To Encourage You

James 1:12 “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.”

Is it more important to you that you are happy or that you are blessed?  You may ask, “What’s the difference?”  “Happiness” can be defined as “a feeling of pleasure of contentment.”  One psychologist has defined it as “the experience of joy, contentment, or positive well-being, combined with a sense that one’s life is good, meaningful, and worthwhile.”  It’s the feeling we might have when things are right in our world, at least as we see it.  It’s that feeling when the sun is shining, and when trouble seems to be far away. 

Blessedness, on the other hand, is a much deeper word. It’s a word that God has given us to speak of being “well-off” from a divine perspective.  In other words, one can be happy without God in his or her life, but he or she can never be truly blessed without Him.  In fact, when we read what the Bible says about the “blessed” we would wonder if they could ever be truly “happy.”  For example, in the verse above we are told that the blessed are those who persevere under trial.  So, who in their right mind has any interest in trials, difficulties, that sort of thing?  In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said the people who are truly “blessed” are those who are “poor in spirit,” that “mourn,” that are “persecuted for righteousness’ sake,” and that are reviled and have all kinds of evil spoken against them falsely on account of their relationship with Him.  So, what’s so blessed about such things?  Why would anyone want them?  Certainly, it’s hard to conceive of being “happy” under such conditions. Wouldn’t it be better to be happy than “blessed?” 

But here we are given God’s long view.  Here we have the eternal perspective of the eternal God who see’s things in ways that are higher than ours like the heavens are above the earth (Isaiah 55:9).  As God sees things, it is those who love Him, and only those, who will be truly blessed in the end.  It is on those who love Him that He will shower His love forever. 

But do we love Him? How do we really know?  What’s the test of this?  The tests, as we are told in James 1 above, are our responses to the trials that come our way.  It is then that what we really love is shown to us.  It is in our response to trials that we are given assurance of whether we truly are recipients of “the crown of life.” 

In Genesis 39 we have the account of the attempted seduction of Joseph by Potiphar’s wife.  He was all alone with her. What an opportunity this was to “have that feeling of pleasure,” i.e., to have a moment of happiness in his life. But what was His response to her?  It was this: “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9).  It is with these words that Joseph revealed his deepest love.  It was with these words that he endured this great trial and showed that he was among the blessed in this world for he truly loved God. 

I’m reminded of the traditional marriage vows, where we promise our spouse-to-be  that we will “have and hold them from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health.” It’s a commitment to love not just in the good times, but in the deepest valleys of life.  And just as those valleys are sure to come and test that love, the trials will also come to test our love of God.  And if we remain steadfast, if we endure the test, it is a sign of the genuineness of our commitment and love. It is a sign that is a great encouragement that we are the blessed of God.  It is in such assurance that there is great and abiding joy.  It’s a joy that is the possession of the truly blessed. And it’s a joy that is much deeper than any momentary feelings of happiness that so many seek while they at the same time might be spurning the love of the Lord.