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Don’t Neglect the Church as the Spring Semester Gets Hectic!

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I have not been in college ministry a very long time (almost 3 years), but I have been in it long enough to know that church attendance begins to dissipate as students begin to inch closer and closer towards the end of the spring semester. (Just as a side note….I do not think this is a problem just for college students. We, by nature, start strong and finish poorly).

My desire in this blog post is to convince you of five reasons why you should maintain faithfully attending church as you see summer on the horizon.

To Behold the Glory of Christ

Christ says, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:14). Now, it is apparent that Christ is speaking about his crucifixion within this verse. However, what is important to understand is that he is not merely talking about the actual event of his crucifixion. Not many people were looking at Christ’s actual crucifixion and receiving eternal life. Thus, Christ’s statement must go beyond that! It must go beyond the event of his actual crucifixion to something that is happening even today, for today, people are still looking to Christ crucified and receiving eternal life.  

And I would argue that Christ is speaking about the ministry of the word of God. It is the preaching and teaching ministry of the word that is revealing Christ crucified. Paul tells the Galatians, who did not see the actual crucifixion of Christ, “Oh foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you? It was before your very eyes that Jesus was publicly portrayed as crucified” (Galatians 3:1). Also, he tells Titus that the eternal life that is in Christ Jesus was manifested through the preaching of the word (Titus 1:2-3).

There is a revealing of Christ crucified through the faithful teaching and preaching of the word. This is one reason why faithfully and consistently sitting under the word of God is so important. Week in and week out, you are beholding Christ. This serves to strengthen your faith. And, if you want to prove this through a litmus test, simply go ask somebody that has neglected attending church for a while how their faith is holding up. And if they say it is good, then stay around them long enough to see the falsity of their statement be manifested.

To Hear the Word of the Lord

Preaching, if it is done faithfully and in accordance with the biblical text, carries great authority. As the preacher draws out the meaning of the text, he is drawing out the very word of God (1 Thess. 2:13). Thus, to sit under faithful preaching is to sit under the word of the Lord. This is something that every Christian needs to consistently hear. This is the Christian’s food and drink. This is what is going to nourish and strengthen them in their walk with Christ. So, to consistently attend church presents you with the opportunity to consistently hear what the God of heaven and earth has said and is saying through His written Word. However, to neglect church is to willingly separate yourself from hearing the word of the Lord. 

To Bear Other’s Burdens

Much of the Christian life is lived out glorifying God by sacrificially bearing the burdens of others. We do this out of love for God and love for neighbor. This is how we actually fulfill the law of Christ (Gal. 6:2). We are to be a people that see other brothers and sisters in Christ bearing burdens that are so heavy that they cannot bear themselves-such as financial burdens, health burdens, burdens brought about by other’s sins, burdens brought about by our own sin-and then gladly die to ourselves, and place some of their burdens upon our own shoulders for the glory of God and the sake of Christ. This type of burden bearing is nearly impossible when you forsake the local church.

Satan’s Assault is Continuous

Satan is a thief that comes to steal, kill, deceive, accuse, and destroy. He is relentless in his opposition to both God and man. As soon as Adam and Eve were in the garden, Satan is on the scene with his wicked weapons in hand. As soon as Abel offered a better sacrifice than Cain, he rears his ugly head. As soon as Israel began to multiply in Egypt, he was present in the wicked Pharaoh. As soon as Christ Jesus was born of a virgin, he was there as a dragon ready to devour Him! He is driven by pride, greed, envy, jealousy, selfish ambition, and hatred. His desire is to utterly destroy you. He wants your physical life and your spiritual life, and he will not rest until he has them!

Church is like an embassy in a foreign land for a citizen of the kingdom of God. When we are faithfully engaging in the life of the church, we are safe from the ancient enemy of our souls! To put it in a little perspective, when Paul tells the Corinthians to exercise church discipline on a brother who has lapsed into heinous sin, he tells them to expel the brother from the church, and to hand him over to Satan! So, to be separated from the local church is to be handed over to Satan. Thus, when you willfully neglect church, you are, in a since, allowing yourself to roam in Satan’s evil lair. Why in the world would anybody want to do that?

You Reap What You Sow

The Bible consistently teaches that you will reap what you sow. So, in an agricultural since, if you sow wheat then you will reap wheat. But the Scripture takes this beyond the simple agricultural meaning to a spiritual meaning. Paul says, “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life” (Galatians 6:7-8). Proverbs says, “Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity” (Proverbs 22:8). This is a general principle that rears its head constantly throughout the Bible and we can be certain that it rears its head today as well. 

To sow to the Spirit will lead to eternal life, but to sow to the flesh will lead to eternal death. To sow to the Spirit will lead to a harvest of righteousness, but to sow to the flesh will lead to a harvest of unrighteousness. When you willfully forsake assembling with other Christians due to idleness, sluggishness, laziness, unrepentant sin, etc., then you are sowing to the flesh. And before long, if the general principle proves true, you will reap unrighteousness and ungodliness. 

To Conclude

So those are five brief reasons why you should persevere in attending church as your spring semester begins to get hectic, you see summer on the horizon, and you are absolutely worn out. With that said, persevere!

Imitating George Whitefield

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A Brief Introduction

George Whitefield’s natural birth was on December 16, 1714, in Gloucester, England. His parents were Thomas and Elizabeth Whitefield. 

Nineteen years later, he was born again from above while he was a student at Oxford. Thus, the most effective evangelist since the days of the Apostle Paul was just converted.

His Life’s Labor

J.C. Ryle, the famous Anglican pastor of the 1800s, said this regarding Whitefield, “He was one of the most powerful and effective preachers that ever lived.” That is high praise, but it is not an exaggeration. Whitefield truly was, and remains, one of the most powerful and effective preachers that has ever lived. Steven Lawson said, “Since the time of the Apostles, the annals of church history record no other individual who possessed such gospel ambition and relentless determination.” Whitefield was resilient. As one flips through the many pages that have been written by Whitefield or about Whitefield, they stand in absolute amazement at the amount of labor Whitefield did day in and day out in his thirty-four years of ministry.

Early on in his preaching ministry, he confined himself to pulpits. He preached the gospel as often as he could wherever he could as long as there was a pulpit for him to preach from. As he was waiting on a ship to take him to the colonies for the first time, he was preaching in London. He was twenty-two years old at this time. At the age of twenty-two Whitefield said, “I now preached generally nine times a week.” It’s important to keep in mind that he had just preached his first sermon at the age of twenty-one. This is remarkable labor for the Lord. However, he left London and went to the colony of Georgia. Later he returned to England and began laboring in Bristol. 

