James 1:12

Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

James 1:12 

Blessed or, “Oh how happy,” is the man who has been able to endure the temptations set before him because on the other side he comes out “approved” and with a “crown of life.” James tells us that there is profit for us in the temptation. The word “endure” here is an interesting word, hupomeno in the Greek. It literally means “to persevere under, hold one’s ground, to stand fast.” Blessed is the man who stands fast in the midst of temptation, because through it he becomes approved, and brings the crown of life, and it displays your faith in God. The perseverance that God brings to our lives attests to the fact that we know Him and that eternal life has been given to us.

You may know someone who claims to know God but the minute things get difficult they quit on the Lord. Those are people I’m concerned about, wondering where their faith really lies. But endurance testifies that our faith lies in Jesus, Who has given us “The crown of life, promised to those who love Him.”

So “Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. Let all that you do be done with love” (1 Corinthians 16:13-14).

Pastor Doug Hardin