Two kinds of trouble
James 1:9-12
We're going to talk again today about one of the most challenging issues God's people face at anytime in history and at any place in the world, i.e., Why do we who follow the resurrected Jesus face so many trials? To do so, we return to the letter that Pastor James wrote to some of his parishioners. These church people were going through hard times because of the anti-Christian persecution that began in Jerusalem as reported in Acts 7-8. Pastor James wrote to church people he loved that, in this imperfect world, God has found a way to use all things in this world – including all kinds of trials – to bring about good.
Let me start by reminding you of this: God is greater than any trial. Jesus, God's Son, came into this trouble-filled world personally. The world and Satan threw everything they could at him. As John put it in John 1:5, the "darkness" sought to overcome him one day when he was on a cross, but the light of the world shone into the darkness and the "darkness could not overcome him." Jesus defeated the power of sin and death through his resurrection. (I'll show a picture here taken by Phyllis Hillar to illustrate this.)
But, although the defeat of Satan was accomplished through Jesus' resurrection, the completion of God's work is still a work in progress. Because of that, trials are still a part of this world. So, let me summarize what Pastor James said about trials in the first 8 verses of his letter:
1. Trials always will be a part of life in this imperfect world -- "whenever you face trials... (1:2)"
2. Christians go through trials too. Anything that might happen to anyone in this sin-filled world can still happen to us. Think of Jesus who suffered poverty, injustice, criticisms, physical pain, abandonment and death. He told us not to be surprised when we face the same things.
3. God promises to use the trials to bring about a greater good (1:4).
4. We will need wisdom to know what to do when trials hit (1:5).
5. Wisdom begins with asking God what to do. But, when we ask, we must do what he says (1:5-8).
That brings us to vv. 9-11. In them, James spoke about a specific kind of trial, i.e., the matter of money. Some people in his church family were poor and some were not. Surprisingly, James said that both poverty and wealth are trials. In fact, he said that having wealth is the more perilous trial. If I understand him right, James says that both those who are poor and those who are wealthy can play a significant role in one another's spiritual lives in a church. And, James indicates, that those who are poor often have the greater spiritual depth and impact. In our US churches, we seem to think that those who are materially successful are also more spiritually successful. James said, "No! Usually it's the other way around!" I think this is something that Nancy Stiles has experienced so I'd like her to come up and tell us just a bit about it.
Are you surprised at what Nancy has shared with us? Let's see how it fits with James' words in vv. 9-11.
The First Kind of Trial: Poverty –
Let the brother in humble circumstances boast in his high position... (1:9).
Remember that James' church members had to flee Jerusalem because of persecution. Wherever they ended up locating, it is clear that some of them were experiencing great poverty. Not all of them were poor –but some certainly were. James' makes the point several times in his letter that, for many of his people, of all their "many kinds" of trials in this world (v. 2), poverty was probably the most difficult for them. Pastor James asked, "How do you count a lack of money as a joy and let patience have its perfecting work?"
Look at the very brief phrase James used in v.9. James told his people that when they are poor, this is not necessarily because of their own sin, laziness, a lack of prayer, or God's disfavor. No, he says that times of poverty give us an opportunity to be lifted up to a "high position" by God. Zack Johnson helped me to see something in the flow of James' letter that I had never seen before. Notice how James' commands to pray and then do what God tells us to do in vv. 6-8 flow directly into v.9 saying that the one who does what God says might still find himself in poverty! In other words, we might mistakenly think that "doing what God says" will immediately result in God making us rich! So, we might say, "OK. I'll take a step of obedience to God but then he has to make me prosperous." But, v. 9 indicates that God might have a different plan. In fact, James says that obediently trusting God in the midst of poverty is an opportunity for God to exalt us.
Think about this: James was Jesus' brother and therefore Mary's child. In this verse, James used the same words his mother used in her magnificent poem found in Luke 1:46-55. When God chose Mary as a poor and humble girl through whom to give birth to the Messiah, he was giving her a "high position". This was a great honor for her, of course. However, this honor wasn't given in a way in which Mary could say, "God chose me because I'm the richest, best educated and best looking person." No, Mary lifted her eyes to the Lord in faith and in gratitude in a way that a mega-successful person probably would not. As Jesus said, "Those who are humble before the Lord will be lifted up." That's what James is saying here too.
Let's get real about this point: Poverty is hard. Some people tend to idealize those who are poor. However, James says that poverty is a trial – not a virtue. Jesus experienced that fact. So, poverty can make us afraid or anxious. It can make us feel worthless. It often leads to oppression. Or, the poor person can begin to idolize wealth and think, "If I had wealth, then I would find out what life is all about." We all know these things are true. But, here is what I have discovered: When a person faces poverty and learns to trust God, that person's life becomes characterized by a deeper dependence on God. That person has a relationship to God that is less distracted by competing affections. Relationships are usually deeper when the relationship does not have to compete with the material things that we humans often are obsessed with.