It is in Bristol that he left the pulpit and began preaching in the open fields (which was unheard of at this point in history). This was not something that Whitefield chose to do on his own. This was something that was forced upon him by the Church of England. Regarding this, Whitefield said:

Let not the adversaries say, I have thrust myself out of their synagogues. No; they have thrust me out. And since the self-righteous men of this generation count themselves unworthy, I go out into the highways and hedges, and compel harlots, publicans, and sinners to come in, that my Master’s house may be filled.

So Whitefield saw an incredible opportunity when he was no longer confined to the Church of England’s pulpits. He realized that this would allow him to preach far more often than he was originally preaching. That means he is preaching over nine times a week now. He is only twenty-four years old at this time. He was a laborer. He never took his eyes off the gospel. When he began preaching in the open fields, it opened a door for him to proclaim the gospel to myriads of people on two continents.

To put his labor in perspective, eighty percent of the colonies had listened to Whitefield preach (keep in mind that there were no radios, televisions, computers, etc.)! When he entered a town, it was not uncommon for the multitudes that were listening to him to outnumber the actual population of the town. He crossed the Atlantic Ocean thirteen times in order to preach the gospel to as many people as he possibly could (this voyage would take 8-12 weeks…..that means he spent over 3 years of his life on a ship). He is estimated to have preached over eighteen thousand times in his ministry. Some even say that he may have preached over thirty thousand times if you count exhortations in homes and other private areas. His constant refrain was, “We are immortal until our work is done.” Whitefield was indeed immortal until the Lord was finished with him. With the amount of labor he did day after day, he should have died long before he did. However, it was not until the age of fifty-five that Whitefield breathed his last breath from an asthma attack. 

What is remarkable is that hours before his death from an asthma attack, he preached a two-hour sermon to a crowd of thousands in an open field! So at the age of fifty-five, he went from laboring for the Lord, to an eternal rest with the Lord. This was just the way he wanted it. Just moments before he preached Whitefield preached last sermon, a man told him, “Sir, you are more fit to go to bed than to preach.” To which Whitefield responded, “True sir.” Then he uttered a prayer saying, “Lord Jesus, I am weary in thy work, but not of thy work. If I have not yet finished my course, let me go and speak for thee once more in the fields, seal thy truth, and come home and die.” Thus, the greatest evangelist since the days of the apostles breathed his last breath after urgently pleading with people to believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ.

Imitating Whitefield

Jonathon Edwards made a list of resolutions that he sought to uphold to the glory of God. One resolution of his that has made a profound impact on my life is this, “Whenever I hear anything spoken in conversation of any person, if I think it praiseworthy in me, resolved to endeavor to imitate it.” So, he is saying, “If I am listening to some people praising a certain individual for a certain thing, then I resolve to imitate that which is praiseworthy.” This is a helpful mindset to have, and we are going to seek to do it with Whitefield. So, we have gone through a brief introduction about his pulpit ministry, now we are going to seek to look at three praiseworthy aspects of Whitefield’s life that we can imitate.

The first praiseworthy aspect of Whitefield’s life that we can seek to imitate is his discipline of studying the Bible. He was, by all accounts, a student of the Word. He studied the Scriptures diligently. Early in Whitefield’s life, he said, “I began to read the Holy Scriptures upon my knees, laying aside all other books, and praying over, if possible, every line and word.” This incredible discipline of reading the Word helped to make him the remarkable preacher/evangelist that he was. This is something that we ought to imitate. We need to seek to be acquainted with the Word of God. We need to read it diligently seeking to learn all that we can from it. We need to read through it in its entirety to learn all that God has to say.

The second praiseworthy aspect of Whitefield’s life that we can seek to imitate is his discipline of prayer. He was a man of prayer. He was always speaking with God. Regarding this, Steven Lawson said, “From the moment Christ dawned in his heart, Whitefield was absorbed in intimate prayer.” And this life of prayer was not dreadful to Whitefield. It was sheer delightful. He saw each and every time he prayed as an intimate encounter with Almighty God. We can learn from this. We need to be a people that are always speaking with God. And this prayer life that we need to cultivate does not need to be dreadful to us. We need to delight in it. We get to speak to our heavenly Father.

The last praiseworthy aspect of Whitefield’s life that we need to seek to imitate is his zeal to do good works. The Apostle Paul says that, “We are his (God’s) workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). Also, Paul says in his letter to Titus that we that we are to be, “Zealous for good works” (Titus 3:14). Whitefield was most certainly zealous to walk in good works to the glory of God. On one occasion he said, “I am never better than when I am on the full stretch for God.” On another occasion he said, “God forbid that I should travel with anybody a quarter of an hour without speaking Christ to them.” He was all about the Lord’s work! And as Whitefield progressively got older, people kept telling him that he was going to wear himself out if he continued to work as hard as he was working. To this, Whitefield responded, “I would rather wear out than rust out.” This man was immovable in his resolve to labor for the Lord Jesus Christ. This is something that we can imitate! 

A Word of Caution

However, as I mention these three praiseworthy aspects of Whitefield’s life that we can imitate, you must not misunderstand me. I am not saying we need to do the same works as Whitefield. Nor am I saying that we need to work to the same extent as Whitefield. For example, I am not saying that you need to get on your knees and read the Bible for hours! And I am not saying that you need to cross the Atlantic thirteen times in order to preach thirty-thousand times in thirty-four years. Rather, I am simply saying that you would be wise to strive to imitate Whitefield’s love for the Bible, his delight in prayer, and his zeal to do good works for the glory of God.

