Re: [Alex Kirk means Nurtures the Church] Job 2.1-3.10, John 1.19-34 - Lectionary...

 

Today's readings are Job 2.1-3.10 and John 1.19-34.

Why does Job serve God?  Would he continue to serve God if not only his wealth but also is health were removed from him?  Satan, the opponent and deceiver, would like to demonstrate that in fact people serve God only because of the earthly blessings they receive.  What if God allows Satan to bring physical harm to Job?  God's response is that Satan may bring harm to Job but must not take his life.  We will see later that God is not done with Job.  If Satan simply kills Job all it proves is that Satan is able to kill Job.  If Satan brings suffering on Job we are able to see what Job values.

Under Satan's pressure, Job's body is disfigured.  He is in pain.  He is unfit to be around other people.  His wife suggests he would be better off dead as an unbeliever.  His friends don't even recognize him when they see him.  Yet Job does not curse God and die.  He curses the day that brought him into this fallen world.  And he does that rightly.  Indeed this world is full of trials and pain.  It is cursed for the sake of Adam's sin.  All the descendants of Adam reap the fruit of that curse.  In a very real way the day we are brought into this world is the start of our days of evil.  Of course, it is also the start of our days in the blessing of life, ultimately given, sustained, and coming to its completion in Christ.

How do we deal with suffering?  Do we decide that God must not be blessing us?  Do we say we are fine "as long as health remains"?  What then?  Is it then the time to turn our back on our Lord?  When we realize the frailty of humanity on earth, do we decide that we are too good for that?  Do we thus exalt ourselves above our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who took on human flesh, lived among us, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried?  Let it never be!  Whatever our earthly circumstances might be, they say nothing conclusive about God's work in our lives.  We do not know the whole story.  We are under the protection of our Lord while we have this life.  By faith we are heirs of all the promises of God in the life to come.  This temporal suffering is nothing compared to the glory to be revealed.  Let us look to our heavenly home rather than our earthly home.  Like Job, let us recognize the curse of sin and at the same time recognize the blessing of the God who ever lives.