Bend in the Road - Lesson 4 - Spiritual Tests

We have tests to see how smart we are, like IQ tests.
We have tests of strength.
What about Spiritual Tests?

We can play Bible trivia, but is that a true test of our spiritual strength?
We can check attendance records, does that measure our spirituality?
Speed drills looking up scripture?
Scripture memory?

I once saw a grade schooler recite James chapter one,
Then half of James chapter two.
Is that a spiritual test?

We are going to review 7 ways the Lord uses to test our spiritual character.
As men and women, not gods,
How do we attempt to test our spirituality,
Our spouse or our children’s spirituality.

Or how about others?





DIVINE METHODS used for testing believers
- By Demanding Great Sacrifices
- By Leading Men in a Difficult Way
- By Giving Opportunities for Choice
- By Proposing Hard Tasks
- By Permitting Men to Suffer when in the Pathway of Duty (Paul and Silas)
- By Permitting Temptation
- By Divine Delays (Test Men's Courage and Patience)


By Demanding Great Sacrifices
He wants to prove us,
He wants to give us opportunity to show whether we will obey him.
We must not fear with amazement;
but we must always have in our minds a reverence of God's majesty,
a dread of his displeasure,
and an obedient regard to his sovereign authority.

Exodus 20:20, ‘And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.’

What is your sacrifice?
Are you going to wander in the wilderness for many years?

Has the Lord ever demanded a great sacrifice of you?





A 2nd way the Lord uses to test our spiritual character.
By Leading Men in a Difficult Way
One great objection of God is to try men
And lead them to see and to manifest their true character.

Deuteronomy 8:2, ‘And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no.’

God already knows our heart and our true colors.
He knows the end from the beginning.

Maybe he puts us through all this so we will learn of our own heart.





Does he test us to see what we are made of?
How we interpret scripture for our family and ourselves?
To see if we will be bounced around by every wind of doctrine?
Or to see if we hold fast to our wrong interpretation of scripture?

God suffers many things to take place in this world to try us,
and lead us to show whether we will serve him or not.

Deuteronomy 13:3, ‘Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.’

How do you perform under this spiritual test?
Sometimes God puts things in our path so we will say no…





A 3rd way the Lord uses to test our spiritual character.
Is by Giving Opportunities for Choice

God leaves us alone to ourselves,
and suffers satan to try us;
that he might know we have infirmities and sins as well as virtues.

O what need we have, and good people have, and useful people have,
to study our own follies and infirmities,
and to beg earnestly of God,
that he would hide pride from us.

2Chronicles 32:31, ‘Howbeit in the business of the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who sent unto him to enquire of the wonder that was done in the land, God left him, to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart.’

How do you respond at these times?
Are you old enough to be left alone at times?





How are you in the night;
When your mind is free from outward occupations,
And its true bent is manifested most clearly.

Psalm 17:3, ‘Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.’

When the Lord tries us what does He find?





A 4th way the Lord uses to test our spiritual character.
Is by Proposing Hard Tasks

Do we remember the miracles the Lord has already performed in our lives?
Do we remember His promises from His word?

John 6:5-6, ‘When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat? And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do.’

Do we then get over confident and forget to turn to the Lord
When it is His time to work in our loves?





A 5th way the Lord uses to test our spiritual character.
Is by permitting us to Suffer when in the Pathway of Duty (like Paul and Silas)

Ac 16:23-24, ‘And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.’

Has the Lord ever allowed you to be in an inescapable situation?
Or appeared to have you suffer while serving Him?





A 6th way the Lord uses to test our spiritual character.
Is by Permitting Temptation

James 1:2-3, ‘My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;’
‘Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.’

How do you perform under this set of circumstances?





A 7th way the Lord uses to test our spiritual character.
Is by Divine Delays to test our Courage and Patience

Psalm 13:1, ‘To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?’

Psalm 69:3, ‘I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.’

James 5:7, ‘Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.’

2Peter 3:9, ‘The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.’

Let’s keep the Lord’s words in our minds when these tests approach.
Just like in school we had to study for tests.
Are we studying for the Lord’s tests?
Or are we just going to wing it?

Are we going to use the same cheat sheet from the last test for this one?
Are we going to hope for partial credit?
Or hope He is grading on the curve?

Let’s continually study.
Let’s always be prepared.
Others are counting on us.

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