Triumph Through Trials (Part 2)

Last week, I talked about the attitude and the advantage of trials. We are to count it all joy when we encounter different trials. As Christians, the advantage of trials is that it produces endurance. And the final goal of trial is so that we can become mature believers.

Purpose Of The Letter

This morning, we will discuss the “HOW.” How can I endure trials joyfully? How can I grow to become like Jesus through trials? I think the “How” is found in verses 5-12, but we will only look at verses 5-8.

Get New People All Caught Up

READ .

In verse 5, we may immediately assume that James is moving on to different subject on prayer, wisdom, and doubt. However, he is not changing subject. There is something missing that you do not see in the English translation, but in the Greek, the beginning of verse 5 should start like this: NOW or AND if any of you lack wisdom. He is continuing his instruction from the previous topic on trials.

Here’s the main idea for today’s lesson:

Big Idea: To triumph through trials, you need wisdom.

Notice that James says “if any of you lacks wisdom.” There is a possibility that the Jewish Christians who were experiencing trials and suffering lacked wisdom. What James is suggesting here is that all Christians need wisdom when they encounter trials. All Christians are unable to triumph through trials without wisdom. We need wisdom to live out the Christian life in the midst of trials.

But, what is wisdom?

You might have heard of wisdom as reading some wise sayings. For instance, Uncle Ben told Peter Parker in Spiderman, “With great power comes great responsibility.” Or, “patience is a virtue.” Or, “what does not kill you makes you stronger.”

To triumph through trials, you need wisdom.

You might have heard of wisdom as something to do with making a wise decision. As you go through high school, you are constantly making decisions, and sometimes you might have made bad ones. And you want to make a wise decision because you do not want to regret it in the future.

But, what does the Bible say about wisdom?

Wisdom - According to the Bible, wisdom means to live life skillfully with the fear and knowledge of God.

In the middle of the Bible, you will notice the books like Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes. Those books are generally known as the Wisdom Books of the Old Testament.

The only way for us to have wisdom is this:

Proverbs 1:7 ESV

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 9:10 ESV

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

In the context of James, he used the book of Proverbs to instruct the Jewish Christians who were suffering. In the midst of suffering, how can you still live out God’s will? How can you still please God in the midst of trials? Well, James is saying that you need to obtain wisdom. But...

How can you obtain wisdom?

1. To receive wisdom, you need to ask. (v. 5a)

In other words, you need to pray!

a. You need to ask because you need it.

I think when we experience trials, we immediately question, “why is this happening to me?” I think that is quite fair. It is our human nature to immediately question and get upset over it.

As teenagers, you might be experiencing trials and hardships in life, perhaps even at this moment. Sometimes, you might suffer in SILENT, and you do not want to talk about it with anybody. Rather, you keep the issue to yourself maybe because you are embarrassed to talk about it.

But, when you are experiencing tough times, I think deep down you want answers, you need help, or you need wisdom.

And to receive wisdom, you need to ask because you need it.

And James

b. You need to ask because you cannot rely on your own wisdom.

When we are experiencing difficult moments, at the heat of the moment, we like to be in control. When you are suffering in silent, maybe you keep the issue to yourself because you want to solve it on your own. You try to solve it on your own because you think you have the wisdom to solve it, you have self-confidence, or you are smarter than everyone.

Proverbs 3:5–6 ESV

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

To receive wisdom, you need to ask because you cannot rely on your own. You need to recognize that you need it. You need to ask, but who do we ask to obtain wisdom?

To receive wisdom, you need to ask because you cannot rely on your own.

c. You need to ask because it is that simple.

To receive God’s wisdom, you need ask God.

2. To receive wisdom, you need to ask God. (5b)

Pray In Faith

To receive God’s wisdom, you need ask God.

Asking God for wisdom is not an option or a suggestion. James is commanding the Christians to ask Him if they lack wisdom.

a. God is the source of all wisdom.

The Bible teaches us that God alone is wise. One of God’s characteristics is that He is wise.

Do you know anybody who is as wise as God or who is wiser than God? I do…Well, they’re not as wise as God, but they think they are wiser than God…they are the people who think they can live life without God (the atheists, agnostics, skeptics and etc.).

Maybe you aren’t sure if God exists or is real. And, that’s okay. You are welcomed to be here, to ask questions about the Christian faith, and to learn about the Bible. I once questioned my Christian faith after high school. But, after doing research, I became totally confident that the Bible is God’s Word and it is the only book in the world that teaches us God’s truth.

