Have you ever heard the statement “if God brings you to it, He will bring you through it?” The idea here is that if God allows a difficult situation in your life, He will get you through the difficult situation. While this sounds like a pretty good concept, is it biblical?
Is 'If God Brings You to it, He Will Bring You Through it' Biblical?
The saying “if God brings you to it, He will bring you through it” is not in the Bible. You can look all through the Bible, but you will not find it. Why? Because it is not biblical. This saying stems from the prosperity gospel.
The prosperity gospel is a false belief system that focuses on yourself rather than God. Instead of following God out of devotion and love, adherents of the prosperity gospel follow God to achieve material blessings. Joel Osteen is a major figure within the prosperity gospel.
Osteen’s catchphrase is, “Live inspired. Reach your dreams. Become all God created you to be.” Nothing in this statement is focused on God. It’s all focused on yourself. The prosperity gospel is self-focused rather than God-focused.
This phrase is focused on the self rather than on God. It practically teaches that if you get yourself into a problem, it’s God’s job to get you out of the situation.
This saying also undermines the fact that God has us go through difficult seasons for a reason. Trials and difficult times help our faith to grow. If God simply took us out of these trials or brought us through these trials, we would never grow as Christians.
Is it Out of Context?
Some adherents of the prosperity gospel believe this saying comes from 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”
By using this passage in reference to the phrase “if God brings you to it, He will bring you through it,” is misusing 1 Corinthians 10:13.
God does go with us in temptations and trials, but He never promises to take us through and out of them. This idea of false promises comes from Osteen. Osteen is credited with saying, “God has promised he will pay you back for every unfair thing that's happened” (“God Will Bring Justice Into Your Life”).
God does not owe us anything. He certainly does not owe us for everything bad that has happened in our life. Osteen’s theology is unbiblical along with this saying.
Will I Ever Break Free from My Struggle?
As established, this saying is not biblical. There will be temptations and trials in your life, but nothing in the Bible says God will pull you through these difficult situations.
The Bible tells us that our trials are not for nothing. 2 Corinthians 4:17 tells us, “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”
Through our trials and temptations, God is teaching us and giving believers chances to grow. Just as Jesus went through hardships, believers will too. Jesus can help us with our temptations (Hebrews 2:17-18), however, He will not take us out of them.
With that being said, sometimes, we will never come out of our difficult situation. Does this mean God is not merciful? Absolutely not. God has saved us from the ultimate worst situation of dying and living in hell for eternity.
While we may never be delivered out of all trials, we will be freed from all temptations and trials when you die and go to be with God in Heaven. Just like many believers in the Bible, they were not freed of their affliction in life, yet they were freed when they went to be with God in Heaven at death (Hebrews 11:13).
Will God Allow Trials and Temptations?
God is in control of the trial, and we can trust that He has a purpose for the struggle. He does have the power to bring us out of difficult situations, but He chooses not to divinely deliver us. It is our responsibility as believers to grow and develop into the person of Christ.
Character change cannot happen unless we die to ourselves and live for God. We cannot do this if God divinely intervenes and brings us out of our troubles. Through hard times, God is causing us to mature into more faithful believers.
Trials help us become more dependent on God. When we are facing hard times, we tend to turn to God more. When things are going bright and sunny, we seldom turn to God. There is great importance in relying on God and not ourselves.
It is vitally important that we trust in God at all times (Proverbs 3:5-6). We can rely on the truth that there is meaning to our temptations and trials. Whether the trial ever ends is up for debate, however, we can trust in the fact that God is developing our character through the difficult season.
Nobody enjoys hard times, but God does have a purpose behind them. God does not enjoy our trials and temptations, but He works out even bad things for our good (Romans 8:28). It is not biblical that God will bring us out of troubles, but He can help us if we rely on Him. God gives us everything we need to be strong in Him (Philippians 4:13).
There are trials we will emerge from, while other trials we may or may not come out of during our life. Believers can trust that God is working out everything in conformity to His Will. Pain and suffering can have a purpose.
God did not directly cause the bad situation you are dealing with right now. However, He can be your strength and your support. He does not delight in your pain, but He is delighted to see your growth to become more and more like Jesus.
For further reading:
Is it Biblical ‘Where God Guides, He Provides’?
Wanting to Want What God Wants
Is it True That God Will Never Give Us More Than We Can Handle?
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