In every believer’s life, there are three days that stand out above all others: the day of one’s birth, the day of one’s new birth, and the day of one’s judgment. Of those three, one’s day of judgment is by far the most significant. That day is what gives meaning to the other two.

The foremost significance of your birth was that it set in motion a life that would one day be judged by God. The foremost significance of your new birth was that it marked the beginning of a new life and lifestyle, which, if continued, (see Col. 1:23) would result in inheriting eternal life at your judgment.

Think about how significant every person’s day of judgment will be. Those who rejected Jesus Christ as their Lord will on that day be banished to hell, irreversibly. Unlike any previous day—from the day of birth to the day of death—the Day of Judgment ends all opportunity for a sinner to repent.

This life serves as a test for every one of us. God gives us a lifetime to make an eternal decision. Will we repent and believe in Jesus, or will we continue in willful unbelief? Will we make Jesus our Lord, or will we continue to serve self and Satan? Our decision will determine if we perish in hell or live forever in God’s kingdom.

The believer, unlike the unbeliever, has passed God’s initial test. That does not mean, however, that he will not be further tested. On the contrary, he will be repeatedly tested in order to determine if he will continue in faith and prove himself worthy of greater blessings and responsibilities.

God will, of course, entrust more to a consecrated believer than to one who is less committed. This fact will never be more apparent than when we stand before God’s judgment seat. There, every believer will be recompensed for his works and will receive his position in God’s kingdom. We are indeed saved by grace, but we will be judged and rewarded according to our works. This is what the Bible teaches. Consider these three scriptures:

But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, and every tongue shall give praise to God.” So then each one of us shall give account of himself to God (Rom. 14:10-12).

For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad (2 Cor. 5:10).

Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God (1 Cor. 4:5,).

Many Christians unfortunately think that when they die, they’ll just go to heaven and move into their mansion. Then, once they’ve settled in, will stroll over to where God lives and stop in for a little chat. They don’t realize that they are going to have to first stand before His judgment seat and give an account of themselves.

That won’t be a judgment to determine salvation or damnation—it will be a judgment to determine rewards. Each of us will receive praise or reprimand, reward or loss, exaltation or humiliation, all depending on what we did as believers. Some will be called least, and some will be called great (see Matt. 5:19). Those who can be trusted with much will be entrusted with much, and those who can only be trusted with little will be entrusted with little (see Matt. 25:21, 23).

God’s Eternal Purpose

I hope you see that God has had an eternal purpose from the beginning. Paul wrote, “This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Eph. 3:11, emphasis added). He has been working since before the creation of the world to bring His plan to pass. That plan included our adoption into His family and our perfection in Christ:

Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself (Eph. 1:4-5a).

Some have, unfortunately, twisted scriptures like these to make them say that God has predestined some to be saved and some to be damned. Yet we must be careful that we don’t ignore the hundreds of other scriptures that make it clear that we are free moral agents who have been given the right to receive or reject Jesus. Thus, when Paul says that we have been chosen and predestined, he can only be referring to we who have chosen to repent and believe in Jesus. God has chosen to make holy all of those who would make a choice themselves. God has predestined to adopt those who would believe in Jesus.

God’s eternal plan was to have an eternal family—free moral agents who would choose to love and serve Him—children who would be holy and blameless. Thus, of necessity, all free moral agents would have to be tested in order to determine who would be qualified to live in His kingdom forever and, among those who qualified, who would be trusted with greater or lesser responsibilities in that future kingdom.

Questions About Rewards

In this regard, let’s consider a familiar parable of Jesus, one that He spoke a few days before His death:

He said therefore, “A certain nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return. And he called ten of his slaves, and gave them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Do business with this until I come back.’ But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’

“And it came about that when he returned, after receiving the kingdom, he ordered that these slaves, to whom he had given the money, be called to him in order that he might know what business they had done. And the first appeared, saying, ‘Master, your mina has made ten minas more.’ And he said to him, ‘Well done, good slave, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, be in authority over ten cities.’ And the second came, saying, ‘Your mina, master, has made five minas.’ And he said to him also, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’

“And another came, saying, ‘Master, behold your mina, which I kept put away in a handkerchief; for I was afraid of you, because you are an exacting man; you take up what you did not lay down, and reap what you did not sow.’ He said to him, ‘By your own words I will judge you, you worthless slave. Did you know that I am an exacting man, taking up what I did not lay down, and reaping what I did not sow? Then why did you not put the money in the bank, and having come, I would have collected it with interest?’ And he said to the bystanders, ‘Take the mina away from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’ And they said to him, ‘Master, he has ten minas already.’

“‘I tell you, that to everyone who has shall more be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away. But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here, and slay them in my presence'” (Luke 19:12-27).

For the most part, the meaning of this parable is clear. Jesus is obviously the nobleman who received a distant kingdom for Himself. Those of us who have chosen to serve Him are comparable to the slaves who were each given some money by which they were tested. The money can only represent the gifts, abilities and opportunities that we are given with which to serve our Lord. The citizens who hated the nobleman represent unbelievers.

Notice that the two faithful slaves were praised and then rewarded with greater responsibilities. They were to rule over a certain number of cities. The Bible teaches that we will rule and reign with Christ during His Millennial reign, so this parable correlates perfectly with that truth (see 2 Tim. 2:12; Rev. 2:26-27; 5:10; 20:6). Our position of authority in God’s kingdom will be determined by our faithfulness during this life.

Commentators debate if the unfaithful servant in this parable represents one who was at first a faithful believer who became unfaithful or one who was never saved. Regardless of the answer to that question, several points have been well served: God will reward us if we are faithful; those rewards will include promotion to positions of authority in God’s future kingdom. And obviously, if rewards are going to be passed out, then the faithfulness of believers is being tested now.

What Will Be Rewarded?

Every good deed that we do and in obedience to the written Word of God or His Holy Spirit and for the right motive will be rewarded. Jesus warned that good deeds done for the wrong motives will not be rewarded by our Heavenly Father:

Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. When therefore you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing that your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

And when you pray, you are not to be as the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners, in order to be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.

And whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance in order to be seen fasting by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you fast, anoint your head, and wash your face so that you may not be seen fasting by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you (Matt. 6:1-6, 16-18).

We can’t be certain of the motives of others, but we can check our own motives by doing deeds that no one but the Lord will know about.

The apostle Paul had some important insight about the kinds of deeds that will be rewarded when we stand before the Lord:

For we [Paul and Apollos] are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building. According to the grace of God which was given me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it [Apollos]. But let each man be careful how he builds upon it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds upon the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built upon it remains, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire (1 Cor. 3:9-15, emphasis added).

Notice that Paul listed six materials that represent the potential quality of our good works: gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, and straw. Obviously, three are very valuable and three are not nearly as valuable. And three are combustible and three are non-combustible.

One day, Paul indicated, every believer’s works will be tested by “going through a fire.” Although the fire of which Paul wrote may be figurative, I like to imagine a big furnace with a conveyor belt passing through it. I imagine every Christian loading his or her works on one side of the furnace and then walking around to the other side to wait and see what survives the fire. Each Christian’s works may well look the same going into the fire—his prayers, his offerings, his deeds of kindness, his sacrifices, the persecutions he endured, and so forth, although every Christian will have different amounts of each.

The fire, however, will burn everything that was done for the wrong motive, as well as everything that was not done in obedience to God’s Word or the Holy Spirit.

Now imagine a successful (but selfishly motivated) preacher bringing his works to the judgment seat. He loads his works on the conveyor belt, and then saunters to the other side of the furnace to proudly wait for his reward. Imagine his surprise when all that comes through is a small pile of ashes. “Lord, what about all my sermons? What about that church that I built? What about the books that I wrote, and the crusades I preached?” The Lord replies, “You did it all to be seen by men, and much of what you taught in your books and sermons was unscriptural or only human wisdom.”

Now imagine a little old lady who shyly approaches the judgment furnace. She places her seemingly small works on the conveyor belt and meekly shuffles to the other side to wait and see what might survive the powerful fire. Imagine her shock to see, pouring from the furnace, piles of diamonds and rubies along with bars of gold and silver. “Lord, what did I do to deserve all that?” The Lord replies, “You faithfully taught the children’s Sunday School class for 36 years. You were a secret prayer warrior. You did just what I called you to do. I’m going to put you in charge of ruling ten cities.”

At that judgment seat, we will better grasp Jesus’ warnings, “The last shall be first, and the first last” (Matt. 20:16), and “From everyone who has been given much shall much be required” (Luke 12:48).

Even “small deeds” will be rewarded then. As Jesus said, “Whoever in the name of a disciple gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink, truly I say to you he shall not lose his reward” (Matt. 10:42).

Some Seats Are Already Reserved

Some future seats of authority during Christ’s millennial reign are apparently already reserved. Jesus said to His twelve disciples:

Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name’s sake, shall receive many times as much, and shall inherit eternal life (Matt. 19:28-29).

So the twelve will have jurisdiction over the twelve tribes of Israel during the Millennium. Anyone who has sacrificed anything for Jesus’ sake will be repaid in that age many times over by comparison to his sacrifice.

Thy Kingdom Come

God once said to Daniel, as recorded in the final verse of the book that bears his name: “But as for you, go your way to the end; then you will enter into rest and rise again to your allotted portion at the end of the age” (Dan. 12:13). Just like Daniel, your divine destiny will ultimately be realized in the future kingdom. What we do now, in this life, will have eternal ramifications. There is, therefore, nothing more important than passing our tests by trusting and obeying God.

Will you fulfill your divine destiny?

The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil (Ecc. 12:13-14).

Some Christians prefer to ignore or avoid the book of Job because it challenges or perhaps contradicts their theology. We must be humble enough to admit, however, that when our theology contradicts the Bible, it isn’t the Bible that needs to be changed—it’s our theology. Surely God doesn’t want us to ignore any book of the Bible, much less one that contains 42 chapters.

Job experienced one of the most severe trials that any person has ever faced. His was a MIT—a Maturing/Testing Intended Trial. Job’s friends, however, considered his trials to be DITs—Disciplinary Intended Trials. In their minds, all suffering is a manifestation of God’s judgment upon sin, so they assumed Job must have sinned grievously to deserve such severe suffering. Job himself was baffled as to why he was being afflicted. We, however, have a supreme advantage over Job and his faultfinding friends because we have the book of Job to read. There we find the reason why bad things happened to a good man:

Now there was a day when the sons of God [angels?] came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. And the Lord said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.” And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered [literally, ‘set your heart to’] My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.” Then Satan answered the Lord, “Does Job fear God for nothing? Hast Thou not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But put forth Thy hand now and touch all that he has; he will curse Thee to Thy face.” Then the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand, only do not put forth your hand on him.” So Satan departed from the presence of the Lord (Job 1:6-12).