As a pastor, my calling is to teach and preach from the Bible. I am not here to offer you my ideas and wisdom. I am here to teach you God’s wisdom as revealed from the Bible.

There is no human being in the world, from past, present, and future, who is wiser than God. There is absolutely no one who can teach and counsel God what to do.

Isaiah 40:13–14 ESV

Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord, or what man shows him his counsel? Whom did he consult, and who made him understand? Who taught him the path of justice, and taught him knowledge, and showed him the way of understanding?

God’s wisdom is superior to human wisdom.

Isaiah 40:13-

Isaiah 55:8–9 ESV

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

God’s wisdom is beyond our understanding.

Psalm 147:5 ESV

Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.

In His wisdom, God sent His Son Jesus Christ as the power of God and the wisdom of God, to die on the cross for sinners, pay the penalty for their sins, rose again on the 3rd day, conquering Satan, sin, and death. And those who trust in Him and follow Him as Lord and Saviour would have eternal life. And in God’s wisdom, He uses Christians to declare His wisdom to the world…even though the world thinks God’s wisdom is stupid.

Only God has the source of all wisdom because He is the only wise God.

You may know people who aren’t sure if God exists or is real; or maybe you are one of those people. And, that’s okay. You are welcomed to be here! You are welcomed to ask questions about the Christian faith.

We need to ask God for wisdom because He has the source of all wisdom.

b. God gives.

Not only is God a wise God, but God is also a giver. James tells us that we are to ask God who GIVES.

It does not say that God is lending wisdom to us. Lending means letting someone use the item and expect that person to return that same item. Your friends might have asked you to lend them a $1 to buy a can of coke, but they never give you back the money.

But, God is different. When He gives us wisdom when we ask, He will give because His wisdom is infinite.

c. God gives generously.

When you ask God, you need to ask in faith.

Not only does God give, but He gives GENEROUSLY. God is different. When He gives us wisdom when we ask, He will give generously because His wisdom is infinite.

The word “generously” carries the idea of integrity demonstrated in word or action. Meaning, God is very intentional and sincere about giving. On Friday, after ice skating, I went to superstore to buy some groceries. When I got to the entrance, I saw a homeless person begging for help. And when I saw him, I want to be generous. I want to be intentional and sincere about buying him food and drink. I did not backdown from my commitment, and I got him water and muffins.

Similarly, God

d. God gives generously without reproach.

Not only does God give generously, but He does so without reproach. Reproach means finding fault. It means that you have evidence to rebuke someone. When we ask God for wisdom or anything, He gives without rebuking or criticizes us.

We can approach God in prayer without hesitation. He would not rebuke us for lacking all the wisdom to deal with the trials. God does not want anyone of us to feel nervous, anxious, and hesitation to come to Him in prayer.

Prayer is necessary for Practical Christianity.

1 Thessalonians 5:17 ESV

pray without ceasing,

Prayer is necessary for Practical Christianity. But, I think we often have a wrong perspective of prayer.

Prayer is not a way to treat God as a genie. You might have the wrong assumption that you can come to God and ask Him to pour money from heaven, give you a new video game, give you new makeup products and clothing lines. That is not how prayer always works.

James 4:3 ESV

You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

Prayer is not a mindless recitation or a mindless chant.

Matthew 6:

Matthew 6:7 ESV

“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.

Prayer simply means talking to God as your Father in heaven. You can make requests to God. You can cry out to God. You can bring your complaints and hardships to God. You can pour out your emotions to God. You can be real with God. Also, you can give thanks to God. You can pray to God for other people (I don’t know if you pray for your youth leaders, but I want to let you know that I’m praying for you). You can praise God for who He is.

Prayer simply means talking to God as your Father in heaven. God is a real being whom you can talk to. You can make requests to God. You can cry out to God. You can bring your complaints and hardships to God. You can pour out your emotions to God. You can be real with God. Also, you can give thanks to God. You can pray to God for other people (I don’t know if you pray for your youth leaders, but I want to let you know that I’m praying for you). You can praise God for who He is.

You can make requests to God. You can cry out to God. You can bring your complaints and hardships to God. You can pour out your emotions to God. You can be real with God. Also, you can give thanks to God. You can pray to God for other people (I don’t know if you pray for your youth leaders, but I want to let you know that I’m praying for you). You can praise God for who He is.

