Bible Teaching

Calvary Temple Teaching Library

Proven By Fire Pt.3

Let's turn to the book of James. We're going to continue on our study and look at the Lord's desire to refine us-that furnace of affliction that we find ourselves in so many times and that crucible of trials. Nobody's flesh likes it. It's grievous, the Scripture tells us, for the moment. If it's of God, it will be grievous. It'll be hard. It'll be something that we would rather we were not in. In fact, the Scripture says about the Captain of our salvation in the greatest trial of His life, He prayed, "Father, if it's possible, let this cup pass from Me." God's trials and tribulations that are transforming (not just nuisances) in our lives bear hard on us. It takes that kind of pressure to transform coal into diamonds. It takes that kind of heat to remove the impurities so that we could be pure gold. None of us likes it, but the end is glory to God. So, is it worth it? Amen.

James 1:2 says, "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers [different] temptations." That's quite a statement, isn't it? I don't know how many of us over the years have said, "Is that really what the Lord is saying here?" But then when you find yourself in a trial that transforms you and brings glory to God, you understand what this joy is all about. It's the fact of being able to express the goodness of God in the midst of turmoil, the ability to be moved more by the promises than the predicament. It's to be able to just boast in the goodness of God and the promise that says "I'll never leave you nor forsake you," and you believe that God's with you as the fourth man in the furnace. It's an exciting time. There's no greater times in our lives than in those furnaces and you know the fourth man is there. I'd rather be in the furnace with the awareness of the fourth man than to be in the mansion and not sense His presence.

And so, it's important for us to understand what trials are all about. We saw Sunday that they're to reveal our own hearts to us (and we'll review a couple of those passages in just a moment), so we could know what's in our hearts, the Scripture says, whether we're going to keep His word or not. The trials come to reveal our hearts to us. Trials come to make us more like Jesus. Trials are things that we experience in our lives to bring praise and glory to God because in the midst of our trials, we count it joy. We begin to, under all of these pressures, instead of having squeezed out of us bitterness and resentment, the pressure begins to squeeze out praise unto God. And we count it all joy that we've been counted worthy to suffer for His name's sake. You see, the disciples that were beaten didn't go away grumbling, did they? When they lost their status in society, they didn't just feel sorry for themselves. They came rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer for His name's sake! Have you ever been there? There's no greater joy than to identify with Jesus. Now, your flesh says, "I don't want to be beaten," but your spirit cries out, lusting against the flesh, saying, "Yeah, but I want to glorify God!" I want you to understand something: you can't glorify God without the trials. The flesh wants to be able to move into a place of ease, and tell us that the spirit man can be enhanced there, and it's a lie.

So we count it joy when we fall into different temptations, "Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience (verse 3)." Trials work patience. The Scripture tells us that we have need of patience, and I think everybody here would say "Amen" to that. We all need more patience. We need to be more patient with ourselves, we need to be more patient with each other, we have to be patient with God's work in our lives. How many of you aren't patient with God, thinking He's not refining you, and purifying you, and making you holy soon enough? You say, "You know, it could be quicker, Lord, if You just skip all this trial stuff, and just in your sovereignty (poof!) make me perfect. God says it's not going to work that way. And so, we realize that the trial is for the purpose of producing patience in our lives. Do you want some good news to put down in your notes? If you're experiencing a trial that's initiated in God, it's because you have faith. That principle is seen in John 15, isn't it? If you bear fruit, what happens? He prunes it, He purges it, that you might bring forth more fruit. It's the same thing here. If you have biblical faith, trials will be put up against that faith and bring about a product called "patience." If it's not biblical faith-if it's religion, if it's a secular humanist's perspective, and you're moving out of human empathy, or you're moving out of a natural morality, whatever it might be-God's trial will not work patience. It'll work resentment, bitterness, fear, it'll cause you to run from the truth, it'll cause you to run from the light instead of to it. Trials reveal whether you and I are moving in faith or not.

