December 16, 2007 - "Trial and Tribulation"

Scripture:
(James 5:7 NIV) Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains.

(James 5:8 NIV) You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near.

(James 5:9 NIV) Don't grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!

(James 5:10 NIV) Brothers, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.

(James 5:11 NIV) As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.


Up, In and Out

Let’s play a game of “Guess Who?” Hold your answer to the end. When he was 7 years old, his family was forced out of their home on a legal technicality, and he had to work to help support them. At 9, his mother died. At 22, he lost his job as a store clerk. He wanted to go to Law School, but his education wasn’t good enough. At 23, he went into debt to become a partner in a small store. At 26, his business partner died, leaving him a huge debt that took years to repay. At 28, after dating a girl for 4 years, he asked her to marry him and she said “No.” At 37, on his third try, he was elected to Congress, but 2 years later he failed to get re-elected. At 41, his 4 year-old son died. At 45, he ran for the Senate and lost. At 51, he was elected President of the United States. Who was he? Abraham Lincoln, a man that many consider the greatest leader our country has ever had.

Perhaps President Lincoln was so great because God grew him by trial and tribulation. You are probably aware that Abraham Lincoln was a deeply religious man.

Many of us are old enough to know that sooner or later, we will have our fair share of trial and tribulations. Turn to someone and nod “yes;” we will all sooner or later have our fair share of trial and tribulation - maybe even an ocean full [like Abe Lincoln]. Sometimes, you might wish that you were all alone on a deserted island. Don’t give up, because,

Number 1, the Lord is near (verses 7 and 8)!

James is dealing specifically with trial and tribulation caused by others. The rich unbelievers were taking advantage of the poor believers – to the point that the rich unbelievers were with-holding wages from the poor unbelievers. The rich unbelievers were falsely accusing the poor believers, taking them to court, and even causing their deaths. James uses a particular Greek word for the verb “be patient.” It caries the idea of self-restraint that does not get even for a wrong that has been done. He was encouraging the poor believers to hang in there and not return evil for evil. He was inspiring them to go the extra mile – even in the face of mistreatment.

How could they endure? James was letting them know that Jesus is near. Jesus himself said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.” He walks with us everywhere we go – no matter what we go through.

Think back to when you first realized that you believed in Jesus Christ as God’s Son and as your Savior (some of you may just have always known as a product of growing up in the church). We are today, closer than we have ever been, as far as it comes to meeting Jesus. We don’t know when we will leave this world, but indeed, we are closer to that time now than when we first believed. We will meet Jesus when we pass, if we have Christ in our hearts.

I think that we have lost the idea of Christ’s soon return. Perhaps it is because that there have been centuries and centuries since these words were written. Some say, “Oh, we go on, just like we always have, with no 2nd coming in sight.” Many Bible scholar’s believe that we are in the final chapter of the end times. This may indeed be the time when these scripture passages are fully understood and fully fulfilled!

There is an element of waiting involved. It gives us a chance to exercise self-restrain and thus grow. Dr. Randy Carlson, an expert in marriage and family counseling, says that children who learn to wait have less problems being impulsive when they get older. The same is true for adults. Our waiting is our heavenly parent’s way of teaching us not to be impulsive – too quick to try other ways instead of His ways.

Not only should we not give up, we should also not give in to grumbling. James instructs the believers to be patient toward both outsiders who oppress them and insiders who irritate them. Did you get that? Be patient with outsiders who oppress and insiders who irritate!

Grumbling here is an under your breath sign or groan. It is a murmur that grows and becomes more commonplace. It is complaining without end. Instead of remaining resentful, we are to practice the biblical steps of confrontation. What are they? Number one: go to the person in love. If that is unsuccessful, then number two: take a fellow believer with you and go in love. If that is unsuccessful, then, number three: take the concern to a mature accountability group to support you and to pray for you. And if that fails, then number four: treat the person like a sinner. What is that? You love them and pray for them all the more – even if they choose to carry the grudge or have nothing to do with you. If you choose to talk about them behind their backs, or choose to hold a grudge, or choose to get even, then God will use the same standards that we judge when it comes to our judgment. In other words, if we practice leniency, God will be lenient. If we are unforgiving and hard-nosed, God will take the same approach with us on judgment day.

Have you ever thought what God will ask you on judgment day? Here is something that I came across several years ago: Ten things God will not ask you on judgment day!

1. God won’t ask what kind of car you drove; He’ll ask you how many people you drove who didn’t have transportation.

2. God won’t ask the square footage of your house; He’ll ask how many people you welcomed into your home.

3. God won’t ask about the clothes you had in your closet; He’ll ask how many you helped to clothe.

4. God won’t ask what your highest salary was; He’ll ask if you compromised your character to obtain it.

5. God won’t ask what your job title was; He’ll ask if you performed your job to the best of your ability.

6. God won’t ask how many friends you had; He’ll ask how many people to whom you were a friend.

7. God won’t ask in what neighborhood you lived; He’ll ask how you treated your neighbors.

8. God won’t ask about the color of your skin; He’ll ask about the content of your character.

9. God won’t ask how many Bible passages you memorized: He’ll ask if you applied the Bible to your living.

10. God won’t ask why it took you so long to seek salvation; He will lovingly take you to your mansion if heaven.

Let’s not forget what really matters – for eternity’s sake!

Don’t give up. Don’t give in. And last, don’t give out. Why? Because it could always be worse, and even those who have had it worse have made it. Consider Job. James did. Job lost his employees, then he lost his business, then he lost his kids, and then he lost his health. In the end, Job received back twice as much as he lost. It may not be that we will see such a return in numbers in this life, but we will receive a spiritual abundance and more than we can imagine in the life to come!

Helen Keller, having gone blind and deaf, said, “Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.”

Don’t give up. Don’t give in. Don’t give out. God will make all things right. God will even the score. In the meantime, God is with us! That is what Immanuel means. Take notice of that and let God fill all of your moments with himself.