SPIRITUAL TESTS II

THE PURPOSE OF THE TEST

© Carlos Padilla, June 2011

God tests us several times during our lives in order to make us become real disciples, and sometimes He tests us intensively. Some of the tests we go through do not seem to make any sense or have any explanation to them. It is only once we have gone through them that we can clearly see what God's purpose was. We may never understand some of the tests we go through and they will seem like unfair punishments that we will only understand in eternity. When we trust God and His justice is when we wait even until eternity to understand what we are not able to comprehend now. Our trust in God is our spiritual strength in these circumstances because He is our hope, even in the most painful losses or in the worst experiences, the heart of a Christian will be sustained by God's Spirit, because He is who has called us to His presence through the Gospel, through revelation of the Holy Spirit, in the work of His beloved Son Jesus Christ.

If you are being tested right now - and I believe we all are to a lesser or greater extent - this journey through the tests, the characters in the Bible and their tests that we saw in the first part of this study "Spiritual Tests. When God tests our faith" together with other historical characters and references in this second part, will help us to have hope while living in a world that is so far away from having a personal relationship with God in Christ.

THE PURPOSE OF THE TEST

FORGING OUR CHARACTER AS CHRISTIANS TO PERSEVERE IN JESUS CHRIST

Tests are absolutely essential in order to forge our character and bring out our true essence. They teach us to learn what we are made of and how far we are able to go (which is always farther than we could imagine) if we are with God, our Father. God has no limits - but we do, and only our Father knows ours, because He made our spirit. The Bible says that the spirit of man is only known to man and the Spirit of God is the only one who knows the things of God, 1Corinthians 2:10 and this is what the Son reveals to us from the Father and ourselves through His Spirit.

It is a good thing that God tests our heart - we should be worried if He doesn't. He loves us and disciplines us through tests, delays, in the wilderness, in exhortation, etc,  until we are ready for the next step in life. The delayed blessings, the ones that we know God is going to give us but take longer than we expected, test our faith. The biggest test for us is for our heart, to see whether we love our brethren, whether we have brotherly love, not only towards God but also towards those whom He loves, our neighbour. If we don't overcome this test, we will make no progress, and we will speak about this later on in a specific section. God tested Job until the end, until he thought he was going to die, and He will also test us because without tests there is no growth, therefore you must trust the Lord because He has accepted to die for us, so He will not leave us nor forsake us, no matter how hard the test it, even if we think that we have lost our hope, faith, life, even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we will fear no evil for He is with us ... Psalm 23. The grace of God will overflow us from above, everything is part of God's purpose for our lives, we must trust Him, even if it is easier said than done, only those who have really been tested know it; but we stand up and rise with virtue, and we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, to come to lie down in green pastures where He will lead us beside the still waters.

God has a project for every one of us. Our task is finding out which one it is and live it with Him. This project will be the most fulfilling for each individual, what is written in our heart since before the foundation of the world. No other project will make us feel fulfilled. It is like a computer program, it can only perform to its full capacity when used for its specific purpose, even if many of us use programs for other things because they can also perform those other tasks. The same principle applies to our lives, we can do many things but we will never be satisfied until we discover our specific purpose in life, the one that will make us feel truly fulfilled to our total satisfaction when we work on it. This is also the purpose of the test, but we have to let go of ourselves in God's hands, instead of fighting against Him, allow the Lord to do His work in us, let Him take away whatever and whoever we are fond of but that are not part of the Father's project for our lives, and wait for Him to put whatever and whoever are to be part of our lives. Will we be willing to do this and pray for it until we see it clearly?

I believe that Abraham is the best example, the most complete, of a man of God who leaves his land and his kindred leaving everything behind, taking just his closest family looking for the Lord's promised land, until he finds it. He faces many tests on the way, but the outcome is God's blessing. Ruth is another great example of a woman of God who leaves her life in God's hands and follows the project that God had for her. Widowed and with no future, she is determined to go with her mother in law, wherever she may go and live the way she tells her to live, following her God. Once again, we see that there are major tests, and God's blessing is at the end.

