This is Connect with Skip Heitzig. Thanks for joining us for today's program. At Connect with Skip, we're all about helping you connect with God's Word in a deeper way. That's why we make messages like Todays available to you and others across the globe. And right now, when you sign up for Skip's weekly devotional emails, you'll receive a free download of Chapter 1 from Skip's book, The Biography of God.
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Now let's dive into today's teaching from Pastor Skip Heitzig. See, Christians are not masochists. were pragmatists. And what I mean by that is, we are rejoicing in the benefits that that suffering is going to bring. You know, sort of like going to a dentist.
When my mom used to say, You have a dental appointment. I didn't go, awesome. Love that drill and want a needle. Right here. I hated it.
Today, I'll go to the dentist. I think a little bit differently about it. I see the benefits of going, like my teeth won't fall out, that's good.
So I'll go through the suffering because I know what the benefit is going to be. In the book of Acts, when the Sanhedrin... Arrested Jesus' followers, apostles. And uh Beat them. And then commanded them not to speak anymore in the name of Jesus.
Listen to their reaction.
So they departed from the presence of the council. Rejoicing That they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. They counted it joy because God counted them worthy. Later on, Paul and Silas were put in jail, also beaten and chained. But at midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God.
And the prisoners were listening to them. Free concert. And God liked the concert so much he brought the house down. Later on, Paul gets put in jail again. This guy goes from prison to prison, right?
Every time he goes to a town, it's like, where's the jail? I got to find out where I'm spending the night.
So he's. In Rome, in jail for two years, he writes to the Philippian church the letter to the Philippians. In which Though he is a prisoner, he uses the word joy. Rejoicing. Rejoice sixteen Times.
Joy, joy, joy. I rejoice. I'm happy. I'm joyful. You can only do that if you're nuts.
Or you're doing this. You're counting it, evaluating it. forward looking and making the decision. Good. Unbelievers can't do this, they're unable to do this, and here's why.
For an unbeliever, this life is all there is. And if this life, which is all there is, There's no afterlife for them. If this life Is marred by suffering and pain and hardship. They have lost it all. For the believer They can do this.
Because no matter how dark it gets. It's for a good reason. There's a benefit. There's light at the end of the tunnel. And then, and then, when life is over with, a reward.
In heaven.
So When we do this, when we suffer like this, we are showing the superiority of a life lived in God.
So, spiritual maturity then can be measured by what it takes to steal your joy. What does it take to steal your joy? For some of you, it's just drive out on a sooner road after service. And gosh, you know, and I always wonder, you know, why is it? That people are in the left lane, the passing lane, going slow.
And it's like if you come to Albuquerque, that's the first thing you got to learn. Go slow in the Fastland, anyway. You can See how easy it is to steal my joy. Trials are normal. Trials can be joyful.
Third reality about trials. Trials could be Transformational. The very thing you hate the most, the suffering, the trial, the pain, could be the pivotal. where you are transformed. Let's look what it says, verse three, knowing.
Knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience, but let patience. Patients have It's perfect work. that you may be perfect. and complete. lacking nothing.
You see, Trials prove something and trials. Produce something. First of all, they prove something. What do they prove? They prove your faith.
They they prove it's real or they prove it's fake.
Well, how do I know if my faith is okay? Put it through a trial. Trials become the faith omiter. To show you if you have faith at all in God. A lot of people say they have faith in God.
They don't. And you know by putting them through a trial or if the faith is weak or strong.
So that's what it says here. Knowing verse 3, knowing the... Testing. Of your faith. That's the phrase I want to zero.
The testing of your fate. A jeweler was always able to tell if the gold was fake or real by putting a flame under it. and heating it up. And somebody might have sold it to him, but he finds out if it's real or not by the... impurities that rise to the surface.
So, this is what Peter writes. It sounds very much like James. This is 1 Peter 1, verse 6. In this you greatly rejoice. though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials.
That the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ. You see, A faith that can't be tested is a faith that can't be trusted. How do you know if your faith is any good? Put fire under it. If it's counterfeit, it will show that it's fake.
