Lecture

The Bible has some mysteries in it, some deep supernatural truths. In fact, the Bible uses the word “mysteries” twenty-eight times in the New Testament. And a person that is going to be initiated into the mysteries in ancient times was called an initiate. And the person who was leading that initiation process would take that person from elementary levels to intermediate levels, to advanced levels, to the master level. Each one of these levels was a breakthrough. It was information that the person being initiated had no idea about, it was hidden. It was mysteries they didn’t know. And these secrets weren’t to give you just, you know, hidden information, it was given to make you have truths that radically changed your life because of what you then learned and could use.

So, I have a question for you. Do you think the Bible actually has an initiation into the mysteries? Wouldn’t that be enlightening if that were true? I mean, just think about that. A verse in the Bible that talks about the initiation into the mysteries. Well, do you know, there are over 150,000 Greek words in the New Testament, but there is only one word in the entire New Testament which describes this initiation process, and that one word is only used one time.

Do you know the verse that reveals this profound secret? You probably don’t. I’ve taught this to people, and I’ve asked. . . . Nobody in the audience has any idea where this revelation is found. Do you know? You’re probably saying to yourself, Come on, tell me the verse. What are you talking about? Well, this process is called the initiation into the mysteries, and there are typically stages you have to go through before you get the full impact of the mystery, because the mystery is unknown until it’s revealed to you. And when it’s revealed to you, then you have the opportunity to use the truths to change your life.

And I want to say to you that this mystery is so powerful that it would be impossible for me to exaggerate to you what it’s going to do in your life. Honestly, I can’t overstate it. It is so powerful, that’s why it’s called a mystery. And that’s why you probably don’t know where it is or what it is or how it works. It is so amazing when you find out.

Well, I don’t have any secret information, do I? Because the Bible has the information, and what we’re going to do together is we’re going to look at the passages that prepare you to learn the secret. And the last part of this course, we’re going to look at the one place that God talks about the initiation into the mysteries.

This course is made up of eight parts, and the first two parts are the elementary parts of the initiation processes. Three and four are the intermediate levels. Number five and six are the advanced levels. And finally in seven and eight we get to the master level and the revelation of the initiation.

Well, I can’t wait to expose this to you, and to prepare your heart for this. We tested this in two different places recently before taping this for you. And you know what the number one comment from people was? How on earth I’ve never heard of this? I didn’t have any idea that this was true. And would you please teach this again? I want to bring all my family and friends. This is so powerful, it changed my life. So, it’s time. Why don’t we turn our attention to the grand adventure we call, “The Testing of Your Faith.”

Have you ever thought about learning a deep secret hidden in the Bible that’s about God and how He interfaces in your life? Well, these first two sessions in our eight-part series lay a foundation that prepares you to get further initiated in this process, and I can’t wait to teach this to you. This is a life-changing, life-altering course. You’ll never be able to be the same when you learn this and you begin to use what you’re going to learn today.

So, let’s take a look at session number one: The Purpose of Tests of Faith. And this has to do with an introduction, the Bible reveals, God tests everyone. He even tests you, and He tests me. Let’s take a look at some passages in the Bible that say this. In Psalm 11 it says, “The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven; his eyes behold, his eyelids test . . .” They test “the sons of men. The Lord tests the righteous” (Psalm 11:4–5 NKJV). “But, O Lord of hosts, you who test the righteous” (Jeremiah 10:12). How does He test? Why does He test? What happens if you fail the test? How many tests has He given to you? Are you in a test right now? Oh my goodness, we’re just laying the bricks of the foundation as we begin. And see the mind and the heart.

Next verse. This is a very helpful passage. What’s the purpose or what’s the motivation why God tests us? First of all, it’s a revelation, isn’t it? That God tests you. That means that the almighty God Himself does something to you and to me; He tests you. And the question I would have at this moment is, why? What is His motive? What’s He trying to accomplish by testing me? What happens if I say, I don’t want a test.

Let’s take a look at this next passage in Deuteronomy. It’s about the children of Israel wandering in the wilderness. And it says God “who led you through that great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty land where there was no water; who brought water for you out of the flinty rock; who fed you in the wilderness with manana, which your father did not know.” Now watch this verse. Why? Why did God do that? “That, that he, [God] might humble you and that he might,” look at this word, “test you” (Deuteronomy 8:15–16). You mean, God brought them through the wilderness to test them? Yes. Question: God, why were you testing them?

