Tag: Faith

Do You Live Like God Isn’t Real?

by JacobChristian Living

I started going to church at the age of 16. During my time as a teenager, I heard dozens of sermons. I must confess that I don’t remember too many of them in particular. But one thing that does stand out to me in special clarity is a story my pastor relayed of a time shortly after he got married.

The pastor stood at the pulpit and drifted to a scene that had taken place early in his married life. He and his wife had gotten into a discussion shortly after he had done something upsetting. She said to him, “You live as though God doesn’t exist.”

Now, I don’t remember what the sermon was over that day. I don’t remember what the Bible passage was or what was preached.

But I do remember that quote.

My pastor, whom I viewed as one who had always been Godly and mature, had just given an account of when his wife called him out for acting as though God isn’t even real. He had even been in full-time ministry at the time. And it made me think.

It still makes me think.

It makes me think because, all too often, I catch myself living as though God were not real. I make decisions without consulting Him. I say things that oppose His heart. I believe things He wouldn’t want a person to believe. I find myself being faithless.

When I look into my heart, I often see a garden full of thistles and weeds – full of selfish desires, of anger, and of ungodliness.

‘My God has a lot of work to do, doesn’t He?’ I say to myself.

In these moments, I am tempted to despair and to give up hope. How can God use me for His work when I fail Him so frequently? How can He even love me? I search my own heart and find that I would lack the patience and the love to put up with such behavior.

If it were not for God, I would be left in my misery.

But it is also in these moments when I am reminded of who God is. I am gently reminded that the God I serve is far greater, far stronger, and far more powerful than my ability to live as though He’s not there.

In 2 Timothy 2:11-13, we read: 

If we have died with him, we will also live with him;
  if we endure, we will also reign with him;
if we deny him, he also will deny us;
  if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

for he cannot deny himself.

Read that again.

When we fall short – and we will fall short, make no mistake – we can draw encouragement from this passage. When we catch ourselves living as though God isn’t real, or as though He doesn’t really care and won’t really do what He says He will do, we can look to that last section of the passage.

When we catch ourselves being faithless, we can take counsel here.

‘…If we are faithless, he remains faithful – for he cannot deny himself.‘

Just look at the pattern we see.

A — “If we have died with Him… we will also live with Him.”

B — “If we endure… we will reign with Him.”

C — “If we deny Him… He will deny us.”

D — “If we are faithless… He is faithful.”

Throughout this entire block of scripture, we see a pattern.

If we do good, something good will come. If we do bad, something bad will come. You can see that in lines A, B, and C. In A and B, the doing of good results in the receiving of good. In C, the doing of bad (denying Jesus) results in the receiving of bad (being denied by Jesus).

But what about in D? What if we are faithless?

We would expect that Jesus would also be faithless, based upon the pattern. But that’s not what we see.

Instead, we see that Christ remains faithful in spite of our faithlessness. Why? Because he cannot deny Himself.

Wow.

Even in our darkest moments – our times of faithlessness and wandering – Christ stands faithful. He is steadfast. He is above and beyond our ability to hinder Him. As Jesus said in Luke 19:40, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

In other words, Christ will bring about His will and His Kingdom in spite of our failure.

Do you ever catch yourself praying and longing after Christ, yet still falling prey to sin? Do you ever catch yourself praying fervently one hour, then living as though God isn’t there the next?

I know I do.

There are times when I let the world take over, when I let my own desires run the show. I get uptight, overwhelmed, feeling as though I must do it all, for everything rests on my shoulders. I lose sight of God as the clouds of life roll in.

But then I am reminded – gently, sweetly, and firmly – that the Lord is in control. And it’s ultimately up to Him. Far from letting me drift in my sin comfortably, this gentle reminder brings me back to Him.

As Paul Washer is fond of saying, ‘There are no great men of God. There are only weak and pitiful men of a great and merciful God.’

You see, all the goodness we have comes from God. We have nothing good apart from Him. Every good and perfect gift comes down from Him. The very fact that you’re alive and breathing is a testament to His mercy and His power.

