7.24- Joy is not the absence of suffering

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 7.24-

Joy is not the absence of suffering, but the presence of God.

James 1.

1 [a]James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,

To the twelve tribes who are [b]dispersed abroad: Greetings.

2 Consider it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you encounter various [c]trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces [d]endurance. 4 And let [e]endurance have its perfect [f]result, so that you may be [g]perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and [h]without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 being a [i]double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

9 Now the brother or sister of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position; 10 but the rich person is to glory in his [j]humiliation, because like [k]flowering grass he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so also the rich person, in the midst of his pursuits, will die out.

12 Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has [l]been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. 13 No one is to say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted [m]by God”; for God cannot be tempted [n]by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. 14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. 15 Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it has run its course, brings forth death. 16 Do not be [o]deceived, my beloved brothers and sisters. 17 Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or [p]shifting shadow. 18 In the exercise of His will He gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would be [q]a kind of first fruits [r]among His creatures.

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