WEBVTT 00:00:01.624 --> 00:00:01.985 Hey, what up? 00:00:01.985 --> 00:00:02.587 It's Mark Carter. 00:00:02.587 --> 00:00:03.870 I'm the pastor of Fierce Church. 00:00:03.870 --> 00:00:04.892 Welcome to our podcast. 00:00:04.892 --> 00:00:07.224 I'm so pumped that you're able to join us today. 00:00:07.224 --> 00:00:16.730 I hope this encourages you, inspires you, strengthens you, gives you hope to keep pressing on, and it's my prayer that this sermon gives you a more expansive view of God's love for you. 00:00:16.730 --> 00:00:21.204 Enjoy the message as you're finding your seat. 00:00:21.204 --> 00:00:23.888 Would you go ahead and fist somebody around you? 00:00:23.888 --> 00:00:25.271 Thank you, worship band. 00:00:25.271 --> 00:00:29.827 Fist, bump somebody around you and say you're going to make it. 00:00:29.827 --> 00:00:31.571 Tell them they're going to make it. 00:00:31.571 --> 00:00:36.642 People were trying to tell them they weren't going to make it and you need to tell them they are going to make it. 00:00:38.328 --> 00:00:39.432 We're talking about suffering. 00:00:39.432 --> 00:00:42.904 Today we're starting a brand new series called I Can't Even. 00:00:42.904 --> 00:00:51.390 Sometimes we feel like the pressures of life and the difficulties are so rough that we're screaming I can't even handle this trial. 00:00:51.390 --> 00:01:04.745 This is also a series where we're going to look at the book of James, and the book of James is written by a guy named James, who is also actually Jesus's half-brother, and he was writing to a group of believers. 00:01:04.745 --> 00:01:07.012 Key point they were already believers. 00:01:07.012 --> 00:01:10.909 He's writing to them and he's saying hey, y'all need to grow up. 00:01:10.909 --> 00:01:13.341 Would you slap your neighbor on the knee, tell him grow up. 00:01:13.341 --> 00:01:23.168 James is going to help us over the next several weeks to grow up and we're going to start with the topic of suffering. 00:01:23.207 --> 00:01:25.412 We've got a strange relationship with suffering. 00:01:25.412 --> 00:01:30.789 Most of us don't like it and yet it is very much part of the human experience. 00:01:30.789 --> 00:01:31.710 Now don't get me wrong. 00:01:31.710 --> 00:01:33.628 I don't like suffering any more than you do. 00:01:33.628 --> 00:01:47.150 I really appreciate stuff like indoor plumbing and medicine and hospitals and all that kind of thing, but I think it's kind of funny how people try to get out of suffering sometimes. 00:01:47.150 --> 00:01:49.466 So I found this on complexcom. 00:01:49.486 --> 00:01:55.067 These are real inventions, things that people attempted to invent to alleviate suffering. 00:01:55.067 --> 00:01:56.908 The first one is air-conditioned shoes. 00:01:56.908 --> 00:02:05.064 Somebody they just couldn't handle their feet not being cooler while wearing shoes Did a little research on this one. 00:02:05.064 --> 00:02:09.991 Actually, there's nothing conditioned about the air, those are just holes in the bottom of the shoes. 00:02:09.991 --> 00:02:12.563 I don't think they did too well. 00:02:12.623 --> 00:02:15.491 Here's another one, the iPoddy. 00:02:15.491 --> 00:02:26.093 Concerned parents don't want their toddler to have to go without an electronic device even when they're learning the potty. 00:02:26.093 --> 00:02:31.991 So this iPoddy helps your little one to stay engaged on the potty. 00:02:31.991 --> 00:02:36.531 How many know that whatever iPad is on there is not the same after one seating. 00:02:36.531 --> 00:02:43.265 So if you are really concerned about that kind of suffering, you're going to want to pick up the iPoddy. 00:02:43.806 --> 00:02:50.876 Here's another one that people knew mankind needed a solution for the wine glass holder necklace. 00:02:50.876 --> 00:02:58.712 Hey man, if you're going to be drinking your wine, you can't be holding all kinds of glasses. 00:02:58.712 --> 00:03:04.372 Okay, you need to just put this right here like a feed bag, because you got stuff to do. 00:03:04.372 --> 00:03:08.824 Just put this right here like a feed bag, because you got stuff to do, probably like operate heavy machinery. 00:03:08.824 --> 00:03:10.407 Or maybe you got your beer bracelets on, I don't know. 00:03:10.407 --> 00:03:16.987 But either way, if that is your suffering, I hope that you don't pick it up. 00:03:17.068 --> 00:03:28.806 But my point is, my friends, people invent all kinds of weird stuff to avoid suffering, and I think our generation in particular has a difficult time with the idea of suffering. 00:03:28.806 --> 00:03:44.038 So when we're studying the Bible, one thing that's helpful to do is to look at the original hearers, like whoever this letter or this book was written, to look at them and say what was like me about them or what is like them about me. 00:03:44.038 --> 00:03:51.141 What similarities do I have with the ancient culture this is being written to, and one thing that you should know about this culture that James is writing to is. 00:03:51.141 --> 00:03:54.950 They had a little bit different take on suffering than we do. 00:03:54.950 --> 00:04:05.556 They didn't like it, but it was more a part of life, like they just accepted that suffering was a part of how it rolled here on planet earth and they believed that there was stuff after death. 