Unswerving constancy ∙∙
God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward, they will receive the crown of life God promised those who love him. – James 1:12
James 1:2-4
2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.
3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.
4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
Life is filled with challenges, and we frequently face obstacles along the way! A wise sage once said, “Cripple a man, and you have Sir Walter Scott. Lock him in prison, and you have John Bunyan. Bury him in the snows of Valley Forge, and you have George Washington. Raise him in poverty, and you have Abraham Lincoln. Strike him down with infantile paralysis, and he becomes Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Burn him so severely that doctors say he will never walk again, and you have Glen Cunningham, who set the world record in 1934 for the outdoor mile. Deafen him, and you will have Ludwig van Beethoven. Call him a slow learner, retarded, and write him off as uneducable, and you have Albert Einstein” (John C. Maxwell).
Is there an effective strategy to deal with life’s vicissitudes and struggles? A shortsighted solution is to try to change your circumstances; many attempt to avoid challenges as much as possible. Yet, trials have a knack for following us wherever we go. A better, more lasting approach is to allow the Father to change us rather than trying to change our circumstances. Our greatest enemy is not adversity itself; instead, it is how we respond to adversity. It’s not difficulties or adverse conditions that mess us up but our reactions to them.
The Scriptures provide a viable way forward: a distinct blend of patient endurance, relentless determination, and hard-charging perseverance.
James 1:12 Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial.
The Greek term translated as persevere, endure, or patience is hupomene. It means to strive, outlast, and resist by holding one’s ground.
The KJV translates hupomene as patience, but patience is far too acquiescent and compliant and a term to represent hupomene adequately. Hupomene isn’t about merely enduring the storm and hoping for brighter days. It doesn’t just passively ride out difficulties and wait for better times. Instead, hupomene responds assertively. Rather than simply tolerating difficult circumstances, hupomene is the ability to transform challenges into opportunities for greatness. Its essence is captured in the phrase, “We shall overcome.” “When Beethoven faced the threat of deafness, the most dreadful affliction for a musician, he declared, ‘I will take life by the throat.’ That is hupomone” (Barclay).
A two-word definition of hupomene is unswerving constancy.
But there’s more. “If Christians meet the testings of life in the steadfast constancy which Christ can give, life becomes infinitely more splendid than ever it was before. The struggle is the way to glory, and the very struggle itself is a glory” (Barclay).
REFLECT & PRAY
“Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other” (Walter Elliot).
Father, I am so incomplete. I desire to be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. Teach and encourage me to respond appropriately to the trials and difficulties You send my way.
INSIGHT
What is the purpose of going through trials?
Trials help develop our character.
James 1:2-4
2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.
3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.
4 So let it grow, for when your endurance has its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
When trials and challenges confront us, they serve as a test of our faith. Such tests can evoke two distinct responses. When we face them with the appropriate attitude and approach, they prove innocuous and result in what we desire most: endurance, which is hupomene. As hupomene thrives, it leads us to the ultimate goal the Father sets – to become perfect, complete, and lacking nothing. Hupomene makes us whole.
The Greek term teleios, translated as perfect, connotes maturity, completion, or wholeness. It does not mean being without flaws or errors, but it signifies maturity and completeness. It implies an ongoing process. In this sense, being perfect is not the opposite of being imperfect; instead, being perfect is the opposite of being incomplete.
The Greek word translated as complete is holokleros. When something is holokleros, every part is totally complete. It is whole, entire, and lacking nothing. The Greek term translated as lacking is leipo. Leipo means to be deficient, wanting, or incomplete.
No one becomes complete, whole, or mature overnight. It is a slow, incremental process. When the developmental process is finished, we are fully formed; we have everything we need. We lack nothing.
Imagine a caterpillar snugly encased within its chrysalis, undergoing a profound transformation into a beautiful, lithe butterfly. Only when the metamorphosis is finished, and all the parts are fully formed, does it emerge and fly away, leaving behind the confines of its former self.
“As the athlete ‘endures’ bodily stress in order to achieve a high level of physical endurance, so the Christian is to endure the trials of life in order to attain the spiritual endurance that will bring perfection” (Moo).
“What James is suggesting, then, is that the Christian must practice ‘steadfastness’ in order to achieve a settled, steadfast character” (Moo).
The Father uses trials and tribulations to discipline, that is, child-train every daughter and son of the King. Frequently, we find ourselves pushed to the limits of our abilities, brought to the end of ourselves. He shatters our self-reliance, dismantles our pride, and redirects our waywardness. When we respond appropriately to these challenges, we undergo an internal metamorphosis. We come to rely entirely on the guidance of the Lord Jesus Christ. Through the workings of the Holy Spirit within us, He exchanges our human weakness for His supernatural strength, creating strength from our weakness.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
9 “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.
10 . . . For when I am weak, then I am strong.
James offers each child of the King a glimpse into our ongoing transformation as He guides us toward becoming all that the Father envisions for us. Once this transformation reaches its culmination, we are approved. The term “approved” in Greek is dokimos. Historically, when precious metals and coins underwent rigorous testing and were found to be authentic, they were labeled as dokimos.
They had withstood the test, proving their authenticity. They had passed the test, were approved, and were considered genuine (EBCNT). The primary objective of this test wasn’t to highlight those who couldn’t make the cut butto celebrate those who did. They were marked as approved. The Father’s deepest desire for every child of the King is to see them attain the dokimos seal of approval.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 10-07-3
© Dr. H 2024
Dr H Reflections 