Does God use tests and trials, including those caused by others, for our good? That can be a challenging thought for many of us.

How do you respond when someone sins against you? Do you get angry? Defensive? Do you allow it to justify sinning in return? If God allows us to be sinned against at times, what do we need to understand about our responses and how we should respond so we can benefit from our trials?

Today’s Readings:

2 Samuel 23 & 24
Psalm 68.7-10
Proverbs 17.5-6
John 9.1-23

Trials: What You Absolutely Need to Know

2 Samuel 23 & 24:

The Sweet Psalmist of Israel

Here we are in the last two chapters of 2 Samuel. They read like a summary of David’s life, both at his best and at his worst. So, before we talk about trials, let’s look at some background.

Chapter 23 gives David’s last inspired words (vv. 2-7), calling him “the sweet psalmist of Israel.” What a great ending—or is it? Along comes chapter 24.

Again the anger of the LORD was aroused against Israel, and He moved David against them to say, ‘Go, number Israel and Judah’ (v. 1).

There’s so much contained in that one verse.

Who Caused David to Sin?

First, was it God who “caused” David to sin against the people?

James 1.13-15 says:

Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.

David, like all of us, was first tempted by his own sinful heart. We can glean more understanding by reading the parallel passage in 1 Chronicles:

Now Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel (1 Chron. 21.1).

God, for His sovereign purposes, allowed Satan to tempt David to do what was already in his heart.

What was the sin that manifested itself here? Notice the last part of verse 2, “… count the people, that I may know the number of the people.” David counted the people out of his pride so that he would know the number of people he ruled over.

God’s Instrument

What about the phrase, “Again the anger of the LORD was aroused against Israel …”?

Remember, these were the people who had followed Absalom in rebellion against David and later many of them had followed Sheba. So God allowed David to be His instrument of discipline in the lives of the people while he used the situation to reveal to David the pride that still remained in his own heart.

And He sometimes does the same in our lives. I know there are unpleasant situations God has used to reveal things in my heart. Sometimes I know He has done so to discipline me for sinful attitudes or actions and other times simply to help me grow in the likeness of Christ.

What (or who) might He be using in your life? What does He want you to see? Is there some attitude there that needs work? Could He be growing and maturing you? Or could it be His discipline?

Remember, if we belong to Him, whatever He does and whatever He allows is because He loves us (Heb. 12.5-6) and to help us become more like Christ (Rom. 8.28-29).

So, how can we better benefit from our trials?

How to Benefit from Your Trials

While we will never fully understand God’s purposes, even in our own lives, there is much we can seek to understand. And there are things we can do to benefit more from our trials.

Maybe you have been unfairly criticized or misjudged, been the object of gossip, been cheated, lied to, or mistreated in some way. Maybe your spouse has committed adultery or you have been sinned against in some other way. What can you do to actually benefit from it?

• Do a self-check.

Matthew 7.1-5 says:

³ Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? ⁴ Or how can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” and behold, the log is in your own eye? ⁵ You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye (NASB).

Ask God to help you see where you may have sinned. You might pray like the psalmist in Psalm 139:

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
And see if there be any hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way (vss. 23-24).

Though you are not responsible for someone else’s sin, ask yourself if there is something you have done to make it easier for the other person to sin against you?

Have you been unloving (1 Cor. 13.4-7)?

Have you been disrespectful, harsh, unforgiving, etc.?

If so, it’s important to deal with your part of the problem first. Go to God. Confess your sin and seek His forgiveness and help to live righteously going forward (1 Jn. 1.9).

Then unless doing so would put you in danger (see note below), go to the other person and seek his or her forgiveness. Address your sin without blame-shifting, minimizing, or pointing out their sin (Matt. 5.23-24).

• Ask for God’s wisdom.

Pray and ask for God’s wisdom about how to respond in a way that would glorify Him.

² Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. ³ For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. ⁴ So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

⁵ If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. ⁶ But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷ Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.⁸ Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do (Jas. 1 NLT).

• Search the Scriptures.

¹⁶ All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, ¹⁷ that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Tim. 3).

You might start with a passage like Galatians 5.22-23:

²² But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,²³ gentleness, and self-control … (NLT).

Ask yourself, which characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit might God be developing in your life. How can you cooperate with His work in that area?