00:04:05.556 --> 00:04:18.124 Most believe that, whether even if it wasn't a Jewish or Christian faith, they believe something happened after death and there would be compensation or consolation for some of the suffering that happened on planet earth. 00:04:18.124 --> 00:04:24.124 We, on the other hand, have a very secular mindset and we practice life very secularly. 00:04:24.124 --> 00:04:31.711 Even if we are a Christ follower, we often behave in such a way that would tell others that we believe this is all there is. 00:04:31.711 --> 00:04:42.190 That's one of the reasons we don't like suffering, because if you lose here, you just lose, and if you have a loss here, man, there's nothing to make up for it later. 00:04:42.190 --> 00:04:43.524 There's no value in it. 00:04:43.524 --> 00:04:50.476 You just lost your one shot and the only thing left to do is sue, and that's what people do here. 00:04:50.476 --> 00:04:56.531 But that's very different than the way James's original hearers thought about suffering. 00:04:56.610 --> 00:04:59.425 And suffering man, it has long-term consequences, doesn't it? 00:04:59.425 --> 00:05:01.750 We know this, we watch this in our own lives. 00:05:01.750 --> 00:05:03.983 We watch it in lives of other people. 00:05:03.983 --> 00:05:36.175 There's a man that came to know Jesus in a relational way, in a very tight way, the same time that I did about 20 years ago and started off, was really cooking for it, really going for it, really enjoying the fire of God living in his heart, living for the things of the kingdom Wasn't too far into his walk, however, where some of the difficulties that come with life on planet earth began to really pile up in his life and, instead of turning toward Jesus to help him through that, turned away from Jesus. 00:05:36.175 --> 00:06:09.629 Well, after about 15 years he did come back to know the Lord and I love this guy very much, still a good brother and yet during that 15 years, because of his resentments, because of his buildups, made a lot of mistakes, made a lot of mistakes that you don't get to redo, like with his marriage, with his kids, with his career really embraced multiple levels of darkness, and today you know it's just a very different story than if he wouldn't have allowed his heart to harden like he did back then. 00:06:10.250 --> 00:06:11.812 Many of you know folks like this. 00:06:11.812 --> 00:06:24.790 You've had a difficult experience because of the resentment that comes from really just unexpected suffering in life and James comes to speak to us about suffering. 00:06:24.790 --> 00:06:27.654 He doesn't want us to get off track. 00:06:27.654 --> 00:06:37.968 So he's writing to this group of believers and he says hey, listen, there's a lot of hardship here on planet earth and I'm afraid that you're going to miss the point of it. 00:06:37.968 --> 00:06:42.625 He knows that many of these folks they're embracing ways of carnality. 00:06:42.625 --> 00:06:45.752 Their spiritual walk isn't much to speak of. 00:06:45.752 --> 00:06:46.793 It's rather shallow. 00:06:46.793 --> 00:06:54.449 They're using their minds and their lips the wrong way and they're just embracing increasing levels of darkness. 00:06:54.449 --> 00:07:06.247 It's just hey, man, I got to warn you, you're going to experience trial and you got to respond to it the right way, because God wants to use trial in your life to really turbocharge your spiritual walk. 00:07:06.247 --> 00:07:09.834 He wants to use it to get you to go further, faster. 00:07:09.834 --> 00:07:19.767 He wants to this theological word, he wants to sanctify you with it, meaning make you more like Jesus Christ, instead of waste it and allow it to just make you bitter. 00:07:19.848 --> 00:07:23.363 And James is like the ultimate Yoda figure okay, of the New Testament. 00:07:23.363 --> 00:07:25.050 He's this really wise guy. 00:07:25.050 --> 00:07:26.685 He is the Lord's brother. 00:07:26.685 --> 00:07:31.432 He was the chief elder in Jerusalem until the year 67 AD when he was martyred. 00:07:31.432 --> 00:07:33.507 But when James would speak, people would listen. 00:07:33.507 --> 00:07:38.608 They want to hear his awesome wisdom and we're going to hear his wisdom. 00:07:38.608 --> 00:07:49.290 And his first bit of wisdom to us is hey, man, you've got to recognize that God is interested in actual faith, faith that does something, faith that shows up in your life. 00:07:49.290 --> 00:07:55.610 Here is the bottom line for James, and we're going to see this throughout the entire series Maturity means your faith leaves a footprint. 00:07:55.610 --> 00:08:00.367 Maturity means your faith leaves a footprint. 00:08:00.367 --> 00:08:07.644 Yes, you believe, but your belief should show up in real life, especially the way that you respond to trials. 