My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. (James 1:2-4, NKJV)
James describes himself as simply a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ (though he was the Lord’s half-brother), and he’s writing to encourage the Jewish diaspora, the twelve tribes which were scattered abroad: “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various temptations, count it pure joy whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance, and perseverance must finish its work, so that you may be mature, complete, lacking nothing.”
This is a major issue for us: our faith has to face a test. James is not talking about a gift of faith, but the very faith in God which is the foundation of our salvation; we are saved by faith. James is talking about the testing of the very essence of our salvation. This is the whole theme of this first chapter. The testing of our faith in the very promises of God.
James says, “Know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance!” It’s faith in something in which we can persevere. So many people run well for a time, but drift away. It’s so sad - I don’t find enough teaching in our Christian life today about persevering, not giving up, not quitting.
In case you don’t know my story, in 1961 I became a pioneer, the first person ever to make the overland crossing by road, by car, from England to Jerusalem, in the newly established state of Israel! We faced so many difficulties. It took me two years of planning to get all the visas and permissions to go through the Iron Curtain communist countries and the hostile countries of the Middle East. Every time we solved one problem, there was another.
From the moment I set out to plan and execute this trip, I knew that I had to persevere until I got there! To go through the communist countries, I was told it would be almost impossible to get visas; there were bandits in Turkey and how were we going to get across the Bosporus; to go through Syria I was told we would be shot as spies; and the final blow - time and time again in my life comes the final blow to crush me - was that because of the hostility between Jordan and Israel, you were only allowed to make a one-way crossing! You couldn’t go back! People said, that’s the end, you can’t do it! But I persevered. I found there was a ship from Haifa that we could put the minibus on, and from Athens we could continue the return journey.
But it’s a question of perseverance. I don’t hear it preached much, but this is one of the key elements of our Christian life. Don’t give up! Don’t quit! When the Iron Curtain opened, I made the decision to take 400 people with me to evangelise the far side of Siberia for three months! It was impossible! How could you, in a broken nation - where everything was broken and nothing worked, not even the computers - how could you take 400 people for three months?!! And the estimated total cost back in then was over 2 million GBP!!! We didn’t have the money! We still owed money after the last mission… But because I believed it was God’s Call, I persevered. We went. We stayed for the three months! We took 400 people! We came back! And we went back the following year!
Do you understand what perseverance is?!! Perseverance is the idea that you have a job and you’re not going to stop until it’s done. I have to laugh: married men have a reputation of starting a job and never finishing! Well, I built my own houses with help, yes, and I finished it. But I also start jobs I don’t finish! But perseverance means you finish the job you start! What a challenge!
So this is how James starts his letter of encouragement! He explains, v4ff, “Perseverance must finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking in anything.” The difference between childishness and maturity is perseverance. It’s only through perseverance that you get to maturity.