My Top 10 Books of 2017

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The end of 2017 is quickly approaching. This means that many of my favorite people within the Christian community are posting their top books of 2017. Some of these lists specifically focus on Christian books that were published in 2017. I always love looking at these lists to get an idea of some books that I would like to read in the coming year! Here they are:

Desiring God
Christianity Today
The Gospel Coalition

And some of these lists specifically focus on people’s favorite books out of all the books they read in 2017. I enjoy these lists because they focus on both old and new books, they give you insight into what some of your favorite theologians have been studying this year, and they often let you peer into their interests (Russell Moore read a book on Johnny Cash, Jimmy Buffet, and a live action comic on batman)! Here they are:

Russell Moore
Kevin DeYoung
Trevin Wax

My Top 10

And here are my favorite books that I have read throughout 2017:

The Sermon on the Mount by Martyn Lloyd Jones
Wise Counsel by John Newton
John G. Patton: Missionary to the New Hebrides by John G. Patton
Through Gates of Splendor by Elizabeth Elliot
12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You by Tony Reinke
The Life of God in the Soul of Man by Henry Scougal
Steal Away Home by Matt Carter
Tactics by Gregory Koukl
Habits of Grace by David Mathis
Revitalize by Andrew Davis

Wise Words From John Stott 


John Stott, when he was 88 years old, wrote this in the post script of The Radical Disciple:

For there is something unique about books. Our favorite books become very precious to us and we even develop with them an almost living and affectionate relationship. Is it an altogether fanciful fact that we handle, stroke and even smell them as tokens of our esteem and affection? I am not referring only to an author’s feeling for what he has written, but to all readers and their library. I have made it a rule not to quote from any book unless I have first handled it. So let me urge you to keep reading, and encourage your relatives and friends to do the same. For this is a much neglected means of grace.


He went on to be with the Lord years ago, but this was what he ended with in the last book that he authored. I find that fascinating. So with this in mind, make a reading list for 2018, order some books, begin reading, and find nourishment for your soul.

2 Brief Thoughts Regarding Evangelism

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Here lately I have been thinking about evangelism a great deal. This has led me to speak about it often, to read books on it, and to walk through books with other people regarding it. Also, to my surprise, an older individual in the church that I worship at informed me just last week that he has consistently been praying for me concerning evangelism.

And honestly, I am not entirely sure why this has been so prevalent in my thinking, but I do hope that it continues to be. With all that being said, I just want to lay out two thoughts that have been on my mind in hopes that it will help you out.

Evangelism on the Mind

The more I reflect on this topic, the more confident I am that one of the main reasons that people do not evangelize is simply because they are not mindful of it. You see, we talk about what we are interested in and have been thinking about. During football season, we talk about football. During baseball season, we talk about baseball. When we have our first kid, we talk about parenting. Every four years we talk about the presidential election. This is simply how we function as people. We talk about what we are interested in at that particular moment. Thus, when we are not thinking about evangelism we do not evangelize. Therefore, one of the quickest ways to become a faithful evangelist is to be mindful of evangelism. We must cultivate an interest in evangelism that is so incredibly pertinent to us that we view every conversation we have as a possible opportunity to speak about our Lord.

Consistently Conversational

Another reason I believe people to not evangelize often is because we have become wrapped up in the individualistic culture of our day. With this being the case, we keep to ourselves. We walk into a coffee shop and do not seek to begin a conversation with people. We check out our groceries and do not seek to establish a conversation with anybody. And if we do happen to have a conversation with somebody, it tends to be rather shallow and superficial. I am convinced that this type of mentality really does keep us from evangelizing. If we would simply seek to establish conversations, as well as remain in conversations, then we would have more and more opportunities to speak about our Savior.

Hopefully Helpful

Obviously, nothing that I said is breathtaking. None of this is groundbreaking at all. However, I am confident that if we, as Christians, were mindful of evangelism all the while initiating and maintaining conversations with people then we would be better stewards of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

James 1:2-4 Sermon

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INTRODUCTION


Polycarp, a Christian in the early church who studied under the Apostle John, was seized by some guards at an old age. He generously fed the guards that had captured him. He then asked them if he could spend some time in prayer. They agreed, and he spent time in fervent prayer. They then took him before the governor and he was condemned and sentenced to be burned alive. The governor exhorted him saying, “Reproach Christ and I will release you.” Polycarp responded, “Eighty Six years I have served him, and he never once wronged me. How then shall I blaspheme my King who saved me?”

John Newton, a pastor and hymn writer during the 1700s, said this a few weeks before he breathed his last breath: “My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: that I am a great sinner and that Christ is a great savior.”

Charles Spurgeon, a preacher in the 1800s, preached His last sermon at the Metropolitan Tabernacle on June 7, 1891. He said this regarding Christ: “If there is anything that is gracious, generous, kind, and tender, yea, lavish and superabundant in love, you always find it in Him. His service is life, peace, joy. Oh, that you would enter on it at once! God help you to enlist under the banner of JESUS CHRIST!”

These three men showed an unwavering zeal and fervor for Christ at the end of their lives. And as you and I listen to some of their last words, we find ourselves desiring to imitate them. We want to love, esteem, revere, and adore Christ just as they did. We want to share in their level of Christian maturity. We want to get to the end of our lives and utter words about Christ just as we hear from them.

But what we cannot miss in all of this, is that these men did not arrive at this kind of maturity at the moment of conversion.

Rather, as you look at their lives, you notice that it was through years of trials and tribulations that they came to this kind of maturity in the faith. And so, if we do indeed want to imitate them…If we want to love, esteem, revere and adore Christ as they did…If we want to have a mature faith that is not lacking just like we see in them. Then we too must endure trials and tribulations…More than that, we must learn to joyfully endure trials and tribulations, just as they did. 

And I believe James 1:2-4 will help us to do just this. Let’s read the text again. “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1:2-4).

My Desire


My ultimate desire as I walk through these verses this morning is to help you be obedient to the first four words of verse two. The reason I say that is because verse two is a breathtaking command. The Lord is commanding us, through the Apostle James, to look at the various trials we meet with in this life and to, “Count it all joy.”


Now you know as well as I know that being obedient to that command isn’t natural. Nobody naturally encounters trials in this life and immediately counts them as joy! That simply does not happen.


Rather, our natural response when we meet trials in this life is to wallow in despair, complain, murmur, and grumble. Our natural response is to be like Israel in the wilderness when they were enduring the trial of hunger:
  •  Exodus 16:2-3 “And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, 3 and the people of Israel said to them, “Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”


Or when Israel was facing the trial of thirst:
  •  Exodus 17:3 “But the people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”



That is our natural response to trials. And though that is our natural response to trials, it is not how we are to respond to trials anymore! The reason for this is because, since we are in Christ, we are no longer a natural people.
  • We are a people that have been redeemed
  • Who have the Spirit of Christ in them
  • Who have been adopted into the family of God
  • And who can now cry out “Abba Father” to the God of heaven and earth.
  • We are a spiritual people who have the eyes of faith to see things that the natural man cannot see!
  • And since all this is true, we are also a spiritual people that can, “Count it all joy when we meet trials of various kinds.”

