Most
of the New Testament writers spoke of the adversity – trials and
tests of faith – to which Christians are appointed. This thought
takes a look at passages from the Apostle Paul and James the brother
of Jesus and compares them in three translations. The
correlation of Rom. 5:3-5 and James
1:2-4 is seen in the use of the same Greek word “hupomone”
translated “patience” in James and “perseverance” in Romans.
James speaks of “trials”, a testing of our faith and Romans
speaks of “tribulation”, the “pressure” from trials and
afflictions. The Greek work “thlipsis” translated “tribulation”
has its origin in the pressure of a wine press squeezing grapes and
is also translated adversity, affliction, difficulties, trouble,
hardship and the like; doesn’t that give a vivid picture of how we
sometimes feel during a trial!
COUNT
IT ALL JOY: Rom. 5:3-5 sandwiched into James 1:2-4, John’s
translation
“My
brothers and sisters in Christ, boast and rejoice when you are
surrounded by trials of adversity, knowing these pressures of life,
which test your faith in God, produce God’s patience. And God’s
patience produces Godly character and Godly character produces hope
in God. And God’s hope graces us, because the love of God is
lavishly poured to overflowing in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who
was given to us. So let God’s patience completely finish its
objective, that you will be spiritually mature and completely whole
in mind, body and spirit, never wanting anything.”
COUNT
IT ALL JOY: Rom. 5:3-5 sandwiched into James 1:2-4, Amplified Bible
“Consider
it wholly joyful, my brethren, whenever you are enveloped in or
encounter trials of any sort or
fall into various temptations. Be assured and
understand that the trial and
proving of your faith bring out endurance and
steadfastness and
patience. Moreover let us also be full of joy now! let us exult and
triumph in our troubles and
rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and
affliction and
hardship produce patient and
unswerving endurance. And
endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character, approved faith
and tried integrity. And character of this sort produces the habit of
joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. Such hope never
disappoints or
deludes or
shames us, for God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through
the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us. But let endurance and
steadfastness and
patience have full play and
do a thorough work, so that you may be people perfectly and fully
developed with no defects, lacking in nothing.”
COUNT
IT ALL JOY: Rom. 5:3-5 sandwiched into James 1:2-4, NKJV translation
“My
brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing
that the testing of your faith produces patience. And
not only that,
but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces
perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now
hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out
in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
But let patience have its
perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.”
The
passage in James acts as the bread of a spiritual sandwich with the
passage in Romans inserted as the meat of the sandwich. The
“perfect work” of patience in James is what the Apostle Paul
describes in Romans, where patience is seen to produce God’s
character, hope and love in us and, ultimately, bring us to that
perfect and complete state where we lack nothing.
LACKING
IN NOTHING… NEVER WANTING ANYTHING...
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