Life-Proven Faith | Aug. 31, 25 | Pr Raph

Life-proven faith

Life has a way of testing what we claim to believe. It’s easy to say, “I trust God,” when the bank account is full, the doctor gives a clean bill of health, and relationships are at peace. But real faith—life-proven faith—is not shaped in comfort; it is forged in adversity. Genuine faith reveals itself not by words alone but by endurance through hardship.

There’s a company called Lifetime that built its reputation on one promise: its products are guaranteed for life. Buy one of their chairs, tables, or coolers, and no matter how much wear and tear it goes through, they back it up. Why? Because they are so confident in the quality of what they’ve made. That “lifetime warranty” is their way of saying, “We know this will endure.”

Now imagine if our faith came with a label like that. Could we honestly say our trust in Christ is “lifetime guaranteed”? Does it endure through the wear and tear of trials, suffering, disappointment, and even temptation? Or is it only strong when life is easy?

Fire doesn’t destroy the gold; it removes the impurities. In the same way, the tests of life do not ruin true faith—they reveal its purity. 

Life-proven faith is a faith that has been tried, stretched, and pressed, and yet comes forth more resilient, more obedient, and more deeply anchored in Christ.

Today, the call is to examine ourselves, to embrace restoration through the truth and prayer, and to walk in the grace and fellowship of God.

2 Corinthians 13:1-4 1 This is the third time I am coming to you. Every charge must be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 2 I warned those who sinned before and all the others, and I warn them now while absent, as I did when present on my second visit, that if I come again I will not spare them— 3 since you seek proof that Christ is speaking in me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. 4 For he was crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but in dealing with you we will live with him by the power of God.

5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! 6 I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test.

Paul planted the church at Corinth on his first visit (Acts 18:1–18). He stayed about 18 months. His second visit was brief and painful (2 Cor 2:1), where he confronted sin directly but left quickly to avoid further conflict. His third visit was planned (2 Cor 12:14; 13:1) to deal decisively with unresolved sin and rebellion. Thus, 2 Corinthians 13:1 anticipates this third arrival, where he would not hesitate to correct the brothers.

The Corinthians struggled with divisions and pride (1 Cor 1–3), sexual immorality (1 Cor 5–6; 2 Cor 12:21), idolatry and worldliness (1 Cor 8–10), disorder (1 Cor 11, 14), and doubt about the apostolic authority (2 Cor 10–12).

That is why Paul speaks so firmly about the test of faith. He had already warned them. He knew the danger—that many can profess Christ outwardly while the inward reality is missing. So he calls them, and us, to take the test: “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith."

The test

Paul reminds the Corinthians that Christ was “crucified in weakness, but lives by the power of God” (v. 4).

The cross looked like total defeat, yet it became the greatest victory. Christ’s weakness became the channel of resurrection power. This paradox sets the model for us: God’s power shines most clearly when we feel weakest.

When life leaves us feeling powerless—whether through sickness, broken relationships, or discouragement—that is precisely where Christ’s power can be displayed.

A life-proven faith doesn’t mean we never doubt or struggle, but that underneath it all, we still hope in Christ.

“Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test” (v. 5). 

Genuine, life-approved faith always perseveres in hope because Christ Himself sustains it.

Hebrews 11:1—“Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

Hope fuels faith.

Without hope, there is no faith. When someone says, “I’ve lost hope,” they are in danger of losing the very soil in which faith grows.

This is why I told a chronically sick person and a desperate wife, “Do not lose hope.”

Because where hope dies, faith cannot take root.

Jesus says again and again, the condition for miracles is: 

Your faith has made you well.” 

Jesus told the woman healed after twelve years of bleeding, 

Mark 5:34 “Daughter, your faith has made you well.”

Her faith was simply hope in action—reaching out through weakness to touch Jesus.

When Jesus told the Samaritan leper, 

(Luke 17:19). “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well”

Wholeness is more than physical healing—it is the saving power of faith that clings only to Him. 

All ten lepers were cleansed, but only one returned in gratitude, showing that real, life-proven faith does not stop at receiving blessings but rises to embrace the Giver, walks forward in freedom, and lives transformed by thanksgiving.

Romans 5:3–5 – “Suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame.”

Therefore, our trials are not meant to destroy our hope, but are intended to refine it and guide it toward the right target. Christ Jesus.

2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

This week I went to the doctor for some routine lab work. You know how it goes—they draw blood, maybe ask for other samples, and then send it all off to the lab. And let’s be honest, it’s not fun. The needle stings, the process can be awkward or even embarrassing. However, the truth is that those tests are not our enemy. They reveal what’s hidden inside. 

On the outside, I might look healthy, I might even feel fine, but the real story can only be told when the tests reveal what’s going on beneath the surface. Just because we look good on the outside—attend church, say the right words, keep up appearances—doesn’t mean our spiritual health is strong. It takes examination, sometimes painful and uncomfortable, to reveal what’s really inside. 

Tests are meant to give us a way back to health, God’s call to examine our faith is meant to bring us to restoration, not condemnation.

What does it mean to “examine yourselves” in faith?

It is not about doubting salvation. It is about testing authenticity.

The verb (πειράζω - pairá-dzô, “test, try”) implies a careful evaluation: Is Christ truly dwelling in you? 

It is a test of what, on whom, and on which you trust during times of weakness. 

Remember that weaknesses can be within you, but they can also be caused by circumstances beyond your control, regardless of your cleverness, experience, and intelligence. They are experiences that reveal our powerlessness. 

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

It is a test of “Who will you call in times of weakness?"

Romans 8:24-26 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

Faith must be tested to be solely rooted in God’s grace. If that happens, restoration has a way. That is why we must face the truth, as painful as it may be. 