Do you remember when the people came out of Egypt and there was no water? Did God know there was no water? Yep. Could He have made water before they got there? Yes. Did He purposely not give them water initially? Yes. Why? What a great question. And why do you go through such difficult times in your life? Why? What’s going on? What’s the purpose of God? To test you to do you good in the end. What’s the purpose of God’s test? To do you good. When? In the end of the test, not at the beginning, not at the middle, at the end. Something’s going on in the test that’s going to do you good at the end.

We’re going to dive into this. It’s shocking what God does. It’s like, you’re going to find out as we get into this, especially if we get into the next two, after we lay the foundation in sessions one and two, when we get to sessions three and four, you’re going to find yourself almost with your mouth open and you’re just kind of, Oh my goodness, I never understood that before. To do you good in the end.

Well, in Jeremiah it says, “I, the Lord search the heart, I test the mind” (Jeremiah 17:10a). That’s how you think. In the New Testament Paul says, “Even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts” (1 Thessalonians 2:4). So, I want to ask you a question. Is it okay with you that God in His wisdom has decided to test us, the test to do you good in the end? Is it okay with you? Do you accept God’s method and His motive? God, what’s your motive to test me? I want to do you good at the end. What’s your method? I’m going to test you. That’s the foundation of this whole initiation process. It’s all about the tests. And my goodness, is there so much to unpack in this whole issue.

So let’s move past the introduction to part number one. The trials of life are God’s tests of faith. The trials of life, the hard things that I go through are God’s tests of faith? Let’s take a look at this. In James chapter one we have probably the most basic foundational passage about this. You have it in your workbook or in your super book. “My brethren,” talking to Christians in this passage, “count it all joy”—to esteem it, value it with joy in your heart —“when you fall into various trials” (James 1:2). I’ve never been in a trial that I liked, have you? It’s not something that your heart really says, Oh, I can’t wait for another trial. It’s shocking, this verse starts out by saying, I want you to have joy when something happens to you. When? I want you to have joy when you fall into various trials. I’m to have joy when this happens to me? That’s what it says.

Knowing something, knowing that the testing, wait a minute, I’m falling into trials and the trials test my faith? You mean the trial really is something different than a trial, it’s a test? What’s it testing? It’s testing my faith. It produces patience or endurance. “But let patience have its perfect work, that you,”—here’s the purpose of this whole thing—“that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (James 1:4). So what’s the purpose of this whole test process that something happens to me that you may be perfect? Perfect? What does that mean? I’m going to be perfect because of the testing of my faith that takes place in a trial? And that’s why I am to count it all joy?

How does a person know . . . Okay, hold on to this as we get going into this series. How does a person know if they’ve been initiated into the elementary level of this whole process of this mystery? Answer: Do you count it all joy when you fall into a trial? It doesn’t say, Count it all joy when the trial’s over. Whoa, it’s count it all joy, when? When at the time that you fall into a trial. Because you know something, you not only know it, but you know it deeply, you believe it to be true, because you’ve been fully initiated. It’s the initiated people who live above circumstances, and other people say to them, How on earth can you have the peace and contentment about this? If this happened to me, I’d be falling apart. How come, what’s the difference? Well, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

Let’s go a little bit deeper into this in this passage, “My brethren, count it,” It means to esteem and think and count all joy, not partial joy, but all joy. When? At the time that you fall into various—means there’s different kinds of tests—various trials, yes. Knowing something, “knowing that the testing of your faith . . .” Wait a minute now, a trial tests me. Yes. And what is it testing me about? It’s testing me about my faith, the conviction about what I believe is really taking place and it produces patience or endurance (James 1:2–3).

And then there’s a warning, and it’s the only command that you have in this passage. “But let patience” or let endurance “have its perfect work” (James 1:4). The word “perfect” there come from teleios, which means to reach its end, to finish, to complete. And what the Bible is actually saying is, Your trial has a beginning, a middle and an end. And the good that’s coming to you only occurs at the end. Therefore, the commandment is, I want you to have endurance until the end. And when it says that it’s actually in the imperative. This is the command, I command you. Don’t abort the trial, don’t stop it. Let it go through until it brings its completion, because that’s when the benefit comes to you, that you may be perfect.

What does it mean to be perfect? It means to come to complete maturity, to come, it’s like you’re filling a glass with water, and it’s filled all the way to the top, “that you may be,” not that you never make a mistake, but that you are a complete person. You are fully mature, and you are complete and lacking, lacking absolutely nothing (James 1:4).