The young rich man was righteous as far as the law was concerned and Christ tested his heart when the man asked Him what he should do to inherit eternal life and His reply is that he should sell everything he had and give it to the poor. The man was sad because he was very wealthy and he had to understand that he needed to let go of his own righteousness, take his cross and follow Christ. Mark 20:21. The test qualifies us for the Great Commission, for a ministry, to serve God according to His criteria.

TESTS OF THE NEW BORN CHRISTIAN

How many Christians confirm that they were never warned about the tests that they would face immediately after receiving Christ as their Saviour?. In my case I keep hearing this from every Christian I meet, which is why when I preach I announce the Gospel and the tests of faith that come immediately after and which are precisely a confirmation that the leap of faith has been real, not just a social experience.

Problems with relatives, such as Jesus announced: ... a man’s enemies will be those of his own household ... Matthew 10:36. Followed by Christ's challenge when He refers to those who are to follow Him in spite of their father, mother, spouse, children, belongings, projects and even their own lives, Luke 14:26, because we will be tested in each and every context in life and with each person the moment we bear witness to our faith. Any mature Christian has already gone through this and can confirm it. But those new-born in Christ....how many of them are told about the tests that the Lord will make them go through?. It is our duty to tell them so that the new Christian prays to God to give him spiritual strength and get ready for the tests. The fact that we are persecuted and tested due to our love for Christ is an indubitable evidence that we have truly taken the step before God and it is a great joy for the new believer, and a confirmation that the world is against him and that God is with him. The Gospel announces it very clearly, we should do the same if we love our new brethren, and to honour the Word of God.

GOD TESTS THOSE CHRISTIANS WHO HAVE DRIED UP IN THE SPIRIT OR HAVE BECOME LUKEWARM

We also find Christians who, for whatever reason during their lives, have left their first love for Christ, have dried up living in their own projects or have become lukewarm, they do not share the Gospel around them, not even with their next door neighbour, they only attend fellowship because it has become a habit, so that they feel that they are part of a community and they are no longer zealous for God, and God is a jealous and zealous God, as He says Himself in Exodus 34: ¹⁴ for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God, ¹⁵ lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they play the harlot with their gods and make sacrifice to their gods, and one of them invites you and you eat of his sacrifice, ¹⁶ and you take of his daughters for your sons, and his daughters play the harlot with their gods and make your sons play the harlot with their gods. ¹⁷You shall make no molded gods for yourselves.

But since God did not spare even His own Son, He delivered His Son to death, death on the Cross, therefore He will not spare testing and disciplining every one of His sons who becomes dry or lukewarm, because this is a very dangerous state in which many lose their faith and the Blood of Christ that this disciple once received when he converted cannot be in vain. ... For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives ... Hebrews 12:6.

DISCOVERING TRUE BRETHREN IN THE TEST

Another one of the amazing results of God's test in our lives is that He allows us to see who are our true friends in Christ, our true brethren, those who are next to us when we are in the wilderness. Like it happened to Job, his friends did not tell him the true cause of his situation, until Elihu came along, symbol of Christ, who as a true brother and friend spoke to him and helped him out. Not only did he exhort Job but he also helped him to see the situation patiently until he was able to understand it.

A true friend in Christ will tell you the truth, but he will be merciful and compassionate, he will help you, he will offer to serve you. On the contrary, those who call themselves brethren but are only ready to condemn you and when you make a mistake, if you sin, even if you repent, seven or seventy times seven, they never forgive you, they are only there to try and make you sink deeper, they hold their grudge forever. This is how the Lord teaches us who are the real Christians. We must pray for those even more and we shall not bear false witness against them, because they are the ones who need to mature more, and the ones we will no doubt see in the wilderness, under the test, in God's furnace, for whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.

God is the best Father ever. He is not like us, who are more tolerant and permissive with our children because our character is weak. Let us remember this, we will find true friends in Christ when we are in the midst of the test, in need, in sickness, in trouble. When everything is going smooth, many will come to us and act as if they were our friends. Let us wait until the test comes to see who the true friends are, and let us wait for their test for us to show we are friends to those who are in the wilderness, let us be good friends in Christ, truly, let us serve whoever needs us, exhort them with the truth, but let us never forget that the Lord is merciful and tells us the truth with love, even though He disciplines us, it depends on how hard our heart is. We are no better than the rest, we are not above them. Only Christ is above us. Leaders, pastors, elders in the Church are the first one who must be the example.

