Introduction
There are four big tests that most of us will encounter on our spiritual journey. They reveal some aspect of the condition of our hearts. Of course, God already knows what we are like and how we will react, but for us it is often a shocking revelation. How we handle these tests will determine to a great extend how greatly we will glorify God and how useful we can be in his kingdom service. Failing them can actually destroy us. Here are some tips on how to recognize these critical tests and to be able to survive and thrive.
In his First Letter to the Corinthians, Paul warns us that what happened to Israel in the wilderness serves as an example or warning to us to help us avoid a similar outcome of being “overthrown in the wilderness.” Please take a moment to read this section now by clicking on this link – 1 Corinthians 10:1-13.
Most of the Jews who escaped the oppression of Egyptian slavery did not make it into the “promised land.” They never received what God had prepared for them. Instead, they died in the wilderness under God’s judgment for the sins of rebellion and unbelief.
According to Jesus, life is a narrow path filled with tests and difficulties.
Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. Matthew 7:13-14 (ESV)
We have a spiritual enemy who tries to destroy us along the way. God wants us to pass each test and cross each hurdle by relying on his faithfulness and grace.
Test #2: Sexual Immorality, the infidelity in us
Balaam was a false prophet who was hired by King Balak to speak curses over the nation of Israel. God prevented him from doing so, and, much to Balak’s horror, he spoke blessings and some amazing prophecies over God chosen people, instead. However, this evil man devised a devilish alternate plan for bringing destruction to the nation by luring them to sin flagrantly and incur God’s judgment. He and Balak sent idol worshiping Midianite women to lure Israelite men into sexual immorality, which was clearly forbidden by God, and idolatry. As Moses and his faithful men considered what to do, one of the sons of an important clan leader blatantly sinned in full view of the camp, taking a foreign woman into his tent. Phinehas leaped into action and drove a spear through both of them. The Bible praises Phinehas for this display of devotion to holiness; nevertheless, a plague from God erupted as a judgment against the nation, killing 24,000 Israelites before it was stopped. (Numbers 25:6-17)
Balaam’s strategy is still operational today. Satan cannot curse God’s people, but he works to tempt us into destroying ourselves by inviting God’s holy judgment upon sin.
Mankind betrayed God in the Garden of Eden, choosing to go his own way instead of God’s. Sinful infidelity has lurked in the human heart ever since, making us susceptible to temptation into immorality. In order to incite us to lust, we are bombarded with graphic sexual images on TV, the movies, and in other forms of media. Modern culture has largely acquiesced by declaring that sexual transgressions are not really wrong after all. Young people are taught that having sex is normal and natural, and they are encouraged and expected to engage in sexual activity before and outside of marriage. The availability of birth control and easy abortions encourages people to be sexually active with little or no fear of consequences, except for the threat of acquiring STDs. Modern medicine has even made this last deterrent less scary.
Nevertheless, God has not changed his mind about the matter. His commandments always have our best interests in mind, and we violate them at our own peril. Ultimately, we will all give an account to Jesus at the Last Judgment for how we lived and obeyed the Lord. Sexual sin also brings destruction into our lives in the present. Families and lives are ruined. Emotional bonds are formed outside of the marriage covenant through having sex, and scars are left when these relationships are broken, which often last a lifetime. This is serious stuff! God will not be mocked. Sin has consequences, and all of them are bad. (Galatians 6:7)
Jude warned us that even some who profess to be followers of Christ will go off the path and try to take others with them.
I say this because some ungodly people have wormed their way into your churches, saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives. The condemnation of such people was recorded long ago, for they have denied our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. Jude 1:4 (NLT)
Application
If you have been flirting with or engaging in sexual immorality or if you have been listening to arguments and reasoning that says it’s no big deal, beware! This is the second of the big four wipe out tests. Recommit yourself to setting apart your body and heart for the Lord. Resist sexual temptation and stay away from opportunities to sin. Become accountable to some trustworthy person, who will help you keep your commitments. Don’t throw away your heavenly reward for temporary pleasure. Pass the second test by standing strong against sexual temptation.
See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; 16 that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears. Hebrews 12:15-17 (ESV)
