Day 76: Job's Response

Matthew 25:1-30; Numbers 30-31; Job 1

A lot of these stories from the Bible come down to wisdom.  The young girls and their lamps—those that were wise went with the bridegroom.  The servants who were given money—those that were wise were given more.  The daughter and wife in the Old Testament—if it is unwise, they are not to keep it and the husband’s wisdom assists in knowing what to do.

There are a lot of scriptures that talk about the evil of the women.  However, I think that was definitely a cultural thing in some ways, but it also is not just about the women.  The human condition is sinful and often the people involved in the stories are women since they make up half of the population.  I think it is less about the women and more about the human condition they represent.  In the story of Numbers, Moses gets angry not because they didn’t kill the women, but because they compromised in their mission and didn’t follow God’s commands.  What had caused them to sin they didn’t destroy and so the temptation would be there to sin again.  God wanted them to remove the temptation so that the Israelites would be focused on him.

There is a lot to learn from Job.  First, he cared for his children’s spiritual condition.  He prayed for them and offered sacrifices for them.  Then, the truth of Job’s situation is that God allows bad things to happen, not because he doesn’t love us, but maybe because he believes that trials or testing will make us stronger, show us our own true character, believes in our ability to love and persevere.  What is SO amazing, even in this first chapter, are the messages from the servants and Job’s response.  Satan often works through other people:  Sabeans and Chaldeans attacked.  The reality is, people often become his tool to wreak havoc upon God’s people.  Another thing that is interesting is that one of the servants attributed the destruction to God, when it was really not his hand at work.  The fire from the sky was probably lightning, which is a natural occurrence.  Perhaps Satan pointed a particular lightning bolt Job’s way, but the storms just happen.  Satan is a destroyer—is it him that we can blame for the destruction of tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, and tsunamis?  I don’t know if God has given him that power in this day.  I think in Job’s case he might have.  And finally, there is Job.  Some of the most terrible things in life have happened to him—and yet, he WORSHIPS God.  I doesn’t say that he is happy about the circumstances, or forgets they happen, or passes them off as God ordained and isn’t allow to show sorrow.  He does!  He is a broken man because of it, but in the midst of his pain, he cries out to God, acknowledging just how powerful and mighty the Lord truly is.  He recognizes that the things of this earth, even people, are under the Lord’s awesome power.