“Test Taking 101” (James 1:2-12; 5:7-11) Tyler Williams, Sunday 27 September 2020
Greenfield Community Church
Test Taking 101
• James was wri+ng to a community experiencing trials of many kinds.
• The problem of tes+ng +es the book of James together
• James is trying to provide the proper perspec+ve they should have on the various trials and tests that they face as Christ followers
Test Taking 101
• Seeking wisdom from God in the midst of tests (1:5-8)
• Economic tests and the lure of worldly wealth (1:9-11)
• How to face tempta+on in light of the goodness of God (1:13-18)
How to Face Tests
Consider Trials Occasions for JOY
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds” (1:2).
How to Face Tests
• Joy (χαρ)
• “Pure joy” (NIV) or “nothing but joy” (NRSV), “all joy” (ESV), “sheer joy” (Davids), “sheer gi\” (MSG)
• Not the same as happiness or cheerfulness, but joy that is grounded in our rela+onship with the risen Christ.
How to Face Tests
• Paradoxically possible to experience despite trials and suffering
• Characteris+c of the experience of Christ followers (Acts 13:52; Rom 14:17; 15:13; 2Cor 1:15; 2:3; Gal 5:22; Phil 1:4; Col 1:11; 1Pet 1:8)
How to Face Tests
• Not saying they are a joy, but that we should “consider” or “count” them as joy
• Need to look through our trials to their ul+mate results:
• both present joy because of what they can produce in our lives
• an6cipated joy because of the expecta+on of God’s future interven+on
How to Face Tests
• Internal tempta+ons or en+cements to sin and disobey
• Clear that all types of tests are in view
• Including economic tests (1:9-11)
How to Face Tests
1. They Produce PERSEVERANCE
“because you know that the tes+ng of your faith produces perseverance” (1:3)
How to Face Tests
• Perseverance (hupomonan, πομονν)
• The capacity to con+nue to bear up under difficult circumstances
• More than just pa+ence, but pa+ence with an aotude: endurance, for+tude, steadfastness, resilience, grit!
How to Face Tests
• This Perseverance is the result of the “tes+ng” (dokimion, δοκμιον) of our faith, which refines and purifies it
• Like gold from a refiner’s fire, the tests will produce perseverance/endurance/ for+tude in our lives
• And only tes+ng can produce it
How to Face Tests
2. Perseverance leads to MATURITY
“Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” (1:4)
How to Face Tests
• Trials “perfect” the believer, not in the sense that a person becomes sinless, but that they drives them to a mature, complete faith.
• Not a single virtue that can be acquired, but the product of ongoing acts of obedience that God uses to conform and transform us to the image of his Son.
How to Face Tests
3. Future BLESSEDNESS
“Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him” (1:12).
How to Face Tests
• The goal is to pass the test, cross the finish line, and obtain the “crown of life”, which is eternal life, salva+on itself
• Same emphasis is found in 5:7-11, where Christ followers are called to endure suffering with pa+ence/perseverance in the face of “coming of the Lord” (5:8)
How to Face Tests
• Summary: Three reasons to consider trials and tests as occasions for joy:
• Development of (1) perseverance, which leads to (2) maturity, which leads to (3) future blessedness
• Balance between discipleship as character and moral forma+on in the here and now as well as future reali+es
Conclusions
• Perspec6ve
• Pray
Resources
• Group Study
• On ZOOM Thursdays 2:30pm
JAMESJAMES FOLLOWING JESUS FAITHFULLY
WEEK 02 Test Taking 101: Facing Tests with Joy (James 1:2-4, 12; 5:7-11)
Read through James 1:2-4, 12 and 5:7-11 in a couple different translations and journal your reflections based on the questions below.
1. Can you recall any times where perseverance amidst trials had a positive effect on you and your life and faith?
2. We face many kinds of tests in life: actual persecution; physical sickness or bereavement; family or financial troubles; fierce and nasty temptations. According to James, how should we react when we encounter these various trials? Why?
3. Examples of the joy experienced by early Christ followers may be found in Acts 13:52; Rom 14:17; 15:13; 2Cor 1:15; 2:3; Gal 5:22; Phil 1:4; Col 1:11; 1Pet 1:8. How is joy different from happiness? Are there examples in your life where you experienced “pure joy”?
4. Summarize the reasons James gives for considering trials pure joy (hint: there are at least three). Some other passages that talk about trials and suffering are Matt 5:10–12; Rom 5:1-5; and 1Pet 1:3-9. Do these passages fill in some emphases not found in James? Explain.
DIG DEEPER
1. A recommended practice when you get together is to spend some time “dwelling in the Word.” Have someone read the passage aloud prayerfully while everyone listens. Then, after a couple of minutes of silence, get someone to read the passage aloud a second time. Share your thoughts and impressions about what God desires to accomplish in us through this passage and how we can respond.
2. Spend some time going through some of the above questions. Think of some practical ways you can encourage and support one another in the midst of various trials.
3. Spend some time in prayer for one another. Pray for wisdom and that the test would have its desired result.
FOR GROUPS
LIVE IT
1. What practical steps can you take in your own life to help you through tests? One thing you may want to do is commit James 1:2-4 to memory so that God can bring it to mind when your are in facing specific trials. Are there other things?
2. Many times our natural first response to trials is to complain to others. Instead, direct your complaints to God and ask for wisdom and the strength to endure the trial with joy.
3. Develop a habit of prayer and don’t be afraid to ask God for wisdom (James 1:5). If you know others who are experiencing trials, make a list in your journal and commit to praying for them regularly.
FOR FAMILIES
1. Joella talked to us today about an elastic band, what were the two things that she made the elastic band do? The point of the elas- tic band comparison was to help us realize that sometimes we get stretched in our lives too. That is just a fancy way of saying that sometimes we get pulled and yanked in ways that don’t feel very good at the moment. Here is a fun activity we can try, let’s make a target and see if we can get an elastic band to shoot a piece of paper at it!