Consider it Pure Joy — Magnifications

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.” James 1:2-8

I think we often separate this passage into two separate instructions from James: be joyful during trials, and ask God for wisdom. But I don’t think that is what this is. I think that he addresses a problem: faith testing trials; then offers a solution: wisdom from God.

If you have been a Christian for a fair amount of time, you probably know this verse very well. We have sort of turned it into a “fake it till you make it” mantra. We remember this Scripture when we are in the midst of trials in our life, and remind ourselves that we need to be joyful and happy even though everything that is going on around us is crumbling down. While I agree, Christians should definitely go through trials differently than the world; First Thessalonians 4:13 tells us “we do not grieve as those who do not have hope,” I don’t think James is saying that we should not feel sorrow or pain when we face faith testing trials. I am not even sure that is possible.

I think that sometimes, the joy comes after the trial. Consider Job, who endured some really difficult trials. He grieved…big time! But he never stopped worshipping God and trusting Him.

So, if you are going through trials in your life and don’t know what to do, here is what you do:

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.” (v. 5)

We would be remiss if we did not pay attention to the warning he offers:

“But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.” (vv. 6-8)

During trials, our loyalty can be divided a few ways:

Between God and our circumstances: Consider Peter, who trusted Jesus enough to step out of the boat and walk on water, but sank because he took his eyes off of Jesus and looked at the wind around him.

Between God and our own wisdom, or the wisdom of the world. Sometimes, we ask God for wisdom and help, but ignore him when he gives it to us because we don’t like his answer, or it doesn’t make sense to us.

We serve a God who has the power to calm the storms raging around us.

I don’t think this passage is saying that when we face trials we must slap on a happy face and act like it isn’t affecting us. What I do think James is saying here is this:

We can experience great joy when we rely on the wisdom and strength of our great God to get us through our trials, and in the process, our faith will grow because we have learned to trust God and see His faithfulness in a whole new light. However, if we do not accept his wisdom, the raging sea that we find ourselves in will continue to rage and we will never find our way out of these trying times and experience His peace and joy.

Consider Jesus as an example. He knew he was about to be arrested, beaten, and crucified. He was not happy about what he was about to face, in fact, Scriptures say that he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat was like drops of blood. Remember when he even asked God if he could find another way to accomplish his will? Paul said that “for the joy set before him, he endured the cross.” (Hebrews 12:2) He wasn’t joyful during that trial, but he was obedient because he knew great joy was on the other side. Because he was obedient, not only did He victoriously defeat death, we get to share in that victory as well!

“Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” (Psalm 30:5)

Karisa Madera Executive Assistant Central Church of Christ Del Rio, TX