OceanSide church of Christ

 Previous Return to Articles Next 

THE CHRISTIAN AND TRIALS

Victor M. Eskew

 

            The Christian is a very unique individual.  He has been redeemed by the blood of Christ.   He also has his Lord to help him face every battle of life.  In Isaiah 41:10, this promise was given by God to His children, Israel:  “Fear thou not; for I am with thee:  be not dismayed; for I am thy God.  I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”  In Hebrews 13: 5, a similar promise was given to the Hebrew Christians.  “…for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

            It is easy to acknowledge the truth of these words when all is well.  It is when we are in the trials of life that our faith is put to the test.  When sickness comes, do I believe God is with me?  When a disease is diagnosed, do I trust God is present in my life?  When I have suffered a lost, do I have faith God has not left me?  When my marriage crumbles, when I lose my job, and when my friend has forsaken me, do I know beyond a doubt that God’s love and care still surrounds me? 

            We are not attempting to minimize our trials.  They are hard.  They do hurt.  They do bring sorrow.  They do plague our minds with questions.  But when all was good, we proclaimed that our God was bigger than anything we could face.  We boasted that regardless of the trials we would face our faith in Him would always be strong.  Now that the trial is upon us, will we truly put all of our care into the hands of God?  Will we boldly say:  “Lord, not my will, but thine be done”?

            Dear reader, Bible greats have not always passed the test of trials.  One king of Israel who failed the trial was King Ahaziah.  2 Kings 1:2, reveals that Ahaziah “fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick.” Instead of trusting in God, he sent messengers to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether he would recover of his disease (2 Kings 1:2).  Ahazaiah failed the test.  His lack of trust in God brought about his death.  However, he did not die before he was first rebuked by the prophet of God named Elijah.  “And he said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Forasmuch as thou has sent messengers to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron, is it not because there is no God in Israel to enquire of his word?  therefore thou shalt not come down off that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.  So he died according to the word of the Lord which Elijah had spoken… (2 Kings 1:16-17a).  Elijah affirmed that God was near.  Ahaziah could have prayed unto Him for help.  Instead, he turned to a false god.  Because of his lack of trust in the God of Israel, he perished. 

            The apostle Peter was another man who failed to pass the test when put through the fiery furnace.  Jesus had been arrested in the garden.  John and Peter followed the Lord to see what would happen to Him.  While in the palace area, Peter’s faith was put on trial. 

 

                        “Now Peter sat without in the palace:  and a damsel came unto him, saying,                                         Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee.  But he denied before them all, saying,                                           I know not what thou sayest.  And when he was gone out into the porch,                                                            another maid saw him, and said unto them that were there, This fellow was                                         also with Jesus of Nazareth.  And again, he denied with an oath, I do not                                                     know the man.  And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said                                           to Peter, Surely thou also art one of them; for thy speech bewrayeth thee.  Then                                       began he to curse and swear, saying, I know not the man.  And immediately                                          the cock crew” (Matt. 26:69-74).

 

Not long before this, Jesus had informed Peter and the other disciples that all of them would be offended because of Him that night (Matt. 26:31).  Peter did not believe the words of Jesus.  “Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended” (Matt. 26:33).  Peter said those words in the quiet of the Garden of Gethsemane.  He spoke those words when there was no immediate threat.  But when the trail came, he failed.  He could not muster enough faith to admit that he was a disciple of Jesus.  After he failed the test, Peter’s conscience was pierced.  “And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.  And he went out, and wept bitterly” (Matt. 26:75).  Peter’s tears were sincere and profitable, but sadly the test had come and gone, and he had failed the trial.

            We expect evil men like Ahaziah to fail the test of faith.  They are rebellious and do not love God at all.  On the other hand, we expect men like Peter to pass the test of faith.  Men like Peter are strong, loyal, and determined.  Yet, they, too, fail the test of trials sometime.  Failure, however, can make us stronger.  It did Peter.  Peter repented and fulfilled his duty as an apostle of Christ.  In Acts 3-5, we see him put to the test again.  This time he stood firm.  When Peter and John were commanded to cease speaking in the name of Jesus, here is how they responded:  “But Peter and John answered and said unto them, Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye.  For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:19-20).  In this trial, Peter shined.  He refused to deny the Lord again. 

            Dear Christian, are you in the trial of faith?  If so, remember that the Lord has promised to be with you.  His presence is near.  Cry out unto God for His assistance.  He will help you through.  Perhaps you have faced the trial of your faith and have failed.  All is not lost.  Repent of your lack of faith.  Use this defeat to prepare for the next trial.  When it comes, your previous failure may just give you the strength you need to pass this new trial.  Let’s close with Peter’s words regarding trails found in 1 Peter 1:6-8.  “Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:  that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:  whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.”