BUTjust because we can now be obedient to this command, does not mean that it is easy! That is far from the truth. This is a hard command to obey. But even though this may be hard to obey, I believe that through listening to what James has to say in faith, we can certainly begin to “Count it all joy when we meet trials of various kinds.”

So as we look at the text, the first topic I want to focus on is, “What is a trial?”

And I would define a trial as a problem, hardship, affliction or difficulty given to us by God that examines, tries, tests, proves, and builds up our faith.

You see this all throughout the Scripture:
  • You see this in our directly in the text that we are in today.
  • You see this a couple of times in 1 Peter:
    • 1 Peter 1:6-7 “In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
    • 1 Peter 4:12 “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.”
  • And you see this in Proverbs:
    • Proverbs 17:3 “The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the Lord tests hearts.”



So that is what a trial is, now we need to look at what James has to say about the Nature of Trials!

The Nature of Trials


And the first aspect of trials that James informs his readers about is that they are inevitable. Notice how James does not say, “Count it all joy, my brothers, if you happen to meet various trials in this life.” That would not be good pastoral wisdom from James if he was to say that!

And James does not in the business of giving bad pastoral wisdom. Rather, he gives really good pastoral wisdom. Which is exactly why he says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, WHEN you meet trials of various kinds.” So He is telling his readers that it is not a matter of if they will meet trials, but a matter of WHEN they meet trials.

And the inevitability of trials is true for every Christ follower in here…it is true for those who are young in years and those who are older, for those who are spiritually immature and those who spiritually mature.

We see the inevitability of trials perfectly in the life of our Lord:
  • Remember when the wise men approached Herod regarding the birth of the one who was called, “King of the Jews.”
  • Herod, not wanting his kingship to be usurped, questioned the chief priest and the scribes to determine were the Messianic King was to be born.
  • As soon as they informed King Herod that the King of the Jews was to be born in Bethlehem, he immediately sent people out in order to put Jesus to death.
  • Then an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him” (Matthew 2:13)


So Jesus was only an infant and was enduring a great trial. But it is not as though that was the last trial he endured. There were more trials that came his way. By far, the most significant ones were at the end of his life.
  •  For it is there that you see one of his disciples betray him
  •  You see the religious leaders falsely accuse him
  • And you see his other disciples abandon him.
  • Then you see him beaten, mocked, scourged, spit on, and crucified.



All throughout our Lord’s life he endured trials, and it will be the same for us. Trials are inevitable throughout the whole of life.

And this brings us to the second aspect of trials.

As you look at verse two, notice how James says, “When you MEET trials of various kinds.”The term “meet” there means to “fall into the hands of” or to “encounter.”It is the same Greek term that is used in the Parable of the Good Samaritan when the Good Samaritan fell into the hands of robbers:
  • Luke 10:30 “Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead.”
    • The Good Samaritan was not out there looking for robbers. It was unexpected. He was walking down to Jerusalem and before he knew it he was among robbers!


This is the image James gives his readers regarding trials in this life. They are completely unexpected. It is as though you are making your way through this life, and at any given time you will inevitably fall into the hands of trials!

But is it not strange that trials are both inevitable and unexpected? You would think it would be the other way around… that that which is inevitable would certainly be expected!

But even as you think about the trials that you have had to endure thus far in life, you know what James is saying is true.

By way of illustration…you know that your mother is getting old, that it is getting harder and harder for her to breathe and that the doctor says she doesn’t have much longer. Then one day, she isn’t answering your phone calls, so you drive over there thinking that your mom may have passed away in her sleep, you solemnly open the front door and walk slowly towards her bedroom door, you open it up, and see that your mother is not breathing. And though you knew it was likely, you expected it on the drive over to her house, and you trembled at the thought of it as you opened the bedroom door……you still feel as though you fell into the hands of that trial!

This is how trials are. We know they are inevitable, but they are still in strange way unexpected!

And this brings us to the third aspect of trials.

Place your eyes back on verse two and notice how James says, “Count all joy, my brother, when you meet trials of VARIOUS KINDS.” The term “various” that James uses there means “of all kinds” or “multicolored.”This same term is used in reference to Jesus’s healing ministry:
  • Mt 4:24 “So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains,”
    • So our Lord was healing people with diseases of all kinds.


This term is also used in reference to the many sinful passions that we were enslaved to before we came to faith in Christ.
  • Titus 3:3 “For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.”
    • And is that not an accurate depiction of our sinful nature before faith in Christ. We were not enslaved to one passion, but to all kinds of passions and pleasures….to greed, envy, jealousy, anger, rage, pride, and sensuality. All kinds! 


So James is informing his readers that trials are of all kinds. They are in every since multicolored. And his readers were not ignorant of this.

As you look throughout this short epistle, you see that those whom James is writing to are enduring a few different types of trials. 
  • First off, they are Christians of Jewish lineage!
    • That meant they were persecuted by both Jews and Gentiles!
  • Secondly, they were being oppressed by rich people.
    •  James 2:6 “Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court?”
  • And Thirdly, some of them were undoubtedly enduring suffering and sickness.
    •  James 5:13-14 “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.”


Now I do not think James is speaking specifically to those trials alone! I think he is intentionally casting his net wide by using the term “Various” here. I mean there are all types of trials that we Christians are going to meet with in this life.
  • The Bible informs us numerous times that we are going to go through trials for Christ’s name sake.
    • Matthew 5:11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.”
    •  John 16:33 “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
  • The Scripture also informs us of trials that are not necessarily from persecution for Christ’s name sake, but simply because we live in a fallen world.
    • We are going to endure trials such as afflictions, ailments, poverty, and death of loved ones.
    • And if you simply look throughout the Scripture, you see Adam and Eve suffer the loss of their son Abel; Abraham and Sarah suffering through infertility; Jacob being lied to by his sons; Joseph being betrayed by his brothers; Moses leading a rebellious Israel, Ruth becoming a widow at a young age, and David having his life sought after by his son Absalom.
    • And as we mentioned earlier, you have the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s beloved Son, completely without sin, but he most certainly was not without various trials.
      • You see him being reviled, dealing with a hardheaded group of disciples, being betrayed, falsely accused, scourged, and then nailed to a cross.

And though James may not be casting his net as wide as I am about to, I think it is helpful not to limit trials to painful and hurtful things. I think they are even more diverse than that!

