S1: They could have given up, but they stood. They stood.
S1: They understood that the struggle that I'm going through is
S1: for the future. I'm going to. That the struggle is
S1: a part of making me who I'm going to become.
S2: Welcome to Treasure Truth with pastor and author James Ford,
S2: junior senior pastor of the Christ Bible Church in Chicago.
S2: I'm Steve Hillard. Glad you're with us today as we
S2: continue our study of James chapter one and understand why
S2: it's so important to see the purpose God may have
S2: for us in our problems and in our pain. I
S2: think that's one of the wonderful things about the Bible.
S2: As Pastor Ford just said, they could have given up,
S2: but they stood. Who was he talking about? Well, it's
S2: the people that you read about in Scripture. I think
S2: sometimes we may have this misperception that the people that
S2: are written about in the Bible are holy people. Well,
S2: they are if you say that they were set apart
S2: for use by God, but they were far from perfect.
S2: They were flawed. They were sinners. Some of them have
S2: some pretty major baggage. And Pastor Ford points that out
S2: in today's message. I think that can be reassuring for us,
S2: because the Bible doesn't just gloss over the messiness of life.
S2: It says, hey, you've made a mess of your life.
S2: So did these people that God used. And you know,
S2: that can carry forward to today. You may have made
S2: a mess of your life, but if you stand and
S2: if you turn to Christ, if we confess our sins,
S2: if we grow in our relationship with him, it's amazing
S2: how God may still use you. I think you're going
S2: to be encouraged in today's broadcast. So if you can
S2: join us in James chapter one as we continue seeing
S2: the purpose in your problems and pain. Here's Pastor Ford.
S1: So God is shaping you. What's that capacity. Say capacity.
S1: And then verse four, God supplies. Get it, get it.
S1: Look at it. It's so well rounded. I sent this
S1: to you. You got to see it the way I
S1: see it. Because I'm shaping you to fill you with
S1: something that's going to prepare you for where I'm taking you.
S1: If you don't go through this, you will not be
S1: prepared for what I prepared for you. So it's already
S1: there and it's waiting on you. I just have to
S1: give you capacity in order to deal with it. And God,
S1: every time he shapes something, he fills it. Let me
S1: borrow from a preacher I heard on TV. I ain't
S1: going to call his name. He said. God created the
S1: earth with capacity. And then he filled it. Uh, God
S1: created the seas with capacity. Then he filled it. God
S1: created the sky with capacity. Then he filled it. God
S1: created man with capacity. Then he blew into him the
S1: breath of life. That was good stuff. I shout about that.
S1: I said, that's good stuff. And so what God's doing
S1: right now? Come on, say he's shaping me. Yeah, so
S1: he can fill me so he can use me because
S1: I'm going somewhere and God's going to do something in
S1: my life. Amen. Amen. Yeah. That's what he's doing. Yeah.
S1: And so when you look at what's going on here,
S1: he wants us to know. Now, let me give all
S1: of it. Then I'll come back and just kind of
S1: review it for you. He says four things in verse
S1: three be. And four. He says, here's what God is doing.
S1: He says, he says this resultant purposes in your problems
S1: and pain. Let me clarify them for you. First of all,
S1: God is testing our faith. What's he doing? Yeah, he says,
S1: sixth of all, he's teaching us endurance. What's he doing?
S1: He said, third of all, he's taking us to maturity.
S1: What's he doing? He said, last of all, he's transporting
S1: us to our future or to our destiny. What's he doing? Yeah.
S1: So every time we look at it like God looks
S1: at it, we ought to be saying, okay, I don't
S1: like it. I don't understand what's going on. But bring
S1: it on. Bring it on. Because I know it's not
S1: going to make me bitter. It's going to make me better.
S1: I know that. Hey, hey, all things are going to
S1: work together for good to those who love the Lord
S1: and those who are the called according to it. I'm
S1: just happy, that's all. Because we go through some stuff
S1: all the time, don't we, baby? Mm. You know, in
S1: order to have a testimony, you gotta have a test.
S1: Because the first four words in testimony is test. It's
S1: amazing to me how many Christians want to be overcomers
S1: and ain't never overcame anything. Yeah. And so here it is.
S1: He says, listen, this is just a test. Now I
S1: need to get you to Bible class. So since you
S1: won't come meet me once again, I'm going to meet you.
S1: And there are five sources of tests. Let me give
S1: them to you real quick. I'm not going to push them.
S1: There's the satanic source. The devil. Oh, yeah. He will
S1: tempt us. He will test us. He's on us like
S1: white on rice. Like a duck on a June bug.
