FAMILY: Trials, Temptation & God's Prized Possession!

Today we’re going to take a journey through James 1. We’ll be focusing on 4 verses.  All 4 are Life Verses for me.

A Life Verse is a favorite verse that you try to live your life by. If you don’t have any life verses, I’d encourage you to start.  Maybe even today.

So, we will start by looking at verses 2-4 on finding Joy in Our Trials. Verses 13-15 are about Temptation, verse 18 is about Our Value to God & verse 22 is tells us what we should do with what we learn from God’s word.

Something Funny:

Before we get started, I’d like to share about a funny trial that a man who had gone through and had gotten injured while on the job. So, he had filled out an Insurance Claim Form BUT - the insurance company contacted him and asked for more information. This was his response. . .

I am writing in response to your request for additional information for Section 3 of the Accident Claim Form. I put ‘poor planning’ as the cause of my accident.

You said in your letter that I should explain more fully and I trust the following details will be sufficient. I am an amateur radio operator and on the day of the accident, I was working alone on the top section of my new 80 foot tower.

When I had completed my work, I discovered that I had, over the course of several trips up the tower, brought up about 300 pounds of tools and spare hardware. Rather than carry the now un-needed tools and material down by hand, I decided to lower the items down in a barrel by using a pulley, which was attached to a pole at the top of the tower.

Securing the rope at ground level, I went to the top of the tower and loaded the tools and material into the barrel. Then I went back to the ground and untied the rope, holding it tightly to ensure a slow descent of the 300 pounds of tools.

You will note in Section 11 of the Accident Claim Form that I weigh only 165 pounds. Due to my surprise of being jerked off the ground so suddenly, I lost my presence of mind and forgot to let go of the rope.

Needless to say, I proceeded at a rather rapid rate of speed up the side of the tower. In the vicinity of the 40 foot level, I met the barrel coming down.

This explains my fractured skull and broken collarbone. Slowed only slightly, I continued my rapid ascent, not stopping until the fingers of my right hand were two knuckles deep into the pulley at the top of the tower.

Fortunately, by this time, I had regained my presence of mind and was able to hold onto the rope in spite of my pain.

At approximately the same time, however, the barrel of tools hit the ground and the bottom fell out of the barrel. Devoid of the weight of the tools, the barrel now weighed approximately 20 pounds. I refer you again to my weight in Section 11.

As you might imagine, I began a rapid descent down the side of the tower. In the vicinity of the 40 foot level, I met the barrel again coming up. This accounts for the two fractured ankles, and the lacerations on my legs and lower body.

The encounter with the barrel slowed me enough to lessen my injuries when I fell to the ground onto the pile of tools and, fortunately, only three vertebrae were cracked.

I am sorry to report, however, that as I lay there on top of the tools in pain, unable to stand - and watching the empty barrel 80 feet above me, - I again lost my presence of mind and I let go of the rope . . .

Anyway, I’m not sure there was much you in this man’s funny trial but in all seriousness, we are going to talk about how God says we can find joy in our trials. Before we do, I’d like to share a  true story with you.

True Story:

I was a high school teacher and I had a young man named Brian as one of my students. It was his sophomore year. He was 6’-4” and thin as a rail.  He was so skinny that if turned sideways and stuck out his tongue, he looked like a zipper.

One day, Brian and a friend came up with what they thought was a great idea.  They decided to break into someones garage after school and steal some tools and equipment. Not a great idea but guess what?  They actually got away with it.

So, they had what they thought was another brilliant idea. Guess what that was?  To go back the next day and get more.  This ain’t going to be good.

Guess what happened?  The owner thought that whoever burglarized him might return, so he decided to stay home from work and wait for them. . . BUT. . .  he had a friend. . . a GUN!

Well, Brian and his friend did return the very next day. The owner heard some rustling in the garage and came out to see what it was.  Brian and his friend were shocked that someone was home so they took off running.

The owner yelled “Stop!”  They didn’t, so guess what he did?  Yep! You guessed it.  He shot!

