April 21, 2025 • 24 mins
On the next Treasured Truth, we’ll begin to look at how there is purpose in our problems and pain. You may be going through a tremendous struggle right now, and you may be discouraged and not know what to do. But Pastor Ford will encourage us to not waste our sorrows. Instead, we should embrace them, realizing that God is up to something and is working in our lives for His glory. To learn more from Pastor Ford about how to see the purpose in your problems and pain, join us for the next Treasured Truth.
Treasured Truth is a listener supported program on Moody Radio. To join our team of supporters, click here.
To learn more about Pastor James Ford, Jr., click here.
To learn more about Treasured Truth, click here.
Donate to Moody Radio: http://moodyradio.org/donateto/treasuredtruth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:00):
Somebody came in and they're tore up from the floor up.
They don't know what to do. I'm going through all
of this. God sent you here so I can tell
you today. Don't you dare waste your sorrows. God is
up to something.
S2 (00:21):
Welcome to Treasure Truth with pastor and author James Ford,
junior senior pastor of the Christ Bible Church in Chicago.
I'm Steve Hillard. Glad you're with us. Is today we're
beginning a message called Seeing Purpose in Your Problems and Pain.
And that is so true. Very often in the midst
of our pain and our problems, we can't see the
purpose that God has for us. But as Pastor Ford
(00:43):
has pointed out a moment ago, if you're in a
season like that right now, don't waste that now. I
know you hear those words. Don't waste that. And you think, yeah, okay,
I'd like to not, but I can hardly see my
way out of what I'm going through right now. How
do I not waste that? Well, that's what we're going
to be talking about in this series, how we can,
(01:06):
in the midst of the pain and in the midst
of the problems, how we can grow, how we can
learn to lean into the strength that God provides for us,
how we can receive his peace, how we can actually
mature through that pain. You know, one of the themes
of the book of James actually is maturity. And so
that's what we're going to be looking at as we
begin the message today. If you can open your Bible
(01:29):
to James chapter one, as we begin to look at
the first 12 verses and begin the message seeing purpose
in your problems and pain. Here is Pastor Ford.
S1 (01:40):
When we were in the Iraq war, uh, the story
is told. It's supposed to be a true story, uh, about, uh,
one of the attacks upon the the city that they
were going to make. Uh, they were out by the desert. And, uh,
the desert is right before you get to the city.
And they wanted to attack, but it was raining. A
(02:04):
group of Christian soldiers got together and said, okay, what
we'll do is we will pray that God will stop
the rain so that we can go in and get
this deal done. And so they prayed, but nothing happened.
It rained the next day. And it's unusual for rain
(02:25):
in that region. And it rained the next day. And
so those group of Christian soldiers got together and they
prayed that the Lord would stop the rain. But it
didn't happen. Third day they got together and they prayed
that the rain would stop, but it didn't happen. Can
anybody relate to what they went through? Have you ever
(02:49):
called on God only to feel like he let it
go to voicemail? Uh, you ever felt like God got
caller ID and he knew it was you? So he
just didn't pick up. Oh, yeah. You all. Y'all are holy.
He always answers all your prayers. Yes. Okay. But anyway.
And so they got together and and they prayed, but
(03:11):
nothing happened. Fourth day, as they were preparing, the rain
had stopped. The sun was shining. They were preparing for
the attack. Uh, as they looked over that desert, there
were thousands of shiny objects exposed all over the desert.
They were landmines that if God would have answered those
(03:34):
Christian soldiers prayers, many of them would have never come home.
Much of the equipment that they had would have been destroyed. Uh,
that they realized that God doesn't always give you what
you want, but he'll always give you what you need. Okay.
Don't shout me down. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Hey, can I
(03:56):
ask you a question? Say, ask us a question. Aren't
you glad that there are some prayers that God didn't answer?
I mean, when you look back and you think about
him or her back, then God said no. And you
look at them right now and you're glad that God
said no back then? Okay, you ain't going to pray
(04:19):
with me. I know why some of y'all some of
y'all ain't responding because you ain't listening to God and
you married them. I mean, you know, you're crying out, oh, God,
I gotta have her because she's my dream. And God says, no,
you can't have her because I know she's your nightmare. Oh, Lord, oh, Lord,
(04:44):
send me my boo. I want him for my boo.
And God says, no, he ain't your boo. He's your
boo hoo. And I know how many of y'all are
waiting on your Boaz. Come on. Yeah, he's waiting on
your Boaz. And God said, God said, I ain't giving
you him because he is not your Boaz. He's just
a bozo. And so there are times when we are
(05:10):
glad that God answers the prayer. No, see, these soldiers
found out what I trust that we will find out today.
