From Trouble to Triumph, Part 3 B

Whatever the trial is you have a believing heart, believing that God allowed for his purpose and that is right, believing that he will give you wisdom to endure better than you ever could have been had related and challenging issues like where to look for a new job how to make room at home for an elderly parent or even life and death decisions for a family member in the hospital when situations like that arise. How can you know you're making the right decisions. John MacArthur points you to biblical answers today on grace to you as he continues his study called benefiting from life's trials. You're going to see how God guides you during trials and how he makes his will known. If you have a Bible turn to James chapter 1 and here's John you're going through a trial and you really doing your best to keep a joyous attitude and understanding mind. The submissive will, but you're having difficulty really grasping what's happening, you might be saying to yourself, you know I I I want to have a right attitude. I want to have a right understanding and I want to have a submissive well but I lack I lack the wisdom and the power to remain joyous into endure and to mature through this.

I am struggling to keep my heart fixed on the cause for joy. I'm struggling to understand this and I'm struggling to be permissive. I need some help. What do I do what what you really need is one thing you need wisdom you need wisdom for a trial.

You need to understand unique practical insight needed to face the issues of life. You will not be able to maintain a joyous attitude and an understanding mind and a submissive. Well, unless God gives you more than just your human faculties to work with. So this is where you come to verse five if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, let him ask of God, trials are intended to drive us in dependency on God to him that he also adds it. Verse five and up braided.

Not that's an old word and what it basically means he holds back nothing he gives liberally generously without reservation. It is a negative form of the previous state he is. It says later in chapter 1 in verse 17 he is the giver of every good and perfect gift, and there is no variableness nor shadow of turning with him. He dear Sandy gives and he gives that's his nature as a giving God.

He gives sincerely he gives without hesitation he gives without mental reservation. He is not giving reluctantly. That's what it means he isn't saying well I shouldn't be doing this but boy I want to do it, but I hope you appreciate using playing games about your unworthiness is reminding you about how how undeserving you are. He is good and he is giving and he just keeps giving holding back nothing. If you lack wisdom and your commanded ask God, who gives to all men freely and liberally holds back nothing and when you ask the end of verse five.

It shall be given him no wisdom but love and this is a promise, no wisdom needed for the believers perseverance through a trial is ever withheld from that believer who asks is not a wonderful promise. I hope you got that no wisdom needed for a believers perseverance through a trial is ever withheld from the believer who asks.

Sometimes we don't ask.

We do everything but ask God. Sometimes we ought to be found on our knees crying out from our hearts for God to give us his direction. I love what it says in Psalm 8110 you'll remember this, perhaps I am the Lord thy God, who brought the out of the land of Egypt. Comes open thy mouth wide and I will fill it wonderful promise. God wants to provide every needed resource for a believer in the midst of trial know what this means is I've been saying is that we persevere through prayer we endure through deep pendant prayer, casting ourselves on God. In Mark 1438 it says watch and pray last you enter into trial bras must watch and pray so that you don't fall under Parada's mosques and then once you're in it.

If you do fall into a trial. Make sure it never turns into a temptation by throwing yourself dependently on God.

