 Let's open our Bibles together to the book of James. We're in chapter one this morning. We're gonna be looking at verses nine through twelve as we continue our series that we just began in the book of James. I understand that last Sunday our guest Chad gave an amazing encouragement to us as a church. Praise the Lord for Chad being here. A few of you were here. I see and the others didn't like him. Well anyway, I'm glad he was here with us. As mentioned already our evening service has been canceled due to the fact it's Labor Day and none of the servants wanted to labor today. This upcoming Wednesday we continue our series in the Gospel of John. For those who are able to be with us, I'd encourage all of you if you can to be with us on Wednesday nights. We're looking at the Gospel of John. We're in chapter seven and we'll be looking at verses 25 through 36. Jesus is upcoming Wednesday and in that passage Jesus speaks with boldness and they make that statement concerning him. They say he speaks boldly and so what is the secret of this? And I'm gonna be sharing that this upcoming Wednesday night. If you are a person who doesn't seem to have much confidence or courage in the declaration of the Gospel, you might want to come to this study. I'll be sharing some things out of the passage to help us and encourage us to have the courage and the confidence to share our faith. So again, that's next Wednesday night. Next week we're gonna have a guest speaker. His name is David Barton. David Barton and is well known by some, perhaps some of you have heard of him. He is in ministry with wall builders, I believe it is and he's gonna be sharing this upcoming Sunday and he specializes in teaching on America's forgotten history. And a lot of people don't know the foundations of the United States and how they were built on the faith of Jesus Christ. A lot of people deny that and he's a historian who's capable of coming and sharing with us the roots of our freedoms that we have here in the United States. He's a great speaker, very engaging and I asked him to come and he will be with us this next week on the 8th. And so I would encourage you not only to be here, obviously, but bring some friends who perhaps may have questions related to that because he's very well capable of answering any of those questions that relate to that subject. And so that's next week, September 8th, Sunday morning, 1st and 2nd service. He'll be here. I was asked to mention once again that the signups for the Women's Bible Study ends today, ladies, and if you want to be part of it, I encourage you obviously to be part of that by signing up. A couple of more things. Our office is closed tomorrow and so you might want to be aware of that. Excuse me, we have a ministry team in Pelican Bay. How many of you have ever heard of Pelican Bay correctional? Many of you have been there. I can see the tattoos, the little tear drops on your face. High Security Prison here. It's at the border of California and Oregon. We have our ministry team there right now. Our men who are involved in our correctional ministry, our prison ministry, and they've had the opportunity of ministering to some pretty, pretty rough guys, and they had 500 men in attendants as they were sharing with them, and 41 of those men who are there incarcerated, terrible criminals, have been set free by Jesus Christ to that ministry just this weekend. Praise the Lord for that. Praise the Lord for that. And so they're on their way home now, and they all got out safely. Praise God. And they're on their way home right now, and they should be home at 4 a.m. So if you should think of them, they're driving home right now. Please keep them in prayer. Great people. One other thing that has nothing to do with the Bible, which most of my studies are that way, but anyway, you know, Jose is the one who basically heads up the correctional prison ministry. He's also a person who he and Sergio are and others, but those two are the main guys. You do a lot of the work here on the campus. You know, if you look around, you'll see little things like tiles put here, or steps put there, or, you know, gates. And they're the ones who put those things together. And so I don't know if you've had a chance yet to go to the bookstore and on, there's a little alcove that we just built, and that Jose did that, and Sergio. And that's beautiful. It's a place where you can sit down and meditate and pray. And I've been wanting things like that. So it's just a blessing. And so take advantage of that. If you have opportunity, there's a little fountain there. And we do it so that you have a quiet place, if you can, to sit down and read your Bible, fellowship with people. And these little things that we do around here are really for the glory of the Lord, because I believe that beauty is something that he takes pleasure in. But there are also places for you to take advantage of. And so that's another new thing. And I don't know if you've seen it or not, but it's I've already seen people sitting there and just reading the Bible or just meditating and all that's it's beautiful. And you might want to look at it before you leave today. But that said, we're in the book of James, we're in chapter one. And today we're going to be looking at verses nine through twelve. As we continue our in depth series through the the letter to James, the Epistle of James. And so I'll begin reading here in James chapter one at verse nine. Now read to verse twelve and then we'll get into our study. And let me remind you the way that I that I teach is I lay a foundation. It's going to take a while for me to develop with you some things that I want to build the rest of the study on. So be prepared for that. So I'll read verses nine through twelve and we'll get into our introduction, our foundational words and move into our study. So beginning at verse nine, James chapter one, reading the verse twelve. James writes, let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation, but the rich in his humiliation, because as a flower of the field, he will pass away. For no sooner has the sun risen with a burning heat than it withers the grass. Its flower falls and its beautiful appearance