And so, the trying of our faith will work patience. Now remember we said Sunday (we've shared it many times) when we're looking at that aspect of patience, patience is definitely endurance, isn't it? We've all seen that poster in times past with the cat. It's hanging with its claws dug in, and the phrase says, "Hang in there!" So, there's that cat hanging there. (Some of us would love to see him in that predicament, but others of you are of another persuasion, so we honor your lack of understanding!) We realize that patience is that quality of endurance, of just being able to hang in there. The thing about biblical patience, though, is it's not just natural resolve or a "true grit." Some of us are naturally more tenacious than others. I want you to understand something: God will wear out your tenacity, He'll bring you down! You cannot stand up under the trial of God. Ask Job. Job seemed to be a pretty tenacious fellow, wouldn't you think? Tenacity really comes from one source. How many of you consider yourself a pretty tenacious person? Let me see your hands. I consider myself that way. It comes from one source, it's called "pride," because you just won't lay down. I have a tenacity about me, and it's not quality of character, it's lack of character probably (called "pride"). Let me say this rather than a lack of character: misdirected character. You're just one of those people, you want to quit, but you can't admit that you can be beaten. Everything in you wants to stop and quit, but if you do, somebody will see it and question. And because of pride, you continue on. It's not all bad, but it won't get it done in God's kingdom.

I was always one of those people that, in a conflict of one kind of another, really believed I'd prevail. I used to get in some scraps when I was a kid. There was a family who lived down the road from us that had thirteen boys. The interesting thing about this clan was this: if you ever got in a scrap with one of them, you had to go through all thirteen. And so, there was a need of patience in your life! They would wear you out on volume if not resolve. But I was one of those who, if you beat me up, as soon as I healed, we're going again! And my tenacity would not allow me to play fair. I'm also one of those who, if you beat me up, and you were bigger than I (and I've had this happen), and I saw there was no natural way that I was going to take you on face-to-face and be able to whip you, then I would sneak up behind you with a bat and settle things that way. Tenacity-the inability to say "uncle." It's pride. I just wanted to take a little bit of time to show this. Those of us who are so "proud" of our ability to stand-it's pride, it's sin. And many of us, in this trial, need to bow. We need to bow our knee. We need to say, "God, I can't do it. I'm defeated. I refuse to hold onto that any longer in my life."

Turn over to Job for just a second. Do you remember what we said about Job? A lot of people misunderstand him. Job was a righteous man, he was perfect in his generation. Job chapter 1 says that he was perfect and upright, and one that feared God and eschewed evil. The guy hated evil. He was a righteous man. He was the greatest man in the east. (That leaves out California, but you're doing pretty good back here, the greatest in the east!) There was only one problem. Job knew this. God speaks it of him, and it is true. But Job, in his own self-righteousness understood who he was and the grace that was working in his life. Job was a self-righteous man and yet God calls him good, and perfect, and a holy man. He hated sin in everybody else and would come to hate it in himself. The one thing I've found many times about people who are really sticklers for holiness is that they really hate it in everybody else and sometimes are slow to hate it in themselves. I'm not going through the whole book of Job-turn back to the 40th chapter for just a second, and we find the conclusion of this. We all know that Job's comforters come, and in the midst of their counsel they give some good instruction to him, and there's some good revelation of God, but there's also some poor theology. In reading the book of Job you have to discern the difference between which statements are true about God and which are humanistic and begin to know who the Lord is from His revelation of Himself in the book of Job. So don't believe who God is through Job's counselors or through himself. Believe who God is through who the Lord says He is, and the Lord's distinction in the role of each of these individuals. And chapter 40 tells us that as Job begins to humble himself. That's what the whole process was for. Job was a good, righteous man who needed purifying.

Many of us here are people that are pursuing God, and many of us are in greater pursuit than many of our contemporaries, other people that are in Christian churches around us. We've been more diligent. We spend more hours in the word of God, and we spend more hours in prayer, and we spend more hours in our community, and all of these different things. All of that is good, but God is not through with us. All of the good that we're doing toward the Lord, and all of the good that we're doing to one another does not in any way keep us from needing and experiencing trials, tests, and adversities in our lives. You don't get exemptions from being good.

