Job 1:1-22

I think that it is fitting that Esther and Job stand side by side in our Bibles.  Esther was a story of God’s sovereignty in protecting His people and promoting Esther and Mordecai within the kingdom of Persia.  Job is a story of God’s sovereignty in permitting Job to be plundered of all His possessions and his children to perish.  These are very opposite circumstances but the one thread that they have in common is the sovereignty of God and the responsibility that believers have of glorifying God independently of their circumstances.  We must learn that the Lord is in charge of this universe and He has a purpose in all that He does and allows in our lives.  He may allow great loss and difficulty to fall upon His children because He knows that this will bring the most glory to Him.  We cannot see what He can see and we do not know what He knows so we must trust Him and know that whatever He allows is just, right and is for His glory.

JOB IS BLESSED BY GOD: Job was a very wealthy man who had a charmed life.  His livestock were numerous.  He had a loyal and efficient staff.  He had ten children who were grown, on their own, lived in close proximity to him and one another and loved to spend time together.  He was living the dream of every person on the planet.  He had great prosperity and he was living in peace.  Besides his prosperity and peace, Job was also a pious man.  He loved God, feared God and was fully dedicated to serving God with His life.  He lived a life of worship before the Lord and constantly offered sacrifices to the Lord for his own sins as well as the sins of His family.  He was a wonderful father and husband who not only made abundant provision for the physical well-being of his family, but also was a spiritual leader who was an example of integrity.  Physical and spiritual prosperity are truly blessings from God, but they are not always found together.  Job truly was blessed by God.

JOB IS BOASTED ABOUT BY GOD: I will not pretend to understand the scene that takes place in the throne room of heaven.  Apparently the angels come before the Lord, including Satan, in order to give account before God.  Satan is an accuser and must have constantly been bragging about his numerous exploits on earth.  When Satan comes before God on this day, God takes the opportunity to boast about the character and faithfulness of Job.  Satan scoffs at God and points out that the he believes that Job is only faithful because of the comfort God has given him.  God knows Job’s heart and that his worship in sincere, based on genuine love and not conditional upon blessings.  However, God grants Satan the authority to take all that Job has in order to demonstrate that Job considers God to be worthy of praise independently of the temporal blessings he receives.  I wonder if God is able to boast about me when Satan comes before Him.  Am I faithful to worship God independently of my circumstances?  Does God see true sincerity in my heart, my love and my worship?  

JOB IS BROKEN BEFORE GOD: God authorizes Satan to take everything away from Job accept for his life.  Job’s body is off limits but his possessions and his children are given over to the hand of Satan.  Satan demonstrates that he has come to steal and to kill and in one terrible day all the Job owns is stolen and all of his children are killed.  We would expect Job to question God, be angry with God and accuse God of being unfaithful.  Job does not have any of these responses.  His response is to fall on his face before God and worship.  He does not complain.  He does not question God’s faithfulness or goodness.  He simply acknowledges that all he had came from God and that God had the right to take it away if that was His will.  Job’s attitude and actions are such a challenge to me.  I cannot imagine the pain of losing one child let alone ten on the same day.  I remember how upset I became the last time someone stole something from me.  We all must learn that the proper response in any and every circumstance is worship!