Keep The Faith, Baby!

If you'll allow me a moment, I want to take you back in time. Not to Jerusalem, not to Galilee, not even to the days of Moses or the Old Testament prophets. I want to take you to Harlem, New York, during the height of the civil rights movement. There was a man, a preacher, a politician, a provocateur, a Black man who refused to be silenced, and whose very life became a sermon all by itself. His name was Adam Clayton Powell Jr.

Adam Clayton Powell Jr. was no ordinary man. He was the pastor of Abyssinian Baptist Church, one of the most historic and influential Black churches in America. But Powell was not just preaching from a pulpit, he took the gospel to the halls of Congress. As the first Black Congressman from New York, he became a thunderous voice for justice, a bold champion for civil rights, and a walking challenge to the American conscience.

And through all the attacks… through the racism, the investigations, the attempts to strip him of his seat in Congress, the political betrayals, and the smear campaigns, Powell kept on pressing. When they tried to silence him, he spoke louder. When they tried to sit him down, he stood taller. When they tried to erase him, he etched his name deeper in the stone of history. And through it all, he had a phrase, a mantra, a message that summed up his spirit: “Keep the faith, baby!”

He wasn’t just saying it to sound cute. That wasn’t some campaign slogan. It was survival language. It was how he pushed through racism. It was how he walked with dignity through scandal. It was how he stood tall when others folded. “Keep the faith, baby,” wasn’t just for Adam, it was for every Black man and woman trying to push through the trials of life with their head held high and their soul still intact.

Now I didn’t come to preach a political sermon, but I do believe God speaks through history. Because what Powell was saying in the 1960s, the Bible had already declared in James 1:3–4:

“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.”

James is saying the same thing Adam Clayton Powell Jr. said: Keep the faith, baby! When life gets hard, when your name gets dragged, when doors close, when your back is up against the wall, don’t give up. Don’t give in. Don’t bow out. (Look at your neighbor and say it with me,) Keep the faith, baby! Because the testing of your faith is producing something powerful in you.

Let me break it down, James is not writing to people who are living in ease and comfort. He’s not writing to a congregation with perfect lives, six-figure jobs, and white-picket fences. He’s writing to persecuted believers, scattered across the Roman empire, tired, displaced, under pressure, facing trials they didn’t ask for and pain they didn’t deserve.

But instead of giving them pity, James gives them perspective. Instead of giving them a way out, he gives them a way through. He says, “I know you’re hurting, but hold on. I know you’re confused, but don’t quit. I know the fire is hot, but God is at work. What you’re going through isn’t wasted. It’s working something in you. So don’t lose your faith, keep it, baby!”

And maybe that’s where you are today. You’ve been fighting battles in your mind. You’ve been crying behind closed doors. You’ve been wrestling with anxiety, bills, broken relationships, and spiritual fatigue. But I came to declare over your life the same word that kept James writing, and the same word that kept Powell marching: KEEP THE FAITH, BABY! Because this trial is not the end, it’s a transition, this pain is not pointless, it’s part of the process, this heat is not to burn you, it’s to bless you. God is trying your faith so He can transform your future!

So before I get to the end of this message, let me shout it right now and get my ownseld happy right now; Keep the faith, baby! When your back is against the wall, keep the faith. When it looks like you’re losing, keep the faith. When folks walk out on you, keep the faith. When your name gets slandered, keep the faith. When the check is late and the rent is due, keep the faith, baby! Because James says it’s not just about the pressure, it’s about what the pressure produces. And that’s what we’re going to talk about today. Let’s go to work.

Biblical Context 

Now, before we shout about the product of our pain, we’ve got to understand the process of this passage. Because you can’t appreciate what James is saying in verses 3 and 4 unless you understand who James is, who he’s talking to, and what they’re going through.

James, the author of this epistle, is not just any James. He’s not James the brother of John, son of Zebedee. This James is the brother of Jesus, born and raised in the same household as our Lord. Now, let that sink in. He grew up with Jesus, but didn’t even believe Jesus was the Christ until after the resurrection. See, sometimes it takes a resurrection moment to change a doubting family member into a faithful disciple.

But when James got it, he really got it. He didn’t try to ride Jesus’ coattails. He didn’t call himself “the brother of the Messiah.” No, he called himself a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. That’s humility. That’s transformation. That’s faith matured through struggle. So understand, James isn’t writing as someone who's had it easy. He’s writing as someone who had to wrestle his way into faith, just like many of us.

Now James is writing this letter to the “twelve tribes scattered abroad.” These were Jewish Christians who had been dispersed because of persecution. They had to flee their homes, leave their communities, and live like strangers in foreign lands. They were dealing with economic hardship, social rejection, religious oppression, and emotional weariness. Sound familiar?

