WEBVTT - Chad Roberts - Oct 17 - 8:30 pm 0:00:18.750 --> 0:00:21.889 Welcome to Awaken to Grace. I'm Chad Roberts, and today 0:00:22.010 --> 0:00:26.000 we are studying James 1, verse 12. We are looking 0:00:26.060 --> 0:00:30.020 at what the Bible calls the crown of life. Friends, 0:00:30.080 --> 0:00:34.159 this is the sufferer's crown. This is the crown that 0:00:34.280 --> 0:00:39.260 is reserved for those believers who endured the trials of life. 0:00:39.380 --> 0:00:43.380 They stood under the pressures of life, and because they 0:00:43.570 --> 0:00:48.050 suffered well in this world, Christ is going to reward them. 0:00:48.380 --> 0:00:51.380 with the crown of life. Friends, each of us who 0:00:51.420 --> 0:00:55.360 are born again, we can win this amazing crown given 0:00:55.420 --> 0:00:58.300 by the Lord Jesus Christ. Today we're going to break 0:00:58.640 --> 0:01:02.310 down James chapter 1 where our main text is James 0:01:02.310 --> 0:01:05.310 1 12, but we're going to link many other scriptures 0:01:05.370 --> 0:01:09.550 in James 1 to show the natural logic of the 0:01:09.709 --> 0:01:14.089 scriptures and how the truth stacks upon each other. I'm 0:01:14.110 --> 0:01:17.649 so glad you're listening today to this edition of Awakened 0:01:17.850 --> 0:01:21.250 to Grace. James 1, verse 12. What a remarkable scripture 0:01:21.390 --> 0:01:24.490 it is. We're in the series right now studying the 0:01:24.530 --> 0:01:44.000 five crowns of scripture. We laid the foundation by looking 0:01:44.340 --> 0:01:46.700 at week one at the judgment seat of Christ called 0:01:46.720 --> 0:01:49.340 the Bema. We explained all of that, how we are 0:01:49.380 --> 0:01:52.880 building our lives out of either one of two materials, 0:01:53.320 --> 0:01:58.490 either gold, silver, and precious stone, or hay and wood 0:01:58.670 --> 0:02:02.330 and stubble, things that will just burn up as God 0:02:02.390 --> 0:02:05.170 tests it with fire. So we learned in week one 0:02:05.330 --> 0:02:10.150 about how the quality or the value of our lives 0:02:10.430 --> 0:02:14.440 depend in eternity based on how we live now. And 0:02:14.630 --> 0:02:17.720 if our life and the motives of our life and 0:02:17.740 --> 0:02:20.520 the works that the Lord gives us opportunity to do, 0:02:20.919 --> 0:02:26.190 not for salvation, but because of our salvation, they are 0:02:26.220 --> 0:02:29.310 going to endure for all of eternity. And either they 0:02:29.370 --> 0:02:32.530 are going to grow more valuable as it's tested by 0:02:32.630 --> 0:02:37.169 fire and it survives the fire, it purifies in the fire, 0:02:37.669 --> 0:02:41.120 or we're going to suffer a great loss. Not loss 0:02:41.160 --> 0:02:47.360 of salvation, but loss of reward, loss of privilege, loss 0:02:47.400 --> 0:02:50.680 of authority in the kingdom. That was week one. In 0:02:50.720 --> 0:02:55.100 week two, we dived into the crowns and we covered 0:02:55.160 --> 0:02:59.769 what's called the victor's crown or the incorruptible crown, the 0:02:59.810 --> 0:03:03.950 imperishable crown found in 1 Corinthians 9. And we explained 0:03:04.190 --> 0:03:08.630 how Paul saw himself as a contestant, as a runner 0:03:09.050 --> 0:03:12.310 in a race, and then as a boxer in a ring. 0:03:12.490 --> 0:03:15.980 And oh, how I loved that sermon. We talked about 0:03:16.040 --> 0:03:19.130 how Paul, the Greek word he used was literally to 0:03:19.230 --> 0:03:22.030 black the eye. And he said, what Paul is saying 0:03:22.070 --> 0:03:25.570 is I put on boxing gloves and I don't run aimlessly. 0:03:25.610 --> 0:03:28.230 I don't beat the air aimlessly. As a matter of fact, 0:03:28.470 --> 0:03:32.000 Paul didn't punch anyone. Paul didn't fight with other people. 