Word & Deed: 4 Things to Remember When Suffering

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Word & Deed: We are Witnesses:  4 Things to Remember When Suffering
with Travis Aicklen

Scripture: James 1:1-12

Intro: This sermon continues "We Are Witnesses," focusing on how our lives testify to Jesus. Our lives constantly speak. Last week: testifying through suffering. This week: deeper dive. Passion involves suffering. C.S. Lewis: God whispers in pleasure, speaks in conscience, shouts in pain. Christian success whispers, suffering shouts. The world watches how we endure. Hopeful suffering is powerful. James, Jesus' half-brother, writes just after the crucifixion. He calls himself a "slave" of Jesus. Consider worshipping your brother as God – it speaks to Jesus' divinity.

Text: James 1:1-12

Exposition:

• James is direct, like a "mouthy" brother. He immediately addresses trials. No preamble, just stark reality.
• "Count it all joy": Seems irrational. James says rejoice because we know trials' purpose.
• We forget in suffering. James reminds us of truths we possess.
• Four Reminders: 
  1. Life is brutal: The Bible doesn't shy away. James: when you face trials, not if. "Various trials" means many kinds. God works in good & bad times. We're God's scattered, not sheltered, people. Jesus said we will face trouble. Need a "theology of suffering"—a plan. Suffering comes in waves. The "left hook" is questioning God, losing trust, becoming isolated.
  2. Everything's tested: Testing proves authenticity. We learn through failure. Tests reveal weaknesses. "Teacher is quiet." God's silence is hard. We test what we value. Tests show God's love. They're for us. Peter: Jesus said he was handed to Satan, but Jesus prayed for Peter's faith not to fail. It's our faith, refined by trials. We rejoice in the promise of God's work.
  3. Pray for wisdom: In trials, pray for wisdom to avoid foolish choices. Pain isn't worst; what we do in pain is. Addiction, bitterness are dangers. "Steadfastness" means "remaining under." Don't cheat trials. C.S. Lewis: “God whispers in pleasures, speaks in conscience, shouts in pains: His megaphone.” Testing builds trust.
  4. Cross before crown: Universal truth. Jesus endured the cross. No one's exempt. We see the "crown" but not the "cross." The gospel lifts the lowly, humbles the proud.

Conclusion:

• The table: Jesus suffered for us. He's our model and Savior. The table's for all.
• Prayer: Thank God for His suffering. His silence doesn't mean inaction. We trust Him in trials.

Call to Action: Don't suffer alone. Seek support.

Prayer: For those in trials, for the church's support, for understanding suffering's power.

Transcript

If you've got a Bible, open it to James.

James can be easy to miss. It's towards the very, very back of your Bible.

(Congregation Chattering) We're in a series as a church called We Are Witnesses.

And we're hoping to get through to you that your life testifies.

In the way that you spend your time and what you say and what you do and what you value, your life bears witness. Your life is at all times saying something.

And so we're hoping to bear witness as a community to the lordship of Jesus. And we want our words and our deeds to say out loud to the watching world that Jesus is Lord.

And last week we talked about how we testified to the watching world through our suffering. That when we suffer with hope and when we suffer well, it says something to the watching world.

Glenn did an amazing job preaching, but I wanted to double down on the subject of suffering. And I know you're like, man, it's Valentine's weekend. You know, like, why are we still doing this? Why are we talking about this? It's a three day weekend. Why are we talking about this? And I just want to remind you that passion, it means suffering.

It does.

We find something we love and we let it kill us. Like that is the life of passion.

And so I want to teach this morning from James chapter one. Before we do, I want to remind you, I lost the first page of my sermon. So please forgive me for, has anybody seen the first page of my sermon?

There's this quote from C.S. Lewis that I'm about to butcher.

But he says, and this is going to be close, I think.

He says that God,

he whispers to us through our pleasure

and he speaks to us through our conscience,

but he shouts at us through our pain.

And then he says,

it's God's megaphone to rouse a deaf world.

So God speaks to us, he does a work through our pain, but I would say the same thing is true for us.

That when Christians succeed, it whispers to the world.

And when we win, it may speak to the world,

but how we lose shouts to the world.

The world is watching when we suffer. And when we suffer with hope,

it's a megaphone to rouse a deaf world. They have something I don't. They know something I don't. They're doing something I don't do.

So this is really important for us to double click on.

If you would, I'm gonna read from the book of James, but I was just taken with the fact that, isn't it amazing that we have a book from Jesus's half brother that dates in the 40s, just a decade after Christ's crucifixion. I just thought, this is incredible.

We've got a book from Jesus's half brother. And the book starts with James saying, I'm a slave to Jesus Christ.