You cannot do anything apart from Him.

And be rest assured, dear reader, that it is only because of God’s direct intervention that we can build His Kingdom. Nobody goes out and singlehandedly builds God’s Kingdom. No one is a spiritual superman or superwoman. No one has it all.

Every man and woman you see that serves God is serving Him because of His power – not theirs.

Every time you see Christ shine through someone, it’s because He is bright enough to blast through the clouds of their fallenness – not because they are just “such good Christians.”

When we are unfaithful to Him – when we forget Him, when the cares of the world sweep over our lives like the tide sweeps over a beach – He remains faithful. He must remain faithful. He is unmoving and unwavering.

So be assured, dear reader, that our God is real. He is more real than the world you see around you, and in the end, only His will and His power will count.

He is more than enough to overcome your weakness. He is more than enough to smash down the stronghold of your sin and bring you into fellowship with Him.

Jesus will bear you on, and He will see to it that His good work in you is brought forth to completion.

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Stand With Christ, No Matter the Cost

by JacobChristian Living

We must stand with Christ, no matter how difficult and costly it may be to do so. Here’s how we stand when persecution arrives.

I am not here to sound the alarm of doom. I am no prophet of despair.

But I am a concerned follower of Jesus, and one who wants His church to faithfully and joyfully reflect the purpose we’ve been handed by our Savior.

What I’m about to write will sound alarmist. It will sound as though I’m directly contradicting what I wrote in the first sentence of this post. But please bear me out. Please read all the way to the end.

Here’s my message to you today: there is a time approaching – and approaching quickly – when our Christian faith will be tested as it never has been before. There is a time coming when we will need to choose between following our Savior and having a comfortable life. It is coming much faster than you or I probably realize.

I’m speaking to YOU, America. If you’re a follower of Christ Jesus living in the United States (or anywhere else in the Western world), you should listen to me.

Our Problem

Droves of men and women are leaving the church every year. Old church members are dying, and young ones are not falling in line to replace them.

Don’t believe me? The numbers don’t lie.

Our society has become critically infected by toxic individualism, where each person seeks to create his or her own bubble world. This is resulting in widespread dysfunction across all spheres of life, from economics to government to education to religion to family.

Social institutions are crumbling at their foundations. Confusion is reigning supreme. Political instability and moral arguments are threatening to rip this country apart at its seams.

And what is the Church doing?

Christians in today’s America are largely (though not exclusively) falling into one of two camps:

  1. They’re changing their beliefs, practices, and narratives to fit the “emerging culture”; or,
  2. They’re cowering behind oaken doors and debating carpet colors while their church hemorrhages attendees at the rate of dozens or even hundreds per year.

On one side of the fault line, we’ve got churches that are literally shape-shifting with every gust of wind in the storm. On the other side, there are those who are so set in their ways that they would rather die than change.

Both churches will fail.

One will fail due to its lack of conviction, and the other will fail because it simply dies out.

Neither is healthy. Neither will be effective.

This is our problem and our coming crisis: that Christianity is losing its influence. It is losing its ground. There is no way around it. You cannot “dress up” the data and say that there is no problem. To do so is to stick your head in the sand.

If you’re a Christian, you must admit that your faith is losing its prominence in America and in much of the rest of the Western world.

What will result from this?

Lots of things.

For one, we are likely to see the introduction of something hitherto not seen in the United States: official, legal persecution of Christian faith. We’re also likely to see an increasingly hostile public attitude towards the faith, where people regard Christianity as (at best) an outdated relic of another time, or (at worst) a dangerous and hate-filled set of beliefs that must be stamped out at any cost.

We will see a world where true Christians become increasingly isolated and ostracized from the mainstream of society. Those “Christians” who do manage to stay within society’s good graces will have adopted a set of beliefs and practices so different from that of Biblical Christianity that it will be debatable as to whether or not they’re truly Christian.

Are you concerned yet? You should be.

The Coming Era

Here’s the rub: there’s no hard, fast solution. There is no magic pill or silver bullet.