So we know why Job was afflicted. Satan accused Job of serving God only because of the blessings he received. Supposedly, according to Satan, if God didn’t bless Job so much, Job would stop serving Him, and he’d curse God to His face. As a result, Job was tested, and God permitted Satan to take away practically every blessing Job had ever received. Satan (through various means) killed Job’s livestock, his children, and most of his servants. He lost everything except his wife and his health. What a test! Our hearts go out to Job when we read his story.

When Job learned of his horrible tragedies, did he curse God? No, amazingly, he fell to the ground and worshiped the Lord, saying, “The Lord has given and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21). Job passed his test with flying colors. Who among us would have done as well?

Obviously Job had no idea that Satan was the one who actually did the taking away, but at least he recognized the sovereign hand of God. His trials could never have happened without God’s permission, as we have been reading from the Scriptures.

Some amount of time passed, and again Satan appeared before God:

And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered [literally ‘set your heart to’] My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man fearing God and turning away from evil. And he still holds fast his integrity, although you incited Me against him without cause.” And Satan answered the Lord and said, “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life. However, put forth Thy hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh; he will curse Thee to Thy face.” So the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your power, only spare his life.” Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head (Job 2:3-7, emphasis added).

Still Job didn’t react as Satan predicted. Even when his wife encouraged him to curse God, Job said, “Shall we indeed accept good from God and not adversity?” (Job 2:10). Job passed his second test. He never cursed God.

I think that it is important to take note that when Satan accused Job of only serving God because of what God did for him, the Lord did not reply, “So what if that is why Job serves Me? It doesn’t matter to Me!” Obviously, God does not want us to serve Him solely because of the blessings we receive. We should obey God because He is God, regardless of any promised rewards. Perhaps we should ask ourselves how we would react if we were tested to the degree that Job was. How many people have become angry at God as a result of lesser trials?

Was Job to Blame for His Trials?

Some well-meaning folks who want to exonerate God in this story try to place the blame on Job for all his troubles. If we can find some flaw in Job, then we can let God “off the hook.” We need to be careful, however, when we start looking for flaws in a man about whom God Himself said, “There is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil” (Job 1:8). In God’s eyes, Job was #1 on the planet!

Some have suggested that Job “opened the door to Satan” through his fear. Because Job once said, “For what I fear comes upon me, and what I dread befalls me” (Job 3:25), they lay the blame on his “negative confession.” If Job hadn’t have been afraid, they claim, he never would have lost his children, servants, health, and livestock.

If Job opened the door to Satan through his fear, however, we must wonder what the point is of the first two chapters of the book of Job. Why did Satan have to appear before God and obtain His permission before he afflicted Job?

And if Job was full of fear (and not faith), why would God brag about him as the one person on the earth who stood out among all the rest? Especially when we know that “without faith, it is impossible to please God” (Heb. 11:6)? Job was a man of much greater faith than the average person, as demonstrated by the fact that he worshiped God after being afflicted. How many of us would have lost all faith in God if we had been in Job’s place?

If Job’s fear was the reason for his affliction, did he become more fearful after his first test and, therefore, open the door wider to lose his health?

If Job opened the door through fear, why did God or Satan never mention that fact?

If Job opened the door through fear, why didn’t the loving God tell him so he could resist Satan and not be afflicted? Or why didn’t God mention to Job that he opened the door through fear during the final chapters when He spoke directly to Job? Foremost, why did God say to Satan, “You incited Me against him, to ruin him without cause.” (Job 2:3, emphasis added)?

I might also mention that Job said in 30:26: “When I expected good, then evil came; when I waited for light, then darkness came.” By taking another scripture out of context, we could just as easily (and wrongly) prove that Job opened the door to Satan by expecting good things and by making a “positive confession!”

A Happy Ending

Job persevered during his months (see Job 7:3; 29:2) of being tested. He spent some of that time debating with a few of his friends who had nicely packaged God into their own theological box. Although they relentlessly tried to convince Job that his suffering was punishment from God because of his sin (a DIT), Job steadfastly maintained his innocence.

Understandably, Job also spent some of his time in prayer, and there were a few times when he questioned God as to what he had done to deserve the treatment he had received. He concluded that God hated him and was treating him unfairly, punishing a righteous man. For that, in the end, Job was rebuked by the Lord Himself:

Then the Lord said to Job, “Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Let him who reproves God answer it…. Now gird up your loins like a man; I will ask you, and you instruct Me. Will you really annul My judgment? Will you condemn Me that you may be justified?” (Job 40:2, 7-8).

Job never cursed God, and to that degree he passed his test. Job could have done better, but who can criticize him except God?

True to God’s character, Job was blessed at the end of his test:

And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning, and he had 14,000 sheep, and 6,000 camels, and 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. And he had seven sons and three daughters…. And after this Job lived 140 years, and he saw his sons, and his grandsons, four generations (Job 42:12-13, 16).

God’s blessings made Job even wealthier than he had been before his testing, enabling him to do even more good than he did previously. Job had proved himself, and it became obvious that he did not serve God only because of the prosperity that came with obedience.

Are God and Satan Arguing About Us?

When we find ourselves in the middle of a MIT, (Maturing/Testing Trial), is it because God and Satan have had an argument about us? I don’t think so, but then I don’t really know. (Some scriptures do indicate that Satan may still have access to God’s throne. See Zech 3:1-2; Luke 22:31-32.)

Satan is referred to as “the accuser of the brethren” in the Revelation 12:10. In fact, the scripture there says, “The accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, who accuses them before our God day and night.” Still, that doesn’t prove that every MIT is a result of an argument between God and Satan. To me, this is one of “the secret things that belongs to the Lord our God” (Deut. 29:29). We just don’t know everything we would like to know. Job’s story, however, does illustrate the same truth that we have seen in other scriptures: God may allow Satan to afflict us in order to mature or test us.

Most importantly, let us not lose sight of the fact that Job’s test came to an end, and it ended very happily. Job regained his health and everything he’d lost. If you are “suffering like Job,” you should be preparing for an end of your sufferings.

What Can Suffering Do For You?

Job became a better man because of his suffering, both materially and spiritually. According to the Bible, suffering can result in blessing. We’ve already learned that, by passing tests, we can prove ourselves trustworthy to handle more blessings and responsibilities. That’s one positive result of persevering under trial. Beyond that, Paul wrote:

And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character (Rom. 5:3, emphasis added).

By persevering in tribulation, we prove our true character.

James similarly wrote:

Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing (Jas. 1:2-4, emphasis added).

When we endure during the times our faith is tested, the end result is that we are perfected and completed. That is why we should count it all joy when we face difficulties. They are a part of God’s divine plan to make us more like Jesus. God is dedicated to our spiritual growth, and whether we care to admit it or not, Christ-like character is forged in the fires of afflictions, tests, and trials. So keep rejoicing!

How I would love to examine the lives of other Bible characters, whom we have not yet considered in previous chapters, as they journeyed to fulfill their own divine destinies. We could walk with people like Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Esther, Gideon, Jeremiah, and Daniel. All were born for a reason; all experienced difficulties and were tested; all watched the working of the sovereign hand of God; all matured. All of them, to some degree or another, could be compared to you and me. I encourage you to take the time to read about their lives in light of the principles we’ve learned so far. You’ll be blessed.

In this final section, I want to finish unwrapping the package we’ve opened. We’ve considered a lot of biblical truth, but there is more to be said. In this chapter, we’ll take a look at the subject of the persecution of Christians, looking for answers to some very perplexing questions.

Although the Bible assures us that “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12), persecution of believers around the world varies from place to place and from time to time. Those of us who reside in nations with religious freedom often have little idea of what it is like to live where being a Christian is a ticket to losing one’s family, job or life. According to the World Evangelical Alliance, over 200 million Christians in at least 60 countries are currently denied fundamental human rights solely because of their faith.

Some years ago I spoke with the late David Barrett, editor of the monumental book, the World Christian Encyclopedia. A master at compiling data, Dr. Barrett told me that he conservatively estimated the number of Christians who annually lost their lives for their faith to be around 150,000. In previous years, he estimated it was more than 300,000. These were ordinary Christians who were murdered for following Christ or for committing themselves to a righteous cause because of their faith in Christ. For those of us who live with little persecution, this is difficult to fathom, and we can’t help but ask, “Why does God allow wicked people to persecute and even kill Christians?”

Some would answer by saying that Satan is the god of this world and is running everything; therefore, God can’t do anything about the persecution of His people although He would like to stop it. I think we’ve sufficiently proved that idea to be very unscriptural in light of the number of times God has supernaturally delivered His people from persecution.

There has to be a better explanation as to why God sometimes permits His people to be persecuted, and why He does or does not deliver them from that persecution. But let me first confess that I’m not claiming to have all the answers. I don’t think that anyone does.

One possible explanation is that trials of persecution fall under the categories of either MITs (Maturing/Testing Intended Trials) or in some cases DITs (Disciplinary Intended Trials). Let’s first look at trials of persecution that fall under the category of DITs.

Here is an undeniable fact that some Christians would like to deny: God may allow persecution to come upon His people, if they have been disobedient, in order to bring them to repentance. Anyone who has ever read the Old Testament knows that. Time and time again, God permitted foreign nations to dominate Israel to bring them to repentance. There is also evidence in the New Testament of God disciplining His people by permitting persecution.

If you’ve ever studied the book of Hebrews, you know it was written to persecuted Jewish Christians who were being tempted in their sufferings to revert to Judaism. Did you ever notice, however, that the author indicated that their persecutions had been permitted because of God’s discipline? We find that fact in Hebrews 12:3-11:

For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you may not grow weary and lose heart. You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin; and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved by Him; for those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, and He scourges every son whom He receives.” It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which we all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness (Heb. 12:3-11, emphasis added).

I think it should go without saying that God only disciplines those who are disobedient. Persecution is one way that God might do that. (You may also want to take a look at 2 Thes. 1:4-5, which might also be referring to an incidence of God permitting persecution as a means of discipline.)

Who is Exempt?