0:03:32.290 --> 0:03:36.300 Paul contended with himself. And Paul says, when it comes 0:03:36.380 --> 0:03:41.600 to sin, if necessary, I will black my own eye 0:03:41.680 --> 0:03:45.560 before I allow sin to conquer me. Why? Because I'm 0:03:45.600 --> 0:03:50.040 running a race. That we can all obtain the crown, 0:03:50.480 --> 0:03:54.260 which is called the victor's crown. Today I want to 0:03:54.310 --> 0:03:58.150 look at what James teaches us in James 1.12 at 0:03:58.190 --> 0:04:00.310 the second crown we're going to study called the crown 0:04:00.350 --> 0:04:05.310 of life. The crown of life is for those who 0:04:05.410 --> 0:04:10.790 endure the hardships of life. For those who suffer well 0:04:11.610 --> 0:04:16.540 in this world. According to Revelation 2, verse 10, this 0:04:16.620 --> 0:04:19.839 is for those who face persecution. This is for those 0:04:19.920 --> 0:04:23.200 who will one day face martyrdom. This is for those 0:04:23.260 --> 0:04:27.640 who go through trials and through tribulations. So yes, there 0:04:27.700 --> 0:04:31.150 are some saints, there are some believers who will lose 0:04:31.230 --> 0:04:35.729 their life in this world. The Bible says of them 0:04:35.790 --> 0:04:40.469 in Hebrews 11, of whom the world was not worthy. Worthy. 0:04:41.700 --> 0:04:45.230 There are some who will literally lose their life for 0:04:45.270 --> 0:04:47.849 the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and for the 0:04:47.930 --> 0:04:52.809 faith that they possess. The majority of us will never 0:04:52.870 --> 0:04:55.170 be asked to be a martyr. We will never be 0:04:55.410 --> 0:04:58.870 asked to lose our physical life for the name of Christ, 0:04:59.110 --> 0:05:02.609 but we are all asked to lay down our life, 0:05:03.390 --> 0:05:07.299 to take up our cross and follow Jesus. We are 0:05:07.620 --> 0:05:12.580 all asked to go through the Trials of this life, 0:05:12.690 --> 0:05:17.150 are we not? Paul said we enter the kingdom through 0:05:17.210 --> 0:05:23.609 many tribulations. Are you willing to do that? The point 0:05:23.770 --> 0:05:28.200 of my sermon today is that the trials we face, 0:05:28.540 --> 0:05:34.120 the pressures we're under, the sufferings we endure are not meaningless. 0:05:35.400 --> 0:05:39.180 God has great purpose in everything you face. God has 0:05:39.240 --> 0:05:42.540 great purpose in everything that you endure. And as a 0:05:42.540 --> 0:05:44.360 matter of fact, James is going to tell us, just 0:05:44.380 --> 0:05:47.719 look at the text with me, chapter 1, verse 12. 0:05:47.720 --> 0:05:56.710 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial. For 0:05:56.810 --> 0:06:02.090 when he has stood the test, he will receive the 0:06:02.210 --> 0:06:07.760 crown of life, which God has promised. Amen. Amen. To 0:06:07.820 --> 0:06:11.060 those who love him. The crown of life is a 0:06:11.180 --> 0:06:13.540 promise of God. And what do we know about the 0:06:13.600 --> 0:06:19.140 promises of God? They are yes and amen through Jesus. 0:06:20.490 --> 0:06:23.690 So today if you're going through a great hardship. Today 0:06:23.790 --> 0:06:28.110 if you face a great difficulty. Today if you're suffering sorrow. 0:06:28.350 --> 0:06:31.800 Today if you're going through the trial of your life. 0:06:32.120 --> 0:06:35.160 Oh I have such good gospel news for you. There's 0:06:35.200 --> 0:06:39.690 a crown that's awaiting you. God is not just picking 0:06:39.810 --> 0:06:43.390 on you. God has not abandoned you. God has not 0:06:43.490 --> 0:06:46.599 forgotten you. As a matter of fact, you are right 0:06:47.100 --> 0:06:50.979 center in the very plan of God. Amen. And according 0:06:51.020 --> 0:06:56.640 to the scriptures, he has a crown of life that 0:06:56.680 --> 0:07:00.820 he cannot wait to give to you. Amen. Well, I 0:07:00.860 --> 0:07:04.700 have a question today. If the Bible says blessed is 0:07:04.750 --> 0:07:10.910 the man that... Remain steadfast under trial. That word blessed, 0:07:11.010 --> 0:07:14.770 as you know, means happy. It means to be joyful. 