Not every test, you go through, is because of the enemy. Don’t get me wrong, he can get down, dirty and nasty which makes it is very easy to blame the enemy but what if it isn’t him, this time? Couldn’t it be God testing your faith, strength and belief in Him? Could it be God testing your ability to keep the vow you just made? Could it be God seeing if you will hold up to what you just said you were fasting from? Could it not be Jesus testing to see if you still believe what you’ve witnessed? When Jesus tested Philip, before feeding the 5000, bible says in John 6:6, “He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was going to do.” See, Jesus knew what He was about to do but Philip didn’t. BUT Philip had already witnessed Jesus performing miracles. So in a sense, Jesus was trying to see if Philip’s faith had the, “I’ve seen what you can do and I believe you’ll do it again,” praises. For us, Jesus knows what He’s about to do in our life but you don’t. However, you have seen Him perform miracles, haven’t you? You have seen Him heal, haven’t you? You have seen Him make ways when your natural had already determined there was no way, haven’t you? You have seen Him regulate reprobate minds, haven’t you? You have seen Him provide, haven’t you? You have witnessed miracles, haven’t you?
Then what makes you think Jesus can’t do it, this time? Yes, I know you’ve rechecked things, for the fifth time and you can’t see it working. Yes, I know you’ve tried all the courses of chemo, surgery and medicine and nothing has helped. Yes, I know you’re looking at the natural and you can’t see how this check is going to do it. I get it. However, you have two choices. You can either do as the bible says in 2 Corinthians 13:5, and “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves? Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you–unless, of course, you fail the test?” Or you can buckle under pressure and fail the test. Please understand, failing the test doesn’t mean you fail the course, it simply means you have some work to do. Philip’s response was based on what his eyes were seeing. He knew they didn’t have the resources to feed all those people. It’s didn’t mean, his belief was any less in Jesus but he was simply being realistic. You know how the story ends but what you may have missed is this. Jesus gave thanks, broke the bread and then gave the food to the disciples to hand out. Jesus put the blessing back into the hands of those who previously failed the test. Why? He needed them to work the miracle because working it made them partakers of it and not just witnesses. Beloved, you might have failed the test before but Jesus is about to take the very thing you failed at, give thanks, break it and then put it back in your hand for distribution to all those who need it. You simply need to stick close enough to get it. So you can’t give up based on what your natural sees, when you’ve been a witnessed to miracles before. This time, though, you won’t only be a witness but you’ll also be a recipient.
Lakisha, the Author 