Can any of us claim to have been perfectly obedient to God from the day of our initial repentance and new birth? (Certainly not me.) Thus every one of us are candidates for God’s discipline.

The author of Hebrews wrote that all of us have suffered God’s discipline, yet to many believers, God’s discipline is unfortunately an unfamiliar concept. When God disciplines them, they rebuke Satan. What they need to do is rebuke themselves and repent! Take note the apostle James wrote that before anyone resists the devil, he needs to make sure that he is submitted to God: “Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (Jas. 4:7, emphasis added).

God may discipline us by permitting persecution, but that is not the only means He may use. We’ve already learned in an earlier chapter that God may permit Satan to bring various trials in hopes of motivating the disobedient to repent. One example of such a trial could be sickness. Paul wrote to the Corinthian Christians and told them that very thing:

For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. But if we judged ourselves rightly, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord in order that we may not be condemned along with the world (1 Cor. 11:30-32).

You probably know that the Corinthian church was full of strife. They were transgressing a very important commandment that Jesus gave to the church: “Love one another even as I have loved you” (John 13:34). So it should be no surprise that the Lord disciplined them by the means of sickness. Some had even died.

Paul wrote that we can avoid God’s judgment if we judge ourselves (see 1 Cor. 11:31). That means if we will confess our sins and repent, we can avoid God’s discipline.

Does this mean that every Christian who is sick has disobeyed God and is being disciplined by Him? Is sickness always a DIT? No, certainly not. Sickness can also fall under the category of a Self-Inflicted Trial (SIT) or a MIT. If you mistreat your body and become ill as a result, for example, that is a SIT.

Undoubtedly, some of the sicknesses that Christians suffer are a result of God’s discipline. He removes His protective hand and allows Satan to afflict their bodies in hopes of bringing them to repentance.

If I find myself ill, I do a spiritual checkup to see if I’ve somehow opened the door to God’s discipline in my life. I encourage you to do the same. No need to ask your pastor or Bible study leader or best friend—go to God yourself and find out directly from Him. He lives inside of you by the Holy Spirit.

Sadly, some Christians take this concept to an extreme. Finding themselves ill they say, “God must be trying to teach me something. This sickness must be His will. So I’ll just suffer, and if it’s His will to heal me, He’ll heal me.” That is wrong thinking. Yes, it could be true that God is trying to teach you something (if you are suffering a DIT)—such as trying to teach you not to commit a particular sin that you are persistently committing. But if you are suffering a DIT, it is not God’s will that you remain sick any more that it is His will that you continue sinning. So repent of whatever you need to repent of, and then trust the Lord for your healing.

Persecution as a Means of Maturation or Testing

God may also permit persecution as a MIT (Maturing/Testing Intended Trial).

Some claim that if Christians just have enough faith, they won’t be persecuted. With all due respect to those who make such claims, that is simply not true. Jesus never promised us exemption from persecution. Rather, He guaranteed that we would be persecuted (see John 15:20). Paul declared, “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12). He told the saints of Thessalonica that they were destined for persecution (see 1 Thes. 3:3).

Some have gone so far as to say that if we have enough faith, we are guaranteed that we will never be martyred. That is absurd as well. The church’s very first martyr, Stephen, is described in the Bible as a man “full of faith and of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 6:5, emphasis added).

Moreover, the list of faith heroes found in Hebrews 11 mentions a number of people who were tortured and martyred (see Heb. 11:35-37). All the original apostles (excluding Judas, of course) were martyred, with the possible exception of John. It is estimated that, during the first three centuries of the church as many as six million Christians were martyred. There have been millions more since then, and the Bible predicts future martyrs during the Tribulation.

Other Reasons Why God May Permit Persecution

God may permit persecution in order to further the spread of the gospel. Jesus Himself said:

But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My names’ sake. It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony (Luke 21:12-13, emphasis added).

Paul wrote (while under arrest) to the Philippians:

Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, so that my imprisonment in Christ has become known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else, and that most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear (Phil. 1:12-14).

Through his imprisonment, Paul was able to personally share the gospel with people whom he otherwise could never have reached—just as Jesus promised. Persecuted Christians should consider if their persecution is in some way allowing them opportunities to share the gospel that they would not have had otherwise.

Not only was the gospel being furthered by Paul as a result of his imprisonment, but his boldness in his suffering stirred others who were not imprisoned, resulting in the gospel being spread even more.

If you have ever been around someone who is sold out completely to God, it has a way of shaming you for your lack of consecration. I remember when my father was saved, he immediately began sharing the gospel and winning people to the Lord. Because I had been a Christian longer, I felt ashamed of myself for not being as effective a soul-winner as my father. I repented and started witnessing more. As a result, there are people serving the Lord today because my father’s example stirred me into action. The same was true in Paul’s case. When your fellow Christians begin to be persecuted and you see their dedication to the Lord, it inspires you.

Not only does persecution have a profound effect upon Christians who witness the sufferings of their brothers and sisters, but when believers endure persecution (especially joyfully) it has a profound effect upon unbelievers. There is hardly a greater witness for the reality of Jesus than a Christian who will endure hardship for the sake of the gospel. When someone is willing to be tortured and even die for his faith, people take notice. When a believer prays for his persecutors and blesses those who curse him, it is obvious to all that he has had a miracle happen in his life. The world looks on, incredulously.

God can also use persecution for good because His people can mature during their persecutions. In that sense, persecution can be a MIT. The God who is kind and merciful to ungrateful and evil people desires that we become like Him (see Matt. 5:39-48; Luke 6:35-36). Even unbelievers love those who love them, but when we love our enemies, it reveals that we are sons of God (see Matt. 5:44-46). Persecution gives us an opportunity to manifest God’s amazing love and to develop all the fruit of the Spirit.

How Spiritual Christians View Persecution

Truly spiritual Christians count it a privilege to suffer for Jesus’ sake.

After the early apostles were threatened by the Sanhedrin and flogged for preaching the gospel, the Bible records that they went on their way “rejoicing that they might be considered worthy to suffer shame for His name” (Acts 5:41). It is an honor when we have an opportunity to suffer for the One who suffered so much for us.

Paul expressed this same idea when he wrote to the persecuted Philippian Christians:

For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake [cause], not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake (Phil. 1:29, emphasis added).

Notice Paul said that it had been granted them to suffer. It must have been God who granted them the opportunity—not that God sent the suffering, but He obviously allowed it.

If someone grants you something, that usually means you’re glad to get it. Why would anyone be glad to suffer for the cause of Christ? There are two main reasons.

First, as I have already said, truly spiritual Christians count it an honor to show their love for their Savior by suffering for Him. Second, because those who suffer for the cause of Christ are eventually rewarded proportionately. Jesus said:

Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men revile you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, on account of Me…. Be glad in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven (Matt. 5:10-11; Luke 6:23, emphasis added).

How great is our reward in proportion to our suffering? Is it really worth it? Read what Paul said:

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us…. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison (Rom. 8:18; 2 Cor. 4:17, emphasis added).

The difference between our sufferings and the future reward is not even comparable. I suspect that those of us who experience so little persecution are going to be wishing we had suffered more once we get to heaven and compare our reward with those who were severely persecuted for their love for Jesus.

God’s Sovereignty and Persecution

God’s sovereign control over persecution is implied in the scripture we just considered in Paul’s letter to the Philippians. It said that it had been granted the Philippians to suffer for Christ’s sake. Other scriptures make this point even more clear. Writing to persecuted Christians, Peter penned:

But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed…. For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong…. Therefore, let those also who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right (1 Pet. 3:14a, 17; 4:19, emphasis added).

You can’t argue with that. Suffering persecution is something that falls under the sovereign, controlling hand of God, just as we have already noticed in the Gospels and in the book of Acts. The idea of God wanting to stop persecution, yet being unable because Satan is the god of this world, is foreign to the Bible.

Persecution as a Test

Peter offered some additional insight as to why God might allow His people to be persecuted:

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing; so that also at the revelation of His glory, you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you…. If anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not feel ashamed, but in that name let him glorify God. For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?…. Therefore, let those who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right (1 Pet. 4:12-14, 16-17, 19, emphasis added).

Peter plainly stated that their “fiery ordeal” came upon them for their testing. Why were they being tested? Because it was time for judgment to begin with God’s household. Judgment only falls after testing, and God may use persecution as a test.

Again, I’m not saying that God sends persecution or inspires anyone to persecute His people. I’m just saying what the Bible plainly states: God will use persecution to test His people. Persecution flushes out phony and uncommitted believers.

Read what Jesus said to the believers in Smyrna in Revelation 2:10:

Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life (Rev. 2:10, emphasis added).

In light of the many other biblical passages that we have studied so far about God’s tests, scriptures like these should come as no surprise to us. Jesus stated that some of the Christians in Smyrna would be tested in prison and implied that some would die a martyr’s death. (Notice He said nothing about how they should “believe God” and escape their imminent trials, or how they should rebuke Satan in order to avoid them.) God used their persecutions for His divine purposes.

Suffering Persecution for God’s Glory

Finally, sacrificially suffering for the sake of the gospel can bring glory to God. You may want to argue about that, but you’ll have to argue with the Bible, not me. The apostle John recorded the following words that Jesus addressed to Peter:

“Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself, and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go.” Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God (John 21:18-19a, emphasis added).

Tradition states that Peter was crucified upside down, and the Bible plainly declared that his death glorified God. Paul also wrote that Christ would be exalted in his body, “whether by life or by death” (Phil. 1:20: emphasis added). Suffering persecution can bring glory to God.

So let’s briefly review. God may permit His people to be persecuted (1) to cause them to mature, (2) to test them, (3) to discipline them, or (4) that the gospel might be furthered. Furthermore, when Christians willingly suffer for the cause of Christ, it glorifies God. Finally, those who do suffer for the cause of Christ will be abundantly rewarded in the next life. Those are all positive things, which they should be, because God is love, and He “causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28)!

David, the son of Jesse, was divinely destined to be king of Israel, and God revealed His plan to him when he was just a young, shepherd boy.

If David was divinely destined to be a king, is it possible that he also was destined to first be a shepherd? Or did God leave the first thirty years of David’s life up to chance? Was the Lord just waiting until the shepherd boy reached the age when he would fulfill his divine destiny to be king?

When we look at his story, we soon realize that all of David’s life was a preparation for kingship. Beginning as a shepherd was certainly appropriate training for one who would one day shepherd the flock of God.