00:08:07.644 --> 00:08:09.408 So let's look at James, chapter one, verse one. 00:08:09.728 --> 00:08:17.112 James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the 12 tribes who are dispersed abroad, greetings. 00:08:17.112 --> 00:08:22.557 He says my friends, it matters how you respond to these tests, you folks who are scattered. 00:08:22.557 --> 00:08:26.045 When he says the 12 tribes, that's just a spiritual way of referring to believers. 00:08:26.045 --> 00:08:31.423 In that time Israelites even themselves didn't define themselves by tribe really anymore. 00:08:31.423 --> 00:08:36.844 That was a spiritual way of talking about new covenant folks who are attached relationally to Jesus Christ. 00:08:36.844 --> 00:08:38.006 And so he's talking to them. 00:08:38.006 --> 00:08:48.033 He says hey, man, I know about your doubts, I know about your anger, but you've got to know it's important how you respond to your difficulties, because if you don't respond right, they actually become more difficult. 00:08:48.033 --> 00:08:49.875 So I need you to grow up. 00:08:49.875 --> 00:08:53.846 Even when you say I can't even, god says yes, you can. 00:08:53.846 --> 00:08:58.583 Compassionately, he says you can do all things through Christ, who strengthens you. 00:08:58.583 --> 00:09:01.589 And James says faith, that is phony, eventually fizzles out. 00:09:01.589 --> 00:09:03.491 So I need you to make a decision right now. 00:09:03.491 --> 00:09:04.995 I need you to decide. 00:09:04.995 --> 00:09:08.025 It's not that you can't even, it's that, yes, you can. 00:09:08.025 --> 00:09:16.215 Even with God's help, we're going to find that these tests that we get, we all get them, you get them, I get them. 00:09:16.697 --> 00:09:21.246 What's strange about the kingdom is often you get the test first and then the lesson. 00:09:21.246 --> 00:09:24.231 In fact, in a certain kind of way, the test is the lesson. 00:09:24.231 --> 00:09:28.086 We take the test and then we didn't do it all right. 00:09:28.086 --> 00:09:33.388 We didn't really trust God, we didn't really believe this was going to be okay, we didn't really pursue him. 00:09:33.388 --> 00:09:37.181 And then we're going to get on the other side and be like, oh, I should have trusted God, guess what? 00:09:37.181 --> 00:09:38.501 Now you get to take the test again. 00:09:38.501 --> 00:09:42.024 So don't worry, you can't flunk out. 00:09:42.024 --> 00:09:48.567 But you take the test and then you learn the lesson and then you get to try to retest in the next trial. 00:09:49.648 --> 00:09:54.230 But James is really concerned that our faith shows up somewhere, that we have a new strategy. 00:09:54.230 --> 00:10:00.273 He wants a faith that results in deeds, and this is different than this, is the step after. 00:10:00.273 --> 00:10:02.014 First we trusted God by grace. 00:10:02.014 --> 00:10:04.975 Through faith, we come to him just as we are, with nothing to bring him. 00:10:04.975 --> 00:10:10.878 He forgives us of our sin, not because we do anything right, but then he says all right, you're forgiven, you're loved. 00:10:10.878 --> 00:10:14.543 Now you're going to experience some trial. 00:10:14.543 --> 00:10:17.451 Now, grow up, you can do this. 00:10:18.139 --> 00:10:23.807 Maturity means your faith leaves a footprint and, man, it really can shut us down. 00:10:23.807 --> 00:10:34.572 Trial does come to purify, but if we're not ready for it, if we're not thinking about it, trial and too much trial can begin to crush us. 00:10:34.572 --> 00:10:37.225 So how do we stay stable in trial? 00:10:37.225 --> 00:10:37.765 Let's look at it. 00:10:37.765 --> 00:10:39.270 Number one take a longer view. 00:10:39.270 --> 00:10:41.307 Take a longer view. 00:10:41.307 --> 00:10:41.830 What does he say? 00:10:41.830 --> 00:10:43.115 Verse two consider it all. 00:10:43.176 --> 00:10:46.529 Joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials. 00:10:46.529 --> 00:10:52.264 He didn't say it's going to be joy. 00:10:52.264 --> 00:10:56.732 He didn't say hey, man, trials Like. 00:10:56.732 --> 00:10:57.575 He didn't say that. 00:10:57.575 --> 00:11:02.090 He said you need to regard it as joy when it comes. 00:11:02.090 --> 00:11:07.152 It's not going to feel good, but you have to decide to think about it still as a good thing. 00:11:07.432 --> 00:11:11.523 When you encounter various trials, hey, man, he didn't say if. 00:11:11.523 --> 00:11:17.994 He said when we're going to encounter various trials. 00:11:17.994 --> 00:11:22.961 If you are living on planet earth, you will experience suffering and temptation, and that is part of the deal. 00:11:22.961 --> 00:11:31.624 Even Job, way back in the day, said man is born for trouble, as sparks fly upward, and it's various kinds of trouble, isn't it? 00:11:31.624 --> 00:11:40.370 Trial comes and it's unlabeled, it's unexpected, it's unanticipated. 00:11:40.370 --> 00:11:55.912 It's maybe a relational trial, or a professional trial, or a health trial, or some kind of internal wrestling match trial, or some door closed and now you don't think you'll ever get the chance again, or some kind of marital difficulty. 