Job Archives – Sonshine's Journal

January 13, 2023January 13, 2023

Where are you in this story?

Job 38-39 God Reveals His Majesty

Finally, Job hears from God but is it what he expected? Listen to God: Who is this who darkens counsel with words without knowledge? [Job 38:2] Get ready, Job, because I am going to question you. So now, God asks Job over 59 questions. Why the authors did not include vs. 1 of chapter 40 is a mystery, yet God is not finished yet and will continue in Job 40:6. So far, God has proven He is God and Job is a man. Job can question God, but when God comes back to question him, he is without words, unlike Elihu, who was full of words!

We have a saying: I wish I could be like a fly on the wall to hear and see what is taking place. That is where we are in this story. We want to hear and see, but the conversation is really one-sided, with God speaking. Job has wished to talk to God and even argue with him, but when confronted with God’s majesty, he is silent. How about us when we are faced with God? Do we say, as Job says: “Indeed, I am completely unworthy—how could I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth to silence myself.” [Job 40:4]

Where are you in this story? Are you ready to listen to God?

January 4, 2023January 4, 2023

Are you Prepared?

Job 1-5 A key to understanding the man Job is to look at his life in everyday circumstances. God noted he was blameless and upright, and we see how he responded to his children’s choices. He offered sacrifices regularly ‘just in case’ they had cursed God, not out loud, but in their hearts. Job’s care for his children’s spiritual character was intentional and deliberate. Are we intentional and deliberate regarding our children’s walk with God?

It was that character that Satan sought to undermine. Satan does the same for us because distraction from the important keeps us from being diligent and faithful. Satan sought to distract Job from his daily adoration, confession, thanksgiving, and supplication routine. Just as Satan sought to do it with God’s permission, he does the same for us. Jesus told Peter: “Simon, Simon, pay attention! Satan has demanded to have you all, to sift you like wheat” [Luke 22:31]. We can respond as Mrs. Job, “curse God and die,” or as Job, “the Lord gives and the Lord takes away, may the name of the Lord be praised.” [Job 1:21] In all this, Job did not sin, nor should we.

God has given us this story to help us understand that Satan’s methods have not changed. Therefore, we need spiritual armor to battle against the enemy of our souls. [Eph 6:10-18]

Are you prepared?

May 26, 2022May 27, 2022

Open the eyes of my heart, Lord

The rest of that praise song is what Job was singing; I want to see you high and lifted up shining in all of y our glory…

Job 41-42; Psalm 1

Psalm 1: The one who is blessed is the one who does not follow the advice of the wicked. Job is an example because no matter how often his three friends counseled him to reject his righteousness and admit that he was a sinner, he did not capitulate to their demands. He stood firm. After 41 chapters, we find God telling those same friends that they were neither Job’s friends nor His! God told them that what they had spoken about God was not right, but Job had, and that is why he is the blessed man of Psalm 1.

We can sit all day and ask the “why’s,” but God is looking and listening to see our hearts. His desire is one thing: we recognize Him as the Almighty omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent God of the universe. No plan is beyond his purpose, his understanding. He desires that we come to the point that we see ourselves as Isaiah a contaminated sinful person in need of cleansing.[Is 6] That first step is repentance before a holy God. Then we become holy people who can stand in His presence and see Him face to face.

May 23, 2022May 23, 2022

Choosing Words Carefully…

Job 32-34 and Luke 18 Self-Righteous Hypocrisy

For the first time, we hear from the young man Elihu. In reading this, one NT story comes to mind: the story of the self-righteous Pharisee and the humble Publican in Luke 18:9-14. It is amazing how the OT and the NT mirror each other. Enter Elihu, who has sat on the sidelines biding his time to speak, and he ‘humbly’ says I waited until you all had had your turn and Job as well. First, Elihu is angry because they could not find an answer, yet declared Job guilty. Then he becomes very angry! Elihu speaks for several chapters about how unrighteous Job is and how righteous he is. It sounds like the prayer of the Pharisee in Luke 18:11: I am so glad I am not like that other man, I do this, and I do that; indeed God is pleased. However, God said that it was not he, but the publican that went home justified.