It will reveal. You see. I am not naive to think that every single person in this room right now is a genuine follower of Christ. Most of y'all are. I would assume And I think that's fairly accurate, but Probably not everyone here is a follower and the proof.
is always in the pudding, folks. And that is the trial that you face when the pressure is on. When the pressure is on, there's people who say, Yeah, I used to come to church, I believe in God, I read my Bible, I don't do that anymore. I went through so many hardships.
Okay. You just proved the whole point. Jesus spoke of the seed. He said some of it fell on stony places where it didn't have much earth. Immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth.
But when the sun was up and they were scorched, And because they had no root, They withered away. I watch people go through crisis all the time. I've been doing this a long time. I've walked with different ones through different crises. Times of life.
And when the pressure is on, the trials are on, the fire is on, some get stronger and better. Crumble. Fade away. are consumed.
So trials prove something. Yeah. That's one benefit. Second, trials produce something. What do they produce?
Here it is, knowing that the testing of your faith. produces Ah, what does it produce? Patience, patience. A better translation would be perseverance, and there's even better translations than that. The Greek word patience, let's put it up on the screen here.
Can you read that on top?
So I just, you think I'm smart when I do this kind of stuff. I have to look this stuff up, but this is the Greek word hupamane. And let me tell you about that word. It's an important word. It comes from two words.
Hupa, hupo, which means under. Below And then Mane or Um Mene means to remain. When Jesus said, abide in me and I in you in John 15, he used the word mene. Stay, remain.
So, hupa mane is a word that means to. remain under or to bear up under.
So Instead of translating that word hupamane, patience. I think there's a better rendering, staying power. Staying power. Heroic endurance is another translation. Fortitude would be another one.
I like this one, toughness. Patience, hupamane, is having a holy toughness. A holy tenacity. When you are repeatedly tested and you prevail. you get tougher.
And you get better. And you get better able to handle what is coming. After this, so Romans chapter 5, verse 3, Paul writes this: And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing The tribulation produces Perseverance, hoopamene, same word. And perseverance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint.
So, we have a couple benefits, and that's why I say trials could be transformational. They prove something, but they produce something. And what they produce is staying power. Holy toughness. Holy toughness, tenacity.
But look at verse 4. But Let. Patience. Have its perfect work. Ooh.
Now that's different.
Okay, they're going to produce that. Only if If you do this, let patience have its perfect work that you may be perfect and complete, lacking. Nothing.
So you gotta stay under it. You gotta let the process go on until that holy toughness is developed.
So you gotta stay under it. Um So, okay, I'm gonna have you. Pastor. Reverend. Come on up here.
This is Pastor Nick. Right? Give Nick a hand. Hmm. Here's why you got to give Nick a hand.
I'm the trial. And he's the trialle.
Okay, ready?
So when you go through a Um trial You feel pressure. Pressure comes on you. And when the pressure comes on you. Does that feel good? Yeah, it's like a massage.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Okay, I'll do that all day.
So when the pressure comes on you, The first thing you want to do when you feel the pressure is what? I will say. Buckle, he said, buckle, or move out of the way, or go somewhere else. I don't want this. I don't like this.
This is painful. It hurts. It's just, there's a monkey on my back, a pastor on my back.
So, you want to bail, you want to go somewhere else, you want to leave town, you want to quit the marriage, you want to quit the job. If the nail doesn't remain under the pressure of the hammer, it will never hold up the wall. If the diamond doesn't remain under the pressure of the chisel, it will never become a fine jewel. If the gold doesn't remain in the fire, It will never be refined if the Christian doesn't remain under. The pressure, he'll never be what God wants him to be.
Good job. You passed the trial. You're listening to Connect with Skip Heitzik. Before we return to today's message, what does real spiritual maturity actually look like and how can you achieve it? In his new series, Adulting, A Study Through the Book of James, Pastor Skip gives straight talk from scripture on how to grow up in your faith through trials, temptations, and daily life.
This eye-opening 21 message series is our thanks for your generous gift of $50 or more to help reach more people with God's Word through Connect with Skip. Request your CD package or digital download of adulting when you give at connectwithskip.com slash offer or call 800-922-1888.