perishes. So the rich man also will fade away in his pursuits. Blessed is the man who endures temptation. For when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love him. And so as we begin, James. Has begun in his first chapter by speaking of trials. Now, when I first got saved, there was a whole new language I had to learn. It's a language called Christian ease. I never spoke it. You know, I wasn't raised in a Christian home. I didn't know the Christian language, Christian ease and all. And so the word trial was a word that was introduced to me, trials. And so I didn't know what trials were. I had heard the word before. I knew that it applied in certain things. There's certain things that you try and all of that that go through trials. But I didn't know what the Christian definition of trials is. And so we'll begin again with the definition. What are trials? Because James is speaking about trials. He's also going to be speaking of temptation. And we'll see that there's a difference between the two. So first we looked at trials. And the word trial speaks of an an affliction that is sent by God to test or prove your character, your faith or your holiness. So it is an affliction sent by God himself in order that you might be tested because it reveals something about you. It reveals your your character. It reveals your faith. It reveals your holiness. You know, it brings this thing out in you. You know, there are those who say that sports develops character. Sports doesn't develop character. Sports reveals character. And trials do the same thing. Trials reveal things about us. And so God allows these afflictions into our life that he might test us and it might prove us that he might refine us so that our character is developed, our faith is developed and our holiness is developed. So some people will ask, well, why do we go through trials? What purpose do they serve? And why would God, who is loving and just, why would he put us through trials? Well, James has already said, trials serve to strengthen the believer whose eyes are set on eternity. In other words, trials are part of God's process of bringing us into spiritual maturity. Trials are part of how God brings us into spiritual depth. And when you read your Bibles, every person that you admire in Scripture, every person that you know by name, guys like Moses, guys like Abraham, guys like David and Peter and all of these others. We'll see this in a moment. Every one of them went through trials. Not a single one of them was able to avoid them. And these people have all been tried. And so what we see in Scripture is that God brings trials to refine us. And we see many examples of people in Scripture who went through great trials. For example, we have Jacob's son, Joseph. Joseph was one of the sons of Jacob, one of the 12 tribes of Israel. And when you read of the life of Joseph, you see that he was sold into slavery by his own brothers. And he spent many years in prison. He went through many afflictions and all. But how did he view this experience? Well, in the end, he makes a statement to his brothers in Genesis 50, verse 20. He says, as for you, you meant evil against me. But God meant it for good in order to bring it about as it is this day to save many people alive. You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good. He saw all of the things he went through in all those years as God working in him to do something good. We think of King David. When you look at the life of King David in the Old Testament, he went through many great trials in his life. We see that he was hunted down by a jealous king by the name of Saul. We see that he was rejected by the nation of Israel and betrayed by his own son, son of his heart, a son by the name of Absalom. And we remember that when they came and gave the report to David that Absalom had died. David began to cry and to weep into sob, Absalom, Absalom, my son, my son, oh, would to God that I would have died and not you. That's how deeply David loved Absalom, but he had a son who stole the hearts of the people from his own father, affliction and trial. In spite of all of that, he was inspired to write of the mercy of God in Psalm 27, 13 and 14. He said, I would have lost heart unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Then he says, wait on the Lord. Be of good courage. He shall strengthen your heart. Wait, I say, on the Lord. We think of the Apostle Peter, one who loved Jesus deeply, told him, I would not only follow you to the end, I will die for you. And yet we also see that this one denied knowing Jesus Christ in that garden. He failed his opportunity to stand up for Christ, but Jesus never rejected him. Jesus had said to him in Luke 22, 31 and 32, Simon, Simon, indeed Satan has asked for you that he may sift you as wheat, but I prayed for you that your face should not fail. And when you return to me, strengthen your brethren. Jesus knew what he would do. And in spite of his failure, Jesus restored him. John tells us in chapter 21, verses 15 through 17, how Jesus began to speak to him and said to him, Peter, he said, do you love me? And then he said, feed my lambs and feed and shepherd my sheep. He went through trials. He went through provings. He went through afflictions. He went through a variety of things, and yet he was restored and came to know the Lord in a deep way. You can't help but think of Job. Job is recorded in Scripture as the greatest of all the people of the East in a short time. When you read the book of Job, it only takes two chapters to see this. He lost his possessions. He lost his children. He lost his wealth. He lost his health. And what was his response? According to Job 2310, Job said, he knows the way I've taken and when he has tested me, I will emerge as gold. So he went through trials. And James is speaking about trials and afflictions here in the first chapter. Somebody says, well, what do they do in our lives? I mean, what good are trials? Why should I rejoice? Why should I count it all joy when I fall into a trial? Why should I do that? Because James had said that. He said in verse two, count it all joy when you fall into various trials knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. Why