GOD IS THE BIGGEST TEST FOR THE HEART

God demands the first place in our life, because we are nothing without Him. He has created us and gives us salvation, He waits for us throughout our lives, like the prodigal son, so that we return to Him, as Father. He did not spare His own Son for us to prove His eternal love for us. The question is obvious: do we love God and seek Him, or are we looking for His blessings, for things to go well for us in life, with an ideal husband or wife, healthy and blessed children, fantastic family and friends, that He gives us health, money, success, peace, etc? And God gives us all of this, but this is the biggest problem, because we usually place all of these things before God, they become our idols, and Jesus Christ is very clear about it: ... He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me ... Matthew 10:37. ... But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you. Luke 12:31.

The relationship with God is so strong and powerful that it overwhelms us completely. When we love God nothing is stronger than Him in our heart, in our feelings, in our mind, but if we let our love for God in Christ cool down and we place other people or thing before Him, God - who is jealous, Exodus 34:14 - will look for us.

Delayed blessings in our lives test our personal relationship with God as well as our faith, like for example the birth of a son for Abraham, Genesis 15:2-5 in a long wait for Isaac, almost an entire lifetime, 21:2, but once God granted him his son, He asked Abraham to sacrifice him, and once Abraham's heart was tested, Isaac was finally given to him 22:8-14. He obeyed God. The gift of the Spirit took some time to come to the apostles since Christ's ascension until Pentecost, Luke 24:49. The death of Lazarus was another test, Jesus' beloved friend, who stayed for another two days where He was after He was informed that Lazarus was seriously ill. Mary, his sister, was desperate, but Jesus had the purpose of resurrection, John 11:6, 32, 43, 44. Paul lost all hope of staying alive after the storm in the sea when they could not see the sun or the stars for many days, but he stood up and announced that nobody would die because God had visited Him in the middle of the storm and told him that he was to appear before Caesar, and that he had been granted all those who sailed with him. Acts 27:20-44.

It is essential that we tell Christ about our situation when we are undergoing any test, because He is sharing it with us even if we don't see Him, therefore we should tell Him about all our experiences: Our dangers, Matthew 8:25. Our questions, Matthew 24:3. Our sickness, Mark 1:30. Our difficulties, Mark 6:35-36. Our needs, Mark 10:51. Our failures, Mark 9:28. Our family issues, Luke 9:38. Our victories, Luke 10:27. Our disappointments, Luke 24:18. And our sorrows, John 11:21.

THE TEST OF LIFE ITSELF

The film "Saving Private Ryan" is based on a true story. When Ryan is very old, he visits Captain Miller's grave in the Normandy American Cemetery with all of his family and when he reaches the grave, after a hasty march up the hill, with tears in his eyes and short of breath, he kneels before the cross that bears the name of his captain. His wife comes to his side and he asks her, eagerly awaiting her reply with tearful eyes: "Have I been a good man, have I led a good life that has been worthwhile?". His wife does not understand the question but she solemnly replies: "Yes, you are a good man". Before he leaves with his family, he comes to attention and salutes his captain, the one who saved his life.

In the film, we see how just after the D-day battle in World War II, a group of 8 men from the 2nd Ranger Battalion under Captain Miller, are set out to look for Ryan with the instruction of bringing him back home safely. Ryan is the fourth son of a mother who had lost all of her other sons in war, and this made the U.S. Army Chief of Staff, George C. Marshall, issue the order to find Ryan because he considered that this mother had already contributed enough to her country with three of her four sons killed in action. The decisive moment in the film comes when Captain Miller and his men find Ryan next to a bridge that was a key access point. Miller explains their mission to Ryan and instructs him to return with them. Ryan says that he will not, under any circumstance, leave his comrades and refuses to go home. But when the Captain tells him that almost all the members of his group had died for him, Ryan changes his mind. When the Captain dies in Ryan's own arms in the midst of a German attack, he says to Ryan in his last breath: "Ryan. Earn this...earn it". The mission accomplished for him would become such a heavy burden in Ryan's life that he would never forget Captain Miller's last words and the look in his eyes. All the squad that had come to save Ryan was dead or dying, except for two members, but they accomplished their mission thanks to the arrival of the American reinforcements minutes later. Ryan would live the rest of his life, he was a good man, honest, raised a wonderful family and lived a good Christian life, but bearing the burden of living a life that had really been worth that sacrifice, and he fought to earn it, so he needed to have the reply to his struggle.

