Key Verse: "Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also."
- John 15:20 KJV
We will all face trials, tribulations and tests in our lives. As noted in our key verse above, if God's Only Begotten Son, Jesus, was persecuted, they will also persecute us. So, why does God allow us to suffer through Persecution, Trials, Tribulations and Tests? Let us consider four reasons why.
Reason #1: God Allows Trials and Suffering To Test Our Faith
Trials and tribulations test our commitment in serving God. It is easy to serve and praise God during the good times, but when things become hard, Satan will tempt you to quit. It is our choice! Do we continue to serve God or do we quit? The choice we make has ramifications.
As quoted in the Christian movie Flyweel, “You are in the shape that you are in today because of the choices you've made.” We can remain committed to God, and do right, or we can blame others, or even blame God, and sink lower into Satan’s lair.
Reason #2. Through Testing God Proves our love for Him
The proof is not to Him, because He already knows, but to us.
Deuteronomy 13:3 says, "...for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul."
In this section of scripture God is testing the Israelites' love and loyalty to Him. Ensuring that they do not follow false prophets or dreamers and not be led astray from the real and one true God, even if these false prophets perform signs or wonders.
The lesson learned here is that Satan will sometimes make the wrong path look like the right path. The Word of God must always be our ultimate authority.
Reason #3. God Test Us to Help Us Avoid Sin
This is made evident in Exodus 20:20 “And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.”
God’s tests, helps to keep us from sin. They are meant to guide us toward obedience. When we have reverence for God through these tests, it reminds us of His presence and helps us to avoid choices that lead to sin.
Reason #4. Trials Provide Refinement and Growth
Let’s look at a few verses on testing and refinement:
Psalm 66:10 states, "For thou, O God, hast proved us: thou hast tried us, as silver is tried."
Job 23:10 states, "But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold."
1 Peter 1:7 says, “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth."
So, what does it mean to be refined by God? God takes us through a process of growth and change. God allows us to face challenges to shape and purify us, helping us to become more faithful and closer to the person He wants us to be. Trials serve to refine our faith, making it stronger and more valuable, as gold refined by fire. In God’s eyes, the trial of our faith is more precious than gold!
Remember, God worked on Moses in Midian for 40 years before he was fit to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt.