00:11:55.912 --> 00:12:01.346 Maybe there's political difficulties, maybe there's national difficulties, but there's all kinds of difficulties. 00:12:01.346 --> 00:12:06.868 And James says be assured, those are coming and they're going to come in various ways. 00:12:06.868 --> 00:12:11.629 But take heart because there's a point to them. 00:12:11.629 --> 00:12:15.085 God will use them for good. 00:12:15.085 --> 00:12:18.201 This is how God always does things. 00:12:18.201 --> 00:12:20.006 He wants to use them for good. 00:12:21.150 --> 00:12:24.883 Again, in the ancient world people had a weird relationship to their gods. 00:12:24.883 --> 00:12:29.033 They weren't really gods, but they would often try to appease these gods. 00:12:29.033 --> 00:12:34.511 They would hey, if I scratch this random God's back, he'll keep me from suffering. 00:12:34.511 --> 00:12:37.188 Take some of the suffering out of my life. 00:12:37.188 --> 00:12:40.128 Jesus comes along and he says. 00:12:40.128 --> 00:12:41.230 I'll tell you what I'm going to do. 00:12:41.230 --> 00:12:45.311 I'm going to embrace suffering on your behalf. 00:12:45.311 --> 00:12:51.312 I'm going to suffer for you, but I'm the only God who, through suffering, I bring the victory. 00:12:51.312 --> 00:12:54.749 It's through suffering Jesus brings the victory. 00:12:54.749 --> 00:13:02.667 Let me say it again, because it's more anointed than the amount of amens that I'm getting right now Through suffering, jesus brings the victory. 00:13:02.667 --> 00:13:06.842 That's how it worked on the cross and that's how it works in our lives. 00:13:06.842 --> 00:13:12.182 It's through suffering that Jesus brings the victory, because that's how Jesus rolls. 00:13:12.182 --> 00:13:13.485 That's who Jesus is. 00:13:13.865 --> 00:13:19.207 Can you go ahead and gently slap your neighbor on the shoulder and say it only looks this bad from here. 00:13:19.207 --> 00:13:23.927 It only looks this bad from here. 00:13:23.927 --> 00:13:24.889 Now, don't hit them too hard. 00:13:24.889 --> 00:13:27.028 Don't give them a trial here in the trial message. 00:13:27.028 --> 00:13:30.087 It only looks this bad from here. 00:13:30.087 --> 00:13:31.844 How, how's Jesus going to do it? 00:13:31.844 --> 00:13:32.485 Check it out. 00:13:32.525 --> 00:13:33.789 Verse three this is what James says. 00:13:33.789 --> 00:13:35.442 Verse three this is what James says. 00:13:35.442 --> 00:13:37.971 Verse three knowing that the testing of your faith there it is again, the test. 00:13:37.971 --> 00:13:42.532 It's a test, it's a test of faith produces what does it produce? 00:13:42.532 --> 00:13:43.674 Endurance. 00:13:43.674 --> 00:13:49.114 It comes for a purpose to produce endurance, and let endurance have its perfect result. 00:13:49.114 --> 00:13:54.791 Oh, god's working for something here, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 00:13:54.791 --> 00:13:55.251 What is he saying? 00:13:55.251 --> 00:14:00.168 So you'll be all grown up, so you'll be all ready, ready. 00:14:00.168 --> 00:14:03.466 See, god is a developer. 00:14:03.466 --> 00:14:04.730 That's what he is. 00:14:04.730 --> 00:14:06.105 He's a developer of humans. 00:14:06.480 --> 00:14:09.149 Let's pretend that you and I are going to go to the gym this afternoon. 00:14:09.149 --> 00:14:18.442 Okay, we're going to give you a bench press bar and you're going to put some weight on it, okay now. 00:14:18.442 --> 00:14:19.186 Okay, we're gonna give you a bench press bar and you're gonna put some weight on it. 00:14:19.186 --> 00:14:21.111 Okay, now, I'm gonna bring along a 25 pound plate and I'm approaching you with it. 00:14:21.111 --> 00:14:23.028 Now, if you don't know my heart, you're gonna think is he gonna club me over the face with that thing? 00:14:23.028 --> 00:14:25.361 Is he bringing that, that heavy thing, to destroy me? 00:14:25.361 --> 00:14:28.629 I'm gonna say no, it's not my heart at all. 00:14:28.629 --> 00:14:30.863 I'm here to develop you. 00:14:30.863 --> 00:14:32.265 I'm gonna put that plate on the bar. 00:14:32.265 --> 00:14:37.245 I'm saying now, do more, do more than you think you can do, do more. 00:14:37.245 --> 00:14:40.797 But I'm not here to destroy you, here to develop you. 00:14:41.519 --> 00:14:43.703 And sometimes we think God is here to destroy us. 00:14:43.703 --> 00:14:46.288 He's allowing so much weight. 00:14:46.288 --> 00:14:47.692 It's so hard. 00:14:47.692 --> 00:14:51.063 And God says fear not, I love you. 00:14:51.063 --> 00:14:53.990 I did not come here to destroy you, but to develop you. 00:14:53.990 --> 00:14:55.261 I want you to be all grown up. 00:14:55.261 --> 00:14:58.469 I want you to reach your full potential. 