should I? Well, there are, let me, if you take notes, let me give you seven things right now as I'm introducing this study to you. Let me give you seven things that are the fruit of enduring trials. One, when you endure trials, you grow to understand his concern and protective love for us. We begin to see that God is concerned for us and that he protects us. The Psalmist in Psalm 32 verse six said it like this, therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found. Surely, when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him. When you're going through trials, you begin to understand that all may forsake you, yet God doesn't. And there's no hope anywhere else, but there's always hope in God because he refines you and he brings you to a place where the only person that you will trust is God in that deep and most personal way that you can trust anyone. So he teaches you that he's there and you begin to learn that he is concerned for you, that he does protect you. A second thing is they produce faith filled patience because you wait on him to deliver us. That, again, is what he had said in James one verse three, the testing of your faith produces patience. That's why, like I said a moment ago out of Psalm 2714, we are to wait on the Lord and be of good courage. Third, they refine and purify your faith because they remove from us anything that replaces God in our hearts. God will refine you until it's just you and him. See, that's what the heart of every believer ought to be, by the way. That's not some advanced thing in Christianity. That's just being a Christian. I think today there are so many people who have forgotten that or perhaps have never learned that or don't know that. That the bottom line is, is that we have a God who is to be number one in our life and everything else is supposed to be after that. And so there are things that you can have that replace the Lord. It's very easy to see that, whether it's a marriage, whether it's a material thing, whether it's having children, whether it's simple relationships, whether it's a job. There are a lot of things that will seek to replace God's preeminent place in your life, God doesn't allow rival thrones to be established in you and God will break down some things and you hate to hear that, but it's true. He will break some things down so that you see that the only thing that matters is him because you've been praying and you've been saying God, I want to be more like you. And he breaks things down so that you become that way. And so they remove from us anything that replaces the Lord. Proverbs 17.3 says the refining pot is for silver and the furnace is for gold, but the Lord tests the hearts. And Isaiah 48.10, God said, I have refined you, but not as silver. I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. I've refined you. I've tested you. You see, when I do weddings, often if they have a gold ring, I'll say this ring is made of gold and gold is purified through heat. And what happens is it is heated to the point where it boils and then the dross, the impurity rises to the top and then the goldsmith will take in and will remove the dross, the impurity. And the goldsmith always knows when the gold is pure, when he can look at it and see his own reflection. And that's what the Lord is doing in us through the trials we go through. He's refining us in the refiner's fire and our life seems to be heated up. And but the impurities are rising to the top and the Lord is scooping that off and discarding that dross. And and then he looks in you and his face is now reflected in your life. That's what you want to be. You are created to be in the image of God and God is doing a work in you. And he refines you that way. So that's one of the reasons why you rejoice. A fourth thing is they prepare us to be with Jesus Christ. Trials remind us that earth is not our home. Trials remind us that we're only pilgrims and we're just passing through. We have our great days. We have our wonderful days, our good days. And then there are the days that aren't so good. We go through those things. We go through all of those things. But the bottom line is, is these trials that we go through reminds us that there's something better, something awaiting us. In a moment, we're going to see that we're going to receive the crown of life, which Lord has promised to those who love him. And so we understand that I am just passing through. I am being refined. And then one day I'll see him in 1 Peter 1, 6 and 7. The Apostles said in this you greatly rejoice. So now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials that the genuineness of your faith being much more precious than gold that perishes. Though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ. A fifth thing is they give us experiences that enable us to speak about the grace of God. The Lord working in our life. People will see that things are going on and they'll ask how do you endure? How do you go through that? How why don't you like Job's wife said to him? Why don't you just curse God and die? Thank you, baby. Great advice, but not today. They enable us to speak about the grace of God. I felt alone, but I wasn't alone. I lost all things, but I gained all things. I wanted depth and God took me to a deep place. No, I can speak about the grace of God because God works that way. See, this is a message. This kind of idea is foreign to a lot of people because they say within themselves, God is in that way. No, the only ones who say God is not that way are the ones who don't read the Bible. They've created an image of God according to their own likeness. But the Bible makes it very clear that no, God gives us experiences that enable us to understand His grace. In 2 Peter chapter 2 verse 9, Peter said the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to keep unrighteous, the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment. We know that Paul endured great trials. He speaks about it in 2 Corinthians chapter 11 verses 23 through 28. He actually outlined some of the things that he endured as a minister and missionary. He speaks of that. He says he labored. He endured stripes. He went to prison. He was