Let’s apply this to ourselves. Often, what we perceive as wasted periods are actually part of God’s training process—periods that prepare us for His ultimate purpose for our lives. They, too, are divinely-destined. They are not wasted. God can use even our mistakes to better equip us for the “good works which [He] prepared beforehand” (Eph. 2:10).

So how did God prepare David for the big challenges he would face one day as king? Just as you may have guessed. He used the same method He used to prepare Israel to take Canaan and by the same method He used to train Jesus’ twelve disciples. God permitted small difficulties to challenge David as a shepherd. He was tested.

We know that as a boy David had an opportunity to exercise his faith at least twice when he fought with a lion and a bear to protect his flock (see 1 Sam. 17:34-36). Could God have stopped that lion and bear before they got near enough to stalk David’s sheep? Of course He could have, but He didn’t because He was preparing David for the greater challenges that He would ultimately face.

David’s next trial recorded for us in Scripture was a giant one—literally! It wasn’t so much his skill with a sling and stone that brought down Goliath. Rather, it was his faith. Every challenge we face can serve as a stepping stone or a stumbling block. It all depends on if we will trust God or not.

David was providentially placed in service at King Saul’s palace so he could learn firsthand the evil effects of unrestrained jealousy and the corrupting influence that power can have on those who are not submitted to God. No textbook or university education could compare with what David learned by watching King Saul in action.

On several occasions, David barely escaped with his life as jealous Saul tried to pin him to the wall with his spear. Only those who know danger can learn to trust God for protection in danger. Later, David spent years in the wilderness running for his life from Saul. He learned more valuable lessons about trusting God and the corrupting influence that power can possess. All these things “worked together for good” to prepare David to fulfill his divine destiny.

In God’s sovereign plan, David suffered significantly during those years, and the majority of his sufferings were entirely unjust. David didn’t deserve the relentless, unkind treatment he received from Saul, whom he had served so well. But did God have a purpose in permitting it? It must be that David was being prepared. Once we’ve suffered under corrupt leaders, we’re more apt to be incorruptible when God promotes us to a place of leadership.

I have many friends who are ministers, and most of them it seems have a story to tell about suffering under the power of some semi-corrupt church board or senior pastor during the early years of their ministries. Only God knows of the many men and women who are not in the ministry today because they grew bitter over being mistreated early in their ministries. They disqualified themselves from being promoted because they quit when the going got rough. If God has permitted a corrupt person in authority to mistreat you, it may be because He is preparing you for leadership. Perhaps God is teaching you not to be corrupt when your time of promotion arrives.

Character Tests and Blunders

David was given the opportunity to take his own revenge against Saul on two occasions when he was fleeing in the wilderness. Both times, however, he mercifully spared Saul’s life, returning good for evil. What a test of his character those incidents were! We, too, are commanded to be merciful, just as God is merciful (see Luke 6:36). How can we expect God to promote us if we are not?

David wasn’t perfect, of course, and he once doubted God as he grew weary of running from Saul. Even though David fully knew that God had promised to exalt him one day to be king, we read of him once saying, “Now I will perish one day by the hand of Saul” (1 Sam. 27:1). That doesn’t sound like faith, does it? David then made the mistake of going to live in the territory of the Philistines for a year and four months. The resulting troubles he faced taught him important lessons about compromising his faith in God. He also learned about God’s abundant mercy (see 1 Sam. 27:1 – 30:20 for all the details).

Again, let’s apply this to ourselves. When we error, we sometimes feel as if we’ve ruined all of God’s plans for our lives. As a result, we carry regrets with us for years. David’s blunder, however, did not thwart God’s plan to make him king. God knew David would make his mistake before he was even born, and God could have easily prevented it, but He didn’t. God would use David’s error to better prepare him to fulfill his divine destiny. David would learn and grow and ultimately be a better king for it.

Our mistakes are no different. God knew we would make them, and He could have prevented them. Even before you were born, however, He prepared a plan to redeem your mistakes and use them to ultimately help you fulfill your divine destiny. Bury your regrets and thank God that He is causing “all things to work together for good” (Rom. 8:28)!

Pass the Test, and be Blessed

Finally, after the death of Saul, David was exalted to be king of Israel. God’s promise was fulfilled. He, like Joseph, was exalted at age 30 after approximately 15 years of preparation, 15 years of MITs (Maturing/Testing Intended Trials) and SITs (Self-Inflicted Trials), as we defined those different kinds of trials in an earlier chapter. David testified that the Lord had tested him:

Thou hast tried my heart; Thou hast visited me by night; Thou hast tested me and dost find nothing (Ps. 17:3, emphasis added).

David also wrote in another psalm that God tests all of us:

The Lord is in His holy temple, the Lord’s throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men. The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked (Ps. 11:4-5a, emphasis added).

How does this apply to your life? You may not be called to be a king, but you are called to do something that is uniquely yours to fulfill. Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesians:

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them (Eph. 2:10).

Wouldn’t it be tragic to stand before the judgment seat of Christ and hear Him say, “You never fulfilled My plan for your life. Certain specific good works that I called you to walk in were left undone. Had you obeyed, it could have resulted in blessings for yourself and others.”

Ideally when we stand before Jesus, if we have obeyed His calling upon our lives, we will hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful slave; you were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things, enter into the joy of your master” (Matt. 25:21).

God will indeed reward us according to our faithfulness. What does it mean to be faithful? It means to keep going even when you feel like quitting. No one ever said, “I’ve been faithful to enjoy ice cream for my dessert every night for a week!” No, being faithful implies a temptation to be unfaithful. It means hanging in there when you feel like abandoning ship.

David’s DIT

David later experienced a DIT (Disciplinary Intended Trial) when he sinned so grievously, committing adultery with Bathsheba and arranging for the murder of her husband. It cost him dearly as God brought him to repentance and disciplined him. Hopefully many other people have avoided DITs from reading about the consequences of David’s sin. That is, no doubt, the reason so many DITs are recorded in Scripture. They are “written for our instruction” (1 Cor. 10:11).

How can we avoid DITs? By simply being obedient. How can we always avoid SITs (Self-Inflicted Trials)? By always using godly wisdom. But is there any way we can avoid facing MITs? No, as long as God loves us and we are on the earth, Maturing/Testing Intended Trials will be part of our experience.

The Pruning of the Father

Before I close this chapter, let’s take a look at a very applicable passage of Scripture, right from the lips of Jesus:

I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that does bear fruit; He prunes it, that it may bear more fruit (John 15:1-2).

If we are going to mature spiritually, we are going to be pruned by the Father, because as we just read, He prunes every branch that bears fruit.

What does it mean to be “pruned by the Father”? Obviously there is some symbolic meaning that Jesus is trying to convey. We want to be careful that we don’t take the symbolism too far by saying that our pruning always happens once every spring, and so on. At the same time, we don’t want to ignore the Lord’s obvious reason for choosing the analogy of the vine and vinedresser.

At bare minimum, Jesus wants us to understand that to prune a vine, branches must be cut off if the vine is to reach its greatest potential to bear fruit. The untrained observer who watches the vinedresser and who has no understanding of the pruning process might think the vinedresser is making a big mistake. It may seem that, by cutting off branches, the vine will bear much less fruit. The vinedresser, however, knows better. An unpruned vine will produce fruit, but a pruned vine will produce more fruit and fruit of higher quality.

And for that very reason, we must be pruned. When we are, it may look at first as if we are going to bear less fruit than in the past. If, however, we will patiently trust God, we will eventually understand what God is doing. The process will result in greater fruit in our lives.

There are probably a thousand different ways through which God accomplishes His pruning process in the lives of His children. If you’ve read all of the previous chapters in this book, you have at least some idea as to how He might do it. He is dedicated to our spiritual growth, and He prunes all of us who are bearing any fruit. The Bible promises, “It is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13), and “He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). Pruning is part of that process.

But when He who had set me apart, even from my mother’s womb, and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles… (Gal. 1:15-16a).

Paul, first known as Saul of Tarsus, was another person of divine destiny, just like you. His specific calling was to be an apostle to the Gentiles.

You may not be called to plant churches, but as a member of Christ’s body, you are called to do something. Therefore, like Paul, you can say that you were “set apart from your mother’s womb” for a divine purpose. The circumstances of your life have not occurred by pure chance.

I’m afraid that too many Christians have a sub-biblical view of their existence. If you ask them, “Why are you here?” they respond with something like, “When two people are married, they usually have babies. I was one of those babies born into the world.” They see themselves as a number—another product off the assembly line. Such a sub-biblical view leads to a sub-biblical life. What a tragedy it is for any Christian to live a mundane, purposeless life, ignorant of the special purpose for which he or she was created (and re-created).

Although Paul was set apart from his mother’s womb to be an apostle to the Gentiles, when we are first introduced to him in Acts 7, do we find him fulfilling his calling, preaching to the Gentiles? Not exactly. Rather, we find him holding the coats of the folks who were stoning Stephen—the church’s first martyr. At that point, Paul was a very zealous, yet misdirected young Pharisee and a persecutor of the church. He wasn’t exactly fulfilling his divine destiny. God, however, knew how to get his attention and enlighten him as well. After being struck down by a blinding light on the road to Damascus, Paul wisely decided to cooperate with God from then on (see Acts 9:1-7).

Shortly thereafter, God began to reveal to Paul the destiny that he was to fulfill. When Ananias, whom God commissioned to go and lay his hands on Paul, understandably protested that Paul was not the kind of person whom Christians wanted to be near, God said to him:

Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake”(Acts. 9:15-16).

There you have Paul’s divine destiny in a nutshell. He was destined to bear Jesus’ name before (primarily) the Gentiles, (secondarily) kings, and (thirdly) the Jews. As a result, he would suffer a great deal for the cause of Christ. If you know his story, you know that exactly what God said is what came to pass.

Instant Apostles?

How long did it take Paul to fulfill his divine destiny? The rest of his life. He began his spiritual journey as a believer who shared with others what God had done for him (see Acts 9:19-22), which is the starting place for all of us.

Even as a young Christian, Paul did a very convincing job proving from Scripture that Jesus was the Messiah. He was so effective, in fact, that some Jews in Damascus schemed to ambush and kill him. Upon discovery of their plot, Paul’s converts lowered him over the city wall of Damascus at night, and he escaped. I suspect that episode helped prepare Paul for the larger trials he would later face.