Job was a little perplexed by this, and so were his counselors. The counselors had a false theology that said if you're living a good, holy life, surely nothing will come your way of adverse circumstances. Natural man has had that perception all along-that if you live good and righteous, God will bless you, and you'll prosper, and be in health, and not have any problems. The question is always this: "Who did sin, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? Surely sin has brought about this adversity!" "What was the sin that caused the tower to fall upon a set of individuals?" "No," he said. "You have to understand that the rain falls upon the just and upon the unjust." And you have to understand that even though the devil is a hard taskmaster, and the wages of sin is death, our heavenly Father is just and holy and will bring about in our lives whatever is necessary to purge us and purify us for His glory, for our good (as we saw in Sunday's session). Don't allow the hard times to confuse you, to cause you to ask, "Where is God?" Adverse circumstances can come from our sin, and from our rebellion, and from our sowing to the natural. That's why James 1 says when you find yourself in the midst of these trials and tribulations you're supposed to pray and you're supposed to ask God for wisdom. What kind of wisdom? Wisdom to understand, "Why am I here? What's being proven in my life? What's the source of this temptation? Are these bad times upon me just because I'm part of the human race? I'm living in a world that's saturated with sin, I'm living on a planet that's reeling like a drunken man, waiting its day of redemption. There's disease, there's hatred, there's bitterness, there's all of this stuff that surrounds us in humanity; and because I'm part of this system, I also can be someone who's mugged, I can be someone who's cheated by a partner in business, I'm someone whose house can be burglarized, I'm a person who can be affected by disease?" It doesn't have anything to do with my personal sin; but the one thing we need to understand is this: none of that can come if God doesn't allow it. We're not living here by chance, and that's an exciting thing. My steps are ordered of God. Now, you can wear your brain out (I think that's what happened to me; I don't know) trying to comprehend this thing, and say, "Lord, I don't understand the manifestation of Your sovereignty. I don't understand Your justice. I don't understand that in divine justice, it's not always equitable. I don't understand that. But what I've come to understand is (like Job) I need to put my hand over my mouth and say that surely the Judge of all the earth does right. And even though You slay me, I will serve You (the wisdom of Abraham and Job)."

In this 40th chapter the question is asked, "Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct him? He that reproveth God, let him answer it (verse 2)." And Job said, "Uhhh, I'm over my head, I think I'm just going to shut up [that's paraphrased]; I will lay mine hand upon my mouth. Once have I spoken [once too often!], but I will not answer: yea, twice; but I will proceed no further (verses 4-5)." Can I give you some good advice tonight? Proceed no further. Isn't that what it says? You're trying to figure God out, you're trying to figure out in the midst of trials. And maybe you're not in one right now. I'm talking about the last one you were in or maybe the one you're entering. You're trying to figure it all out-why God allows this and what's God trying to do. All you need to know is that what you’re experiencing is for your good and God's glory. When God is the source, it's for your good and His glory. You don't need to understand what's happening except what's happening to you. "How am I being changed in this? How am I being conformed to the image of Jesus? This trial is for one reason: to bring about in my life patience, consistency of endurance."

And so, Job says, "I'm going to put my hand over my mouth. The Lord now speaks to Job (once he decides to shut up) in verse 6 out of the whirlwind. He says, "I'm going to demand something of you (verse 7); I'm going to ask a penetrating question. Will you disannul My judgment; will you condemn Me that you may be righteous?" This is a question that really in the true trials (and I'm talking about life-transforming trials) has to be addressed. Now some of us here haven't experienced those kind of trials. The reason I know that is because your life hasn't been transformed. You're still plodding along, but you haven't come up against your Garden of Gethsemane yet. Oh you've had some trials-your shoelace broke this morning; the water in the spa was only 101 instead of 103; you're having to settle for driving that Cadillac instead of the Mercedes. And that's just about what people in our day think adversity is. But can I tell you something? If you haven't been there, you will be because whom the Lord loves He rebukes and chastens. There will be a Gethsemane, and there's going to be in your life a Mount Moriah where God puts His hand upon your most prized possession and requires you to offer up that child, whatever the great promise of God is. There are going to be the times in your life when you fail, and those eyes of Jesus look upon you. And after all your boasting of, "Though they all forsake You, Lord, never me," and the third time you say, "I don't know the man," the cock crows, and you drop your head, and you now have to deal with what manner of man you really are. The life-changing experiences. (I've had an experience like that.) You're never the same when you limp away from that wrestling match with God's messenger. And it's no longer you saying to God, "What's Your name?" (in other words, "Uncle, I quit, Are you going to change this thing? Are you going to do it my way? I'm believing for things to happen this way.") But in fact, your name is changed from Jacob ("selfish supplanter") to Israel ("a prince with God"). But the rest of your life, you limp. You can never get away from the man you are without the visitation-the one who would rob his own brother's birthright. That's what trials are all about. The trials bring the visitation of God into our lives that can transform us, so that we could become that pure gold. "Will you condemn Me that you might be justified?"

