The purpose of being tested – Pastor Guillermo Jiménez

THE PURPOSE OF BEING TESTED

“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope” (Romans 5:1-4 NIV).

In life, we are not tested by chance nor are we tested because God wants to give us a hard time. Instead, we go through hardships because God wants to shape our character and help us change our bad habits. If we can be sure about one thing is that eventually our faith will be tested. The question is, why?

1. Because they push us to make positive changes.
The Lord will not change the circumstances; He wants to deal with us through the challenges we face and it is through these problems that we grow, because we make the necessary changes to do so.

“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope” (Romans 5:3-4 NIV)
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2. Because they help us exercise our spiritual senses.
Our spiritual senses are sharpened through exercising our faith, prayer, fasting and by reading the Bible. God expects us to believe in Him during the testing of our faith.

“But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil” (Hebrews 5:14 NIV).

The more we try to avoid problems and the testing of our faith, the more we won’t be able to, because they will accompany us all the days of our life. The greater question is, will you choose to let Jesus be your helper or will you keep fighting in your own strength? What will you decide today?

Think about it:

How can the hardship you’re going through benefit you?
What spiritual senses can you sharpen through the testing of your faith?