Good Grief is one of those oxymorons that you sometimes find in English. In truth even as Christians we don’t think that grief is ever really good. We know what James has to say about it in this passage but there often is that niggly thought in the back of our minds that it can’t be right. Sometimes it comes from the back of our minds and screams “How could a loving God allow this to happen, especially to me?” But our God is a planner and a builder, and so he has a purpose for all that He does and all that He allows to happen. Therefore, through trials, You are to become mature in Christ by Faith.

The Lure of the Painless Life
You and I live in a society that has been sucked in by the lure of the painless life. You know that this life should not be as stressful as it is. And not only do you know it but all of our society knows it. Deep in our souls, human beings know that life shouldn’t be this hard. It shouldn’t be this tough.
Satan knows that this is our thought and he uses it to turn our eyes from our Lord and God. He places before us the lure of the painless or stressless life. He encourages us to seek it, and you and I and everyone else has fallen for it at sometime or other. Our society will pay almost any price to feel safe, to feel pain and stress free.
So Satan encourages us to find the solution in drugs, both prescription and illegal drugs, to ease our pain. Or alcohol drink your self into a stupor where you feel no pain. Yet these solutions only increase your problems in the long run.
You may be thinking that you don’t get caught up in drugs, but you may be dealing with your stress by fixating upon sports, or work or some other vicarious living, excessive TV, video or movie watching. Caught up in gaming or surfing the net. Anything to disconnect you from this real world that is so filled with pain.
The abortion industry is built upon this lure, “does having children stress you out? Then get rid of it. If having a baby will cramp your life-style, get rid of it.” There was a woman in the USA who was left with 3 children after her divorce. The father had shot through and she was lonely. So she dated, found a man she wanted to be with but her children were a problem. So she loaded them into the car, drove into the lake and drowned them. Why? To remove a cause of stress for her.
Even as Christians we are enticed by the lure of a trouble-free life.We once belonged to a Congregation that sort this by never having elections. The first person to be nominated got the job, regardless of whether there were better candidates around.
The problem is that this just opens the door for even more hassles later on but we are often so smitten by the lure that we do not consider what is wise. We want peace at all costs and those who disturb our peace are treated as pariah’s.
The painless or peaceful life is a coming reality when we die or Jesus returns, but Satan and our own sinful desires, tempt us to make it happen here and now. In John 15 Jesus says that He is the true vine and we are the branches. Every useless branch, those that don’t bear fruit is cut off by God. We know that but pay attention to what happens to the fruitful, the faithful, they are pruned so that they will bear more fruit. In other words Jesus is reminding us that in this life you and I will experience trials, and troubles. As Job said, “Man id born to trouble as sure as sparks fly upwards.” Pain and trouble are designed to make us mature in Christ.

The Trial
James gives tells us that the purpose of trials, troubles and pain is to eventually make you mature by giving you perseverance. It sounds like the saying you hear when people are exercising, “No Pain, No Gain.” The main difference between what James is talking about and exercise is that you choose to do exercise, you don’t choose trials.
It is true that we bring some trials upon ourselves and these you and I should avoid as much as possible, but these are not the trials that James is talking about in this passage. The NIV has here “as you face trials.” A better translation is “as you fall into trials.” The same word that is translated “face” is used in the parable of the “Good Samaritan” when the man “fell into” the hands of the robbers. In other words the trials that James is talking about are those troubles and pains that come on us that are not our fault. As Peter says in his letter, “How is it to your credit if you receive a beating and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endue it, this is commendable before God.”
In the song “what a friend we have in Jesus” trials and temptations are connected. But James does not connect them, trials are placed upon us to build up our faith, to strengthen our Christian character. Temptations come about because of our sinful nature and seek to destroy us. The trials James is looking at are given to strengthen, mould and shape us to be like Jesus.
James tells us that there are many trials. There is no one situation that James is looking at here, although the letter does mention some specific trials that the readers are perhaps going through. Things such as, poverty or wealth that threatened the integrity of their faith, discrimination, oppression, slander and serious illness. Yet James writes in such away so that we will not reduce the types of trials just to these things. Trials may be disappointments, a tragedy, death in the family, unemployment, the scope is great. The common thing is that trials often bring about a time of bewilderment and confusion, much pain and sorrow. James wants us to be ready for these trials not if they occur, but when they occur.
When troubles come on us one of the first things we think of is “Why me?” James wants you to see the positive side of trials. In doing this James is not playing psychological games. He is not saying, “Smile and the world will smile back at you” or “Don’t worry be happy.” If you are in trouble, you are in pain one of the last things you want to hear is someone telling you to be happy or to enjoy what you are going through.
James is not doing that. In his book, “The Art of War” Sun Tzu says “Victorious warriors win first then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war and then try to win.” In other words a victorious warrior is one who is prepared to win, who has his mind focused on winning the battle. This is what James is doing for us. He is preparing you and I to win the war. You and I are in a spiritual war and James wants you and I to win it.
James knows that right thinking always comes before right practice. When he tells you to “consider” he wants you to use your mind to guide your feelings, to control your feelings. We can put up with a lot of stuff if we can see a purpose for it and James is saying that there is a purpose it is not totally illogical. Consider it pure joy because your faith is being strengthened, you perseverance is being increased and your maturity is being shaped so that you will be more like Jesus.

Maturity
Maturity is being Christ-like. The more like Jesus Christ you are the more mature you are. Sounds simple doesn’t it? The problem is that you and I have such a long way to go to be completely spiritually mature.
Another problem is that it is not permanent in this life. When you go to the gym and exercise you can’t just go once and think that you are done. Even if you get fully fit and strong you have to keep on exercising to stay in shape. Likewise you have to keep working on your maturity each day.
Solomon is an example of someone who thought that his maturity would remain even though he no longer practised it. It’s like swimming against the current, it takes a lot of effort just to maintain your position.
A further problem with maturity we don’t mature in all parts of our lives equally together. You can see this when a man can be a wonderful Bible teacher but a lousy father, or a man is a great prayer warrior but is easily irritated.
The goal of perseverance is that we become mature and complete, the idea is not of perfection but rather that you can be more rounded in your Christian walk. You will not be completely like Jesus Christ this side of heaven, but you can be very Christ-like in all areas of your life.

Trials are those necessary troubles that build our character so that we can grow more mature and complete in Christ.