That is the general idea of prayer. And in this context of James, God intentionally uses trials to bring Christians to a greater dependance and reliance on Him. As I mentioned, we need to ask God for wisdom because we are unable to deal with the trials by our own strength and wisdom.

“

But, James adds in a condition to the prayer life of Christians.

God intends that trials will drive believers to greater dependency on him, by showing them their own inadequacy.

3. To receive wisdom, you need to ask God in faith. (6-8)

Faith is probably a concept that you hear a lot, but maybe you need a reminder on what it means.

Faith - confidently trusting God even though He is unseen.

It is clear that when we come to God in prayer, we must ask Him with the appropriate attitude: faith and assurance, without doubting or wavering.

Blind faith means believing in something that lacks total evidence, intelligence and reasonableness. They may say, “there is no evidence for God. You can’t prove that God does not exist. Science has already disproven Christianity, the Bible, and God.”

But, science did not disprove the existence of God. Did you know that many of the scientists who won the Nobel Prize are religious? They are many prominent scientists who are followers of Jesus because they are amazed at God’s creation and they want to learn more about it.

It is clear that when we come to God in prayer, we must ask Him with the appropriate attitude: faith and assurance, without doubting or wavering.

Hebrews 11:6 ESV

And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

Just as God would give us wisdom generously, with intention and sincerity, so must Christians ask God in faith with intention and sincerity, believing that He will hear our prayers, without doubting.

Doubt - uncertain, hesitate to believe, distrust, and questionable.

Just as God would give us wisdom generously, with intention and sincerity, so must Christians ask God in faith with intention and sincerity, believing that He will hear our prayers.

a. Doubt leads to ineffective prayer.

Remember that James is speaking to the Christians. Do Christians doubt? Of course they do!

There might be some of you who are struggling with doubts as Christians. When you are go through trials, you start questioning, “Why God, why did you allow this to happen?” Suffering often brings out doubts on God’s goodness in our lives.

I’m guessing the readers of James might have tried praying to God, but God did not answer their prayers. And as a result of an unanswered prayer, they might have started doubting whether if God is even listening.

James is probably suggesting a strong kind of doubt. That is, there is a division within the soul of a Christian where he/she wavers and is inconsistent towards God. Doubting is not just an intellectual issue or an issue of the mind, but it is also an attitude and behaviour toward God. Because of this attitude and behaviour toward God...

a. Doubt leads to ineffective prayer.

James is very clear in verse 7 and 8. In the earliest manuscript of the Bible, there were no chapter or verses. They were added later on to help us make reference easily. But, chapters and verses were not inspired by God.

So, verses 7 and 8 should be read like this:

For the double-minded man, who is unstable in all his ways, must not supposed that he will receive anything from the Lord.

The word, double-minded, is a compound word in the Greek or it is a combination of two words to make one word:

Duel + Psycho (soul) = Double-Minded.

A doubting person is someone who has two souls or two minds.

A person who has two minds is an unstable person. It carries the idea that the person is restless and does not seem to know how to have self-control. His mind is constantly changing and shifting in everything that he does.

So, when this person comes to God in prayer, he prays with one mind believing in God will hear whereas the other mind he is uncertain if God would hear. His behaviour and attitude towards God are constantly inconsistent.

If you doubt God’s existence or His ability to give you wisdom for your need, or if you come to God with lack of faith and a double-mind, James says in verse 6 that you’re “like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.”

o [; ]

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

If you doubt God’s existence or His ability to give you wisdom for your need, James says (1:6) that you’re “like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.” The surf has no inner power or principle to direct itself. It is totally at the will of the wind. It is completely unstable and chaotic. And, it can be a destructive force as it batters a boat or drives it against the rocks. That’s a picture of the person who lacks faith in God.

The wave has no inner power to direct itself. It is the wind that controls the wave. James is describing the wind that is completely unstable and chaotic. And, it can be a destructive force as it strikes a boat or drives it against the rocks.

The doubter does not have his faith anchored in God and His Word. He is easily influenced by the winds of emotions, desires, circumstances and secular society. On one day, he wants wisdom from God; he believes in God; he goes to church. On another day, he’s unsure if God is listening so he wants wisdom from the world or relies on his wisdom; he lives like an atheist; he’s way too focused on school and too busy for God; he does not live like a genuine Christian throughout the week; he hasn’t fully surrender his life to the Lord; he isn’t committed to obeying Jesus.

