When God Tests You, What Will He Find?

Jeremiah 20: 12a – ”O Lord of hosts, who tests the righteous, who sees the heart and the mind…”

Jeremiah is having a hard day. Actually, he is having a hard life. God has called him to prophecy to his wicked nation, and they not only have rejected the word of the Lord, but they are ready to kill God’s messenger as well. As Jeremiah is about to ask God to bring vengeance on those who have made Jeremiah’s life so miserable, he begins by reminding himself of a pertinent truth about God’s nature.

First, God is the Lord. He rules over all people and all circumstances.

Next, He is the Lord of hosts, i.e. the commander of heavens armies. God has the power to do whatever He wants.

Thirdly, it is God’s nature to test the righteous. God wants to know if the people who claim to serve and follow Him are genuine. That’s really the only reason you test something or someone—to find out if they are who they claim to be. And there is no fooling God, because Jeremiah says God sees the heart and the mind.

The lesson for me today in this verse is that God wants sincere, genuine followers, who are who they say they are. And He’s going to test me to reveal the truth about me.

See, that’s the thing. God already knows if I’m a hypocrite or not.

The testing is to reveal the truth TO ME.

Don’t give up if you fail the test. Peter failed his test, denying Jesus three times, but Christ still had plans for him. Actually, in Peter’s case, his failure revealed weaknesses in himself that he never believed were there. It broke him, humbled him, and opened the door for him to truly become the follower of Christ God always intended for him to be. Can you see that?

Other tests will come in Peters life. Some he will pass to the glory of God, and other tests he will fail, resulting in Peter’s humility, growth, and maturity.

God’s goal is to make us like Christ, and he is willing to sacrifice our happiness to accomplish that. When the tests come in your life, seek God’s grace and wisdom to make it through. But even if you fail, remember God’s faithfulness. God will even use our failures to reveal His glory in and through our lives!

His goal is to make us like Christ.