Persevering Under Trial

Introduction

Most of you are probably familiar with The Master’s College and Seminary out in California. Dr. Abner Chou the president, and Dr. Nathan Busenitz, do a neat little podcast together called The Legacy Room. I was skimming through one of their episodes yesterday where Dr. Chou explained that the book of Job in the Bible affirms our need for God’s revelation.

After hours and hours of debate between Job and his friends, you quickly realize that none of them were correct. They had no idea what was going on. Even today, none of us would have ever guessed that whole God-and-Satan narrative in the first couple chapters. Those few verses prove that we need God’s revelation. He is the only One who knows what He is talking about.

Today we will be looking at a verse in James that feels very similar. It’s counter intuitive and teaches us something we would never know if it were not for God revealing it to us. So turn with me to James 1, where I’ll go ahead and read the first 18 verses. We’ll just be focusing on verse 12, but James uses a double introduction in his book and verse 12 is actually the hinge between them.

James 1:1–18 LSB

1 James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes who are in the Dispersion: Greetings. 2 Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith brings about perseverance. 4 And let perseverance have its perfect work, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But he must ask in faith, doubting nothing, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. 9 But the brother of humble circumstances is to boast in his high position; 10 and the rich man is to boast in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with a scorching heat and withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so too the rich man in the midst of his pursuits will fade away. 12 Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. 15 Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully matured, it brings forth death. 16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 17 Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. 18 In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.

Let me pray for us as we begin.

PRAY.

Trials are part of life in a fallen world. I think we all know that. And these trials often hit like a hurricane. They can be catastrophic and overwhelming. Or maybe they’re more of the tropical storm variety. Trials come in all shapes and sizes. The intensity and duration varies from one trial to the next. But in James 1:12, we’re going to look at three universal principles for enduring trials:

First, you must persevere under trial. Second, you must wait to be approved. And third, you must seek the crown of life.

As we consider these principles, maybe you’ll remember last month when Jacob preached on David. We saw David strengthen himself in the Lord while he suffered through a great trial at Ziklag. He had lost everything to raiders just like Job. So just like Job and just like David, pay attention to what God’s Word says about finding strength in the Lord to persevere under trial.

Persevere Under Trial

Blessing

Look with me at verse 12 now. You may have noticed this already, but it sounds a lot like the Beatitudes. You know, how Jesus introduced His Sermon on the Mount with statements like “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God.” We could rephrase James 1:12 the same way, “Blessed are those who persevere under trial, for theirs is the crown of life.”

For both James and Jesus, the beatitudes serve as a moral compass. If we were left to our own devices, most of us probably would have written, “Cursed are those who get stuck with trials.” Or maybe at best, “Blessed are those who manage to escape their trials.” But James uses this beatitude to call for a total paradigm shift. You must praise and admire those who persevere under trial.

Perseverance is a key theme in James. That is why it shows up here in his introduction. Flip a couple pages further to James 5 so we can see his conclusion. Notice in verse 10 he mentions the prophets, and then in verse 11 he states, “Behold, we count those blessed who persevere. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.” From start to finish, James wants to normalize Christian perseverance.

Sometimes when Raahail and I have families over for dinner and the kids come up in my office, I put out one of those wobble boards. Like the exercise ones for your desk. The kids take turns standing on it, but then I challenge them to close their eyes. Seriously, it’s a lot harder to remain balanced when you lose perspective. And that’s kind of what a trial is like. Trials tend to blind your mind and your thinking. They get you so focused on looking down that you forget to look around. And so James provides this proverb to orient our perspective. He says, “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial.” He wants us to endure, not escape.

Persevere

But let’s talk a little bit more about this perseverance. How exactly can you persevere? You know, the world tells us that the definition of insanity is “doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different outcome.” Is that perseverance? Or do you just need to take the bull by the horns? Maybe beat cancer and show people you have what it takes to succeed.

