James 1:2–4

My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

2 Hermanos míos, tened por sumo gozo cuando os halléis en diversas pruebas, 3 sabiendo que la prueba de vuestra fe produce paciencia. 4 Mas tenga la paciencia su obra completa, para que seáis perfectos y cabales, sin que os falte cosa alguna.

We are excited that you are with us online today, but we would like for you to join us physically. There is something that happens when the people of God gather together, and you do not want to miss it. Vamos a estar en la palabra del Señor en Santiago, capítulo uno, versículos dos al cuatro.

Before we open the text, let me ask you something. What do you do when the pressure does not let up? What happens when you have been praying and believing, and the trial is still there this morning? Do you know what that means? It means God is not finished yet.

The Trial Is Not Punishment — It Is the Workshop

Look at what James says.

“My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.” (James 1:2–3, KJV)

“Hermanos míos, tened por sumo gozo cuando os halléis en diversas pruebas; sabiendo que la prueba de vuestra fe produce paciencia.” (Santiago 1:2–3, RVR1960)

Count it joy. When the trouble comes, count it joy.

Some people think trials are God’s punishment. They think, “I must have done something bad, and now God is paying me back.” No, no, no. When you sin, the Holy Spirit convicts — that is His work, and He does it well. But a trial is not punishment. A trial is a mechanism God uses to mature us. It is a sign that God is working in your life. Dios está trabajando en ti. If God has stopped working on you, then you should worry. But the pressure you feel is the proof that His hand is still shaping you.

Do you know what that means? It means the trial is not against you. It is for you. Let’s look at this. The testing of your faith produces something. It is not wasted. Not one tear, not one sleepless night, not one closed door is wasted in the hand of God.

Joy Is a Decision Before It Is a Feeling

Now notice the word James uses. “Count it all joy.” The Greek phrase there is hēgeomai (G2233) — it means “consider” or “regard.” It is a deliberate mental choice, not a forced emotion. Do you see that? Joy is not something you feel first and then obey. Joy is a decision before it’s a feeling.

You decide, “This trial is producing something in me, so I will rejoice in it.” Not because it feels good. Not because you understand it. But because you know the One who allowed it. Tened por sumo gozo cuando os halléis en diversas pruebas. Have joy when the pressure comes, because you know what God is doing with it.

This is how you know your faith is being tested and not destroyed. You can still choose joy in the middle of it. There’s no law against joy. You can go as far as you want with joy, and the world cannot stop you.

Patience That Does Not Quit

Now let’s talk about what the trial produces. Patience. But this is not the patience the world talks about, sitting around and waiting passively. The Greek word is hupomonē (G5281) — steadfast endurance under pressure. It is the picture of the athlete who does not quit. He stays in the race even when everything in his body says to stop.

Paul says it plainly.

“Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.” (1 Corinthians 9:24, KJV)

“¿No sabéis que los que corren en el estadio, todos a la verdad corren, mas uno solo recibe el premio? Corred de tal manera que lo obtengáis.” (1 Corintios 9:24, RVR1960)

Run to win. And the one who competes is temperate in all things. He disciplines himself and holds back from what would slow him down. He does it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we run for an incorruptible one (1 Corinthians 9:25).

Salvation is free. Let me be clear about that.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8–9, KJV)

“Porque por gracia sois salvos por medio de la fe; y esto no de vosotros, pues es don de Dios; no por obras, para que nadie se gloríe.” (Efesios 2:8–9, RVR1960)

You cannot earn it. But to reach and to maintain this walk, we put effort into it. We line up the virtues like an athlete lines up his training. Joy, faith, patience. The crown is incorruptible, so the running must be serious.

Let Patience Finish Her Work

Here is where many of us stop too early. James says it this way.

“But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and complete, wanting nothing.” (James 1:4, KJV)

“Mas que la paciencia tenga su perfecto obra, para que seáis perfectos y cabales, sin que os falte cosa alguna.” (Santiago 1:4, RVR1960)

Let patience finish. The word there is teleos (G5046) — complete, mature, fully developed, without interruptions. Do not interrupt the process before it is done.

Think about the widow in Luke 18. She went to the unjust judge again and again. Her patience was not perfected until she obtained what she was asking. She did not quit on the way. And Jesus said, “Shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily” (Luke 18:7–8). 7 ¿Y acaso Dios no hará justicia a sus escogidos, que claman a él día y noche? ¿Se tardará en responderles? 8 Os digo que pronto les hará justicia. Pero cuando venga el Hijo del Hombre, ¿hallará fe en la tierra?

God will work for those who cry out and wait on Him. But notice how Jesus ends that parable. “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” That is the question. Will you still be running when He comes? Will your patience have finished its work, or will you have quit one lap before the finish?

Run Until the Work Is Complete

So here is what I want to leave with you today. The trial is not your punishment. It is your workshop. Joy is not your reaction. It is your decision. And patience is not passive waiting. It is the endurance that stays in the race until God says the work is done.

When patience has her perfect work, you arrive at a place of lacking nothing. Perfecto y cabal, sin que os falte cosa alguna. That is the promise. Not that you will never struggle, but that when the struggle has done what God intended, you will stand complete.

So run in such a way that you may obtain it. Do not quit today. Do not quit this week. Let patience finish what God started in you.

Aleluya. There’s no law to stop you. You can go all the way.