00:14:58.469 --> 00:15:03.230 That's why I'm doing this, and so we need to embrace the potential the trials have for us. 00:15:04.294 --> 00:15:09.082 Guys, I know this is hard, especially if you're young, because you know you just haven't seen. 00:15:09.082 --> 00:15:14.667 You know, if you're in your teens and early twenties, you just haven't seen God use a bunch of hard stuff yet for good. 00:15:14.667 --> 00:15:16.788 And so it can be hard to be patient and hang on. 00:15:16.788 --> 00:15:24.274 But can I just tell you I'm not an old man, but you know I'm moving along here in life and I've just I've been through enough that I've seen God. 00:15:24.274 --> 00:15:26.076 You know there's an intuition to it. 00:15:26.076 --> 00:15:38.404 Now it's like, yeah, well, that's kind of rough, but God's going to use it. 00:15:38.404 --> 00:15:39.307 God will use trial to equip you and I. 00:15:39.307 --> 00:15:42.977 He'll make you a better spouse, he'll make you a better parent, he'll show you your boundaries, he'll show you the end of yourself. 00:15:42.977 --> 00:15:46.243 He'll show you what is in the human heart. 00:15:46.243 --> 00:15:49.726 He'll show you where the truth is. 00:15:49.807 --> 00:16:01.004 My friend, you're not in control, the power is not with you, and we need to learn these lessons, because we get very impatient, don't we? 00:16:01.004 --> 00:16:04.293 And God is trying to work patience into us. 00:16:04.293 --> 00:16:09.020 And here's what I'm figuring out man, all of life is waiting about something, like it doesn't even matter. 00:16:09.020 --> 00:16:11.508 You get something and then, okay, I got it, but now I'm waiting on this thing. 00:16:11.508 --> 00:16:13.131 Okay, I got it, now I'm waiting on this thing. 00:16:13.131 --> 00:16:17.162 And as you go, you just keep waiting for the next thing and keep waiting for the next thing. 00:16:17.162 --> 00:16:22.110 And God is attempting to work in patience into our life. 00:16:22.110 --> 00:16:27.605 God says I know, I know what to do, I know the right timing. 00:16:27.605 --> 00:16:29.408 You're not in charge. 00:16:29.408 --> 00:16:32.172 It's not for you to be all upset about this. 00:16:32.172 --> 00:16:34.215 The case is before me. 00:16:34.215 --> 00:16:44.731 Now let go, let me shape you, let me give you what I know you need instead of what you think you need. 00:16:44.731 --> 00:16:49.410 And, man, this is so like counterintuitive to our time today. 00:16:50.461 --> 00:16:52.248 So let me just say that I'm a fan boy. 00:16:52.248 --> 00:16:57.304 Okay, I love superhero movies, or I used to collect comics when I was a kid, so I love all the stuff. 00:16:57.304 --> 00:17:01.524 When I see Captain America or Spider-Man on the big screen, man, I love it. 00:17:01.524 --> 00:17:08.303 Here's my only problem with it Superheroes, if you, if you notice this, they never have to train for nothing. 00:17:08.303 --> 00:17:12.913 Like they're all just good at it, like they're great. 00:17:12.913 --> 00:17:15.983 Okay, you got bit by radioactive spiders. 00:17:15.983 --> 00:17:18.113 So now you have like super strength like peter parker, never has to go to the gym. 00:17:18.113 --> 00:17:22.006 Man, you know I'm saying like captain america, okay, they do some. 00:17:22.006 --> 00:17:25.320 I know some fanboys, some sweaties, will get mad at me right now, will curter. 00:17:25.320 --> 00:17:27.226 They trained in issue 245. 00:17:27.226 --> 00:17:29.872 I don't need any emails about that. 00:17:29.912 --> 00:17:32.182 Okay, I'm talking about specifically the movies. 00:17:32.182 --> 00:17:38.546 All right, you almost never, even if they're doing some kind of training exercise, like they don't have to get good at what they're good at. 00:17:38.546 --> 00:17:40.491 But you know, in the real world we do. 00:17:40.491 --> 00:17:44.683 That's why I love the Rocky movies, except for number five, because it doesn't count. 00:17:44.683 --> 00:18:00.823 In the Rocky movies there's always like this scene montage of okay, rocky's got the big bad guy at the end, he's got to go into this like long training regimen, right, like he's got to get ready and it's hard and it's almost killing him just to get there. 00:18:01.144 --> 00:18:06.281 We need to live more like Rocky than we do like superheroes, because that's really how God operates. 00:18:06.281 --> 00:18:16.836 God says I'm testing you, I'm training you, I'm increasing your endurance, you're going to be a little good and then you're going to fall back and you're going to get a little better and fall back. 00:18:16.836 --> 00:18:18.241 And get a little better and fall back. 00:18:18.241 --> 00:18:21.007 That's how God grows us up. 00:18:21.007 --> 00:18:26.862 It's not like Captain America, it's much more like Rocky. 00:18:26.862 --> 00:18:30.708 And you know that's the way that it was with Bible people. 00:18:30.708 --> 00:18:33.391 They had to train, they had to get it right. 00:18:33.391 --> 00:18:37.542 Jesus had to grow up and then take his test. 00:18:37.542 --> 00:18:42.481 But you know, jesus passed them and we can learn how to pass our tests the same way that Jesus did. 00:18:42.501 --> 00:18:48.602 Do you remember in John, chapter 11, when Jesus comes and he finds his friend Lazarus dead? 00:18:48.602 --> 00:18:52.932 He could have arrived four days earlier and saved Lazarus from dying. 