So let’s see if we can’t take a look at this, think about what you’re learning. It starts off with a surprising response. Usually we say, we teach something and then we say, Here’s the response we should have. This passage begins with the response. It says, “Count it all joy when you fall into,” just kind of watch this, you don’t have to draw this. We’ll come back to this later in this session, “when you fall into various,” what? Trials. What’s being tested in my trial? Here’s the shocker, “that the testing of [my] faith.” You mean the trial is testing what I believe? Yes. “Knowing,” I’ve got to know something here. This is the reality, isn’t it? The reality is, I’m in a trial. It’s difficult, it’s grievous, it’s distressful, it’s hard, knowing that I have to endure. I have to continue letting this trial take place until, that’s my responsibility, just kind of watch this now, until I’m transformed. This is the result. And there is a reward connected to it. The reward is that I become, I become perfect, I become complete. And I’m lacking absolutely nothing. For what? Well, we’ll get into that later on in this series. These are the rewards.

So as you think about this, this is kind of extremely basic, but follow onto it, because everything we’ll be teaching comes back to this chart. My response is to have joy, to evaluate it with joy when I fall into various trials, all different kinds of trials, because God sends many of them to you that you’ve misinterpreted. You’ve misinterpreted them. And this trial tests what I believe about God. It always comes back to God, and that I have to endure this, that’s my responsibility, until I am transformed, that’s the result, and the reward is that I’ll be perfect, complete, lacking nothing.

Now, could it be that this is one of the deepest truths that people don’t understand? What’s the average reaction we have when we fall into a trial? We want it to end. And if it doesn’t end, in time, what do we do? We get angry at God.

God, if you love me, you wouldn’t let this happen. If you were good, this would never have happened to . . . And how could you not stop this? Knowing that this is for your good, could it be, could it be that our thought that this is terrible, and from God’s point of view, it’s a gift? Because this is going to happen to you.

God, why is this happening?

I’m giving you a gift.

Yeah, but I don’t like how it’s packaged for me. I don’t like this thing.

Yeah, but you don’t understand. I package it for you, I design it for you. I send it to you.

All right, let’s move on to a very shocking, basic foundation. The purpose of tests, the tests of faith is to perfect you. Could it be that one of God’s primary methods to accomplish what He wants for you is through tests? And instead of tests being, or trials being this little idea, it’s a massive idea. It’s one of God’s primary methods to change you. If you’ve ever said, I wish I was more like Christ. Do you know what God’s answer is going to be? I’ll prove it to you in a minute. He’s going to answer you. But God has in all of His sovereignty and all of His omniscience of knowing everything and having all the power to do that which He knows. And His heart of love wants you to be more like Christ than you want to be more like Christ. But the method, now listen to me, the method that God uses to make you perfect is the same identical method that the Father used to perfect Christ. What? God used the trials and the testing of faith on Christ to perfect Him, and He’s going to use the same method on me? Just think about that. What would you do if you found the verse that actually said that? Then you would be able to start interpreting what happens in your life in an entirely different way.

So let’s look at some passages. We’ve already read this in James, “That you may be, that you may be,” this is present subjunctive. When we put a verb in a subjunctive in the Greek, this is the Greek. It means not that it’s going to happen, subjunctive means it may potentially happen. That you may be potentially teleios, perfect, reach its end, fully developed, finished, complete, mature. You have a chance, but it’s up to you and how you respond to the test that comes. Now, here’s a verse that’s going to be shocking. “Therefore you shall be perfect,” the same teleios right there, “just as,” oh, just as what? “As your Father”—God the Father—“in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). Wow. I’m to become teleios like God the Father is? Yes, complete, mature, fully developed. “Be perfect as I’m perfect.” Guess what you’re finding out? This issue of being perfect and mature is a big deal to God. I want you to be like God, like me, and I’m perfect. And I want you to be just like me and I want to do this so much, I have in all my brilliance picked out the one way that I can develop that perfection in you, and it’s called trials, and it’s going to test your faith. Wait till you find out how it tests your faith.

Next passage, “Be holy, be perfect as I am perfect.” This is another thing, this is what Christ did. And He Himself, Christ, gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors, some teachers. Why, Christ, did you give these gifts to the church? “For the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the son of God.” Here we go, “to a perfect man” (Ephesians 4:11–13). Perfect. That doesn’t mean without mistake or without sin, it means fully mature.