Societal forces are at play here that dwarf the capacity for any one person (or even any one group of people) to deal with. We’re witnessing the result of decades of social decay and dysfunction. We’re seeing a living example of ,”…Sin when it is fully grown brings forth death (James 1:15).”

Society will continue to grow more and more hostile to God. Open criticism of Christianity will become more and more commonplace. Christian beliefs will be more and more disdained by the mainstream culture. Churches will continue to lose influence, and many buildings will continue to shutter their doors and never re-open.

This is the world we live in. This is our new normal.

Are we living in the last days? Many think so. There are many Christ followers (particularly older ones from more traditional backgrounds) who herald the “imminent return of Jesus.” That may certainly be the case, though it’s also possible that this is just another chapter in God’s perfect plan for the world.

Regardless of whether the Rapture comes next year or next millennium, our responsibility will remain the same. Our solution remains the same. Here it is:

We are to keep on being the Church.

That doesn’t mean we’re to keep being Baptists, Methodists, Episcopalians, Catholics, Reformed, Non-Denominational Christians, Presbyterians, or Lutherans.

Increasingly so, denomination will not matter.

What I’m saying is this: we’re to keep on being what Jesus Christ calls us to be. Gone will be the days of “safe” Christianity, where one attends church on Sundays, Bible study on Wednesdays, and posts inspirational Christian quotes on Facebook.

Gone will be the days of Christian billboards and Christian ideals being promoted in public. Christian books will gradually disappear from bookstores, and Christian radio stations will fall silent one by one.

The metaphorical landscape will become increasingly dry and bleak. If you’re expecting things to get easier, you are mistaken.

Taking the place of encouragement will be persecution. You will suffer for your faith. You will suffer the derision and exclusion of your co-workers, your friends, and perhaps even your family.

Many Believers in the United States have already experienced this.

You will suffer in the workplace, as unbelieving or even anti-Christian managers refuse to award promotions to you. There may even come a time when you are asked to renounce your faith or leave.

Furthermore, there is every chance that the government will enact laws that are unabashedly anti-Christian. Some laws in various cities and states have already trekked dangerously close to this. Laws may be passed which outlaw certain doctrines or curtail religious assembly.

Depending on the fervor of the anti-Christian sentiment being reflected in lawmaking, it’s possible that some Christian groups may be legally banned outright.

If you don’t think this can happen, you’d do well to examine the histories of nations such as Russia, China, Mexico, Germany, and Cuba. All of these nations went through (or continue to go through) eras during which their governments effectively criminalized Christianity.

Many of these nations were also “Christian nations” which had held their collective faith for centuries.

It happened there; therefore, it can happen here. And I will be the first to admit that the direction the United States is taking does not bode well.

There is writing on the wall, but whether this translates into merely increased hostility towards God’s people or an outright, full-blown persecution of them remains to be seen.

But I digress. There is a new era coming. Can you feel the winds of change? Can you feel the shift in the direction and the strength of that wind? Isn’t it apparent to you?

Therefore, We Must Stand

The early Church had to endure all manner of persecution. It endured persecution at the hands of the Jews and the Romans. Christians were ostracized, beaten, jailed, and killed.

Throughout much of Church history, various people at various times have suffered intensely for the Gospel. There are countries even today where merely proclaiming faith in Jesus can be a death sentence.

The American church has yet to experience such intense resistance.

In the United States, we have it in mind that “persecution” means being called names or being attacked on social media by an angry atheist. It can include that. But it is also so, so much more.

And regardless of how much persecution we have to endure, the call of Christ to His Church is the same: stand firm, follow Me, and show love.

That is our calling in a new era of persecution and hostility. We are called to hold firm to what we believe. We are called to stand in the power of our Savior, showing love and compassion to all people… even those who persecute us.

We are called to be salt and light, to spread the Gospel of hope, repentance, and love. We’re called to stand for Christ, even if it costs us our lives.