Brian got hit in the side and fell to the ground.  He laid there in a pool of blood until the police and ambulance arrived.

Brian’s seat in my classroom sat empty for the next two weeks while he was recovering from his gunshot wound.

When Brian finally returned to class, I asked him “Did you learn anything while you were lying on the ground possibly bleeding to death?”  He said “Yah, I’ll never do that again.”

Brian did learn a lot from his experience because he decided to use his trial to turn his life around. He asked for forgiveness from the owner and committed not to steal from others again.  He was also determined not to let his mistake define him as a loser or disqualify him from doing anything important. 

Now, Brian tried out for the varsity basketball team his junior year. He had never played basketball before.  He was very rough and had little or no skills.  But he had a few things going for him though. He was determined and a hard worker.

I was the assistant varsity basketball coach at that time and my job was to work specifically with Brian.  Since he was so tall, his position was to play ‘low post’ near the basket.

While the other players went through drills & plays as a team, Brian and I would do rebounding and low post drills over and over and over every day, - just the 2 of us.

I would have Brian turn his back to the backboard and I would throw the basketball off the backboard.   He would have to quickly turn around, catch the ball above his head and put it in the basket as fast as he could.  We’d do it over and over and over again.  It was very monotonous and I’m sure quite boring for him.

I had to teach him some basic low post moves.  I would have him do one post move over and over and over again until he got fairly good at it before we’d go on to the next one.

Some people would have gotten frustrated with all the repetition and want to quit but in the end, Brian’s choices to work hard and persevere, paid off.

By the time Brian was a senior, he had gained some weight and grown another 4 inches to 6’-8”.  Do you know how tall that is?  That’s as tall as the top of a doorway.

During Brian’s senior year, he set the single season rebound record at his high school. He wasn’t even a starter at the beginning of the year. The last time I looked, Brian’s record still stands today.

Brian, the one who was shot for stealing and who had never played basketball before, helped lead his team to a great season.

Brian also became a successful business man with 2 businesses.

So, what does the bible say about going through trials like the one that Brain experienced?  James 1:2-4 says “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

Now this verse doesn’t mean “Wow!” This is GREAT!  I got shot for stealing, Had to deal with the criminal justice system as a teen. Was nearly killed & hospitalized. And had to deal with distraught parents. According to this verse, it says I should consider my trials pure joy. Whoopie!  That was a lot of fun!!

Listen, that isn’t what the verse means.  That’s ridiculous!

This is what God is saying through the verse.  “I want to show you something through this mess that you’re going through. It will test your faith.  But if you hang in there, over time it will strengthen you, mature you and complete you, if you learn and grow from it.  And that’s - where the joy comes from.”   God wants to use the trials in our lives to help shape us to become better people.  

Listen, Romans 3:23 says “We ALL Sin and fall short of God’s glory”.  Everyone makes mistakes. We all sin.  We all get knocked down like Brian did.  But, that’s not the question.  The questions is, “Do you stay down?”

Listen, the champions in life like Brian have had some severe blows or trials.  Have any of you been knocked down?  Right, we’ve all been knocked off our feet and to the ground at one time.   

But there is something within the champions in life that say, “I’m not going to lie here on the mat anymore.  This is not my lot in life. I need to get back up. I need to enter the arena of action again.”

And it’s those people, who are successful. People look at successful people and think “Oh, they’ve had a good life.  They’ve had it easy.”

I can tell you that successful people have had as many challenges and struggles as unsuccessful people.  They have had adversity just like unsuccessful people. They have had as many trials and temptations as unsuccessful people.

The difference is, when they got knocked down, they got back up.  They didn’t stay down on the ground licking their wounds.

The question isn’t “Have you been knocked down?”  We all have. We all will. It continues in life.

The question is “Do you have the courage to get back up, and to learn and grow from it?”  People that succeed in life have a desire to get back up again and again and again when knocked down.

What About You:

So what about you?  Are you going through a trial or you’ve made a mistake and now you’re choosing to beat yourself up over it day after day.  Or are you going to choose to forgive yourself and learn to grow from it?  It is a choice?  This does not have to be the end of the story.

