The Bible tells us to consider it pure joy when we face trials. Upon first reading, this guidance seems absurd, but when we think about it through the life and death of Jesus, makes complete sense. Greg Boyd walks us through what James meant when he penned these words, and he provides practical guidance for how we can follow them.
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A Joyful Reframe
• Greg Boyd
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James says we should consider it pure joy whenever we face trials of many kinds. Pure joy means that we think of our situation with nothing but joy. We go beyond putting up with the struggles that we face and embrace them with joy. We view the struggles through the lens of joy. This is a radical instruction, one that seems preposterous or dismissive. How are we to do what he says in the midst of a world that is filled with trials of many kinds?
Greg provides four things we can do to help us take this verse seriously.
First, pray with an open heart. If you are facing a painful ordeal, keep praying for a miracle. Prayer should be our default reaction when we face any kind of trial. At the same time, be open to the Lord telling you to accept your situation, at least for the time being. We see this illustrated in Paul as he wrote about a specific trial he faced in 2 Corinthians 12:6-10.
Paul says this affliction was brought on by Satan, not God, and he asked the Lord three times to free him from this affliction. The Lord responded with “my grace is all you need.” God did not take it away. He used this trial to chip away at Paul’s pride.
Secondly, seek help. Do not forge ahead in isolation. If you need professional help, seek it. Talk with friends about what you are facing. Reach out for prayer support. Find a group where you can share about the challenge. We are not designed to face trials by ourselves.
Third, trust in God’s big love. Jesus prayed, “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them” (John 17:13). Jesus desires that all share in “the full measure” of his own joy. This is nothing less than the eternal joy of the triune God. Because this joy is anchored in the eternal character of God, it is not dependent on the happiness of our circumstances. God is infinitely bigger than any trial that we face, and his love wraps around every problem that comes our way. We can have joy because our eyes are not set on the trial but on the one who defeated sin and death.
Finally, reframe your trials. James’ instruction means something like, “Regard your trials from a perspective in which joy has the final interpretive authority.” As we set our eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-3), we follow his path to joy in the midst of pain. He didn’t find joy in the terrible trial he had to endure. But he didn’t allow the cross to determine the ultimate meaning it had for him. We do not need to pretend that suffering is not suffering. It is what it is. However, it need not control our lives. We can find the joy of God that is deeper than any suffering.
Paul wrote, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). God is not causing the trials, but God is in all circumstances, working for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purposes. Then in the same chapter, he wrote, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). There is no trial that we can face in this life that will compare to the glorious riches that we will experience in the life to come.
Hide Extended SummaryTopics: Joy, Pain & Suffering, Problem of Evil
Sermon Series: Louder Than Words, Faith Unshakeable
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James 1:1-2
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes scattered among the nations: Greetings. 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.