S1: Like stink on a hog. Uh, like grits on Al Green. Uh,
S1: like drugs on al heard. Yeah, uh, like a body
S1: shirt on a bishop. He's on us tight. I always
S1: like saying that every now and then. Uh, yeah. And
S1: so he's on us, and somebody said he's not bothering me.
S1: That's probably because you ain't bothering him. Because if you
S1: don't meet the devil as you walk this Christian walk,
S1: it probably means both of you are going the same direction.
S1: First Peter five eight says, be sober. Be vigilant for
S1: your adversary. The devil walketh about like a roaring lion,
S1: seeking whom he may devour. Oh, yeah, he's looking for us,
S1: and he wants us to make God look bad. Then
S1: there's the secular source. That's the world. Uh, now there
S1: are three words translated world in in the Greek New Testament. Uh,
S1: this one is cosmos, a cosmos. We get the word
S1: cosmetics from it. Now, what is the world? Get this.
S1: Every woman ought to have this definition down. Because what
S1: do you do in the morning? You put on your base, right?
S1: It ain't called base foundation. Okay, put on your foundation,
S1: then what you put on next, baby. Well, you is
S1: looking so good and you're all dolled up. I thought
S1: maybe you help a brother out this morning, but you
S1: know what I mean. It's like you went in the mirror.
S1: You begin to look, you know, and you straighten out
S1: the weave. If you have one, or you put the
S1: wig on your head, you know, and you made sure
S1: everything was arranged so that you could get those compliments.
S1: You look good this morning. What is the world? It
S1: is the arranged system that leaves God out. That's it.
S1: Of course, I don't have to make any comments about
S1: that because we know we're living in it. Third one.
S1: Third one. The self source. That's the flesh. Remember, the
S1: enemy is the enemy. The old sin nature. That's why Paul,
S1: remember in Romans six said, who shall free me from
S1: this body of death? And remember the the word picture.
S1: How many remember the word picture? Let me see your hands.
S1: I wasn't going to call on you. I just want
S1: to see if you remember the word picture. Okay. The
S1: word picture was if you committed premeditated murder, you murdered somebody.
S1: They would strap that person on your back, and you
S1: would have to carry that person until the putrification from
S1: their body went into yours. And and you became diseased
S1: and died. That was your punishment. And he says, the
S1: flesh is like that. Who shall free me from this
S1: body of death? So, so, so so the spirit says
S1: we going to Bible study Wednesday night? And the flesh said, Uh-Uh,
S1: empire coming on. We going to prayer. Uh-Uh scandal coming on. Yeah.
S1: So the flesh. Here's the fourth one. Here's the fourth one.
S1: The situational or circumstantial source? Natural cause and effect. Galatians
S1: says it this way whatsoever a man soweth, uh, God
S1: is not mocked whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he reap.
S1: In other words, there are natural consequences that are situational
S1: or circumstantial that happen. It just happen because stuff happens.
S1: But here's the one he's talking about here, the sovereign source,
S1: that God will test our faith so we can know
S1: exactly how much faith we have. See, salvation will get
S1: us into heaven, but the test is to get heaven
S1: into us. Y'all ain't going to pray with me, I
S1: said it. We studied Genesis 22 recently where God said
S1: to Abraham something none of us would ever want to
S1: hear about our children. Offer up Isaac as a sacrifice.
S1: And some of y'all saying, God wouldn't have to tell
S1: me to do that with mine. I'll volunteer. Yeah, right. Anyway,
S1: he says he says he says he. And so what's
S1: he doing? Just the one question. Here it is. Here
S1: it is. There are four, but there's only one I
S1: want to focus on. In other words, do you love
S1: me more than the pagans love their God? You say
S1: that you will follow me anywhere. You prove that. Now
S1: will you give me anything? Do you love the gift
S1: more than you love the giver? And some of us
S1: love the gift more than we love the giver. Because
S1: he gave us the house. And we can't come to
S1: church because we have to clean it. Uh, he gave
S1: us the clothes. But Sunday, the only day I got
S1: to wash my clothes. So I gotta go to work tomorrow,
S1: so I gotta have some clean clothes. Well, well, you
S1: must be pretty trifling if you don't have any clothes
S1: to wear. And you, you you. Let me, let me,
S1: let me just let it go. You know, it's like.
S1: It's like what you do go two months without washing
S1: anything and then does it take all day? No, it
S1: sure doesn't. And so do you love me? Will you
S1: serve me even when you don't like what I'm telling you?
S1: What kind of faith do you have? Is it only
S1: faith that the faith of the comfortable? What about in conflict?
S1: You still love me as much as you said you
S1: love me. When I took the job that I gave you.
S1: When I took the money that I gave you. When
S1: I took the help that I gave you. Or will
S1: you say, yes? The Lord giveth, the Lord taketh away.