00:18:52.932 --> 00:19:00.548 But he shows up and Jesus displays this awesome thing that only Jesus could do he displays three different emotions all at the same time. 00:19:00.548 --> 00:19:02.446 Verse 35 says Jesus wept. 00:19:02.446 --> 00:19:06.327 And so here we have Jesus, and he's sad. 00:19:06.327 --> 00:19:09.384 He's also angry. 00:19:09.384 --> 00:19:10.568 We find out in this test. 00:19:10.640 --> 00:19:11.644 He's mad at sin. 00:19:11.644 --> 00:19:13.105 He's mad at this death. 00:19:13.105 --> 00:19:14.179 This is not how he designed planet earth to go. 00:19:14.179 --> 00:19:14.271 But you know what else he is. 00:19:14.271 --> 00:19:14.279 He's mad at sin. 00:19:14.279 --> 00:19:14.368 He's mad at this death. 00:19:14.368 --> 00:19:15.500 This is not how he designed planet earth to go. 00:19:15.500 --> 00:19:17.605 But you know what else he is. 00:19:17.605 --> 00:19:18.847 He's super confident. 00:19:18.847 --> 00:19:21.153 He's super believing. 00:19:21.153 --> 00:19:23.265 Any minute I'm going to raise this guy from the dead. 00:19:23.265 --> 00:19:25.049 This is completely fine. 00:19:25.049 --> 00:19:29.325 This is going to work together for a higher glory than me just healing him. 00:19:29.345 --> 00:19:34.712 And so, jesus, he is sad, he is angry and he's also confident in Father God. 00:19:34.712 --> 00:19:36.842 And that's what you and I need to be. 00:19:36.842 --> 00:19:40.251 It's okay to be angry, it's okay to be sad. 00:19:40.251 --> 00:19:44.124 You don't have to not admit that you're going through this trial, that this is hard. 00:19:44.124 --> 00:19:51.451 But then we've got to declare with Jesus God works all things together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. 00:19:51.451 --> 00:20:01.531 There's nothing going on that isn't in God's control and God can use to point to the Father and actually make it better in our lives if we'll stay in faith. 00:20:01.531 --> 00:20:04.383 That's how Jesus did it, and I know that we all can get sorry for ourselves. 00:20:04.383 --> 00:20:07.657 Sometimes we just start feeling down, feeling bad about ourselves. 00:20:07.657 --> 00:20:09.241 I want you to consider the Apostle Paul. 00:20:09.241 --> 00:20:11.286 Okay, here's a guy. 00:20:11.286 --> 00:20:15.074 Now you don't have this in your text, let me just read it to you 2 Corinthians 11, 24. 00:20:15.074 --> 00:20:18.770 Listen to this guy's life if you're feeling sorry for yourself. 00:20:19.861 --> 00:20:23.151 Five different times, the Jewish leaders gave me 39 lashes. 00:20:23.151 --> 00:20:27.243 Okay, imagine being whipped 39 times times. 00:20:27.243 --> 00:20:29.867 Five lashes, three times. 00:20:29.867 --> 00:20:32.252 I was beaten with rods Once. 00:20:32.252 --> 00:20:34.056 I was stoned three times. 00:20:34.056 --> 00:20:35.057 I was shipwrecked. 00:20:35.057 --> 00:20:38.173 I mean, come on, man, on time two of being shipwrecked. 00:20:38.173 --> 00:20:39.598 I'm like, are you serious? 00:20:39.598 --> 00:20:42.527 How does one guy get shipwrecked so often? 00:20:42.527 --> 00:20:48.637 Once I spent a whole night, a day and day adrift in the sea. 00:20:48.637 --> 00:20:52.371 I'm telling you, after hour three I'd be like God. 00:20:52.371 --> 00:20:54.655 It is cold out here. 00:20:54.655 --> 00:20:55.919 I'm all wet. 00:20:55.919 --> 00:20:57.932 There's probably sharks in the water somewhere. 00:20:57.932 --> 00:21:00.333 Are you serious that I have to go through this? 00:21:00.333 --> 00:21:03.191 And yet listen to Paul's response. 00:21:03.191 --> 00:21:04.556 Sorry, yeah, paul's response. 00:21:04.625 --> 00:21:08.778 He says, therefore, same letter, therefore, verse 16, 2 Corinthians 4. 00:21:08.778 --> 00:21:15.536 Therefore, we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. 00:21:15.536 --> 00:21:25.191 He says my body's getting old and falling apart, but my inner man is getting younger, for momentary light, affliction, is producing for us an eternal weight of glory that is beyond all comparison. 00:21:25.191 --> 00:21:38.079 It's beyond comparing with sitting in the sea for a day and a night While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen, for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. 00:21:38.079 --> 00:21:38.921 What does Paul say to us? 00:21:38.921 --> 00:21:41.012 He says hey, baby, take the longer view. 00:21:41.012 --> 00:21:43.650 Take the long view. 00:21:43.650 --> 00:21:45.612 Don't look at what's right in front of you. 00:21:45.612 --> 00:21:47.571 Look at what's out up ahead. 00:21:47.571 --> 00:21:49.611 Take the longer view. 00:21:50.505 --> 00:21:53.109 Paul had a thorn in his flesh, the Bible tells us. 00:21:53.109 --> 00:21:55.795 It doesn't even tell us what that is, it's just metaphoric. 00:21:55.795 --> 00:21:57.397 It means I had a really difficult trial. 00:21:57.397 --> 00:22:00.666 It hurt, couldn't get away from it. 00:22:00.666 --> 00:22:07.037 And Paul says I asked God to take it away three times and God said finally my grace is sufficient for you. 00:22:07.037 --> 00:22:09.059 Paul, the answer is no, I'm not taking it away. 00:22:09.059 --> 00:22:11.925 I'm not taking away this trial. 