So when going through a trial, are you going to choose to get bitter or are you going to choose to get better?  Are you going to choose to beat yourself up and ask Jesus “Why me?” Or are you going to choose to forgive yourself and ask Jesus “What can I learn from this to help make me a better person?”

Look at Thomas Edison, the inventor of the light bulb.  He said, “I haven’t failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that didn’t work.

Look at Abraham Lincoln.  He was born into poverty, failed at business twice, lost 8 elections, and had a nervous breakdown.  Yet, he become one of the greatest presidents of all time.

Look at the Detroit Lions.  I used to use the Lions as a joke but now look what a great example of success they are after so many losing seasons.

So what I’m getting at is, trials are a lot like manure. “Say what, Randy? Trials are like manure?”

Yah! Manure stinks right?  But when you put manure on plants, it helps make them grow, right?

The same is true with our trials.  When going through a trial it stinks right?  But, according to the Bible, it says that God can use our trials to help grow us, strengthen us, and mature us and that’s where the JOY can be found.

As a teacher, I’d teach my students lessons and then give them a test.  In life, God gives us a test that teaches us a Life Lesson. 

Listen, sometimes when people have gone through a trial, temptation can follow.  So, let’s talk about temptations.

James 1: 13-15  says “each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.  Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.’

Wolf Trap:

I’d like share how an Eskimo traps a wolf as an illustration of the power of the temptation. It’s a great illustration of the self-destructive nature of our lust to sin. It’s quite simple.

First, you take a large hunting knife & hone the blade until it’s razor sharp.

Then, you coat the blade with animal blood by dipping it in the blood and letting it to freeze, layer by layer.

Next, you look where wolves have been spotted by finding their tracks and droppings.

After that, you pack the knife handle in snow with the blood-coated blade up.

Lastly, you leave it.  That’s all there is to it. Like I said, it’s pretty simple.

Now, the wolf will smell the blood on the knife and follow his instincts to the source of the appetizing scent.  Upon finding the knife, the wolf will be tempted to lick the bloody blade.

As he does, the frozen blood will arouse his animal hunger and will start licking faster and faster until the ice is licked away and the sharp blade is exposed.

Because of his ravenous hunger, the wolf doesn’t even notice when the naked blade is exposed and begins to shred his own tongue and the blood he is licking becomes his own.  He continues to lap the blood from his own tongue until the loss of blood weakens him - and he slumps - in the snow - to die.  It’s that simple.

This is a great picture of James 1:13-15 and how satan, not God, lures us by tempting us with our own lusts and tries to trap us and destroy us.  We think that doing wrong such as stealing like Brian did, cursing, lying, cheating, using drugs, or a host of other things might seem appealing and maybe even ok.  But, without even realizing it, our own lust can lead to evil actions or sin, which can lead to danger and even death.

So it starts with being tempted.  Listen, there’s nothing wrong with temptation.  We are all tempted to do wrong. Even Jesus was tempted in the wilderness for 40 days. But, it’s when we act on our temptation and that’s when it becomes sin.  When we know it’s wrong but we do it anyway.

And sin can lead to a death of sorts.  Not necessarily a physical death, like Brian almost faced.  But it could be a relational death, like between a family member or in a marriage, an emotional death, financial death, or even spiritual death.

It is a terrible thing that even as, we too can be “consumed by our own lusts to sin.”  We let satan tempt us, then we let our own desires trap us.  Listen, don’t be fooled by the temptation to sin.  

The wrong choice may seem attractive, even delicious, but it’s actually like licking the bloody knife.  It’s gross and nasty and it can ruin or possibly destroy us in the end. It’s only by God’s grace that we can be kept from the wolf’s fate.

If you are being tempted to sin, the Bible makes it pretty easy for us.  It says to FLEE or, get you buns out of there.  Don’t do it.

If you do act on temptation and sin, repent. Ask for forgiveness from God or anyone you have hurt and then turn away from it.