0:07:16.920 --> 0:07:23.500 How many of you will encounter a trial, face a severity, 0:07:23.840 --> 0:07:27.559 go through a calamity, face some type of trial in life, 0:07:27.780 --> 0:07:30.360 and just look up to heaven and go, Oh Lord, 0:07:30.620 --> 0:07:33.840 I feel so blessed that you brought this trial to me. 0:07:34.960 --> 0:07:42.020 Is anyone at that level spiritually? How many of us 0:07:42.360 --> 0:07:46.560 just thank God? Lord, I just thank you for what 0:07:46.700 --> 0:07:49.640 I'm going through right now. Amen. I feel so joyful 0:07:49.740 --> 0:07:54.620 over it. That's not our natural instinct, is it? So 0:07:54.700 --> 0:07:59.040 if the scriptures say, happy is the man, blessed is 0:07:59.100 --> 0:08:02.480 the man who remains steadfast under trial, how in the 0:08:02.560 --> 0:08:05.400 world can you find joy in that? I'm so glad 0:08:05.420 --> 0:08:09.640 you asked because the scriptures tell us. Go back. Let's 0:08:10.050 --> 0:08:12.910 Let's go back to James 1. And I want you 0:08:12.930 --> 0:08:15.780 to understand, who is James writing to? Who is this 0:08:15.940 --> 0:08:22.780 letter to, this epistle? He is writing to persecuted believers. 0:08:24.200 --> 0:08:32.840 Suffering saints. Those who were scattered abroad. These were precious 0:08:32.880 --> 0:08:35.520 saints who had to leave their homes, had to leave 0:08:35.540 --> 0:08:40.559 their jobs, had to leave their extended families. over their faith. 0:08:41.660 --> 0:08:43.320 And James is going to write to them and he's 0:08:43.340 --> 0:08:47.140 going to encourage them and listen to what the Holy 0:08:47.179 --> 0:08:50.170 Spirit would say to us. Verse 1, he writes to 0:08:50.210 --> 0:08:52.930 those who are scattered abroad. I want you to know 0:08:53.230 --> 0:08:59.990 these are not affluent, well-to-do believers. These are people who 0:09:00.030 --> 0:09:05.670 are persecuted, people who are suffering. When you understand that, 0:09:05.710 --> 0:09:10.270 you can read chapter 1 through a different lens. through 0:09:10.290 --> 0:09:15.270 a different perspective. Look at verse number two. Count it 0:09:16.530 --> 0:09:24.720 all joy, my brothers, when you encounter trials of various kinds. Now, 0:09:24.740 --> 0:09:27.300 what am I talking about? If God is going to 0:09:27.340 --> 0:09:31.210 give a crown of life to those who endure well, 0:09:31.540 --> 0:09:34.410 to those who suffer well, to those who go through 0:09:34.429 --> 0:09:38.030 the trials of life well, if God is going to 0:09:38.090 --> 0:09:42.250 give those a crown of life, and the scriptures say, 0:09:42.530 --> 0:09:45.150 blessed is the man, happy is the man who can 0:09:45.210 --> 0:09:49.660 remain steadfast when he's under trial, then how do you 0:09:49.679 --> 0:09:55.550 do that? How do you see blessing in pain? How 0:09:55.570 --> 0:09:59.599 do you see blessing in loss? How do you see 0:09:59.660 --> 0:10:04.100 blessing when you suffer? Well, the scriptures plainly tell us. 0:10:04.429 --> 0:10:08.670 It commands us. This is an imperative. It says, count 0:10:08.770 --> 0:10:17.350 it all joy when you encounter various trials. Now, I 0:10:17.410 --> 0:10:21.050 love that the Holy Spirit includes the word various here. 0:10:21.770 --> 0:10:26.890 Diverse trials, various trials, different kinds of trials. How many 0:10:26.929 --> 0:10:28.510 of you know you don't just face one type of 0:10:28.530 --> 0:10:31.940 trial in life? Have you ever been in a season 0:10:31.980 --> 0:10:34.579 of life where you've had to say, if it rains, 0:10:34.940 --> 0:10:41.320 it what? Pours. Because it's not one thing, it's everything. 