Now, let's get back to today's teaching from Pastor Skip. We want to cut the process short. Let Let Let patience have its perfect work. Remain there. Don't run.
Remain there. What separates the men from the boys is the ability to suffer well. Everybody suffers. Not everybody suffers well. What separates the men from the boys is the ability to suffer well.
Take pain graciously. By the way, parents, you don't do your kids any favors by trying to deliver them from every problem.
Well, if Johnny does that, there'll be a consequence. I can't let it happen. Let it happen or he will grow up weak and anemic. You want him to be tough? Let it happen.
Okay. Nature teaches us that. If you free a butterfly from its chrysalis, From it's individuals struggle to get free, you will destroy its life. It will never soar. Let that struggle.
A curve.
So trials could be transformational. They're normal. They can be joyful. They could be transformational. Fourth and final.
Final reality about trials. Trials Should be. Educational.
Okay, so maybe right about now you're going.
Okay. I'm in. I'm gonna stay put. I'm gonna remain under. I'm going to let God do what He wants to do.
I want to change, but I need some help here. I need some insight. I need some wisdom. God's got you covered. Verse 5.
If any of you lacks wisdom, Let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach. And it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. Burlette Not that man suppose that he will receive Anything from the Lord. He is a double minded man, literally two souled.
Unstable in all, his Ways. First of all, I believe that verse five is one of the most misused. Verses in the New Testament. You know um I didn't study last night, God, but I'm taking a test today.
So, God, just please, please, please give me wisdom. Download all the information to my little brain right now in Jesus' name, amen. It's not wisdom like that. It's in context. the wisdom you need.
In a trial. That's the context here. The context are trials. Tribulation, hardship. In that context, Ask for wisdom.
Usually, when we're going through a trial and we pray, we pray for deliverance. James says, pray for intelligence. Pray to find out what's up. God, what are you trying to do here?
Now, whenever we go through a trial, First question we ask is why? And that's a good question to ask, but don't ask why in the normal way you ask why. Not the ultimate why. Why is there suffering on earth? There are good answers to that question.
Now is not the time to be asking it in the midst of a trial. Not the Ultimatum why God, I don't know why you let this happen. You have till Friday to let me know why. Not the comparative why. Why do I have to go through it?
Why doesn't she have the same trial I have? None of that is helpful. What is helpful is the personal lie. Lord, why now? Why for me?
What is it you're trying to do? I would like the wisdom to know. What you're trying to teach me. That's the wisdom he's. All about.
One of my favorite stories. About this comes from a commentary written on the book of James by Warren Wersby. He was the pastor of Moody Bible Church in Chicago. He said, While he was a pastor, he had a secretary. Who Had a stroke.
And her husband went blind at the same time and was rushed to the hospital. And they thought he was going to die. He almost did die. Pastor Wearsby saw her at church. And so Uh his secretarian said.
Man, I'm praying for you. which is a good thing to say when you see somebody going through it. And she said. What are you praying for? And you say, why?
Praying for courage and peace and She said, that's good. I appreciate that. But pray for one more thing, Pastor. Pray that I will have the wisdom not to waste all of this. It's a good prayer, and here's why.
If you're going through a struggle, a hardship, and that's the hand of God, you believe, trying to teach you something. Learn what he's trying to teach you so you don't have to have a do-over. Learn to graduate from that lesson. Don't be in fifth grade for 10 years in a row. Right?
You see what I'm saying? It's like, okay, I need to learn this today so I don't go through this again.
So ask God for wisdom. If anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who gives liberally without reproach. I love that. In other words, if you're struggling and you pray to God and you want wisdom, God won't scold you. Oh, you again?
Don't you know I'm God? I'm like running the universe, and you're pestering me with your little trial. God won't do that. God invites you to ask Him for wisdom. But.
Let him ask in faith. In other words, Make sure you really want to know. Ask in faith. And what do I mean by really want to know? Total submission.
I'm totally submitted to you, God. Nothing is off limits. Whatever it is you're trying to show me, I am open to it all. You know, none of this.
