Understanding When and Why God Tests Us
It’s quite surprising to realize how easily we come up with and accept some of the things we do about God and what He does, even though we would know they aren’t true if we’d just take the time to fully consider them and how they measure up with what is word teaches.
For instance, most of us have heard or even said ourselves that God tests us so He knows what is in our hearts or to find out if we really trust Him and whether or not we will obey Him. Yet, based on many passages of scripture, we know that’s just not true. Psalm 139, particularly verses 1-4, leaves no doubt that nothing about us is hidden from God, and that He knows ALL there is to know about us; what we think, how we feel, what we’re going to say, and even when and where we’re coming and going. Yet, after acknowledging that God ALREADY knows all there is to know about him, David still asks God to “search him and know his heart and to “test” him and know his anxious thoughts and to see if there is any “offensive” way in him. And THEN He asks the Lord to lead him “in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23-24 says Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
I often suggest that men and women standing for marriage restoration read Psalm 139 and ask the Lord to search them and test them and reveal if there is any offensive way in them. However, I also caution them that it’s a very powerful prayer; one that God seems to answer very quickly and that it really hurts when He does! Since David first acknowledged that God ALREADY knew all there was to know about him, why would he then ask God to search and test him and see if there was any offensive way in him? I believe the anser is in verse 6, which says Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. And as Jeremiah 17:9-10 makes clear, The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.” Obviously, we can’t even know our own hearts; yet we know that the words we speak reveal the content of our hearts according to Luke 6:45, which says The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks. So that means that the words we speak when the Lord tests us, along with the thoughts from which they originate, reveals to US AND OTHERS what is REALLY in our hearts. And since we know that unforgiveness, self-righteousness, being judgmental toward others, hatred and other ungodly thoughts and attitudes hinder the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, it’s important to ask God to search and test us to reveal any “offensive” way in us, so that we can be led into His everlasting way! And the following passages of scripture verify, confirm and reveal an awful lot about when and why God tests us.
1 Corinthians 3:13 – For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work.
Ecclesiastes 3:18 – I also thought, “As for men, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals.
Exodus 20:20 – Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.”
Deuteronomy 8:2-3 – Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.
Deuteronomy 8:16 – He gave you manna to eat in the desert, something your fathers had never known, to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you.
Jeremiah 9:6-7 – You live in the midst of deception; in their deceit they refuse to acknowledge me,” declares the LORD. Therefore this is what the LORD Almighty says: “See, I will refine and test them, for what else can I do because of the sin of my people?
Lamentations 3:39-40 – Why should any living man complain when punished for his sins? Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the LORD.
James 1:12 – Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
Hebrews 11:17-19 – By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.
Isaiah 48:10-11 – See, I have refined you, though not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be defamed? I will not yield my glory to another.
Job 23:10 – But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.
Psalm 66:10 – For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver.
James 1:2-4 – Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
Based on the above passages of scripture, it’s pretty apparent that God doesn’t test us to find out what is in our hearts, what we’ll do or how much we trust Him, because He already knows that and more. But God does test us to correct and discipline us and to reveal to US and others what is in our hearts and where we stand with Him. When we buy a tube of toothpaste, we have every reason to believe that only toothpaste will come out when we squeeze it. But we can’t really be absolutely certain of that until we actually squeeze it and see what comes out. In the same way, we quite often think that we’ve come a long way in our walk and relationship with the Lord and that we’ve gotten rid of the yuk (bitterness, unforgiveness, self-righteousness, hatred, pride, being judgmental, etc.) in us, but when the Lord examines our hearts and thoughts and hears our words, He knows better. But due to our naturally deceitful hearts, we aren’t aware of what God and even others see so clearly, so God squeezes us and the yuk comes out and then we realize that there’s still more work to do! When silver is refined, it’s considered “pure” only when the fire burns away all of the impurities, which is what God always does in us and why He tests us repeatedly. Since we’re here to bring praise, honor and glory to Jesus Christ, and we can’t do that when we’re full of yuk and living contrary to the written Word of God, He uses times of testing in our lives to bring us into right relationship with Him and into HIS will, plan and purpose. So the sooner we understand the reason for the test, the sooner we can do whatever it takes to pass the next time and then move into God’s GOOD plan for our lives. And in His infinite love, mercy and grace, God is ever so faithful to give us the test over and over again until we pass it and are ready to move on to the next one! So the next time we’re tested, let’s be sure to ask God to reveal why so we can rely on HIS grace and strength as we stand on the power and promise of His Word for the full and complete restoration of our marriages and families and be blessed and encouraged!