0:10:41.600 --> 0:10:46.300 Anybody ever been there before? Yes. Anybody ever had difficulty 0:10:46.380 --> 0:10:50.679 on every hand? Everybody, no matter which way you turned, 0:10:50.740 --> 0:10:53.780 which way you looked, you had trials. And you know 0:10:53.800 --> 0:10:55.989 what the Bible says? It says, I don't care what 0:10:56.050 --> 0:10:58.849 kind of trial you face. You can't put God in 0:10:58.890 --> 0:11:01.510 this little box. You can't put your faith in just 0:11:01.550 --> 0:11:05.410 this little box. I don't care what trial faces your life. 0:11:05.650 --> 0:11:09.170 In the midst of it all, you can count it joy. Oh, 0:11:09.290 --> 0:11:14.260 I like that. I like that. God isn't saying, listen, 0:11:14.300 --> 0:11:17.000 your faith only works at church. No, your faith works 0:11:17.160 --> 0:11:21.710 at work. Your faith works in financial difficulty. Your faith 0:11:21.750 --> 0:11:25.790 works in health difficulties. Your faith works when it comes 0:11:25.850 --> 0:11:30.290 to family issues. Your faith works in every area of life. 0:11:30.570 --> 0:11:34.700 Various kinds of trials, your faith will work. Amen? But 0:11:34.740 --> 0:11:36.600 many of us put our faith in this little box 0:11:36.660 --> 0:11:39.300 called church. And if it don't fit right here in 0:11:39.340 --> 0:11:42.420 this little box, it doesn't touch all the other areas 0:11:42.460 --> 0:11:48.160 of our life. No. No. It ought to touch every 0:11:48.300 --> 0:11:51.860 area of our life. And so listen to what James says. 0:11:53.340 --> 0:11:59.579 Count it all joy. How are you blessed under trials? 0:12:00.160 --> 0:12:04.050 You can be blessed in the midst of trials when 0:12:04.090 --> 0:12:06.490 you learn to count everything in your life as joy. 0:12:07.770 --> 0:12:11.470 This word count, I've had a great appreciation for for years. 0:12:11.830 --> 0:12:15.990 In the Greek, it literally is a financial term. It 0:12:16.130 --> 0:12:21.740 literally means to sit down and to calculate. Now I 0:12:21.740 --> 0:12:24.280 want you to think about this. For many of us, 0:12:24.340 --> 0:12:27.500 when difficulties come into our life, do we calculate what 0:12:27.520 --> 0:12:34.990 God's doing? Or do we gripe? And do we complain? 0:12:36.710 --> 0:12:42.070 Do we go negative or do we calculate what God 0:12:42.150 --> 0:12:46.850 is doing and why he's allowing it? If you will 0:12:46.890 --> 0:12:50.870 come to the place in whatever circumstances you're in, whatever 0:12:50.929 --> 0:12:55.929 you're facing, whatever is beyond your control, if you will calculate. 0:12:56.720 --> 0:12:59.800 what God wants to do in your faith right now, 0:13:00.140 --> 0:13:02.220 what God wants to do in your life right now, 0:13:02.500 --> 0:13:05.800 and you'll begin to evaluate it, and you'll begin to 0:13:06.120 --> 0:13:09.080 add it up, and you'll begin to calculate it, you'll 0:13:09.140 --> 0:13:12.970 see there's purpose in what you're facing. But see, when 0:13:12.990 --> 0:13:15.750 we're in the shallow end, and all we do is complain, 0:13:15.809 --> 0:13:19.970 and all we do is bicker, then we're not getting 0:13:20.090 --> 0:13:25.010 out of what God intends for us. You know, Scripture says, 0:13:25.830 --> 0:13:31.239 And Psalm 23 says, yea, though I walk through the valley. 0:13:31.360 --> 0:13:35.520 I don't like walking through valleys. Do you? You know 0:13:35.540 --> 0:13:38.000 what I do when I face a valley? I want 0:13:38.020 --> 0:13:39.839 to run through it and get through it as fast 0:13:39.880 --> 0:13:43.900 as I can and get out of it. But could 0:13:43.920 --> 0:13:48.319 it be that God has something for us there? Could 0:13:48.360 --> 0:13:51.910 it be that, as the old saying is, fruit doesn't 0:13:51.990 --> 0:13:56.520 grow on the mountaintops? Fruit grows down in the valley. 0:13:57.559 --> 0:14:00.000 And when God takes you through a season of the valley, 0:14:00.820 --> 0:14:06.240 what does God have for you there? And if all 0:14:06.280 --> 0:14:09.260 I'm going to do is complain, I'm not going to 0:14:09.420 --> 0:14:14.850 gain that rich and abundant fruit that only the valley 0:14:14.910 --> 0:14:21.050 can give me. Can we say amen today? Count, evaluate, 0:14:21.450 --> 0:14:26.640 calculate what God has. Want to do. Now what am 0:14:26.700 --> 0:14:31.580 I going to calculate? All things. Not just the good things. 0:14:32.300 --> 0:14:36.800 Not just the blessed things. Many of us count our blessings. 