How to face up to trials (James 1:1-8)
Mike James - January 7, 2007
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Introduction
It is widely accepted that the author of James is indeed James, a younger brother of Jesus, not to be confused with James the son of Zebedee (one of the apostles closest to Jesus), or James the son of Alphaeus (another apostle), or James the father of Judas (who is distinguished from Judas Iscariot as one of the 12 in Luke 6:16).
This James became a popular and respected figure in the early church, especially among Jewish Christians. He was venerated as the first Bishop of Jerusalem and was given the title ‘the righteous’ or ‘the just’ because of his faithfulness to the law and constant prayer. The histories tell us that James was stoned by the scribes and Pharisees for refusing to renounce his commitment to Jesus.
From the content of the letter, which is believed to be have been written between 45 and 48 AD, it is almost certain that the readers were Jews as it is thoroughly imbued with the spirit and imagery of the Old Testament and Judaism – so thoroughly that it must reflect the reader’s background as well as the author’s.
The fancied period of writing witnessed some severe economic disturbances (famine in Judea in about 46) and the beginning of serious social-political-religious upheavals that would culminate in the Jewish was of 66-70.
The letter implies that these Jewish believers were mainly poor people who were caught in a situation of considerable social tension. Oppressed and taken advantage of by wealthy landlords, hauled into court by rich people who also scorn their Christian faith, the readers are exhorted to be patient and reminded that the coming of their Lord, the judge and deliverer, is at hand. In the meantime, the trials they are suffering are to be met with steadfast endurance, so that their Christian character might reach full maturity and their reward, ‘the crown of life’, be secured.
There are 3 outstanding features emerge when we look at the nature of the letter and in the coming weeks I’m sure they will become evident to us as we examine it a little closer.
1. Strong tone of pastoral exhortation. James has a greater frequency of imperatives than any other NT book. His purpose is clearly not so much to inform, but to command, exhort and encourage. Yet he issues his commands, for the most part, in a tone of tender pastoral concern, addressing his readers as my brothers and beloved brothers.
2. The looseness of its structure. Much of the book is made up of short, seemingly independent sayings or short paragraphs.
3. Extensive use of metaphors and illustrations. These images, one of which we have just heard in the reading, are universal in their appeal and go a long way towards accounting for the popularity of James among ordinary readers.
So in the next few weeks, I hope you’ll share my excitement in learning more about Living faith, Trials, the Law of Love, Wise Speech and Wealth – these being the main themes of the letter.
Well, happy New Year to you all – I hope you’ve all had a great time over the last few weeks celebrating Christmas and seeing in the New Year - time with family, friends, and perhaps just a moment or two to relax….
You might have even had the chance to set a few goals for yourself in the coming year. Some of us will have set some resolutions and a week into the New Year may even have managed to keep them! But as well as a time of celebration, the last few weeks have been a time for putting 2006 behind us and looking optimistically ahead to a fantastic 2007.
But amongst our hopes and dreams for the New Year, I doubt many of us are considering the tests and trials that we will undoubtedly face as we negotiate life’s unpredictable twists and turns.
We may be lied to, taken advantage of, laughed at, stolen from, we may lose our jobs, face bankruptcy , we may become ill, and we may well, as in the case of James’ readers, be persecuted for our faith - perhaps not seriously, but who knows, that time may well be coming soon in 21st century Britain.
And how do we respond to tests of faith and character that such trials produce?
Well, in the first part of James 1 verse 2, he tells us to ‘consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds…’
What?
Consider it pure joy when I become ill, lose my job, or am persecuted? A joyful reaction is the most unnatural of responses. Despair and fear perhaps, but certainly not joy.
But, the command is categorical, suggesting the need for a definitive decision to take up a joyful attitude. I’m not sure the point here is to pretend to be happy when we face pain, but to have a positive outlook. This is about our personal and collective responsibility – or should I say the ability to respond and choose our attitude to the challenging circumstances that we find ourselves in.
And what is our motivation for responding in this way? Well, James provides us with the answer in verses 3 and 4: ‘…because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.’
The word ‘testing’ here is absolutely key. The Greek translation, dokimion, is understood to refer to the process by which silver of gold is refined by fire. This is probably the meaning intended by James: suffering is a means by which faith, tested in the fires of adversity, can be purified of any dross and thereby strengthened. The idea, then, is not that trials determine whether a person has faith or not. Rather they strengthen the faith that is already present. To be perfect and complete is the state that should result from a genuinely Christian response to trials. The perfection or wholeness of the Christian is a basic concern of James and he constantly stresses the need for a whole-hearted, unreserved commitment to God and his will and as he highlights in v. 7 ‘double-mindedness as a root sin’
Keep your eye on the ball – attentional focus – constructive material v destructive material.
Romans 5:3-4 will be familiar to many of us. Paul writes:
‘Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.’
So perseverance is the intended outcome of this testing process, and through perseverance we develop our character. The fact is, we can’t really know the depth of our character until we see how we react under pressure.
Teams and adversity
Rene Stauffer: Would you trade your long climb to the top of women’s tennis for winning majors when you were a teenager?
Amelie Mauresmo: No, because really enjoy winning much more now, know what I’ve done, what I’ve gone through. Making it the tough way makes the reward even bigger.
On a more every day relationship level, it’s easy to be kind to others when everything is going well, but can we still manage this when other are treating us unfairly? (Example from work)
God has promised us that he will be there in the rough times and we need to ask him to help us solve our problems or give us the strength to endure them. In fact, Wisdom can be translated as the ability to make wise decisions in difficult circumstances. Whenever we need wisdom – we should only but ask.
‘If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.’
Particularly relevant to James 1:5 is the way in which wisdom is said to produce in its possessor a full-blown godly character. According to Proverbs 8:35, the one who finds wisdom ‘finds life and obtains favour from the Lord’. As we heard in an earlier reading today, Wisdom preserved Abraham ‘blameless before God’ when he obeyed the terrible command to sacrifice his son Isaac.
Wisdom is needed to that we can take the right perspective on the trials we face. Verse 5 highlights God’s unreserved intent to give his gift of wisdom to those who ask. This verse, like the teaching of Jesus to which it is related (Mt. 7:7-11), encourages us to come boldly with our requests to the unwaveringly gracious God.
But there is a condition in verse 6. God’s meeting our requests is limited by the manner in which we ask. It is the request that is made in faith with no doubting. This same combination of words occurs in Jesus’ teaching about prayer, given in response to the amazement of the disciples when, at his command, the fig tree had withered before their eyes:
‘Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and never doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith’ – Mathew 21:21-22
At the end of verse 6 the person lacking faith, the ‘divided’ person, is compared to the motion of the sea. The image is not so much that of the wave rushing shoreward as of the constant, restless surging of a body of water. Like the surface of the sea, never having the same appearance from moment to moment, shifting and moving according to the direction and strength of the wind, the divided person has no fixed beliefs and direction. He does not possess that unwavering confidence in God, uninfluenced by adversity and diverse opinions, that receives from the Lord what is asked.
And finally, we should note that the double-mindedness of the doubter (verse 
is the antithesis both of that ‘wholeness’ or ‘perfection’ which is the goal of Christian living and the outcome of persevering through trial.
In summary then, I would like you to go away with the following 5 points:
1. Expect to face trials
2. Exercise responsibility – choose your attitude
3. Recognise that testing produces perseverance and through perserverance we develop our character
4. Pray for wisdom so we might have God’s perspective during difficult times
5. Trust wholeheartedly in God