🌎️ James 1:2-3 | How Our Trials Can Point to Jesus

📧 In today’s email…

• Putting together everything we learned this week ⏩️

• Using our trials to point people to Jesus ✝️ 🌍️ 

• In case you missed it.. 🧐

 🧠 Memorize

_{see if you know what words go in the blanks}

Count __ ___ ___, __ ________, when ___ ____ ______ __ _______ _____,

for ___ ____ ____ ___ _______ of ____ _____ ________ _____________.

James 1:2-3

A review of what we’ve learned 🤔 

Here’s what we learned about James 1:2-3 this week:

The context and purpose of James:

• The letter is widely thought to have been written by the half-brother of Jesus to mostly poor Jewish-Christians

• These believers were enduring significant difficulties as a result of unjust practices by wealthy landlords

• James is a trustworthy voice and guide for showing us how to persevere through trials because he has lived it!

  • Acts demonstrates that James led the church in Jerusalem through severe persecution in the early days, and held firm 💪🏼

On Tuesday, we read James’ instruction on how they should respond to the trials they are experiencing…with JOY!

Wait…joy?!?

Yes! This is because such trials are tests that can produce something really good in the lives of Christians:

ENDURING FAITH.

Trials → Testing → Endurance

In addition, we also learned that a crucial key for facing trials successfully is to learn to adopt the right mindset about them.

James uses two verbs related to thinking to show this. He says to:

• “consider” your various trials with joy

• “because you know” what they lead to

So as followers of Jesus, we can decide ahead of time how we will respond when trials come our way.

And when they do arrive…

• we’re not caught off guard

• we don’t fall apart

• we don’t throw a pity party

Instead, we’ve decided to look at them as opportunities to refine our faith.

On Wednesday, we reviewed the reality that trials and tests have been part of humanity’s experience since the very beginning.

Time and time again throughout Scripture, we see that significant figures in the Bible, including Jesus himself, endured trials and tests!

And we learned that James uses the terms (trial, test, steadfast) to show his audience that the result of enduring trials is absolutely worth it:

The believer who faithfully endures trials by God’s grace will receive a crown of life —

— which is a symbol of eternal life forever with God in the world to come!

Finally, on Thursday we saw that Jesus provides everything we need to faithfully endure the trials that come our way.

He:

• offers us help in our trials and sympathizes with our weaknesses

• provides us the perfect example of faithfulness

• endured the ultimate trial on our behalf at the cross

• took upon himself the crown of death in his crucifixion so that he could offer us the crown of life in his resurrection

Because of this, we can trust that his grace is sufficient to empower, sustain, and help us persevere!

Pointing People to Jesus ✝️

We’ve seen all week that trials are a certainty in this life.

They’re also one of the greatest opportunities we have to point others to Jesus.

Share your comfort, share your hope

One of the most compelling things we can offer a hurting world is our honesty and our hope in the midst of trials.

People will go to remarkable lengths to avoid pain and discomfort.

They might seek to:

• ignore it with endless streaming and scrolling

• escape it through busyness or thrill-seeking

• numb it through heavy drinking, smoking, or pills

So when we are willing to be honest about our pain, it is striking. 

When we share that we’ve found real comfort, it grabs attention.

And when we speak hopefully in the midst of pain, it is compelling.

Practice: Share 🗣️ 

1. Be honest with someone this week about what you’re going through.

2. Share how Jesus has been a comfort to you in the midst of it.

3. Speak of the hope that you have beyond the trial because of Jesus.

Praise God that He works in all things for our good! 🙏

Recommended Resources 🎙️ 

In case you missed it, here’s this week’s round-up of recommended resources to help you live as a new creation:

• 📚️ Help is Here: Finding Fresh Strength and Purpose in the Power of the Holy Spirit by Max Lucado (link)

• 🎙️ Sermon: Benefits of Facing Trouble by Tim Keller (link)

• 💻️ 9-Min Video: Is God Testing Me? by John Piper (link)

• 📹️ Bible Project: Overview of James (link)

• 🎵 Perseverance (Consider it Joy) by Writing Worship Community to help you memorize this verse (listen on Spotify | listen on Apple Music)

Answer key ✅ 

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,

for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.

James 1:2-3

How did you do? 💡