No, not at all. Biblical perseverance has nothing to do with showing off. In 2 Corinthians 1:9 Paul teaches that God brings trials “so that we would not have confidence in ourselves, but in God.” The confidence in perseverance is Godward, not inward.

And in James 1:5-8, we find that Godward confidence comes from divine wisdom. We ask for wisdom, and God responds. And I would argue that the book of James is one of God’s primary means of teaching us the wisdom we need for enduring trials. This book is like a manual on perseverance under trial. Seriously! You should read James next time you’re going through a trial.

Raahail and I went through some trials while we were in India, so I just read and reread and reread James during that time. The principles in this book were so refreshing and helpful. If you take each section in James and imagine doing it in the face of trials and temptation, then God will give you the wisdom you need. Let me just show you a few examples from chapter 1:

13-18, Keep owning responsibility for your lusts and sin—even when you’re tempted to blame God for tempting you

19-20, Keep being quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger—even when you’re tempted to snap and let ‘em have it

21-25, Keep hearing and doing the Word—even when you’re tempted to harden your heart until God does what you want

You can go through the whole book like this. But in short, perseverance is about submission and obedience. Perseverance means you do not rebel against God or disobey His commands. Some people say all’s fair in love and war. But don’t think that way about trials. Nothing is different. Everything is the same. Hard circumstances are no excuse for insubordination or disobedience.

Hebrews 12:2 says that Jesus “endured the cross.” It uses our word and literally means Jesus “persevered the cross.” God expected nothing less than perfect submission and obedience from His Son, even during the most heinous and unjust oppression.

But at the same time, it is true that trials often limit us. Jesus wasn’t healing the multitudes during his trial and crucifixion. Job wasn’t offering sacrifices while he was mourning. And yet even though life under trial may look different, you cannot sacrifice your integrity.

Trial

And that brings us to the last part of this first phrase, “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial.” We have considered the statement of blessing and the nature of perseverance. Before we move on to the outcome, let’s examine the nature of a trial.

In James 1, the English words trial and temptation both come from the same Greek word. In the NASB and LSB, there is a footnote in verse 2 where it says, “Count it all joy when you fall into various trials” that it could be translated, “when you fall into various temptations.” The same Greek word is also used in verses 12-14 with the words trial and temptation. In other places throughout the New Testament, this word is also translated test. Like when the Pharisees tested Jesus and failed to trap Him in His words.

The theological problem here is that James 1:13 says God does not tempt anyone. But in the Genesis 22 narrative, it says God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice Isaac. And other passages say similar things about other people. So is James’ statement true? Can we trust the character of God? Where should we place the burden of guilt for our sinful responses to trials?

These questions are the reason that translators use three different words (test, tempt, and trial) to translate this one Greek word. It carries different nuances that must be determined by the context. It’s like the word trunk in English. That could refer to an elephant’s nose, to a suitcase, or to a place in the car. It would be normal for another language to use a different word for each of those contexts. Not every language has a word to translate trunk that can be used in such a wide variety of contexts.

So how does that apply to trials? Well, based on the contexts where this Greek word is used, trials are external circumstances. God and Satan are described interchangeably as the agent of change. Perhaps Satan initiates a trial and God allows it. But the external trial is different from the internal impulse to sin, which we call temptation. Satan uses trials to tempt us to sin, and every trial has one or more temptations baked into it. It wouldn’t be a trial if there wasn’t an opportunity for you to respond sinfully.

On the other hand, God allows trials for the noble purpose of testing us. Some people are inclined to call their teacher mean for giving them an exam, but a fair exam is a good thing. You have an opportunity to prove yourself. And if you’re keeping up with modern education, just ask yourself how things are going now that academic tests are being removed or dumbed down!

In James 1:17-18, we are reminded that “every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above.” In context, this refers to trials. Trials are good things and perfect gifts. 1 Corinthians 10:13 teaches that God is faithful and tempers trials to our abilities. Like a diligent parent, He allows tests that will stretch our growth but ensures they are precisely suited to our ability.

