Sermons In A Few Lines

1900

The Church — The church shall have life and it shall grow. Growth is life and the growth of the church is the natural result of the life which Christ has given it. — Rev. P. C. Yorke, R.C., San Francisco, Cal.

Indifference — Arouse yourselves from the lethargy of indifference and be earnest in the fight for good. Insist that the public billboards shall be decently clothed. — Rev. Dr. Frohock, Methodist, Akron, Ohio.

Reform Society — The only way to reform society is to reform the individual. Slavery has been lessened, but the sweat shop remains, and politics is not free from corruption. — Rabbi Krauskopf, Hebrew, Philadelphia, Pa.

Higher Civilization — The people of Great Britain have ever been imbued with the idea of their mission to establish the higher civilization, and they have pushed on with confidence. — Rev. Dr. Carson, Presbyterian, Brooklyn, N.Y.

The Bible — The Bible presents a great combination. It is the union of Christ with the believer. By that union we become partners with Christ in the great divine "trust" for the glory of God. — Rev. C. F. Wishart, Presbyterian, Allegheny, Pa.

In God's Hands — We have no right to do as we like with anything, unless we like to do right. No man's life or death is at his own disposal. Our times are in God's hands. This is good morals, good law and good sense. — Rev. Ira Billman, Evansville, Ind.

War — The war spirit has transformed Christianity. Jesus Christ proclaimed himself the prince of peace and on earth established the kingdom of peace. Christianity in its pristine purity was peace itself. — Rev. Dr. Wylie, Presbyterian, New York City.

Inconsistent — In religion, as in most matters, we are strangely inconsistent. We run to one or both of two extremes — we are often over particular about minor matters and utterly careless about great things. — Rev. N. H. Lee, Methodist, Denver, Colo.

Faith On Trial (James 1:1-18)

2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 3 knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

People of faith sometimes think it's strange that they have problems and others perhaps do not. The Bible gives enough evidence that it doesn't need to seem so strange. This questioning comes up often enough in the Psalms (10:1), and then there's the story of Job.

James has some advice that turns it all around: "Count it all joy." How is that possible? For anyone who's been camping, you might have a few stories to tell of various disasters that not only can you laugh about now, but they were also kind of funny at the time! Or in a more serious light, think of Jesus at the Cross (Heb. 12:2), with the "joy" set before Him. For us, pain is pain, but behind every cloud...

So what is it that tries your faith? There are many problems we can think of involving children, sickness, finances, various failures. Sometimes just life in general. All are real problems, but our faith can endure and our joy can be real. "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose" (Rom. 8:28).

James declares in verse 3 that the trial of faith results in patience, which, as we're involved in these real life issues, can indeed "have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing" (1:4). That's a good result, progress on the way. Faith doesn't need to waver (1:6); we can hang on, and become stronger in our faith. That's really the whole point!

God sustains us through prayer (Phil. 4:6), the word (Rom. 10:17), and by His care (1 Pt. 5:7), just to name a few of the many ways. And in this chapter of James (1:5), God offers wisdom to those who ask it of Him.

So, your faith is on trial. Don't despair! Recognize it, look to God, handle things as best as you can in a spiritual way, and let your faith help you endure everything. It's helpful now and it will be stronger next time.