God’s School of Life

"So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; if thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.

For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous ... and preserveth the way of His saints" Proverbs 2:2-8 KJV

Our great Creator hides Himself so that men have to search beyond their natural understanding to find and connect with Him. We must go further than the visible things that are easy to comprehend if we are to know Him. We are all in God’s school of life, designed to teach and train us to comprehend His wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. We are to seek this above all, for in Him are the paths of life.

He alone knows the best way for each of us to live well in this world. There is a God-place within each of us, longing to be filled with His nature, though we often seek other ways to fill this hunger and thirst for the divine. But we can and do seek Him, because He wants to be found, to Father us into the kingdom of His dear Son. He draws us as we do so.

"Seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after Him, and find Him, though He be not far from everyone of us: for in Him we live, and move, and have our being" Acts 17:27-28 KJV

What we see depends on where we live. The environment around us teaches us what reality is here in the world. God teaches reality in His spiritual kingdom of righteousness, peace, and joy so that He becomes our reality, where we truly live. The more we search for God, learning to draw from the spirit, seeking to understand His nature, focusing upon the world of His spirit, the more we can live in the higher realm of God-consciousness.

The Lord has given us life, and this life is a training ground to become more and more like our heavenly Father.

“When your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness." Isaiah 26:9 NKJV

We need His judgments to teach us the right way to live, how to be righteous in what we say and do. His judgments first begin in our earthly natures as we seek to know Him in this school of right living. Think back to when you were in school—which is a long time ago for some of us! If we learned to love learning, if we were supported in our educational growth, we grew to understand the things of this world we needed to know to do well.

While being educated, information and knowledge compiled by others were taught to us according to our understanding. We asked questions to comprehend what was being taught and took tests to show what we’d learned. Some subjects were favorites, while others did not catch our interest, but we had to learn them anyway. God’s school is like that, with our lessons becoming more difficult as we walk along with Him. These more challenging lessons deal with who we are, our very character and nature, so that we may grow up into Him, living more and more as He would have us do.

As we yield to the Lord, we become eager learners, desiring above all His wisdom and understanding as we handle all that comes our way in this world. He teaches us the foundations of faith, the essential truths upon which to build a good and productive life. Even as a child, Jesus had a thirst to know His Father. Even when He was just twelve, He asked many questions of the leaders of His time.

His parents had gone to Jerusalem for the annual Passover feast and traveled a day before they realized He was not with them.

“After three days they found Him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard Him was amazed at His understanding and His answers. When His parents saw Him, they were astonished. His mother said to Him, ‘Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.’

‘Why were you searching for me?’ He asked. ‘Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?’” Luke 2: 41-49 NIV

Jesus wanted to know the things of His Father’s house. He was eager to learn and knew the Father’s house was where He had to be. As He grew, He gained more knowledge and understanding until He reached the Jewish age of majority, being thirty years old when His ministry began. We know little of those years, but we can be sure He continued to hunger and thirst to know His father’s ways and was learning about all things pertaining to the Kingdom.

We also continue to grow and mature as we hunger and thirst to know our Father’s ways. Our reward is not a report card, public acclaim, or even a public ministry, but the peaceable fruit of righteousness that is worth more than gold and silver. There are many rewards given in God’s school, but only God and ourselves know about them until the fruit of His dealings are made visible from within us. We have many quiet victories as we learn from Him and, like any good parent, Father God celebrates every one of them!

God’s lessons do become more difficult than we had anticipated when we fell in love with our Savior. Perhaps if we had known all that was to come, we would not have agreed to go the Lord’s way! His purpose is to build our character to be like Him, to love others, and treat them as we desire to be treated. Salvation is free, but there is much to understand, endless wisdom to gain, a vast universe Father God wants to teach us about. He will show us His ways when we ask, seek, and knock.

When we don’t know His ways, His truth, we ask!

"If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you." James 1:5 NIV

Our education in the world’s schools of knowledge may have taught us a great deal, but to become mature in Him, He must be our Great Teacher. Some humans are very intelligent in academic matters, even great religious matters, while knowing little of how to allow God to change their very character. Many of the world’s highly intelligent people are woefully lacking in how to live with others. Man’s brilliant ways do not qualify us as godly.