I was speaking about this with several of our Cal Berkeley university students recently and they all agreed that they had seen this to be true when they have done ministry in urban areas or on mission trips. Grace Jenks wrote this to me: It was when I was in Guatemala that I especially noticed how there were fewer distractions for the poorer kids. They wanted to be fully present with me in their homes. They were content playing together on a field for hours and not worrying about what was going to happen next. There was no pressure to be doing something at all times or to look like they were busy on their phone because none of the people in my group had them. There was no frustration because they couldn't get connected on their Pads. I saw frustration in myself – but not in them. The kids were so joyful and wanted to share that joy with me. I hope I was a blessing to them. But, I am quite sure that a greater part of our mutual blessing was that they did not have the material things that often are barriers to relationships. I think the same thing was true of their relationships to God.
The powerful lesson is this: Not having material things often rescues a person from the distractions that possessions bring into relationships, both to people and to God. So, what would James say to you if you are going through the trial of poverty? From James 1:2-8, he would say this: "Pull back and consider what you believe. Do you believe that 'God is a refuge and strength and a very present help in times of trouble?' If you do, you can ask him to do a miracle and to provide the money you feel you need because God is your loving Father. But, be aware of the fact that there may be something enormous that God wants to do in this world through your situation. Let him complete his work. And, if you don't know what to do, ask God and then do what he says. He may only show you one small step. But do it and see where he takes you. You will find that this time that feels humbling will actually be one that propels your faith forward and deepens your walk with God." That's what he would say.
Jesus said, "Blessed are the poor." One of the most wonderful things about Jesus is that he gives self‑respect to those the world thinks have little worth. So if we're poor we shouldn't hang our heads in shame. After all, the poor can relate most closely to the life Jesus Himself led. "Though He was rich, He became poor so that we through His poverty might know real riches (2 Cor 8:9)." On that basis, James wrote to those facing poverty, "Let the brother in humble circumstances boast in his high position... (1:9)."
The Second Kind of Trial: Wealth
Let the rich boast in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away (1:10).
Although many were poor, there still were in these churches who had wealth. The same has been true of almost every church in history. So, James quickly wrote that wealth is a spiritual trial too. Notice that he said in v.10 that having wealth as a Christian should make a person humble. "What?" we might say. "Wealth makes most people proud!" That's true. But, it's clear that James believed that wealth has the opposite affect on true believers. I think the reason for this is that financially successful people who have come to faith in Jesus acknowledge that the very things that most rich people boast about (and that they also are tempted to boast about) are temporary things. Those things most people boast about – their education, their success, their homes – simply will not last forever. This is a humbling fact. What I do in my own strength will not last. The rich need God's mercy as much as the poor. All our accomplishments will not earn heaven!
Read the book of Luke and you'll see that James' brother Jesus made this same point over and over too. Jesus said the love of money is the root of evil. He said that those who desire to be rich fall into temptations of many kinds ‑‑ the temptation to pride, to greed, to coveting, to self‑indulgence. So, wealth too is an immensely serious trial. The main spiritual problem that comes from having wealth is that it is a constant competitor to the first command – "Nothing in God's place." There are few things – if any – that we are tempted to put in God's place more often than material things. Having wealth makes it difficult to live in full dependence upon God.
So wealth is a dangerous trial – an eternally dangerous trial. V.11: Like a flower of the grass, the one who is rich... will fade away in the midst of his pursuits.
Listen carefully: In vv. 10-11, James is speaking about a person who may claim to be a Christian but is severely tempted to put wealth into the place of God in his heart. "Look at the world," James says. "You'll see what happens when you do this. How many very wealthy people have ended their lives in despair and ruin? How many wealthy celebrities have fallen victim to messes that their affluent lives have led them into: addictions of many kinds, misplaced priorities with regard to family and friends, etc.? Studies show that suicides happen more often among the affluent people worldwide than among the poor. When our souls are invested in material things, when they fade away with them. That's what the Bible is saying here.
So the Bible points us today beyond the obsessive materialism of our society. The Bible is saying that, if you have possessions as a fully committed Jesus-follower, you should take joy that you have learned (different from many of your colleagues) about the temporary nature of wealth before it's too late. Jesus declared, "It's hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God" because that wealth becomes a god ‑‑ a very poor god. And, James indicates here, true Jesus-followers know this and have come to trust Christ for true riches. Now, don't misunderstand: God entrusts material possessions to many of his children. But it is a trial: Will we ask God how to use it and then do what he says or will we use it only to satisfy ourselves?
