Well, when it comes to my faith in God there comes a place at which I have to stop striving for things to make sense to me, or be my view of just. Who am I to question God? If I have an issue with Him and what He's permitted then I am suggesting that I know better. This mindset and attitude puts me on the throne of my heart, and dethrones the God of the universe. Really, when you boil it down, that's what I'm doing.
In Scripture the book of Job is a powerful account of a man who lost it all physically speaking; his family, his livelihood, even his health was in jeopardy. One day he had it all together, the next day, like a game of dominoes it all came crashing down.... You really see someone's character at these crucible moments of life. What did Job do? Check out Job 1:20-22
He felt the emotions of loss. He demonstrated his mourning by ripping his clothes, shaving his head, and falling to the ground. But in his heart; he worshiped."Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshiped.He said,“Naked I came from my mother’s womb,
And naked I shall return there.
The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away.
Blessed be the name of the Lord.”Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God."
Chapter 2-37 Job's friends come to help him, and with all kinds of questions and platitudes they attempt to give purpose and reason to Job's situation. They question his heart; you must have sinned. They rationalize; you must deserve God's judgment. They challenge him; you must repent. They conclude; you must be wicked. Job's own wife urges him to curse God. Helpful influences? With friends and a wife like that..... Not all of what they had to say was wrong, or bad. There were attempts to focus on the goodness of God, His justice and so on. It's easy to criticize these friends of Job, but I've done it too, pulled out my theological rational, and broken it all down into step-by-step how to deal with________.... I want life's situations to fit neatly into my box of categories of why things happen, and how to fix them.
All this time God as thoughts and conversations are had in the book of Job, He is patient, listening, waiting for His time to be consulted, to be heard. Job's heart is distraught; he knows he's a just man, yet he feels injustice. He wants to know why. He defends himself to his friends, and asks God soul searching questions. There is a battle for Job's mind, for his response. He doesn't have the vantage point in this trial that we do reading it, or the full Word of God that we have now at that time in history. We read that Satan has received permission from God to test Job (1:6-12, 2:1-8)
"Satan wants every situation to be a temptation to doubt God and turn away from him. But God wants it to be something that refines our faith and causes us to move toward God and to trust Him." "Thankfulness: Even When it Hurts"-Susan Lutz
We face the same struggle in our day-to-day reality. The magnitude of our situations vary, but the spiritual battle is still raging. Satan whispers, "You don't deserve this, your God is not good..." He lures us away from God's truth, and knows us well in how to present the temptation. We are choosing constantly weather to entertain the thought, develop a sinful attitude, or refuse; and instead think and act according to truth as children of God.
By the end of this Biblical account; he's defended himself before his friends, and comes to God to unburden his soul. Job is then humbled when God reminds him who He is, and who he is in comparison (Chapter 38).
Job is confronted by God's omnipotence, and he is repentant.
“I know that You can do all things,
And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.
3 ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have declared that which I did not understand,
Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.”
4 ‘Hear, now, and I will speak;
I will ask You, and You instruct me.’
5 “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear;
But now my eye sees You;
6 Therefore I retract,
And I repent in dust and ashes.” Job 42:2-6
In a proper view of God we don't need to ask questions or come to a place of understanding, we need to have faith. He has an all of time encompassing world-view, He has been gracious to give us His Son, and life eternal. I don't deserve to know Him, let alone express anything less than praise to Him.
"We can only serve one God. Whoever or whatever controls how we feel is ultimately our God. If we do not allow God to tell us how to feel, we are not allowing Him to rule our lives, either." Dr. M. WicksLife is not about me, and my comfort. Life is about Him, and His glory. I don't claim to live without questioning God, I do. Which brings me to repent often, to stop and submit to Him, to be in awe of His grace and to worship Him more, for His love, for His character.
The book of Job ends with justice, God confronts Job's friends, and deals with their incorrect theology, He replenishes Job's physical health and material wealth. You and I may not have that resolution to our circumstances now or in this life before Christ returns, but we choose how to respond-and in choosing will glorify God or not.
God's Word has been written so we can read this account, and learn from it. Though you and I are living in a different era, and the Bible will never hold our account, we get to choose how we respond to life, and influence those we rub shoulders with by how our theology intersects with life.
Lord, teach me not to question You; to have a proper view of You, and of myself. Your grace towards me is more goodness than words can express. I pray I will magnify your name through whatever this life brings, because I hold fast to You, Your promises and character. Shape, and mold me through the trials, and teach this heart to focus on the eternal, and not get trapped by Satan's temptations. For Your name to receive glory, only and ever. Amen.
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