0:14:38.120 --> 0:14:42.140 But do you ever calculate your difficulties? Many of us 0:14:42.260 --> 0:14:44.860 count what we love that God does. But do we 0:14:44.940 --> 0:14:49.540 calculate the hard things that God allows? Why is that 0:14:49.600 --> 0:14:53.930 so important? Because let me tell you something. All things 0:14:53.990 --> 0:14:57.460 don't scare the Lord in our life, you know. What 0:14:57.480 --> 0:15:02.840 does Romans 8, 28 say? He works what things? All things. 0:15:06.080 --> 0:15:08.840 The wise choices we make in life and the real 0:15:08.880 --> 0:15:11.640 dumb ones. And how many of us got some dumb ones? 0:15:17.490 --> 0:15:20.470 The good decisions we make, the bad decisions we make. 0:15:21.790 --> 0:15:28.000 God has an ability. To work it all together for 0:15:28.140 --> 0:15:31.690 our good. And you know what? We are to copy that. 0:15:32.510 --> 0:15:35.230 We are to take our cue from that. And we 0:15:35.290 --> 0:15:38.270 are to say, if God has the sovereign ability to 0:15:38.330 --> 0:15:41.859 work out everything in my life, then I ought to 0:15:41.920 --> 0:15:45.300 have the spiritual sense to take the good and the bad, 0:15:45.660 --> 0:15:49.500 the blessing and the sorrow, the triumphs and the trials, 0:15:49.760 --> 0:15:53.350 and I ought to count them all. As joy in 0:15:53.410 --> 0:15:56.410 my life. You know why? Because my father is in 0:15:56.450 --> 0:16:00.590 control of it all. And he's working it all. For 0:16:00.850 --> 0:16:04.170 his glory. For my good. Can you see how I 0:16:04.190 --> 0:16:06.910 can take my cue from God? And I can take 0:16:06.950 --> 0:16:10.030 the all things in my life. And say no. I'm 0:16:10.050 --> 0:16:14.220 going to walk in joy. Now. What I appreciate about 0:16:14.260 --> 0:16:18.460 this verse. Is in the next verse. We're going to see. 0:16:19.260 --> 0:16:27.940 How this. Produces. It produces patience. But I want you 0:16:28.000 --> 0:16:31.859 to note what the Holy Spirit omits here. It does 0:16:31.940 --> 0:16:40.020 not say count all things, count the good, the bad, evaluate, 0:16:40.060 --> 0:16:44.280 calculate all things in your life, and that will produce joy. 0:16:44.320 --> 0:16:48.190 It doesn't say that, does it? There's no producing of 0:16:48.230 --> 0:16:51.050 the joy right here, is there? You know why I 0:16:51.070 --> 0:16:54.620 think that is? Now, see, the Holy Spirit produces joy 0:16:54.960 --> 0:16:59.530 as his fruit in our life, Galatians 5, 22. Yes, 0:16:59.590 --> 0:17:03.130 the Holy Spirit's producing joy. But in this case, on 0:17:03.350 --> 0:17:07.470 our responsibility to evaluate, to calculate everything in our life 0:17:07.730 --> 0:17:12.770 as joy, that isn't being produced. That's deliberate. That is chosen. 0:17:15.270 --> 0:17:17.300 And some of you are asking God, when are you 0:17:17.320 --> 0:17:19.280 going to make me happy? And you know what God's 0:17:19.359 --> 0:17:25.500 asking you? When are you going to choose happiness? When 0:17:25.640 --> 0:17:29.730 are you going to deliberately choose joy and say, I'm 0:17:29.750 --> 0:17:33.530 going to take hold of it? See, later on, down 0:17:33.570 --> 0:17:35.860 in the text, and God willing, I'm going to walk 0:17:35.880 --> 0:17:37.139 you through this, and I'm going to show you just 0:17:37.180 --> 0:17:39.780 how it all stacks together. But in case I don't 0:17:39.880 --> 0:17:41.260 get there at the end, let me say it now. 0:17:42.000 --> 0:17:44.580 Later on, down in the text, I believe you have 0:17:44.619 --> 0:17:49.100 to fact check me, verse probably 25, maybe 24. Let's 0:17:49.340 --> 0:17:54.460 just say 21 to 25, I think. It says, somebody 0:17:54.480 --> 0:17:56.530 tell me what it is. Be doers of the word. 0:17:56.590 --> 0:18:00.169 Tell me what that is. 22. Okay. I was way off. 0:18:03.910 --> 0:18:08.970 What's that mean? Be doers of the word. See, sometimes 0:18:09.580 --> 0:18:12.379 you just have to choose that you're going to walk 0:18:12.440 --> 0:18:16.540 in joy. And your emotions may not fill it, but 0:18:16.580 --> 0:18:20.200 your will chooses it. And then your emotions come along later. 