Chapter 42 goes on and says how great the benefits of these trials are. Job, having been brought through these adversities, surviving emotionally and spiritually the loss of all of his loved ones, his wealth, his reputation, this man who sat at the city gates and people were awed by his position and by his wisdom and now they mock him, this man who lost all of his physical prowess and health, he's sickly, sores running, despised, the one who was the counselor now being counseled by others about his own sin and ineptness and in all of this wouldn't bow but took everyone on and said, "No, you don't understand. There's no unrighteousness in me." By making that kind of proclamation he was saying, "I'm righteous and I don't understand God's injustice." But finally, he puts his hand over his mouth, and God reveals the condition of his heart. And I love this 5th verse of the 42nd chapter. "I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee."

I want to tell you something, until you've been through the fire you've only heard about God. Until you know that in the midst of the battle when a thousand fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand it won't come nigh you, that kind of confidence only comes from having seen the Lord. I want you to understand something, the only way you can raise that knife and put it to the throat of your child and prepare to kill him is to have seen Him who has been raised from the dead and have absolute confidence that He'll raise that child. But it's all hearing until you've been in the fire. How good the trials are and how badly they hurt. The trials are bringing about death, and Romans makes it very clear. A lot of people love to shout and proclaim the great promise in Romans that we've been raised with Him in the power of His resurrection. I want to tell you something, man, before you can be raised with Him you have to be buried with Him. There is no resurrection without death. We want to be able to experience resurrection power; but, beloved, there has to be death to self. There has to be death to self-confidence. There has to be a death to the self-righteousness. There has to be a death to the natural tenacity. There has to be an absolute dependence upon God. And that's what trials are all about. The harder your head the bigger the trial. Why do some people have little trials? They're more pliable than you are. It takes less heat. When I look back at my life I learn a lot about the trials I've been through. I've had my share. But do you know what? I need more. There's way too much alloy in my life. It's not all bad. How many of you know that copper is not that bad? Copper has a purpose. You say, "Yeah, pennies!" Well, yes, but also wiring. Copper has multiple uses. What about nickel? How about some iron? Iron is good. Iron sharpens iron. But it all has to be refined to bring about the pure gold that remains.

"I've heard about Him, but now my eyes see Him." And then (verse 10), "...the Lord turned the captivity of Job..." Job was now able to be free and pray for his friends. What's that tell us about trials? Trials come beloved in our lives so that we could be touched with the feelings of others' infirmities where we could comfort with the same comfort wherewith we are comforted. It's hard to have compassion for people in areas in which you're so effective and efficient. And then, when God tries to deal with us in those areas because we're so effective in those areas we're able to handle it in the natural. We parry this, and we parry that, and we're able to handle this, and we're able to answer that question. "I can stand under this," and "I'll make a business decision here," and "I'll make some kind of provision here." God is trying to work that area of self-righteousness out of us and it won't go because of our ability to cope, and then all of a sudden, He says, "Well, I'm going to have to break him." And then your whole perspective changes on those who have struggled with those areas all of their life. And now, there's a humility and an ability to minister the grace of God. Trials are good for us. We have need of patience, the Scripture tells us.

Now, patience is a key quality. Turn back to James again. We weren't going to stay that long in Job, but... (There are some of you here this evening that can be changed by just the title of that book-just change the pronunciation: job. There are a few of you here that need to get one!) And in James chapter 1, as the Lord is speaking to us again and telling us very clearly to allow this trying in our lives the trial of our true faith. Now remember what faith is. What is faith? When we talk about faith I want you to get the simplest definition of faith in your understanding as we're talking about it as it relates to patience here. When I'm talking about faith here we're just talking about your ability to trust in God-your trust, reliance, assurance of God's promises. We saw in the Old Testament, in Deuteronomy that's why they were being tried to see whether they'd continue to believe what God had promised them or whether they were going to turn back to Egypt. One of the emphases we were dealing with Sunday was this: let patience have her perfect work. We were talking about by reason of use. In other words, allowing ourselves, in the midst of trials, to pray for the wisdom that James speak of and say, "Okay, now what's God trying to tell me here, and how can I put this thing into effect? How can I put to practice what God's revealing now in my heart in the midst of this thing?" I've determined why I'm in the midst of this trial. This is a trial from God. It's because of my self-reliance. It's because of my lack of trust in God's promises and provisions to me, my lack of contentment in His presence. So many people wonder, "Why do I find myself in this place in the interpersonal relationships? I just don't seem to be gravitating towards a soul-mate." The magazines will tell you one thing: you need to dress differently; you need to smell differently. The phenomenal amount of ads that are out now on plastic surgery say you need to look differently.