Okay, what does that mean to be fully mature? “To the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13). You mean, I am to be like the fullness of Christ? Yes. How do I get there? God does His part and I have to do my part, but His part is, one of His primary strategies . . . and are you okay with His strategy? Are you okay with that? Think about what I’m asking you. Are you okay that God loves you so much that He picks the best method in the universe out of a heart of love to make you just like Christ? That He sends trials to you on purpose, not to hurt you, but to make you more and more transformed into the fullness of Christ. That’s why the verse can say, “Be perfect, as your Father is perfect.” Be perfect, as the fullness of Christ, completely like Christ. How? By trials and how you respond. That’s why, that’s why James could say, Listen, if you’ve been initiated into this secret enough, you’ll count it all joy when you fall into various trials, when it first starts. Come on now, think with me, think with me. What do you mean? If you’ve been initiated, and we’re just getting started here. If you’ve been initiated into the basic foundational truth that God is highly motivated for you to become just like Him. Perfect, mature, lacking nothing. Lacking absolutely nothing. Whatever is needed, you’re there, you got it. Wow.

Is it okay with you that His method isn’t fun? It isn’t enjoyable. It can be grievous; it can be painful. It can be hard, but the result is everything God wants for you and everything you want for yourself. Is it okay with you to embrace this? If you ever got to the place in which you said, Okay, okay, I get, I get it. Now I understand at least initially why I should count it all joy, because I know something now. That all this stuff that I used to hate and grumble and become angry. Do you know how many people turn their backs on God when God’s in the middle of giving them a test for their good because He loves them? He’s been, they’ve been praying, God, I want to be more like You, be more like Christ. I want to be able to do more for You. He says, Okay, here is the path. Here’s the path to get there. And then we get angry on the path, at the person who answered our prayer by giving us the only way to get there. Come on now, come on.

This is a mind-changing truth. And we’re only on session one. So, are you getting this? Do you realize what it would be like for a person who’s fully initiated into just session one? Their whole approach to their life in hard times would be so different. They would have gratitude, instead of grumbling. They have confidence, instead of complaining. They would say, Thank you, thank you God for this gift. I don’t like it, but I love what you’ve done for me and in me. And I want to be more like Christ. I want the fullness of Christ.

I remember talking to our, one of our country’s greatest spiritual leaders. You’d know him if I named him. We were having a Mexican dinner and I said to him, I’m not going to use his name. I said, Have you suffered much in your life? And he puts down his burrito and he says, Wilkinson, you need to ask me? What was he trying to say? Don’t you know that if you’re going to become like Christ, you must walk the pathway that He did, and it’s got to be okay with you to suffer if needed along the way. It’s got to be okay. Because if you misinterpret this all the time, every time God’s trying to give you a gift, you throw it back at Him, you have a little tantrum and you miss the blessing. You have to endure to the end, let the test have its perfect work. Why? So you can be perfect. And if you abort it, if you complain, if you get off track, if you hate God for giving you the gift you don’t like, ah.

You know, this course wasn’t on our schedule. We weren’t to be taping this course. We were in the middle of a taping ten months ago of what was planned to be the last course in Bible School on Wheels number three. We had a beautiful set, not this set, a different course. We were, had our whole team there for five days of shooting, we shot all day Monday. Tuesday morning, Tuesday morning at 5:30 in the morning, I was making coffee, getting up, preparing for that day of shooting, standing at the counter. And I fell to the floor. I had what’s called a stroke. I couldn’t stand, I couldn’t move. Stroke means your blood vessel got some hindrance and your blood didn’t get into a certain part of your brain and slowly it died. That’s why you’ll see my hand move or my leg doesn’t work right. Or at times this side of my face doesn’t work right. And as I was in three different hospitals and all three physicians in the different hospitals said, You got this from COVID. When you had COVID earlier it made your blood, you know, different than what it was. You shouldn’t have had this stroke. Had you had not had COVID you wouldn’t have got this stroke.

But you know, that changed my life forever. Unless God decides of His own sovereignty to heal me someday, which He may or may not choose to do. But this changed my life. And I was laying for weeks in the hospital and had to deal with the question, Is God good? Is He really good? Is this for my good? Is this something that God gave as a gift to me? Or is God really not good? What a challenging issue.

And I remember getting to the point in which my heart burst open in the hospital, nobody else around, raising my hand, thanking God for the stroke. You are good. This is a gift from you to me. I trust you, I believe in you. There are no exceptions to your goodness. Out of my weakness your strength will be made perfect.