in danger of dying. He was scourged five different times. He was beaten with rods three times, received a stoning, was shipwrecked three times. He says I lived in constant peril, worked tirelessly, suffered sleeplessness often, was constantly hungry and thirsty and suffered cold and went without clothing often. That was his life taking the message of the gospel. But how did he view that? There would be those who were saying, oh, God, why have you done this to me? Why have you allowed this in my life? How did he view those things? In 1 Thessalonians 2 verse 4, he said this. He said we've been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. Even so, we speak not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts. I have been tested and approved. And that's why I can take this message where I go. He said to the Philippian church in chapter 1 verse 29, for to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for his sake. It has been granted to you, he said, to suffer. That's an odd way to think today. But he says it's actually a divine privilege for you to suffer for Christ. The sixth thing is they help us understand our own weaknesses, but they also help us accept those who have weaknesses. It causes us to become compassionate and more understanding trials. My mom suffered with illnesses from the time I was four years old. My mom was 24 years old when she had her first epileptic seizure. And my mother from the time she was 24 until she died at the age of 83 suffered one thing after another, one thing after another for 59 years. My mother suffered from one thing after another. Her last year that she lived on this earth was in a bed. She had broken her back. I had come to visit. I was doing ministry in New Mexico. My mom had come to see me as I ministered, had gone home. I was about to get on the plane to fly home when I got a phone call from my sister. And my sister said, mama fell and mama's hurt. I couldn't go see my mom and I never really was able to really communicate with her again. My mama went into very bad pain. She broke several, several, broke her back in several places. Mama was in a bed for the last year of her life. I speak to her on the phone, but she entered into dementia. It was really tough to watch my mom. But my mom was a very compassionate woman. We were, I was just talking to my sister. One of my sisters, just the other day, actually two of them, my two sisters, and we were speaking about my mom and how my mom was the person who would bring home the homeless person and she'd want to bring them into the house and she'd want to feed them and care for them. That was my mom. And that was even before she was saved. She had a compassion at heart. And when she got ill, I saw what she did. I saw 59 years of her being ill after one thing, after another, one thing, after another. She had a bag at the end. She, you know, she had, she had taken these, this medicine because my mom had lupus and she had taken a medicine that had destroyed her, her colon and she had rips and tears and she had to have a surgery. And, and it was one thing after another, I saw my mom and she had a heart that was very compassionate. In the end, my mom cared. And me as a little boy, I grew up watching that. And I am telling you that, that afflictions, when viewed in the proper way, as my mom did, they gave you compassion for others. Because my mother understood pain. My mother was able to, she was able to understand, where other people say they don't look so sick, they don't look so bad. My mom would say they are, they have invisible illnesses. My mom had invisible illnesses. People would approach her and they would think she's okay because she was walking when, in fact, my mom was struggling to walk, but they'd say, oh, you look good Bonnie. And then they'd hug her and they'd bruise her body. And she, she'd be in such pain because she had lupus and people didn't know that. She used to say, I wish that I had something that people could see that they'd know I'm sick, David. That was my mama's cross. But as I watched her, I grew to have compassion. People say, and forgive me if it sounds self-serving, but people say of me sometimes, you have a compassion at heart. What do you think I got it from? What do you think I got it from? I got it by watching someone in pain. I got it by suffering with them. And you feel it. That's how you gain it. And so trials are that way. They can help us understand our own weaknesses, but they can also help us to accept those who have weaknesses. Somebody said, trials make room for consolation. There's nothing that makes a man have a big heart like a great trial. Great hearts can be made only by great troubles. And then seventh, they help us to see God more clearly. They mature our understanding of him. You see, the people that we believers most admire as examples are often the ones who have been severely tried. You say, that person has such love. That person has this character. That person has that zeal to talk to them about their life. Ask them, how did you gain that? How did you become that? Where did you get your boldness? Where did you get your courage? Where did you get your strength? Where did you get your compassion? How did you learn to love? And they'll tell you, how did you learn to pray? When you pray, I know heaven is open up. How? And they'll tell you, they're the furthest of affliction. They're times of trial. They're being on my carpet in my bedroom, crying out to God, save me or I die. That's how not many people want to go that road. Today, we would prefer just opening up a book or googling it and finding out how to have it. That's how people gain information today. But no, the saints of all the ones we admire the most are the ones who suffered the most. They went through the toughest times in James in chapter five, verse 11. We'll see this as we get there. It reads, indeed, we count them blessed to endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seeing the end intended by the Lord that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful. So as we go through trials, we are often in the position of needing wisdom to handle them. So we ask of God and he gives us the wisdom desired