May 1, 2019 THE NECESSITY OF TRIALS
1 Peter 1: 6-7 “In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;”
James 1:12 “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial, for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”
We may not like the news, but trials are necessary for our spiritual growth. Trials have a way of revealing the depth of our faith and at the same time strengthening our faith. It is absurd to say that we should rejoice in the trials we face; however, that’s what we see in the verse above. The only way one can rejoice in the midst of a trial is to know that the trial is producing something good in him that has eternal consequences-his faith is being proved. Should our response to trials be depression, despair, hopelessness, or anger, then our faith is not proved; our ‘faith’ was weak at best, or even non-existent. Trials may very well bring tears and grief, but genuine faith in the sovereignty of God will prevent us from being defeated by the trials. This next thought I share is kind of ‘tricky.’ Generally speaking, the trials that the word of God refers to are about the trials and difficulties that come upon us that are beyond our control. (Often, believers of the early church faced great trials because of their belief that Jesus was the Son of God.) However, we can through bad choices and wrong beliefs create, or bring about trials and difficulties. For example, if I drive my car with no oil in the engine, I will soon face the ‘trial’ of having no transportation. In such cases, the self-induced trial should serve as motivation for us to make the needed changes in our life. The point being that we should not claim ‘faith in God’ as a scapegoat for our bad decisions; let us be honest with ourselves. However, we also should know that God can and will work even in our bad decisions and He will give us grace to work through the fall-out of bad decisions and wrong actions on our part. One key point of the verses above is that our faith in God should be the bed-rock of our soul and spirit-no matter what circumstances we face. The other key point is that when we understand that God has a purpose in the trials, that He has good things in store for us when our faith is proved to be genuine, we can actually rejoice in the trail-all because the proving of our faith is more precious than gold. So, even though we do not like trials, we can rejoice in that God has a real purpose in the trial that will work for our good. When tested by the fire, may our faith be proved to be the real thing!
See how Jesus endured the fire in Hebrews 12:2 “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Romans 5:3-5 “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”
Blessings,
Buddy
1 Peter 1: 6-7 “In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;”
James 1:12 “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial, for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”
We may not like the news, but trials are necessary for our spiritual growth. Trials have a way of revealing the depth of our faith and at the same time strengthening our faith. It is absurd to say that we should rejoice in the trials we face; however, that’s what we see in the verse above. The only way one can rejoice in the midst of a trial is to know that the trial is producing something good in him that has eternal consequences-his faith is being proved. Should our response to trials be depression, despair, hopelessness, or anger, then our faith is not proved; our ‘faith’ was weak at best, or even non-existent. Trials may very well bring tears and grief, but genuine faith in the sovereignty of God will prevent us from being defeated by the trials. This next thought I share is kind of ‘tricky.’ Generally speaking, the trials that the word of God refers to are about the trials and difficulties that come upon us that are beyond our control. (Often, believers of the early church faced great trials because of their belief that Jesus was the Son of God.) However, we can through bad choices and wrong beliefs create, or bring about trials and difficulties. For example, if I drive my car with no oil in the engine, I will soon face the ‘trial’ of having no transportation. In such cases, the self-induced trial should serve as motivation for us to make the needed changes in our life. The point being that we should not claim ‘faith in God’ as a scapegoat for our bad decisions; let us be honest with ourselves. However, we also should know that God can and will work even in our bad decisions and He will give us grace to work through the fall-out of bad decisions and wrong actions on our part. One key point of the verses above is that our faith in God should be the bed-rock of our soul and spirit-no matter what circumstances we face. The other key point is that when we understand that God has a purpose in the trials, that He has good things in store for us when our faith is proved to be genuine, we can actually rejoice in the trail-all because the proving of our faith is more precious than gold. So, even though we do not like trials, we can rejoice in that God has a real purpose in the trial that will work for our good. When tested by the fire, may our faith be proved to be the real thing!
See how Jesus endured the fire in Hebrews 12:2 “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Romans 5:3-5 “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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