Why is that? That’s because I’ve been initiated to the truth. You can count it all joy when you fall into a terrible trial. Why? You have a terribly wonderful God who’s in charge of everything, yes. I don’t have to understand it. I don’t have to like it, but I can have joy in it because I know the result of it. And as I was recovering somewhat from this, I was praying, Lord, do you want me to go back and teach the course that I prepared? No. I want you to teach the testing of your faith because My people around the world aren’t ready for what’s coming. They aren’t ready for it. They don’t know, they haven’t bought into the truth that I am behind every trial. And I’ll prove it to you in session number six. It’s going to blow your mind when you get into session six. That’s advanced. You’re going to see God in ways you’ve never imagined. Somehow, we think that God is off in the corner, doing certain things that are religious, but God’s not really involved with all of this. Wait till you see the truth. You will never be the same after session number six.

The initiation can bring peace. Yes. Is He good? Yes. Is He always good? Yes, all the time. All the time He is good. Does Satan ever overpower or trick or surprise God? Not once. Is this for my good? Yes. Think about how different that is without being initiated into the secret.

So, why did you give the teachers and the preachers and the evangelists? So that you could become perfect in the fullness of the stature of Christ. In Colossians 1 Paul says, “Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom.” Why? Why are you preaching and teaching, Paul? “That we may present every man holy” (Colossians 1:28). There it is, perfect in Christ. Paul, why are you teaching? Hey, Bruce, why are you teaching? For this. God’s goal is you’ll become just like Him, just like Christ.

Then in Colossians, “Epaphras, who is one of you, a bondservant of Christ, greets you, always laboring” now watch this, “fervently for you in prayers.” So Paul’s a preacher teacher and Epaphras is praying, “That you may stand,” there it is, “perfect and complete in the will of God” (Colossians 4:12). What’s the prayers for? That you could become perfect.

So, as you think about this, this issue of, “becoming perfect as Christ is perfect,” is a big deal to God. For you to truly be initiated into this whole mystery, you have to change your mind about the importance of this. That is, this has to become a key priority in your mind. I want, I want, I want to be like Christ. I want to be perfect, mature, complete, lacking nothing, because that’s what God wants for me. I want that, I want that. And I don’t care God’s method to get me there.

So you have over here Christian leaders and Christian teachers and so forth. Why Christ did you give all that to us? So that you can become perfect. Here’s Paul preaching and teaching. Why? So you’d become perfect. Here’s a man praying. Why? So you can become perfect. And here’s the Father in heaven. What’s He doing? He’s sending you trials to test your faith. And we haven’t really explained what that means yet. Why? So that you can become perfect.

Can you, can you want, can you choose? I want what God wants for me. Look at all the methods He’s using to develop that for you. Therefore, the issue, if I could just say it this way, of being safe, secure and without challenges. And all the rest, could it be that because we pursue that so hard, instead of wanting the perfection that when God sends a gift called the test of faith to you, to you, you reject Him and reject it because you’re valuing something above being perfect as more important? This is just session number one.

Okay, let’s kind of wrap this up. The five parts of every test of faith. I’ve kind of prepared you for this, but before revealing it to you, I want to give you the second most important verse on the testing of your faith. The most important one was James 1. We’ve read and thought about, you know, the response, the reality I’m in a trial, my responsibility to endure. The result that I’m going to be transformed. And the reward is that I’m, I have a earthly, I have a earthly type reward, I am perfect now, mature now, lacking nothing now, complete now.

Okay, here’s the second key passage. These two lay a foundation for everything of where we’re going. This is in 1 Peter, and I sometimes use Greek, because the New Testament was originally written in Greek and it’s not written in English. It’s not written in French, or Spanish, or Hindi, or Mandarin, or Arabic, it’s written in Greek. So, I sometimes stop to show you some key words. So, let’s see if we can’t take a look at this. Keep James in your mind, “Count it all joy when you fall into” . . . “In this, you greatly rejoice” (1 Peter 1:6). Oh, what does it mean “greatly rejoice?” This is too much. It comes from two Greek parts, again, which means much and very and hallomai, which means to leap and to jump. What does it literally mean? Literally in the Greek it means becoming so glad, one jumps in celebration, you jump in celebration. It’s like when your favorite team is in the playoffs, and they win and everybody is jumping up and down. That’s exactly what it says. In this you celebrate, you greatly rejoice.