Well, I kind of sort of want to know what God wants, but I am not going to stay with that man another day. I'm going to not put up with that at work any longer. Really? Really? That's not remaining under.
That's not asking God for wisdom of what he's trying to do in your life. Ask in faith, nothing wavering. If you suffer and you are not leaning on God's wisdom, you're going to be like a cork bobbing up and down in the ocean. Up and down, happy sad, happy sad. Unreliable.
Double-minded.
Now, let me close. Let me close with What I think is a good Example of somebody who encapsulates all of this this morning. As soon as I say his name, you're going to go, oh yeah, that's him, Joseph. Joseph in the Old Testament. Ever just make a little running list of what Joseph went through?
First of all, his father set him up for failure by giving him preferential treatment in front of his brothers. which caused them to hate him They hated him and sold him as a slave.
So they human trafficked him. To Egypt. where he worked as a slave. Then he was falsely accused and did prison time for a false accusation. Just Horrible thing after horrible thing, and he did not deserve any of it.
He did everything right and everything wrong. happened to him. Why? Why? If anybody had the reason to go, why me?
It'd be Joseph. But If you ask for the wisdom that is mentioned about here, Ah Well, now that makes more sense. The trials were allowed by God. To train Joseph to be a leader when the world faced its darkest famine. The only way you get trained to take the whole world through a time of dark Despair is if you've gone through personally dark despair.
That's the training grounds.
So think of it this way: if Joseph's brothers didn't hate him, they wouldn't have sold him. If they wouldn't have sold him, he wouldn't have gone down to Egypt. If he wouldn't have gone down to Egypt, he wouldn't have gone to work for Potiphar. If he didn't work for Potiphar, he wouldn't have been falsely accused by Potiphar's wife. If he wasn't falsely accused by Potiphar's wife, he never would have been thrown in jail.
If he hadn't been thrown in jail, he never would have the opportunity to interpret the dream of the butler and the baker. If he didn't interpret the dream of the butler and the baker, he wouldn't have the opportunity to stand before Pharaoh and interpret Pharaoh's dream. If he wouldn't have interpreted Pharaoh's dream, he wouldn't become the second most powerful dude on earth. Because he interpreted the dream so. Perfectly.
So trial, trial, trial, trial, hardship, hardship, hardship, hardship. Then Where's the wisdom of God?
Well, I'm certain that Joseph asked What is it you're trying to do? What are you trying to show me? And that shows up. In chapter fifty. of the book of Genesis, where Joseph finally says to his brothers, As for you, you meant this for evil, but God meant it for good to save many people alive, as it is this day.
That's the wisdom of God.
Now I get it.
Now I know why I went through it all. He was training me for this.
So, I want to close by asking you three questions. Question number one. Do you believe God's in control? Yeah. Really in control.
That means nothing is happening to you, you willy-nilly, haphazardly. I just, I don't know why that. No. There's a sovereign God orchestrating every single thing. thing that he allows to come into your life, even temptations.
God's in control. Second question. Do you believe God is good? Even though you can't see it right now. Do you believe God is good?
Third, Are you willing? To wait on him until you see that good worked out. To remain under. To stay put. To learn perseverance, patience, the ability to have holy.
Toughness. Because the trials are not slowing down. The older you get. They're just going to be different. And you're going to be able or not able to handle them.
Thanks for listening to Connect with Skip Heitzig. Before you go, don't forget to request this month's featured resource, Adulting, a study through the book of James, Pastor Skip's 21 Message Series that gives you straight talk from Scripture about how to grow in spiritual maturity and live out your faith in the real world. Adulting is our thanks for your generous gift of $50 or more to help share God's Word with more people. Call 800-922-8888 or visit connectwithgift.com slash offer. And while you're there, sign up for Skip's weekly devotional emails and get a free download of a chapter of Skip's The Biography of God.
Come back next time for more verse-by-verse teaching of God's Word here on Connect with Skip Heitzig. Make a connection at the foot. Connect with Gif Heitzig is a presentation of connection communications, connecting you to God's never-changing truth in ever-changing times.