When we were on vacation, I was watching The Learning Channel, and I actually watched them do a face-lift. That'll stop you! That was an interesting (if you've never seen it) to watch somebody rip another person's face off. It's kind of cool really! They have these probes, and they're shoving them down through their eyes, and their eyes are pulling out, and they cut their whole face off, and their ears were just hanging there, and they pulled everything back. Their ears were just stuck on there, and all their face was ripped off. It was really cool to watch! And they were doing all this stuff. (I'm getting off track!) They wanted fifteen thousand dollars to tear your face off! I've stopped people from trying to tear my face off much less paid them fifteen thousand to do it! Can I tell you something? You're not that ugly. Look, spend a few extra bucks, buy a painting, take the mirror down, you'll be okay. If children are running and hiding in the streets, maybe...but other than that, it's not worth it.

We were talking about soul-mates, weren't we? The reason that so many of us have trouble in our interpersonal relationships-whether it's a soul-mate, whether it's just people understanding us, whatever it is-beloved, it's this: you're trying too hard. The reason you're trying too hard is because you're not content in Jesus. And so, the problem isn't getting more friends or closer friends. The problem is that you need to become more intimate with Jesus so you can have the assurance and the trust in Him that He will order your steps in all of these other areas. Now, if you all listened real closely, I just told you how to get married! It's so vital to be able to identify the trial. What we would think is, "The reason I'm having all these problems is because I'm ugly, I'm stupid, they’re stupid, they're not friendly." And none of that is the reason why you're experiencing this. It's because you're not trusting in Jesus.

And so, James says you need to ask, because God liberally wants to reveal to you what's going on. "I don't understand what the Lord is doing." James says there's no reason for a lack of understanding as to what's being done in your life at this time. "I don't understand what God is doing." You haven't prayed in faith with nothing wavering. What's that saying? A lot of people say, "I don't understand," and you don't want to know. You don't want to understand. You don't want to deal with what God is trying to show you in this trial. It's ugly. You say, "You just told us we weren't ugly!" The sin is ugly. And so, what we're looking at is this aspect of a confidence in the trial that we let patience have its perfect work. In other words, let the thing work in you. Identify what it is, and do something about it. Guard, now, against all of these things that were causing you to walk contrary to the word of God, and let it work in you (verse 4) that you might be made mature, complete, nothing lacking. That's when you get out of the trial. That's when you're out-when this thing has run its complete course, letting patience have its perfect work.

Turn back for just a second to the book of Hebrews. In the book of Hebrews there are a couple of statements that are made concerning this. In this passage of Scripture in Hebrews 10, it says in verse 22, "Let us draw near with a true heart [that means a pure heart, an honest heart, one that's ready to hear what God is saying to us] in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water." In other words we're doing everything we know how to do, we're living this life of pursuit, of prayer, of study, of obedience. And it says, "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering [no double-minded man who's unstable in all of his ways] (verse 23)..." And so we find that the admonition to us is that consistency and the fast confession that, "God is working this in me, and here is the end purpose for which I'm being tried." The Scripture says be followers of those who through faith and patience are inheriting the promises of God. When patience is given its perfect work, you will inherit the promises of God. There are no shortcuts, you're going to have to stand the fire.

The double-minded man (James 1:7 says) will not receive anything from the Lord for (verse 8) you're unstable in all of your ways. That's when you're praying, and you're in a place of saying, "I want to hear what God has to say, I really want to know how I can get out of this trial," but you really don't plan on changing. Now, we know what the Scripture says. It tells us very clearly that the word of God is the discerner of the thoughts and the intentions of the heart. The trial has revealed your circumstances, the condition you're in, but you haven't purposed yet to die. That's the double-minded man. There's an instability, there is no working of patience, and you'll find a natural way out. In many of our lives (and we've seen it here in this fellowship) the way out is to disassociate ourselves from people who are putting pressure on us. Go somewhere where people won't tell you the truth, they'll tell you what you want to hear. You'll even be able to identify it. You'll sound very noble. You'll be able to go and say, "You know, the Lord has revealed this about my life." And everybody says, "Oh, man! This person is really vulnerable and open to the truth. I don't understand what the big deal is. How is it that communion, that fellowship, was broken between those people? This person believes the word of God, this person has insight into themselves." That's not the issue. Are you changing? What are you going to do about it? The double-minded man is the man who can agree with the truth, but not obey it. He agrees it's truth, but he won't obey; he won't be a doer of the word. And so, the Scripture says he deceives himself (verse 22).