As a Church – as followers of Jesus – we must be prepared to deal with persecution when it comes. We must be prepared for the cost of losing friends, losing jobs, losing influence, losing money, and even losing our freedoms. We must be prepared to give our lives to Christ as a living sacrifice… where we may literally be called to die for Him.

That is our call. That is our duty. Following Christ demands our full obedience, even if that obedience means giving up everything we have.

In a way, the coming time of persecution presents an incredible opportunity for God’s people. Historically, the Church has always thrived under persecution. Historically, great and mighty things have happened when the crackdowns were at their most intense. Historically, Christ has always won.

And He isn’t about to start losing now.

As we submit fully to Him in a new era of hostility, we will bear an incredible witness to those around us. There will be something truly different about us. Others will notice. Our different way of life will truly be different, as our lifestyle is thrown into sharp relief with the lifestyle of the world.

Persecution is coming, but although this presents a challenging and difficult new life, it is not the end of the Lord’s work in America. Far from it.

God bless.

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Faith Without Works is Dead

by JacobChristian Living 
James tells us that faith without works is dead. But what does it mean to have "works" and what does it mean to have faith?

I consider James to be one of the most practical books of the Bible. I’m in the process of reading through it slowly, and it contains an absolute wealth of information.

That’s not to diminish any other book in the Bible; it’s just to communicate that James is especially packed with practical stuff.

What to do in difficult times? Check.

Putting the Word of God into practice in your life? Check.

How to honor and treat everyone equally? Check.

As I was reading this morning, I came across the passage that speaks about faith and works. This is a famous portion of Scripture. Many of you have probably heard it.

Here it is:

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. [James 2:14-17, ESV]

Read back through this passage slowly. Notice especially the last line: faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

If you’ve been a Christian for a long time, or you grew up in a Christian household, you have probably heard this phrase before.

Faith without works is dead.

We repeat that phrase so often that we lose sight of its true weight. What does it really mean?

What does “works” mean?

And what does it mean to have “dead faith?”

Faith and Works: A Study

What gets us into right standing with God? Is it our works, or is it His grace and mercy?

Answer: it’s the second one!

There was no way we could save ourselves on our own. Our best works and efforts are not anywhere near good enough to get us into Heaven. But God showed incredible grace to us by sending Christ to die for our sins.

We accept God’s grace by placing our faith entirely in Jesus Christ, and it is this faith which gives us “access” to the grace that God showers down upon us.

That’s how we are saved. God sent us a lifeboat, and it’s up to us to jump into that lifeboat. The “jumping in” is done via faith.

Without faith, we drown.

Contemporary mainstream Christianity has gotten really good at emphasizing this.

The message we are used to hearing is this: Do NOT focus on works. Works don’t save you. Focus on who you are in Jesus Christ. You’re saved by grace, through faith, so just focus on having faith and resting in the grace of God.

Is this a true statement? Yes.

But it’s often distorted.

It is entirely true that we cannot be saved by works. We can’t earn our way to Heaven. That is made clear again and again throughout all of the New Testament.

Anyone who teaches you that works are what get us into Heaven is wrong.

But the contemporary church has leaned so heavily into emphasizing grace that the practical side of our faith is often overlooked.

That brings us to our first question:

What do Works Have to do With Faith?

James tells us that faith without works is dead.

Here’s the deal: works are like a thermometer that measures the health of our faith.

When you’re sick, you often take your temperature.

For instance, I woke up in the middle of the night just a few days ago. I felt like I was radiating heat. This isn’t normal for me, so I got up to take my temperature.

My temperature was normal. This was strong evidence that I wasn’t sick.

Similarly, your works are a thermometer for your faith. Works don’t get you into right standing with God, but they do show evidence that you have saving faith.

That’s why James was telling his readers that faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

True saving faith in Christ will result in works. Are these works perfect? Absolutely not! And even the strongest and most mature of Christians can go through “cold seasons” where their works are diminished.

But all those who have true faith will show works.

You cannot have faith without works – they’re a packaged deal. Works originate from faith, and faith will always result in works of some kind.

If you have no works at all, then it’s very possible that you don’t really have saving faith.

