59.3 Happy The Man Who Perseveres

(James 1:2-4, 12)

My brothers, consider yourselves fortunate when all kinds of trials come your way, for you know that when your faith succeeds in facing such trials, the result is the ability to endure.  Make sure that your endurance carries you all the way without failing, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

Happy is the person who remain faithful under trials, because when he succeeds in passing such a test, he will receive as his reward the life which God has promised to those who love him.

59.2 If God Is With Us, Who Can Separate Us From His Love?

(Romans 8:31-39)

"In view of all this, what can we say?  If God is for us, who can be against us?  Certainly not God, who did not even keep back his own Son, but offered him for us all!  He gave us his Son--will he not also freely give us all things? Who will accuse God's chosen people?  God himself declares them not guilty!  Who, then, will condemn them?  Not Christ Jesus, who  died, or rather, who was raised to life and is at the right side of God, pleading with him for us! Who, then, can separate us from the love of Christ?  Can trouble do it, or hardship or persecution or hunger or poverty or danger of death?  As the scripture says,  "For your sake we are in danger of death at all times;  we are treated like sheep that are going to be slaughtered."

No, in all these things we have complete victory through him who loved us!  For I am certain that nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or powers, neither the present nor the future, neither the world above nor the world below--there is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our lord.

59.1 Brother Will Hand Over Brother

(Matthew 10:21-27)

"Men will hand over their own brothers to be put to death, and fathers will do the same to their children; children will turn against their parents and have them put to death.  Everyone will hate you because of me.  But whoever holds out to the end will be saved.  When they persecute you in one town, run away to another one. I assure you that you will not finish your work in all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

"No pupil is greater than his teacher; no slave is greater than his master.  So a pupil should be satisfied to become like his teacher, and a slave like his master.  If the head of  the family is called Beelzebul, the members of the family will be called even worse names!

So do not be afraid of people.  Whatever is now covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be made known.  What I am telling you in the dark you must repeat in broad daylight, and what you have heard in private you must announce from the housetops."

58.4 Complete Confidence In God

(Psalm 108)

I have completed confidence, O God!
I will sing and praise you!
Wake up, my soul! Wake up my harp and lyre!
I will wake up the sun
I will thank you, O Lord, among the nations.
I will praise you among the peoples.
Your constant love reaches above the heavens;
your faithfulness touches the skies.
Show your greatness in the sky, O God,
and your glory over all the earth.
Save us by your might; answer my prayer,so that the people you love may be rescued.

From his sanctuary God has said,
"In triumph I will divide Shechem and distribute Sukkoth Valley to my people.
Gilead is mine, and Manasseh too;
Ephraim is my helmet and Judah my royal scepter.
But I will use Moab as my washbowl,
and I will throw my sandals on Edom,
as a sign that I own it.
I will shout in triumph over the Philistines."

Who, O God, will take me into the fortified city?
Who will lead me to Edom?
Have you really rejected us?
Aren't you going to march out with our armies?
Help us against the enemy,
human help is worthless.
With God on our side we will win;
he will defeat our enemies.

58.3 Rejoicing In Trials

(2 Corinthians 6:4-10)

Instead, in everything we do we show that we are God's servants by patiently enduring troubles, hardships,and difficulties. We have been beaten , jailed, and mobbed; we have been overworked and have gone without sleep or food. By our purity, knowledge, patience, and kindness we have shown ourselves to be God's servants--by the Holy Spirit, by our true love, by our message of truth, and by the power of God . We have righteousness as our weapon, both to attack and defend ourselves.  We are honored and disgraced; we are insulted and praised.  We are treated as liars, yet we speak the truth; as unknown, yet we are known by all; as though we were dead, but as you see, we live on.  Although punished, we are not killed; although saddened, we are always glad; we seem poor, but we make many people rich; we seem to have nothing, yet we really possess everything.