Biblical Faith - In Trials & Suffering

for the last couple of months, our study has been on faith. We have laid much of the foundation concerning the subject of faith. Someone said here a month ago, I could see where faith is an unending study, and you're right, I feel the same way. The question comes up, does God test our faith? The answer we found is yes, He does test our faith. He does it via means of trials and suffering. The next question is, well, why does God allow trials and suffering in our life? What's the purpose of God allowing trials and suffering in our life? So today, we're going to take a look at faith and testing.

Last week, we had an introduction concerning testing. There were two words. One was dakidmatzov, another was pyrodzov. And last week, we looked at the word pyrodzov, to test. when it's used in the negative sense, parvato, it means to tempt, to solicit one to sin, to test with a view towards failure.

Documento, which we're going to be looking at today, is to test with a view towards approval. That's the way God tests us. God never, never, ever tempts us, never solicits us to sin, never wants us to fail. but he tests us with a view towards approval. His desire, as we walk the walk, is to put our total dependence, moment by moment, on him in every circumstance in our lives, in the trials that come into our lives, in the sufferings that we go through, and the unplanned circumstances that arise in our lives. So the question comes up, what's the purpose of these trials? He has many purposes, but we're going to look at one purpose today, which I believe is the primary purpose as to why God tests us and allows trials and suffering to come into our life. We've seen, as we've looked at God's eternal purpose, His purpose is to declare His glory, to reveal His glory, to share His glory, and then in turn, to be glorified. Now, we're going to be concentrating on this aspect of God's eternal purpose, to share his glory.

That's what God wants to do with you and me, is to share his very glory. Before the world was ever created, back in eternity past, this was God's purpose. This was God's plan, to share his glory with you and me. Even though the first Adam, then, God did not change His plan.

It's just that this aspect of His purpose to share His glory is now being fulfilled through the last Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ. How does God share His glory with us in the middle of trial, in the middle of suffering, in the middle of these adverse circumstances that come into our lives?

And I think the best passage of Scripture that describes it is found in Romans chapter 5. It starts off in verse 1 with the word therefore. Therefore is a summary word. It summarizes chapters 1 through 4. Chapter 5 is going to summarize some truths that were laid down in chapters 1 through 4.

And Romans chapters 1 through 3 declares man unrighteous. At the end of chapter 3 through chapter 4 it declares believers absolutely righteous in Christ. So there is the declaration to those who have not put their trust and faith in the person and the work of Christ, they are declared unrighteous. Those who have, they are declared righteous.

And it goes on. It says, therefore, being justified by faith. Justified is a term which is actually a judicial act. It's one declaring something. And when it says, having been justified by faith, it's God declaring the believer absolutely righteous in Christ. That we have the very righteousness of Christ. It's through faith. It's through simple trust in faith in the person and the work of our Lord Jesus Christ. So, we have a right standing before God. How is that? It means it's by His grace and through our response of faith.

It's an iris tense, which says that it's an accomplished fact in your life. It's a positional truth. This is your position in Jesus Christ. And a positional truth is an eternal truth. Not only is it eternal, but it will never change. It's a truth that will never change about you and about me as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are justified. We are declared righteous from the moment we believe for all eternity. Therefore, having been justified by faith, what's the result of that? We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. The word peace there simply means harmony. It's the opposite of enmity. We're no longer enemies with God. As you go through Scripture, there's two aspects of peace.

There's this aspect of peace, the peace with God, and there's the peace of God. And this piece here, with God, is the face-to-face piece. It's the fact that we have been declared righteous, that we have this right standing before a holy and righteous God. And so we can stand face-to-face with God. So it's a positional truth. We have peace face-to-face with God. It's immutable. That truth is immutable about you and about me. It will never, never ever change. The peace of God, which this passage is not talking about, is the absence of conflict in our hearts.

It's the moment-by-moment peace, as we walk by faith and trust and rest in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, that He gives us His peace, and that peace, as the book of Philippians says, surpasses all human understanding. That's the peace of God. So those are the two aspects of peace. But here, this face-to-face peace is through the Lord Jesus Christ. As you go on in the text, there's something else that also comes through the Lord Jesus Christ.

In verse 2, "...by whom also we have access by faith." So, we have access into His grace. Access into His grace has the idea of one leading another that there is one that can lead another into a position because of the merit of the person who's leading. So the Lord Jesus Christ has led us into God's grace because of his merit. He's the only one that is worthy to lead us into God's grace.

Then it goes on to say, in which we stand. And it's another perfect tense. Most of these are perfect tenses. Perfect Tent, remember, is an action that has been completed in time past, but it has abiding results right up to the present. The completed action is when we responded to God's grace by faith in the person and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. At that point, we were led into God's grace, and we stand in God's grace. Perfect Tent, we are standing, abiding results in God's grace, for all eternity.

It's a positional truth. It will never, ever change. I need to mention one thing, because in Galatians chapter 5, verse 4, it says that we can fall from grace. Can we really fall from the position of grace? Answer, no. We're entrenched in God's grace.