And I just thought, this is really amazing.

What would it take for you to worship your brother as God?

What would it take? Think about it. What would you, right now, seriously,

what would your brother have to do for you to worship him as God?

Now think about this. What would your step brother, your half brother, have to do for you to worship him as God?

I mean, I think the answer is pretty simple. If you can predict and pull off your own resurrection, you get your own room.

Let's stand together as we read this text as a way of just honoring. How amazing is it? We've got a book from Jesus's half brother.

Chapter one, verse one through 12, James,

a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ to the tribes and the dispersion.

Greetings.

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

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God who gives generously to all without reproach and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.

For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. He's a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass, he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass. Its flower fails and its beauty perishes, so also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

The word of the Lord, you can be seated.

Well, the worship team didn't waste any time and James doesn't waste any time, does he?

He's very bold, he's very direct. How many of you have a bold little brother?

Like a mouthy little brother.

Who felt like he could say anything because he stood in the shadow of his older brother?

James, the little brother of Jesus, is very direct. He's very bold. He jumps right in here. There's no typical thanksgiving at the beginning of this letter. There's not high. Hope you guys are doing well. Hope this letter finds you doing well. There's no small talk. There's no how's it going. There's only are you facing trials?

I mean, it's literally how it starts out of the gate. He just jumps in so direct. It reminds me of like a commercial where it's like, do you have dandruff?

You know, and you're like, whoa, I do.

He jumps in, he says, count it all joy. When you face trials of various kinds, for you know that this testing has a purpose.

You know what this is about.

And I'm sure that you've probably heard something like this. Maybe you love this passage. I don't know who would love this passage, but I've heard people say, this is my life verse. And I would say, get another life verse.

But people love this verse. They've heard this verse. This is a crazy thing to say.

Count it all joy when you face various trials. Rejoice when you're going through tough times. This is an irrational thing to say.

And I find myself reading this and going, okay James, like what's the rationale?

What's the rationale for rejoicing when you're going through various trials?

And James doesn't say, I've got a secret.

Or he doesn't say an angel visited me. I've got something that you need to know. He actually says, because you know.

I found myself reading this and going, I'm not sure that I do, James.

He's like, count it all joy, because you know how this works.

And I thought, wow, that's so bizarre.

I don't think I know.

And the truth is, is that when we're suffering, when there's pressure, when we're going through pain, there's a lot of things that we forget.

And we do know these things, but it's one thing to know them, and then it's a whole other thing to do them in the face of trials. So I wanna remind you of things that actually you know. Even if you're here and you're like, well, I don't know God, I don't worship Him, I don't serve Him. You know these things.

And James would say, this is no secret actually. You know this.

You know that this is how this works. You just need to be reminded of it. You might not like it.

You might not want it. You might choose to ignore it. But this is the way this works. And so here's four reminders that you may need if you're going through suffering.

The first thing that James would wanna remind us of and say, you know this.

Even if you don't know Jesus, you know this. The first is that life is brutal.

And I know that everyone's dressed up today, but there's no point in pretending.

Life is really tough. And the Bible is a really gritty book.

It's not a fantasy.

Now, there is a happily ever after at the end of our book, but before then, life is brutal. He says, count it all joy, brothers,

when you face trials of various kinds. Not if you face trials of various kinds, like when you suffer. It's not an if, is it? It's a when.

And then he actually says, I love this, because this word various trials, it means multi-colored.

He's like, count it all joy when you taste the rainbow.

Every color of trial and suffering,

get pumped.

James is drawing our attention to something we know, but don't like.

And that is that God is at work, not just in the good times, but he's at work in the bad times.

He's not just at work when things are working. He's at work when things are not working in our lives. And that's what he's wanting us to pay attention to.

I love how he says, like he reminds us in the first verse, we're God's scattered people,

not just his sheltered people.

We're his kids who he disciplines, not just our trust fund kids. We're his kids who he disciplines. We're his scattered people. We're still his special people, and he's still a refuge for us. But we're scattered people, not sheltered people. Jesus would say, you will face trouble. You will face trial. Peter and Glenn mentioned this last week. He says, beloved, the apostle Peter says, beloved, don't be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you. Don't be surprised as though something strange were happening to you. I don't know how many times I've read this verse, but when things go south, I'm like, what is going on?

What's happening?

Why is this happening to me?

Because we have a formula,

and we laugh at Joel Olstein for his formulas, but we've got a formula that we're working to, which is I do good and I get good.

I'm obedient, I follow Jesus, and I avoid suffering when I do.

And when that formula gets messed with, it's always surprising to us. And it is really important, I wanna double click on what Glenn said last week. It's really important that we have a solid theology of suffering,

because we need a game plan before we go into it.

