Good Morning.
Take the Levites from among the children of Israel and cleanse them ceremonially. (Numbers 8:6)
In the Scripture we see there are times when people are tested and then there are times when they are proven — and I do believe there is an important difference. Think of it this way: when we were in school we had to take tests to determine what information we had been able to retain and, just as importantly, what we had not. In life we are often tested for the same reason — to demonstrate what we have learned and what we have not, the latter indicating that we will go through another test later on.
Then there are the times we are placed in situations to prove us, which is to say, to demonstrate that what we have learned is put into practice. A great example of this is the selection of the Levites for service in the Sanctuary. Jewish tradition teaches that, while in Egypt, when all the other tribes were assimilating into the Egyptian culture and worshiping foreign gods, only Levite continued to worship the God of Israel. In the desert, when many of the congregation were quick to forget their promise to worship God alone, defiling themselves with the Golden Calf, only Levi remained true to the Almighty. In other words, not only had they learned what was true but they put into practice what they had learned under difficult circumstances. In this we see that there is always a remnant of people who, having been proven, God’s uses for a specific purpose.
In the last days, there is to be another such remnant. They are described in many ways throughout the Scripture, but the most notable of these descriptions is found in Revelation. Specifically, there is to be a people who “overcame him (the Adversary) by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death” (Revelation 12:11). In the fiery trial they are made to endure, it is evident that their own lives matter little in comparison to being faithful to the One they serve.
You can be sure they didn’t get this way overnight but had been tested many times in the past. In the last days, they will be proven — and all the world will see the light that shines through their lives. I want to be a part of this remnant, and so, I must be resigned to the fact that I will have to endure tests so that I may be proven in due time. How about you?
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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