These Tests

Scripture Reading: Judges 2:16-3:6

The Lord left Philistines, Canaanites, Sidonians, and Hivites to test Israel. The question that was to be answered was would they be careful to walk in the ways of the Lord?

God doesn’t remove every problem and every temptation from our path. Every day we hear the Siren’s song, we see the bypaths, we feel the urge to diverge from the true and narrow road. Yes, God could remove any and all temptation. He could leave the tree of the knowledge of good and evil out of the garden. But where does that leave us?

It leaves us ignorant of our true nature. It convinces us that we are holy and strong and good. It assures us we are sufficient in ourselves.

But the Philistines remind us how easily and quickly we succumb to even the slightest of temptations. The Canaanites demonstrate how weak we are. The Sidonians test and expose our faults. The Hivites reveal we aren’t much different than they are. All of them, these temptations and trials, survive and thrive to keep our pride in check. They drive us constantly back to Christ. They help us, in a strange way, to stay close to the cross and to find our sufficiency in the Spirit of Christ.