“Put Me To The Test”

Most people don’t like tests, and certainly not from God! What does David mean when he tells God, “Put me to the test”?

Scripture:

2 Samuel, chapters 4-5; Psalm 139; Matthew, chapter 16

Psalm 139:1-6, 23-24 (CEB):

Lord, you have examined me. You know me. You know when I sit down and when I stand up. Even from far away, you comprehend my plans. You study my traveling and resting. You are thoroughly familiar with all my ways. There isn’t a word on my tongue, Lord, that you don’t already know completely. You surround me – front and back. You put your hand on me. That kind of knowledge is too much for me; it’s so high above me that I can’t fathom it…

Examine me, God! Look at my heart! Put me to the test! Know my anxious thoughts! Look to see if there is any idolatrous way in me, then lead me on the eternal path!

Observations: Put Me to the Test!

David begins this psalm with the observation that God has examined him. God knows everything about David’s life; God

knows when I sit down and when I stand up
comprehends my plans
studies my traveling and resting
is thoroughly familiar with all my ways
knows what I will say before I say it
surrounds me – front and back
puts his hand on me

David closes this first section of the psalm by saying, that kind of knowledge is too much for me. He can’t understand how God could know him so well, and he can’t grasp what it means that God knows him so well.

Most of us would acknowledge that God knows everything about us. But do we really grasp what that means? We guard our secrets closely. Sometimes we may think, “If they really knew me, what would they think?” Our secrets might be from our past, or they might be the attitudes and temptations that we wrestle with. Of course, Satan is right there to try to lead us down that path: “What would they think if they really knew you? What would they say if they knew about your past, your plans, your struggles?” The unstated conclusion is that if they really knew, they’d reject us.

Where Could I Go?

In the second section of this psalm, David expands on the idea that God knows everything about us – because there is nowhere that we could hide from God. “Where could I go to get away from your spirit? Where could I go to escape your presence?” (verse 7). The answer is “nowhere,” because nothing can hide us from God. “If I said, ‘The darkness will definitely hide me; the light will become night around me,’ even the darkness isn’t too dark for you!” (verses 11-12). God knows everything there is to know about us.

And God has plans for each of us! Now, I believe that God has given us the ability to either accept or reject his plans. Of course, there are consequences for rejecting God’s plans, but I believe that he allows us to make that choice. That is true of the decision to acknowledge him as God, and accept the forgiveness and life that he offers us through Jesus. It is also true of our daily decisions to walk in the path that he has set out for us. But even if we try to walk away, God is still there.

Examine Me, God! Look at My Heart!

The final section of this psalm comes back to the idea of God’s examining us. In verse 1, David says that God has examined him; in verses 23-24, he asks God to examine him again. Examine me, God! Look at my heart! Put me to the test! Know my anxious thoughts! Look to see if there is any idolatrous way in me, then lead me on the eternal path! In fact, the language that David indicates that he wants God to examine him every day. Put me to the test…then lead me on the eternal path!

Application – Put Me to the Test!

God is reminding us that he does not leave us to our own devices on our journey with him. He knows everything about us – which means that he knows what is best. And he’s willing to lead us, if only we will let him! When we pray put me to the test, we’re asking God to show us what he already knows. That means that God is not testing us to find out about us. Instead, he’s testing us so that we can find out about ourselves.

What will we find out as God puts us to the test? We’ll find out whether there is any idolatrous way in us. In other words, is there anything in my life that is challenging God’s claim to the throne? Are there things I value more than my relationship with him? Is there any person whose opinion I value more than God’s opinion?

I don’t have any statues of idols in my house. You probably don’t either. But are there things in our lives that have the potential to become idols to us? Absolutely! That’s why we need to seek God each day, and allow him to put us to the test – so we can know our hearts as well as God does. That’s the only way we can walk on the eternal path.

Prayer:

Father, thank you for reminding me that you know me better than I know myself – and you still love me. As the old hymn says: “Search me, O God, and know my heart today. Try me, O Savior, know my thoughts, I pray. See if there be some wicked way in me; cleanse me from every sin, and set me free” (Cleanse Me). Help me each day to allow you to put me to the test, and to respond in obedience to what you show me. Amen.