STREAMS OF LIVING WATER CHURCH

2/29/04

“Christian Attitudes When Facing Trouble”

James 1:2-4

Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Christians do not face less trouble than other people, but they do have hope that others do not have. God is our Helper and our source of strength.

Psalm 121:1-2 “I lift my eyes to the hills—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.”

Therefore, because God is all-powerful, loves us, and does not take His eyes off us, we should have a different attitude when facing troubles.

James 1:2-4

1. We have an attitude of pure joy because we will never lose out, v. 2

The Bible says it is PURE JOY to face many kinds of trials because we know God has a good plan for us. Christians can never lose out. Even if people take your life, you know that your life is more than just this physical body. That is the extreme example, but it is still true. The apostle Paul, when he was waiting for his execution, knew that He could not lose out.

Philippians 1:20-24

When we remember everything we own—and even our lives—belong to God, then we will not worry so much. Can you say that everything you have belongs to God? Let’s say it: “My car belongs to God.” “My house belongs to God.” “My career belongs to God.” If it belongs to God, do you think God will take care of it?

Even with our family, we should remember that God loves our family much more than we do. (Give example of what Dwayne said about God loving babies.) If I love and try my best to take care of my family, won’t God love more and do much more?

Matthew 7:7-11

2. The testing of our faith develops perseverance, v. 3

Believing God can provide for all our needs, and all our families needs requires faith. Sometimes we say we rely on God when in fact we are just relying on our own strength. A true testing of our faith comes when troubles threaten some people we love and we cannot do anything. Then, we have to depend on God, not on ourselves.

Do you guys remember why Abraham was considered the father of our faith? Abraham had great faith in God, because he believed God’s promise to make his descendents as numerous as the stars. But God tested Abraham’s faith by ordering him to offer his son, Isaac.

Genesis 22:6-8

I think that Abraham must have been thinking on the way up the mountain, “God, I have faith in You that You can make someway out of this. But not my will, but Yours be done.” Who else was willing to sacrifice their only son as part of God’s plan?

We need to have strong faith. Troubles come to work out our faith. They will press against our faith to see if it will hold or not. They will see if our faith will puncture and burst, or if it will stay strong. Passing the test is one way we grow our faith. Another way is by reading His word.

3. God wants us to be mature, complete Christians

We are not in heaven yet. Did you know?  God has left us here on earth for a purpose. We need to be ready to accomplish God’s purpose here on earth. This requires perseverance. It is not easy to do God’s work here on earth. Yes, God delivers us from many problems, but other problems occur because of God’s work, such as discouragement, persecution, and tiredness. We need to be strong and developed Christians, so that we will be able to overcome these difficulties and do God’s work successfully.

The Christian life is often compared to a marathon, but how many runners can finish the marathon if they have not trained properly?

Hebrews 12

We should also remember the example of Jesus, who suffered greatly because of God’s work. Jesus said in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Not my will, but Yours be done.” We need perseverance so that when big tasks come, we will have big perseverance to go through those things. Do you think that evangelizing China will be easy? Will it be as easy as in the United States? I’m not talking only about political persecution, because there are other pressures as well. What about Pakistan or India? God’s work requires perseverance. And do not think that God does not want to use you in a tremendous way!

Many times we underestimate God’s plan for our lives. We look at ourselves and think, “Oh, it would be nice to live such and such a way.” But in fact, God has greater plans for our lives that we do not anticipate. We may think, “I will do this much for God during my life.” But God has greater plans for us.

Judges 6:11-16

God wants to stretch us. Let’s change our thinking about problems. Let’s see each trouble as a test to strengthen our faith and increase our perseverance. Let’s remember that God wants to use each of us to do more than we expect.