Faith Under Fire

Introduction

As has been advertised, we’re going to be talking this morning about faith under fire.

So when you became a Christian, as the scriptures instruct, as many of us as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Whenever that day was for you when you became a Christian. Some of you a long time ago, very long time ago. Some of you recently.

And then you discover over the passing of time, and not a very long time, hey, there’s some challenges here. There are some difficult.

1. Your Faith Tested by Fire

And just a cursory reading of the scripture would tell us, yes, you will encounter such obstacles. I want to look at a couple of passages. The first in James chapter 1, both of them are pretty near each other in the text, James chapter 1 and verse 2, when James is writing to believers scattered abroad, encompassing a large number of early believers, he said, consider it all joy. Brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance, and let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. Now, a couple of pages over to 1 Peter chapter 1, as Peter begins by talking about the living hope that we have being begotten again through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and there is an inheritance awaiting us, reserved in heaven, that will not fade away, imperishable by nature.

And he says, we are protected by the power of God. Certainly there is heavenly assistance for us for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. But then this, verse 6. In this you greatly rejoice, even though for a little while. Now that’s that’s really interesting that Peter says that, now for a little while, because in the midst of what he’s about to talk about and describe, it doesn’t feel like a little while. It feels like a long while, but I would suggest that for Peter it was a little while. He’s not been here for a very long time. Or for Paul. It was indeed a little while, and we’ll refer to a text where Paul says the same thing. For a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials.

Various things have occurred to you that are challenging, that are difficult. And then he says that the proof of your faith, or the refining of your faith, is the idea being more precious than gold, which is perishable, even though tested by fire. I mean extreme challenge. Fire that melts and molds and causes pain, even though tested by fire may be found to result, and that’s what we need to concentrate on, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. These two texts are foremost considering external pressures that would come to serve as a threat to faith. And so when I think about these external pressures, what results when those things come? Your convictions are challenged. When individuals have a faith that is under fire, when they are experiencing trial by fire, their real convictions about God and his word and their hope and about the risen Lord, those convictions are put to the test, especially when the challenge is to one’s own life, or the life of someone that you love, but understand what these texts are telling us.

2. No External Pressure So Great That Faith Can't Survive

So many want a life without trials, but apparently, there’s something about the trials that can benefit us. They can strengthen our convictions, bolster our faith and confidence in God. These challenges we should not view necessarily negatively. Because something positive is the result if we respond in faith. But understand this. While external pressures can negatively impact faith if we allow them to, all failures ultimately result from a problem within. As we sing, should I leave this? We sing it a lot. No weapon that’s fashioned against us shall stand. The battle belongs to the Lord, right, kids? No weapon that’s fashioned against us will stand. Not the strongest weapon that you can conceive, not the strongest power of any leader in this world, not any person, not anything is too powerful so that my faith can’t survive.

Nothing. Not an atomic bomb. Nothing. There’s no weapon that’s fashioned against us that can stand. So there’s no external pressure that is so great that faith can’t survive. That’s amazing. So if my faith fails, it is not the result of external pressure being so great. It is my buckling under that pressure. It is my internal failure.

Now, as we talk about external pressures, such as persecution, that is what Jesus is referring to in John chapter 10. Actually, I’ve given you the wrong reference, I think. No, that’s right. John 10, 27. All of a sudden I was thinking it was later in John. John 10, 27. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give eternal life to them. Now notice who he gives eternal life to. Those who listen to his voice and follow it. And they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. That’s what he’s saying in John chapter 10. My Father who has given them to me. They are my people. I will build my church, he said. The Father has given me a certain kind of people, the people my Father has given me, my Father is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.

Some misuse this passage to teach the doctrine of one saved, always saved.

But even within the framework of the immediate context, in the Gospel of John, it’s been made very evident that those who love Jesus keep his commandments, his sheep hear his voice, and those are the people that Satan cannot snatch out of God’s hand. And again, this is the point that he’s making. That there is no external pressure that is so great that faith cannot survive. But we talk about this and say, well, there’s no threat, at least not presently, to my physical well-being, the government separation of church and state. Isn’t it wonderful? And we do have some wonderful blessings that allow us the freedom of assembly, and that we don’t have to fear some government force coming in here and saying, y’all go to prison. You didn’t wake up today thinking about persecution of that kind in regard to your faith.

3. The Severity of Temptation

But that doesn’t mean you don’t have any trials, and that doesn’t mean that your faith doesn’t come under trial, because even if it’s not something like the external threat of bodily persecution, it could well be the severity of temptation with which you are beset. And because of the strong allure of that temptation, your convictions come under fire. It provides a stimulation or sensation or pleasure that you want. And no one should deny that sin makes that kind of an appeal to us. Hebrews 11 talks about Moses and the passing pleasures of sin, but he chose rather to identify with God’s promises and his people than to enjoy those passing pleasures. In those moments, trust in God and confidence in his word and patience for your reward must win the day.

