In my daily reading I have been
studying the book of Job. It’s a difficult book for a lot of people. And in my
younger days I used to try not to think about it because it would cause me to
question God. But as I have grown in the Faith I am able to accept it a lot
easier now. One thing about the book itself is that there has always been a lot
of debate as to the origin and timeframe of the events of Job. Some will go so
far as to say that it is a story but not an actual historical account of a real
person. On that note I will disagree. The book of Job is written in the form of
Hebrew poetry. But it is a historical account of a man named Job.
Anyway…As I was reading this
morning something struck me. The story is about the faith of Job while he was
suffering. No, I have never suffered like Job did. Few of us have had to suffer
that much. But his faith, it was indeed strong. But even in faith he questioned
God. He didn’t question God in a sinful way but he did question God. He felt
like God had abandoned him, or was allowing him to suffer without just cause.
That part I can relate to. How many times in our Christian life does it seem
like God is far away? How many times have you wished you could sit down with
God and ask Him your questions to His face and listen to Him answer you
directly? For me I have to admit I feel this way often. Actually I have been
feeling this way for a few days now. Look at what Job said to his would-be
comforters Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar.
Job 23:8-12 (NASB) “Behold, I go forward but He is not there, And backward, but I cannot perceive Him; When
He acts on the left, I cannot behold Him; He turns on the right, I cannot see Him. But He knows
the way I take; When He
has tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot has held fast to
His path; I have kept His way and not turned aside. I have not departed from
the command of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than
my necessary food.”
Yep. I
have felt that way a lot for the last few days. And it just so happens that
there is nothing wrong with that. It would be a sin to lose faith in God, or to
ask such a thing sarcastically against God, but not to want to be able to speak
directly to God in the place of people who can only give us the same old clichéd
answers. That would make so many situations so much simpler, wouldn’t it?
But
there is another interesting thing Job said. Job makes more than a few references
to wanting to dispute his suffering and to proclaim his faithfulness directly
to God. He uses legal terms as if he wants to go to God’s courtroom and prove
his innocence. In Job 9:32-33 Job
wishes he had a mediator to negotiate between him and God. That is another “aha” moment for me. We do
have a mediator with God. 1 Timothy 2:5 tells us that Jesus is our
mediator. Jesus sits on the throne, “at the right hand of the Father” and
speaks for us just as a defense attorney would.
So what
does this mean for us? It means that when we feel lonely, abandoned, or
forgotten by our Heavenly Father we can go to our mediator, Jesus, in prayer,
and talk to Him. And we know that He will hear our prayers and that He will
plead our case and in due time we will be blessed. But the story about Job also
teaches us to remain faithful to God no matter how we “feel” and no matter what
others are saying. I find all that to be very comforting. I pray you do to.
Peace and blessings to you all.
Shannon
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