the Third Week after Easter
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Daily Devotionals
Voice of the Lord
Even gold is tested for genuineness by fire (1 Peter 1:7).
Recently, our synagogue in Israel was fire-bombed. Through this experience we felt our faith tested and purified, drawing us much nearer to Yeshua.
During the first century, when Peter wrote this exhortation, persecution was common. The early Messianic Jews gave living testimony to Yeshua as the promised Redeemer. As a result, thousands entered the Kingdom of God, entire cities heard the news of Messiah, and Messianic congregations were established. In the process, Messianic Jews took a lot of heat.
The testing of our faith comes every day, usually in smaller, more figurative fires. Nonetheless, our response to these purifying trials can bring honor to our beloved King. If I measure success or well-being by asking, "Is everything going smoothly?" then I am setting up a false goal, foreign to the life of believers who have gone before me. In the eternal scheme of things, it does not matter whether or not I arrive at the store before closing time. What matters is that my faith in the living God is real and growing, and responding to challenges, both small and great.
...view the difficulties and pressures in my life as opportunities to draw near to God and to glorify Yeshua in the way I deal with them.
ES
The Voice of the Lord, Copyright © 1998 by the Lewis and Harriet Lederer Foundation, Inc. Published by Messianic Jewish Publishers, Distributed by Messianic Jewish Resources, www.messianicjewish.net. All rights reserved. Used by permission. No part of this article may be reproduced in print or on the web, or transmitted in any form, without the written permission of the publisher.