And that is this there is purpose in your problem
and in your pain. I know you don't believe it,
but I hope by the time we leave here, I
can convince you through the writings of James, that there
(05:30):
is purpose in your problems and in your pain. Somebody
came in and there tore up from the floor up.
They don't know what to do. I'm going through all
of this. God sent you here so I can tell
you today. Don't. Don't you dare waste your sorrows. God
is up to something. Amen. And so they found out
(05:54):
there's purpose in our problems. There's significance in our suffering.
There's treasure in our trials. Joseph found it out. You remember?
We talk about him all the time. He was in
the pit. He was forsaken by his family in Potiphar's.
He was falsely accused by a foe in the prison.
He was forgotten by a friend. Look at what Joseph
(06:16):
went through. Abused, accused and abandoned. Wow. Yeah. Accused. Abused
and abandoned. And you know what? Joseph did what many
of us can testify to. Joseph succeeded on his back, right? Yeah.
(06:37):
When you look at what he did, he is a
mature believer. How do you know he's a mature believer?
Because the scripture tell us that. But guess what? Uh,
he's a mature believer. Look at what it says in
Genesis 41 when he named his two children. How many
children did he have? Oh. That's good. You've been reading
your Bible. Now tell me their names. Manasseh and Ephraim.
(07:02):
Who said that? Who said that? Raise your hand. Okay, alright, alright.
See the smart people sit up front, huh? Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Manasseh.
What does it mean? Forgetting Ephraim twice. Blessed. Get this. Hey, Joseph.
You went through the pit. The Potiphar's the prison. Come on,
(07:25):
tell us. What about your experience? Come on, take out your.
Take out your violin and have a pity party. Invite
your three friends. Me, myself and I. Because you went
through it, man. You know, abused by your family, man. Oh, yeah.
Accused by a foe. Oh, yeah. Man a forgotten by
a friend. Come on man, you can play. You deserve
to play the violin and have a pity party all
(07:49):
by yourself. And he says, no, I'm not. Have a
pity party, because you need to understand that that was
in my past. So I forget the things that are behind.
I press toward the mark of the upward call of
God in Christ Jesus. Uh, yeah, I was in the pit,
but guess what? I forgot that because he twice blessed me.
I was in Potiphar's, but I forgot that. Why? Because
(08:10):
he twice blessed me. I was in the prison, but
I forgot that. Why? Because he twice blessed me, Manasseh
and Ephraim. So every time he calls him. Come here, Manasseh.
Come here. Ephraim. He's reminding himself that he's a mature
believer who understands that God has a purpose, and that
my pain is not as great as what God's purpose is.
(08:32):
It should always be subservient to what God wants to do. Amen. Lights.
And so here we look at him. He's a mature believer.
Now there are immature believers because, see, immature believers go
(08:53):
through their problems. Mature believers grow through their problems. Yeah.
Ask your neighbor, are you going through or are you
going through? Come on, ask him. Go and help me
preach this. Look at him, because you ain't going to
say much else to me. Look at him and say, neighbor,
is your Christianity a lifestyle or is it just a hobby? Yeah. Yeah.
(09:18):
Because some people aren't being the church. They're just playing church.
Some people aren't being the church. They just come to church.
And so here we need to know that a lot
of people are perpetrating they are generic and not genuine.
Don't look around because we don't want you accusing anybody.
They learn the lingo, but they don't live the life.
(09:38):
They're shouting in the aisles on Sunday and they're living
in the gutter on Monday. See, too many churches are
playpens for babies rather than workshops for adults. In other words,
they're growing old in the faith, but they're not growing
up in the faith. And so a mature believer learns
(10:02):
the language, lives the life. How do you know that?
James says it. Let me tell you the context before
I give you the content, because this whole book can
be summarized in this way. Uh, what's his theme? Maturity.
Let me identify for you a mature Christian. What does
a mature Christian look like? Because we don't know. Here's
what James says. Chapter one. You know, a a mature
(10:23):
Christian by how that person thinks. Chapter two you know,
a mature Christian by what that person does or how
they act. Chapter three you know, a mature Christian by
what they say. Chapter four you know, a mature Christian
by how they feel. Chapter five just look at their checkbook,
(10:46):
how they give. Just look at how they treat other believers,
how they give. So he says, here's a picture right here.
I'm going to give you the full picture. And remember,
there's no conflict between Paul and James. It's just a
contrast because Paul is looking from the divine perspective, and
he says that salvation is by faith alone in Jesus
(11:08):
Christ alone. And so Paul is looking down and saying,
from the divine perspective, it is by faith and faith alone.