00:22:11.925 --> 00:22:16.397 You get to keep it and my presence with you will be enough for you to bear it. 00:22:17.484 --> 00:22:20.367 You know that reminds me of when I got sick. 00:22:20.367 --> 00:22:36.041 I was sick for four and a half years, had this just debilitating autoimmune disease, had to stop going to work, couldn't really even move, very painful and along about month three of being in that after I'm like Jesus, you need to deliver me. 00:22:36.041 --> 00:22:37.671 Oh God, I need to be healed. 00:22:37.671 --> 00:22:42.374 Oh God, move in my life, jesus, jesus, jesus, come on, you're a healer, heal me. 00:22:42.374 --> 00:22:45.930 Around month three you just go. 00:22:45.930 --> 00:22:51.319 Okay, god's not saying yes. 00:22:51.319 --> 00:22:56.010 So I'm going to have to relax in this pain, I'm just going to have to be here. 00:22:56.806 --> 00:22:59.213 But you know, there was a tremendous rest in it. 00:22:59.213 --> 00:23:06.051 There's a tremendous peace in it, because after months of saying God, would you do this, would you do this, would you do this? 00:23:06.051 --> 00:23:10.434 My soul said God knows about it. 00:23:10.434 --> 00:23:13.452 And his answer is no. 00:23:13.452 --> 00:23:17.471 Right now it's all right. 00:23:17.471 --> 00:23:19.289 God knows. 00:23:19.289 --> 00:23:25.349 God has given this to you, carter, go ahead and let God be God, because here's the deal. 00:23:25.349 --> 00:23:29.114 My friend, you know this precious and I know your pain is real. 00:23:29.114 --> 00:23:30.156 I know that it's hard. 00:23:31.744 --> 00:23:38.358 God knows best, god knows what to do, god knows what the agenda is. 00:23:38.358 --> 00:23:44.412 God knows what he's trying to do in your and my life and we can't see it. 00:23:44.412 --> 00:23:45.375 That's why we've got to take the long view. 00:23:45.375 --> 00:23:46.098 We've got to take the heavenly view. 00:23:46.098 --> 00:23:55.276 We've got to say this is a fleeting moment that is not worthy to be compared to the glory that I'm going to experience for going through this with a good attitude and with praise on my lips. 00:23:55.276 --> 00:23:57.740 And you know now Paul's not having a very bad day. 00:23:57.740 --> 00:23:59.248 That thorn doesn't bother him anymore. 00:23:59.248 --> 00:24:04.833 He's been in heaven for 2000 years and he's been accruing credit in his account because he wrote it down. 00:24:04.833 --> 00:24:12.914 And now his story has been shared the world over multiple times because he trusted God and said God knows best. 00:24:12.914 --> 00:24:14.618 Would you just gently whisper to your friend. 00:24:14.618 --> 00:24:15.967 God knows best. 00:24:15.967 --> 00:24:20.898 He does know best, he really does. 00:24:20.898 --> 00:24:23.065 So, yes, let's take the longer view. 00:24:23.184 --> 00:24:25.171 But here's number two pursue a personalized wisdom. 00:24:25.171 --> 00:24:27.517 Let's pursue a personalized wisdom. 00:24:27.517 --> 00:24:35.095 Verse five says but if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all, generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 00:24:35.095 --> 00:24:42.173 Now I think it is absolutely a general principle that if we ask God for wisdom and believe he's going to give it to us, he will. 00:24:42.173 --> 00:24:48.734 But in this context, I think it's so important for us to see God wants to give us wisdom about our trials. 00:24:50.006 --> 00:24:53.395 So we're in this difficult space and we say, god, I need wisdom. 00:24:53.395 --> 00:24:56.426 I need wisdom to know my steps. 00:24:56.426 --> 00:24:58.471 I need wisdom to know what to do next. 00:24:58.471 --> 00:24:59.976 We've all got steps. 00:24:59.976 --> 00:25:01.486 We talk about that all the time here. 00:25:01.486 --> 00:25:03.833 We say, hey, man, you got to take your next spiritual growth steps. 00:25:03.833 --> 00:25:21.969 Well, when you're in that place of pain, it's so easy to just react and just move fast, like, oh, you know, we're reacting, I got to fix something, I got to do something. 00:25:21.969 --> 00:25:25.800 And God says, no, calm down, you're in the dark, get still, get slow and go to prayer and say, jesus, I need to know my one, two, three, four, five. 00:25:25.800 --> 00:25:26.040 Next steps. 00:25:26.040 --> 00:25:27.204 I need to know what to do. 00:25:27.204 --> 00:25:29.147 I'm not smart enough to know what to do in this trial. 00:25:29.147 --> 00:25:31.672 There may be things I can do to shape it or shift it. 00:25:31.672 --> 00:25:48.433 So I'm going to get advice, I'm going to do research, I'm going to find out from other people's what they think about my situation, but I'm not going to leave the place of patient prayer because I need specific, nuanced instructions from the master who's allowing me to go through this trial. 00:25:50.237 --> 00:25:52.125 Some of you know of Alex Hanold. 