The Victorious Position

Young and broke college student. I needed to be paid by the church I was working for but the treasurer would forget to write my check… I road home to Graham on no gas and the Lord taught me an important lesson.

To some extent we have all be in this position before. For many of us, this position was much worse.

The eyes of the Lord are on the marginalized.

Those who feel like the underdog.

And yet, there are moments when the marginalized may feel forgotten or invisible to the rest of the world.

I want to share the victorious position that all Christians have an opportunity to assume.

READ JAMES 5:1-11

1. Present Prosperity Has an End Date.

James reverts back to his language in chapter 4 towards people who put their trust in the world and its riches.

It’s unclear which rich people that James is talking to, but it appears as if he is addressing outsiders who had caused great pain to the communities of people.

James is referring to the destruction awaiting those who don’t put their trust in Jesus.

Weep and howl - More intense expression of grief than weeping.

Everything gained is corroded and “moth-eaten”.

The rust that prayed upon their possessions will eat away at their body forever and ever.

“Look” - Calling attention to their coming doom as no vain threat.

Rich landowners were few and there was a problem of workmen not being paid when they were supposed to. The landowners were defrauding the people who worked for them.

The rich should have given freely to the poor, their not doing so was sin.

The Lord of Armies is aware of what travesty has been done to the poor by the wealthy.

The day is coming.

Robin Hood - Prince John taking over from King Richard as king while he was out on crusades.

Borrowed time is borrowed time no matter how sweet it is.

Whatever is built for earth will eventually be brought down. We can’t avoid it.

We can be tricked into believing that living for now is where life belongs but we have to remember that God is still in charge.

He still has a purpose and plan for the people and we are called to care for others who need help.

Heed God’s warning. What we are seeing today will not be able to stand.

2. Stay Put and Keep Your Eyes Up.

James gives gives the church the easiest advice ever.... He says that we believers must WAIT. (Easy, I know)

The judgment of God is so very near and believers must wait for Jesus to return.

There is a trial of patience that all believers must face.

Believers wait like the farmer waits for crops to produce.

Early Rains fell in October-February.

Did not come suddenly, but by degrees, so that the farmer can sow his wheat or barley. The rains mostly came from the west or southwest, continuing two or three days at a time, and mostly falling at nigh.

The late rains came in March and April and was much lighter. Rain during harvest time was seen as a miracle.

Stay strong, keep your eyes on Jesus, and wait on Him.

While waiting, we don’t need to hold grudges against one another.

The modern world must learn the art of waiting. We used to do it all the time until inventions made it where we don’t have to anymore.

Tricia - “If this is God’s plan today, it will be God’s plan a year from now.”

We can feel tempted to believe that our waiting has no end in sight. Hope can feel bleak. Prayers become a little more desperate. We can begin to think that God has given up on His people.

We wait on the Lord because He is worth waiting for.

The longer we wait, the more satisfying it will be once He appears a 2nd time.

“Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart be courageous. Wait for the Lord.” - Psalm 27:14

Why would God ask you to wait?

Why do parents ask their children to wait?

To build our trust.

To keep us safe.

To bless us.

God is asking us to grow in our willingness to wait on Him in order to transform our expectations in His love for us.

Keep your eyes up. He is there and He is working. Your position of victory is in Jesus.

3. The Path of Endurance Has History.

James uses the prophets of the Old Testament who too, had to wait on God’s provision in their life.

The prophets were especially persecuted and experienced evil treatment from the people of their day.

The faithful people of old were considered “blessed” in spite of the struggles they had faced.

“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. You are blessed when they insult you and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of me.” Matthew 5:10-11

The people who have served the Lord before us endured and have recieved the fulfillment of their service. They are in the presence of Jesus and know that their service to the Lord was not in vain.

Job was real, not imaginary. Even though he became impatient to God in the midst of his suffering, he committed himself wholly to God, and at last showed a perfect spirit of enduring submission.

If Job had much to “endure”, remember also his happy “end”.

While believers experience difficult circumstances in life, God is merciful to the end of their lives. There is a happy ending.

Have you ever danced on the streets of gold? Have you seen the pearly gates of Heaven? Have you ever seen a Crystal sea? What about seeing your grandparents, parents, siblings, or met people from your family tree that lived 300 years ago?

We’ve not been given the whole picture. When death ends our earthly life, we will face the beginning of an eternal life with Jesus Christ.

Just because we haven’t experienced this doesn’t meant that others haven’t. There is a much great exchange awaiting those who are in Christ Jesus.

Can you bear what is happening in your life so that you grab ahold of the victory that is waiting?