We endure through prayer. If we ask God. Would you notice, please. In verse six there's a condition for the kind of asking, but let him ask in faith, in other words, believing, confident, prayer, genuine trust not having described the willing father James now turns to the waiting child there are some people just doubt that God can give him an answer. There are other people who who just want to argue with God about why he did what he did and so their prayers are nothing but a fight but you are not to doubt the available supply of God. You're not to doubt the available power of God and you are not to doubt the purpose and the will of God. You're not to debate whether God did what he should've done or not is something in your life doesn't go right. That's no cause for debate or dispute with God telling God he should've done it your way unwavering faith simply believes that God is sovereign believes that God is loving and believes that God will supply everything that is needed for understanding the trial and goes in prayer to God, what a promise. Whatever the trial is your to have a believing heart, believing that God allowed it for his purpose and that is right, believing that he will give you wisdom to endure it and be better than you ever could have been if you had not endured that trial verse six he that waivers is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and talks the wavering person who goes to God and doesn't really believe that God can provide the wisdom and vacillates is like the surging billowing restless sea moving back and forth with its endless tides, never able to settle like that one, tossed to and fro and blown around like those of Joshua's day you remember who holding between two opinions, like those of Elijah's day who couldn't decide whether Jehovah was God or bail was God like those of Paul's day who were sacrificing the demons and then going to the Lord's table. Those people who want God, but want something else and vacillate back and forth those lukewarm people whom the Lord will spew out of his mouth because they're neither hot nor cold that wavering person who doesn't go to God and hold on. In confident trust is like the surging sea. In verse seven. Then said let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. There's no such there's no a sense, I should say in such a person supposing he will receive anything from the Lord, the one who doubts God the one who debates God the one who waivers in his trust and his and silently committed to the Lord is going to receive anything that person that man as it says in the authorized characterizes an unbeliever could also characterize a week doubtful Christian who is acting like an unbeliever, and it's really sad to see the person who comes to the church and is a sham. Christian is it for real. They get into a trial and they start to doubt and they dispute with God they get angry, gotten a late but very often in many ways.

Equally tragic is a Christian who was a weak Christian that goes under severe trial and instead of having a joyous attitude and understanding mind. The submissive will in a believing heart they vacillate and they flip-flop in their sort of an emotional basket case and they can't trust God and they don't seem to be able to pray and ask for wisdom from God, they literally are unwilling to cash in the resources God is provided in their spiritual account and they receive nothing and so they may go on and on and on. The misery of that trial never knowing the resolution immediately available to them, faithful, persistent, trusting prayer in God. Verse eight sums it up. Such a double minded man who vacillates back and forth not knowing whether to trust God or abandon God is unstable in all his ways. Double minded man, a sinful man or woman. In fact, in James 48.

Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double minded double minded person is really the hypocrite the person is is all I believe in God when the trial comes they were there they don't know what to do. They maybe want to trust God, but they don't trust God and they vacillate as he says here in that case, they will receive nothing. In fact, they will be unstable in all their ways double mindedness to pursue costs. The word the DI at the beginning is is two and Sue Goss is the word for soul to soul two minds a soul divided between God and the world trusting and not trusting, believing and not believing a friend of the Lord, and a friend of the world and you remember what James for forces friendship with the world is enmity with God, loving the world and trying to love God the same time and John says it's impossible to do that. So verses five through eight aversive limits on the month when you go into a trial. The way to endure that trial is to receive from God, divine wisdom to go to God and have the confidence that he gives freely and never debates and never argues a never hold back anything but gives exactly what you need to endure that trial, but the condition is that your faith be real, that it be unwavering faith, not like the troubled sea because if you have vacillating faith that trusts and doesn't trust that believes it doesn't believe you are caught in the middle and you will not receive anything. In fact, such double mindedness will make you unstable in every area of life through stability in life comes to those who trust God in the midst of any trial, any trial, so a believing heart that genuinely believes is essential in persevering and then finally a humble spirit humble spirit.

This discussion is very, very rich. Verse nine but the brother of low degree. Rejoice stop there from.

This is him is another command a mandatory rejoicing.

Let the brother of low degree. What is that mean the poor man. The economically deprived the poor Christian low on the economic scale. The guy doesn't have much and you know the scattered believers to whom James wrote 12 tribes scattered abroad. Verse one says were victims of persecution they were victims of dispossession of deprived nation of racism and bigotry. Poverty among those who were dispersed was common. Many of them were very poor.

They had very little.

The word here that is translated low degree is used in the Septuagint, which is the Old Testament in Greek to translate the word poor topping us poor.

What the poor people rejoice was at me. That word is a very rich word.