The surf has no inner power or principle to direct itself. It is totally at the will of the wind. It is completely unstable and chaotic. And, it can be a destructive force as it batters a boat or drives it against the rocks. That’s a picture of the person who lacks faith in God.

That’s the picture of the double-minded person who lacks faith in God. And I would not be surprised that some of you MIGHT live like a Christian on a Sunday, but throughout the school week, you might live as though God does not even exist.

I say this because I’m guilty of this myself when I was in High School. I went to church on Sunday and I went to youth events on Fridays and act like a Christian, but at home and at school, I lived, thought and talked like a non-Christian. I wanted to be cool and tried to please my peers rather than glorifying God. I was tempted to do a lot of bad things. I kept swearing wherever I went outside of church.

Has God answered your prayers? Are you questioning if God is even listening? Well, let me encourage to search your heart first. Have you been living a double-minded lifestyle? Are you a person who constantly doubts God?

James is telling the Christians not to assume that you can live a double-minded (two souls or two minds) lifestyle and receive wisdom (or anything) from God. God has the authority not to give the desired request to the prayer.

What James is saying here is this: a double-minded Christianity is not Practical Christianity. Yes, there may be times when we doubt and be uncertain, but James is more concerned about consistency.

Practical Christianity teaches us that we are to have a consistent behaviour, attitude, and faith in God and His Word. We are to be growing in our relationship with God through the reading of the Bible, prayer, fellowship with other Christians, serving our brothers and sisters in Christ, and obeying Jesus.

b. Faith in God leads to effective prayer.

To receive wisdom, you need to ask God in faith because faith in Him leads to effective prayer life. We will eventually get there, but talks about the prayer of faith. As Jesus taught, all you need faith with size of a mustard seed.

Luke 17:5–6 ESV

The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.

The issue is not the size of your faith, but the presence of your faith. If you have faith in God, then you can come to Him in prayer with your requests and needs.

Let me address one final question before I end: How do I know if I have received wisdom from God when I ask Him in faith?

God would not speak to you audibly. You would not hear His voice from heaven giving You some wise sayings or give you an answer on how to deal with your trials.

He may remind You of the things that He has spoken in His word.

But, to know if you have received wisdom from God, it depends on your attitude towards God. When you attitude and heart are in the right place, God will grant you wisdom to learn how to respond to trials that pleases God. Now, he may not always answer immediately, but we must persist and persevere in asking God in faith.

Trials are teaching moments. They train us to be wise in dealing with the situation. When we look back in our lives during those hard moments, we may not immediately understand why God allowed us to go through those trials. But, as we grow older, we learn from our past and gain wisdom from them…and hopefully, we can confidently say God was there during that moment and He has given me wisdom!

Application For Prayer In Trials:

F - Help Me To Remain Faithful To You ()

A - Abide With Me Forever ()

I - Instruct Me With Your Wisdom ()

T - Trust in your promises ()

H - My Hope Is In You ()

Conclusion (OPTIONAL)

Joni Eareckson Tada was paralyzed from the neck down in a diving accident when she was 17. She wrote this about her suffering:

God engineered the circumstances. He used them to prove Himself as well as my loyalty. Not everyone had this privilege. I felt there were only a few people God cared for in such a special way that He would trust them with this kind of experience. This understanding left me relaxed and comfortable as I relied on His love, exercising newly learned trust. I saw that my injury was not a tragedy but a gift God was using to help me conform to the image of Christ, something that would mean my ultimate satisfaction, happiness—even joy.

That is God’s wisdom on how to endure a major trial with joy! She did not get that wisdom from the world. She did not make it up herself. It came from God, through His Word. If you need God’s wisdom for how to endure any major or minor trial with joy, ask Him in faith and He will give it.

In the context of Christianity, faith is often criticized by skeptics and atheists. They think that the Bible and Christianity are a bunch of fakes, and Christians are deluded, meaning believing in something that is not true. They say that we are brainwashed and that we have blind faith.

As a pastor, my calling is to teach and preach from the Bible. I am not here to offer you my ideas and wisdom. I am here to teach you God’s wisdom as revealed from the Bible.

Related Media

Related Sermons