But James is saying, listen, remember what my son preached. Uh,
your faith works. If your work works, he's not looking
at justification like Paul. He's looking at sanctification. That if
you say, uh, that you've been a Christian for 20
(11:30):
years and your life ain't changed, you still clubbing, you
still making it rain, dropping it like it's hot, backing
it up. You better check your salvation. Check yourself before
you wreck yourself. If you're still down in a court
of goose every night, you better check yourself before you
wreck yourself.
S2 (11:47):
That is such an important truth to understand that if
we truly are saved, our lives will change. And it
doesn't happen only because of an act of will. Now
there is a will that's involved in that, but it's
because we desire to have this close relationship with Christ.
It's part of spiritual maturity. What we're looking at in
(12:07):
today's broadcast, seeing purpose in your problems and pain. If
you ever miss a portion of this series or this broadcast,
you can always come to our website and listen to
each and every program online. Just stop by Treasure Truth
Radio org. There you can stream the program, you can
download MP3's, or you can order copies of this broadcast
on CD. Again, just stop by treasure truth radio org.
(12:31):
Back to the message. Here's Pastor Ford.
S1 (12:34):
So his question then on the floor. How is a
mature Christian strengthen in their problem and in their pain? Here,
let's talk about it. I've got five of them. I
only got time for two today. Here's the first one.
I want you to notice verse one, that you must
submit to the regal prerogative of God in your suffering.
(12:56):
That's verse one. Let let's look at it. James, a
servant of God in the Lord Jesus Christ, to the
12 tribes scattered abroad. This is more than just a greeting.
It's so packed full of powerful principles to help you
and I. That's the principle. What James is saying is this. Listen,
everything you're going through now, you need to submit it
(13:19):
to the sovereignty of God. He has regal prerogative as
the king. He can do with us what he will
because he purchased us from the slave market of sin.
We are not our own. We've been bought with a price.
Therefore glorify God in your body, which is his. Anyway.
You and I don't own a thing. We are stewards
(13:42):
of everything that we have. The earth is the Lord's,
the fullness thereof, the world, and they that dwell therein.
He bought us on Calvary. He owns us lock, stock
and barrel, and therefore we exist. Oh, I know you're
not going to believe this, especially if you've been watching TV. V.
We exist for his glory. He doesn't exist for our glory.
(14:10):
And so James wants us to know it. Now watch
what he does. He says two things here in this
text about this regal prerogative. He says God has the
regal prerogative over our person, and God has regal prerogative
over our problems. Watch where he says it, because here's
what he does. James, the servant of God and the
Lord Jesus Christ. He's talking about his person. And what
(14:32):
does he do? I'm going to drop him. I'm not
going to push him. First thing he does is give
us his identification. James. Then he gives us his dedication.
The servant. Then he gives us his affirmation, Lord Jesus Christ.
So then James is saying, listen, uh, who was this James,
half brother of Jesus Christ? And he wasn't even a
(14:52):
believer when Jesus was ministering. He didn't get saved until
after the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And then, being not
even knowing Christ as Savior, then became the head of
the Jerusalem Church. In other words, he became the mega
pastor over the Jerusalem Church, which is about 5000 members.
(15:15):
About the time of the Jerusalem Council, acts 15. So
he's got the first mega church, 5000 members and their
disciples there who walk with him, see how he superseded them.
As a matter of fact, he was also nicknamed Camel Knees.
Ask me why? Because he prayed so much that the
skin on his knees literally turned black and was like
(15:39):
hide rawhide because he prayed so much. And that made
me think, if somebody would label your knees by your
acts of prayer, could they call you camel knees? Or
would they say, never on your knees? Now. Now here,
(16:00):
here it is. His identification, who he is. Here's what
gets me. Here's what gets me. What a lesson. You
know what it tells me? Say what? Don't ever write
anybody off. Don't ever write. And we do it all
the time. Don't. We ain't gonna never going to be nothing.
Your daddy wasn't nothing here. You ain't going to be nothing.
(16:21):
How do you know? Because maybe you take nothing to identify. Nothing.
Don't ever write anybody off. Oh, let me give you
some examples. Uh, this person was told. Why don't you
stop wasting people's time? He went on his first audition
for a movie. They said, why don't you stop wasting
people's time and go out and be a dishwasher or something?
(16:44):
That's what they told Sidney Poitier. And of course, you know,
he's the second African American to win an Oscar, and
he's the first African American man to win an Oscar.