According to Paul’s own narrative, after escaping from Damascus he left for Arabia, and later returned to Damascus. Three years after his conversion, he traveled to Jerusalem and stayed with Peter for about two weeks. Following another threat on his life, he traveled to Syria and Cilicia (see Gal. 1:15-21; Acts 9:28-30; 22:17-18). Fourteen years later, he went to Jerusalem again (see Gal. 2:1; that visit was either the one recorded in Acts 11:29-30 or 15:2).

Paul continued preaching all this time, and, according to Acts 13:1, sometime during those initial years he was called to the ministry of a prophet and a teacher. Then, during a prayer meeting in Antioch, he was directed by the Lord to begin his apostolic ministry (see Acts 13:1-2; 14:14).

How much time passed from Paul’s conversion until he entered into his apostolic ministry? Scholars are divided on the answer because the scriptural chronology is somewhat unclear, but as I see it, the absolute minimum time would be eleven years. It could have been possibly fourteen, or more. Paul was promoted as he was found faithful, which is true of anyone else who works for God.

Paul later wrote to Timothy:

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service (1 Tim. 1:12, emphasis added).

In order for a person to be found faithful, he must of necessity be tested. Accordingly, Paul also wrote to the Thessalonians:

For our exhortation does not come from deceit or uncleanness, nor was it in guile. But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts (1 Thes. 2:3-4, NKJV, emphasis added).

Notice Paul said that God had tested his heart, he had been approved, and he therefore had been entrusted with the gospel. You can be certain that Paul was tested in the same manner that Israel, Joseph, David, and Jesus’ twelve disciples were tested. He was tested in trials and temptations.

God’s Refining Pot

Solomon wrote in Proverbs 17:3: “The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests hearts.”

What is the similarity between refining silver and gold and the Lord testing hearts? When silver and gold are refined, they are heated up until the impurities rise to the surface. Then the dross is scraped off, leaving behind purer metal.

It is in the fire that the pureness of gold and silver are determined, and the same is true for us. If you want to know how much faith a person has, put him in a place of difficulty. If you want to know how much love a person has, put him in a place where people hate him. If you want to know how much patience a person has, put him in a place where he will be tempted to be impatient. If you want to know how devoted a person’s heart is to God, watch him when he is tempted to sin. If we understood this, we would realize that we’re being tested all the time.

Let us ask ourselves, “When the impurities in me rise to the surface during those times in the furnace, do I recognize them and scrape them off, or do those impurities just settle back into me when things cool down, leaving behind the same vessel?”

I once heard an elderly pastor relate some of his experiences in the first church he pastored. After every service, a certain carping old lady would criticize his sermon as she shook his hand in the back of the church. “You were dangling your participles today, pastor,” she would say, and so on.

That elderly pastor said that he constantly had two prayer requests that he made to the Lord each day: (1) “Lord, please make me more like Jesus” and (2) “Please remove that obnoxious lady from my church!” (Most pastors can relate.)

One day the Lord spoke to him after he reiterated those requests and said, I’m answering your first prayer by not answering your second prayer. I’m using that lady to help you become more like Jesus. Further-more the Lord said to him, I’ve trained several young pastors through that lady.

Back to the Apostle Paul

It took Paul as many as fourteen years from the time his divine destiny was revealed to him until the time he was commissioned as an apostle—the very thing that God had destined for him even before he was born. Isn’t it interesting that Joseph and David (whom we considered in previous chapters) also experienced approximately the same time span between revelation of their calling and the beginning of the fulfillment? Like them, Paul first had to be found faithful, just as he said in his first letter to the Corinthians:

Let a man regard us in this manner, as stewards of the mysteries of God. In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy (1 Cor. 4:1-2).

If I had a million dollars, and you were my steward, I wouldn’t entrust all of my money to you. I might first entrust you with one hundred dollars to see how you handled it. If you invested it wisely and earned me a profit, I’d be inclined to entrust you with more—perhaps five hundred dollars. If you brought me a good return on that, I’d entrust you with more. Still, it would be a few years before I’d entrust you with all my money! God, of course, is at least that wise. And He’ll similarly test us to see if we can be trusted.

As Paul was found faithful, God entrusted him with more and more responsibility and gifting. Many years after he entered into his apostolic calling, God anointed Paul to an even greater degree:

And God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out (Acts. 19:11-12, emphasis added).

How many people do you know whom God is supernaturally using to that degree? I’m not claiming that God wills that all of His children be used to the same degree as the apostle Paul. I am persuaded, however, that there are some of God’s children who are called to be supernatural church planters, and it is their divine destiny to be used like Paul—if they will remain faithful and pass the tests that come their way.

The Final Years of Paul’s Ministry

Up until the 24th chapter of Acts, Paul had not yet been given the opportunity to “testify before kings” as God had revealed to Ananias a few days after Paul’s conversion. Beginning in Acts 19, however, Paul began to take some Spirit-led steps that eventually opened up an audience for him before a number of kings, and ultimately even to Nero himself. As Roman Emperor, Nero would have been considered as high as anyone could go.

After Paul had met with much success preaching in the city of Ephesus, the record of the book of Acts tells us:

Now after these things were finished, Paul purposed in the spirit to go to Jerusalem after he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, saying, “After I have been there, I must also see Rome” (Acts 19:21).

Notice that Paul “purposed in the spirit,” meaning that he knew in his spirit that God was leading him to travel through Macedonia and Achaia, then to Jerusalem and ultimately on to Rome. And that is the course he obediently followed.

On his way to Jerusalem, after spending several months in Macedonia and Achaia, Paul stopped near Ephesus and delivered his farewell sermon to the pastors there:

And now, behold, bound in spirit, I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit solemnly testifies to me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions await me. But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, in order that I may finish my course, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God (Acts. 20:22-24, emphasis added).

Notice Paul declared that he was “bound in spirit.” That means the Holy Spirit through his own spirit was compelling him to go to Jerusalem. He had an inward conviction, which is how God leads all of His children. He also said that he really didn’t know what would happen to him when he arrived there, but that in every city in which he stopped as he traveled toward Jerusalem, the Holy Spirit was foretelling him that bonds and afflictions awaited him there.

We have a perfect example of exactly what Paul was talking about in Acts 21. When his ship landed at Tyre, he stayed with the disciples for seven days. The Bible says that those disciples “kept telling Paul through the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem” (Acts 21:4).

Should we assume that the Holy Spirit was trying to warn Paul not to go to Jerusalem? No, not if we read that verse in context of all the other relevant verses in Acts. The Holy Spirit was leading Paul to go to Jerusalem, but the disciples in Tyre sensed by the Holy Spirit that when Paul arrived in Jerusalem that “bonds and afflictions” awaited him there. From a natural standpoint, however, they didn’t want their beloved Paul to suffer. William’s translation says it this way: “Because of impressions made by the Spirit they kept warning Paul…”

Again, that is a perfect example of what Paul meant when he said that in every city the Holy Spirit testified that bonds and afflictions awaited him in Jerusalem. Christians who are sensitive to the Holy Spirit sometimes receive certain revelations, but they then add their own interpretations to these revelations, just like the believers of Tyre did.

Paul also stopped in at Philip the evangelist’s house in the port of Caesarea. While he was there, a well-respected prophet named Agabus came down from Judea:

And coming to us, he took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews in Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles'” (Acts 21:11).

Once again the Holy Spirit was testifying that bonds and afflictions awaited Paul in Jerusalem. Notice that Agabus did not say, “Therefore, Paul, the Lord says that you are not to go to Jerusalem.” No, the Holy Spirit was only confirming to Paul one more time what he had perceived in his spirit months before.

Of course, when everyone in Philip’s house heard what Agabus predicted, they begged Paul not to go to Jerusalem. Paul responded: “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”

Luke then adds his commentary, “And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, ‘The will of the Lord be done!'” (Acts 21:13-14).

Paul, of course, knew he wouldn’t die in Jerusalem because God had already told him he would go to Rome after he’d been to Jerusalem (as we have already read).

God was leading Paul to a place that would result in hardship, but He had a divine purpose. Paul’s divine destiny was to testify before kings. How could a person in Paul’s day get an audience with Felix, Festus, Agrippa, and Nero? Would he knock on the palace door and say to the guard, “I’m here to share the gospel with the king. Does he have an hour that he can spare?” Hardly. The only way one could have opportunity to share the gospel with the king was if God gave one the opportunity. That is exactly what God was going to do for Paul.

Unfortunately, some have a hard time accepting this. They think God would never lead us into a situation that would result in hardship. Unless God takes us first class, they are sure it isn’t God who is leading! We need to accept the fact that our own personal comfort is much less important than the need of the lost to hear the gospel. Furthermore, God can use adversity to perfect us. He obviously knew full well the suffering that Paul would endure; He knew it before Paul was born—but He still led him to go to Jerusalem.

Paul Arrives

As he had been warned, affliction awaited Paul in Jerusalem. A Jewish riot started several days after he arrived, and the rioters would have killed him except for the timely arrival of a Roman commander on the scene. No doubt Paul had peace through it all, having been so well-warned in advance.

A few nights later, while Paul was being held in Roman barracks, Jesus personally visited him and told him, “Take courage; for as you have solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also” (Acts. 23:11).

Take note that Jesus did not say, “Paul, what are you doing here in Jerusalem? I tried to warn you not to come here! Now look at the trouble you’ve gotten yourself into!” No, Paul was in God’s will, and he had heard from God months ago when he felt impressed that he would go to Rome.

Now let’s think about this particular story for a moment. Jesus got into those Roman barracks where Paul was being held, and He also got out of those Roman barracks. No demon or devil could stop Him. Do you suppose Jesus could have released Paul from those barracks? Jesus had previously supernaturally freed Paul and others from various prison cells (see Acts 5:17-21, 12:1-11, 16:25-30). Yet Jesus didn’t free Paul this time. Why not? Because that is where He wanted Paul. Behind the scenes, Jesus was arranging for Paul to testify before a few kings—to fulfill his divine destiny.

This helps us understand why God spoke to Paul through such spectacular means, namely, through a prophet and also a visitation by Jesus. When God speaks to us through spectacular means, it is because He knows we’ll need the extra assurance of spectacular guidance to bring us through the hardships we’ll face.