S1: Blessed be the name of the Lord. I'm going to
S1: bless you. I'm going to praise you in the good time,
S1: but also in the bad time, in the glad times,
S1: but also in the bad times. I am going to
S1: serve you. This is what we need. That's what we need.
S2: Well, that is exactly what we need. It can be
S2: a little tougher at times to live that out, and
S2: I think that's why listening to a teaching like this
S2: can be so encouraging, to just be reminded of the
S2: fact that God is sovereign and we can trust him
S2: not only in the good, but also in the bad.
S2: And so maybe you want to listen to this broadcast again. Well,
S2: you can always do so by coming to our website.
S2: You can download the MP3, you can stream the program
S2: or order copies on CD. Just stop by treasure. Truth. Radio.com. Again,
S2: here's Pastor Ford.
S1: In other words, Abraham, do you love me like the
S1: pagans love their God? Now, if you remember you were here,
S1: what they would do is they take their firstborn, put
S1: them in the arms of Molech, and which was a
S1: bronze statue, and they would heat those hands up and
S1: throw their firstborn into the hands of Molech as an offering.
S1: And God says, do you love me as much as
S1: the pagan love? Love their God? And Abraham said, I
S1: sure do. I'm going to do this thing. And and
S1: of course, Hebrews 11 tells us he believed God was
S1: going to raise him from the dead. But let me
S1: ask you some questions. Do you love your God as
S1: much as the pagans love their God? Because the Jehovah
S1: Witness goes out and knocks on doors and talks about
S1: their God 15 hours a week? Uh, do you love
S1: your God as much as the pagans love their God?
S1: Mormon youth give two years of their life to missionary
S1: work before they start their career. Do you love your
S1: God as much as the pagan love their god? Uh, yeah.
S1: I heard say that the Hare Krishnas remember when they
S1: used to go to airport? Their goal was to give
S1: $200 a day to their organization. Do you love your
S1: God as much as the pagans love their God? Moonies
S1: believe that marriage is sacred, and, uh, it's between a
S1: man and a woman. And you shouldn't shack before you
S1: get married. Do you love your God as much as
S1: the pagan love their god? Uh, Muslims pray five times
S1: a day. Do you love your God as much as
S1: the pagan love? Jews pray three times a day. Do
S1: you love the living God as much as they love
S1: their god? Mm. Yeah. And so sometimes what happens is
S1: that we need to understand God saying, Will you obey
S1: me when it's not easy to obey me when it's
S1: not comfortable to obey me? Now, now, I went to
S1: Walmart and got myself a piggy bank. Now, I remember
S1: in my early 20s I used to keep all my
S1: change in a purple bag. Oh, okay. I can tell
S1: who came out of the streets from who just laughed,
S1: you know. So? So some of some of them weren't.
S1: Why are they laughing? Somebody holler out what the purple
S1: bag was. Crown royal. Yeah, but I remember in 1961,
S1: I was ten years old and my mama gave me
S1: a piggy bank. Now I got this one. This is different.
S1: This one has a little thing on the bottom. You
S1: can pull it out and get the coins. But but
S1: back in the day is anybody had one like I
S1: used to have it didn't have this on the bottom.
S1: How many of you had had a remember that. It
S1: didn't have that. How would you have to get the.
S1: Because you yeah you you'd have to bust it. But
S1: see not from my family. You didn't bust it because
S1: mama paid for this. Yeah. So you don't bust nothing.
S1: Mama paid cuz then mama would whip your behind. So
S1: here's what you would do. You want to get some
S1: money out of it. What you would do is you
S1: take it, turn it upside down and you would shake
S1: it until something came out. See, you got to realize
S1: that God puts something valuable in every one of you.
S1: Everybody la dee da dee and everybody, uh, he put
S1: it in you, and it's not going to come out
S1: of you very naturally. So sometimes what God has to
S1: do is turn you upside down and shake it until
S1: it falls out. Because God knows that unless you turn
S1: them upside down and shake them, what he put in
S1: them is not going to come out of them. And therefore,
S1: what needs to come out of you to prepare you
S1: for where God is taking you won't come out. And
S1: so God takes you and shakes you, and out comes
S1: more faith. God takes you and shakes you, and out
S1: comes more power. And God takes you and shakes you,
S1: and out comes mercy and love and grace and peace
S1: and vision and you, you, yeah, it comes out of you.
S1: And you think I can't make it? And God says,
S1: oh yes you can. And it comes out of you,
S1: I can't take it. And you say, yeah, it's in.
S1: I didn't know all that was up in me. Come on,
S1: tell him. Shake me Lord. Tell something come out that
S1: you put in that I can use to move toward
S1: what you have for me. Mhm. This thing getting gooder.