  • Regarding this, Charles Spurgeon said, “All providences are doors to trials. Even our mercies, like roses, have their thorns. Men may be drowned in seas of prosperity as well as in rivers of affliction.”
  • You see being rich is a trial just as much as poverty is.
    • Proverbs 30:8-9 “give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, “Who is the Lord?” or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.”
      • You see, the trial of poverty will examine whether you will trust God’s goodness in a time of need, and the trial of riches will examine whether you will completely depend on the Lord in a time of abundance.
  • Popularity is a trial. It will try and examine your faith just as assuredly as being cursed and reviled will.
    • One of my favorite preachers in Church history is George Whitefield. His earnest prayer as a young man was that the Lord would not thrust him out into the vineyard yet. He did not believe that he was ready to enter into the preaching ministry. However, him remaining on the sidelines was not what God desired. Therefore, the Lord thrust him into the vineyard at a young age. People had never heard anything like this young man preaching the great truths of the gospel. They praised him. They applauded him. They gave him more and more opportunities to preach and he became more and more popular at a very young age.
      • This was such a trying time for him that he would account popularity and the praise of men as one of the most difficult trials that he ever endured. He wrote in a letter in 1739 saying, “It is difficult, I believe, to go through the fiery trial of popularity and applause untainted.”


So this is the nature of trials. James teaches us that they are inevitable, unexpected, and incredibly diverse!

Now, even in light of everything that I have said so far, we are still not ready to look at all these trials and, “Count them all joy.” And the reason for that is because we have only gone over the nature of trials! In order to, “Count them altogether joy,” WE MUST KNOW the sovereign purpose of Almighty God in sending these trials to us.”

Knowing Doctrine


I place emphasis on the “We must know” because of the beginning of verse 3. Look at how James says, “FOR YOU KNOW that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness” (James 1:3). You see, for James, the very root of counting trials as altogether joy is good sound Christian doctrine! And we can go even further than that, for James, it seems that the very root of obedience to any command is going to be good sound Christian doctrine!

We can see this just in chapter 1:
  • Look at James 1:5. James knows that counting trials as altogether joy is difficult and that it takes the wisdom of God to do it. Therefore he says,  “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”
    • So the basis for us approaching God for wisdom is this, God is incredibly generous, and that he gives to all His children without reproach.
  •  Look at James 1:6-9. James is going to give us wisdom for two trials in this life…both poverty and riches. He says, “Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, 10 and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.”
    • The very basis for the poor man boasting and the rich man being humble is to refrain from viewing themselves in an earthly perspective, and rather to view themselves from a heavenly perspective….as they will appear before God at death.
  • Then look at James 1:13-15. James knows that trials often lead to temptations to sin. And to make sure that we do not blame God for the temptations that arise out of the trials that we endure, James says, “Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”
    • So the grounds for us not laying any charge against God for our temptations is that God has no deficiency in and of himself whereby He could even be tempted with evil, and also that God tempts no one. The root of temptation is found in our own sinful hearts!
      • Then James goes even further into Christian doctrine to drive home the point that God will most certainly try and test us, but will by no means tempt us when he says in verses 16-18 “Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. 18 Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
        • God would never tempt you. He would never do anything for your spiritual harm! Rather, every good and perfect gift that we have comes from Him. He never changes! He has always been and always will be immeasurably good. A perfect proof of this is that, according to His own will, through the preaching of the gospel, he caused us to be born again (He saved us), so that we might be His treasured possession. A God that is that good to you would never do anything for your spiritual harm!



So the root of Christian obedience is good sound Christian doctrine! James knows this. And we ought to take heed to this as well! We ought to seek to know all that we can about the things of God so that we can joyfully and obediently submit to His commands!

Okay, now back to our verses! The Christian teaching that we are to know in order to “Count it all joy,” is this, “For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full affect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” So this is God’s sovereign purpose in trials. This is what we are to know. Let’s look at this closely.

The Purpose of Trials


As you look at verse three, you will see that the first purpose of trials is to test our faith. Now there are two good and right ways we can understanding this term “testing.”
  • The first way to understand this testing is to regard it as a test that would prove whether you genuinely have faith or not.
  • So the Lord dispenses afflictions, suffering, persecutions, difficulties and other hardships to test the genuineness of our faith…to see if it is a living faith in the Lord Jesus or a dead faith!
  • While I think this is biblically true, I do not think that that is the way James is using testing here!


I think the best way of understand this type of testing that James is speaking about is to view it as the testing of silver and gold in order to purify them. We see this often in the Old Testament.

One reason I like this way of understanding testing is because I think it flows well with what we see throughout the rest of verse 3, and also verse 4. It is clear that these trials are producing something in us. They are accomplishing something. The Lord’s purpose is evident in the very fact that these trials are producing steadfastness leading to maturity! And this seems to be how the Lord tests His people throughout the Bible.
  • Psalm 66:10 “For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried”
  • Proverbs 17:3 “The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the Lord tests hearts”
  • Zacheriah 13:9 “And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested.”
  • Isaiah 48:9-11 “For my name’s sake I defer my anger; for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off. Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.

So the image here is the cleansing process of unrefined silver or gold. In order to cleanse the silver and gold from its dross (or scum), you would heat a furnace. Then, when the furnace is heated to the right temperature, you would stick the silver or gold in there. The dross would then rise to the surface. Once it did, you would scrape it off. And now that the dross is removed, you have pure silver and gold!


So the metaphor in all of these is that we are like unrefined silver or gold. The Lord, seeing that we are not as mature, pure, and complete as we ought to be or could be, places us in a furnace of trials that will be suitable for the removal of our sin, and our growth in faith.

This is why something so bitter, such as trials, can be so sweet. This is why something so unpleasant, such as trials, can be endured with joy.

The trials we endure are not purposeless. No trial that we ever endure in this life is without purpose. We serve a sovereign Lord that rules over the entirety of heaven and earth, the one that upholds the universe by the Word of his power. He is the one that loved us and gave up His only begotten Son to death on a cross for us.

So if we are in the furnace of trials, then we know that it is our Heavenly Father that put us there. And if it is He that put us in there, then we know that he has done so purposefully. And that purpose is for the testing of our faith.

Now, that brings us to the second purpose trials have, and as you look at verse 3 you see that they produce steadfastness.

Look at the end of verse 3 and notice James saying, “the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.”
It is important to note that the term steadfastness that we see here does not mean passivity or inactiveness. Rather it means, “Staying under” or “staying power.” So the image I want to raise in your minds is a heavy trial placed on our shoulders. This heavy and difficult trial is producing “staying power.” So the trial is on our shoulders, we are bearing it up, and as we bear it, we are growing in endurance.