This story, which we have all seen in the movie, is told in a similar way in "The good life", a book written by Charles "Chuck" Colson, that was given to me by an American friend, and which has inspired me for this approach to the test of our life before God, because when I read it a few months ago I thought it was a great way to confront us with life, Christian life, the life that Christ died for. Colson gave his life to Christ towards the end of the seventies. He was Special Counsel for President Richard Nixon, and a member of the government accused in the Watergate case that forced the President to resign, and caused Colson to serve seven months in prison. When he was released, he founded Prison Fellowship Ministries; he is a Christian author, hosts a radio show and is a columnist for Christian Post, among others. Colson's life and his experience is also a test that he himself uses to witness to others, bringing them the hope that everything is possible in Christ, even if we are on the middle of an individual or a mass tragedy, Jesus will lead us out of it, making us stronger and forged through the fire of the test. According to his own words, without this experience he would have never been able to live the life that he has lived.

Similarly, when each of us look in the mirror, we must ask ourselves the same question, and also ask Jesus Christ: Am I living a life that is worth that You, oh Lord, dyed for me? Am I being the type of Christian, of disciple and child of God that You want me to be? The husband or wife that I should be? The father or mother of my children that they deserve? The son or daughter that my parents deserve? The brother or sister that my brethren deserve, in family as well as in Church?. And all those questions that the Spirit leads us to make and make Him.

 
Just like Ryan, many people in history have gone through major tests, burdens, and victories in life - just like we have in ours.

Cristopher Colombus (1436-1506). of unproven Jewish descent, his determination to look for land beyond those that were already known is summarised in this phrase: “Our Lord opened to my understanding, so that it became clear to me that it was feasible to navigate from here to the Indies, and He unlocked within me the determination to execute the idea. And with this fire I came to Your Majesties". This is what he said to the Catholic Kings of Spain, looking for finance for his trips. But he had already tried the same, without success, before King John II of Portugal. The Spanish kings did not accept his proposal at first, so he made another attempt in Portugal. Columbus could have given up in this test where nobody believed him or considered that his project deserved any funding. His trip changed the world.

Classical music came from composers such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791) who was one of the most brilliant composers, admired by other relevant musicians, like Beethoven, who wrote a piano piece in his memory, or Rossini who said about him: "He is the only musician who had as much knowledge as genius, and as much genius as knowledge." But he lived conscious of his death, as he was seriously ill, while he composed his famous Requiem, which he believed was for his own funeral.

Beethoven (1770 - 1827) was born in a humble family where his father was an alcoholic and his mother was always ill. Born with a natural musical talent, he was pressed by his father to be a genius like Mozart. He had to take care of his family when he was 17, due to the death of his mother and his father's alcoholism and depression. At the age of 30, his increasing deafness made him question his career and life, but he persevered and he composed his greatest pieces during that period.

Copernicus (1473 -1543) founder of modern astronomy, his work proved that the Earth was not the centre of the universe and, instead, it rotated around the sun together with other planets. The Catholic church rejected his theories. Galileo Galilee (1564 -1642) defender of Copernicus' heliocentric theory and author of several astronomy works, suffered persecution from the Catholic church who sentenced him to life imprisonment. They were seriously tested due to their discoveries and their tests brought them closer to God amongst a merciless church. The truth of their revelations would change the world in a time that not even the official church knew the Bible.