These are people under pressure. People who love Jesus but are still catching hell. People who have faith but also have fear. People who are trying to hold on while everything around them is falling apart. And James doesn’t start his letter with comfort, he starts with a challenge:

“Count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations…”

Now wait a minute, James. You want me to count it all joy when I’m going through trials? You want me to smile when I’m struggling? You want me to give God praise while I’m in pain?

Yes! That’s exactly what James is saying. Because James wants us to know something deeper:

“Knowing this…,” in other words, don’t go through blindly. Don’t suffer in ignorance. There’s something you’ve got to KNOW while you’re going through: “That the trying of your faith worketh patience.”

Now that word “trying” doesn’t mean “attempting,” it means testing, refining, proving. It’s the same word used for purifying precious metals like gold and silver. You put it through the fire not to destroy it, but to remove the impurities. And when God allows your faith to be tried, He’s not punishing you, He’s purifying you.

That’s why we’ve got to keep the faith, baby! Not because trials feel good, but because they’re working something good. They’re building patience, not the kind of patience that just waits in line at the DMV, but the kind of patience that stands firm in the storm. It’s endurance. It’s spiritual stamina. It’s the strength to hold on when you want to give up.

And then James says:

“But let patience have her perfect work…” In other words, don’t interrupt the process. Don’t tap out too early. Don’t give up right before the breakthrough. If you let the trial do its job, God will use it to make you perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

That doesn’t mean you’ll be sinless, but it does mean you’ll be seasoned. You’ll be mature. You’ll be complete. You’ll be a believer that doesn’t crumble under pressure, because your faith has been fortified in the fire!

So what James is doing here, is showing us a divine equation: Faith + Testing = Patience → Patience + Time = Maturity.

And you don’t get that kind of maturity by just showing up to church. You don’t get it by quoting scriptures or wearing a cross around your neck. You get it by holding onto your faith when your faith is being tested. You get it by staying with God even when it feels like God has left you. You get it by keeping the faith, baby!

Because that’s what James was doing. That’s what the scattered church was doing. And that’s what we must do in our trials, our pain, and our persecution. James left us some nuggets to help us during our times of troubles, our times of uncertainty, in the midst of chaos and confusion. This text reveals to us…. 

Point 1: Your Trial is a Test, Not a Termination

Beloved, the first thing James teaches us is that what you’re going through isn’t the end, it’s an exam. Somebody in here will catch and grab a hold of it in a minute. Some of y’all came in this morning thinking life is over. You’ve been crying like it’s finished. You’ve been walking like you’re defeated. You’ve been living like the trial has the last word. But I came with breaking news from heaven: Your trial is a test, not a termination!

James says in verse 3,

“Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience…”

Let’s put a spotlight on that word "trying." That word in the Greek, “dokimion,” means a refining fire. It’s the fire that proves whether your faith is real or fake. See, trials don’t just come to attack you, they come to assess you. It’s God asking: “Do you really trust Me, or do you just like Me when life is easy?” “Is your praise dependent on promotion?” “Is your shout tied to a stimulus check?” “Is your worship tied to your Wi-Fi working and your bills paid?”

God says, I’m not testing your shout, I’m testing your faith! Anybody can dance when the sun is shining, but can you still wave your hand when the clouds roll in? Can you still say "God is good" when life is not?

See, church, we’ve been trained to think that trials are punishments. But let me set the record straight: God doesn’t test you to destroy you, He tests you to develop you. A teacher doesn’t give a test to fail the student; a teacher gives a test to measure what’s already in them. And I came to tell somebody, you’ve got more in you than you think!

That trial in your home? It’s not a termination, it’s a test. That battle in your finances? It’s not the end, it’s a proving ground. That crisis in your health? It’s not a curse, it’s a classroom.

God is showing you what He already put in you. You didn’t know you could pray like that until you were in a storm. You didn’t know you could worship through tears until you had to. You didn’t know you could forgive until you were betrayed.

And let me bless you real good right through here, if it were meant to terminate you, it would’ve already taken you out! The fact that you’re still here is proof that the trial is temporary, but the test is working something eternal. I know trials feel like trauma. I know they make your heart heavy and your mind confused. But don’t confuse the pain with the purpose. God’s not trying to kill you, He’s trying to confirm you.

You are not abandoned, you’re being assessed. You are not broken, you’re being built. You are not finished, you’re being formed.