And this makes since, if we were to never encounter difficulty, hardships, afflictions, persecutions, calamities, or anything like that then we would not understand what it would mean to be steadfast and endure. Those types of fruit in the Christian life would not be produced. Pertaining to this John Newton said:
  • Many of our graces likewise cannot thrive or shew themselves to advantage without trials; such as resignation, patience, meekness, long-suffering. I observe some of the London porters(somebody appointed to carry something) do not appear to be very strong men; yet they will trudge along under a burden which some stouter people could not carry so well: the reason is, that they are accustomed to carrying burdens, and by continual exercise their shoulders acquire a strength suited to their work. It is so in the Christian life: activity and strength of grace is not ordinarily acquired by those who sit still and live at ease, but by those who frequently meet with something which requires a full exertion of what power the Lord has given them.


Therefore, since this is true, our heavenly Father dispenses various trials our way in order to produce steadfastness or “staying power” within us.

But we must not mistake steadfastness as the end in and of itself. It is a means to an end. Look at verse four where James says, “And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

From that, we learn that the MAIN purpose of a trial is not steadfastness. The trial isn’t placed on our shoulders merely for the sake of gaining endurance. Rather, the main purpose of these diverse trials is our maturity; our conformity into the image Christ.

But in order to get to that type of maturity, we have to let steadfastness complete its work!

Did you notice how James said, “And let steadfastness have its full affect?” The reason it is so necessary for James to say that is because letting steadfastness have its full affect in the midst of a trial is not natural to us.

You see, we naturally respond a couple of ways to trials:
  • One way that we respond is seek to rid ourselves of the trial. We do not want to make the most of it. Rather, we want to be rid of it. We do not seek to make the trial our slave and use it for the most possible spiritual good that we can. Rather, we want to escape it.
  • The other way that we usually respond to trials is to grow weary in the midst of it. We set our hearts and our minds on enduring the trial, but then after a period of time, we give up. We maintain spiritual fervor and zeal for a little while, but then self-pity, disappointment, despair, and discouragement set in.


This is how we usually respond in the midst of a trial. So James, in light of this truth, is telling us to actively endure the trial. Let it remain on your back. Continue to stay under it until it completes the work that it is supposed to complete! And if you should choose to crumble under the weight of the trial, or throw it aside, then your faith will not be strengthened as God intended for it to be strengthened.


Thus, we are to see this trial as given to us by our gracious Father for the purpose of maturity, and thus get the most maturity out of it as we possibly can!

So when I played baseball at Faulkner State Community College, our baseball coach, would have us run two foul poles before practice every-single-day. Now, two foul poles every day for 9 months out of the year is a lot of foul poles….and it gets old quickly.

Now, he did not make us run these foul poles everyday because he burned with anger and wrath toward us. Rather, he made us run these foul poles because he knew that a junior college baseball season is rough. You play 5 games a week, two of which are double-headers (they are just one after another). And you do this for 3 ½ months. So by the end of those 3 months you have played close to 60 games. That kinda season will wear you out! And our coach knew that, so he made us run these foul poles so that we could have endurance to finish the season strong.

The problem was…..he didn’t monitor the foul poles! He wasn’t out there looking! And we were 18-19 years old. Therefore, since he wasn’t looking, often times we would skip running the poles, or when we did run the poles, we would cheat a little bit!

But what inevitably happened is that the season came. Your playing 5 games a week. Your getting worn out, and you are not playing the kind of ball that you ought to be playing. And the reason we were not playing as we ought to have been playing lies in the fact that we did not let the endurance that comes from running foul poles have its full affect!

You see, this is the case in the midst of trial. God has not given us these trials out of wrath or anger. He has given them to us for the purpose of maturing us. When we seek to evade them, or simply despairingly give up in them, we are going to be lacking in the completeness and maturity that God means for us to obtain through the trial. Therefore, we must let steadfastness have its full affect! We must be steadfast and immovable during these trials!

Now, let’s look a little closer at what James says in verse 4. There James says, “Let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

Now, I am just going to sum up perfect and complete, lacking in nothing with this, “that you may be like Jesus Christ.” For Christ is perfect, complete, and not lacking anything!

When you look at the Lord Jesus, it is hard to fathom the perfection and wholeness of His person.
  • Throughout Christ’s entire life, He fixed His eyes on His Father in heaven and sought to be obedient to His will.
  • In the wilderness, Christ perfectly wielded the sword of truth in order to combat the temptations of the devil.
  • He hungered and thirsted for righteousness every day of His life.
  • He had no sin, impurity, or deficiency in His person.
  • We learn that he commands legions of angels to be obedient to His will, and also that he is gentle in all of his dealings with widows, prostitutes, small children, and lepers.
  • He had authority to command the winds and waves to obey him, and also a meekness that patiently endured all the evil that was done to Him.
  • His earnest desire was not to be served, but to serve.
  • Not to have His feet washed, but to wash the feet of his followers.
  • He summed up his earthly ministry by saying that He came to seek and save those who were lost.
  • We see Him so set on the salvation of His people that He endured the agonizing and cruel death of crucifixion.
  • We see Him, on the cross, look at those who pierced Him, and pray to His Father saying, “Forgive them for they know not what they do.”
  • We see him while He is enduring the agonies of the cross, look at a criminal that is being crucified along with him, and say, “Today you will be with me in paradise.”
    • There is no deficiency in the person of Christ. As you study His person, you will see that He is perfect and complete, not lacking anything.
    • And for those of us who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior, we have a promise that our heavenly Father is going to conform us into the image of Jesus.
    • For Paul says in Romans 8:29 “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son,”
    • And in order to conform us into the image of Jesus, God is going to sovereignly use trials that test and strengthen our faith.


Now, briefly, I just want to show a few ways that God does this:
  • Trials keep us from pride and produce Christlike humility
    • 2 Corinthians 12:7-9 “So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. 8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
  • Trials keep us from going astray, and produce Christlike obedience.
    • Psalm 119:67 “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word.”
  • Trials keep us from neglecting the word, and cause us to seek a Christlike knowledge of it.
    • Psalm 119:71 “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.”
    • The more hardships, difficulties, afflictions, and persecutions you endure, the better you read and understand the Bible. Also, you begin delighting in the promises of God as never before!
  • Trials keep us from hard heartedness, and teach us Christlike compassion toward our brothers and sisters in the faith.
    • 2 Corinthians 1:6 “If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation;”
    •  Charles Spurgeon Jr. said this regarding his father, “I know of no one who could, more sweetly than my dear father, impart comfort to bleeding hearts and sad spirits. As the crushing of the flower causes it to yield its aroma, so he, having endured in the long-continued illness of my beloved mother, and also constant pains in himself, was able to sympathize most tenderly with all sufferers.”
  • Trials rid us of sin, and produce Christlike righteousness
    • Hebrews 12:10-11 “For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. 11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”
  • Trials rid us of prayerlessness, and produce Christlike prayer.
    • You see this all throughout the Psalms…a trial comes upon the Psalmist, and then he begins to pray fervently to Yahweh.


