But He said this to prove (test) him, for He well knew what He was about to do. – John 6:6, Amplified Bible (AMP)

If you are a young person, here is a great prank to play on your parent(s). Come home from school, act very cheery, look Mom or Dad (or both) in the eye, and say with a smile, “I love listening to lectures and taking notes in school. Better yet, I really love taking tests! I’ve got a huge test tomorrow, and I’m so excited, I don’t know if I’ll be able to sleep tonight!”

Be sure to tell them you were only kidding before you arrive at the psychiatrist. No sense in having your parents spend your Christmas money unnecessarily. 🙂

I don’t know of anyone who enjoys taking tests. I know some who don’t fear taking tests (like many people do), but even those folks don’t find test taking exciting. It’s probably safe to say that most people despise tests, and they’d rather be doing just about anything else than sitting for an exam. So, why do teachers give tests? The answer isn’t that they enjoy making their students squirm. (Okay, maybe some teachers do.) The answer is that they want to help their students grow in knowledge and in wisdom. When students know that tests are coming, they study to prepare for exam day. Through studying they gain knowledge, and when they have a chance to apply that knowledge later in life, they gain wisdom. Testing also helps students recognize where they are deficient, for that is exactly what a bad grade shows us: where we need to improve. So, tests aren’t for teachers; they are for students, and their purpose is to help students grow.

God, the greatest Teacher of them all, gives His students tests for the same purpose. The tests that God gives us aren’t to be completed with paper and pencil. They are to be completed by the practical application of faith to our lives. Like He did with Philip, Christ will test our faith from time to time, but He won’t do so to be mean. He will do so to give us an opportunity to grow. When we take one of God’s tests, one of two things will happen:

1. We will successfully apply our faith, causing our faith to grow deeper and stronger, or
2. We will fail the test, enabling us to see what we need to work on.

In either case, we should diligently study God’s Word in preparation for the next test, for one thing is certain: after one test is over, another one is soon to come.

Did you pass or fail the last test God gave you? Either way, don’t fret. Realize that God loves you enough to give you tests in the first place. Through each test, He is growing your character to be more and more like Christ’s, and what greater gift can there be than to be transformed into the image of the Savior?