The Bible exhorts Christians to, “Test all things; hold fast what is good.” (1 Thess. 5:21) Another word for test is prove (KJV). Rather than believing or accepting anything, it should be examined carefully and put to the test. Who would take medicine that has not been tested, or proven to be beneficial? Cars are road tested. Most everything that is manufactured is put through various tests for safety and service. Many fail the test and are recalled. It’s no different with spiritual matters. As Christians, we are to test all things.
We Must Test Doctrinal Matters – When Paul preached to the people of Berea they “searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so. Therefore many of them believed…” (Acts 17:11-12) Many things are taught that are not scriptural. We must always be concerned with whether the truth is being taught, or whether it’s just man’s opinion. “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God, because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (1 John 4:1)
We Must Test God’s Will – “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Rom. 12:2) God’s will for man is good, acceptable, and perfect, but we put it to the test when it is applied to our lives. It promises happiness, peace, contentment, patience, and hope. These and all blessings come to the person who obeys it and lives by its principles. We do not have to take any man’s word for it—we experience it ourselves. However, our minds must be renewed and changed, and so must our lives.
We Must Test Ourselves – “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves….” (2 Cor. 13:5) To be in the faith is to be saved—to be in Christ, having obeyed the gospel. (Acts 6:7) There is only one faith (Eph. 4:5), and only one way to get into the faith. One must believe in and confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God (Acts 8:37), repent of sins (Acts 17:30), and be baptized into Christ (Gal. 3:27). Being in Christ is being in the faith. And then, once in the faith, we must test ourselves to be sure that we “…continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel…” (Col. 1:23) This testing must be ongoing and never ending.
We Must Test Our Love – Paul exhorted Corinth in their giving, saying, “…I am testing the sincerity of your love…” (2 Cor. 8:8) Giving tests the genuineness of love. So does obedience to God’s will in every respect. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” (John 14:15) This is the only way we can test our love for the Lord, and this is where many fail the test.
We Must Test Our Work – “But let every man prove (test) his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.” (Gal. 6:4) Our work must pass the test of God’s word, not opinion, nor the ideas of man. Only the Scriptures provide the standard by which every believer is to test what he is, what he does, and what he allows, “that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim. 3:17)
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