Ever been tested by God ?

[Analog]

Okay, quick bit of background. About 2 years ago I came to this forum to get back into Christianity, but eventually found my answer's weren't within Christian dogma, so I went walkies.

Anyway, in an occult forum I was lurking through tonight, they were talking about being tested as part of their spiritual growth and gave the example of the biblical Job - The whale guy. :o An Occultist reading the Bible sounds a bit odd, but when I looked into it a bit more, I made sense, or as much sense as any religious/spiritual thing

Soooo...I was wondering, under Christian dogma, does God test people to further their spiritual growth ? If so, have you been tested, and would you mind telling me a bit about your experiences? (if its not rude to ask of cause, some people consider interactions with the Divine to be sacred, deeply personal, and highly offensive to ask about, so if it is, sorry, I don't mean to be rude, just curious )

 

[Rafael]

Life has plenty of tests and trials we must go through. The Bible speaks of them and how we are to respond to God.

1Pe 1:6 ¶ So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while.
7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold––though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.

1Pe 5:10 ¶ In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.

Jas 1:2 ¶ Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.
3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.
4 So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

Jas 5:11 We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him at the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy.

Job 5:17 ¶ “But consider the joy of those corrected by God!
Do not despise the discipline of the Almighty when you sin.

Ps 94:12 ¶ Joyful are those you discipline, LORD,
those you teach with your instructions.

Ps 119:67 ¶ I used to wander off until you disciplined me;
but now I closely follow your word.

Ps 119:71 ¶ My suffering was good for me,
for it taught me to pay attention to your decrees.

Ps 119:75 ¶ I know, O LORD, that your regulations are fair;
you disciplined me because I needed it.

Pr 3:11 My child, don’t reject the LORD’s discipline,
and don’t be upset when he corrects you.

Pr 3:12 For the LORD corrects those he loves,
just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.

 

[heron]

hi, Analog! I remember you. Has it really been two years?!!!

Without trying to embarrass you, Jonah was the whale guy and Job was the one who lost everything. We all slip on the J's.

The whole book of Job can get confusing the first time you read it, because his friends seem to be saying useful things, and he does too, so there's confusion about who's the good guy and the bad guy. It sounds very similar to a thread conversation where everyone approaches things slightly differently, but with apparently good intentions.

In the conclusion of Job, God speaks a lot about humility. You can imagine that someone as wealthy as Job (previously) might have been accused of lack of humility.

Similarly, there are things I've walked through where I've seen the other side of situations, and realized how arrogant I'd been... not understanding what people have to go through, and making heartless suggestions.

A universal example is parenthood -- we complain about how our parents handled things until we're faced with the same decisions.

There's more to life that the appearance of success. If someone wants to have a positive impact in their society, then time-saving inventions and world peace aren't the only worthwhile objectives.

The book starts out talking about a test -- the devil challenging God -- but there are very few other times that people in scriptures talk about unreasonable challenges. Usually challenges are viewed as a training ground, (vs. a trick). Like the gut-wrenching of taking a public speaking course.

 

[jak]

Hi analog.
You asked for us to share our experiences of God testing us.
The episode that jumped into my mind was when we were going to have our first child. The gynaecologist told us that the baby appeared to be smaller than she should be, and there was a strong possibility that she may have stopped growing (a euphemism, it became clear, for 'baby may be dead'). We were asked to come back the next day for an ultrasound (to check if the fetal heart was beating and so on).

We went through a difficult night. We talked, and wondered why, and cried, and prayed, and finally both came around to saying, "Lord, you gave us this child. If you choose to take her back right away, we accept whatever you choose. We commit our little baby to you; She is safe in your hands, for you made her, and you love her more than we ever can. Please, Lord, don't let her suffer. If you choose to take her, we will miss her and feel sad that we did not know her, and we don't know why this is happening, but we trust you, that you are good, and you love us and love her..."

or something like that. Then we could sleep.

next day, when we went for the ultrasound, turned out to the doctor's surprise and our ecstatic delight, that the baby was ok...just really small. Today, she is a healthy and happy girl.

yes, god allowed us to go through that, but I learned so much from it. I learned to trust Him in bad times as well as good. I learned that sorrows and trouble come to all of us, but we must bear them with grace and patience. It drew us together as a couple, and we learned that we should each be courageous and encourage the other also to be so.

We have had other problems since then, but for me, that was a water-shed experience in my growth.

 

[dvd_holc]

every day is a spiritual testing and teaching. God lead Israel into the wilderness because in the wilderness our relationship with God grows. It is the place where the sun, heat, lack of food and water will kill you. It is the place that repersents the tough times in life. A problem with a loved one, work, school, etc...are all forms of desert that extract our life source and test our dependence to God. But God does not leave us in the desert. God meets all our needs and provides life to get through the desert in proper relationship with Him.

Deut. 8:1 Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land that the Lord promised on oath to your forefathers. 2 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. 3 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. 4 Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years. 5 Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you. 6 Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and revering him.

7 For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land--a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; 8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; 9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills. 10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. 11 Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. 12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, 13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 15 He led you through the vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. 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. 17 You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." 18 But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today.

19 If you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed. 20 Like the nations the Lord destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the Lord your God.

