The Lord Doth Test…

SAT., MAR. 5, 1994, 3:24 AM
FARM, STUDY

“But what doth the Lord require of thee, but to (love) do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” This is an old and still acceptable set of criteria for servant status with Me, the Lord God. Yet once such criteria are established they become a kind of test. What is justice, in every situation? How much justice must you do? How do you show that you love mercy? How often do you walk humbly with Me? What are some evidences of humbleness?

These questions are some that I must answer in order to assess your compliance with these requirements. There are no objective answers to these… no way in which you can measure yourself. In contrast you read again the story in Matthew of My being tempted by the devil, before entrance into My ministry: active. Here were offered some quite tangible acts or conditions that, presumably, were possible for Me, as Jesus.

I was tempted to do a blatant miracle – change stones into bread. This implies that many would respond positively to such a practical miracle and would follow Me because of this capacity. “If you are with this Master you will always have enough bread” could be a winning recruitment slogan. Later I was tempted to heal in such a miraculous way, and the Scriptures record that I did. I also was tempted to come down from the cross and show My power over those who had persecuted Me.

Perhaps this “coming down” temptation was more like My second one in the wilderness. I was asked to show My power over even the law of gravity, as well as the judgments of men by leaping from the peak of the temple and let the angels hold Me up as they brought Me down gently. In both of these I am to perform a miracle, going over against physical laws which all humans must accept. The test was whether or not I would resist such opportunities to impress potential followers. I chose to pass that test without calling for help from My Father, the Almighty God.

The third temptation was to accept satan’s gift of the power to rule all that could be seen from a high place. Assuming, of course, that he did have this power to give I resisted the temptation to be an active ruler. And I continue this refusal until My death and resurrection.

Yet the Scriptural story also tells that, while My resurrection was a bodily one, I could appear and reappear magically, and some believed in Me because of this. I also encouraged evangelists, in My Name, to declare that I was sovereign over all and that the allegiance of all should come to Me… that “to Me, every knee should bow.” So, perhaps there is a time and place for everything but what is right at one time is not at another.

Now let’s get to you and your present test. The test is a physical one of diminishing pain and recovering full function in your right leg and foot. The main test, however, is one of spirit. Can you manage the pain, and can you go through months of disability, with gradual recovery. OR can you live, both positively and joyfully, with a leg that will not heal, and perhaps gets even worse. You see, it is a greater test when prayers are not answered, and I do not orchestrate a full recovery. You must accept that this is a possible outcome… that I still may be resisting temptations to affect changes in people.