• Don’t sin in return.

No matter how someone else sins against us, it does not justify our sinful responses. God promises that He will not allow a test or a trial in our lives that would force us to sin (1 Cor. 10.13).

That does not mean we should always ignore someone else’s sin. There are times for loving, gentle, humble confrontation (Gal. 6.1-2; Matt. 7.3-5, 18.15). There are also times to take the matter beyond personal one-on-one confrontation (Matt. 18.15-17). That would include legal action and prosecution for crimes (Rom. 13.1-4). But, even then, we can choose to forgive on the heart level.

• Remember the gospel.

Remember the gospel and God’s grace in your life. We have all been forgiven for so much. What each of us deserved was hell and, if we belong to Christ, we have been given grace instead. Take that grace and bend it out to others.

Is it possible to overlook or let love cover the other person’s sin?

And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins” (1 Pet. 4.8).

Even when the sin must be dealt with, God’s grace will help us do it gently and tentatively, looking to ourselves first (Gal. 6.1-2).

• Seek good biblical counsel.

Find someone to walk alongside you and hold you accountable, someone who can help you see things from God’s perspective and help you respond rightly. That might be a pastor, a mature Christian friend, or a biblical counselor.

• Seek to glorify God.

Everyone who is called by My name,
Whom I have created for My glory;
I have formed him, yes, I have made him (Is. 43.7).

Ask yourself will the way I’m tempted to respond bring God glory? Will it give others the right opinion of Him and what it means to be a believer?

Good News & Bad

It’s not always easy to respond righteously to the sins of others and the tests and trials of life. But, if we are believers, we have the Holy Spirit living in us, God’s Word to guide us, and the right to come into His throne room and seek His help. We have the body of Christ to help and hold us accountable. We have His promise that He will never allow a trial in our lives that He won’t also give us the wisdom and ability to respond to rightly and persevere through (1 Cor. 10.13).

That’s the good news. The bad news is, if we choose to sin, it’s just that … a choice!

*Note: While the principles above are still important for you to understand and follow, if you are the victim of abuse (domestic, parental, sexual, etc.), you need to seek wise counsel from a mature Christian (pastor, elder, biblical counselor, etc.). If you or your children are in danger, you need to remove yourself and go to a safe place or talk to someone in authority. If you are the victim of a crime, you should call the police. The civil authorities are part of God’s provision in our lives.

Today’s Other Readings:

Psalm 68.7-10:

Remember

In these verses, David continues to recount the mighty works of God. Though he was an imperfect man and failed in many ways, it was this kind of “remembering” that allowed him to trust God in the most difficult of circumstances. That included the times when God was disciplining him and allowing him to suffer the consequences of his actions.

If you are going through a difficult time, why not try writing your own psalm of praise, thanksgiving, and “remembering”?

Proverbs 17.5-6:

Don’t Rejoice in the Calamity of Others

… He who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished (v. 5b).

1 Corinthians 13.6 says, love “does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth.”

Too often we have a “what-goes-around-comes-around” attitude. We need to guard our hearts against rejoicing or being secretly happy that someone else is suffering, even someone who has hurt or sinned against us.

John 9.1-23:

So the Works of God Can Be Revealed

Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, saying, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ Jesus answered, ‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him’ (vv. 1-3).

Often those things that we call “handicaps” are opportunities for the glory of God to be manifest whether through healing, as with this man, or through His grace in allowing that person to serve Him in a special, and just as miraculous, way.

What about you? Questions to Ponder or Journal:

How can you be a better steward of any trials or difficult relationships in your life? Are there ways you might respond better? In what ways might God be growing you?

Coming Up:

In the coming days, we’ll talk about the rewards of serving God in our homes, knowing the voice of God, and whether we can lose our salvation.

I hope you’ll sign up so you don’t miss any of them. You might also like to check out our YouTube channel.

If you would like to receive a FREE downloadable and printable Bible study through the book of Mark, you can click here for more information.

Blessings as you grow in Christ,
Donna ♥

You might also like to check out this short series:

How Psychology Affects the Spread of the Gospel – Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Note about this post:

I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer. 

A while ago, I read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”

I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.

Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)

I sometimes LINKUP with these blogs.