Don't ever, don't ever write anybody off. Uh, this person
was told you lack creativity. You don't have any good ideas.
(17:07):
So he was fired by a newspaper editor. Uh, his
name is Walt Disney. You don't have any good ideas?
No creativity. Don't ever write anybody off. He was cut
from the high school basketball team in the first cut.
Don't even bother to come back. You're never going to
(17:28):
make the team. That's what they told Michael Jordan, the
greatest basketball player of all time. His first comedy set.
He botched it. He was booed and they booed him
off the stage. He cried. Now Jerry Seinfeld is worth
(17:49):
over $600 million. Mm. They said you're too stupid to
learn anything. And he was fired from his first two
jobs for not being productive enough. His name is Thomas
Alva Edison. The reason why you can see me in here.
(18:13):
This morning. Amen. This man was an engineer, and so
he went to Toyota and he said, listen, I'm an engineer.
I want to work for you so bad. Help you
create concept cars and all of that. I'll be a
benefit and a blessing to to the Toyota motor company.
And they turn down. Uh saturo. They turned him down.
(18:36):
And so Jiro Soichiro said, well, what am I going
to do? And for years he was without a job
with an engineer degree. Finally somebody said, Saturo, listen. You
are creative and an engineer. Make your own stuff. So
he began to make motor cars in his home. Oh,
what's his last name? His name is Saturo Honda. What's
(19:01):
my point? Don't ever write anybody off. Yeah, because you
don't know what God can do when he gets Ahold
to somebody. Look at me, look at me. Folk wrote
me off. People would be out witnessing and wouldn't give
me a track because I was pushing drugs. But look
at me now. I'm preaching Christ. I went from pushing
(19:22):
drugs to preaching Christ. I went from LSD. Try to
get a PhD. I mean, you know, God is doing
the thing and somebody will say, look at him, poor
little welfare boy. Family of ten. You know, mama went
third grade education. Well, I earned all my degrees except
the one I was given. Yeah. Don't ever write anybody off.
(19:48):
She was fired from her job, and she was told
you are unfit for television. So the first job she
had as a TV announcer, she was fired. Now she
owns her own. And she is the richest African American
in America. Worth over $3 billion. What's her name? Everybody.
(20:12):
Same time Oprah. Now, I don't agree with her philosophy,
but I sure wouldn't mind having some of her money. I.
Will say I would too. And so what's going on here? Listen,
he's saying listen, let me tell you about my identification.
(20:34):
My name is James. But then look at his dedication.
There are seven words in the New Testament translated servant
or minister. And this is the one. Doulos. Doulos. Guess
where it fits. Come on, holler out a number from
1 to 7. Holler out a number from 1 to 7. Seven.
It's the worst term. It's the most abject term that
(20:57):
one could use for slavery. And that's what he uses.
Now you say wait wait wait wait wait. See? He's saying, look,
am I suffering? I submit to the regal sovereignty of God.
He could have said, God, my brother. He could have
said James, if I'd have wrote it. You think he
(21:17):
would have said James, the servant of Jesus Christ? James,
half brother of the Lord Jesus Christ. You know what
I'm saying? Ate at the same table with him. You
know what I'm saying? In the same crib. You know
what I'm saying? I am somebody. But he doesn't say that.
(21:44):
He puts none of the relationship. He says, let me
tell you, I am a slave to Jesus Christ. That's
why he can do anything he wants. Because I'm a
slave to Jesus Christ.
S2 (21:59):
You know, submitting to God in our suffering may seem
like a challenge, but when we learn to trust him,
then we find that there is a reason and a
purpose for everything we go through. It's really an encouraging
message today from Pastor Ford. It's called seeing purpose in
your problems and pain. Well, with so many competing truth
claims out there, why do you trust the Bible? Well,
(22:21):
chances are you've encountered a question like this from friends
or maybe coworkers who are skeptical about Christianity. In the
book Why Believe the Bible? Doctor John MacArthur provides some
satisfying answers to these questions and shows how to get
the most from God's Word by trusting it as a
source of truth and freedom. So contact us today with
(22:42):
the gift of any amount, and we'll send you this
book called Why Believe the Bible? Our phone number is
888 644 7660 or go online to Treasure Truth Radio.com.
If you prefer to write, you can send a check
in the mail. Our address is treasure. Treasured Truth. 820
North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. Why? Trust the
(23:06):
Bible is a book that every Christian should read and
keep on their shelf, not just for your own benefit,
but also as a trusted resource to give to a
friend or a loved one who has questions about God
or the Bible. So give a donation and support this
ministry and request your copy of Why Trust the Bible?