Paul was held in Jerusalem for a short time and then was moved to Caesarea, where he was held for two years. During that time, however, he was given opportunity to witness of Christ before governor Felix and his successor, governor Festus. Finally, he proclaimed the gospel before King Agrippa and his wife Bernice, which resulted in his being sent to Rome at the expense of the Roman Empire to testify before Caesar.

Do you suppose that Paul sat around and sulked while he was under arrest in Jerusalem, Caesarea, and Rome? No, he made the most of his circumstances, fellowshipping with the Lord, sharing his faith with the other prisoners and penning letters we still read today. It was during that time in his ministry that Paul wrote:

Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel, so that my imprisonment in Christ has become well known throughout the whole praetorian guard and to everyone else, and that most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment, have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear (Phil. 1:12-14).

Now there’s a guy who believed that “all things work together for good”! (He should have, since he’s the one who originally coined the phrase.)

What about the suffering he had to endure? Paul had a wonderful (and absolutely proper) attitude about that:

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us…. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison (Rom. 8:18; 2 Cor. 4:17, emphasis added).

Glory be! When we suffer for the sake of the gospel, it just means we will have all that much more reward in heaven! Jesus promised:

Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and heap insults upon you, and spurn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven (Luke 6:22-23, emphasis added).

On to Rome

I’m assuming you know Paul’s story. If you don’t, I encourage you to read the last seven chapters of the book of Acts. Paul was put on a ship for Rome and perceived in his spirit that the ship was in danger unless it harbored immediately before the winter arrived. The ship’s captain wouldn’t listen to him, and his ship was soon caught in a violent storm. The crew jettisoned all the cargo and waited to see what fate would bring them.

Thankfully, at least one man on board knew that he was on the path of his divine destiny. So he stood before the rest to reassure them:

Men, you ought to have followed my advice and not to have set sail from Crete, and incurred this damage and loss. And yet now I urge you to keep up your courage, for there shall be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. For this very night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood before me, saying, “Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar; and behold, God has granted you all those you are sailing with you.” Therefore, keep up your courage, men, for I believe God, that it will turn out exactly as I have been told. But we must run aground on a certain island (Acts 27:21-26).

Paul boarded that ship as a prisoner, but by the end he was acting like the captain!

If God could save the lives of everyone on board that ship, do you suppose He could have stopped that storm? Of course He could have.

I know some will say He couldn’t because Jesus gave His authority to the church. All right, let’s say you are correct (which you aren’t), and God couldn’t have stopped the storm because He gave His authority to the church. But let me ask you: Why then didn’t Paul use his authority and rebuke the wind and the waves? Or why didn’t the angel tell him to rebuke the storm, rather than tell him that they were going to lose their ship and run aground on a certain island?

Is it possible that God didn’t stop the storm or give Paul supernatural faith to rebuke it because there were some people on an island whom He wanted to hear the gospel? That is, incidentally, exactly what happened. Just as the angel had told Paul, their ship ran aground on a reef, was destroyed by the force of the waves, and all 276 people on board either swam or floated on the ship’s planks to the shores of the island of Malta.

If you look at a map of the Mediterranean Sea, you’ll see that from a natural standpoint, there is about a one-in-fifty chance of a west-blown ship landing on Malta. (One more proof that God is sovereign over the wind.)

Once ashore, Paul was bitten by a deadly snake while gathering firewood, but he miraculously suffered no ill-effects. He didn’t have to worry about dying because God had promised him that he would see Rome. The result was that the people of Malta thought Paul was a god, which gave him an opportunity to pray for the ailing father of the island’s chief, who was consequently healed by the Lord.

The end result was that all the sick people on Malta came to Paul requesting that he pray for them, and they too were healed. Although the Bible doesn’t give us all the details, there is little doubt that quite a few native Maltese, as well as many of Paul’s sailing partners, came to know Jesus as their Lord. Once again, Paul could say that his “circumstances had turned out for the greater progress of the gospel” (Phil. 1:12), even though his circumstances (the shipwreck and the snakebite) could certainly have been viewed as tragic. Yet God had caused “all things to work together for good.”

I’m persuaded that God will cause all things, even bad things, to work together for good in our lives as well if we’ll cooperate with His plan and trust Him. We must, however, look beyond the circumstances, the adversity, the devil, and selfish people—to God who is in sovereign control.

Destiny Fulfilled

Paul was one who fulfilled his divine destiny. A few years before his martyrdom, as we have already read, he declared during his farewell sermon to the Ephesian elders:

But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, in order that I may finish my course, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus (Acts. 20:24, emphasis added).

It seems that even then Paul realized his divine destiny included martyrdom. He wrote to the Philippians:

That I shall not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ shall even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death (Phil. 1:20, emphasis added).

Finally, while being held in Rome, Paul penned these words:

The time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing (2 Tim. 4:6b-8, emphasis added).

Will you be able to say at the time of your departure from this earth that you have finished the course God planned for your life? Will you have realized your divine destiny? How will you answer the great Judge when He asks you on that day, “Did you follow My plans for your life or your own?”

In this and the next few chapters, we’ll continue studying some well-known Bible characters whom the Lord tested. Specifically, we’ll pay attention to how God tested them in order “to do good to [them] in the end,” to borrow Moses’ words (Deut. 8:16). God planned a divine destiny for each one to fulfill, just as He has a divine destiny planned for you to fulfill. All of them, however, fulfilled their destinies only after first being tested. It won’t be any different in that respect for you and me.

Joseph, whose story covers 11 chapters in the book of Genesis, is first on our list. I suspect you are familiar with his story, but did you know Scripture states that God tested him?

And He [God] called for a famine upon the land; He broke the whole staff of bread. He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. They afflicted his feet with fetters; he himself was laid in irons; until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him (Ps. 105:16-19, emphasis added).

As a teenager, Joseph was given a glimpse of his future by means of two divinely-given dreams. They foretold of a time when his brothers and father would bow before him. Even so, Joseph’s divine destiny far exceeded anything that he ever anticipated because of his dreams. God chose to exalt him to preserve the lives of many people, including those of his own family so that the promised seed of Abraham, the Savior, might one day be born on the earth. Beyond that, Joseph would unknowingly prefigure that future Savior, paralleling Jesus’ story in amazing ways, offering further proof to all sincere seekers that Jesus is truly the Messiah.

From reading his story, we know that it was Joseph’s destiny to become prime minister over all of Egypt, the world’s super-power at the time. None of us, however, would have ever suspected the means that God would use to exalt him to that high position. Often, God’s way up is first down. Joseph’s descent began soon after he was born. Because he was his father’s favored son, his brothers hated him, and they hated him even more when he innocently shared his prophetic dreams. They eventually sold him to a band of Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver, and Joseph found himself in fetters and on his way to Egypt. Hardly sounds like the road to regal rulership!

It wasn’t God, of course, who motivated Joseph’s brothers to treat him so cruelly, but there is no doubt that He permitted them to do so. The Lord would use it for good in two ways. First, Joseph would be geographically located in the country in which God would exalt him. Second, God would use Joseph’s sufferings to mold him, preparing him to be a leader and savior.

Joseph was no superman, and I can’t imagine that he didn’t become bitter towards his brothers—as anyone in his shoes would have. I also can’t imagine that he didn’t question God as to why He allowed his brothers to get away with their dastardly deed. Eventually, however, he gained victory over any bitterness as he began to realize God’s sovereign hand at work in all his circumstances. I suspect that when he did, he wished he would have simply trusted from the start that the Lord was “causing all things to work together for good” (Rom. 8:28).

Chances are, you can relate to Joseph—you’ve had people selfishly use you, damage your reputation, or stab you in the back. Has it made you bitter or better? (I once heard it said that the difference between bitter and better is the letter “I.”)

Let’s learn from Joseph. Never lose sight of the fact that whatever happened to you could never have happened if God hadn’t permitted it. And don’t forget that He loves you dearly. If you love Him, He promised to cause all things to work together for your good (see Rom. 8:28), just as he did for Joseph. So you can, by faith, rejoice.

Before and as God’s plan unfolds, you should imitate Him, showing mercy to those who have mistreated you. You can pray for them as Jesus commanded (Luke 6:28), and if God brings them to repentance as He did in the case of Joseph’s brothers, you can then forgive them, just as God forgives those who repent. Mercy keeps the door of forgiveness open to all offenders, but repentance is required for offenders to walk through that door to realize reconciliation. It was not until Joseph’s brothers repented that he forgave them and they were reconciled.

May I also suggest that you make certain you have a valid complaint against someone before you classify that person as an offender. The truth may not be what you think. You may have initially offended your offender. That’s one reason Jesus told us to confront any offending brothers privately (see Matt. 18:15).

Tests Two and Three

In Egypt, Joseph was purchased by an officer named Potiphar and became his slave. That was Joseph’s next test. Would he abandon his faith in God? Or would he trust that Potiphar was God’s ordained authority over him whom he should faithfully serve? Joseph chose the latter.

I wonder, however, how many of us have found ourselves in somewhat similar circumstances as did Joseph, but have never passed that particular test, chafing under some God-ordained authority.

God is looking for people who are willing to be servants at the bottom (see Luke 22:26). Those who are unwilling disqualify themselves to be leaders. How can God entrust us with much if we haven’t been found faithful with little? Joseph certainly passed his second test. He was faithful to Potiphar as his slave, and Potiphar entrusted him with all his household, recognizing God’s blessing upon him. God blesses those who serve.

Soon, however, there was a dramatic turn of events and yet another test for Joseph. Potiphar’s wife, bitter at Joseph for resisting her sexual advances, falsely accused him before her husband, and he had Joseph thrown into prison. I’m sure he was tempted to complain to the Lord, “So this is what I get for obeying You? If I would have committed adultery, I would still be working for Potiphar!”

There is no biblical record of Joseph’s griping, however. Rather, he was once again found faithful even in prison, and the chief jailer soon put him in charge of all the other prisoners. You just can’t keep a good man down!

Again, God did not orchestrate all those difficulties in Joseph’s life, nor did He inspire anyone to mistreat him. Yet He did permit Joseph’s circumstances and used them all for good.

Again may I ask, how many of us have found ourselves in circumstances beyond our control, but instead of remaining faithful and trusting God, have complained and lost faith? How many potential Josephs are reading this right now who have stalled their spiritual progress by allowing circumstances to push them away from God rather than draw them nearer? If that sounds like you, you can follow Joseph’s example, pass your test, and watch your circumstances ultimately change.