So, our heavenly Father puts us in the furnace of trials, with the purpose of making us look more like our glorious Savior. This truth ought to comfort us rather than bring us to despair.

Okay, now that we have seen and listened to what James has to say, we can finally be obedient to the first 4 words in verse 2 where James says, “Count it all joy, my brother, when you meet trials of various kinds.”

Count it all Joy!


You see to “Count” or “Consider” is a verb that is to be obeyed with the mind. It is not something you do physically….it is something you do mentally. I think about Paul in Philippians 3:4-8:
  • Philippians 3:4-8 “If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. 7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”
    • Paul is speaking of his former life which is full of worldly glory. All that he was before Christ was something that was esteemed by men. It was pure worldly glory. This is what he is lifting up in his mind.
    •  Then, he lifts something else up in his mind. And it is His life since he has come to know, treasure, and esteem Christ.
    • Then, in light of knowing Christ, he looks at his former life….the life filled with the glory of man….and counts it as loss compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ!!!!


 And James is telling us to do a similar thing with the various trials that we meet with in this life. James is telling us to lift these trials up in our mind, KNOWING that they produce steadfastness leading to Christlikeness, and not to count them as loss, but to count them as ALTOGETHER JOY!!!!!

And do not misunderstand me. The trials are not the occasion for joy. Only a mad man gets joyful about a trial! Rather, it is what God is going to do in and through the trial that is an occasion for joy. So your joy is in knowing what lies beyond the trial. It will be that same kind of joy that we see in Jesus as he endured the cross. Remember how Hebrews 12:2  says:
  •  Hebrews 12:2 “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame,
    • There was nothing joyful about suffering under the wrath of God on a cross!
    • But knowing that through His sacrificial death, He would secure the salvation of a people that number more than the sand of the seashore, be exalted to the heavens, and take His seat at the right hand of His Father, he endured the cross with joy!


So our joy, like Christ’s joy, lies in knowing what lies beyond the trial. We know that if we remain steadfast in this trial, we are going to look more like the Savior that loved us, gave up His life for us!

And in our day and age, it is important to understand that when I say “joy” I do not mean that you are going to be flippant, smiling, joking, or funny in the midst of these various trials. That is not what joy is in the Christian life.

Joy in the Christian life is resting satisfied in all that God has done, is doing, and will do for you in the person of Jesus Christ. And if this is Christian joy, which it is, then even during the severest of trials, we can count it altogether joy. For we know that our Father desires our good in the midst of the trial, and will shape us into the image of Christ through the trial. And though we may have to carry this trial for a period of time, we will indeed wear the crown of life forever more!

Application


Alright, let’s apply this: 
  • For unbelievers in here. I want you to notice the term, “my brothers,”in verse 2.
    • Everything that I have said today is for Christians. I know, by the authority of God’s word, that trials are purposeful in the life of a Christian.
      • But as for you, I am not sure what hardships, difficulties, and afflictions are doing in your life. I know that you are encountering them, but you have no hope in the midst of them!
      •  With that said, repent of your sin, and have faith in Jesus Christ. Then you will be able to endure trials in hope, knowing that God is working in and through them to make you look more like Christ! 
  • And for believers, we can begin to apply this by repenting of our sin.
    • You see, if God’s sovereign purpose in trials is to actually further our salvation, then how great of a sin is it to complain, grumble, and murmur as we undergo trials of various kinds.
  • Next, seek to gain a better understanding of trials.
    • Look throughout the Bible, and seek to better understand how God uses trials in the life of His children.
    • Do not stop at the Bible though, reflect on God’s providential use of trials in your own life.
    •  If you are young, and have not had to endure many trials, grab an older Christian and ask them about God’s providential use of trials in their life.
    • All of this will help you to, “Count it all joy, when you meet trials of various kinds!”
  • Read Christian Biography
    • This will help you to understand how to, “let steadfastness have its full affect.”
    • Saints like John Calvin, John Newton, George Whitefield, Spurgeon, Jim Elliot, Lottie Moon, Amy Carmichael, and Hannah Moore got the most out of their trials. The endured them well, and because they did, they looked a lot like Christ in their later years.
  • Thank God for the trials that you have endured, or may be enduring right now.
    • Seriously, right now, you have a sin nature that shows itself to be in opposition to the Spirit every-single-day. Trials help you in putting that sin nature to death, so that you can live for the glory of God.
      • Reflecting on this, John Newton said, “I have reason to praise him for my trials, for, most probably, I should be ruined without them.”
      • These trials are necessary…so we ought to thank God for them.
  • Lastly, look forward in hope.
    • One day, the Lord of Glory is going to come on the clouds of heaven and take us to be with Him, and so we will be with the Lord forever. We will have no more sin nature. We will not meet with trials of various kinds. And we will dwell with our Lord forever. And in His presence there is fullness of joy, and at his right hand are pleasures forever more! Take great hope in that!

An Unlikely Hero

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A Story Leading to a Story

About seven years ago, I met a young lady by the name of Kahlie Tomplait (who is now my wife of nearly four years)! It was through Kahlie that I had my spiritual interest kindled. This led to me reading the Bible, attending church, and attending a small campus ministry at Faulkner State Community College. Through all this, the Lord caused me to be born again to a living hope by the powerful working of the Spirit of God through faith in Jesus Christ (1 Pet. 1:3; Jn. 3:4-8; Eph. 2:8).

And with that new birth I became a new creation. During this time I was an infant in Christ. I had very little Bible literacy, very little understanding of biblical theology, very little understanding of the person of Jesus, and very little understanding of almost everything else pertaining to the Christian religion. Thankfully, during this time Kahlie did not want to date me due to my pride and haughty spirit. This was significant because it led me to being single minded in my pursuit of the things of God.

Then about six months later, Kahlie moved back to Texas while I remained in Alabama. Three months after that, Kahlie and I began dating. Our relationship was long distance which showed how gracious God was because a long distance relationship is exactly what both of us needed in order to be conformed further into the image of Christ.

