The Bible Top 40
Passages of Scripture Every Christian Should Know
James 1:2-4
This morning we sang a song that is very familiar to many of us. It was entitled Thy Word. The lyrics to that song are so full of truth that I want us to just spend a moment contemplating them as we prepare to look into that Word of God this morning. The chorus states, quite simply that,
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet
And a light unto my path
The verse says,
When I feel afraid, think I’ve lost my way
Still You’re there right beside me.
And nothing will I fear, as long as You are near
Please be with me to the end.
Like so many songs we sing it is far too easy to allow those words to slip from our lips without really thinking about them, or perhaps without even believing them. Is it really the Word of God that lights our path? Is it really true in our lives that we won’t fear because we trust that He is always close by? What about when things go wrong? What about when it seems that the wheels are falling off our wagon? Do we find the light in the darkness by looking into His word?
Some of us might be thinking, “Wait a minute! What do you mean by ‘the wheels are coming off?’ I thought my problems were over when I became a Christian! I thought I was going to have love and joy, and peace for the rest of my life since I got my life right with God. No more anxiety, fear, or troubles!”
Others would never say that in so many words, but in fact, many of us really struggle with the trials and difficulties of life. We would never put it into words, but somewhere in the back of our minds is this lingering doubt that we must have done something wrong, because Christians aren’t supposed to have problems like we’re having.
Christians aren’t supposed to be sick, are they? Christian parents aren’t supposed to loose children to disease or accident. Christians shouldn’t be laid off or have marriage problems or struggle with money pride or car troubles. Right? Now be honest. Isn’t it true that there is a part of us that kind of feels that way sometimes?
Sure we do. And it is that unrealistic expectation that causes us to sometimes slip into depression or doubt our faith. We somehow got this notion that the “Victorious Christian Life” meant “No More Problems,” and when problems come, we feel like we messed up somewhere.
But that picture of the Christian life is a distorted one. It is not the picture Christ gave His disciples. He said, “In this life you will have tribulations.” All through Scripture we see examples of the people of God enduring difficulties, and becoming triumphant in their trials.
Today we are returning to our series entitled “The Bible Top 40 – Passages of Scripture that Every Christian Should Know.” I believe that every Christian should be familiar with, and yes, memorizing Scripture – and these passages are the ones that I feel are the foundational for our growth and maturity as believers.
Today we are going to look at three verses that will help us to have the proper perspective on our problems, and help us to triumph in our trials.
Turn in your Bibles to the letter of James. James is found in the latter portion of your Bible, after Hebrews and before the short letters of Peter and John. In the Bibles on the chairs around you, page 812 will put you right where you need to be.
This letter was written by the half brother of Jesus. He was the son of Mary and Joseph, born after Jesus. He is referred to in Matthew chapter 13, when the people of Nazareth had heard Jesus speak, they said, “Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers, James, Joses, Simon and Judas, and His sisters, are they not here with us?” In I Corinthians 15:7, we find that Jesus specifically appeared to James, and in Acts 15:3, we read that he became the leader of the church in Jerusalem. This letter is thought to be one of the earliest written books of the Bible, because it doesn’t really refer to Gentile believers, and because James is generally thought to have been killed for his faith within 13 years of Jesus death and resurrection.
So what is the first statement that is made by the brother of Jesus in this earliest letter to the first Christians? It is this:
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Let’s look at this passage by examining the three primary verbs. What are the three things we are told to do?
Count.
First we are told to “count.” Now this does not mean “number.” It is an accounting term that means to “evaluate.” If I go to the bank, and hand the teller a roll of bills, and I tell her there are 25 $100 bills in the bundle, is she going to give me a receipt for $2500? No, first she is going to evaluate the bills – she is going to make sure that the bills are evaluated and registered for what they actually are. There could be one $100 bill surrounding twenty-four $1 bills. She needs to evaluate them to determine what they really are.
James tells us we are to do the same. We are to evaluate our difficulties for what they truly are, and James tells us when we see the true value of our trials, we will count them as joy! That’s right – joy. We saw this last week when we looked at Hebrews chapter 12 verse 2. Turn there with me again, Hebrews 12:2 says that “for the joy set before Him, [Jesus] endured the cross, despised the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the father.” Jesus was able to count the cross as a joy, because he was able to see what God was going to accomplish through his death.