Having a degree or two, letters after our names, does not mean that we have been in God’s school unless we also let Him teach us along the way. God is the life force within us, able to filter out His truth from man’s wisdom and knowledge. He is present in us, so His wisdom is gleaned from the fields of knowledge. It’s surprising how the Lord can teach us through the ungodly. There are many things to learn about the Lord in all walks of life if we desire to do so, whether others know they are teaching us His lessons or not.

“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.

Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name [nature].

He shall call upon me, and I will answer him:I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my [full] salvation.” Psalms 91 KJV

To dwell with God, to love the Lord above all others, brings many rewards. We learn from many anointed writers and teachers, but to learn from the Father directly, as Jesus did, is a most marvelous experience. Where we live daily is what we see as reality. The more we live in God and He makes His dwelling place more fully in us, the more we see of Him. Our lives are protected, guided, made safe and secure, as Psalms 91 so beautifully promises.

This is His secret place, found as we search for Him with all of our hearts. In His secret place, nothing can harm us. He takes fear of harm and death from our consciousness as He teaches us of His ways. As good students, we ask questions about things we do not understand. We are given tests and trials to prove our faith. We fall short in understanding many matters because His ways are higher than our ways, His thoughts higher than ours.

“Stretch out your ear, and come to Me; Hear, and your soul shall live, And I shall indeed contract with you a covenant eonian, the faithful benignities of David…

For My designs are not your designs, and your ways are not My ways, averring is Yahweh. For as the heavens are loftier than the earth, so are My ways loftier than your ways, And My designs than your designs.” Isaiah 55: 3;8-9 CLV

To have the name, the nature of God worked within is far beyond just calling ourselves Christians. The nature of God dwelling in man takes a lifetime of spiritual education and training for those called and dedicated to His purposes in the earth. We are to be like Him, displaying His love and mercy for all. We are the evidence of His redemptive justice, giving hope to the downtrodden, to those who have lost their way. He will have such a people; that is His plan.

Some of us always have a list of questions we are asking of the Lord. Many are answered as we walk with Him and talk with Him. There are also questions He will only answer on the other side of this life, or, more likely by then, they will no longer matter. We often wonder about the meaning of the words He used, the stories of the Bible, and the application of His teachings to our daily lives. The writings of those whom He has given wisdom and knowledge, as well as the Bible, provide endlessly fascinating and rewarding learning for all who seek it.

We must love the Lord with our whole heart, all of our mind, strength, and will, to learn of His ways. His school is ongoing, and there is no graduation in sight. Even those faithful saints on the other side continue to learn, to be perfected. It is our extreme privilege and pleasure to continually learn from and about Him. He has always been after the hearts of men and is not satisfied with passive lip service, like rote answers in the classroom. Some students excel at this and get top grades, but immediately forget what they learned once the test is passed. Not so in God’s school:

“And so the Lord says, ‘These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote.’” Isaiah 29:13 NLT

As committed Christians who desire to know His nature, we long to dwell, to stay in the secret place within us where our Lord has taken up residence. This requires much more than knowledge of scriptures, great revelation, or the dos and don’ts of religion. We are not following systems or rituals, but an intimate relationship with our Living Father God. He made man for relationship with Him, to be like Him. It’s the heart He is after!

The heart is desperately wicked and cannot be changed but by our Master Teacher.

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds.” Jeremiah 17:9-10 ESV

Strong’s Concordance translates test from the Hebrew word bâchan, meaning “to test (especially metals); generally and figuratively, to investigate:—examine, prove, tempt, try (trial).” Father God compares how He tests our hearts to the refining of gold and silver. He is our Teacher who examines and tests what is in us. We have many trials as we live and learn in His fiery presence, walking with our God daily.

Daily, we take up our cross for Him to crucify our fleshly ways, our carnal understandings and reactions, our soulish life. He puts these things to death, creating in us a willing and tender heart wherein He writes His truth. When something is written in our hearts, it is permanent! Father God never forgets us or what He is doing in us. Jesus Christ our Lord is ever interceding for us as we battle against our enemies within and without.