I have a role to play in this world and among his people that involves self-denial and self-control. So many crumble under the persuasive sway of temptation in our times because they don’t want to do any work. They’re lazy. They don’t want to exercise any self-control. And so we find ourselves weak and vulnerable most of the time.

And God’s going to have to save me in spite of the fact that I’m not going to work at this.

4. People and Pain Can Cause a Crisis of Faith

Under fire. Sometimes it’s people. People can cause a crisis of faith. People can strongly disappoint us. Our perceptions of the failings of brethren. I’ve seen so many people discouraged. And Steve said some wonderful things about discouragement Wednesday night. People get discouraged for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it’s other people. And people can be so discouraged by the things that other people have done or perceived are real. They’ll say, what’s the point? If God’s people are like this, I don’t want to be a part of that. And so often people don’t want to confront the people that have discouraged them and try to understand why that thing happened. So people can be an issue. Pain can be an issue. Pain can cause people to question the validity and value of their faith.

In 2 Corinthians chapter 4, the text I mentioned that I was going to get to in regard to the Apostle Paul. He said, We have this treasure in earthen vessels that the surpassing greatness of the power may be of God and not of ourselves. And he goes on in that context to talk about being perplexed and the difficulties that he experiences in preaching the gospel. He says, so death works in us, but life in you. He says, the outer man is decaying day by day. But the inward man is being renewed. He says, our momentary light affliction. A little while. Peter had said. Our momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison. These things can become a trial to our faith.

5. A Rival in Our Affections for God

But I want to talk about one more thing, and this is the one I want to focus our attention on for a few minutes this morning. And that is something, some object, or some person. That becomes a rival in our affections for God.

About the nature of being Jesus’ disciple. He wanted his followers to know up what the cost of following him. What you’re signing on to if you’re going to be my disciple. And he issues some challenges here, which has been my experience that are a struggle for a lot of folks. Luke 14. Great multitudes were following Jesus. And he turned and he said to them. That’s an important statement. There are a lot of people thronging after him, but what’s in their heart? And Jesus wants them to know that they must cultivate a certain kind of heart to be his follower. And he wants that clear in no uncertain terms, we say. And absolutely, this is certain terms. If anyone comes to me, and so that would be us.

Any would-be follower, if anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children. Everybody knows this is the figure of speech. His first century audience knows that he’s not saying, you know, you really ought to hate your mom and dad. Or any of these other relationships. Now, the sister part, I mean, some of us could get into that, maybe, but he’s not talking about hatred and despising and loathing. He’s saying some other relationship has to be superior to this one. If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters. Yes, and even his own life. That’s challenge. He cannot be my disciple.

Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. Now, I’m not sure, even at this point, if they really understand what that statement was going to encompass when Jesus would carry his cross to Calvary for our sins. And he says, even before that, you’re going to have to carry your cross to be my disciple. For which one of you who wants to build a tower does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it. How terrible would that be is if you start this project and you do not have sufficient funds to complete it. You’re going to be a laughing stock. So he says in verse 33, so therefore, no one of you can be my disciple who does not give up all of his own possessions.

I must come first. And we’ve talked about that recently in our Bible class on Wednesday night. So the first observation that I would make about this daunting text about discipleship and its cost is that God is a worthy object for first place in our affections. And God can so easily be relegated to a lower place.

To exalt something or someone above this worthy object. Now, what did Paul say in 2 Corinthians 4 when he said, Our momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison? He says in the next verse, we do not look to the things which are seen. The things which are seen are temporal, they’re short-lived, but the things that are unseen are eternal. So let me tell you why God is the worthy object for first place in our hearts.

Because he is the only one who can bring immortality to you. It is only his things that are imperishable. And the promise that he has for us is imperishable. That we read in 1 Peter chapter 1 and verse 4. God is a worthy object because he is eternal, immortal, and invisible, and all that emanates from him is good. And for our benefit, and for our exaltation, and those things are imperishable. The living word of God is imperishable. He would say later in 1 Peter chapter 1, any other object that we would exalt above him is not that. It is perishable. It is temporary. It is the seen, and all that is seen is temporal. And yet these are the very things that we often struggle with the most.

Putting something that is tangible above that which is immortal and imperishable. And that’s what he’s talking about here in Luke chapter 14. We must remind ourselves constantly that God is a worthy object of our trust, and his word is a worthy object of our trust. When everything else is gone and it will be.