Our phone number is 888644 7660 or go online to
(23:28):
Treasure Truth Radio.com. And thanks for helping to keep this
teaching ministry on the air. I'm Steve Hiller. Our producer
is Amy Rios. Join us again tomorrow as we continue
the study on seeing purpose in your problems and pain
here on Treasure Truth with Pastor Ford. A production of
Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.
Somebody came in and they're tore up from the floor up.
They don't know what to do. I'm going through all
of this. God sent you here so I can tell
you today. Don't you dare waste your sorrows. God is
up to something.
S2 (00:21):
Welcome to Treasure Truth with pastor and author James Ford,
junior senior pastor of the Christ Bible Church in Chicago.
I'm Steve Hillard. Glad you're with us. Is today we're
beginning a message called Seeing Purpose in Your Problems and Pain.
And that is so true. Very often in the midst
of our pain and our problems, we can't see the
purpose that God has for us. But as Pastor Ford
(00:43):
has pointed out a moment ago, if you're in a
season like that right now, don't waste that now. I
know you hear those words. Don't waste that. And you think, yeah, okay,
I'd like to not, but I can hardly see my
way out of what I'm going through right now. How
do I not waste that? Well, that's what we're going
to be talking about in this series, how we can,
(01:06):
in the midst of the pain and in the midst
of the problems, how we can grow, how we can
learn to lean into the strength that God provides for us,
how we can receive his peace, how we can actually
mature through that pain. You know, one of the themes
of the book of James actually is maturity. And so
that's what we're going to be looking at as we
begin the message today. If you can open your Bible
(01:29):
to James chapter one, as we begin to look at
the first 12 verses and begin the message seeing purpose
in your problems and pain. Here is Pastor Ford.
S1 (01:40):
When we were in the Iraq war, uh, the story
is told. It's supposed to be a true story, uh, about, uh,
one of the attacks upon the the city that they
were going to make. Uh, they were out by the desert. And, uh,
the desert is right before you get to the city.
And they wanted to attack, but it was raining. A
(02:04):
group of Christian soldiers got together and said, okay, what
we'll do is we will pray that God will stop
the rain so that we can go in and get
this deal done. And so they prayed, but nothing happened.
It rained the next day. And it's unusual for rain
(02:25):
in that region. And it rained the next day. And
so those group of Christian soldiers got together and they
prayed that the Lord would stop the rain. But it
didn't happen. Third day they got together and they prayed
that the rain would stop, but it didn't happen. Can
anybody relate to what they went through? Have you ever
(02:49):
called on God only to feel like he let it
go to voicemail? Uh, you ever felt like God got
caller ID and he knew it was you? So he
just didn't pick up. Oh, yeah. You all. Y'all are holy.
He always answers all your prayers. Yes. Okay. But anyway.
And so they got together and and they prayed, but
(03:11):
nothing happened. Fourth day, as they were preparing, the rain
had stopped. The sun was shining. They were preparing for
the attack. Uh, as they looked over that desert, there
were thousands of shiny objects exposed all over the desert.
They were landmines that if God would have answered those
(03:34):
Christian soldiers prayers, many of them would have never come home.
Much of the equipment that they had would have been destroyed. Uh,
that they realized that God doesn't always give you what
you want, but he'll always give you what you need. Okay.
Don't shout me down. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Hey, can I
(03:56):
ask you a question? Say, ask us a question. Aren't
you glad that there are some prayers that God didn't answer?
I mean, when you look back and you think about
him or her back, then God said no. And you
look at them right now and you're glad that God
said no back then? Okay, you ain't going to pray
(04:19):
with me. I know why some of y'all some of
y'all ain't responding because you ain't listening to God and
you married them. I mean, you know, you're crying out, oh, God,
I gotta have her because she's my dream. And God says, no,
you can't have her because I know she's your nightmare. Oh, Lord, oh, Lord,
(04:44):
send me my boo. I want him for my boo.
And God says, no, he ain't your boo. He's your
boo hoo. And I know how many of y'all are
waiting on your Boaz. Come on. Yeah, he's waiting on
your Boaz. And God said, God said, I ain't giving
you him because he is not your Boaz. He's just
a bozo. And so there are times when we are
(05:10):
glad that God answers the prayer. No, see, these soldiers
found out what I trust that we will find out today.
And that is this there is purpose in your problem
and in your pain. I know you don't believe it,
but I hope by the time we leave here, I
can convince you through the writings of James, that there
(05:30):
is purpose in your problems and in your pain. Somebody
came in and there tore up from the floor up.