So don’t walk out of the classroom before the test is over! If you quit now, you’ll never see the testimony. If you give up now, you’ll never see what your faith was really capable of. Somebody shout: “This is not my end, it’s just my exam!”

James is trying to tell us: Your trial is not the period at the end of the sentence, it’s just a comma in the middle of your testimony.

So lift your head. Square your shoulders. Dry your tears. Because you’re not being terminated, you’re being tested. And if you can pass the test, you’re going to graduate into a glory you’ve never seen before!

Keep the faith, baby! This fire ain’t meant to burn you, it’s meant to bless you. I think that’s a good place to pause and give God a handclap of praise, and just say ‘Thank you Master.”

James says your trail is a test, not a termination, but then get this….

Point 2: Patience is NOT Passive, It’s Powerful

If the holy spirit will allow it, let’s keep walking in this Word. James tells us that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let me stop right here and clarify something that’s been mis-taught and misunderstood in too many pulpits and pews.

See, when we hear the word “patience,” we often think of sitting around, twiddling our thumbs, doing nothing, just waiting for something to happen, like patience is some kind of spiritual laziness. But let me tell you what the devil don’t want you to know:

Patience ain’t passive, it’s powerful.

This kind of patience that James is talking about in the Greek is “hupomonē.” It doesn’t mean sitting still. It means standing strong. It means staying under pressure without folding. It means holding your ground even when the winds of life are trying to blow you over. It’s a warrior’s word, not a weakling’s word.

This patience is not for punks. It’s not for people who quit after the first “no.” It’s not for believers who lose faith when the bank account runs dry or the doctor shakes their head. No, this is the power to keep pushing when everything around you says pull back. Let me make it plain. Patience ain’t sitting on the couch. Patience is what held that mother together while she raised three kids on her own and never missed a beat. Patience is what kept our ancestors singing “We Shall Overcome” even when dogs were barking and hoses were blasting. Patience is what made Big Mama keep praying for her drug-addicted son until the day he walked into the church and gave his life to Jesus. That’s power, not passivity!

And James says, “Let patience have her perfect work…” In other words, let it finish what it started. Don’t abort the process. Don’t walk out in the middle of the miracle. Don’t cut the cord before the blessing is birthed. The reason so many believers stay spiritually immature is because we want power without patience, elevation without endurance, crowns without crosses. But James says the only way to get to maturity and completeness, where you’re “perfect and entire, wanting nothing,” is through patient endurance.

Oh yes, patience will stretch you. It’ll keep you on your knees. It’ll keep you fasting when your flesh wants to eat. It’ll keep you walking when you’d rather crawl into a corner. But when patience finishes her work (glory to the lamb of God), you’ll walk out stronger, wiser, tougher, and more anointed than you’ve ever been before.

Let me put it this way: If faith is the car, then patience would be the engine. If faith is the seed, patience would be the soil that it grows in. If faith says “God will,” patience says “I’ll wait till He does!”

And hear me, there’s power in the waiting. Because while you're waiting, God is working. While you're being patient, He’s rearranging. While you’re holding on, He’s setting the stage. And when the curtain rises, what looks like a delay will be revealed as divine preparation! So don’t be ashamed of your patience. Don’t let people rush your process. Tell them:

“I ain’t stuck, I’m just being strengthened.” “I ain’t slow, I’m just being seasoned.” “I’m not passive, I’m powerful.”

Because when you wait on the Lord,  I love the way Isaiah put it, he said “He shall renew your strength! You’ll mount up with wings like eagles, run and not be weary, walk and not faint.”  Keep the faith, baby! Because patience isn’t what weak people do when they can’t fight, it’s what strong people do when they know the fight is already won.

James reveals to us that your trail is a test, not a termination. He says secondly, patience is NOT passive, it’s powerful. But then get this… James says 

Point 3: The Process Has a Purpose

Now, if you’re still with me in the text, if you still have your bible open, if you kept that app unlocked, you will see that James is taking us deeper now. He tells us that the trying of our faith works patience, and then he says something that ought to shift your whole perspective. He says in verse 4:

“But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”

Now let me park right there, pull over, and put the emergency brake on. James is showing us something that’ll bless your whole life if you grab it. He’s saying: the pain is not pointless. The struggle is not senseless. The process, hear me, isn’t random. It has a purpose.

Somebody shout: “It’s on purpose!”

Now I know it doesn't feel like that in the moment. It feels like life is just coming at you fast from every direction. You lose your job, your health starts slipping, your friends start vanishing, and you’re sitting there wondering, “Lord, what did I do wrong?”

But James wants to flip the script. He’s saying you didn’t do anything wrong, you’re just in the middle of the process. And if you’d stop trying to escape it, you’d start to see that God is producing something in you that couldn’t come any other way.

