James 1:3 NASB
knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.
Knowing!! Ginosko = to have intelligent comprehension.
Do you - know?
Or do you sit in wonder and worry whenever a trial comes your way? Do they seem cruel and purposeless? Do you cry out, "Why??" or "Why me??"
James take us to that which we should KNOW as well as appreciate and take comfort from.
"Testing?" Yes but not how you think. It is a test of the genuineness of your faith. Ok - it's kind of weird. The testing is to show you that God is indeed faithful and that your faith is not misplaces when placed in Him. Of course it shows us the strength or fragility of our faith but however weak and fragile or strong and mighty it is faith and faith through it - no matter how fragile - we are saved and kept in Him.
Your faith is tested more than you think. Do you drive? Do you use your brakes? Everytime you do you are having faith in God sustaining the coefficient of friction so that the brakes work as they should. Ever had your brakes fail - yeah, scary but you get them repaired and after a while your back to trusting - having faith - in them without a conscious thought.
God is greater than our brakes! They could not work - when they work - without Him. He wrote the science behind brakes in eternity - we just discovered it lately. When they fail, God hasn't failed - the brakes have. They are a secondary cause of your car stopping and secondary causes are not God.
Don't you have any interest in discovering the faithfulness of God? Good times may demonstrate it but we tend to take them for granted. But let the compose hit the fan and it's a whole different matter. Trails show us God's faithfulness - even trials that lead to death - ouch!
I once watched as a man told my partner (old cop story) that he could not PROVE there was a God. My partner (Boo by nickname) assured the man that he could prove it absolutely. When the man demanded exactly how it could be proven my partner took out his Colt 1911, laid it on the counter and said, "You won't like it but I can prove it!" Dead comes to us all and when it comes to believers it brings the ultimate proof of God's existence and gracious faithfulness. As someone once said, "I'm not afraid of dead - but dieing is a little scary." Dead means being with Him - getting there may be hard on us all but it is not the end - it's the passage to the absolute proof of what we believe.
Don't you have any interest in discovering the faithfulness of God? Good times may demonstrate it but we tend to take them for granted. But let the compose hit the fan and it's a whole different matter. Trails show us God's faithfulness - even trials that lead to death - ouch!
I once watched as a man told my partner (old cop story) that he could not PROVE there was a God. My partner (Boo by nickname) assured the man that he could prove it absolutely. When the man demanded exactly how it could be proven my partner took out his Colt 1911, laid it on the counter and said, "You won't like it but I can prove it!" Dead comes to us all and when it comes to believers it brings the ultimate proof of God's existence and gracious faithfulness. As someone once said, "I'm not afraid of dead - but dieing is a little scary." Dead means being with Him - getting there may be hard on us all but it is not the end - it's the passage to the absolute proof of what we believe.
The word here translated "testing" is a testing to demonstrate genuineness not quality or quantity. Saying we have "a little" faith is as weird to me as saying that God gave us a "little blessing." Whatever the faith - whatever the blessing since it comes form the creator and sustainer how could "little" even matter much less be applied?
We are given the faith that saves - how can that be small. We grow in the faith that trusts. It's funny that though we are given the faith that brings the greatest promise God ever made into our lives we struggle with our faith in Him to get through all the "stuff" we face here. We are weak, struggling, silly people - but we are His people.
We are given the faith that saves - how can that be small. We grow in the faith that trusts. It's funny that though we are given the faith that brings the greatest promise God ever made into our lives we struggle with our faith in Him to get through all the "stuff" we face here. We are weak, struggling, silly people - but we are His people.
Trials teach us His faithfulness to the faith He has given us. Can that really be a bad thing? hard? Yep - but bad? Nope!
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