Some trials sent to crucify our flesh are deep and painful, such as the death of someone for whom we prayed diligently, the unexpected harm that comes to those we love, the loss of business or friendship, or a specific longed-for future. Other lessons are lighter, even missed as opportunities for God to give us a character change. These the Lord will bring again, as He is dedicated to having sons and daughters who are educated and knowledgeable in His kingdom.

Sometimes we feel like we have overcome much, leaping over mountains with Him. At other times, we realize we have only overcome a small mole hill, thinking we are most victorious in it! We are not to measure ourselves, such a hard thing for some of us, but allow God to do so. His measurement is the fullness of the stature of Jesus Christ within our being.

He also sets teachers among us who are equipped to bring us to maturity:

“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.

Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ, from him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” Ephesians 4:11-16 NIV

Jesus Christ our Lord and King is the only One Who passed all of life’s tests and graduated into the place reserved for Him by the Father. He is our example, guide, and teacher, the only One who lived all that He spoke. When we are the teachers, we must recall that God’s love is first patient, then kind as daily imperfections of others and the way this life goes for us deeply challenge us. He is the measure of maturity.

It is easy, it is natural to yield to impatience, irritation, unkindness, if not rudeness, in life. When we do, we miss many a lesson in God’s school that He will have to test us on again. It’s our nature that is being changed, not our head of knowledge in any area. He will have a people for His name’s sake, with the very nature of our King! God wants all people to come to know Him. The Jews were the chosen people in ancient days, and, through the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Gentiles—that is, all people—are now God’s people.

Peter confirmed this in the discussion with James about what should be required of Gentiles coming into the faith:

“Now, there coming to be much questioning, rising, Peter said to them, ‘Men! Brethren! You are versed in the fact that from the days at the beginning God chooses among you, that ‘through my mouth the nations are to hear the word of the evangel and believe.’ And God, the Knower of hearts, testifies to them, giving the holy spirit according as to us also, and in nothing discriminates between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith…

[James replied]’Simon unfolds how God first visits the nations, to obtain out of them a people for His name.’” Acts 15:8-9;14 CLV

Throughout the Word of God, He does many, many things for His name’s sake, despite what His own people have represented as His nature. He has called forth a people who are to be known by His nature of love. He longs to have a people who will show forth Who He really is: a God of love, compassion, and mercy, ever faithful, ever just, revealing love to all.

Father God is dedicated to our training in His school of life so that others can really know what He is like, not a shadowed and distorted God, like our own fleshly character. Here’s but one of many scriptures that declare this truth. We need God and His training to learn the lessons to be like Him in this world. This He does for His name:

“Therefore tell the house of Israel that this is what the Lord GOD says: It is not for your sake that I will act, O house of Israel, but for My holy name, which you profaned among the nations to which you went.” Ezekiel 36:22 KJV

We do not get what we deserve because God knows we cannot change ourselves to be like Him. We cannot really know His ways by our carnal reasoning. We are heading into holiness as the great Day of the Lord is unfolding. We are to be like Him, perfected by the trials and tribulations of this life, just as Jesus was. Trials and tribulations are not somehow sent outside of God’s permission, but created and designed by Him to perfect a people for His name’s sake.

Maturity brings a love of the education we are getting from Father God. As we seek Him daily, learning from Father God, worshipping and modeling ourselves after our Lord Jesus Christ, is our highest desire and most favorite thing to do. Presently, Jesus Christ is the only Graduate of God’s school of life, passing every test. We’re waiting for our maturity in Him, though it may be ages before the fullness of His plan is seen and known.

We are promised many things in the kingdom, particularly for those of us committed to going all the way in God, on this side of life as well as following the death of the physical body. We stay in God’s school of life, allowing Him to decide just how far each of us can go while living on the earth.

“Thus said Yahweh: Let not the wise boast himself in his wisdom, nor let the mighty boast himself in his might, let not the rich boast himself in his riches,

But--in this let the boaster boast himself, in understanding and knowing Me, for I [am] Yahweh, doing kindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth, for in these I have delighted.” Jeremiah 9:23 KJV

We are destined to be a delight to our Lord Jesus Christ and to our wonderful Father God. What could be better than that?