God is a master builder. And a good builder never puts up the finishing touches until the foundation has been tested. You don’t put the chandelier in the house until the beams have been tried. You don’t lay the marble floor until the concrete beneath has been cured.

And that’s exactly what God is doing in your life. He’s building you from the inside out. He’s shaping your character, strengthening your resolve, deepening your faith, and cultivating your endurance. And you don’t get all that overnight, you get it through the process.

Let me tell you something about this divine process:

The fire is part of it.

The breaking is part of it.

The waiting is part of it.

The unanswered prayers are part of it.

It may feel like God is being silent, but silence is what happens in the classroom while the teacher is testing. Don’t confuse God’s stillness for His absence. He’s still working, He just wants to know: can you trust Him in the process?

James said that if you let patience finish her work, you’ll come out “perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” In other words, you won’t be lacking, you’ll be complete. That means everything you’ve been through is shaping you into who God always intended you to be.

You cried, but it had a purpose. You lost some folk, but it had a purpose. You had to sit down while others stood up, but it had a purpose. You walked through hell, but it had a purpose.

It’s part of God’s process of perfecting you, not making you flawless, but making you faith-filled. Not removing every scar, but making sure every scar tells a story. Not eliminating the pressure, but giving you power under pressure.

See, God doesn’t waste pain. He doesn’t waste tears. He doesn’t waste sleepless nights. Everything you’ve been through is feeding your future. God is producing something in you that can’t be shaken. So don’t rush the process. Don’t abort the mission. And don’t despise where you are. You’re not being punished, you’re being prepared.

Say this with me like you believe it: “The process has a purpose, and I’m walking through it with power.”

And if God put you in it, He’s gonna bring you through it. But when you come out, you won’t look like what you’ve been through. You won’t be weak, you’ll be whole. You won’t be empty, you’ll be equipped. You won’t be wounded, you’ll be wiser, stronger, and ready for the next level of glory. So keep the faith, baby! Because the process you’re in is producing the promise God made!

I’m in my seat. Let the church say “My trial is a test, not a termination. My patience is not passive, its powerful. The process has a purpose. And last point, Maturity is the Mission.”

Point 4: Maturity Is the Mission

Now church, if you’ve been walking with me through this Word, and I know you have, you can see that James ain’t just writing to make us shout. He’s not just dropping one liners to make us dance. James is building something. He’s got a destination in mind. And he’s telling us that the mission of this whole process is maturity.

Let me say that again for the people in the back: Maturity is the mission.

He says, “Let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” That word “perfect” doesn’t mean sinless, it means spiritually grown. Spiritually grounded. Spiritually seasoned. James is saying that God is trying to grow you up!

Now that may not make you shout at first, but let it settle in your spirit. See, God is not after your comfort, He’s after your character. He’s not trying to raise up spoiled saints; He’s raising up soldiers who can stand in the heat of the battle and say, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him!”

Maturity is what makes you pray instead of panic. Maturity is what makes you worship while you wait. Maturity is what keeps you faithful even when you’re frustrated. Maturity is what makes you say, “Lord, I don’t understand, but I still trust Your hand.”

Let me go a little deeper and come down your row: some of us are frustrated not because God failed, but because we’re fighting His process of growth. We want to be blessed, but we don’t want to be built. We want the crown, but we resist the cross. We want the promotion, but we reject the pruning. But the Word says: you can’t skip development and still try to walk in destiny.

Tell somebody near you: “Grow through it!” Stop just going through it, grow through it. Let God stretch you. Let Him strip you. Let Him sanctify you. He’s not trying to destroy you, He’s developing you!

You see, we shout over miracles, but God rejoices over maturity. Because a mature believer doesn't need a miracle to stay faithful, they walk in trust even when they can’t trace Him. A mature believer doesn’t need the choir to be on key or the preacher to be on fire, they’ve got their own praise because they know God is good whether it’s sunny or storming.

James says, when patience finishes her work, you’ll be “entire and wanting nothing.” That means you’ll be full, complete, balanced, steady. That means you’ll reach a place where your joy isn’t fragile, your peace isn’t borrowed, and your faith doesn’t fluctuate based on how life treats you.

That’s what God is after. Not perfection in performance, but wholeness in your walk. He’s growing your faith. Growing your love. Growing your praise. Growing your purpose. So the next time life hits you hard, remember: God isn’t trying to break you, He’s trying to build you.

So don’t despise the process, because maturity is the mission. And when you start walking in that mature faith, you’ll find out something powerful: the very thing the devil thought would break you, God used to bless you. The very fire that was meant to burn you, God used to brand you. The trial that tried to destroy you turned out to be your training ground!

