“I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted.”
– Job 42:2
Hi James and Ellen,
How is God preparing you to live your lives for His sake? What is Satan trying to do to keep you from living your lives for God’s sake? Why do you want to live your lives for God’s sake? Would you like to be a Job? Job was purportedly to be in his day the ‘greatest’ dude in the east. Job owned 7000 sheep, 3000 camels, 500 yokes of oxen, 500 donkeys and a lot of servants. Job had extensive land holdings. Job was married and had ten kids. Job was in excellent health. Job was a totally honorable guy. Job talked with God as a dad would talk with his kid. Because Job was blameless, upright, abhorred iniquity and out-and-out feared God, God – as God the Father, was able to allow Job to be a prime target for Satan’s emotional, physical and spiritual attacks. God – as God the Father, gave Satan permission to use whatever means – up to actually causing Job to die, to wreck the Father/son relationship that He had with Job. Satan took full advantage of the okay that God – as God the Father, gave him to do whatever to Job by having a band of Sabean raiders and a gang of Chaldean thieves kill a number of the servants that Job owned, steal Job’s camels, oxen and donkeys, by sending fire from heaven to kill more servants that Job owned and to burn Job’s sheep, by having a mighty wind blow down Job’s oldest kid’s house – where all of his kids were partying, killing all of Job’s kids and almost all of the servants that Job owned who were with his kids and by turning Job’s body into a bloody, scurvy mess of sores. Your grandpa thinks that the cruelest ploy that Satan used to try to ‘break’ Job from the personal, intimate relationship that he had with God was to have four very insensitive guys – Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar and Elihu, – who thought of themselves as benevolent guys, show up in Job’s crashed world to act as if they were good friends of Job while at the same time trying to tell Job from their own limited life contexts how God was negatively perceiving him and how he really needed to change in order to please God. Losing everything that you have is not be a fun thing to experience; losing a family member is something really sad but not to have one loyal confidant is a whole ‘nother thing. God – as God the Father, knew that no matter what, Job would never deny Him.
Job 42 wraps up Job’s winning effort against all odds. Job won against Satan’s attack arrows because he spoke frankly and honestly with God – as God the Father, instead of spending all his time trying to analyze and explain who God – as God the Father, is and why God – as God the Father, does what He does – which is exactly what Job’s four so-proclaimed friends always did when they presented their arguments to Job. In the last chat that Job had with God – as God the Father, Job tells God – as God the Father, in verse 2, ““I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted.” Job goes on to tell God – as God the Father, that he despises himself for allowing a speck of doubt question his ongoing relationship with Him. God – as God the Father, accepts Job repentant heart by asking Job to prayerfully intercede for three of the guys who had decided that God – as God the Father, had very clearly mandated them to say beautiful and often perceived correct creedal statements to Job – to get him to see that he had real issues, but who had never experienced themselves the living knowledge of God – as God the Father, who they claimed to be speaking for to Job. These three guys who communicated that they honestly believed that they were always speaking to Job for God – as God the Father, never once spoke to or with God – as God the Father. These three guys arrogantly claimed to have divine knowledge and direction which they did not begin to have and know.
Job’s abject suffering took place as a real life example of a cosmic contest that is always taking place between the Accuser – Satan, and God – as God the Father. God – as God the Father, never permits emotional, physical and spiritual life crises to take place without a reason – that reason being to temper and strengthen the ongoing faith that a guy, gals and kid has in Him. There is never a need to know why God – as God the Father, tolerates a Satan driven extremely difficult life challenge to try to take over a season of life. Job’s perseverance against Satan’s brutal attacks was rewarded by God – as God the Father, with an even more blessed life than what Job had before Satan’s vicious attacks began. Job ended up with twice as many sheep, camels, yokes of oxen and donkeys than what he had had. Job would again have ten kids. Job’s three daughters were considered the most beautiful daughters in the region. Job would live a full life. Do you know of a guy or gal who has been a Job? About this time 16 years ago, your grandpaa was Canada’s South America Mission’s representative at Vancouver, British Columbia’s annual Missions Fest. The plenary speaker for that year’s Missions Fest was Joni Eareckson Tada. Joni – when she was a young gal, dove into an empty swimming pool – resulting in her suffering a severe spinal injury leaving her a quadriplegic. Because Joni accepted her awful accident as how God would use her for His glory, Joni’s life has been an incredible witness for God. Your grandmaa has been reading out of a devotional book that Joni wrote. Because Joni cannot use her hands, Joni uses her mouth to draw or paint beautiful pictures. Joni has spoken to thousands and thousands of guys, gals and kids about the love that she really knows that God has for her. Being a quadriplegic was not a choice that Joni made but . . . would you want to go through what Job and Joni went and have gone through to better know God?
Job 42 (1054)