Because as Tyson said, right,

everyone's got a plan until they get punched in the nose, and you can't see.

And so you have to have a plan.

Speaking of boxing, I think one of the reasons we need a plan is because it's rarely one punch that knocks you out.

In fact, that is what the jab is, right?

Just a setup for the next punch.

And so circumstances are coming at us, and we're being punched, but it's rarely the jab that would knock a person out. It's the jab that sets up the left hook. And so circumstances come our way, we get punched,

but it's that punch that sets up the left hook that is the real dangerous one. So your circumstances are coming at you over and over again. The knockout punch is that you begin to question the goodness of God.

It sets up another punch that you can't trust Him.

Then we start to question other people,

and we start to say as well that we can't trust other people. This then isolates us in our pain, and you're done.

Suffering can be something beautiful. It can bring about something beautiful.

It's those second and third punches that usually take us down. It's the combination that causes us to fall.

The second thing that's no secret

is that everything must be tested in order to be substantiated.

Let me try that again.

Everything must be tested in order to be substantiated. Even if you're here and you're like, I don't know Jesus, you know how this works.

Nothing can be trusted unless it is tested.

And testing usually comes through fire.

I hate this, but when a sermon goes well, I learn nothing.

And when I get up here and I bomb,

class is in session.

We learn through our failure.

Everything has to be tested.

Why would your beliefs and convictions be any different?

In order to trust anything, it's gotta go through testing. Here's a couple things about tests that you need to remember.

Tests reveal.

And sometimes they reveal some less than flattering results.

How many of you students have ever been in the middle of a test and you're like on question three and you're like, I'm failing this thing. I don't even know, I'm not even gonna bubble this junk. Like, there's no point, this is over. Like, I've got an F

And when tests come, they reveal things. They reveal that we don't know what we think we may know.

And this can be really troubling for all of us.

The second thing that you need to know, and please hear this, because this is maybe the worst part about pain and suffering, and that is that the teacher is quiet when giving a test.

And this is brutal.

Because the person who's been trying to help you the whole time, you're now raising your hand and she's going, nuh-uh.

And I think this is really hard. Many of you have experienced this when you're going through a trial and it feels like God's silent, it's brutal.

Or even your friends, you feel like you can't even speak to them about the situation. Maybe you try twice, people misunderstand you, and you're like, I'm done talking to people about this.

And you're quiet.

Know that it's for a purpose. That same teacher who's been walking beside you still cares about you.

The third thing you need to know, and this is really encouraging, the last two maybe weren't, but the third thing's encouraging,

we don't test what we don't value.

You don't test the metal that you're just gonna throw on the scrap pile.

You test what you value.

And the promise here in this passage is that the test is working for us and not against us. That even if it's revealing weaknesses, it's working for us.

I was thinking about Peter who said that thing about fiery trials.

Peter was also sifted by Satan.

And I was thinking about the thing, they're walking along, Peter's walking with Jesus,

and Jesus is like, hey Pete. He's like, yeah Jesus. He's like, hey, I just wanna know, I just wanna tell you something. You know, and Pete's like, what's that Lord? And then Jesus is like, I handed you over to Satan.

And then Peter's like, well, I mean, thanks, I don't know. Thanks for telling me anyway. And then Jesus says to Peter, don't worry. I was like, well, being handed over to Satan is probably something I would worry about.

No, don't worry, I prayed for you.

And then Jesus says to Peter,

I prayed for you that your faith wouldn't fail.

Not that Peter wouldn't fail,

but that Peter's faith wouldn't fail.

And if you know Peter, you know,

Pete failed.

But it was his faith that was brought forth. It was his faith that was refined.

He's praying, not that we wouldn't fail. That's not a great prayer, that's not gonna happen.

But our faith, faith is gonna make it through and be strengthened by it.

Okay.

Okay.

So we're not rejoicing in the trial.

The passage doesn't say, hey, so rejoice in cancer.

No, we rejoice because of the promise that the pain is producing something in our lives and that it has a purpose and a destination and no discipline is pleasant, but it's working a purpose in our lives. And that's the promise that we have. That's what we rejoice in. This is working for us and not against us.

Number three,

where are we at? Okay, number three,

that you know this, but when you're in trials, you need to pray for wisdom so that you don't do something dumb.

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God who gives generously to all without reproach and it will be given him, but let him ask in faith with no doubting for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that's driven and tossed by the wind.

That person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord.

When you're in trials, start praying for wisdom.

I know most of us are like, get me out of this. Get me out from under this. But he says, pray for wisdom and God will give you wisdom in the midst of your trials. When we're in pain, we're convinced that it's the worst thing in the world, but it's not.