Wait to be Approved

Refocusing on our key text in verse 12, you can see the rest of the verse is connected by the word “for.” Everything that follows is simply an explanation of that first statement. When James first says, “Blessed,” it gets your attention. And then when he adds “is a man who perseveres under trial,” it raises a lot questions! How is that man blessed? Why is he blessed? Are trials worth it??

Well, there is a caveat. You have to be approved for your trials to be worth anything. Going back to the idea of trials as tests, it is the same in school. A test is only a good thing if you pass it. And we know that trials are common to man, they aren’t special privileges for believers. Unbelievers go through hard times too. So trials are only valuable when we are approved by God.

If you are a believer, this should be a sweet encouragement to you. Verse 3 clarifies that when we are tested, it is our faith that is in focus. Ephesians 2:8 says, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” So both the trial that tests our faith, and our faith that endures the trial are both gifts from God! He rigged the game for us!

And yet at the same time, this approval seems to be a future reality. It hasn’t happened yet. In one sense we have been approved and received the gift of eternal life. And yet it also seems clear here that the crown of life is something to look forward to.

This is why James calls for perseverance. And the timing of the approval is not clear either. It just says “once he has been approved.” Do you remember how it happened with Abraham and Isaac? God tested Abraham, and it wasn’t until Isaac was tied up on the altar and Abraham had raised the knife that God suddenly burst forth with approval. The same may happen to you.

You may be pressed until it seems like you have reached the point of no return before the Lord brings you to glory and awards you the approval that is coming for all those who love the Lord Jesus Christ. You do not know what you must endure before the end.

But there is no question in James mind about the approval and reward. It just says “once” approved, not “if.” The only implied “if” is your own perseverance. And that variable underscores the importance of submission and obedience to God’s will.

Receive the Crown of Life

Now let’s look at why these trials are worth it. James says the man who perseveres and is approved “will receive the crown of life which was promised to those who love Him.” Most translations insert “the Lord” as the agent of promise, but that’s just extra.

The focus here is on the crown of life. This same idea shows up in a couple other New Testament passages.

In 2 Timothy 4:8, Paul anticipates a “crown of righteousness” which is laid up for him.

And perhaps most closely related to James, we read in Revelation 2:10 that some in the church of Smyrna were about to suffer imprisonment, testing, and tribulation. But Jesus promised them that if they were faithful until death (you might say that if they persevered under trial), he would give them the crown of life.

James is unique, though, because he was the first to write about this promise. This is the first time the crown of life is mentioned in Scripture. And isn’t that a wonderful promise for the heartache of perseverance? I think we usually give up on things when we feel like they are a lost cause. When all our efforts are amounting to nothing. But here God offers the promise of immortality. There is a reward for perseverance that is worth everything you can throw at it. There is dignity and freedom and lasting relief.

Maybe last time you bought something expensive, you considered whether it was covered by a lifetime guarantee. That’s nice, but it’s really nothing in comparison to God’s promise. Here we have an eternal guarantee, not bound by the limit of a lifetime.

And it is only available to those who love Him. The puritan Thomas Manton asked, “Why them that love, rather than them that serve or obey him, or some other description?” Because, among other things, “Patience is the fruit of love.”

Love is what led Jacob to persevere through seven years twice over so that he could marry Rachel. Job’s appreciation for the Lord’s compassion and mercy is what convinced him to persevere. God has reserved this most precious reward for those who do what they do out of love for Him. It’s not about cashing in on an eternal jackpot. It’s about humbly returning a debt of love to your Lord Jesus Christ. Love will drive your perseverance, and it is grateful love that confirms your hope of an eternal reward.

When you persevere through trials, you will be blessed by the compassion and mercy of the Lord. You will learn to love Him as the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. He only gives good and perfect gifts, including trials.

PRAY

Questions

Let people leave. Three little questions. Keep answers short, have someone pray.

What biblical principles have you found helpful during trials?

How has the Lord used trials in your life to strengthen your faith?

What are some practical ways to evaluate your perseverance?