and he doesn't reproach us for asking. In Proverbs two, verse six, it says, the Lord gives wisdom from his mouth and from his mouth comes knowledge and understanding. And so that was your introduction as James begins in verse nine. He says this, so let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation, but the rich in his humiliation because as a flower of the field, he will pass away. So James gives an exhortation. Notice his illustration. He refers to two members of the church. One is poor and the other is rich. The lowly brother. And that's who he speaks of first in verse nine, let the lowly brother. This lowly brother is the believer who holds a lower station in life financially and socially. You see, for the poor, trials, especially financial trials, can be especially difficult to endure. And there were many Christians undergoing financial hardships. In that day, as is true today, in society, the poor were often held in contempt. In Proverbs 14, verse 20, it says, the poor are shunned even by their neighbors, but the rich have many friends. Proverbs 22, verse 7, the rich rule over the poor. The borrower is servant to the lender. You have a credit card. The borrower is servant to the lender. You go and buy something on time, lay it away. I don't know if they still do that or not. You're buying it on time. The borrower is a servant to the lender. You owe them. So under financial strain, it's easy to become envious and jealous of the rich. And you can become envious of people who are not undergoing such pressure. Proverbs 14, 30 says, a heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones. And you can look and you can say, how come they have that and I don't? Why do they have this and I should? And you can actually begin to envy people. And you can in general, some people can simply resent those who are financially prosperous. And we look at them and we say, how come they have that? And so in our society, there are numbers of people who are upset at the salaries of CEOs of major corporations. They'll say, all these people are making money off the poor. And there's a resentment that's now been enshrined in the way of thinking here in the United States. And I was reading to our Wednesday night Bible study. Some of you perhaps were there. I was mentioning something about a guy named Jeff Bezos. You've heard of him. Everybody I'm assuming heard of him. If not, you're going to hear of him right now. Jeff Bezos is the richest man. He his estimated worth and it fluctuates daily, basically. So when I looked this up a couple of weeks ago, his estimated worth is around one hundred and fifty four billion dollars. Now, see, we don't ripple anymore at that. You know why we don't? We don't know what that means. We really don't. What's a billion? Thousand million. He has a hundred fifty four thousand million dollars. That still doesn't ripple. How about this? It has been. It has been mentioned that is estimated per minute. That he makes per minute. Two hundred and thirty thousand dollars. That I can I can grab that one. Two hundred and thirty thousand dollars a minute, a minute. I'd like to have five minutes of his time. That's over a million dollars in five minutes. He's making two hundred thirty thousand dollars a minute. During this church service, I made him rich. No, think about it. We can't relate to that. That is beyond anything we can relate to. But we do know that's an awful lot of money. And people can become upset because somebody has that kind of riches. And so what they do in our society is they can begin to demand greater taxes on on those whom they refer to as the rich. Well, the problem is just who determines the amount of money that qualifies you as rich? Who's going to make that determination when somebody says, well, he's rich. OK, tell me by what standard is that person rich? Oh, and now we've got all these people with opinions about what riches is. And that's taking place today. It took place then. What constitutes riches and who determines when someone becomes rich? And if I said it like this, if I said, let's become American for a moment. And let me ask you for a question. Are you rich? The average person here would say, are you kidding me? If I was rich, you think I'd be here? Are you rich? And the answer is, yes, you are. Do you have more than one pair of shoes? You're rich. Do you have more than one shirt that you wear or a dress that you wear or pants that you wear more than one? You're rich. Do you have a house that you live in that has heat and has running water and a stove? You're rich. Do you have enough money to go out and and buy a book? Do you have enough money to stop at a at a fast food restaurant on the way home or go to some place to eat? You're rich. And you say, no, I'm not. Yes, you are. You see, I didn't realize that because like you, I'm an American. I'm used to what I see. And what I see is levels of riches. We are extremely rich as a nation. We just don't realize that. We just don't understand that. I was in India and I'm on a bus and my friend, who is the guy who is who is talking to us, turns to me and I'm talking to him and I look and I see a woman and she's on the street corner in a busy city and she's got she's underneath a tarp. It's 105 degrees outside, a lot of humidity. It's hot and she's sitting underneath a tarp and there's a pile of rocks. Kind of like large rocks and then there's a pile of gravel next to her. And I see her reach over and pick up one of these rocks. That's the size of a softball. And with a hammer, she begins to hit it. And and he says, you see that woman there? And I said, yes. He says, you know what she's doing? I said, no, I actually, no, I don't. What is she doing? She's making gravel. She's making gravel. He said, she sits under that tarp 10 hours a day. And with that hammer, she breaks rocks into small rocks. She makes gravel. She sells it to construction. He says, you know how much she makes in a day for 10 hours of labor with a hammer and rocks 50 cents. She makes 50 cents a day. She will take the 50 cents after a 10 hour work day. And with 50 cents, she feeds her family. Now I'll ask it again. Are we rich? And the answer is, yes, we are. Yes, we