You will undoubtedly notice that our blog said good-bye to Genesis and 'ello to Job. I will let my dear friend explain that to our readers.
We meet Job, a great guy who is a God fearing dad. Satan tells God that the reason Job is so devout and good and thankful, is because he has everything he could want. Who doesn't thank God when they feel like they have been blessed, right?
God says to Satan that he is incorrect. Job would 
give thanks and love no matter what happens. Like the two old jackasses in Trading Places, they make a sort of bet.
give thanks and love no matter what happens. Like the two old jackasses in Trading Places, they make a sort of bet."Lets throw it ALL at Job and see what happens". It's sort of a nature, nurture argument, or the chicken and the egg argument.
Is it BECAUSE he loves God that he is blessed; or is it BECAUSE he is blessed that he loves God.
And so his children are killed, his animals are killed.
His friend comes to visit him and I think, asks him what he did to deserve such bad gris-gris.
And so he explains that he's done nothing. He says that God gives to us and He takes away from us.
Satan then hits him with boils all over his body and he wife says something like "enough is enough for goodness sake!! Curse God so you can die and all this nonsense can end"
But not Job....he won't do it......
and then...........
2 comments:
First, the explanation of why we have diverted to Job. I wanted to read the Bible in chronological order w/ Crystal cause I thought it would be easier. Cause anyone who's read the Bible all the way through knows it kind of jumps around alot, esp. in the Old Testament. Now, we went a little farther in Gen. before I caught myself. We should have stopped after chapter 8. But I'm sure we'll be ok, and now on with the usual..
This book is great because it really answers the question (for the most part) of why bad things happen to good people and why good things happen to bad people. Job's difficulties notwithstanding actually. God is using them, and subsequently Jobs perceptions of them to explain this, they are NOT the same as the cause of Job's. Remember what I said earlier about the error of thinking that because everything is going great with someone, that they must be doing ok as far as God is concerned. This book demonstrates that well. Job's friends are convinced that Job is not righteous and must have done something wrong, and so is receiving his just reward. They even carry this thinking farther by declaring that in general bad things happen to bad people, and good things happen to good people. Of course, we know this is not true; and the dangers of thinking that way. They also rebuke Job for talking directly or bodly to and before God. Something we've already learned in Genesis is not discouraged by God. And lastly, there's some forshadowing....Job eludes to how great it'd be if only there were a mediator between God and man. Someone who was equally blameless, godly, etc. as God to plead our case(s) for us to God. He notes that no man could do it, no angel, there's no one...seemingly. Of course later that person becomes Jesus Christ, the Angel of the Lord, God incarnate. I actually never caught that before today, and found it very interesting. We'll get into Jesus' mediation on our behalf before God and Satan more, later.
Even though it's extremely difficult in bad times, we need to praise and thank God in good times and bad. He is not prejudicial. Stay faithful and He will always deliver you. Just remember He may not deliver you in the way that you want, realize, or even knew you needed. That's where trust comes in....that whatever He is allowing to happen has a purpose, if not for you specifically, maybe for someone near to you.
Job a blameless, upright man. Wealthy and successful in every regard...money, property, family, honor, esteem, and health has now been relagated to destruction of all of these. In fact, all that he has left is his ill health (basically just his life holding on by a thread). With all of that, his friends who come to "comfort" him are berrating him with insults and doubt. All he can do is give a weakend response and wish to die.
I am totally guilty of doing this. When I see that someone is having a really bad time I often ssy to myself "I wonder what THEY did to deserve this!" I do it with myself also. If Im having a run of bad luck, I always look back and think "If I had only been nicer to that brat in my class who was having problems". Stuff like that. I guess the reason it works is because we all mess up occationally, therefore there is always some bad behavior we can blame it on.
I can't exactly get into words the right way what I want to say about this and shall have to return to it in a bit.....
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