Such hypocrisy! Do we become angry at one another? Are we much like the Pharisee? And so it goes. The lesson for us is this: we are not in the place of God; who are we to declare someone guilty before God? In this, we act like the Pharisee and not the Publican. Today, may we choose our words carefully for one day we will be held accountable for every word spoken! [Matt 12:36]

June 30, 2020

Standing Firm

Psalm 112 The world clamors for peace and harmony, yet they deny the radical conversion that Christ performs when one yields to Him and chooses to bear His yoke. They choose ridicule rather than the path of godliness—yet they cannot deny the evidence which stares them in the face. They cannot understand how it is possible to stand firm when faced with adversity. They are like Job’s comforters, which could not wrap their minds around Job’s intense faithfulness amid the worst tragedies to befall a man. How could he sit in ashes and mourn yet keep his faith in God?

What was his secret?

Like the psalmist, Job, and the saints who chose Christ, they knew the blessing of walking in harmony with God. Each decided to let God train them to walk beside Him in the furrows of the good, bad, and ugliness of life and then recorded their steps on parchment for us to read. It is titled “trust and obey – there is no other way.” They could then see beyond the temporal circumstances to the eternal reward for those who walk uprightly. They submitted their will, heart, and mind to Him. They chose not to be conformed to this world but transformed by the renewing of their mind. They knew no matter the circumstances of life: “The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. May the name of the Lord be blessed.” Therefore, we like the psalmist can say: “I will not be shaken, and I will remember Him who is just and knows the beginning from the end.”

What choice have you made?

May 25, 2020

Are you Blessed?

Psalm 1 to 4 “Blessed Men and Women”

God blessed Job; “a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and turns away from evil.” James references Job “Think of how we regard as blessed those who have endured. You have heard of Job’s endurance…” [James 5]

Now, as we leave Job behind and move on into the psalms, written over thousand years, we once again read about the blessings God bestows upon those who are righteous, of whom Job is an example. King David, who most likely wrote this first psalm, summarizes what God calls blessed.

These people choose their companions wisely; they revere God by obeying and fearing Him. They feed on God’s Word day and night, delighting in His Law. They see themselves as the Lord’s heritage. In times of peace and war, God is their shield and sustainer, their salvation, and sanctifier.

They are proof of what Moses told the Israelites: teach your children and speak of God in your house, and as you walk along the path of life. Be sure to educate them in the night as well as in the day; if trained early on, he will remain steadfast and immoveable later in life. [Prov 22:6]

If God spoke about you, would He use the word “Blessed?”

May 20, 2019

Is it true that there is no hope???

Job and his three “comforters” have been dialoguing back and forth on the points of wickedness and righteousness. The three, Bildad, Eliphaz and Zophar are sure Job is in the camp of the wicked. As their words show they believe the contrast to Romans 8:1!

Listen in to the dialog between Job and Eliphaz In Job 21 to 24 to get the whole story and then go and read Psalm 73 to see another person who faces this same conundrum.

job 21 ps 73 praise2a

Job responds to the next challenge by asking the same thought Asaph pondered. Why do the wicked seem to prosper and the righteous seem to falter and many times fade away. Asaph wondered if he, like Job, had remained faithful for no reason. We often say the same thing as we watch all of our life’s savings eaten by moths and our bodies suffer from disease and harm by others. God is not in a box, closed and secure from all of life; He is omniscient! So Job’s three friends and Asaph himself have to look at life from another viewpoint.

Asaph returns to the Temple where he says: I entered the precincts of God’s temple and then I understood the destiny of the wicked. But, Job has no temple yet to attend so he is left with his thoughts and trying to piece them together. He says the “counsel of the wicked is far from me!” I just don’t understand and if only God would come and we could talk about this it would all be made right. Eliphaz remains steadfast in his critical argument against Job but Job tells him: He knows the path I take and if he tested me I would come forth as gold. As we read those words we must decide if that is true for us. If God would come and stand in our presence would He say that? Job and Asaph looked at life without that confirmation but if you are a born-again believer you can attest to this truth because of Roman 8:1:

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

May 18, 2019

Eternal Destiny

Do you find it hard to talk about death? Why is it that we avoid that topic–especially if we are believers? Is it fear? Is the lack of trust? It wasn’t that way for Job or Peter or Paul or Jesus.

job 14 to 17 destiny2a

Job is a man who continues to remain strong in the midst of his three friends’ conclusions of why he is in this ‘mess.’ He is aware of his destiny but isn’t sure of what happens after death. Sadly, there are many today around in our world that also lacks the peace of knowing. They have not heard the words of our Savior nor have they seen the marvelous work that the Holy Spirit does when He comes to indwell the believer. James reminds us that we best not take life for granted. It could be snuffed out at any moment.