are. We just don't know it. Why don't we know it? We don't know it because we compare ourselves with others who are rich and therefore we don't have as much as they therefore we are not rich. So suddenly we say, then those who are rich ought to pay all my bills. I shouldn't have to work. I should have to start a business. I shouldn't have to do anything. I should go to college for free. I should have all of these things. And that really grabs all the people's minds, but they never really think, then who's going to be who's going to pay for that free stuff? No, no, I'm not getting into politics. But that's what we're dealing with. That's what we're dealing with. It is a greed mentality that is almost reversed now. So if you work hard, you're bad. If you take what you have made, then you're actually good. And that's what's happening right now. Be careful that it doesn't happen in the body of Christ. Be careful because James has given us an example. He's saying, you have a rich person. We'll see this even in more detail later. He really develops this. I'm just giving you an introduction to what he says later. You have a rich person and a poor person. And the attitudes is what he's dealing with first. And he says, not the poor person. Become envious. What he's saying is, let in verse nine again, let the lowly brother glory and exaltation. But the rich in humiliation. What are you talking about? Well, we need to understand that it's not money itself. That is evil. It's the love of money. It's the greed. It's the envy that is. And we need to remember that Jesus taught his followers to seek first his kingdom and care for other people. He taught us to make sure that our priorities are spiritual. In John 6.27, Jesus said, don't labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you. Because God, the Father, has set his seal on him. And he speaks of the food that endures. That speaks of that which strengthens your soul, not just your body. And that this this food that endures is knowing and doing the will of God. And James makes it clear that the one who is financially poor is to rejoice in his exaltation. What does that mean? Well, there are different applications. There are some commentators who see this as speaking of a poor man becoming wealthy. So the command to that man would be to avoid becoming proud because of his riches. In other words, don't rejoice because you can now buy more things or cater to your fleshly desires. The reason for that would be prosperity as a way of blinding our eyes concerning eternity. Proverbs 23.5 says it like this, cast but a glance at riches and they're gone. For they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle. That's why like Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 6.17, Timothy, you're to command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant, nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain. But to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. So prosperity has a way of blinding our eyes. And so on one hand, when he says, let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation, it may be be careful that you don't become prideful and begin to depend on any favor God may give to you that you've given to your riches. Be aware of that. But there's another perspective and that would be for the poor person to rejoice in their salvation. You're saved. You're blessed to have fellowship with Jesus. Heaven is your home. Rejoice in your exaltation. In Philippians 3 verse 8, Paul said, yet indeed I also count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish that I may gain Christ. In chapter 4 verses 12 and 13, he said, I know how to be a base and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned, both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. And then he went on to say, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. I've enjoyed the finest restaurants and I've eaten the poorest of foods. I've worn nice clothing and I've been almost without anything. And I've learned that there's one thing that matters and that is that I'm going to heaven and I'm going to be with the Lord Jesus Christ. And that's what I want to do. You see in verse 9, when he says, let the lowly brother glory in his exaltation, he moves on to say, but the rich in his humiliation because as a flower of the field, he will pass away. On the other hand, the brother who is financially prosperous also has pitfalls. He can begin to think himself more blessed than others because he has riches and forget God. In the book of Deuteronomy in chapter eight, Moses said, you may say to yourself, my power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me. But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth. And so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers as it is today. You may have been blessed financially, but you can begin to put all of your trust in your riches. And remember those things don't always last. You see, God is at work both in the poor and the rich alike. In Proverbs 22 verse two, the rich and the poor have this in common, the Lord is the maker of them all. So the rich is to glory in his humiliation in his abasement. The rich man has a new mind of humility because he gains an eternal perspective. His value is no longer found in his financial accomplishments and his possessions. His value is derived from his relationship to God through Jesus. It's interesting how people will treat those whom they know are very rich. And very often, not everybody does this, but many do, that person who's very wealthy will be treated differently than the one who's poor. That's a fact. And if you haven't seen that yet, keep living, you will. It's just a fact. The very wealthy get perks that you never get. The powerful get perks that you never get. There's a class of people that seem to get away with everything because of their connections. And the rich people, that's what happens very often. Not all rich people. No, of course not. There are some wonderful Christian people, loving people, they don't do that. But that doesn't mean people don't treat them differently. And they do, why? Because this person buys, this person has. And that's what happens. We know that, live for a while, you'll see that, and it's true. And so, a rich man is to actually glory in his humiliation because his real value is his relationship with the Lord. In Jeremiah 9, 23 and 24, Jeremiah said, this is what the Lord says. Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom. Or the strong man boast of his strength. Or the rich man boast of his riches. But let him who boasts, boast about this. That he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who exercises kindness, justice, and righteousness on earth. For in these, I delight, declares the Lord. You see, Jesus changes our view of life. We no longer stagger after financial accomplishments. Relationships and accomplishments are now understood to be the most meaningful when they're in Christ. The accomplishments that we have, when they're done as unto the Lord, they humble us. The relationships, those are the things that matter. I've been at the bedside of more than one person dying. I've been there more than once. And you'll have conversations with people as they're about to enter into eternity. And those are the most real ones you'll ever have, by the way. Those are the most real conversations you'll ever have. Where they start telling you the things that matter. When they start saying to you, this is my regret. Because I'm their minister, I'm their pastor. And they're trying to get things off their chest and they will share with you and they will tell you. And they're not messing around because they know that they're gonna close their eyes and end up looking at God. They know that. So it's very serious and very real. Until you're in that position, you may have all kinds of ideas about what you're gonna do or what you'll be saying. No, let me tell you. When you're on a bed and you know that you're about to die, you get very real. And I've been there more than once. And I've been there listening and I've been there talking and I've been there praying. And I can tell you this. Every pastor who's done this can tell you this. They don't say, man, I wish I'd have bought that Porsche. I've never had a person say that. Man, I wish I would have spent more time on the job. They never say that. When they start saying the wishes, they're always relational. Always. I wish I'd have spent more time with my wife and my family. I wish I'd have told my son how much I loved him. I wish that I'd have been a better father to my daughter. I wish I'd have been a better man. That's what you hear. That's the kind of thing that goes on in your heart because here we are pursuing our wealth and pursuing our goals and pursuing everything else except for God and except our families are pursuing everything. Oh, I wish I know you don't wish you had those shoes and know you don't wish you had that house and know you don't wish that you had that car and know you don't wish you had that neighborhood. Know you don't. What you wish you had was more love and more time with your family and you'll not have this side of the earth of heaven. That's a fact. That's a fact. I'm letting you know in advance and this isn't to bum you out. This is, I'm a minister. I'm supposed to bum you out. No, this is just the truth. I'm being real with you. I'm being real with you. I've stood there. I've been there. I've seen it. I've been on that bed myself thinking that I'm about to move on. I've been there. I know what it's like. I know what it's like to be on a bed saying I might be moving on. I know that feeling. I know that feeling. I've had it and I know it and I'm telling you the only thing you do is you sit there thinking should have given more time. Should have done more. I wish I'd have been with her. That's what you think. It's not, I wish I had a car. It's not I wish I had these shoes. I am telling you, learn that now before it's too late. Learn it now, rich man. Glory in your humiliation. Glory that you've been put into place where only God really matters. Where the things that matter are relationships and friendships. Why is that? Well, because as a flower of the field he will pass away. Why don't we go out and plant flowers during the summer? Why don't we go out and dig in our garden and put down all of the, why? Because they die. Why do they die? Because the sun rises with the burning heat and it withers the flower and the beauty thereof fades away. It perishes. He says so is the rich man. And you see the guy in that $2,000 suit and those $1,000 shoes and that $300 tie and that $400 shirt and that cool haircut and you see that but all of that's gonna perish and sometimes they're buried in that beauty. Doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. Glory in your humiliation. As a flower of the field you'll pass away. For no sooner has the sun risen with the burning heat than it withers the grass. It's flower falls. It's beautiful appearance perishes. So the rich man also will fade away in his pursuits. And we need to understand that. We need to understand that relationships matter. In Proverbs 23-4, do not wear yourself out to get rich. Have the wisdom to show restraint. Ultimately all that lasts is what you've done for the Lord. In Psalm 49, 16 through 19, do not be over odd when a man grows rich when the splendor of his house increases for he will take nothing with him when he dies. His splendor will not descend with him. Though while he lived he counted himself blessed and men praise you when you prosper. He will join the generation of his fathers who will never see the light of life. He leaves everything behind. They said that of the rich man Rockefeller. How much did he leave behind? And the answer was everything. He leaves everything behind. And so he moves on finally in verse 12 by saying, blessed is a man who endures temptation. For when he has been approved, he'll receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love him. So he returns to the Christian and during the afflictions. He's returning to his initial thoughts that we saw in verses three and four. And he says, blessed is he who endures temptation. He who has tried and passes the test of the trial is what he's saying. Temptation. When he speaks of blessed is a man who endures temptation, temptation