Test Four

Joseph faced yet another major test when he interpreted the dream of Pharaoh’s incarcerated chief cupbearer and requested him to entreat Pharaoh on his behalf. Once that cupbearer was restored to his position as Joseph had foretold him, he forgot about Joseph. As a result, Joseph spent two more full years in prison. Think about that. Two more years!

Surely Joseph was tempted to harbor bitterness toward that cupbearer, and surely he was tempted to question God: “Why did You supernaturally help the cupbearer to be released from prison and not me? Why did you give me revelation about his immediate future but not my own immediate future?”

I’m sure you know the end of the story. God eventually gave Pharaoh a dream that Joseph interpreted, and he was consequently exalted to prime minister over Egypt. How old was Joseph when he first caught a glimpse of his divine destiny? Around age seventeen. How old was he when he was exalted in Egypt? Thirty (see Gen. 41:46).

Joseph’s journey from slave to prime minister took thirteen years, and another seven years would pass before his brothers arrived from Canaan wanting to buy grain. Joseph’s first divinely-granted dream of his brothers bowing before him was fulfilled twenty years after the dream. Two years later, his second dream was fulfilled when his father arrived in Egypt.

The Proper Perspective

At age 49 Joseph was again approached by his brothers who, after the death of their father Jacob, were afraid that he would take revenge against them for their past misdeeds. Joseph’s classic response is an inspiration:

Do not be afraid, for am I in God’s place? And as for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive (Gen. 50:19-20, emphasis added).

Earlier he had told his brothers: “It was not you who sent me here, but God” (Gen. 45:8). That’s grace!

Joseph knew God didn’t inspire his brothers to mistreat him, but he recognized God’s sovereign hand in his life. God had permitted it all for a divine purpose.

Like Joseph, the Lord has a unique role for you to fill in His divine plan, “good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). He wants all of us to mature unto the full stature of Christ and find our special function in the body of Christ. God is working to that end. Are you cooperating?

One of the Bible’s Most Precious Promises

Let me close this chapter by making one more mention of the promise, “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28).

It is unfortunate that some (whom I’ve earlier labeled the “hyper-sovereignists”) have taken this scripture to the extreme by saying that God causes all things, which it doesn’t say.

It is just as unfortunate that others (whom I’ve earlier labeled the “non-sovereignists”) have reacted against the hyper-sovereignistic view with another extreme opinion on this wonderful promise. Some of them, trying to wriggle out of the clear meaning of this verse, have devised a strained interpretation, claiming that it is speaking solely about intercessory prayer.

If we take Romans 8:28 in its full context, however, it obviously has application to much more than intercession. I encourage you to read the eleven verses preceding Romans 8:28 and the eleven verses following it in order to see what I mean.

For example, verses 17 and 18 state:

And if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us (Rom. 8:17-18, emphasis added).

Let’s also read verses 33 through 39:

Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, “For Thy sake we are being put to death all day long; we were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:33-39, emphasis added).

Within the context, what did Paul mean when he said, “God causes all things to work together for good”? He meant just what he said—God causes all things to work together for good, even things that don’t seem to be good, such as hardships, suffering and persecutions. Even when we are “slaughtered like sheep,” we “overwhelmingly conquer,” as we immediately find ourselves in God’s presence.

Notice that the promise doesn’t say that God causes all things, or that all things are good. The devil and his people cause many things, and many things are not good. God does, however, cause all things to work together for good, that is, for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

Once we believe that amazing promise, life takes on a whole new dimension. Circumstances are no longer just circumstantial—they are God-granted opportunities to grow spiritually. Adversities are no longer just adversities—they are opportunities to trust God’s Word and believe in His goodness. When you can see God’s sovereign hand working for your ultimate good, life becomes an adventure.

If you’ve been a follower of Jesus for very long, you’ve no doubt discovered that becoming a Christian didn’t end all of your problems. In fact, you may have found yourself facing even more difficulties. The fact is, troubles and trials are in your past, present and future, at least until heaven.

So why, exactly, do difficulties periodically (or frequently) assail us? There isn’t just one answer to that question.

There are always, of course, those narrow-minded individuals like Job’s friends who are willing to set us straight, and who claim that all suffering stems from God’s judgment upon individual sin. That kind of uncharitable opinion, however, doesn’t pan out in Scripture. Yes, some suffering comes as a result of God’s judgment upon sin, but not all of it—as in Job’s case for example.

Some suffering (like Job’s) comes not as a result of disobedience, but as a result of obedience. This is certainly true of believers who are persecuted for their faith. Satan is obviously the driving force behind those evil people who persecute, torture, and kill Christians. But why does God allow it?

There are some folks, as I’ve mentioned previously, who say that God can’t do anything because Satan possesses Adam’s lease and is the god of this world, and so on. Hopefully, by now, you’ve seen enough scriptures to disprove that theory. If God supposedly can’t stop the persecution of Christians, then why has He done it on numerous occasions? Why did God allow Stephen and James to be martyred, yet supernaturally release Peter from jail on the eve of his execution?

The Bible is full of stories of God’s timely deliverances. How about the incident recorded in the fifth chapter of Acts when all the apostles were thrown in jail and released by an angel? How about the occasion when Paul and Silas were incarcerated and supernaturally released by a God-sent earthquake (see Acts 16:25-27)? And how about the deliverance of the three Hebrew young men who were thrown into the fiery furnace, or the rescue of Daniel from the lion’s den, or the time when the whole Jewish nation was saved from annihilation through Esther’s intercession? Jesus Himself was supernaturally delivered from a premature death on several occasions.

So why does God sometimes deliver His own people from persecution and other times not? Why did He allow as many as six million Christians to die for their faith during just the first three centuries of the church’s history? No one but God really knows the answer. “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law” (Deut. 29:29). God is keeping some secrets.

Suffering may stem from God’s judgment upon sin. Or, it may stem from Satan’s (God-allowed) assaults upon righteousness. But are there any other reasons for our suffering? Yes, sometimes we suffer because we bring it upon ourselves. Many of our problems are self-inflicted, and we have no one to blame but ourselves. When we eat too much pizza and get sick, we can hardly look for some sinister plot of Satan or some divine purpose from God!

Every difficulty is unique and must be analyzed individually. There are at least three major reasons why difficulties assail us. I’ve categorized them as SITs, MITs, and DITs (pronounced sitz, mitz and ditz).

SIT stands for Self-Inflicted Trial.

MIT stands for Maturing/Testing Intended Trial.

DIT stands for Disciplinary Intended Trial.

Let me expand upon all three.

SITs (Self-Inflicted Trials) are the trials we bring upon ourselves because of our own foolishness. I’ve had my share of them. They serve no real divine purpose except that God allows us to make mistakes in order for us to learn and grow. If God rescued us from every foolish move we made, we’d grow no wiser. Many parents, who have never permitted their children to suffer the consequences of foolish actions, have learned this truth the hard way. Their children enter into adulthood unprepared, having been bailed out of difficult situations all their childhood lives.

We all know what it is like to go through a SIT. The one consolation is that the more SITs you have gone through the less SITs you will go through (if you learn from the first ones, that is). As it has been said, “Good judgment is often the product of previous poor judgments.” We could avoid every SIT if we’d always listen to God and follow His wisdom.

MITs (Maturing/Testing Intended Trials) are those difficulties that God permits to come our way in order to test us or help us to mature spiritually. We’ve already considered a number of scriptural examples of MITs in this book. You will no doubt remember some of the difficulties the Israelites encountered when wandering in the desert. God’s leading them to the bitter waters, for example, would be classified as a MIT. Scripture plainly says that God tested them there (Ex. 15:25).

The incident of the disciples facing a fierce gale as they crossed the Sea of Galilee is another example of a MIT. God gave them an opportunity to exercise their faith. In later chapters, we’ll examine some MITs in the lives of well-known Bible characters.

DITs (Disciplinary Intended Trials) are those difficulties God permits to come our way because we are in disobedience to His will. Through them, God is trying to seize our attention in order to bring us to repentance. There are scores of examples of DITs in Scripture.

If you are facing a trial, how can you know if it is a SIT, MIT, or DIT?

SITs should always be easy to identify. A SIT occurs when you have done something foolish and find yourself suffering the consequences. What should you do? Repent for being foolish, and then ask the Lord to help you out of the mess you’ve made as quickly as possible. Trust Him until you experience your deliverance.[1]

Maybe your trial cannot be labeled a SIT. So either it’s a MIT or DIT. The difference between the two is that DITs are the result of discipline upon sin whereas MITs are not. We can (and will) experience MITs even when we are completely obedient to God, such as in Job’s case.

If you find yourself in the midst of a DIT, then repent and trust God for deliverance. If you find yourself facing a MIT, then you don’t need to repent. Just find one of God’s promises that applies to your particular difficulty and trust Him for help or your deliverance, which He will be faithful to perform as you persevere in faith.

A King’s Trials

Let’s take a look at the life of a man who once faced two MITs and then a DIT. His name was Asa, better known as King Asa, a former ruler over the nation of Judah.

Asa became king after the death of his father, Abijah, and the Bible record tells us that there was peace during the first ten years of his good rule—something that Judah had not experienced during the corrupt reign of Asa’s father:

The land was undisturbed for ten years during his [Asa’s] days. And Asa did good and right in the sight of the Lord his God, and he removed the foreign altars and high places, tore down the sacred pillars, cut down the Asherim [female idols], and commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers and to observe the law and the commandment. He also removed the high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah. And the kingdom was undisturbed under him. And he built fortified cities in Judah, since the land was undisturbed, and there was no one at war with him during those years, because the Lord had given him rest. For he said to Judah, “Let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours, because we have sought the Lord our God; we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered (2 Chron. 14:1-7, emphasis added).

Notice that twice in the above passage, God was the One who was credited for Judah’s peace. He granted the nation peace because of the people’s obedience to His Law. Under God’s blessing, Judah peacefully prospered for ten wonderful years.

That peace was abruptly shattered, however, during the eleventh year of Asa’s good reign. Zerah the Ethiopian, along with an army of one million men equipped with three hundred chariots, invaded Judah’s territory. Rising to meet the challenge, Asa, with his army of 580,000, went out to meet him.

Judah was outnumbered almost two to one and faced an army that was technologically superior for its day. Imagine the tactical advantage that a man in a chariot has over a man who stands on his feet. The Ethiopians had three hundred chariots. Without a miracle, Judah was about to lose half a million soldiers and be annexed by Ethiopia.

