They Were Tempted
They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted—ill-treated.
—Hebrews 11:37 (NASB)
It seems to me that the trials and temptations of this life are preparing us for the life to come, building character for eternity. Have you ever been in a piano factory? Did you go there to hear music? Go into the tuning room and you will say, “This is a dreadful place, I cannot stand it, I thought you made music here.”
“No, we do not produce music here. We make instruments and tune them, and in the process much discord is produced.”
Such is the church of God on earth. The Lord makes the instruments and tunes them down here. A great deal of discord is easily perceptible, but it is all necessary to prepare us for the everlasting harmonies up yonder.
…
The character will be fixed for holiness as though etched in eternal brass. It may be that all the afflictions and temptations that God permits to pass over us here below are forming us for eternal bliss.
—Beside Still Waters (Charles H. Spurgeon)
O, beloved! What a beautiful analogy, yes? (hopeful) This blessed example has been such a help to my soul. (entirely grateful)
This time here…it’s a time of preparation, and learning, and…tuning. It’s…ordained by God to be haphazard and…messy, and for everything to be in…disarray. Do you see? (tender) Everything is playing out exactly as He would have it. (comforted, resolved)
I…reckon, in a piano factory (pondering), the perfectly skilled piano Craftsman is continually shaping and refining and carving. He’s…playing, and tweaking, and adjusting, and His skilled workers are tuning and clamoring and pounding. Surely, it’s a noisy, chaotic environment. Aye. There’s…perhaps a bit of solace—a brief moment of peace and rest every…7 days or so, but otherwise it’s likely a disheveled and jumbled perpetual…mess. (gentle) Parts go missing, and things, likely, seem like they’re all unkempt and untidy—yes. (extra tender) That’s…okay. (gentle) It’s a factory, a piano factory. Music—beautiful music—piano playing…ahh, now that will come, in due season. Soon, beloved—Soon.
Our enemy, he is desperately trying to temp us—he wants us to think this is all there is. He suggests doubts: he…says, “ahh, listen to that sweet melody!” Or sometimes….he, perhaps, tries to muffle the sound, he distorts it, or tries to make us tune it out altogether. But…
All praise be to God, we know the truth. We know He is good. And this here…these aren’t green pastures. No. (gentle) We are His, and we know He is preparing a Home for us this very moment. Be patient; wait, beloved. (tender) Yes, we are tempted, but thanks be to God and His overpowering grace and strength and Love…we will prevail.
We won’t be in this piano factory forever. Soon, Soon we’ll hear the most beautiful music! All other ‘music’ we’ve ever known will, in contrast, be as though it were only clanging and banging sounds compared to This. (dreamy)
Hush; there, there. Let us not become discouraged, my dear child of God. All this disarranged and disorderly and tousled hodgepodge, it…has a purpose.
The piano factory isn’t our Home. No, sir.