Eliphaz will have none of this! He is correct in saying that God judges all corrupt sinners. However, in his analysis he cannot see into the future nor can he see what Job’s destiny book shows. Although Job has reminded all three so-called comforters of this fact, Eliphaz pursues this train of thought without missing a beat. Again he calls Job a windbag of sorts and it is because of him that meditation before a holy God is certain to die.

So how do we face such harsh criticism? Job gives us a clue when he says; I would try to comfort you. My advocate is in heaven, My intercessor is my friend. My eyes will continue to pour forth my tears to God. I will not give up.

How about you? Are you certain that if death came knocking you would be ready?

May 17, 2019

Don’t Play God!

Job 11-13 We all would do well to not presume to know the Heart of God.

job despair2a

How often do you presume, and I do as well, about what you think is true. We lather our condemnation on like shaving cream. Our theology, is the right answer and so the other person stands condemned; no trial, only conjecture. Our impatience comes across in spades as we play God; what fools we are! Job’s so-called friend, Zophar, like us, fails to consider not only the cause but the heart of the person who is suffering. Like him, we just want the main character to accept our conclusion so this can be over and done with.

So between the three friends we see that all decide to share their conclusions about Job’s suffering. Eliphaz concluded that all people suffer but good people always win and bad people always lose; therefore Job must be “bad.” Job doesn’t buy that conclusion. Bildad believed God’s mercy would be revealed if and only if Job spent time confessing his sin. Again Job denies that conclusion because inwardly he knew he was innocent. Now Zophar, who in reality is harsher than the other two, derides Job and concludes that his talk is idle and mocking.

Job’s conclusion is that all are presumptuous! They are all self-described experts but fail to consider the pain he is in. Their words don’t square with the God he knows and their harsh spirit is driving him to despair.

In the midst of this Job teaches us what to do when the Zophar’s come to visit. Follow his example and take time to extol the attributes of God. Remind your harsh critics that even if God decides to slay us, He is sovereign and even though we don’t understand the circumstances, we have determined that we will remain faithful to Him. Deut 29:29 fits in here: “the secret things belong to God;” He alone knows the end from the beginning.

When a friend is in deep despair the last thing they need to hear is God is against them. We are reminded by James that God is gracious even in testing and we should stop and look in the mirror before we point fingers.

May 16, 2019

What I am learning from Job

I/we have had quite a week. It started off fine but then we hit Job in our morning devotions. If you have read Job you know how hard it is to understand. Then God decided a lesson was in store for me, the less than empathic me. So He used a situation, a not so fun situation to teach me about sympathy and empathy. I am still in the re-learn stage. I should have learned long ago but like the Israelites of long ago, I had to do another lap around the wilderness, may this be my last. Hopefully, I will learn the tricks of the trade through the characters in Job. For example, if you want to learn how to handle stress take the example of Bildad and Job’s conversations

job 1 omniscient God ann taylor2a

In chapter 8, the impertinence of Bildad is a quick reminder of our own impatience when we are frustrated. We take our cues from another’s words. Bildad seems to think that Job is his own worst enemy and he needs to come to terms that all of this is because of the sin he and his families have experienced. Nowhere do we see Bildad crying out to God for answers and a sympathetic heart. There is a lesson there for you and I. When another is in deep distress we need to be patient, listen more than speak and quietly sit and talk to God. We need to ask God for eyes to see, ears to hear but mostly a heart to understand.

Now as to Job, he is so frustrated! He cannot fathom why this is all happening. Like us when disaster happens we ask “why.” So we can relate to Job in this instance. We too want answers. Sometimes heaven is quiet and we wish God would just open the windows of heaven and explain to us the answer but He is sternly quiet. The reality is this: we may never know until eternity the why.

So I posed a question to myself; What if I was just quiet and waited on the Holy Spirit to speak? Might I learn something of value as to how I am to respond and act towards another who is in distress?

Tag: Job