As we continued to date, we understood the importance of dating with the purpose of pursuing marriage. We, however, were very much ignorant of the ins and outs of dating, pursuing marriage, biblical marriage, biblical manhood, and biblical womanhood. With this being so, we sought out resources to help us get educated on these things so that we could have the mind of Christ.

A Quest for a Devotional

This led my friend and I to go to Lifeway Christian Bookstore to look for resources for Kahlie and I to grow spiritually. I was going to get her a resource on what Christian dating looked like. Now you must keep in mind that I did not know who or what to read. I just knew that Lifeway Christian Bookstore was the Barnes and Noble for Christians!

So there I was in Lifeway looking for resources. And if you know anything about the book selections in Lifeway, especially book selections on Christian dating, then you know that they have some really good stuff………and some really bad stuff. They have material that will prove to be very edifying, but they also have material that could prove to be spiritually detrimental. So I was in a sea of stuff that claims to be Christian literature on dating with very little discernment. What is a young man to do?

A Question to Get Guidance

Well, I did what somebody with little knowledge on dating, marriage, and everything else is suppose to do. I asked for guidance. However, as providence would have it, I did not ask for guidance from the staff workers at Lifeway (though they may have proved to be helpful). Rather, I asked an older lady that was just roaming around the store. I do not remember her name or appearance. I do remember bits of our conversation though.

I told her I was looking for a helpful resource to give to Kahlie regarding Christian dating and marriage. She specifically pointed me to a book titled Lady in Waiting. So I picked it up and was ready to make the purchase.

(I have no idea if Lady in Waiting is a good book at all. So I am not recommending it. This is just how the story goes).

I then asked her if there was anything that she would recommend that I buy for myself.

 An Unexpected Answer

She said she would help me look. We were walking around Lifeway together. This seasoned saint was taking me past Joel Osteen and other prosperity preachers saying that they were no good. She took me by others and told me that they were weak theologically. I knew about ole Joel and the prosperity gospel. However, I did not know much about something being weak theologically because I was weak theologically!

Then she brought me to the spiritual classics section at Lifeway. Little did I know, this was a treasure chest of invaluable resources within the Lifeway book store. Here you find giants from church history that contributed a great deal to the advancement of the name of Christ. This section is filled with both men and women that faithfully lived and died for the glory of God.

And she was talking like she knew some of these men. I imagined I listened intently as though I knew who she was talking about, but in all honesty I did not know much. The older lady looked through the classics genuinely interested in picking out a book that would be beneficial for my soul. Then, at last, she came across a book she recommended to me. It was titled Morning and Evening by Charles Haddon Spurgeon. 

An Introduction to a Hero

I received the book from her, thanked her for her help, and went to the cashier to check out. And little did I know that this devotional written by Spurgeon would serve as the introduction to one of my heroes of the faith. That women did more spiritual good to me in recommending that book than she will ever know. 

Too Much Meat

Shortly after I purchased the book, I was going to attempt to read it. But I was roughly 20 years old, had the education of a guy that only cared about working out and baseball, and was about a year and a half into my walk with Christ. Therefore, as I picked it up to read it I quickly realized it was too much meat for me. Spurgeon’s use of the English language is unmatched. And for a guy with a small vocabulary I could not keep up! Also, Spurgeon’s use of imagery is breath taking. And for a guy with very little imagination it was hard for me to follow. Most of all, Spurgeon’s deep understanding of biblical and systematic theology was remarkable. And for a guy on the spiritual milk of God’s word it was simply too much. I put it aside. 

Slow Maturity

This was not the end though. God is faithful in maturing his people. He desires that His people look more like Christ. He desires that His people have the mind of Christ. Therefore, he was faithfully molding me. I was like clay in the hands of a potter. Biblically speaking, I was a child under the care, love, admonition, discipline, and chastisement of my Heavenly Father. So surely but slowly I was growing. And with that, my mind was being transformed.

Before long, I was picking up Morning and Evening. I was delighting in how Christ exalting Spurgeon was. Spurgeon placed Christ before my eyes and taught me to treasure him. Through his writings, he showed me the immeasurable worth of Christ. This brought sheer joy to my soul!

Just to give you a taste, this is what Spurgeon wrote regarding Philippians 1:21 in his devotional:

The believer did not always live to Christ. He began to do so when God the Holy Spirit convinced him of sin, and when by grace he was brought to see the dying Saviour making a propitiation for his guilt. From the moment of the new and celestial birth the man begins to live to Christ. Jesus is to believers the one pearl of great price, for whom we are willing to part with all that we have. He has so completely won our love, that it beats alone for him; to his glory we would live, and in defence of his gospel we would die; he is the pattern of our life, and the model after which we would sculpture our character. Paul’s words mean more than most men think; they imply that the aim and end of his life was Christ—nay, his life itself was Jesus. In the words of an ancient saint, he did eat, and drink, and sleep eternal life. Jesus was his very breath, the soul of his soul, the heart of his heart, the life of his life. Can you say, as a professing Christian, that you live up to this idea?

It is reading material like this that made Spurgeon my hero. And do not mistake what I am saying for idolatry. Christ alone is my Lord. He alone brings fullness of joy. He alone brings happiness to the soul. But you must understand that joy in Christ comes from beholding Christ by faith. And the clearer you behold Christ, the more joy you have. So what Spurgeon did was allow me to behold Christ a little more clearly. Now all the glory goes to God for it is God who empowered Spurgeon to do what he did. I know and understand that therefore I give thanks to God for Spurgeon. 

An Unlikely Hero

Perhaps the most amazing thing is this though: God has used Spurgeon in my life. Spurgeon is my hero and I try to read his works often. But Spurgeon is many people’s hero. He is widely read and esteemed by men all around the globe. However, that lady in Lifeway is not known by many. She does not publish books, nor does she have world wide renown. I do not even remember her name. She is, in all regards, an unlikely hero.

But it was that seasoned saint that walked me through Lifeway, navigated different works of literature that would not have been beneficial for my soul, and pointed out teachers that would have been detrimental to my soul. Then she took me to the classics, pointed out Morning and Evening by Charles Haddon Spurgeon, and placed it in my hands saying that Spurgeon was the man that I needed to read.

With that said, Spurgeon is not my only hero. That older lady that took my question seriously and sought to lead me in the right way is my hero as well. And though she may not be a likely hero to many like Spurgeon is, she is most certainly a hero to me. And for that reason I praise God for her.