One of the central messages from Jesus was that temporary wealth can be used for eternal benefit. Jesus said that some believers will have times when they need a cup of cold water – and, at the same time, other believers will have a cup of cold water. So, if you are one who has possessions, then praise God that you've been humbled in due season and learn the grace of grateful and generous giving.
And, one of the most important points in the Bible is that the believer who has possessions sees the poor person differently from others. All your fellow business owners think that your poorer Christian friend has little value -- but you know better. You know he's a brother ‑‑ a fellow inheritor of the eternal riches of God. In church, rich and poor join around the table of the Lord. Rich and poor serve one another n the family of God. The one who is poor may even be your spiritual elder or mentor! "Let the rich boast in this humiliation." God's paradoxical kingdom is like this. The way up is down. So, if you have the trial of wealth, then be glad you've learned in time that material things have no eternal value in and of themselves. Orient your life around what counts rather than these temporary status symbols that the world values so highly. That's God's wisdom for you.
So James is telling us what, I think, most of us know if we will "consider..." Consider the fact that what most people live for is temporary. You will be tempted to do the same. It's a trial. It's striking that James spends more words talking about the trial of wealth than about the trial of poverty. Why? – Because the greatest trouble may be to think you have no troubles. The greatest spiritual trial may be to think you have no trials. The greatest danger may be to fail to realize that you are in danger.
Two "Boil-down" Lessons:
#1: The Bible calls us not to be socialists – but to be a family of faith.
Jesus made this clear as he called people to follow him. Once, when he was speaking to Peter in Mark 10, he said that some who follow him will have to leave family and possessions. But, when that is God's call upon us, we must always know that when we follow Jesus we become a family with, as Jesus put it, "A hundred times homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life." In other words, God's children never have to go through life alone.
Remember that James' letter was written to local church communities and James' bottom line point is that members of God's family who trust in Jesus going through trials of any kinds together – together. So, when a financial trial comes to a believer, you are not alone, God is with you -- and your church family is with you too. That means that you need to be deeply involved in the church family. Get in an adult community and a life group. What should happen is that those who are going through one kind of trial will support those who are going through a different kind of trial. James will have much to say about this later on so we'll wait for his words. But, he said things like this: Do not show favoritism. Help one another. Pray for one another.
I want to add this too: I think we need to learn from what Grace Jenks learned on her mission trip, i.e., those who go through severe economic trials often become the best teachers about faith to those who have much. Lauren Stiles, one of our high school students, wrote me and affirmed the same point. She wrote: I think that having the money to have things like phones is a big cause of people having shallow relationships instead of deep, because I've gone out to lunch with friends and everyone will be on their phones, or we will laugh about a funny picture or something on Facebook. Everyone is preoccupied with what other people are doing on the Internet, not with the people they are currently with. I also think it's a huge distraction because I know I am on my phone 100 times more than I am with my Bible.
In my mind, one implication of this is that it would be wise if a church had spiritual leadership made up not only of the financially successful in a local church – but also of those who are faithfully walking with God through times of economic trial. And we will not only want financially successful people in our small groups and our elected leadership. God's Word says, "You need one another. You need to learn from one another. You need to walk through the many kinds of trials together with your family."
#2: God calls us not to self-indulgent pride – but generous stewardship that furthers God's mission.
I think you know what James is saying to you if you have possessions: You should say to God every day, "Lord, I'm always tempted to take pride in this stuff and to think my life depends on having this stuff. Lord, I lack wisdom. How would you have me use what you have entrusted to me to further your work in the world?" I think the result will be that you will live more simply. Your giving to church will be more consistent and more generous. I think those you meet who are hurting will receive God's help and blessing through you. And, I know absolutely that you will find great joy in giving to others as God has given to you.
One of my close friends is a very wealthy man. One time, after he had given a huge gift to make it possible for some gifted Christian young leaders to go to seminary, he said to me, "Greg you must never be afraid to share an opportunity for supporting important things with a believer who has been blessed financially. We all know deep down that money doesn't last. When we see that what God has entrusted to us is being used to do lasting things, we find our greatest joy." So, I asked him often. And he gave often.
Let's sum it up: Poverty is a trial. And, riches are a trial too. There are temptations to turn away from God because of money whether we have much or little. Wealthy or poor ‑‑‑ these situations are not punishments but opportunities for us to grow and to glorify God – to become complete and to lack nothing (1:4). But that will only happen only if we take time to "consider" with joy-filled confidence that God is present and at work even in trials, faithfully let him bring his work to completion and seek God's wisdom rather than the world's success. People will then see from our lives that God truly is present in us. Our trials will flow out into witness and God will be glorified. May it be so in all our lives!
To His glory,
Dr. Greg Waybright
Senior Pastor
Greg Waybright • Copyright 2014, Lake Avenue Church