2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
I heard the Lord say that He had to allow for many of the things that are occurring right now to happen, in order to test peoples’ faith, IN ORDER to produce perseverance. This also has to do with persistency. Persistency is to be insistent in a statement or REQUEST. This request is prayer. The Body of Christ needed to grow in learning how to truly pray. They had lost the importance of consistent communication with the Lord, and some also are just learning this way of living.
Enoch WALKED FAITHFULLY with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.
What does it mean to walk faithfully? It means to walk in step with someone or also TO FOLLOW OR MAINTAIN A PROPER RHYTHM. For so long, God’s people have not known how to maintain a PROPER rhythm with Him or have gotten out of step with His rhythm. This process has allowed for God to get His people back along with Him, and has also weeded out those that do not want to get into step. Enoch, the one man in the Bible, that was ‘taken from the earth, who did not see death, never found or seen again, AND was one who pleased God’ had one major characteristic about him—he walked faithfully with God. He was in step or in the rhythm of God or His Spirit—faithfully or also with stability.
Also in the scripture above, in James, it says these tests PRODUCE PERSEVERANCE THAT CAUSES MATURITY. The mature walk in God REQUIRES this so one can be completed. In both Hebrew and Greek, the word faithful means ‘believe’. In other words, trials and tests of your faith/belief in Him can produce perseverance. This can go both ways. One can be tested and found not to believe or be faithful, therefore producing no perseverance, no spiritual growth (maturity), and therefore lacking in things spiritually. However, if you face a trial, and have been found believing, then you will receive perseverance and growth spiritually—and will lack nothing from Him—because if you’ve got Him, you’ve got all you need…you will lack nothing (2 Cor. 12:9; Dan. 10:19; 1 Cor. 2:5; Eph. 3:16; Philippians 4:13).
This is a time that many have renewed their belief in God or have just come to believing in Him. This was necessary in order for what’s to come. If they hadn’t truly gone through this process, they would have never RECEIVED what’s to come soon. God will expose in what’s coming, those that truly believe, and only He knows men’s hearts. He sees all things.
So I say this to you…
9 Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. 10 But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower.
Take PRIDE IN YOUR LOW POSITION…meaning, take satisfaction internally in what God is doing with you personally in this time…value it. Do not use this to boast in front of men as they do in their carnal pride, but boast in the Lord, that YOU BELIEVE WHO HE SAYS THAT HE IS!
God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.'”
God told this to Moses to tell the Israelites, in order that they’d believe he was sent to them by God. Hear what is being said here…God is about to release the ones ‘sent of God.’ The ones (like the Israelites back then but now considered spiritual Israel), will know to receive what God has sent to help lead them out of Egypt. They will walk in the rhythm of God’s Spirit as Christ did:
Jesus gave them this answer: “VERT TRULY I TELL YOU, THE SON CAN DO NOTHING OF HIMSELF; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, BECAUSE WHATEVER THE FATHER DOES THE SON DOES ALSO.
Jesus is the Son of God. These are the sons of God…
For the creation waits with eager longing for the REVEALING OF THE SONS OF GOD.
See also: James 1:2-18