Now watch this, “Though now for a little while,” For a little while? For a short time period? Yeah, for a little while, “if need be,” if need be, if it’s necessary. If what need be? “You have been grieved by various trials.” Whoa, if need be? Yes. If need be for me? Yes. For a little while in the grand scheme of things? Yes. Whoa, I am to celebrate? Big time, big time, “though now for a little while, if need be.” Wow. “You’ve been grieved,” watch this, “by various trials” (1 Peter 1:6). What does the word “grieved” mean? It means to be made sorrowful, to be distressed and to have heaviness. When I had my stroke, was I sad, yes. Grieved, yes. And this is a passive verb that means, my response to what happened to me. The trial isn’t something I did. It’s something that comes to me, and my emotional response is to be grieved.

Is it possible to greatly rejoice and be grieved at the same time? Yes. Yes. Don’t ever think that you lose the issue of grief, or sadness, or frustration, or challenge when you’re in a test or a trial. It’s not true, it’s not true. But you can celebrate because you know God’s behind it and the good that’s coming to you from it. “That the genuineness,” oh my goodness, of your, there it is again. How is my faith connected to everything we’re talking about? I wouldn’t have thought of faith and trials in the same sentence. “Being much more precious than gold.” My faith is more precious than gold? Yes. “That perishes, though it is tested by fire” (1 Peter 1:7).

Now, here’s a surprise, here’s a surprise. In James it says the result is the reward on the earth. It’s earthly. What do I mean? That right now. . . right now I’m becoming more perfect, more complete and lacking nothing now. . . now. But look at this verse, that my “faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found,” Here’s a potential, “may be found to the praise, honor and glory.” When? Whoa, when? “At the revelation of Christ Jesus” (1 Peter 1:7). What?

Yes, this is something different. This takes place in heaven at the coming of Christ. This means at the revelation, the apocalypse of Jesus Christ. You mean this is at the coming of Christ? Yes. And my faith and what I’ve done with it in my life may be potentially found to God to praise me and honor me and glory to me personally? Yes, yes. That this is the heavenly side at the second coming. That’s praise? It’s not the praise of Christ in this passage, it’s the praise from Christ. The praise, honor, and glory. That’s the reward.

So are you getting this? Let’s see if we can’t put this together in your workbooks now, the five parts of every test of faith. Number one, the response. The response to a test of faith is count it all joy and greatly rejoice, have joy and rejoice.

Number two, the reality that trials are actually tests of your faith, that a trial, when you really get to know it, is inside of it, a test of what you believe, and the trial is grievous. Trials, knowing that the testing of your faith “though now for a little while, if need be, you’ve been grieved by various trials.”

Number three, whoa, right here. “But let endurance have its complete work.” This is my responsibility. This is a command to endure the test of faith, “but let”—imperative—“patience have its perfect work.” Why? The result of enduring the test of faith successfully, that the genuineness of your faith, that you are transformed, you become more godly. You become more perfect. And the result of this brings a reward. The reward for enduring the test of faith earthly, now, that you may be perfect, complete, lacking nothing, and heavenly, you may be found, future. You may be found in the future at the coming of Christ to the praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Christ.

So part number four, let’s bring all this together. That’s a chart that I’ve been drawing for you, hopefully by now you know, This is my response. This is a reality. This is my responsibility. This is my result. This is my reward. So in your workbooks, put out joy. That’s from James and secondly to rejoice, that is my response. And the result at the other end, the reward is earthly and heavenly, earthly and heavenly.

So what’s part one? It’s the response at the beginning. When this happens, when you fall into a trial, that’s my time to have joy and rejoicing. Secondly, the reality is I’m in a trial or a test of faith. Then my responsibility to endure because I know what’s taking place. The result is I’m changed, so I become more and more perfect. And the reward is earthly and heavenly.

Now, how are we going to approach this? As we’ve just laid the foundation in this course, I want to show you the eight sessions, the banners that you see behind me. We’re going to go through each one of these. Session number one is The Purpose of Tests of Faith. Now, you know what it is, to make you perfect. Session two, how do these tests of faith look like? How do I know which one I’m in? Session number three, The Stages in Test Failure. How do I know when I’m about ready to fail a test of faith and not get the rewards that God wants to give to me? Session four. How can I experience test success? What can I do if I feel like I’m going to lose the test, how can I take some steps to change this? Session five. What are the tests of faith that I have to go through? What beliefs are being tested? Number six, the most challenging of all eight, The Triggers of Unbelief. Since my faith is being tested, if my faith doesn’t succeed, then I go and I have unbelief. I went from belief to unbelief. What triggers that in my life? Number seven, The Catalyst of Life. And number eight, The Secret of the Overcomers.