This is why James wrote these words to his readers. It is possible to go through life supposing that you have true saving faith, when in reality you lack it. You can be deceived.

This is a harsh truth that is not spoken of much in churches today.

We’re living in an age where a mere one-time profession of faith – a prayer, baptism, etc. – is taken as an undisputable sign of salvation. Even if the person who once professed faith in Christ shows absolutely no evidence of works, he or she is assured of salvation.

But this is incorrect. All those with saving faith will bear works. We should be very concerned for those who claim to be Christian but live exactly like those who don’t know God.

What are Works, Exactly?

James gives us a specific example of “works” in the passage. How he does it is rather interesting: he gives us an example of a failure to do a work. 

If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? [James 2:15-16, ESV]

From this, it can be seen that one of the foremost works which ought to be present in a Christian’s life is generosity. Are you generous with your finances and resources? Are you generous with your time?

Open generosity is a hallmark of the Christian life.

But is generosity the only kind of work there is? Not at all. If we jump over to Galatians, we can read an entire list of the “fruits of the Spirit.” These include:

  • Love
  • Joy
  • Peace
  • Patience
  • Kindness
  • Goodness
  • Faithfulness
  • Gentleness
  • Self-control

This is a large list!

Indeed, if we wanted to get out a notebook and write down all of the possible works that could be done as a result of saving faith, there wouldn’t be enough notebooks in all the world to contain the writing.

My point is this: “works” are not specific actions that fit into certain categories. Rather, works are the overflowing of faith.

Whatever good thing is done in faith is a “work.”

But that’s the key phrase: whatever good thing is done in faith.

Just as faith does not fail to produce genuine works, genuine works cannot occur without faith. They’re a packaged deal. They’re two sides of the same coin.

Without faith, it is impossible for us to please God (Heb. 11:6). But if we have faith, every good work we do out of that faith is pleasing to Him. Having true faith flips the entire paradigm on its head.

If we don’t have faith, we won’t please God and we won’t do any truly good works, even if we’re a model citizen. You see, there are men and women in this world who are upstanding people. They help their neighbors, donate to charity, volunteer at shelters, and provide a place of safety for others.

They never break the law and they are what everyone else would consider “moral people.”

Yet if they do not do these things out of a sincere faith in God, then their works are still not “good” in the sense that God requires them to be. They’re doing good works by human standards, but they still do not please God.

But if we do have faith, we will please God and we will do good works, even if we’re still struggling mightily against serious sin issues.

Works are those things that we do because of our faith in Jesus Christ.

What if I Don’t Have Any Works in My Life?

This is a question that every Christian will likely ask at some point in their walk with the Lord. Some may ask it rather frequently.

There are also many people who consider themselves Christians, yet aren’t truly saved… and they may ask this question as well.

So what gives? What if I look at my life and I see no evidence of faith-based works?

If this is you, then congrats: you’re the reason why James wrote this particular piece of Scripture. You see, Scripture is filled with wake-up calls designed to shake us out of complacency. How can we grow if we don’t know there’s a problem?

For this question, I’ll handle two cases: (1) – the person who is a genuine believer, but fears that he or she doesn’t have works, and (2) – the person who isn’t truly a believer.

1 – If you’re Truly a Christian

If you sincerely believe in your heart that Jesus died for your sins, and you’ve confessed that with your mouth, then you’re a true believer. You have true faith.

But sometimes you doubt.

Perhaps you’re going through a season of life where your works are not showing like they ought to be. At this point, I would prompt you to ask a question: have I ever been in a place where I was truly living for God?

It’s so easy for many of us to go through hot seasons and cold seasons. One month, we’re reading our Bibles diligently, praying regularly, and sharing the love of Christ with our friends, family, and neighbors.

Another month, we’re cold. We’re burned out. We’re still there; we still believe and we still follow Christ, but it’s harder. The fire seems to have gone out of us.

If that’s you, and the “fire” seems to have gone out, then it’s very likely that you’re not showing as many works as you did were when you were crazy for God. This may cause you concern.