Just as a cashier sees a particular piece of paper and counts it as $100, James encourages us to count our trials as joys. When we see trial, we should think “joy.” When we face difficulty, it should evoke joy rather than anger or defeat. And not just a fake, superficial, “I’ll just grin and bear it” joy – James means real joy! He says “count it all joy.” Various translators have used phrases like, “full of joy,” “sheer joy,” “pure joy.” The Message renders the thought, “consider it a sheer gift, when tests an challenges come at you from all sides.”
Know.
How can we ever hope to face our trials and challenges with that type of outlook? It hardly seems possible, does it? Well, the only way to accomplish this first verb, “count,” is to experience the second verb in this passage: “know.”
Look at verse 3. “…Knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.” The only way believers can react with joy when faced with various trials, tests and challenges is the knowledge that these same trials are the tools God uses to perfect us. The principle taught here is evident in much of life.
The muscles of our body are a great example. Without daily testing, and resistance, our muscles will very quickly deteriorate. I recall the long road to recovery after knee surgery in college. Prior to my surgery I had been practicing and participating on the wrestling team at my college. I was in the best shape of my life. But after 6 weeks in a cast, my leg was incredibly week! And while all the atrophy occurred in just six weeks, it took months to get the strength back. Each day I had to subject those muscles to intense strain – each time pushing a little more than the day before. If I had decided that the pain of therapy was too much, and never applied the pressure to those muscles, those muscles would have continued to weaken, my leg would have become useless to me, and I would have been permanently disabled.
Trials in our lives are the conditioning therapy that our souls need to be brought into the shape God wants for us. Without the stress of trials, without the strain of difficulties, we would soon lapse into spiritual atrophy, and we would soon be week and useless. In fact, may believe that the weakness in the church in America is due to just that phenomena. We have had it so easy for so long in this Nation that we have become out-of-shape believers as much spiritually as we are physically. We are “couch potato believers.” And as soon as a little stain comes along, we cry out in pain – rather than counting it as joy, and knowing that God is doing a conditioning work in our lives. I remember the Physical therapist making me get up and walk on that leg the day I got my cast off – I didn’t want to do it, but if I hadn’t I’d still be walking around on crutches.
When we realize that the trials we face are for our own good, when we know that God is doing a conditioning work in our souls to strengthen us for His purposes, then we need to do just one more thing – the third verb in this passage – Let.
Let.
Verse 4 says, “But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”
Let – we need to allow God to do what He intends to do in us by means of the trials we are facing. We can resist Him, we can rebel and not allow Him to His work, but then we will be weak and immature children of God. Or we can cooperate with the work of God in us, and allow him to do His perfecting work in our lives. That word “perfect” does not imply flawless character as much as mature and complete. We are to let patience do it’s perfecting work, perfecting us. The work that God is doing in our lives is meant to create in us patience, endurance and the ability to keep going through the tough times, but we need to be willing partners in that work. We need to surrender our wills to Him.
For years the Russians have been ahead of us in one area of space exploration, and that has been in the area of determining the affects of weightlessness over extended periods of time. If we were to send people to Mars, for example, the trip would take well over a year, and how would those people be affected by such a long trip? The Russians have had people in the weightless environment of space for well over a year on many occasions. Early in the process of space exploration, scientists found that people returning to earth after just a few months in space suffered from dizziness, high pulse rates, and heart problems. They couldn’t walk for weeks, and it took months of therapy to get them back into shape. Obviously you don’t want people landing on Mars and not being able to walk. The problem was that in zero gravity, the muscles encounter no resistance, and they quickly waste away. So the Soviet Space program came up with a “Penguin suit.” It is a running suit that has elastic straps at each joint, and the elastic pulls and gives resistance to the muscles, causing them to keep in shape. Every move they make is met with resistance and struggle. The astronauts have a vigorous schedule of regular work-outs in the suit to keep them in shape. As a result, the Russians have had numerous people in space for over a year, and when they return to earth, they are usually able to walk and quickly get back to normal life on earth.
This passage of Scripture, placed strategically in the mind, will help us to face the stresses and difficulties of life with joy, because we will recognize them as tools used by God to mature us, and make us fit for life in His kingdom both now and in eternity.
Prayer.