0:18:23.609 --> 0:18:26.280 I've shared with you before, there are days when I'll 0:18:26.320 --> 0:18:29.700 wake up, I'll dream so vividly, I'll see every... Boy, 0:18:29.760 --> 0:18:32.139 last night, I saw so many things. You know what 0:18:32.160 --> 0:18:35.060 I saw last night? It was the craziest thing. I 0:18:35.180 --> 0:18:38.320 dreamed that I was doing my taxes. I was filling out, 0:18:38.359 --> 0:18:41.000 you know, those little boxes, you know what I mean? 0:18:41.320 --> 0:18:44.320 Schedule line, whatever, and they got those boxes. And I 0:18:44.400 --> 0:18:46.960 dreamed that I was filling out my taxes, and I 0:18:47.000 --> 0:18:49.100 could see every bit of it. And I woke up, 0:18:49.180 --> 0:18:51.310 and I thought, Lord, I never thought I'd be so 0:18:51.350 --> 0:18:54.950 happy to do taxes, but I was. Because I could 0:18:54.990 --> 0:19:02.570 see it all. But I'll wake up from a wonderful 0:19:02.630 --> 0:19:05.640 dream or seeing everything or seeing people that I remember, 0:19:06.020 --> 0:19:09.180 their faces, and then I'll wake up and it's pitch black. 0:19:12.060 --> 0:19:15.609 Those are hard days. Those are hard days. Those are 0:19:15.640 --> 0:19:18.889 days that I need in my memory bank. Those are 0:19:18.930 --> 0:19:23.630 days that I need anchored and rooted down in my heart. 0:19:23.990 --> 0:19:31.189 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial. And 0:19:31.230 --> 0:19:33.110 what I have to do is say I'm not going 0:19:33.130 --> 0:19:35.560 to be a hearer of the word. I'm going to 0:19:35.580 --> 0:19:37.660 be a doer of the word. And what's the word 0:19:37.740 --> 0:19:45.800 say to do? Choose joy. Count it all joy. So 0:19:46.160 --> 0:19:48.090 how do I be a doer of the word? What's 0:19:48.119 --> 0:19:51.000 the word say? This is the word. day that the 0:19:51.060 --> 0:19:55.880 Lord has made. I will rejoice and I will be 0:19:55.940 --> 0:19:58.700 glad in it. Amen. And I get up and I 0:19:58.740 --> 0:20:02.419 make my coffee. Amen. Amen. And my emotions may be 0:20:02.460 --> 0:20:05.580 way back there. But my will is right here. You 0:20:05.600 --> 0:20:07.680 get a little coffee in me. You get a little 0:20:07.720 --> 0:20:10.750 word in me. And I'm going to be just fine. Amen. 0:20:13.450 --> 0:20:16.990 And you're going to be fine too. Because you're going 0:20:17.010 --> 0:20:22.150 to be blessed as you remain steadfast under your trial. 0:20:23.510 --> 0:20:27.260 So how do you obtain this joy? I'll tell you 0:20:27.320 --> 0:20:33.750 the secret. You choose it. You count it. Friends, that 0:20:33.869 --> 0:20:40.859 is a deliberate, that is an intentional act of faith 0:20:42.140 --> 0:20:50.120 to count all things as joy. Amen. Now, that brings 0:20:50.160 --> 0:20:53.939 me to my next question. Then where is there joy 0:20:53.980 --> 0:20:58.310 in the midst of suffering? Where do you find joy 0:20:58.369 --> 0:21:05.689 in that? I'm so glad you asked. Verse 3. Because 0:21:05.730 --> 0:21:12.119 you know, brothers, you know, sisters, knowing that the testing 0:21:12.960 --> 0:21:20.080 of your faith produces steadfastness. Now, come on. Can we 0:21:20.100 --> 0:21:23.179 say amen right now? Now, I grew up on the 0:21:23.260 --> 0:21:25.629 old King James. Anybody grow up on the King James? 0:21:26.330 --> 0:21:33.530 In the old King James, it says that tribulation... worketh patience. 0:21:34.570 --> 0:21:39.760 I like that a little bit better. Tribulation worketh patience. 0:21:40.060 --> 0:21:42.440 You know why? Because let me tell you, what you're 0:21:42.480 --> 0:21:46.360 suffering right now, what you're encountering right now, what you're 0:21:46.420 --> 0:21:50.160 up against right now, it's got a job in your life. 0:21:50.500 --> 0:21:53.980 It's at work for you. It is to your good. 0:21:54.010 --> 0:21:57.970 It is to your benefit. And God has great purpose 0:21:58.210 --> 0:22:01.399 in how he wants to use it. Amen? It's working. 