Learning From Our Trials (II)

Last week we looked at how Joseph dealt with his trials, we first saw how he was sold into slavery due to the jealousy of his brothers. Then, he was thrown into prison for a crime that he did not commit and was forgotten about for two years. However, the one thing that we saw was that throughout all of his trials, God never left Joseph. When sold into slavery he prospered and was in charge of all of his master’s house, when in prison he prospered again and placed in charge of the other prisoners. All of this was done so that Joseph would be in Egypt when Pharaoh had a dream about a coming famine, God allowed Joseph again to prosper and create a plan that saved the lives of many. We learned that sometimes what others mean for evil, God brings about for good. There is another man in the Old Testament who faced a multitude of trials, and while we will not go over every detail of his story, as we look into the reason for why we must face trials he needs to be mentioned.

Job faced perhaps the most trials throughout the Bible. He was a man who was quite well off at the beginning of the book, but this only lasted a short time. His ox and donkeys were killed (Job 1:15), his sheep were burned (Job 1:16), and his camels were killed as well as the servants who tended them (Job 1:17). You would think that this was the end to his trials, a once prosperous man had lost everything that could earn him money; but this was not the case. No sooner had the messengers finished telling Job the state of his affairs when another came to tell him that ““Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother's house, 19 and behold, a great wind came across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead, and I alone have escaped to tell you.”” Job 1:18b-19.

Again you would think this would be the end of it, after all what more could this Godly man lose? Unfortunately, Job was to go through even more trials. In Chapter 2 we find that Job is stricken with boils from the top of his head all the way down to his feet (Job 2:7). To add insult to injury not only did his wife tell him to curse God, but the majority of the book of Job is a discussion between himself and his three closest friends about what Job must have done to deserve this.

So why did all of this happen to Job? A man who is described as “blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil.” Job 1:1b. God had surely blessed him with great wealth since He had given Job “2 Seven sons and three daughters were born to him. 3 His possessions were seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred female donkeys, and very many servants; and that man was the greatest of all the men of the east.” Job 1:2-3 Why would God take all that He had given away?

If you believe like Eliphaz, you would say that Job must have done something to displease God for surely the innocent do not suffer. Eliphraz states to Job that, ““Remember: who that was innocent ever perished? Or where were the upright cut off? 8 As I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same.” Job  4:7-8. To put it simply, Eliphraz believed that Job had gained all of his possession through ill-gotten gains. He must have been cheating others to gain his riches and God was simply removing what Eliphraz did not believe belonged to Job. His advice to Job was to go before God and plead his case, then all that belonged to Job would be returned.

Bildad is the second of Job’s friends to chime in on the reasoning for his suffering. He states that, “Behold, God will not reject a person of integrity, Nor will He help evildoers.” Job 8:20. If you are like Bildad, you would believe that the trouble came to Job’s sons and daughters because they had sinned against God and therefore, “He turned them over to the power of their wrongdoing.” Job 8:4b. Those with the mindset of Bildad believe that bad things happen to people who do not place their trust in God, if they continually reject God then He will turn them over to their wrongdoing. The way to fix this is to turn to God because “Does God pervert justice? Or does the Almighty pervert the right?” Job 8:3 Bildad believed that Job’s children got what they deserved because they were involved in acts that went against God, they had forgotten God and therefore perished. “So are the paths of all who forget God; And the hope of the godless will perish,” Job 8:13

The third friend is Zophar who argues that God “For He knows false people, And He sees injustice without investigating.” Zophar states that God would not be punishing Job if he had not committed some iniquity. Zophar states that if Job would simply confess to God, “Your life would be brighter than noonday; Darkness would be like the morning. 18 Then you would trust, because there is hope; And you would look around and rest securely.” Job 11:17-18

Each of his three friends were convinced that God was angry with Job and this was the reason for him to suffer so. But is this an answer that can be seen Biblically? It is true that God will chastise us when we drift from Him, but if Job was truly righteous as we saw at the beginning of the book then could God be chastising him? We find the reasoning behind all of Job’s troubles back at the beginning of the book.

“6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” 8 And the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” 9 Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? 10 Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11 But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” 12 And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.” Job 1:6-12

God recognized that Job was righteous, he was not how his friends were describing him at all. Nevertheless, God allowed Satan to take away his sheep, camels, oxen, donkeys, and the servants that cared for them. So now we see what caused the loss of his possessions, but what about Job’s children?

“Again, there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord. 2 The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.” 3 The Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man fearing God and turning away from evil. And he still holds firm to his integrity, although you incited Me against him to ruin him without cause.” 4 Satan answered the Lord and said, “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has, he will give for his life. 5 However, reach out with Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh; he will curse You to Your face!” 6 So the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your power, only spare his life.”” Job 2:1-6

Now we have the reasoning for why Job faced all of these calamities. It was not due to anything that he had done against God, but was because he was a righteous man. The truth of the matter is that we sometimes face trials not because of any sin that we have committed, but to create an example for others. Throughout all of his friends arguments, Job did not curse God. He may have wished to die so that he could escape the pain, ““Oh, that my request might come to pass, And that God would grant my hope! 9 Oh, that God would decide to crush me, That He would let loose His hand and cut me off! 10 But it is still my comfort, And I rejoice in unsparing pain, That I have not denied the words of the Holy One.” Job 6:8-10 but Job never rejected God. From Job we can see that we may face trials simply because we are walking righteously. This could either to be to separate those who are only walking in such a way to appear righteous, or to set an example for those around us. I would also point out that you might be going through a struggle right now that you will never know why you are having to go through it. Job was never told why he went through those terrible events, we might never know why either. However, there could be someone later on who reads your story and is encouraged to follow the Lord because of it. Imagine, your story could be told to those living in the seven years of the Tribulation as an encouragement to keep to the faith. It is not our place to always know, but we need to take advantage in every opportunity to bring the glory back to Jesus Christ.

Job’s story does not end with sadness and loss, the last chapter of Job ends with a prayer, ““I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.” Job 42:2 by recognizing that God has a purpose in all that is done and all things come through Him, Job was rewarded.  “12 The Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; and he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand female donkeys. 13 He also had seven sons and three daughters.” Job 42:12-13. We see that God blessed Job with greater than what he had before.

Seek the truth and encourage one another,

Alex