It's our position. But in our walk, we may not walk according to our position. We may walk according to the flesh, and if we're walking according to the flesh, we're not walking according to the Spirit, and we're not walking in the sphere of God's grace. We're walking in the sphere of some law system, whatever that may be.

Now, Paul explains our position here in the first part of Romans chapter 5. says that we're justified. He says that we have peace, that we have been led, we have access into God's grace, and not only that, we stand. We're entrenched. In military terms, we're entrenched in God's grace.

What I want to do is to look at the incredible process of God sharing with us the glory of Christ during trials. So, the start of the process starts in verse 2. by whom we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. It's a present tense. It's talking about our walk. As we walk by faith, we are rejoicing in the hope of God. The word rejoice can be translated glory, that we're glorying in the hope of God. Question, what is this hope? Whose hope is it? Is it our hope? I think the text clearly defines it. It says it's the hope of God. It's not our hope.

When we look at Hebrews 11.1 and we look at what the essence of faith was, faith is the substance of things hoped for. And we saw that that word hope was an absolute certainty, an absolute confidence as to who God is, as to who Jesus Christ is. That's what this word means here. It's that we are rejoicing in who He is and the absolute certainty, the absolute confidence as to who He is. And it doesn't come out from us. The hope is His. The absolute certainty comes out from Him and not from us.

So, what I'd like to do is look at this in a picture to understand what Romans 5 says. That we're in God's grace. That's our position in God's grace. And if we walk in God's grace, we're walking by faith. And faith has an object. The object is always the Lord Jesus Christ. We're beholding Him. We're gazing upon Him through the Lord, and the Holy Spirit is revealing the person of Christ to us. We're rejoicing. We are glorying in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, let's take a look at this wall, verse 3. And not only so, not only are we rejoicing in the hope of the glory of God, but we glory in, or we rejoice, if the same word is used up above for rejoice, in tribulations. Now, here's my question.

When trials come in your life, is this your immediate response? to glory or to rejoice in a trial or suffering as it comes into your life, or some circumstance comes into your life which you never were expecting. Is that your immediate response to say, I just am rejoicing in this? Or is your immediate response something like mine? Feelings of discouragement, anxiety, worry, or disappointment? Or asking a question like, Why is this happening to me? Remember we talked about high-resolve last week, temptation?

All of those feelings, in terms of disappointment, discouragement, anxiety, worry, fear, when they come at us, as a trial comes to us, that's the solicitation to sin. The source of the sin nature is to solicit us to sin. But we saw that we don't have to sin, that we can by faith reckon ourselves indeed dead unto the sin nature with all of its desires, desires of disappointment and anger and fear and worry, and reckon ourselves alive into that. So in Romans chapter 5, in these first five verses, this describes a process where we are going to respond by faith to the trial. The trial comes along and we, by faith, by just rest and trust, And who and what Christ is, we rejoice because we know that he has purpose for the trial.

Often the question is, well, hold it out. Why should I rejoice? I mean, here comes this trial. It's going to be a big impact on my life. Why should I rejoice? Let me give you three reasons. Reason number one is because God allows it. You know that nothing comes into your life unless God allows it. He is sovereign. He allows that trial for a purpose. So it's there for a purpose. Reason number two is that we are appointed to trials. We are appointed to suffering. And 1 Thessalonians chapter three, verse three, it says we're appointed unto these things.

And it's an appointment like an ambassador. As an ambassador, we represent our sovereign. in the tribe, and our sovereign is the Lord Jesus Christ. We represent not only the sovereignty of our country, but we represent the country itself, where we come from. And it's not the good old USA. We're heavenly citizens. Our citizenship is in heaven. So that's the country we represent in the tribe.

Third reason. Look in the text in verse 3. Not only so, but we glory in tribulations also knowing Look at the word knowing there. This particular word for knowing is oida, and it means to know factually. Knowing the fact that God's eternal purpose of sharing his glory with us is being accomplished through the cross, through the suffering. That's the knowing here, that God's eternal purpose of sharing his glory with us is being accomplished through the trial or through the sacrament as we walk by faith. How does he share the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ with us in the trial or the circumstances that come to us?

Let's look at the second part of verse 3. Also knowing that tribulation works patience. or that trials were patience. The word there for tribulation or trial is a word which literally means like if someone were to put you in a vice and started to turn, you'd feel very pressed. You'd feel very squeezed. It's that kind of physical pressure that you would be feeling. This is used in a metaphorical sense, where trials and suffering and adverse circumstances come at us in life. And there's this pressing on the mind. It's that kind of pressing that's talked about here.

Trial works patient. The word work here means that there's a goal, that there's a reason for the trials. The word work means to achieve something or to bring about a result. So what's the result? Trials bring about a result and the result is patient. Patience is a compound word in the Greek, cupomene. It's cupo, under. And meno, to abide, means to abide under. Patience is an at-home word.

