It really is not that hard to understand, but it is hard to accept.
If you are talking about the “best I personally can” than that is worthless, but if you are saying: “The best the Holy Spirit can do working through me”, than is there a limit to what He can do?
The book of Job:
Here are some questions to get you thinking:
1. Was Job spiritually more mature at the end of Job’s story than at the beginning?
2. What problem did Job finally show that he needed correction?
3. Would Job have easily acknowledged this problem prior to the disaster, because he would have realized he had a problem?
4. Would God have known of Job’s problem prior to satan’s visit?
5. Did satan manipulate God to get at Job or did God manipulate satan to get satan to do stuff God could not do (hurt innocent people) and bring Job to the point of accepting God’s understanding of his problem?
6. Does this give us an example of the degree to which God will go in order to help us to grow spiritually?
7. Is this an example of the role satan plays indirectly helping good people become even better?
Is God manipulating satan did have satan do what God will not do directly?
8. It is “unfortunate” that some of Jobs children went to be with God in heaven and leave Job and his wife, but how big of a price will God pay to help us (send his only son)?
Look at this at least:
Job, He was the greatest man among all the people of the East.
1. This is the oldest story thought to be recorded, it could be before the time of the flood.
2. First!! Remember our objective: All humans are to develop and grow in Godly type love (agape) of God and other humans.
3. God’s objective is the most selfless, in that He has and will do everything to help human individually develop and grow Godly type love (help us fulfill our objective).
4. In the story of Job, we can see God is in charge, satan can only do what God allows Satan to do.
5. God has power over Satan and could destroy Satan at any time, so Satan has a purpose that forces God to allow Satan to stick around.
6. From the story we see Satan doing the bad stuff to good people and God allowing Satan to do this bad stuff.
7. Bad stuff is never bad for the individual that loves God: Rm8: 28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him. What good can Job get out of this discipline, trial, learning experience?
8. Job would have been praying for himself like he prayed for his kids: Early in the morning he would sacrifice a burnt offering for each of them, thinking, "Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts." This was Job's regular custom. Job’s pray would easily been to ask to love more and grow spiritually.
9. We can not stop, we have to be growing or we will start withering spiritually. Where Job is in his spiritual growth at the beginning seem to be far down the path so further growing could be a challenge and require a new level.
10. Job is fantastic at the beginning of the story, but he is not perfect, he can still do a lot of growing.
11. I think we can agree that Job is personally a better person (spiritually stronger) at the end of the story then at the beginning, so what was Job’s weakness in the beginning that God would know and realize? If we could figure this out we could figure what was needed to help Job. Would a burning bush experience help Job?
12. This is another situation in which God works with an individual personally. God is working with each of us very similarly.
13. We do not know how God worked individually with each of Job’s kids, but He was and they joined God in heaven and would be there when Job got there.
14. It has been my experience people (including myself) really hate to humble ourselves. It is like being baptized, people use every excuse for not being baptized that comes down to being a sign of humility they will not do.
At the end we see a changed Job:
1 Then Job replied to the LORD :
2 "I know that you can do all things;
no plan of yours can be thwarted.
3 You asked, 'Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?'
Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know.
4 "You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.'
5 My ears had heard of you
but now my eyes have seen you.
6 Therefore I despise myself
and repent in dust and ashes."
The fact Job talks of “repenting”, means he realized he sinned, so what was Job’s sin?
Here seems to be the problem: Job 31: 35 (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me! I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me; let my accuser put his indictment in writing. 36 Surely I would wear it on my shoulder, I would put it on like a crown. 37 I would give him an account of my every step; I would present it to him as to a ruler.)—
From this and previous verses Job has lower God to his level like he could argue his case before God and win. Job would not have admitted that deep in his heart early on he saw God as being like some superior human being and not above making any mistakes, so it would take a huge upheaval in Job’s life to get him to realize this weakness in himself.
Job was humbled in the end, but why go through all this would there not be an easier way? If God had spoken directly to Job prior to all this would Job not have listened? I would say, “NO”. Job would have said, I know Lord (when he really didn’t) Job would not have said what he did say in the end and that is what he needed to say. How do you get Job to say what he did without going through what he experienced? If you had asked Job in the beginning, “do you know the Lord”, he would have said, “yes” for he knew the Lord better than anyone else at the time. God does not want you to just be the best, but the best you can be and that is what Job wanted.
Just some thoughts, I really love Job and thank God for this story.
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