Believing Brings Blessings

Before the men of Judah went out to battle the Ethiopians, Asa prayed:

Lord, there is no one besides Thee to help in the battle between the powerful and those who have no strength; so help us, O Lord our God, for we trust in Thee, and in Thy name we have come against this multitude. O Lord, Thou art our God; let not man prevail against Thee (2 Chron. 14:11, emphasis added).

God answered Asa’s prayers:

The Lord routed the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled….and so many of the Ethiopians fell that they could not recover, for they were shattered before the Lord, and before His army. And they [the soldiers of Judah] carried away very much plunder. And they destroyed all the cities around Gerar, for the dread of the Lord had fallen on them; and they despoiled all the cities, for there was much plunder in them. They also struck down those who owned livestock, and they carried away large numbers of sheep and camels (2 Chron. 14:12-15).

Now let’s look at this story from God’s perspective. He obviously wasn’t trying to motivate the people of Judah to repent by means of a trial, so this particular trial wasn’t a DIT. In addition, the people of Judah had made no foolish mistakes that triggered an Ethiopian invasion, so this trial wasn’t a SIT. This trial, then, was a MIT.

Think about this: God could have stopped the Ethiopians even before they got out of Ethiopia, and He could have done it in a thousand ways. So why didn’t He? Because by allowing Ethiopia to invade Judah, an opportunity was provided for the people of Judah to exercise their faith in the Lord. They did, and they were greatly blessed in the end as a result. Without faith it is impossible to please God, but, generally speaking, without trials it is impossible to demonstrate faith.

Again, note that twice in 2 Chronicles 14:6-7 the affirmation is made that God is the one who gave Judah rest from war for the first ten years of Asa’s reign. If God gave Judah rest from war for the first ten years, why didn’t He give Judah rest in the eleventh year? It could only be because God wanted to bless His people for their obedience. And interestingly enough, God’s blessing came in the form of an Ethiopian invasion. The people of Judah were much wealthier after their trial. In their case the proverb is true: “The wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous” (Prov. 13:22).[2]

It is probably safe to assume that God also used the Ethiopian invasion of Judah as a means of judgment upon Ethiopia. Judah’s MIT was Ethiopia’s DIT.

Consider it All Joy

Too often, when we face troubles, we search in vain for some sin we’ve committed so we can repent and find deliverance. Trials occur, however, when we are obeying God as well as when we are disobeying God. If we face a MIT when we think we are suffering a DIT, we may miss out on a blessing from God, not seeing His sovereign hand of love.

So you lost your job? Rejoice! That means that God must have a better job for you! So you’ve been laid flat with sickness? Praise God! Think of how many people with whom you can share the testimony of your healing! Others might have their faith encouraged by your testimony and be healed themselves.

Actually, MITs could also be classified as BITs, meaning “Blessing Intended Trials.” That is why we should “consider it all joy” (Jas. 1:2) when trials come our way because they are really opportunities for blessings. Beware, however: When we complain or fail to trust God in a MIT—as we will soon learn from Asa’s story—we may miss out on the blessings God intends for us to enjoy.

Back to Asa

After his first great victory over the Ethiopians, and through the encouragement of Azariah the prophet, Asa instituted even more far-reaching reforms in his nation during the next five years of his reign:

Now when Asa heard these words, and the prophecy which Azariah the son of Oded the prophet spoke, he took courage and removed the abominable idols from all the land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities which he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He then restored the altar of the Lord which was in front of the porch of the Lord. And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin and those from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who resided with them, for many defected to him from Israel when they saw that the Lord his God was with him. So they assembled at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa’s reign. And they sacrificed to the Lord that day 700 oxen and 7,000 sheep from the spoil they had brought. [The Lord was the Lord of their possessions.] And they entered into the covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and soul; and whoever would not seek the Lord God of Israel should be put to death, whether small or great, man or woman. Moreover, they made an oath to the Lord with a loud voice, with shouting, with trumpets, and with horns. [When people get serious about serving God, their worship tends to become more enthusiastic.] And all Judah rejoiced concerning the oath, for they had sworn with their whole heart and had sought Him earnestly, and He let them find Him. So the Lord gave them rest on every side (2 Chron. 15:8-15).

Asa’s sincere dedication to the Lord was further revealed when he removed his own grandmother from her position as “queen mother” because she had “made a horrid image of an Asherah.” The Bible informs us that Asa “cut down her horrid image, crushed it and burned it at the brook Kidron” (2 Chron. 15:16). True disciples love their God more than their own relatives.

The final words of this chapter detailing Asa’s reforms are, “And there was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s reign” (2 Chron. 15:19). So Judah enjoyed at least 24 years of peace after the Ethiopian invasion.

Asa’s Second Trial

Notice again that the Lord was given the credit for this period of peace in verse 15, but as verse 19 intimates, another MIT was on the horizon.

This time, Baasha, king of Israel, prepared to invade Judah. (The kingdom of Israel had been divided years earlier into “Judah” and “Israel.”) This time, however, Asa did not trust the Lord as he had years before. Instead, he used the silver and gold from the “treasuries of the house of the Lord and the king’s house” to pay Ben-hadad, king of neighboring Syria, to break his covenant with Israel and attack. Ben-hadad obliged, and as a result, Israel ceased its preparations to invade Judah. That is not the end of the story, however, because God was not pleased:

At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, “Because you have relied on the king of Aram and have not relied on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Aram has escaped your hand” (2 Chron. 16:7, emphasis added).

In other words, God would have defeated both Israel and Syria if Asa had trusted God, but Asa actually paid Syria to deliver his nation from Israel. God was going to cause something bad to work together for good for His people. His intention was that they would trust Him and be blessed, just as they had been blessed during the Ethiopian invasion 25 years earlier.

Now think about that. The only reason God permits MITs to come our way is that we might ultimately be blessed. That is why we should “give thanks in everything” and “rejoice always” (1 Thes. 5:16,18). To those who believe, MITs are doors to blessings from God.

Let’s read further what God said to Asa:

Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim an immense army with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet, because you relied upon the Lord, He delivered them into your hand. For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the whole earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. You have acted foolishly in this. Indeed, from now on you will surely have wars (2 Chron. 16:8-9).

I don’t know if those future wars would come as SITs or MITs (or possibly even DITs.). They may have come as SITs because the nations surrounding Judah would now have the courage to attack—courage that they never would have gained if Asa had trusted God for a great deliverance. Or, those future invasions may have come as MITs because, as I have stated previously, if you fail one of God’s tests, you often get to take the test over.

Asa’s Final Trial

Did Asa repent at God’s rebuke? No, tragically he did the equivalent of someone who beats the newspaper boy because he doesn’t like the headlines. Asa had Hanani the prophet thrown in prison, and “Asa oppressed some of the people at the same time” (2 Chron. 16:10). It’s clear that Asa fell into a backslidden condition.

Of course, Asa’s sin didn’t go unnoticed by the Lord. Still, He mercifully gave Asa three years to repent. Asa did not repent during those three years, and so Scripture says that in the thirty-ninth year of his reign he “became diseased in his feet” (2 Chron. 16:12). Now that trial was a DIT. God permitted Asa to be afflicted in hopes of bringing him to repentance.

Sadly, Asa still refused to repent. The Bible tells us that Asa’s “disease was severe, yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord but the physicians. So Asa slept with his fathers, having died in the forty-first year of his reign” (2 Chron. 16:12-13).

The implication is clear: If Asa had repented at some point during his two years of misery, God would have healed him. Asa’s affliction, however, didn’t soften him. Rather, it hardened him, and he died before he should have.[3]

The Lesson

In review, Asa experienced at least three major trials in his life: two MITs and one DIT. He blew it during the second MIT and got mad at God, which resulted in his DIT.

We must not forget that even DITs are manifestations of God’s love for us. Jesus said: “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; be zealous therefore, and repent” (Rev. 3:19).

I am a father of three children, and I love them very much. When they were younger, I disciplined them, and I did it because I loved them. I wanted them to learn to obey God so that they could enjoy His blessings.

God loves us as a Father. If you find yourself suffering in the midst of a trial, I encourage you to seek your Father to find out if you are in the midst of a Self-Inflicted Trial., Maturinig/Testing Intended Trial. or Disciplinary-Intended Trial. If you need to repent and ask the Lord’s forgiveness, then do it, and trust God for deliverance. If you don’t need to repent of anything, then just start rejoicing. Believe that all things work together for good as a lover of God, and that blessings are on their way! God delights in our faith, and “He is a rewarder of those who seek Him” (Heb. 11:6).

[1] There is an element of MITs and DITs in every SIT. In God’s sovereign permissive will, we do grow and mature from suffering a SIT, which makes every SIT somewhat like a MIT. During a SIT, the suffering we endure as a consequence of our foolishness has a disciplining effect on our lives, and is therefore somewhat like a DIT.

[2] Keep in mind, however, that truly righteous people aren’t greedy, and thus they share their abundance with those who are less fortunate.

[3] This might give us a clue as to why Satan would “cooperate” with God when God permits him to afflict one of His own in order to bring about his repentance. Satan cooperates because he is hoping that person won’t repent—which is always a possibility. May I also add that this scripture does not teach us that it is wrong to go to a doctor for medical treatment. It does teach us, however, that if we are sick or diseased because of sin, we’d better repent if we want to get better. When that is the case, doctors can’t help.

God’s Tests

Part 1: All About Tests

• • Chapter 1: Primeval Tests
• • Chapter 2: In the Wilderness
• • Chapter 3: Midnight Praise
• • Chapter 4: The God Who Watches
• • Chapter 5: The Training of the Twelve
• • Chapter 6: Jesus Tests the Sick

Part 2: Who’s in Control Here?

• • Chapter 7: Two Views
• • Chapter 8: God’s Sovereignty and Our Authority
• • Chapter 9: God’s Restraining Power Over Satan
• • Chapter 10: Satan – Tool of God’s Judgment
• • Chapter 11: The god of this World
• • Chapter 12: The Judgment of God

Part 3: Tried and Found True

• • Chapter 13: S.I.T.s, M.I.T.s, and D.I.T.s
• • Chapter 14: Joseph’s Journey
• • Chapter 15: David’s Destiny
• • Chapter 16: Paul’s Path
• • Chapter 17: Job’s Test

Part 4: Wrapping it Up

• • Chapter 18: A Closer Look at Persecution
• • Chapter 19: When the Beginning Ends