It's being at home under the trial, under the suffering. Here's my question. When these trials and sufferings and circumstances come into your life, do you feel at home? Do you feel like this is home? I'm losing all my money, and they're going to take my house and my car. I'm just at home with that. Is that your response? Feeling at home under the trial and under the circumstances?

Let me tell you, that's not me. But I can also tell you that it's not my patience. This is talking about the patience of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's His patience. He is at home under trial. He is at home under suffering. And as we abide with Him, we are at home.

He shares that very glory of His patience with us in the cross. That's the wonderful part. That is the wonderful, wonderful part. Not only does He share that, but He manifests that through us as a vessel. He manifests His very life through us as we walk by faith. Now let's look at the next aspect of God sharing Christ's glory with us.

Verse 4, and patient works experience. The word works isn't there, but it's understood. Patient, His patient manifesting itself in us, through us, brings about the result as we walk by faith. And the result is experience, proven character, tried character, proven character. The word proven is documento, to test with a view towards approval. And so as we walk by faith, result is proven character, character that has been tested, that has been tried through the fiery trial, and it's come out pure. Is that our character it's talking about that's proven?

That's not the way I come out. But I know who does come out that way, and that's the Lord Jesus Christ. As we walk by faith, and we understand that He is our light, that His light comes through, that's proven, that's tried, that's His very character. And you know why? He shares that with us. And He manifests that in us.

Then it goes on to say that the tried character or proven character works hope. And we come right back to hope. Notice that we've come full circle. We're back to hope. We're back to this absolute confidence, absolute certainty in terms of who and what Christ is.

Does God have us going around in this circle all of our life? Because you know in your life, I know in mine, that there's trial after trial after trial. There's suffering after suffering. So we're just spinning our wheels and going around in a circle. Look what He's done. And look what happens.

We start out here as a new born baby, and we don't have a clue as to the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. We don't have a clue as to who He is. And I can tell you this, in young believers, God doesn't initially put us through the trials. He grows His thoughts by the milk of the Word.

And He's so gracious to us. But then, in one form, the Lord Jesus Christ is in us. Then comes the trial. And we are rejoicing in the hope. We come to know who Christ is. And we're rejoicing in that hope, in His love, in His grace, in His mercy. And the trial comes.

And initially, oftentimes, our response is a negative response. But then we know that negative response is coming out from the old man, and we're to reckon ourselves dead, and we're to walk by faith, by resting, and focusing, and beholding our Lord Jesus Christ.

As we do, that trial works patiently, fighting under the same power under the trial, being at home under the trial. And then comes this tried or approved character, There's approval. So there's this testing with a view of approval. God has accomplished His purpose, but look what happened. We come to the next trial.

But because we've been through this trial, we've come to know a little bit more about the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, and who He is, and who we are in Him. Isn't this a picture of 2 Corinthians 3, verse 18? Beholding, as in the mirror, the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, we are transformed into the very same image, from glory unto glory, proven by the Spirit. As we go through these trials, God is sharing the very glory of our Lord Jesus Christ with us.

We're coming to know Him and the power of His resurrection. That's what this whole process of trials is doing. Here's a question. If this is God's purpose in our trials, that is, to share Christ's glory with us, will you now rejoice in trial and in suffering? Here's the test. Are you going to rejoice when your trial comes along? Are you going to glory in your trial in your life? When we do respond by faith, when we walk in faith in the trial, think of how God uses us as a symbol of Christ. The glory of our Lord Jesus Christ is manifest through Him. It's seen by the world through Him.

And they're going to ask us, because they're going to see something that they've never seen before about the wonderful hope that's within us. And we're to be ready to give an answer. In closing, I want us to see something very special. Romans chapter 5 and verse 5. And hope maketh not ashamed. Simply put, as his hope, the absolute certainty that comes out from the Lord Jesus Christ will never disappoint us, will never let us down. That's what it's saying. The reason why is given in the rest of verse 5.

Because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who is given unto us. The love of God is dashed forth in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. So that when you go through this trial, and I go through this trial, we even know more about the love of God, about the love of Christ. He's brought us through the trial, and His love, that's just poured from us by the Holy Spirit. Then, do you know what happens? As we experience the love of the Lord Jesus Christ in our hearts? Turn to Galatians chapter 5 and verse 6.

For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availed anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith, which works by love." What it's saying is that only your personal faith avails. Only your personal faith is capable of producing results. And those results are produced by the Spirit of God that is in us. You see where it says in verse 6, but faith which works by love." And what it says there is that our personal faith is energized. Our faith is energized by His love. So, at the end of this trial, love of God is best forth out from us, and we send the love of God that is being best forth out from us.

It energizes our faith so that we can go through the next trial because our faith has been energized. When the trial comes, you will always find Him waiting there. When the trial comes, you will always find Him faithful. When the trial comes, you will always find that He'll never leave you or forsake you. When the trial comes, you will always find that He loves you. And when the trial comes, you will always find that He purposes to share His very glory over Jesus Christ with us. Amen?