0:22:02.320 --> 0:22:07.310 It's producing in you. And where is the joy? The 0:22:07.369 --> 0:22:10.310 joy is when I know, listen, God's not thrown me 0:22:10.550 --> 0:22:13.909 out here in no man's land. God's not pushed me 0:22:14.050 --> 0:22:16.689 out into the unknown and said, Chad, figure it out 0:22:16.770 --> 0:22:19.619 the best you can. Good luck. I hope you do good. 0:22:20.040 --> 0:22:22.100 I don't know why this happened in your life, Chad. 0:22:22.420 --> 0:22:25.220 I don't know why you're going to. No. No. There 0:22:25.280 --> 0:22:28.960 is such purpose in it that God says, here's your confidence. 0:22:29.320 --> 0:22:34.950 You know that the testing of your faith is producing something. 0:22:35.970 --> 0:22:39.210 My joy is the fact God knows well what's going 0:22:39.290 --> 0:22:44.540 on in my life and he has great purpose. Alan Redpath, 0:22:44.600 --> 0:22:49.180 that great pastor of the Moody Church of Chicago years ago, 0:22:49.580 --> 0:22:54.619 he used to say, there is nothing That comes into 0:22:54.680 --> 0:22:58.910 my life. That has not first went through the throne 0:22:58.950 --> 0:23:06.010 of God. And God said that's good for him. It's good. 0:23:07.770 --> 0:23:10.910 It's going to build her faith. It's going to build 0:23:10.990 --> 0:23:15.730 his faith. He's going to learn how to be steadfast. 0:23:16.650 --> 0:23:23.520 That's my refiner's fire. It's good, brothers. It's good, sisters. 0:23:24.310 --> 0:23:31.450 Don't despise the trials that you encounter. Now, notice, go 0:23:31.490 --> 0:23:34.940 back to verse 2. Notice the word encounter, because that's 0:23:34.960 --> 0:23:41.540 an important word. Count it all joy, my brothers. And see, 0:23:41.560 --> 0:23:44.689 that's significant. You know, this isn't for everybody. This is 0:23:44.710 --> 0:23:49.770 for believers. If somebody... If somebody is outside the faith 0:23:50.030 --> 0:23:52.850 and they go, well, Chad, does that mean all things 0:23:52.890 --> 0:23:54.790 work together in my life? No, I can't say that 0:23:54.830 --> 0:23:57.590 to them. Because all things work together for those who 0:23:57.650 --> 0:24:02.080 love God and are called according to his purpose. Well, Chad, 0:24:02.450 --> 0:24:05.520 if I'm not living right and I'm not surrendered to Christ, 0:24:06.080 --> 0:24:08.280 can I count all things as joy? No, you can't. 0:24:10.100 --> 0:24:13.300 This is for those who are in the Lord. So 0:24:13.320 --> 0:24:17.910 he says, my brothers, that's significant. Don't miss that. You 0:24:17.950 --> 0:24:21.460 have to have a faith in God before faith is 0:24:21.500 --> 0:24:24.960 going to work in your life, right? So he says, 0:24:25.020 --> 0:24:32.189 my brothers, count it all joy when you encounter trials 0:24:32.250 --> 0:24:34.710 of various kinds. Do you know what that word encounter means? 0:24:35.109 --> 0:24:40.530 It means a calendar appointment. Oh, I love this. That 0:24:40.590 --> 0:24:45.660 means a scheduled appointment. Do you know what the Holy 0:24:45.700 --> 0:24:48.490 Spirit said to me when... When I begin to think 0:24:48.550 --> 0:24:54.169 about this, the Holy Spirit said, Chad, if a trial 0:24:54.210 --> 0:24:57.700 in your life has a calendar date, it has a 0:24:57.900 --> 0:25:01.180 calendar beginning, then be assured it has a calendar ending. 0:25:03.080 --> 0:25:05.680 If it's got a scheduled beginning, it's got a scheduled ending. 0:25:06.560 --> 0:25:12.580 So remain steadfast under it. Can we say amen today? 0:25:13.700 --> 0:25:16.860 It tells me what you face is not by accident. 0:25:17.420 --> 0:25:21.830 It's not certainly by coincidence. Do you think you serve 0:25:21.869 --> 0:25:25.150 a coincidental God? You think you serve a God that's 0:25:25.190 --> 0:25:30.910 just haphazard and, well, boy, I can't believe that happened. 0:25:31.290 --> 0:25:38.320 There is a horrendous doctrine that I think is a fallacy. 