The word “test” doesn’t have the most positive associations in the English language, even though it is technically neutral. It can refer to a formal exam given by an instructor or a task from someone genuinely seeking to discover some truth—a test of strength or testing a hypothesis. It can also refer to someone with less than genuine motives looking to trap someone or put them through a trial that reveals something about their character or motives. But in the Bible, there’s a significant design pattern that involves testing, seen in instances of God testing his people and in people testing God. But to understand this pattern, we have to check our cultural understanding or negative associations and see what the Bible is saying. These study notes will take you deeper into the ideas presented in our video The Test.
Video Link: The Test - YouTube
Study Notes: Test_Study Notes_Final.pdf (d1bsmz3sdihplr.cloudfront.net)