It means to boast of a privilege or a possession, let him boast let the poor people boast here is the joy of legitimate pride he may have nothing in the world to rejoice about. He may have nothing in the world that he possesses. But let him rejoice, let them exalt is privilege and what is it that he is what exalt is exalted in what way spiritually.

He may be the filth in the off scouring of the world, but he can rejoice because his standing before God is that of exaltation. So he says if you have nothing in this life. If you have been deprived so that you find yourself the lowest level you have cause to rejoice because spiritually your exalted, you may be hungry, but he has the bread of life he may be thirsty, but he has the water of life. He may be poor, but he has eternal riches he may be cast aside by man, but he has been received by God.

You may have no home here but he has a glorious home in the life to come. So he says, you poor folks rejoice that you have received divine attention and that your trials are making you perfect and that is to exalt you in the spiritual dimension when God takes away.

He takes a way to make you spiritually mature when he makes you spiritually mature. That's an exaltation so the person who is deprived can accept his deprived nation except his trials because of the hope that God is exalting them through those in the spiritual dimension, and ultimately bringing him to future glory, ultimately lifting them up to the day when he receives all the inheritance promised to the saints that love God someday says Peter.

He will receive an inheritance that will cause him to rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory so we can rejoice in any trial we can rejoice in any deprived nation because God has chosen us to an exalted position in his kingdom. And Paul said the sufferings of this world are not worthy to be compared with the joy that shall be ours. In that day. Romans 817 following talks about the true riches are so poverty is a short-lived trial doesn't last very long and those of us who endure those kinds of trials of which poverty would be one can look ahead to a glorious time of exaltation sum it up it says this don't look to draw your joy out of your worldly circumstances, and you won't be disappointed if you don't have anything draw your joy out of your spiritual exaltation out of God's saving you and moving you toward Christ likeness.

And someday putting you in his present.

On the other hand look at verse 10 and the rich, in that he is made low, that is, let him rejoice the same verb should be applied, let him exalt, let him make it. His most that he is made low because when a rich person goes through a trial. He begins to realize realistically that all that he possesses. Can't buy the real real things of life. So the humble person rejoices in the provision of God and the wealthy person rejoices in the provision of God the same way the person who has nothing rejoices and what God provides. The person who has everything and realizes it can't buy what he needs also rejoices in what God has provided the poor Christian can also as a footnote, rejoicing that he's associated with rich ones.

The rich Christian can rejoice in the privilege the self-denying privilege of being identified with Christ and poor believers.

Why because we are all humbled at the same level in a trial and we all have to lean on God right. That's the point. Money doesn't buy people out of their problems there real trials or it may solve your economic problem, but you'll get a rash of other ones that it won't be able to solve so the point here is whether poor or rich trials coming to life, to humble us and true humility whether it possesses much of this world's goods or little true humility says my resources are in God.

The commentator, the great Lutheran commentator Lenski I think has an interesting paragraph he says faith in Christ lifts the lowly brother beyond his trials to the great height of a position in the kingdom of Christ where is God's child. He is rich and may rejoice and boast faith in Christ is an equally blessed thing for the rich brother. It fills him with the spirit of Christ, the spirit of lowliness and true Christian humility as the poor brother forgets all his earthly poverty so the rich brother forgets all his earthly riches, and the two are equals by faith in Christ."

That's right. And I believe that equality is driven home through trials when you lose a daughter lose a son or lose a wife or lose her husband, not matter how much money you have none of it's going to buy your way out of that trial. None of it there is legalized trials bring us to the same level of dependency on God and thus bring us humbly to the same level with each other so we do not preoccupy ourselves with earthly things and in the church.

We do not exalt those who have much as over against those who have little because all our earthly possessions are inadequate to BIOS. What we need spiritual i.e. James seems that a particular concern to really hit the rich people he does it in chapter 1, and he keeps doing it all away through his recent see what he says. Notice back at verse 10. The rich should be a happy that is made low because one is made low see.

