(Part 1 of 2)
“Dear brothers and sisters,
when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great
joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance
to grow.”-James 1:2-3
Let me start by saying that if the
Christian life was easy, there would be no need for endurance. Endurance is the
ability to withstand hardship or adversity; especially: the ability to sustain
a prolonged stressful effort or activity.
Most of the time we think about
endurance in the context of athletics, especially those activities that make a
prolonged demand on the body; such as a marathon, triathlon, a century bike
race or basketball tournament. Endurance is important in those activities where
you are pushing yourself physically and mentally to reach a goal that is not
easily attained. However, unlike the sporting events I mentioned, the Christian
life does not have a predictable ending point.
A marathon ends in 26.2 miles, a
century bike ride is 100 miles, a basketball game lasts four quarters; but the
Christian life could last 30 minutes or 90 years. So how do you build endurance
for something that does not have a predictable ending point? Although
inspiration and initiative may help you get off the starting blocks, endurance
is what keeps you in the race until the end.
When it comes to building physical
endurance you have catalyst that help you build endurance: resistance,
intensity, and frequency. The book of James tells us that we have two catalyst
that help us build spiritual endurance: testing and temptation.
“God blesses those who
patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown
of life that God has promised to those who love him.”-James 1:12
James identifies testing and
temptation as having the potential to build the type of spiritual endurance in
our lives that will carry us to the end.
According to James 1:2 when our
faith is tested our endurance has a chance to grow. How we approach a time of
testing in our lives will have a tremendous affect on our ability to endure
physically and emotionally to the end. So how does God test us? Some may look
at testing as facing an illness, marriage problems, loss of job, or a financial
crisis. However, listen to James 1:5-8:
“But when you ask him, be sure
that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided
loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the
wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their
loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in
everything they do.”-James 1:6-8
The things that will test your
endurance the most are those that divide your loyalty. You cannot finish a race
being drawn in two different directions. It creates instability and
inconsistency in a person’s life. What is robbing you of being consistent in
your devotions with God, what is robbing you of being consistent in your church
attendance, what is robbing you of sharing your faith with others, what are
spending your finances on that is robbing God of His tithe? What is dividing
your loyalty?
A test is given to evaluate what
you have learned. My wife always says that the difficult thing about tests is
that God will keep giving them to you until you pass it. That means that each
test we face is an opportunity to express our understanding of God’s truth.
Pastor Scott Burr
Dayspring Community Church
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