I know, because I’ve been there. I’ve experienced this.

One thing you should know is this: every Christian goes through ups and downs. 2 Timothy 4:2 tells us to be ready both in season and out of season. Just like trees, plants, etc., we will experience times when we’re bearing fruit left and right, and times when our fruit may be much more limited.

But we will always be held to Jesus Christ. Always.

If you’re walking through a spot in your faith right now where things just aren’t as bright as they used to be, then the best thing to do is call out to the Lord.

Call upon Him in faith, and He will hear you. Get regularly into the Word, even if it’s difficult for you to do so.

You know, there is a certain aspect of the Christian faith that is about discipline.

Getting into the Word will not always be easy. Prayer will sometimes be tough; you may need to fight tooth and nail for every moment. Even being around God’s people may not always be what you truly desire to do.

But do these things anyway. Obey, even if you don’t feel like doing so. Take the steps of obedience in faith, even when it feels mechanical and legalistic.

In all relationships, there are seasons where love involves a lot of intentional action and not much good feeling. Ask any married couple who’s been married for longer than a few years, and they’ll tell you that love is not merely about feelings.

It’s the same in our walk with God. It’s not always about feelings. It’s about loving Him and keeping His commandments in faith. We don’t do this to enter Heaven; we do this because our love for Him compels us to do so.

Obey, Believer, even if things feel tough. Stay in the Word and in community, even if these things are incredibly difficult for you.

2- If You’re Not a Christian

If you’re not a Christian, there’s one thing that you should do today: call on the name of the Lord.

Call upon Him in faith, trusting yourself fully to Him. Have you ever done that before? I know that many people have “prayed and asked Jesus into their hearts,” yet come away from the experience no different than before.

I was one of them.

When I was nine, I was led to ask Jesus into my heart. Yet my life did not change. I did not feel different; there was no sense in which my desires or affections changed.

Many of my friends have been this way as well. There was a time in their life – perhaps at church camp, during Sunday services, or at a youth rally – when they repeated the “prayer of salvation.”

Yet many of them saw no change in their lives. There was no change in how they talked, dressed, walked, and otherwise conducted themselves.

None whatsoever.

Why is this?

It’s because their profession of faith was never truly theirs. They professed Christ as Lord, but they didn’t really have faith in Him! It was the same with me. When I asked Jesus into my heart, I did not truly have faith in Him.

It wasn’t until some years later, when I went through a tough time in my life, that I called upon the Lord out of genuine faith.

That is when I was saved and made His.

Today, dear reader, you have within your hands a decision to make: are you going to call upon the Lord in faith, or will you let it slide? You can put this off; you can say that you’ve got the next 10, 20, or 30 years to live it up.

But do you really?

We are not guaranteed tomorrow, let alone ten or twenty more years in this world. The safest, most rational thing you can do is to entrust yourself right now to the Lord Jesus. The safest and best thing you can possibly do is to give your life to Him.

And make no mistake – He wants your entire life.

Jesus wants your finances, your desires, your talents, your actions. He wants all of you. Jesus came and died for you, so that you could be made righteous in the sight of God. There is no other way but Him.

For more in-depth information about who Jesus is and how you can become a child of His, please visit this page.

Closing

As I draw this to a close, remember that – above all – God wants your everything. He wants your efforts, strength, desires, and your faith.

And your faith, if it is genuine, will produce good works.

Works are not what earns our way into Heaven, but they are an indicator that you possess the faith that will save you. Come before the Lord and ask Him to increase your faith, and to increase your love and joy and satisfaction in Him. It is His greatest desire that we would draw near to Him in faith and conform our lives to what He wants.

Let us press forward, doing good works for the Kingdom, earnestly desiring to strive hard after God.

God bless!

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The Testing of Your Faith

by JacobChristian Living

Why does God sometimes leave us in painful circumstances? Life is difficult, but Scripture assures us that the testing of your faith produces strength.

Have you ever gone through difficulty?

If you’re human, the answer is likely a resounding yes. Life is full of trouble. Sure, it’s full of joy and full of happiness too, but life has its bad moments.