 

[dvd_holc]

by the way...the whale guy is Jonah...

 

[heron]

We have had some intense worries, like jak's post, but I think that some of them were normal life circumstances, injustices, things gone out of hand, misunderstandings, and natural consequences of actions... not all trials and tests.

Yes, the experiences developed us -- God can work anything out for the good, and people can try to do the same -- but I doubt they were all thrown at us to make us better people. The situations just happened, and we learned from them.

 

[Adstar]

If you never felt pain, then how would you know that I'm a Healer?

If you never went through difficulties, how would you know that I'm a Deliverer?

If you never had a trial, how could you call yourself an overcomer?

If you never felt sadness, how would you know that I'm a Comforter?

If you never made a mistake, how would you know that I'm forgiving?

If you knew it all, how would you know that I will answer your questions?

If you never were in trouble, how would you know that I will come to your rescue?

If you never were broken, then how would you know that I can make you whole?

If you never had a problem, how would you know that I can solve them?

If you never had any suffering, then how would you know what Jesus went through?

If you never went through the fire, then how would you become pure?

If I never corrected you, how would you know that I love you?

If you had all power, then how would you learn to depend on me?

If your life was perfect, then what would you need Me for?



All Praise The Ancient Of Days

 

[Analog]

Soooo, under Christian belief God doesn't "intentionally" test you, to see if your worthy, or whatever. It's just normal life challenges that pop up for everyone, regardless of their faith, and God hopefully helps you along ?

 

[Confess]

Faith Triumphs in Trouble Romans chapter 5
1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have[a] 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.

 

[heron]

Soooo, under Christian belief God doesn't "intentionally" test you, to see if your worthy, or whatever.

Notice that everyone's response had a slightly different slant. But testing to see if we're worthy -- if God knows our thoughts, and the intentions of our hearts, then the test isn't for Him -- and it wasn't in Job either.

Ge 20:6
Then God said to him in the dream, "Yes, I know that in the integrity of your heart you have done this."

1Ch 28:9 For the Lord searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts.

1Ki 8:39
Then hear in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive and act and render to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know, for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men.

This verse sounds like what everyone is saying--

De 8:2
You shall remember all the way which the Lord your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know (def. includes "be made known") what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.


Think about production testing in manufacturing -- a vehicle or product appears to be strong, but they run it through stress tests.

Or think about now metal is forged --

"Forging results in metal that is stronger than cast or machined metal parts. This is because during forging the metal's grain flow changes in to the shape of the part, making it stronger. Some modern parts require a specific grain flow to ensure the strength and reliability of the part."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forge

It's just a common development principle, to allow stress to increase strength and understanding.

​

 

[OldChurchGuy]

Okay, quick bit of background. About 2 years ago I came to this forum to get back into Christianity, but eventually found my answer's weren't within Christian dogma, so I went walkies.

Anyway, in an occult forum I was lurking through tonight, they were talking about being tested as part of their spiritual growth and gave the example of the biblical Job - The whale guy. :o An Occultist reading the Bible sounds a bit odd, but when I looked into it a bit more, I made sense, or as much sense as any religious/spiritual thing

Soooo...I was wondering, under Christian dogma, does God test people to further their spiritual growth ? If so, have you been tested, and would you mind telling me a bit about your experiences? (if its not rude to ask of cause, some people consider interactions with the Divine to be sacred, deeply personal, and highly offensive to ask about, so if it is, sorry, I don't mean to be rude, just curious )

A very thought provoking question.

I cannot say with absolute certainty that I have had a situation which I interpreted to be a test from God.

On the other hand, I have talked with God many times about situations (job offers, lack of job offers, relationships, troubles other people are going through, for example) with the key question being, "OK Lord, what do I do?"

Often, a "solution" or "resolution" comes to mind after discussing the question.

One could say this is God thumping me on the head with an answer.

One could say this is the incredibly complex mechanism known as the human brain allowing the answer to surface from the subconcious because I examined the issue before making a decision.

I can't prove either school of thought, but I will side with the belief it is God thumping me on the head.

Sorry I didn't really answer your question.

OldChurchGuy

 

[dvd_holc]

Soooo, under Christian belief God doesn't "intentionally" test you, to see if your worthy, or whatever. It's just normal life challenges that pop up for everyone, regardless of their faith, and God hopefully helps you along ?

I guess you did not even read my post...

 

[Analog]

I guess you did not even read my post...

No, no I did, was just getting additional options. Like any religious group, Christians tend to be a diverse lot.

 

[dvd_holc]

No, no I did, was just getting additional options. Like any religious group, Christians tend to be a diverse lot.

ok then...yep we are.

 

[AngelsSword]

YES God does intentially test people. people have free will. every christians or so called christian is going to tell God "yes i will do anything for you" but they do not mean it. so YES YES definately God tests us. God has tested me 2 times. These are big tests of my faith and both were very embarassing for me but God wanted me to do them and so i did. and YES YES YES it brings you closer to God. absolutely. God tests your bravery and your strength more for YOUR benefit than anything (will make you braver and stronger for the tasks that God wants you to do on the earth)

 

[heron]

YES YES YES

There-- diversity.