Bible Studies

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Presenting a strikingly graphic picture of the human condition, the Book of Job gives us some powerful pithy lessons in sound bites. Job is caught between God and the devil (aren't we all?) God is for him; Satan is against Him. Job's integrity is at stake. Not much has changed--it's still that way.

1) Things are not always what they seem. They can change in the twinkling of an eye (and probably will!) So be prepared to deal with it. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord, to quote our protagonist. Job l:20b

2) Those nearest and dearest may be the sharpest critics and give the least helpful advice. For instance, Job's wife said, "Curse God and die." And his three friends, or "miserable comforters", as he called them, said, "You brought it all on yourself." Not true, and certainly not helpful. So it is always more appropriate to look into your own heart of faith and consult God for help in a dilemma--which is exactly what Job did. "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him," was the only answer that made any sense, and even in his misery, Job himself came up with it.

3) But finally poor old Job sitting out in the sand scraping his sores, nothing left of family, land, stock: earthly possessions all gone, decided it was time to question God about the fairness of it all. And we are indebted to Job because he asked the sassy qustions to which we would all like answers, and he took, like a man, God's powerful putdowns that we would all deserve if we had asked them. Lesson learned by Job, and hopefully by us: God is God, and we are not.

4) And the story of Job ends by emphatically illustrating that the end is better than the beginning and the in-between. His sustained faith was rewarded by having all of his earthly possessions replaced--and a wonderfully pure understanding of where he stood with God. "I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth. And after my skin is destroyed, this I know that in my flesh I shall see God whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another! How my heart yearns within me!" Job 19:27-29

5) The contest between God and Satan for Job's integrity was over. God won--and so did Job. As long as Job's faith held, there never was any contest. And that's still true today. Along the way, there may be some deep valleys and buckets of tears, but we have no problem if our faith in God is deep and true. The devil doesn't have a whisper of a chance. Our victory is a given, and by God's grace we win.

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