Oh yes, God is raising up mature believers, who can fight, who can pray, who can praise, who can endure. And if you can just hold on, keep the faith, and stay the course, you’ll look back and thank God, not just for the blessing, but for how He built you in the storm. Because at the end of the day, it’s not about cars, cash, or clout. It’s about Christlikeness. Somebody say it with me one more time: “Maturity is the mission!”

Close: Faith at the Cross

Now beloved, we’ve talked about how your trial is a test, how patience is powerful, how the process has a purpose, and how maturity is the mission. But before I close this little message, I need to take you back… back to a hill called Calvary.

Because when we talk about faith, you’ve got to understand that the ultimate picture of faith wasn’t shown in a temple, it wasn’t shown in a church pew, it was shown on a cross.

Yes Lord.

If you want to know what unshakable, unstoppable, undeniable faith looks like, look at Jesus. When the disciples fled… when the crowd turned against Him… when the soldiers mocked Him… and when it seemed like all hope was lost, Jesus kept the faith.

He could’ve called 10,000 angels to rescue Him. He could’ve stepped down and ended the pain. He could’ve walked away from the mission.

But no, He stayed.

He stayed for you. He stayed for me. He stayed for the liars, the cheaters, the sinners, and the saints. He stayed for the broken, the bruised, the battered, and the bound. He stayed, because faith holds on when flesh wants to quit!

And while He hung there, bleeding, suffering, suffocating, He still had enough faith to say: “Father, into Thy hands I commit my spirit.”

But I stopped by on my way to heaven to tell somebody, That’s faith. Faith when the lights go out. Faith when the sky turns black. Faith when the tomb looks like the end.

But oh, early Sunday morning… I said early! Before the sun could rise, before the rooster could crow, before the guards could finish their shift… God honored His faith!

He got up! With all power in His hands! Resurrection power. Chain-breaking power. Mountain-moving, soul-saving, death-defeating power!

And because He kept the faith at the Cross, I can keep the faith in my crisis. Because He endured the nails, I can endure the nonsense. Because He bore the weight, I can carry my witness. Because He rose again, I know this fight ain’t the finish, it’s just the formation for what God’s about to do!

I'm done now, Im in my seat. But if you’ll allow me close like a good preacher ought to close, let me tell you this story:

There was an old Baptist preacher, seasoned and scarred by life. He was preaching at a revival, and someone asked him, “Reverend, after all these years… how have you made it? How did you not quit? How did you keep the faith?”

That old man leaned on his cane, looked out at the crowd, and said with tears in his eyes:

“Because every time I felt like quitting… Every time I was about to give up… Every time I couldn’t see my way through… I’d remember what He did for me. I’d remember that Friday wasn’t the end. I’d remember they hung Him high… stretched Him wide… He hung His head… for me He died…”

Then the preacher paused… looked around the sanctuary… and shouted:

“But that ain’t how the story ends!”

And I dare somebody right now, who knows He got up, I dare you to shout like your faith is alive! Shout like the process didn’t kill you! Shout like your patience paid off! Shout like your test turned into a testimony! Shout like Sunday morning is on the way!

Keep the faith, baby! Don’t you give up. Don’t you let go. Don’t you throw in the towel. Because the same God who raised Jesus from the grave, is the same God raising you through your trial! 

Have you tried him? I said have you tried? Do you know him? Won’t He make a way out of no way? Won't He open doors for you? Won't He move trouble out of your way? Won’t He wipe the tears from your eyes? 

When I think…. Of the goodness of Jesus, and ALL that He's done for me…. My soul cries out. I said my soul cries revun.  MY SOUL CRIES OUT… THANK YOU SIR. YOU’VE BEEN GOOD. Ain't he been good?  Ain't He alright? Ain't He alright?  Say Yeah! Somebody Shout Yea! Grab your neighbor by the hand and say ‘Neighbor. Aw neighbor.. Say neighbor I know a man that's from Galilee. When I was in trouble, He sat me free.” Son of David, seed of Abraham, Lily of the Valley, Bright and Morning Star! Rock in a weary land, shelter in the time of storm! Bridge over troubled water, my battle axe in the time of war! I tried him, that's why I ain’t gon’ quit... that’s why I ain’t gon’ fold… That’s why I shout like I shout and praise like I praise, Because I know a man from Galilee! 

Do you know Him?! Have you tried Him?! His name is Jesus! Jesus in the morning… Jesus in the noonday… Jesus when the sun goes down!

Keep… the… faith… baby!