The worst thing in the world is where you go when you're in pain.

What you do and how you choose to escape the pain is the worst thing in the world.

Do you understand what I'm talking about?

The addictions that set in because we want to escape,

the ways that we harden our hearts

because we don't want to feel anymore.

What you do with your pain is actually the worst thing

in the world.

This word steadfastness is interesting because it means to remain under,

to remain under.

So what he's saying here is remain steadfast, don't weasel out of this.

Don't try to escape.

I used to think that putting mirrors in a gym was so that the guy that was yoked could like catch a glimpse of himself.

You know that guy, right? He's just kind of like,

you know?

(Audience Laughing) He wants to see himself. And I used to think like, why are there mirrors in gyms? This is awful.

And I think it's because the rest of us choose to cheat.

And I think it's so that you can see your own form

because you think you're doing it. And then you look in the mirror and you're like, that's how it looks?

It feels like a real pushup. And then you look in the mirror and you're like, my butt is way up in the air. You think you're touching your chest to the floor. You're not, but it feels that way.

And the mirrors come and go, no, no, no, remain under the pressure.

Don't choose to cheat in all of this.

Oh, I fell on the first page.

(Audience Laughing)

Okay, so C.S. Lewis, he famously said, (Audience Laughing) "God whispers to us in our pleasures,

"speaks to us in our conscience, but shouts in our pains. "It is His megaphone to rouse the deaf world."

I've been tested and now I can be trusted.

(Audience Laughing)

All right, last point. Worship team, would you guys come?

The fourth thing that you know,

but you might not like it or want it, is that there's a cross before the crown.

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast, who remains under this pressure.

For when he stood the test, he'll receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

There's a cross before the crown.

And it's this way for everyone. No one escapes this. Jesus himself did not shortcut this.

He endured the cross.

He endured the pain set before him.

It is now crowned and we sing all hail King Jesus.

You don't need to have a Bible to know this. Before anybody is crowned with a, you know, a Dallas Cowboys helmet, there's a cross, right?

Or that's not a good example.

(Audience Laughing) You're like, no, maybe not. Maybe they just came straight out of high school and started playing for the Cowboys.

In order to be crowned with a, I'm really loving the Bills these days. In order to be crowned with a Buffalo Bills helmet, there's a cross.

In order to be crowned with an Oscar or a Grammy because it's that season, you know there's a cross to bear, right?

You think that there was some shortcut, but then you start to understand all the pain that's in those people's lives.

Recently I was looking at Kelsey Grammer, this isn't the point of this sermon.

You look at Kelsey Grammer and you're like, well that'd have been cool to be on Cheers

and that'd have been cool to do these things, unspeakable pain in his life. We just assume when we see people on the red carpet that they waltzed right onto it. And that's just not the truth.

There's a cross for everyone.

And we have no idea what people have walked through. That's why we don't compare ourselves to others.

The Gospel does a couple things in this passage. To the lowly it lifts them up and to the proud it brings them low.

And the Gospel's done that to each of us at different times. There's been times where I've been walking around, strutting my stuff and the Gospel comes to bring us low.

And there's been other times where I've been really low and the Gospel comes to raise us up.

There's a cross before the crown.

Would you stand with me?

We're gonna open the table up.

Because we have a great high priest.

(Congregation Chattering)

Blood and tears,

how can it be?

There's a God who weeps and there's a God who bleeds.

He's not just telling us what to do. He's showed us what to do. And he's put his spirit inside of us to strengthen us. And so when we come to the table, we're remembering that Christ suffered and endured for quitters like us.

For people who do pushups with their butt in the air.

Those people.

But we wanna be like him. So he's our model for how to suffer well, but when we don't suffer well, he's our savior who gives us another go.

And so if you're like, man, I'm squealing, it's ugly. I'm not doing real well. This table's for you.

And if you're like, no, I feel like I'm in step with the Lord as I suffer, this table's also for you. There'll be a team up here to pray for you and we'll exalt Jesus and stand with you if you're in a time of suffering. So would the prayer team or leaders in this house make their way forward? Please don't go it alone.

You'll get knocked out.

Thank you, Jesus, for this table and for your suffering and all that it's made possible in our lives.

This looked like a royal defeat.

This looked to the watching world like pointless pain.

Why did a good guy go down?

This made no sense. This suffering that we're about to celebrate makes, made no sense.

And yet you've brought about our redemption.

You were silent as Jesus hung on the cross, yet you were still working, still speaking, still moving.

And so we come to the table and place our trust in you as we walk through various trials.

Amen.

*Transcripts are generated using AI. Please notify us if you find any errors.