They don't know what to do. I'm going through all
of this. God sent you here so I can tell
you today. Don't. Don't you dare waste your sorrows. God
is up to something. Amen. And so they found out
(05:54):
there's purpose in our problems. There's significance in our suffering.
There's treasure in our trials. Joseph found it out. You remember?
We talk about him all the time. He was in
the pit. He was forsaken by his family in Potiphar's.
He was falsely accused by a foe in the prison.
He was forgotten by a friend. Look at what Joseph
(06:16):
went through. Abused, accused and abandoned. Wow. Yeah. Accused. Abused
and abandoned. And you know what? Joseph did what many
of us can testify to. Joseph succeeded on his back, right? Yeah.
(06:37):
When you look at what he did, he is a
mature believer. How do you know he's a mature believer?
Because the scripture tell us that. But guess what? Uh,
he's a mature believer. Look at what it says in
Genesis 41 when he named his two children. How many
children did he have? Oh. That's good. You've been reading
your Bible. Now tell me their names. Manasseh and Ephraim.
(07:02):
Who said that? Who said that? Raise your hand. Okay, alright, alright.
See the smart people sit up front, huh? Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Manasseh.
What does it mean? Forgetting Ephraim twice. Blessed. Get this. Hey, Joseph.
You went through the pit. The Potiphar's the prison. Come on,
(07:25):
tell us. What about your experience? Come on, take out your.
Take out your violin and have a pity party. Invite
your three friends. Me, myself and I. Because you went
through it, man. You know, abused by your family, man. Oh, yeah.
Accused by a foe. Oh, yeah. Man a forgotten by
a friend. Come on man, you can play. You deserve
to play the violin and have a pity party all
(07:49):
by yourself. And he says, no, I'm not. Have a
pity party, because you need to understand that that was
in my past. So I forget the things that are behind.
I press toward the mark of the upward call of
God in Christ Jesus. Uh, yeah, I was in the pit,
but guess what? I forgot that because he twice blessed me.
I was in Potiphar's, but I forgot that. Why? Because
(08:10):
he twice blessed me. I was in the prison, but
I forgot that. Why? Because he twice blessed me, Manasseh
and Ephraim. So every time he calls him. Come here, Manasseh.
Come here. Ephraim. He's reminding himself that he's a mature
believer who understands that God has a purpose, and that
my pain is not as great as what God's purpose is.
(08:32):
It should always be subservient to what God wants to do. Amen. Lights.
And so here we look at him. He's a mature believer.
Now there are immature believers because, see, immature believers go
(08:53):
through their problems. Mature believers grow through their problems. Yeah.
Ask your neighbor, are you going through or are you
going through? Come on, ask him. Go and help me
preach this. Look at him, because you ain't going to
say much else to me. Look at him and say, neighbor,
is your Christianity a lifestyle or is it just a hobby? Yeah. Yeah.
(09:18):
Because some people aren't being the church. They're just playing church.
Some people aren't being the church. They just come to church.
And so here we need to know that a lot
of people are perpetrating they are generic and not genuine.
Don't look around because we don't want you accusing anybody.
They learn the lingo, but they don't live the life.
(09:38):
They're shouting in the aisles on Sunday and they're living
in the gutter on Monday. See, too many churches are
playpens for babies rather than workshops for adults. In other words,
they're growing old in the faith, but they're not growing
up in the faith. And so a mature believer learns
(10:02):
the language, lives the life. How do you know that?
James says it. Let me tell you the context before
I give you the content, because this whole book can
be summarized in this way. Uh, what's his theme? Maturity.
Let me identify for you a mature Christian. What does
a mature Christian look like? Because we don't know. Here's
what James says. Chapter one. You know, a a mature
(10:23):
Christian by how that person thinks. Chapter two you know,
a mature Christian by what that person does or how
they act. Chapter three you know, a mature Christian by
what they say. Chapter four you know, a mature Christian
by how they feel. Chapter five just look at their checkbook,
(10:46):
how they give. Just look at how they treat other believers,
how they give. So he says, here's a picture right here.
I'm going to give you the full picture. And remember,
there's no conflict between Paul and James. It's just a
contrast because Paul is looking from the divine perspective, and
he says that salvation is by faith alone in Jesus
(11:08):
Christ alone. And so Paul is looking down and saying,
from the divine perspective, it is by faith and faith alone.
But James is saying, listen, remember what my son preached. Uh,
your faith works. If your work works, he's not looking
at justification like Paul. He's looking at sanctification. That if
you say, uh, that you've been a Christian for 20
(11:30):
years and your life ain't changed, you still clubbing, you
still making it rain, dropping it like it's hot, backing
it up. You better check your salvation. Check yourself before
you wreck yourself. If you're still down in a court
of goose every night, you better check yourself before you
wreck yourself.