S1: But then notice not just test our faith notice teach
S1: our endurance. So he says let patience. He's used the
S1: word twice now in chapter one the word patience is
S1: hupomone say hupomone. And it literally means huppah. Under Monet
S1: abide to, abide under. In chapter five, he uses the
S1: other word macro to me, say macro to me, and
S1: macro long through me or minded. Now here's what it means.
S1: He bookends it with patience. In chapter one he says
S1: you have to be patient in problems. That's hupomone. And
S1: then he says, I gotta take you to the bigger stuff.
S1: Chapter five. You gotta be patient with people. And so
S1: being patient with problems and patience with people, he says,
S1: to abide under. Why do I need to abide under?
S1: Because some things that happen to you are actually happening
S1: for you Sometimes when it looks like things are falling apart,
S1: things are really falling in place. But you must stand
S1: your ground. See, God wants you to hold out instead
S1: of giving out. You gotta stay under it. Let me,
S1: let me just quote I'd like to read after Pastor Butler.
S1: Here's what he said. The old tongue in cheek adage,
S1: I want patience and I want it now reflects the
S1: difficulty of developing patience. Patience doesn't come overnight and it
S1: doesn't come without tribulation. He's got book, chapter, verse. You
S1: know what it is. Anybody know that verse in Romans
S1: chapter six? That's right. Verse three. Tribulation worketh patience. If
S1: you've ever prayed for patience, what you said is bring
S1: me some trouble. I just I read everybody's mind just then.
S1: I ain't never praying for patience again. Never, never. Yeah,
S1: that's what you're praying for. four. And so Hebrews 12.
S1: That's a powerful patient here it says, wherefore, seeing we
S1: are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses,
S1: let us run with patience the race, that's why. Because
S1: it's not a 100 yard dash. It's a 26 mile marathon.
S1: And he's saying, listen. So. So you gotta go for
S1: the long haul. Yeah. Mhm. See here's what we do.
S1: We come up with all these excuses about why we
S1: can't stay under what God is allowing or authorized for
S1: us to go through. And Romans 12 when it says,
S1: wherefore seeing we are compassed about with, you know what
S1: it's all about people who stood, people who stood their ground,
S1: who did not let any of their circumstances cause them
S1: to get out from under what God was doing. Okay,
S1: let me call the roll. Because somebody said I'm too
S1: old to serve God. You know, I'm to leave it
S1: to the young folk. I'm just too old to serve God.
S1: And Moses said, you're never too old to serve God.
S1: I didn't start my ministry till I was 80. And
S1: then I served him for 40 years and served him
S1: until I was 120. How old are you? You're never
S1: too old. Somebody talking about. Well, well, see, I'm too young.
S1: You know God can't use me. I'm just too young. And, uh,
S1: David says I was 17, uh, when the Lord used
S1: me to defeat Goliath. And Daniel says I was 16
S1: when I was taken into Babylon, and and and, uh, became, uh,
S1: a president at an early age, and, and, uh, Josiah
S1: says I was eight when I came to the throne
S1: of Israel and started revival. And Jeremiah says, I got
S1: all y'all beat. I was in my mother's womb. Hey,
S1: he called me hey in the womb. I gave him
S1: praise in the womb. I guess you could call that
S1: prenatal praise. Yeah, yeah. And so here it is. Here
S1: it is. Somebody said I can't put myself on the
S1: altar like Romans 12 one and two says, and. And
S1: Isaac says, I did. I did somebody saying, well, see,
S1: you don't have baby mama drama and baby daddy drama.
S1: And Jacob said, tell me about it. Mhm. Yeah. And,
S1: and so what's going on. I can't serve because I
S1: was a thought. Mhm. Yeah. And, and Rahab says look
S1: uh don't let that bother you girlfriend. I ran the
S1: Best Little Whorehouse in Jericho and I'm in the genealogy
S1: of Jesus Christ. Mhm. Yeah. And somebody says I was
S1: too much of a player, and David and Solomon look
S1: at each other and say wannabe. Somebody says I talk
S1: too much and I can't back up my claims. And,
S1: and Peter says, join the club. In other words, they
S1: could have given up. But they stood. They stood. They
S1: understood that the struggle that I'm going through is for
S1: the future. I'm going to, that the struggle is a
S1: part of making me who I'm going to become.
S2: You know, God is shaping each one of us according
S2: to his plan. Encouraging biblical thoughts today from Pastor Ford.
S2: You're listening to treasure Truth and the fact that you're
S2: listening right now, when you could be doing something else,
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S2: we're on the air here every day, and it's why
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S2: section two, we answer the question, what does God's Word
S2: do for us? And then finally, there's a whole section
S2: on how to get the most from God's Word. You know,
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