Monday, July 25, 2022

            Job is a fascinating book to read.  It tells the story of a man who had almost anything, lost practically everything and then regained even more after his time of testing came to an end. Along the way through the book and life of Job, we encounter and discover some powerful lessons about God.  For example, we read, “Dominion and awe belong to God; He establishes order in the heights of heaven” (Job 25:2).  God is majestic and in control.  His throne in heaven is firmly anchored in His governance of the creation.  God is in control—forever, fully and faithfully.  When our lives may be spinning and swirling, we can take comfort in knowing that God reigns.
            In Job 28:28, we read that “the fear of the Lord is wisdom.”  This message reflects what we read repeatedly in Proverbs.  To know God, to reverence God, to walk with God and to humble ourselves before God is where wisdom begins.  If we wish to enjoy lives of wisdom and discernment, we have to make room for the Lord in our lives.  We do not add God to all the other busyness and clutter we might have gathered in our lives.  Rather, we clear space for the Lord and make Him the center of our existence and who we are.
            The eternal nature of God is revealed in Job 36:26. We read, “How great is God—beyond our understanding!  The number of His years is past finding out.”  God is.  He simply is.  The Bible makes no attempt to defend or to define the existence of God in the opening pages of Scripture.  Genesis simply states, “in the beginning God.”  Job encountered the LORD God as one who is.  The human mind can neither completely define nor completely comprehend God.  We accept His existence by faith and trust.  Any “god” that we can completely understand or describe or define is not God.  Such a god is the creation of human minds and human hands.  Job draws us to the reality of the God who is.  Remember the way God revealed His Name and character to Moses—the great I AM.  Not “could be” but “I AM.”
            In Job 38, God speaks and responds to the affairs of Job and his friends in the previous chapters.  The Lord answered Job in this way, “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand” (Job 38:4).  We are reminded of just how small we are and how glorious and great God surely is.  The Lord’s words to Job can humble us every bit as much as they likely humbled Job and his friends.  We can often find the Lord’s majesty and power on display in the creation itself.  Consider these words from God, “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail, which I reserve for times of trouble, for days of war and battle? What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed, or the place where the east winds are scattered over the earth?” (Job 38:22-24).  There is enough evidence of God in the creation for us to conclude that He is real and alive today.
            Near the end of Job, he learns a crucial lesson that carries weight and purpose for us even today.  “I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted” (Job 42:2).  God wins.  God always wins.  His purposes and plans prevail.  We can be confident that God will do what He says and carry out His sovereign will.  If we think the world is going crazy or that nothing makes sense, we come back to the reality that God cannot be thwarted, stopped or halted.  He will prevail.  He will endure.  His plans will reach their fruition and conclusion.  We can trust God and place our highest hopes in Him.  Job’s life was an adventurous one but, in the end, he came to know God in some deeper and more enduring ways.  His faith was unshakeable.  Take time to read Job’s forty-two chapters and prepare to meet God in possibly some new ways but certainly in ways that build and edify your faith.  Remember you can always share our worship at youtube.com/FirstBaptistKannapolis.  Have a great Monday!