is different than a trial. Temptation is an enticement to sin arising from desires or outward circumstances. We need to know that Satan tempts in order to undermine God brings trials to refine and develop. Our victory comes through faithfully holding fast to scripture's promises and the power of the spirit. And we respond like Jesus did when Satan was attempting to cause him to fall and he took him on a high mountain or he showed him the kingdoms of the world. He told them to jump from the pinnacle of the temple or to turn these stones into bread. And Jesus' response there was simply, it is written. And that's how you deal with these temptations. We hold fast to the promises of God. We know the word of God and we exercise it as a sword of the spirit. So we endure, we remain faithful and in doing so it reveals genuine salvation. In Psalm 119.67, the psalmist said, before I was afflicted I went astray but now I keep your word. In Psalm 119.71 he said, it's good for me that I've been afflicted, that I may learn your statutes. I'm able to not only quote the scripture but know what's meaning. There are people today who are able to quote scriptures but they don't know what the scripture means. They're able to parrot but they don't know what it means. And I see that a lot. Facebook is filled with that. Seriously, and I'm not knocking those, it's just true. You'll get people who are giving their spiritual advice on Facebook all the time and I read it and I look at it and I say, but that's not what that means. They're able to quote scripture but they don't know what it means. But going through affliction caused the psalmist to say, I am blessed that I went through it. I learned your statutes. I learned them not simply by quoting but I learned what they actually mean. I have experienced God in the depths of these trials. I have seen my God delivers. I have learned his character. I've learned his ways. I've learned how he is. Listen, what I'm speaking to you is not milk. I'm speaking meat to you and I hope you receive it. I hope you receive it because you will be and are tried and probably every day in one form or another and those trials don't go away. They only increase. They continue to increase to the point where it's, you're kind of like gone through the fire and Christ is revealed in you. And that's how you learn things of God. You see, we'll go through these things but notice what he says. Blessed is the man who endures temptation for when he's been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love him. He receives the crown of life, the reward for faithfully enduring. That crown is a head to wreath. It's the victor's prize that was awarded in Greek games. He speaks of the crown of life that's promised to those who love him. In the New Testament life doesn't speak of existence. It speaks of relationship to God. It speaks of a spiritual quality that is full and rich and continual. And Jesus said that a man's life doesn't consist in the things he possesses. Life is more than simply eating and drinking. Life is revealed by Jesus as knowing God and enjoying fellowship with him. That's what he said in John 17.3. This is eternal life that they may know you, the only true God in Jesus Christ whom you have sent me. On earth we experience life as a burden filled with weariness and concerns and somebody once said if we have any crown at all, it's simply a crown of thorns. But for those who love him, God is waiting to give them a crown of life for enduring. And we're gonna have fellowship with him on earth and abide forever in glory with him. And because of this, we hold fast to the Lord and we seek his kingdom first. We are aware of the prize and thus we run in such a way as to obtain it. Because in the end, you're not gonna be asking the Lord, how come you allowed this? Why did you do this? In the end, you'll be looking at him eye to eye, face to face, and you'll say to him, I am unworthy, you made me worthy, you have opened up the door to heaven for me, the trials were good for me, I learned your ways and oh God, thank you for welcoming me into your kingdom. You made me into the person I wanted to be but could not be on my own. That's what trials do, that's why you rejoice. That's why you're able to count it all joy. We enter into various trials knowing this is the trine of your faith, work of patience but let patience have a perfect work that you may be perfect and entire lacking nothing. That's what James is teaching us and that's what we need here in the 21st century, right now the church needs to strengthen itself in the Lord and hang on because God is doing something in us right now and he wants to use you to reach those who don't have a hope in Christ and they'll see what you go through and they will ask you, how do you stand like that? How do you make it through? There's so many people like Job's wife and say why don't you just curse God and die? I thought God was so good and look what you go through and you can say you don't wanna know what this is, this is preparation for glory. I have a chrono life awaiting me because I love him. My God is good, he doesn't let go of me, he holds me in his hand, he takes me through the valley, I will arrive safely at my destination and Jesus Christ will get all the glory and that's why I go through trials so I might be like him. That's how it works, that's how it works that you may know him. If you ever said I wanna be like you, well his answer would be, well I was a wounded healer, I was a wounded healer, I was bruised for your sins, your iniquities and if you wanna be like me, you will be bruised also but out of that broken heart will come compassionate love that is of the God kind and if that's what you want, that's what you'll get and I've been asking the Lord for that for almost 49 years and I can tell you he is good, he is good, he has never left me, he has never forsaken me, he is with me no matter what, no matter trial, no matter what pain, no matter what loss and no matter what sorrow, no matter what disappointment, he is there, he lifted me up, he put my feet on solid ground and he'll do the same for you, he loves you, he loves you, never forget that, your God loves you.