S2 (11:47):
That is such an important truth to understand that if
we truly are saved, our lives will change. And it
doesn't happen only because of an act of will. Now
there is a will that's involved in that, but it's
because we desire to have this close relationship with Christ.
It's part of spiritual maturity. What we're looking at in
(12:07):
today's broadcast, seeing purpose in your problems and pain. If
you ever miss a portion of this series or this broadcast,
you can always come to our website and listen to
each and every program online. Just stop by Treasure Truth
Radio org. There you can stream the program, you can
download MP3's, or you can order copies of this broadcast
on CD. Again, just stop by treasure truth radio org.
(12:31):
Back to the message. Here's Pastor Ford.
S1 (12:34):
So his question then on the floor. How is a
mature Christian strengthen in their problem and in their pain? Here,
let's talk about it. I've got five of them. I
only got time for two today. Here's the first one.
I want you to notice verse one, that you must
submit to the regal prerogative of God in your suffering.
(12:56):
That's verse one. Let let's look at it. James, a
servant of God in the Lord Jesus Christ, to the
12 tribes scattered abroad. This is more than just a greeting.
It's so packed full of powerful principles to help you
and I. That's the principle. What James is saying is this. Listen,
everything you're going through now, you need to submit it
(13:19):
to the sovereignty of God. He has regal prerogative as
the king. He can do with us what he will
because he purchased us from the slave market of sin.
We are not our own. We've been bought with a price.
Therefore glorify God in your body, which is his. Anyway.
You and I don't own a thing. We are stewards
(13:42):
of everything that we have. The earth is the Lord's,
the fullness thereof, the world, and they that dwell therein.
He bought us on Calvary. He owns us lock, stock
and barrel, and therefore we exist. Oh, I know you're
not going to believe this, especially if you've been watching TV. V.
We exist for his glory. He doesn't exist for our glory.
(14:10):
And so James wants us to know it. Now watch
what he does. He says two things here in this
text about this regal prerogative. He says God has the
regal prerogative over our person, and God has regal prerogative
over our problems. Watch where he says it, because here's
what he does. James, the servant of God and the
Lord Jesus Christ. He's talking about his person. And what
(14:32):
does he do? I'm going to drop him. I'm not
going to push him. First thing he does is give
us his identification. James. Then he gives us his dedication.
The servant. Then he gives us his affirmation, Lord Jesus Christ.
So then James is saying, listen, uh, who was this James,
half brother of Jesus Christ? And he wasn't even a
(14:52):
believer when Jesus was ministering. He didn't get saved until
after the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And then, being not
even knowing Christ as Savior, then became the head of
the Jerusalem Church. In other words, he became the mega
pastor over the Jerusalem Church, which is about 5000 members.
(15:15):
About the time of the Jerusalem Council, acts 15. So
he's got the first mega church, 5000 members and their
disciples there who walk with him, see how he superseded them.
As a matter of fact, he was also nicknamed Camel Knees.
Ask me why? Because he prayed so much that the
skin on his knees literally turned black and was like
(15:39):
hide rawhide because he prayed so much. And that made
me think, if somebody would label your knees by your
acts of prayer, could they call you camel knees? Or
would they say, never on your knees? Now. Now here,
(16:00):
here it is. His identification, who he is. Here's what
gets me. Here's what gets me. What a lesson. You
know what it tells me? Say what? Don't ever write
anybody off. Don't ever write. And we do it all
the time. Don't. We ain't gonna never going to be nothing.
Your daddy wasn't nothing here. You ain't going to be nothing.
(16:21):
How do you know? Because maybe you take nothing to identify. Nothing.
Don't ever write anybody off. Oh, let me give you
some examples. Uh, this person was told. Why don't you
stop wasting people's time? He went on his first audition
for a movie. They said, why don't you stop wasting
people's time and go out and be a dishwasher or something?
(16:44):
That's what they told Sidney Poitier. And of course, you know,
he's the second African American to win an Oscar, and
he's the first African American man to win an Oscar.
Don't ever, don't ever write anybody off. Uh, this person
was told you lack creativity. You don't have any good ideas.
(17:07):
So he was fired by a newspaper editor. Uh, his
name is Walt Disney. You don't have any good ideas?
No creativity. Don't ever write anybody off. He was cut
from the high school basketball team in the first cut.
Don't even bother to come back. You're never going to
(17:28):
make the team. That's what they told Michael Jordan, the
greatest basketball player of all time. His first comedy set.