00:25:52.125 --> 00:26:01.777 He's a free climber I think one of the most famous in the world and what he does is he climbs mountain faces without any safety gear. 00:26:01.777 --> 00:26:03.788 That's how he gets a rush. 00:26:03.788 --> 00:26:14.759 But I want you to watch this video of him doing this and I want you to see some parallels between the way he scales this cliff and the way we should be trying to go through our difficult trials. 00:26:14.759 --> 00:26:15.640 Let's watch it together. 00:26:15.640 --> 00:26:22.178 I don't know if you saw it when he was climbing, but they actually sped up the camera a little bit as he's climbing there. 00:26:22.178 --> 00:26:28.257 He's going super slow, he's holding on to this cliff face and all he can do is go turtle pace. 00:26:28.257 --> 00:26:30.009 He finds this handhold. 00:26:30.009 --> 00:26:33.998 Finds this handhold, pulls himself up. 00:26:33.998 --> 00:26:36.913 And, my friends, that's sometimes how we've got to go through trials. 00:26:37.244 --> 00:26:44.711 Through prayer, we're saying Jesus, show me wisdom here, and show me wisdom here, I'm not going to go too fast, just show me what to do. 00:26:44.711 --> 00:26:45.914 Got to stay still. 00:26:45.914 --> 00:26:49.684 Got to stay slow, asking the Lord, pull me up there. 00:26:49.684 --> 00:26:55.976 I know there's something on the other side of this trial, I know there's a payoff at the end, but I've got to go slow. 00:26:55.976 --> 00:26:58.259 How does James describe that we should do this? 00:26:58.259 --> 00:27:02.905 He says verse six. 00:27:02.925 --> 00:27:03.849 But he must ask in faith, without any doubting. 00:27:03.849 --> 00:27:12.615 For the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind, for that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all of his ways. 00:27:12.615 --> 00:27:17.348 Hey, are you in a trial right now and need some wisdom? 00:27:17.348 --> 00:27:22.699 God says don't embrace two different lifestyles, don't be double-minded. 00:27:22.699 --> 00:27:24.549 I know that some of us hear that and we're afraid. 00:27:24.549 --> 00:27:27.836 Does that mean if I doubt it all, then God's going to not answer my prayer? 00:27:27.836 --> 00:27:35.296 I don't really believe that's what the scripture is teaching, because in other places in the New testament, jesus says you don't have to have perfect faith to see god move. 00:27:35.296 --> 00:27:38.769 Rather, I think we're seeing two different versions of life. 00:27:38.769 --> 00:27:44.028 Someone is tottering back and forth between a life that is living for god and a life that isn't. 00:27:44.028 --> 00:27:50.049 They're saying oh god, give me wisdom to know what to do, but over here I'm embracing all these forms of evil. 00:27:50.049 --> 00:27:52.433 And god says don't be double-minded. 00:27:52.433 --> 00:27:55.266 If you want to go my way, then go my way. 00:27:55.266 --> 00:28:00.798 Don't embrace the ways of darkness and think that I'm going to send you my wisdom. 00:28:00.798 --> 00:28:04.771 Then you've already declared through your pursuit of evil, that you don't want my ways. 00:28:04.771 --> 00:28:08.766 Reminds me of Matthew 7, 24. 00:28:09.547 --> 00:28:11.229 Jesus is in the Sermon on the Mount. 00:28:11.229 --> 00:28:12.611 He's telling the people about. 00:28:12.611 --> 00:28:21.127 You know, listening to my word is a lot like the man that builds his house on the rock versus the dummy man that builds his house on the sand. 00:28:21.127 --> 00:28:27.008 He says anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. 00:28:27.008 --> 00:28:32.296 Jesus wants our lives built on the solid rock. 00:28:32.296 --> 00:28:37.186 And he says when you're in trial, when you're scaling that cliff, face. 00:28:38.891 --> 00:28:41.876 One of the questions you need to ask is where is my life built? 00:28:41.876 --> 00:28:49.885 On God's word, on God's way, on what God wants me to do, on God's agenda on God's timing and where really am I? 00:28:49.885 --> 00:28:56.613 Over in the sand, just doing my own thing, not caring what God's way is, not caring what he would want me to do. 00:28:56.613 --> 00:29:03.858 God says use that trial time to push your house more over on the rock. 00:29:03.858 --> 00:29:05.430 And you might say well, carter, I'm a Christian. 00:29:05.430 --> 00:29:06.453 Of course my house is on the rock. 00:29:06.453 --> 00:29:09.336 I know categorically if you're a Christian. 00:29:09.336 --> 00:29:11.265 Yes, your house is on the rock. 00:29:11.265 --> 00:29:19.340 But practically speaking, most of the Christians I know are really somewhere in the middle Parts of their house are on the rock. 00:29:19.340 --> 00:29:23.892 But then they've got these holes in life where they've built it on the sand. 00:29:23.892 --> 00:29:30.771 And God says I want to use your trial to get you off the sand, so your house is more on the rock. 00:29:30.771 --> 00:29:39.031 So let me ask you are there places that you need to choose God's timing, choose God's choice, choose God's relationships? 00:29:39.113 --> 00:29:42.547 For you, maybe for some of us it's just an identity thing. 00:29:42.547 --> 00:29:49.926