James 1:2-4 (NIV) - Consider
it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because
you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance
must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking
anything.
In the last spiritual growth lesson, "Testing Your Faith, Part 1",
we talked about the kind of trials prison inmates are often faced with as
Christians behind bars. If you will recall, a prison inmate, whom I referred
to as Mac, was persecuted by other inmates for reading his Bible. Even though
the Holy Spirit (speaking through James), teaches us in scripture to consider
it pure joy whenever we are faced with such trials - Mac was not joyful.
He had other thoughts going through his mind. Evil thoughts of retaliation
consumed his thinking, dangerously leading him into a trap, in enemy territory
and away from God.
The only righteous way for Mac to escape the temptation of his taunters
was to put a stop to his own wrongful thinking. In the end, through the
prompting of the Holy Spirit, he stood up to the test he was facing. He
stopped his evil thoughts by replacing them with righteous thoughts. He
got into agreement with the Holy Spirit by telling him self, "Mac,
wake up! It's not worth it for me, a child of God, to get into a fight with
another inmate, because God expects better things of me."
When our faith is put to the test, no matter how ugly things may look in
the natural world, we must persevere and do the will of God. It is a given,
Christians who persevere during a trial will experience pure joy! They will
come away from that experience mature and complete, not lacking anything!
Psalm 28:7 (NIV) - The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart
trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks
to him in song.
In this lesson, "Testing Your Faith - Part 2" we will be talking
about another kind of test. This test takes place outside the prison walls,
when an inmate is released from prison. Whether an inmate has served their
sentence or are being released on parole, it makes no difference. The moment
an ex-convict hits the streets, their faith in Christ will be tested. Will
their profession of faith in Jesus last beyond the prison walls? Will they
go on with Jesus to experience pure joy in the trials they will be facing,
or will they fall into the traps and temptations of the world, only to experience
bitterness and defeat?
The answers to these questions are dependent upon what their mind is fixed
on when they walk through the prison gates. It depends on what thoughts
are dominating their thinking - faith or fear, love or hate, forgiveness
or retaliation. A man's actions, good or bad, will follow what he thinks
the most about. Thoughts are the beginning of everything! An ex-convicts
whole future is riding on the thoughts he is thinking.
Proverbs 23:7 (KJV) - "For as he thinketh in his heart, so
is he..."
Merle Haggard, who once spent time behind bars, sings about the hopeless
"thoughts" that too often haunt those who have been incarcerated:
I'd like to hold my head up and be proud
of who I am, but they won't let my secret go untold. I paid the debt I owed
them, but they're still not satisfied, now I'm a branded man out in the
cold.
When they let me out of prison, I held my head up high, determined I would
rise above the shame. But no matter where I'm living, the black mark follows
me, I'm branded with a number on my name.
If I live to be a hundred, I guess I'll never clear my name. `Cause everybody
knows I've been in Jail. No matter where I'm living, I've got to tell them
where I've been. Or they'll send me back to prison if I fail.
Those who say they would like to hold their head up high and follow Jesus,
but whose mind is consumed with thoughts of failure, are those whose minds
are more fixed on self, then on Jesus Christ! These individuals have
not made the quality decision to single-mindedly follow Jesus Christ - come
hell or high water! Instead they have what James describes as a double-mind
(James 1:5-8 KJV). What are the characteristics of someone
who is double-minded?
A double-minded man tries to live by faith, but at the same time is protecting
his fear. He is uncertain about the decisions he is faced with, so his decisions
are split. "I'd like to hold my head up and be proud of who I am,
but they won't let my secret go untold." This whole thought process
comes down to, "I'd like to...but..." This man is hesitating -
he is wavering. James tells us that a double-minded man is one who wavers,
like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. The end result of
this type of thinking, is the same as a house that is divided against itself.
It will fall. A mind that is divided against itself is not in a position
to receive anything from the Lord.
By studying the following scripture in James, we learn an important spiritual
principal. God expects nothing short of complete (total) faith in Him, when
we seek his wisdom for our daily life.
James 1:5-8 (KJV) - If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of
God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall
be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth
is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that
man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man
is unstable in all his ways.
How do we gain stability in our lives? We must put into practice unwavering
faith. We must stop being double-minded! We must have a whole mind.
We must have a sound mind. We must have the mind of Christ! Once you make
up your mind to center your thoughts on Jesus Christ, there is no room in
your mind for any other kind of thinking. God is calling us to be single-minded.
A single-minded man, whose thoughts are fixed on JESUS CHRIST, is
a man whose actions will follow his thoughts of faith. This man will not
hesitate and "wimp out" in the face of trials. He will live, move,
and have his being in Christ Jesus, because he is being led by the Spirit
of God.
The bottom line? As a prisoner, what are your thoughts fixed on as
you prepare to walk through the prison gates? Are you feeling sorry for
yourself and how rough you have had it? Are your thoughts fixed on
what the world thinks of you, with all of its injustices? Or, are your thoughts
fixed on what Jesus thinks of you? If you are waiting for the world
to treat you good, to set an example of compassion for prisoners, before
you will make changes in your life - you'll be waiting a long time. Godly
change is an internal change. It comes from a new spirit. Godly change doesn't
come because of what the world thinks of you, it comes in spite of it! Remember,
Jesus came to save the world from its old sorry SELF!
I John 2:15-17 (NIV) - Do not love the world or anything in the
world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
For everything in the world -- the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his
eyes and the boasting of what he has and does -- comes not from the Father
but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man
who does the will of God lives forever.
The world has never been a suitable role model. If you want to be a Christian
and live forever in God's Kingdom, you must pass the test of faith. Will
you overcome the world or will the world overcome you? You can't have it
both ways. Who are you going to put your faith in? Will you put your faith
in Christ? On Christ's behalf, I implore you to repent, take the stand of
faith, and let Christ live in you.
Galatians 2:20 (NIV) - I have been crucified with Christ and I
no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live
by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Questions for personal or group study:
1. What is the basic truth of double-mindedness? (See: Luke 11:17)
2. What is the basic truth of single-mindedness? (See: James
1:17)
3. If our future is riding on the thoughts we are thinking, what must
we set (fix) our minds on if we want to follow Jesus? (See: Colossians
3:1-3)
4. How can we obtain life and peace while living in this world? (See:
Romans 8:5-6)