People get sick. Jobs change. Relationships break down.

In the mist of troubles, it is not uncommon for us to lift our eyes to Heaven and cry out, “God, please fix this!”

We’re human, after all. We don’t like pain. We don’t like it when a friend betrays us, when a job falls through, or when sickness strikes. If we did, there would be something wrong with us.

So we call out to God to fix the situation. We have it in mind that we’re not supposed to be in pain. We’re not supposed to be hurting, grieving, or torn up. Therefore, we appeal to our Creator, to our Father, and our appeal often goes something like this:

Lord, I am hurting. I don’t want to be here. You said that you work all things together for good, so why can’t you just fix this whole thing?

Indeed, when we’re in pain, all we want is for it to end.

But oftentimes, that is not God’s will for us. In all circumstances – even the most painful – God has a purpose for your suffering.

God has a purpose for your pain.

James: The Testing of Your Faith

Just the other morning, I felt led to read from the book of James. I opened it up to the first chapter and began reading. Starting in verse two, it says, 

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2-4, ESV)

Right there, in that short passage, is the answer for why God often allows pain in the life of the Believer. This is why God sometimes doesn’t change your circumstance.

He is allowing your faith to be tested.

Why is this?

Let’s take a short detour down Metaphor Lane.

Imagine a bodybuilder. A bodybuilder is strong, muscular, and physically-fit. The strongest bodybuilders in the world can lift hundreds upon hundreds of pounds of weight. How did they get there?

It was through continuous “testing” of their muscles.

You see, you cannot grow strong without going through pain. A weightlifter subjects their muscles to intense resistance. This intense resistance (in the form of heavy weight) stretches their muscles to the limits of their abilities.

In fact, each workout creates small tears in their muscle fibers.

That’s why working out hurts so much. Those who train for strength are literally injuring their muscles on the microscopic level. All that soreness and stiffness? It’s because the muscles are full of tiny tears.

Once the muscles have been torn, the individual muscle cells will grow larger, thus filling in the tears. Larger muscle cells will then translate into more strength.

When you first start weightlifting, even a small amount of weight can feel difficult and painful to lift. But after weeks, months, and years of repeated workouts, each one taking you to the limit of your endurance, you’ll build up muscle. The weight that seems so difficult at the beginning will one day feel light.

It is the same way with our faith.

Like it or not, our faith is like a “muscle.” True, we are granted a measure of faith when we first believe on Jesus for our salvation. That is the faith that saves us. But faith is deepened and strengthened over time by testing it. And this deeper, stronger faith will allow you to be of greater and greater service for the Kingdom.

You will grow nearer to God and more able to stand in the storms of life.

Every time you’re going through a difficult situation, remember that God is working in your difficulty. Is it wrong to call out to Him for healing? By no means! Is it wrong to desire the pain to end? Not at all.

But please understand this: when God doesn’t remove that obstacle, that situation, or that “thorn in the flesh,” He has a higher purpose for it. Your faith is being tested, and being put under load.

There is purpose in your struggle. If you’re a son or daughter of God, you can be sure that He is working everything together for your good. In James, we read that we are supposed to, “Count it all joy… for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.”

Why should we count it all joy? Why is steadfastness (or strength, or endurance) so desirable?

Because it allows you to be, “…perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

You see, there’s reward after the storm. Your struggle, painful as it may be right now, will strengthen your faith. It is forcing you to exercise your spiritual muscles! And what happens after your ordeal is over?

Your steadfastness – that increased strength of your faith – will allow you to be “perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” The rewards of stronger faith are many. Those with stronger faith live life more abundantly. They walk in closer fellowship with God. They love, serve, and lead more effectively.

Who wouldn’t want that?

Struggles ultimately often turn out to be God’s mercies in disguise. Yes, there’s pain, but that pain serves a purpose. It is being worked for your good and for God’s glory.

Count it all joy, therefore, when you experience the trials and storms of life. Each season of difficulty is an invitation to strengthen your faith and deepen your love for God.

God bless!

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