Many years after Brian had graduated, I was at a restaurant when this mountain of a man walked over to my table, pulled up a chair and plopped down right next to me. He glared at me like he wanted to kill me. Men, this man was huge! Bigger than anyone in this room.

In a deep stern voice, he said “Mr. Badge?”

As manly a voice I could muster, I said “yes”.

He said “I just want to say ‘Thank You’ for all that you did for me”.

I said “Brian?”  And a huge smile came over his face and we shook hands and talked for a while. Let me tell you, what a blessing.

Sometimes, when we’ve been through a terrible trial like Brian’s or we’ve acted on a temptation and sinned, we let it define us as a loser or disqualify us from doing anything important.

Listen to this verse in James 1:18 from the New Living Translation.  It says “We, out of all creation, became His Prized Possession.”  That means out of everything that God has ever created in the world or in the universe, WE - are His Prized Possession.

God's Prized Possession:

It doesn’t matter whatever trial or temptation you have been through, or what someone ever has said to you or about you, YOU ARE His Prized possession. Say to yourself “You are God’s Prized Possession.”

Have any of you done something that you’ve regretted and felt like a total loser. Have you ever put yourself down for your mistakes?  Have you ever been called stupid, useless, dumb, fat, gay, an idiot, a loser, you’ll never amount to anything, you’re worthless or anything negative like that?

When you went through that or were told that, how did it make you feel?  Did it make you feel like you were worthless or had no value? I think all of us have felt worthless by what we had done or what someone has negatively said about us, right?  I have.

Listen men, the Bible calls satan the father of lies and he comes to steal, kill and destroy.  Satan wants to use your trials or negative labels to steal your self-worth, kill your confidence, and destroy you as a man.  Don’t let him.

Who would like to have a $100 bill?  Of course, all of you would.

But what if I told the $100 bill “You’re worthless . You’re good for nothing. You don’t have any value. You’ll never amount to anything?  You’re a loser.”   Anyone still want it.  Really?

OK.  Well what if I slapped it it, punched it and spit on it and said “Take that you good for nothing.”  Anyone still want it?  Really?

What if I crumpled it up and threw it on the ground?  What if I kick it and stomped on it?  “Take that you loser. You won’t amount to anything.” Anyone still want it?

Why?  It’s been put down, spit on, kicked, stepped on, and told that it has no value.  Why would you still want it? 

Right!  Because no matter what I said to it or did to it, it still has the same value?  It’s still worth $100.  Its value hasn’t changed.

Here’s my point!  The same is true with each one of you.  No matter what trial or temptation you’ve been through.  You still have great value to God.  Even if you got shot while stealing from someone. You still have value just like the $100 bill.

Listen, in Genesis God says that you are created in HIs  image.”

Psalm 139:14 says that you are “fearfully and wonderfully made”.

Jeremiah 29:11 says that “God has plan and a purpose for your life, a hope and future.”

Like I said earlier, James 1:18 it says that “YOU, out of all of creation, became His Prized Possession.”  And that’s why God sent His one and only son Jesus to the earth, to die an excruciating death on a cross for you & me because He loves us so much.

AND Romans 8 says that there is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING that can separate you from the love of Christ!

Did you hear that?  ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.

Listen, it doesn’t matter what trial, test or temptation you’ve been through, do not to let it define you as a loser or disqualify you from doing anything important for God.

YOU STILL HAVE VALUE!

YOU ARE GOD’S PRIZED POSSESSION!

YOU ARE GREATLY LOVED!

And there’s absolutely nothing that you’ve ever done, or anyone could ever say or do to you that could lessen your value.  Did you hear me, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!  Say to yourself ‘Absolutely Nothing!’

Listen, God wants to turn your SCARS into STARS.  Your Disappointments into Reappointments. It’s not about what happened to you- BUT- it’s about what happens in you.

I’d like to close with James 1:22.  It says “Don’t be just hears of the word, do what it says”.  Please take God’s Inspiration that you’ve learned and apply it to your life. Then, let God transform you.

Thank you and God bless.