Einstein (1879 - 1955) is considered the most important scientist of the 20th century. He was Jewish, and when Hitler reached power, he immigrated to United States. Several scientists who supported nazi ideology, including Physics Nobel prizes (Starck and Lenard) tried to discredit his theories. Einstein always acknowledge God's existence ... "God does not play dice".

William Wilberforce (1759 - 1833) gave his life to Christ when he was 25 and his faith led him to fight for social justice, especially for the abolition of slavery, and he dedicated 18 years of his life to fight against it, introducing bills in the British parliament that were regularly rejected and this fight undermined his health. He finally succeeded, and slave trade was abolished not long before he died. One of his greatest influences was John Newton (1725 - 1807), author of the famous hymn "Amazing Grace", a family friend and protestant pastor who had been in the salve trade himself before his conversion. Newton supported him both spiritually and personally encouraging Wilberforce not to leave politics and to serve the Lord from the social position that God had granted him, until he abolished slavery.

No doubt the efforts of Wilberforce, a white man, also encouraged Nelson Mandela, who lived in prison for 27 years in his fight against apartheid, a truly hard test for his life. The reward for his perseverance finally came being the first South African president to be elected democratically in a multi-racial national project. A true example of how to remain anchored to faith and conviction that we are walking in the purpose of our call in life.

Florence Nightingale (1820 - 1910) was born into a rich family and grew up in Britain in Victorian times.  She argued with her parents and relatives in order to be allowed to study mathematics and not just reduce her future to getting married and being a housewife. An intelligent and determined woman, and a devout Christian above all, at 17 she said she felt the Lord's call to serve others. In her own words: "I am thirty, the age at which Christ began His mission. Now, no more childish things, no more vain things, no more love, no more marriage. Now, Lord, let me think only of Thy will." A real fighter in a time when women suffered discrimination; she is most famous for laying the foundations of professional modern nursing but she was also a statistician, educator and administrator.

Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865) was never an official member of any church but he defended the existence of the Truth that is in the Scriptures. As Genesis says "all men have been created to God's image and likeness", which made slavery inacceptable. He had no easy life, in personal, professional or public aspects, but he always relied on his faith in God and the Bible. Most Americans consider him to be the most important President in the history of the United States.

We know that our Christian life is built on foundations that are common to every Christian: Our priesthood, 1Peter 2:9; this comprises the Great Commission, preaching the Gospel around us; the Great Commandment, loving God above everyone and every thing; the Golden Rule treating our neighbour like ourselves and in every good work; and the fruit of the first and the last: the New Commandment, that we love one another as He has loved us, by this all will know that we are His disciples. I can assure you that with these four pillars of the structure of our inner spiritual temple - as you no doubt are already experiencing - we will live a life of ongoing tests that forge our character, a life that will sooner or later become a life of blessing and a reflection of Jesus Christ, through the work of the Holy Spirit within us.

These historical notes are confirmed in the way that God teaches us when He tests us in life. When He tests our inner life we have David speaking with God in Psalm 17:3: You have tested my heart; you have visited me in the night; you have tried me and have found nothing... Tests are a refining process necessary for our heart as we can see in Zechariah 13:9: I will bring the one-third through the fire, will refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people’; and each one will say, ‘The Lord is my God.  We will have the test of the storm in the way we have built our lives, Luke 6:48: ... He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.  We find the final test in 1Corinthians 3:13: ... each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. ... 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.

THE LAST TEST OF FAITH: DEATH

Many people, including many Christians, face an almost insurmountable test when they face death. It is actually a test of faith, if we don't sincerely believe in our hearts that Christ resurrected, that we have received His salvation, that we have eternal life when He returns to establish His Kingdom, if we don't believe this deep inside our hearts, that when we close our eyes for the last time we are going to see Jesus Christ and be able to embrace Him with our own arms, then death will be an insurmountable wall. On the contrary, if our faith in the work of the Son of God and its effect on us, if our repented conscience is at rest thanks to our life before God and our neighbour, knowing that we are made righteous and perfect by Christ and not through our merits, but conscious of our fruits, then death is left without any power, as Paul said: “ O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?”... 1Corinthians 15:55, and we await in peace for the moment when we meet Jesus Christ and hold on to Him forever in the Father's bosom in the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Where do the dead go? We must remember the text about the resurrection of the dead in Ezekiel 37, called the valley of the dry bones. Read it in your Bible.

