So far we have looked at our call to be witnesses of the resurrection of Christ within us, now I want to look at our being tested to carry on our appointed tasks, these may carry such titles as divine methods of testing, delays to our requests, and our faith being tested. All of these and more are the work of GOD within us getting prepared for His service of our fellow man.
Spiritual Tests,
Divine Methods, used for testing:
By Demanding Great Sacrifices,
Genesis 22:1-2 of 1-8 and Exodus 20:20 "After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, 'Abraham!' And he said, "Here I am." He said, 'Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.' So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar. Then Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you." And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together. And Isaac said to his father Abraham, "My father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." He said, "Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" Abraham said, "GOD will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son." So they went both of them together."
Exodus 20:20 of 18-21 "Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, "You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die." Moses said to the people, "Do not fear (dread), for God has come to test you, that the fear (reverence) of Him may be before you, that you may not sin." The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where GOD was."
By Leading Men in a Difficult Way,
Deuteronomy 8:2 of 1-10 with 13:3 "The whole commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the LORD swore to give to your fathers. And you shall remember the whole way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that HE might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. And HE humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that HE might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. Your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years. Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the LORD your GOD disciplines you. So you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your GOD by walking in His ways and by fearing (revere) Him. For the LORD your GOD is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your GOD for the good land HE has given you."
Deuteronomy 13:3 of 1-5 "If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, 'Let us go after other gods,' which you have not known, 'and let us serve them,' you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the LORD your GOD is testing you, to know whether you love the LORD your GOD with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the LORD your GOD and fear Him and keep His commandments and obey His voice, and you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him. But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has taught rebellion against the LORD your GOD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you out of the house of slavery, to make you leave the way in which the LORD your GOD commanded you to walk. So you shall purge the evil from your midst."
By Giving Opportunities for Choice,
1Kings 3:5 of 3-9 "Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of David his father, only he sacrificed and made offerings at the high places. And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place. Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and GOD said, 'Ask what I shall give you.' And Solomon said, "You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant David my father, because he walked before You in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward You. And You have kept for him this great and steadfast love and have given him a son to sit on his throne this day. And now, O LORD my GOD, You have made Your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in. And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude. Give Your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern Your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this Your great people?" (other references: 2Chronicles 32:31, Psalm 7:9, 11:5 and 17:3)
By Proposing Hard Tasks,
John 6:5-6 of 1-14 and 11:6 "After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a large crowd was following Him, because they saw the signs that He was doing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat down with His disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. Lifting up His eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward Him, Jesus said to Philip, 'Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?' He said this to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do. Philip answered Him, "Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little." One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Him, "There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?" Jesus said, 'Have the people sit down.' Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. Jesus then took the loaves, and when He had given thanks, He distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they had eaten their fill, He told His disciples, 'Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.' So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign that He had done, they said, "This is indeed the Prophet (Deuteronomy 18:18-20) Who is to come into the world!"
John 11:6 of 1-16 "Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to Him, saying, "Lord, he whom You love is ill." But when Jesus heard it He said, 'This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.' Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that Lazarus was ill, He stayed two days longer in the place where He was. Then after this He said to the disciples, 'Let us go to Judea again.' The disciples said to Him, "Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone You, and are You now going there again?" Jesus answered, 'Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world.But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.' After saying these things, He said to them, 'Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.' The disciples said to Him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover." Now Jesus had spoken of His own death, but they thought that He meant taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, 'Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.' So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with Him."
By Permitting Men to Suffer when in the Pathway of service and Duty, (Paul and Silas),
Acts 16:23-24 of 19-24 "But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers. And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, "These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice." To this the crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods. And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks."
By Permitting Temptation,
James 1:2-3 of 2-4 "Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."
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