We’ve just finished the purpose of the test of your faith. And next week, session number two, The Patterns of Tests of Faith. But you remember I said something shocking earlier in this session, it’s in the conclusion. The tests of faith are God’s path to perfection. Think about that sentence. The tests of faith are God’s path to perfection.

This is a powerful passage for us right here. Look at it. “Though he” — Jesus — “was a Son, yet he learned” something. Jesus is the Son of God, yet still, even though He is, He learned something. He learned by experience. He learned something by experience. What did He learn? He learned obedience. How did Christ learn obedience? “By the things which He suffered.” Whoa, to suffer, to undergo evils, to be afflicted. And watch this now, “He learned obedience by the things He suffered. And having been perfected,” Oh man, having been perfected. How? Learning obedience by the things He suffered. Jesus, how were you perfected? By learning obedience through the things called trials. That’s how I was perfected. And this is passive. It means it happened to Christ. He learned obedience by the things that God, the Father sent His way. What was the reward for Christ learning this and having been perfected, having been perfected? “He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey” (Hebrews 5:8–9). So He learned obedience by the things that He suffered. Having been perfected, He became the author of salvation. It’s the same pathway for you and for me. It’s the same pathway.

Do you realize what you’re discovering? This can’t be overstated, my friends. The issue that God, the Father perfected God, the Son through trials, where He suffered until He was perfected. And then He became the author of salvation. It’s the reward. Guess what? The very thing that happened to Christ is happening to you from the same Person for the same purpose. And as Christ wrestled in the garden, what did He say? “Not my will, but thine be done.” Why? He trusted his Father, even in the severity of the tests He was going through.

Take a look at the last verse, I want you to see. First Peter 5:10, “But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after,”—not before—“after you have suffered a while,”—it’s not forever—“after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you” (NKJV). Suffer. Perfect. It’s everywhere you see. This is the testing of your faith, my friends.

And as we wrap up this, I want to ask you a question. Have you been misinterpreting God’s love for you? Have you been rebelling against God when He is giving you a gift called the trial? Have you been angry with Him? Has something happened in your past that you misinterpreted and you’ve decided, If God was good, He wouldn’t have done this. Really? What did He do to His own Son? Have you been undervaluing Him wanting you to become perfect in all of your ways to the fullness of the stature of Christ? It’s God’s pathway.

You may find yourself saying, Oh man. This is only session one? It’s only session one. You’re going to enjoy session two, but session one lays that foundation. My response, come on, come on, my response. When this happens, my response is joy and celebration. When in trial, which is really a test of faith, that’s my reality right now, my responsibility is to endure. Let it have its perfect work. Why? You believe and trust in Him and His, watch this, His method is perfect for you, no matter how He wrapped it. It’s perfect for you. You’re going to find out, He hand crafted it for you. It’s just unbelievable. When you find out the truth, you’re going to feel like, Oh my goodness, have I misunderstood the love of God? Yes. That’s why this course is so critical for you, because of what’s coming. And this issue of my result is my genuineness of my faith that I am being changed and becoming godlike and the reward earthly. Right now my perfect, complete, lacking nothing and forever. It is praise and glory and honor from Christ because of who I became because my faith became strong.

Last thing I want to ask you, will you accept God’s decision to hand craft trials called tests of faith to make you like Him? Will you accept His method? And will you stop doubting His motive? People become so angry at God for loving them. Yeah, will you believe His motive is to do you personally good at the end? That when you see Him in heaven, you know, what we’re going to be thanking Him the most for? The hardest trials. Why? It’s the things we went through that made us most like Him forever. Can you believe that enough today in the testing of your faith to say to Him, I not only accept it, but I embrace you, I trust you. You are good, you are loving, you are for me. And I apologize for misunderstanding, getting angry at you. I have joy and I celebrate your plan for my life.

Next session we’re together, oh my goodness. Wait till you find out the five different patterns of how these tests come to us. You’re going to, you’re going to actually say, Oh man, I just finished pattern number two. And I think, I think my sister is in pattern number four. It’s going to give you some tools that are going to set you free. Until next time, remember, God loves you so much to send you a trial.