He realizes the true riches are otherworldly.

Not here as the flower of the grass. He shall pass away rich people in general is not speaking, particularly of a rich Christian, but rich men in general are going to pass away this like the group the flower of the grass. In Israel there.

There are three very common flowers, the anemone, the cycle men and the lowly and they can flourish and you can see the beauty of their color in February and they are burned to a cinder. By May, it's not unlike frankly the hills of Southern California, where they blossom when you go out of town for a week and come back and it's a desert again and that's what he is seeing here there is a true spirit of humility that says I don't put my trust in these things which pass so fast, which burn up so readily in the poet in James expands his illustration even further in verse 11 for the sun is no sooner risen with the burning heat, but it whether at the grass and its flower falls within the grace of it for the grace of the fashion of it perish. If so also show the rich man fade away in his ways, the form of the Greek language here is anomic and that expresses what usually occurs, the thought is drawn out of Isaiah 40, verses six through eight borrowed from Isaiah the prophet.

He says the burning sun are literally the burning heat and it could refer to the scorching wind we know as a sirocco blasting. It comes in a just devastates all the flowers in its path. That hot blasting wind that's going to be as shall be in the future and the fate of Richmond.

The blasting heat and wind of the fury of death and the judgment of God will burn everything to a cinder.

So the rich man should rejoice in his trouble because his trouble divorced him from dependency on his resources and all of his resources will perish. Anyway, and he can rejoice that when it's all burned, he will have the true riches. Just like the poor man.

It's so what is necessary. What kind of attitude are we to have face trials joyous attitude and understanding mind. The submissive will a believing heart and a humble spirit, but trust not in our possession.

But in the provision of listening to Grace to you as John MacArthur, Chancellor of the Masters University and seminary showed you, God's comforting plan for the hard times you face. It's part of his current study titled benefiting from life's trials, John. Throughout this series, you keep saying that trials are guaranteed that were all going to experience them. There's no way to avoid them and we can't ignore them. So what I hear you saying.

Also, as we should prepare for them. We should anticipate them and make sure that we are ready when suffering comes in since I don't know what the next trial and going to suffer is going to be what's a practical way I can prepare for that trial. You may not be able anticipate the specific trial but expected is not an Job word says just as surely as sparks from a fire fly up men are going to have trouble, you know you I might think it my age after all these many years and that I've I've done it all. I've been through all the trouble I need you know I'll I don't know if I need to be refined anymore general just Lord leave me alone until I go to heaven but it's not likely this situation I I'm going to anticipate more trouble to come. As long as I'm around, so I think a sensible anticipation that this is life and trouble will come is important. Secondly, affirm the fact that God's purposes in our trouble are always good for us and glorifying to him and that basically defines the thing before you ever see it.

So, oh hey, difficulty a challenge. It tragedy of some kind of trouble.

This is the Lord working for my benefit in his glory so predispose yourself to that and and I also think that the better you know the word of God, the better you are armed to confront these trials with the biblical truth so I would just encourage you be a student of the Bible. Know your Bible know the word of God think biblically that's what defines everything in your life including your trials and can I take a moment and encourage you to get a copy of the MacArthur study Bible that study Bible has 25,000 footnotes on every page. Below the text of Scripture to help you understand the historical background, culture and correct interpretation of every Scripture get the hundred thousand cross references, charts, maps, introductions to the books and all Bible study tools and we have the MacArthur study Bible and hardcover leather premium calfskin we have it in hardback there are English standard ESV version.

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TTY.org now for John MacArthur and the entire grace to you. Staff I'm your host Phil Johnson. Thanks for making this broadcast part of your day and be here tomorrow.

John's going to look at where temptation comes from and how to defend yourself against it as he continues the study.

He calls benefiting from life's trials another 30 minutes of unleashing God's truth one verse at a time on racing