6. Everyone Who Does the Will of God Is My Family

On way too many occasions. And I’ll tell you what else I’ve seen. The rejection of the counsel and the teaching of godly and mature members in the body of Christ. Elders, the counsel of the majority of one’s brethren in the local church, again, who are spiritually mature and have demonstrated that maturity, who don’t have a dog in the fight, I have seen them, their counsel shoved aside for one person who agreed with me. Or another family member who agreed with me. Or another respected source who really isn’t involved in the local church where all these things took place, but one respected source who agreed with me, and it’s impossible for them to know all the ins and outs of the scenario that’s unfolded. Well, because one person agreed with me, or one family member, or two family members, or my whole family stood with me, even against the counsel of godly people that a lot of people respect.

Oh, no. I and my family, we’re right on this.

Let me caution you. When spiritually mature, brothers and sisters across the board, pretty much across the board, and elders of the flock that are highly respected, are telling you that there is a problem here. You might want to listen.

But so often it’s family first. And that’s what Jesus is addressing here. And I want to turn to Mark chapter 3. Where during Jesus’ ministry, Jesus’ own family, they’re not getting it. In John 7 and verse 5, it says, even Jesus’ brothers were not believing in him. His own family is trying to take custody of him. They’re trying to get with Jesus. They think he’s lost his mind. I’ve loved that statement in Mark 3 and verse 21. His own people heard this and they went to take custody of him, for they were saying, He has lost his senses. What kind of Messiah act do you have going on here? This is not what anybody had expected. Our older brother has lost his mind. I don’t know how far this goes, if this was extended family or just his immediate family.

His brothers, maybe even his mother had some questions, it seems.

It says, And his mothers and his brothers arrived standing outside, they said to him and called him. Now this is his immediate family. And a multitude was sitting around him, and they said to him, Your mothers and brothers are outside wanting to talk to you. They’re looking for you. And he answered them and he said, Who are my mother and my brother? And looking about on those who were sitting around him, he said, Behold, my mother and my brothers. Now that probably was a little confusing at that point. And he said, For whoever comes the will of God, he is my brother. My sister. And my mother. Jesus doesn’t ask us to do anything that he hasn’t done himself. And he’s looking at this audience, his family is not getting it.

And he says, Listen, everyone who does the will of God, that is my family. That relationship is first. That’s the exact same thing he’s teaching in Luke chapter 14. And it’s a rare occasion, as we were talking about in Bible class this morning. And especially as families grow and people get married, and that introduces new families and new ways of thinking. Even if the people that you marry into are Christians, they have a different way of doing things than you do. Have you ever noticed that? We talk a lot about in-laws. They’re strange. I think everybody, yeah. I think everybody has strange in-laws. Have you ever noticed that? Because they’re not like you. They don’t like the same things that you like. And even though you and your mate are hopefully compatible, there’s going to be some incompatibility there.

Sometimes the likelihood of everybody being your brother or sister in the Lord. And as time passes, we all have had family members who have chosen not to serve the Lord.

Sometimes those family members that we marry who are not a part of our family help give us perspective about our family. And that’s a good thing.

But we must not exalt these relationships. Some of your foes will be in your own household, Jesus says in another text in Matthew chapter 10. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. Yes, in one sense, he came to bring peace to the world, and yet some people would reject his peace, and the result of that would be conflict and difficulty and trial. And he says, I have to come first.

So in Matthew chapter 10, he is challenging us. Everyone who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. One other thing about this text. In Luke 14, that I want to draw your attention to will be done. And this was as faith is under fire, we discover this that choosing to serve the Lord is not a one-time decision. But it is an ongoing walk of life. And Paul would tell Timothy, fight the good fight of faith and lay hold on eternal life. Keep walking one day at a time, one step at a time, as we’re about to say. Good choice, Jesse. It is an ongoing walk that is necessary. And the real challenge of that are those periods of discouragement that all of us experience though.

Conclusion

Steve’s talking about that, and we’re all going, yeah. Now I’ve had some of those, maybe even right now. Periods of discouragement. We’ve all experienced those. Faith under fire, and it could be any one of those things or other things that I mentioned in the very introduction of this lesson. And so whatever it is that represents a challenge to doing the right thing and submitting ourselves to the will of God, where some object begins to hold us in its grip as something more important than God’s things. We’ve got to keep coming back to that which is imperishable, that which is immortal, that which is a worthy object of our affection above everything else. And we keep going after that as we progress through life. We cannot give up on that.

Perhaps at times our zeal gets reduced to about a flicker.

Not as intense as it was a year ago or five years ago, going through a lot of struggles.

As hard times were about to befall God’s covenant people. Isaiah makes an observation.

Noted this verse many times. Those who wait on the Lord will gain new strength. They will walk and not become weary. They will run and not get tired.

He will make us sore.

Like an eagle. But we have to wait on him. And when your faith is under fire, that’s going to involve waiting. That’s going to involve patience. And continuing to put him first, no matter what happens.

Yes, the forces that militate against us are strong. The devil put together quite a little package to try to destroy us. But the forces working with us as his people are greater. And through him we can conquer.