He botched it. He was booed and they booed him
off the stage. He cried. Now Jerry Seinfeld is worth
(17:49):
over $600 million. Mm. They said you're too stupid to
learn anything. And he was fired from his first two
jobs for not being productive enough. His name is Thomas
Alva Edison. The reason why you can see me in here.
(18:13):
This morning. Amen. This man was an engineer, and so
he went to Toyota and he said, listen, I'm an engineer.
I want to work for you so bad. Help you
create concept cars and all of that. I'll be a
benefit and a blessing to to the Toyota motor company.
And they turn down. Uh saturo. They turned him down.
(18:36):
And so Jiro Soichiro said, well, what am I going
to do? And for years he was without a job
with an engineer degree. Finally somebody said, Saturo, listen. You
are creative and an engineer. Make your own stuff. So
he began to make motor cars in his home. Oh,
what's his last name? His name is Saturo Honda. What's
(19:01):
my point? Don't ever write anybody off. Yeah, because you
don't know what God can do when he gets Ahold
to somebody. Look at me, look at me. Folk wrote
me off. People would be out witnessing and wouldn't give
me a track because I was pushing drugs. But look
at me now. I'm preaching Christ. I went from pushing
(19:22):
drugs to preaching Christ. I went from LSD. Try to
get a PhD. I mean, you know, God is doing
the thing and somebody will say, look at him, poor
little welfare boy. Family of ten. You know, mama went
third grade education. Well, I earned all my degrees except
the one I was given. Yeah. Don't ever write anybody off.
(19:48):
She was fired from her job, and she was told
you are unfit for television. So the first job she
had as a TV announcer, she was fired. Now she
owns her own. And she is the richest African American
in America. Worth over $3 billion. What's her name? Everybody.
(20:12):
Same time Oprah. Now, I don't agree with her philosophy,
but I sure wouldn't mind having some of her money. I.
Will say I would too. And so what's going on here? Listen,
he's saying listen, let me tell you about my identification.
(20:34):
My name is James. But then look at his dedication.
There are seven words in the New Testament translated servant
or minister. And this is the one. Doulos. Doulos. Guess
where it fits. Come on, holler out a number from
1 to 7. Holler out a number from 1 to 7. Seven.
It's the worst term. It's the most abject term that
(20:57):
one could use for slavery. And that's what he uses.
Now you say wait wait wait wait wait. See? He's saying, look,
am I suffering? I submit to the regal sovereignty of God.
He could have said, God, my brother. He could have
said James, if I'd have wrote it. You think he
(21:17):
would have said James, the servant of Jesus Christ? James,
half brother of the Lord Jesus Christ. You know what
I'm saying? Ate at the same table with him. You
know what I'm saying? In the same crib. You know
what I'm saying? I am somebody. But he doesn't say that.
(21:44):
He puts none of the relationship. He says, let me
tell you, I am a slave to Jesus Christ. That's
why he can do anything he wants. Because I'm a
slave to Jesus Christ.
S2 (21:59):
You know, submitting to God in our suffering may seem
like a challenge, but when we learn to trust him,
then we find that there is a reason and a
purpose for everything we go through. It's really an encouraging
message today from Pastor Ford. It's called seeing purpose in
your problems and pain. Well, with so many competing truth
claims out there, why do you trust the Bible? Well,
(22:21):
chances are you've encountered a question like this from friends
or maybe coworkers who are skeptical about Christianity. In the
book Why Believe the Bible? Doctor John MacArthur provides some
satisfying answers to these questions and shows how to get
the most from God's Word by trusting it as a
source of truth and freedom. So contact us today with
(22:42):
the gift of any amount, and we'll send you this
book called Why Believe the Bible? Our phone number is
888 644 7660 or go online to Treasure Truth Radio.com.
If you prefer to write, you can send a check
in the mail. Our address is treasure. Treasured Truth. 820
North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 606 ten. Why? Trust the
(23:06):
Bible is a book that every Christian should read and
keep on their shelf, not just for your own benefit,
but also as a trusted resource to give to a
friend or a loved one who has questions about God
or the Bible. So give a donation and support this
ministry and request your copy of Why Trust the Bible?
Our phone number is 888644 7660 or go online to
(23:28):
Treasure Truth Radio.com. And thanks for helping to keep this
teaching ministry on the air. I'm Steve Hiller. Our producer
is Amy Rios. Join us again tomorrow as we continue
the study on seeing purpose in your problems and pain
here on Treasure Truth with Pastor Ford. A production of
Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!