THE GREATEST TEST OF ALL: LOVE, GOD'S LOVE

Love is the greatest test of all. Love is something we have before us everyday and that it is up to us whether we give it or not, receive it or not.

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another... John 13:34. This commandment is the test for us to prove that we love God, and for God it is the evidence that we love Him. 1John 3:16 speaks to us again about this commandment that Jesus teaches us in John 13:31-35 whose last verse shows us the reason why Jesus teaches us this commandment and He calls it new, because it is the fruit of His work on the Cross for us: ... By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another ...

Let us test ourselves, examine and determine whether we love our brethren by looking at our fruits, how we treat others, our heart, our feelings; because it is here, in the privacy of our soul, when there is no deceit, where the only One that has access to it - apart from ourselves - is the Spirit of God. Unfortunately many do not want to look inside themselves because they know the state of their soul and heart, which translate into the state of their spirit.

God loved us first, we are His workmanship and Christ gave Himself for us before the world was created, when He saw with the father that man would turn away from Him to live his own project. However, as He knew us, He did not forsake us and he provided for our salvation waiting for our repentance dying on the Cross in our place to give us the living hope of resurrection and eternal life.

That eternal life has two meanings. The first one is the one we all understand at once: eternal life in God's paradise when the Kingdom of God comes, on the return of Jesus Christ. The second one, not so well known although it is also Biblical, but for whoever has ears to hear. I am referring to Jesus Christ's teachings when He prayed to the Father in John 17:3: ... And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent... According to Jesus Christ, knowing Him is eternal life, we do not have to wait for it, it is right in front of us, it is life with God everyday in Jesus Christ. The Father sends us His Son so that by believing in Him we have access to His presence. The Son takes us to the bosom of the Father so that we, by ourselves, can be in the presence of God through the Spirit. It is living the Kingdom of God now, according to another reference in the New Testament - and we must understand the whole Bible under the Spirit it. Yes, even though it seems difficult to understand, this is precisely what John the Baptist talked about when He shouted: Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!... Matthew 3:2, which Jesus Christ Himself would soon confirm preaching the same way: ... Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand... Matthew 4:17 the He who is the Kingdom of God was amongst them. Today He is also with us in Spirit so that we have a personal relationship with Him.

If we understand that love is the greatest test of all, because it is not natural for us to love brethren whom we don't know - let alone our enemies - with the hope that they will be saved, this is when we understand God's work for us. God has gone through, and still is going through, the greatest test of all.  There are three persons in God's divinity, the one and only God undergoing the test in three persons. In the first place, the Spirit is undergoing every day the test of loving us in our weaknesses, against our flesh, against our mind and does not cease to intercede for us with groanings which cannot be uttered, Romans 8:26, protecting us, defending us, and comforting our heart so that we walk strong and steady as Christians. Without Him it would be impossible to live a Christian life and stay in the faith. The Holy Spirit fulfills every day the greatest test of loving us.

Secondly, Jesus Christ went through the test He committed to before the foundation of the world, when He was in the throne of glory with the father. The Son told the Father that He was willing to die for us so that we would have eternal life in His Kingdom. The time came for test of love that the Son of God committed to, and the Son became man, became flesh and lived amongst us. He was born with the purpose of dying for us. he took it right through till the end, he went through the tests of His ministry, he went through the wilderness tempted by the devil. He went through the test of being rejected by His people, and all the tests of faith that the Father made Him go through. Finally, the last test of all, the one that gives us life, His love on the Cross until He gave His life for us. In resurrection we have the greatest hope and the evidence of the greatest love ever, and the Lord prayed to the Father before He died: And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was... John 17:5. Jesus Christ fulfilled and fulfills today the greatest test: loving us.

