SURVIVING TRIALS
Some people thing that when we accept Jesus as Lord, all our problems will be over and we are in for smooth sailing. But that is simply not the case. We will still at times have trials, problems and difficulties. We will see this morning what God’s word has to say about our trials.
Prayer
The bible never says that when we become Christians, our lives will be trouble free. In fact it says the opposite. Jesus said “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). And first Peter 4 tells us “Dear friends, do not be astonished that a trial by fire is occurring among you, as though something strange were happening to you.” God’s ultimate purpose is to make us into the image of his son, Jesus. And trials are a necessary part of that. And nobody is excluded. But there is a big difference between the trials of the saved and the trials of the unsaved. God uses the trials and difficulties that Christians face to build us up, to educate and prepare us for greater tasks. For the non-Christian, he often uses trials to nudge the lost closer to salvation.
Let us look at why God gives us good Christians trials? I will share with you six reasons this morning why we at times go through the fire as well.
The first reason is that we may need to be pruned. John 15:2 says
“Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”
We may be faithfully serving God in some ministry. We may be very happy with our service and with our lives. But out of the blue, God either sends or allows a trial to come our way. That trial might be God’s way of pruning us fruitful branches. Why? Perhaps he wants to reshape us a bit, to remove some unnecessary parts that might be holding us back. Or perhaps he wants to reshape us into a person more useful to him. And as we persevere and finish up the trial, we will come out on the other side and be stronger and even more fruitful.
The second reason that we may experience trials is that God simply wants to strengthen us. As surely as exercise strengthens our muscles, trials strengthen our faith and make us stronger, more capable kingdom workers, better equipped to help others. God sometimes allows us to go through certain trials so that afterwards, we can minister to someone else who is going through a similar trial. Obviously if we have been through a certain trial, we are better equipped to empathize with someone who is going through that same trial, to guide teach and minister to them. The scars and injuries that we suffer during a trial often help us to help others going through a similar
trial.
Next, trials increase our faith. James 1:2-4 says 2 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James also says in verse 12, “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” James says to count it all joy when you have various trials.
As we walk through a trial, or even trial after trial, our faith is strengthened as we rely on God to get us through. Without trials, our faith would be weak. As we grow, we become more comfortable when we face trials. As we mature in the Lord, when trials strike, we are less panicky, more trusting, and more confident that the Lord will lead us through to the other side of every trial. We have experienced God’s deliverance before, and we now have more faith that he will stick with us and get us through this trial. If we trusted God and persevered through the first trial, then the next trial will be easier, because we now have more faith and we have greater trust in God. I have not yet matured to the point where I rejoice whenever I am struck be a trial. But my ability to do so has greatly increased as I have aged and experienced many trials.
The next reason that God may allow a trial to come our way is to mold us. As mentioned, God’s desire is to mold us into the image of his son. You remember the prophet Elijah. After God sent him to the brook Kerith to hide out from King Ahab for three years, then after the brook dried up, He sent Elijah to live with a widow lady in Zarephath, in Sidon. This was no doubt another hard test, a fiery trial for Elijah. First of all, Sidon was a pagan area, a place of Baal worship. Zarephath was the home town of evil queen Jezebel. And God asked Elijah to go live with a widow; widows were the poorest of the poor. The name Zarephath in Hebrew means “to melt” or “to smelt”, and could have been a place where iron ore was processed. Iron ore was heated until the iron is melted. The impurities were then removed. And after purification, the iron is poured into molds to make tools or other useful things.
God was refining Elijah during this time, molding and strengthening him for his work that lay ahead. God needs to refine all his people from time to time, to send us through the fire so certain impurities can be removed. If you are going through a fiery trial, maybe God is trying to remove some impurities that should not be there.
Then lastly, God may give us a trial so that he can move us, either physically or otherwise. He may have a higher purpose for us somewhere else, where we are needed more. He sometimes moves his saints around, like pawns on his chess board, to where he needs us most; to where we can be more effective for him. God may not move us physically, but he may ask us to change an activity or ministry. Maybe you did not plan on having a career change at your age. Or you did not plan on having to take care of aging parents, or a sick child. But God did. He may cause us to have to give up a good ministry in order to start one that is even more important to him. Sometimes God will throw out your ten year plan and move you to where he needs you more.
But we need to be careful when we think that God may be asking us to make any of these changes. God also wants us to persevere in and through trials, and to learn what he is trying to teach us. How then can we know, is God calling us to move, or is he calling us to persevere in our present situation? The only way to know is through a lot of deep prayer and time in the word, usually over a period of time. Trust in God for the answer. Eventually, God will give you the answer and give you peace about your decision. You can trust him.
OK, so now that we know some of the reasons that God gives us trials, how then are we to handle those trials?
When we first enter a trial, it is important that we stay in prayer about the trial. Ask God to give you divine guidance concerning what we should do during each step of the trial. And also ask him to strengthen us, to sustain us, and to give us peace in the midst of the trial. Ask for wisdom about the trial, what is it all about. Ask also for his guidance and strength to persevere.
It is OK for us to ask God to miraculously take away a trial entirely. He will rarely take away a trial that he is using to develop us, but he does at times just to show his love for us and to demonstrate his power. If he says no, then we continue to persevere and trust him to bring us through to the other side stronger, wiser and better equipped to serve him.
We should resolve to allow the trial to strengthen our relationship with God, and to be more reliant on His love, wisdom and power. Every trial should draw is closer to our savior. Unfortunately when some folks enter a trial, they blame God for the trial. They become angry at God, some gripe and complain, some give up, and some walk away from God. But James 1:13 says “When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;”
God will never tempt anyone to do anything evil, nor will he do us any harm. The trials that are allowed to enter the lives of Christians will ultimately benefit either us or the kingdom usually both. Regardless of the type of trial we are in, we will have a reward at the end if we rely on God and persevere through it.
We must realize that when God allows a trial to enter our lives, he does so to test and grow our faith or to teach us something and help us become more capable and stronger warriors. Or if we are off course, he may send a trial our way to chasten and correct us when we need it. Romans 8:28 says “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
You may be here this morning and do not yet know Jesus. You may not yet have experienced his love and grace. He wants more than anything to save you, to take you to heaven. If so, he may send a trial or two your way to encourage you to look to him as your Lord. He wants lovingly to draw you into his family. Then in your eternal home, there will be no more trials.
Reference: Elijah, the Bible Teacher’s Guide by Gregory Brown