Only Truth leads to Restoration

2 Corinthians 13:7-10 7 But we pray to God that you may not do wrong—not that we may appear to have met the test, but that you may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed. 8 For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. 9 For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. Your restoration is what we pray for. 10 For this reason I write these things while I am away from you, that when I come I may not have to be severe in my use of the authority that the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down.

The point is not to prove yourself right or to appear strong, but to have our faith aligned with God’s truth. 

Truth isn’t flexible—it is the plumb line against which our lives and our church are measured. 

Jesus prayed, 

John 17:17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.

Sanctification or transformation doesn’t happen when we keep making excuses or trying to justify ourselves—it happens when we stop, stand against the line of truth, and admit where we are crooked. 

God doesn’t use truth to shame us but to sanctify us—to set us straight, to make us strong, and to keep us from collapsing.

God is not interested in whether we feel better, but in leading us into genuine restoration. 

Distractions and hobbies might soothe for the moment, but they never really heal, restore and fix the problem.

Any restoration that is not grounded in truth is just a cover-up.

Many therapists practice what’s called affirmative therapy—they tell their patients exactly what they want to hear, affirming their desires or identities even if those desires are self-destructive. The therapist may make someone feel accepted, but if that acceptance agrees with what is false, it is not restoration at all—it is just reinforcing the problem. In fact, it can ultimately consume and destroy a person’s life.

2 Timothy 4:3–4 – “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”

The truth is the word of God

2 Corinthians 13:10 For this reason I write these things while I am away from you, that when I come I may not have to be severe in my use of the authority that the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down.

Our authority to correct, admonish and advise ultimately comes from scripture. The word of God. It's not our strong opinions, life experiences, or our marital position.

Paul's authority was rooted in his apostolic authority to speak the gospel—no other agenda, no other message.

James 5:19-20 19 My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, 20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

How should we say the truth?

Ephesians 4:15 – “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.”

The only path to true strength and restoration is through truth. “We cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth” (v. 8).

A mother told me her son was on medication for years that was supposed to help but was actually making him worse. A new doctor discovered the problem and immediately began cleansing his body of those chemicals. The withdrawal was painful, but the real healing came when his habits changed—fresh food, a healthy diet—and today he’s being restored. That’s what truth does in our lives: it doesn’t just cover symptoms, it cleanses what’s harmful and gives us a whole new way of living in Christ.

The gospel doesn’t offer a cheap bandage to cover up what’s broken; it confronts sin, exposes lies, and brings us into the healing light of Christ.

Real restoration means facing what is crooked in the light of God’s Word so that it can be set straight. Without truth, restoration is just pretense. With truth, restoration is transformation.

John 8:31-32 31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Galatians 5:1 – “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.”

I'm not saying we should always bring the truth to everyone regardless of the situation. No. Some people just don't want to hear the truth.

Wait for the right time, pray for the right opportunity.

Vv. 9 says,

” Your restoration is what we pray for.” 

The goal is not to destroy, expose, or shame anyone. The goal should always be to build up.

Only prayer brings Restoration.

Paul rejoiced when the Corinthians were strong in Christ, even if he must look weak. 

“Your restoration is what we pray for.”

Is there something weaker than to say to someone who seeks help: “I will pray for you.”

How many people look for help with bank managers, doctors, and politicians? But they take so long to come to the pastor. Why? Because they know that pastors have nothing strong, relevant or clever to offer.

Pastors offer prayer.

It seems “weak”, but that is the most potent resource one can give to one another. 

Prayer is not a side activity—it is the lifeblood of the church. 

Prayer acknowledges that only God can change people’s hearts and minds, not human persuasion.

Prayer purges us of self-promotion and makes us genuinely care for the well-being of others.

The word translated as "restoration” means putting broken things back into a state of usefulness.

When we pray for others, there is no room for exposing, shaming, or condemning them. God pours His love into our hearts, and a spiritual empathy guards us from resentment and demands.

The original word for prayer in Corinthians, πρόσευχομαι (prassú-hamai), means “to direct your desires and dependence toward God.” 

It is more than asking for things — it’s entrusting yourself and others to Him. It is a deep request and surrender.

Christ’s truth never crushes for the sake of crushing; it convicts to restore. 

Prayer is the expected answer of those who received that conviction of the truth and are in pursuit of the complete restoration of faith.

A resilient and test-approved faith is the result.

Awareness of Christ’s grace, peace, and fellowship. 

A faith that has been tested rests in the truth.

Truth that restores and leads one to depend on God by prayerful and unshakable hope.

But God’s grace produces joy, unity, and peace.

2 Corinthians 13:11-14 11 Finally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. 12 Greet one another with a holy kiss. 13 All the saints greet you.

14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Because of God’s grace, we can rejoice no matter what. There is mercy and goodness following us everywhere and every day of our lives. 

Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

Promise: “and the God of love and peace will be with you.” 

God’s presence is the source of peace.

We are part of a larger family: We are all forgiven sinners, justified by the same blood, made saints by the same baptism. 

We are part of the family of God. That is why we can warmly hug and kiss.

“Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you.”

The holy kiss was a sign of reconciliation, family affection, and unity in the early church. 

True fellowship flows from grace—when God restores us vertically, He also restores us horizontally.

Paul closes with one of the most beautiful benedictions in Scripture:

“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”

Grace of Christ – He supplies what we don’t deserve: salvation, forgiveness, strength.

Love of the Father – God is not cold or distant, but the fountain of all love 

(Romans 5:8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.).

Fellowship of the Spirit – The Spirit unites us with God and with each other.