And third, the Father went through the greatest test a person can suffer: seeing His Son, His only begotten Son, being crucified because He loved His enemies, those who rejected Him and sinners, all of us, of all times and nations.  ..   John 3:16. The suffering of the Father was symbolically described to us in Abraham when he had to obey God and take his son, his only son from his beloved wife Sarah, to the mountain to offer him as sacrifice. God provided a victim in his place, but nobody could provide God a substitute for His Son, even if we wanted to offer ourselves to the Father and take Christ's place. God loved us and accepted that His Son offered Himself for us, and went through the greatest test until He received the Spirit of Christ when He died on the Cross: ... Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?”... Matthew 27:46 and ... Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit... Luke 23:46. God the Father went through the greatest test: loving us.

With such love from the Father, Son and Holy Spirit which God loves us with, how can we doubt that He will be with us no matter how hard the necessary tests are?. It is our turn now to live the test of loving us in Christ so that He finds us as His real people before He comes. Let us not spare any efforts to really win hearts over, because this is the greatest treasure of all, just like the gold is purified in the fiery furnace, a symbol of the test of faith that produces a clean heart: ... Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God... Matthew 5:8.

RELEVANT BIBLE TEXTS ABOUT THE PURPOSE OF THE TEST OF OUR FAITH.

EXODUS 32

... And the Lord said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and indeed it is a stiff-necked people! ¹⁰ Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation.” ¹¹ Then Moses pleaded with the Lord his God, and said: “Lord, why does Your wrath burn hot against Your people whom You have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?

DEUTERONOMY 8

... And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. ³ So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.

ROMANS 5

...Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, ² through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. ³ And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; ⁴ and perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵ Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

JAMES 1

... Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. ⁶ But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷ That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. ⁸ Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

1PETER 4

... Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. ¹³But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. ¹⁴If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. ¹⁵If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. ¹⁶However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name. ¹⁷For it is time for judgment to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? ¹⁸And, “If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”¹⁹So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.
 

CONCLUSION

You may find yourself towards the end of your 40th year in your journey through the wilderness, at the doors of the promised land. You may find yourself at the end of the seventh year of famine in Egypt, about to finish all your remaining provisions and you have nothing left and you do not see a way out, but the situation is about to change. You may find yourself on the night of the 40th day of your temptation test in the wilderness and you are about to start your ministry. Or maybe you are reaching the coastline after your boat sank, whilst you were serving the Lord and you don't know what happened. Maybe you are old now and the Lord is starting to give you revelation, as He did with John in the book of Revelation, listen or serve and share it with your church.

Do not give up, be brave and courageous, fight with the angel of the Lord like Jacob did until He blesses you, but spiritual tests are divine ways of testing the believer and turn him into a disciple. We have seen some of the best examples, like asking for major sacrifices in Genesis 22:1. Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”

When guiding men through a difficult path like in Deuteronomy 8:2: Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands (an 11-day journey that took 40 years). When giving the opportunity of making a choice in 1Kings 3:5;  at Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?”. When proposing difficult tasks as in John 6:5: Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?” But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.

When men are allowed to suffer even when they are faithful, like Paul and Silas in Acts 16:23: And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely. Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. Or when temptation is allowed to show up, as in 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.

We cannot forget about divine delays, which make us search deeper into our life, increase our patience and trust in God. They are a great test for men's courage and patience. ... How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? Psalm 13:1. ... But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinks upon me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God. Psalm 40:17. ... I am weary with my crying; my throat is dry; my eyes fail while I wait for my God. Psalm 69:3. ... My eyes fail from searching Your word, saying, “When will You comfort me?”  Psalm 119:82. ... So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. John 11:6 ... Now Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. John 11:21. ... Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. James 5:7. ...The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. 2Peter 3:9.

We can therefore conclude saying that every achievement in life has two common features, if we observe the history of Bible characters, the historical ones and the ones we will see throughout our lives: first, the test and opposition they had to face in order to achieve what God put in their hearts and second, the perseverance and fight against adversity, convinced that they would make it. We must act the same way, is we are convinced, if we have prayed and asked the Lord to give us signs, if we have received confirmation and we believe in our mission in life, we cannot avoid doing whatever we have been made for before we were formed in our mother's womb, as God said to Jeremiah.

The final word in this journey through spiritual tests is our hope, the end of Revelation: ... ²⁰ He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! ²¹ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.