joy he's talking about here is not a flippant emotionalism, nor is it some kind of stoic resignation, grin and bear it. He's talking about the conscious realization that God is in control. He says reckon it, and you can reckon it as joy. Why? Because of what you know. You see how important it is to know the Word of God, what it says concerning our trials? May God bless these truths of our hearts this morning. Perhaps you're in the throes of suffering, in the throes of trial. Let me encourage you this morning. Go back to the Word of God. One of the things that trials are designed to do is to drive you to your knees. May God grant the grace so to do for His name's sake. Amen.