We'll end with this in verse 12. "Blessed is the man that endureth temptation [bears up under them, is able to go through the full regimen]; for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him." If you love Me, you'll keep My commandments, the Scripture says. If you love Me, if you're a son, you'll stand up under the chastening. You won't become a Job. You'll stand there and you'll say, "The Lord is right this is good for me," if you love God. The man who is receiving the love of God, the chastisement of the Lord, will receive the inheritance, the promise, the crown of life. It's laid up for those who endure His love. "I love the Lord." No, keep His commandments. "I love the Lord." Stand under His chastening. That's who the crown is laid up for. "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed (verses 13-14)." These things that come our way, beloved, do not come in an arbitrary manner. In God's sovereignty, He's not just arbitrarily throwing out adversity. We said that nothing can come to us unless God allows it. He's not just sitting there saying, "Well, you know, this is what life has dealt him." No, these things are specifically allowed in our lives. The trials come based upon our own lusts. Every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed. God is able to allow these things that affect us to be in direct proportion to the needs in our lives. And because of these areas that are lacking in our lives, this is what then initiates many of these trials. And it works supernaturally. We've talked about it before in the natural and it's amazing how the moment you begin to make some kind of resolve, saying, "Starting today, I'm going to begin to be diligent, and I'm going to fast breakfast, and I'm going to listen to a teaching tape on the way to work, and I'm just really, really going to give this time over to the Lord." You turn the corner on your normal route, and (boom!) overnight they built a Starbucks that serves hot Krispy Kreme donuts. And they deliver to your car while you're driving by! Have you found it that way? And every man sins when he is drawn away. "Drawn away? They're chasing me down the street!" But it's in our hearts, and it has to be dealt with. It's the expression of God's love. We'll deal with the next aspect of this in our next session.

Father, we thank You for the word of God. We thank You that You love us enough, Lord, to bring these things to the surface in our lives. We're not very pretty without the robe of righteousness.

You know, the robe of righteousness is kind of like those shirts (you've seen them) that guys or girls wear at the beach. There's this guy walking down the beach and he's got this T-shirt on. And painted on that thing is this body with about two percent body fat, and the pecks are perfectly proportioned, and all the abs are ripping. And then there's all these other bulges hanging out through the white. But this guy has this image of himself. The robe of righteousness is that way. We put this robe on and it's the glory of God and it's the person of Jesus. But underneath isn't real pretty, it's being transformed. It's going to be left behind, it's going to be changed someday, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. It's going to be set aside and corruption will take on incorruption someday. But until then, we can walk in obedience and be perceived in this robe. We can be observed as a righteous being through our trust and reliance on God's working in us. And yet, inwardly are all of these other things that are continually having to be purged out. He's not through with us yet, and it's the trials, it's the adversities, that identify and remove them if in the midst of this we will humble ourselves to obedience like an Abraham, like a Jacob, like a Job. We can weep and yet return like a Peter at the bidding of the Lord and now speak of the exceeding great and precious promises that have been given to us. All things that pertain to life and godliness in Christ Jesus are being worked in us, and we are partakers of His divine nature and we're letting these things work that we might have patience, II Peter 1 says.

Work it in us, Father, in Jesus' name. Amen.

Let's stand before the Lord tonight. As Gary plays, we just rejoice in the goodness of the Lord to us. Oh, it's grievous. When I look at my own life and see how much has to be changed in me it almost creates a fear of, "Lord, what's it going to take? Dear God, what am I going to have to endure to deal with this?" And then the Lord speaks and says, "I'll not allow you to be tempted past that which you're able to stand. And with every temptation, I'll make a way of escape. I'm not going to kill you, I'm just going to clean you up." Thank God for His promise, amen? Oh, you'll feel like you're dying, and self will be dying and the flesh will be dying. But the real you is going to be more like Jesus. The real you will have cast aside all the sins and the weights that so easily beset us and we'll begin to run with patience this race that's set before us. We'll hang out with the great cloud of witnesses, men and women of like precious faith. I would that you'd be hot or cold. If you're lukewarm, if you sense that there's not been growth in your life and you're just kind of there, repent. The revelation of it is sufficient. Repent. And if not, you will be purified. God loves you. I'd suggest that you just fall on the rock and be broken.

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