Faith Under Fire: Why Our Faith Must Be Tested
“A faith that cannot be tested cannot be trusted”
When faced with a situation that tests your faith in God, how do you respond? Many times, our initial prayer is for God to deliver us from the situation. We may even beg Him for it. But I’ve learned that God doesn’t deliver us from a test because the purpose of the test is actually to deliver us.
It can be difficult to understand why a good God allows us to go through trying situations. The reason is simple: sanctification. God is transforming us into the image of His son, Jesus Christ. God tests us for our good; to develop our faith. Testing is not something we should despise because it’s a chance to show the genuineness of our faith and glorify our Lord.
Testing Reveals What is in Us
This third I will put into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, 'They are my people,' and they will say, 'The LORD is our God.'" - Malachi 3:3
The bible tells us that God refines us like silver and tests us like gold. To understand what that looks like practically, you first need to know how silver is refined. In short, the silversmith places the silver in a fire and watches it carefully. He knows the silver is ready when he can clearly see his reflection (or image) in the metal.
When you’re in a trial or test, does God see His image and character in you? Or are your carnal ways of thinking still present? Do you exhibit the fruit of the spirit or are you exhibiting acts of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-23)? Will you doubt God or trust Him someone else is given the promotion you've been praying for? Do you slander that person’s name to everyone you know or do you ask God to remove the bitterness and continue to work your job as unto the Lord? When faced with a test, what is in you will come out of you. How we respond determines if God moves us forward in His will or allows us to spend a bit more time in our current season.
Testing Removes Impurities
As you grow in your faith you’ll begin passing more and more tests. It’s a great feeling. Even though you’re on the right track you shouldn't get too comfortable. Now that God has refined you, He'll test you like gold.
Gold is naturally impure. To purify it, the goldsmith must put it into the furnace repeatedly. With each pass through the fire, it becomes purer. This is why there are different karats of gold (8,16,24). The higher the karat the purer it is, with 24 karats being the purest. If we want our faith in God to be pure and indestructible like gold, our faith has to go through the fire again and again. Although we’ve been made right with God through our faith in Jesus Christ, the remnant of our sinful nature is still within us. Our sanctification doesn’t happen all at once, it’s a process.
Related Post - It’s Not Punishment, It’s Pruning: 4 Ways God Develops You
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. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. - 1 Peter 4:12-13
This is where a lot of people become discouraged and give up. We don’t know when the tests will come, how long they will last, or how intense they will be. Like the Israelite’s in the desert, we can grow weary and start to believe God has forsaken us in the very place He brought us to. Out of fear, we attempt to take matters into our own hands instead of continuing to trust God (see Exodus 32).
The Cost of Following Jesus
“If your faith doesn't cost you anything it's because it’s not worth anything”
To follow Christ we must pick up our cross and deny ourselves daily. This requires dying to our own desires and ways of thinking. The tests we go through are designed to kill our flesh so we live by the Spirit. It’s can be a struggle not to go back to self-medicating or finding your worth in a relationship. It’s not easy to stay faithful at work when you’re being overlooked or discredited. Trials feel like the complete opposite of what life in Christ should be, but it’s not. The purpose of the test is to grow your faith, free you from bondage, and increase your dependency on God. Shallow beliefs and idols won’t last in the trial, they’ll be ruined by the fire. Only what is true and pure will remain.
Friends, don’t fear the fire - the tests and trials. The fire isn’t designed to destroy you, but to remove everything that’s holding you back from God’s perfect will. If you remain steadfast, you will glorify God and come to know His power in a deeper way. Your triumph will be a testimony to believers and unbelievers alike. Now, this isn’t to say that it will get easier, but you will become stronger, wiser, and not as easily swayed by storms that come your way.