0:25:38.390 --> 0:25:44.220 I think it is a horrible doctrine. It's called open theism. 0:25:45.880 --> 0:25:53.200 Open theism teaches that because God doesn't know how you 0:25:53.240 --> 0:25:55.580 are going to react or how you're going to respond, 0:25:56.000 --> 0:26:00.280 it means God doesn't know the future. I'm thinking, people 0:26:00.340 --> 0:26:05.740 who teach this, do they read the Bible? Do they 0:26:06.010 --> 0:26:09.949 read in Isaiah that God declares the end from the beginning? 0:26:11.490 --> 0:26:18.040 See what... It's a horrendous teaching that God himself doesn't 0:26:18.119 --> 0:26:21.440 know the future. You know, I was counseling with someone 0:26:21.480 --> 0:26:24.800 this week. And we were talking about how God can 0:26:24.840 --> 0:26:27.660 see things that we can't. Could you imagine having God's 0:26:27.680 --> 0:26:33.510 vantage point where God is outside of time? God sees 0:26:33.570 --> 0:26:35.770 the beginning of our trials. He sees the ending of them. 0:26:36.369 --> 0:26:38.590 And he sees everything in between. You and I don't 0:26:38.630 --> 0:26:41.590 have that vantage point, do we? You and I can't 0:26:41.630 --> 0:26:44.650 see in the next week. You and I can't see 0:26:44.690 --> 0:26:48.490 into tomorrow, can we? You and I can't see an 0:26:48.530 --> 0:26:52.090 hour from now. We don't have the same vantage point 0:26:52.130 --> 0:26:55.750 that God does. But because God has the vantage point 0:26:55.770 --> 0:26:58.410 of being outside of time and he can see everything 0:26:58.490 --> 0:27:02.389 about our lives, then how much more meaningful is it 0:27:02.450 --> 0:27:06.780 to God when you walk by faith? How much more 0:27:06.840 --> 0:27:09.450 meaningful is it to God when you say, I don't 0:27:09.490 --> 0:27:12.060 know what the outcome is going to be. I don't 0:27:12.100 --> 0:27:13.470 know how all of this is going to pan out. 0:27:14.490 --> 0:27:16.129 I don't know how it's all going to shake out. 0:27:16.210 --> 0:27:18.350 I don't know how victory is going to come or 0:27:18.390 --> 0:27:20.350 when victory is going to come. I don't know when 0:27:20.390 --> 0:27:22.300 breakthrough is going to come. But I'm going to walk 0:27:22.340 --> 0:27:25.020 by faith and not by sight. Do you know how 0:27:25.060 --> 0:27:28.680 meaningful that is to the Lord? Because you can't see 0:27:29.400 --> 0:27:33.340 what he can see. So we trust him. Amen. When 0:27:33.380 --> 0:27:37.480 you encounter a scheduled appointment, a calendar date, when you 0:27:37.520 --> 0:27:41.879 encounter trials of all different kinds, all various kinds, because 0:27:41.920 --> 0:27:44.770 you and I have trials of all different kinds, we 0:27:44.810 --> 0:27:47.590 have all of God's grace for every one of them. Amen? 0:27:48.590 --> 0:27:53.840 So count it as joy. Blessed is that person. Happy 0:27:54.150 --> 0:27:57.000 you will be if you learn to count it as 0:27:57.119 --> 0:28:02.510 joy in your life. So... He says, knowing that the 0:28:02.550 --> 0:28:05.810 testing of your faith is working something, it's producing something. 0:28:07.150 --> 0:28:12.240 Patience has got a J-O-B in your life. Tribulation has 0:28:12.280 --> 0:28:18.820 got a job. It's literally working in your life because 0:28:18.859 --> 0:28:24.830 of that. Then look what he says. Then let patience, 0:28:24.869 --> 0:28:28.210 let steadfastness have its full effect. So go back down 0:28:28.230 --> 0:28:32.500 to verse 12 and connect these two. So now we understand, 0:28:33.119 --> 0:28:36.960 blessed is the man. Why is someone happy that's in 0:28:37.000 --> 0:28:39.440 the midst of a trial? Because we've learned to count 0:28:39.480 --> 0:28:44.940 it as joy. We've learned to count that experience as joy. 0:28:46.260 --> 0:28:52.540 So now we understand, blessed is the man. Now watch this. 0:28:53.480 --> 0:28:58.940 Who remains steadfast under trial. Now this is where many 0:28:58.980 --> 0:29:02.450 of us are living right now. Sometimes you have to 0:29:03.210 --> 0:29:09.110