For Christian Sisters

An Intercessor is needed

26 July 2020 AnneT Blog, Job An ordered list of links for each blog series is on the Archive page. (0)

Job Sees The Light - Tenth in a series

Hover over the Scripture references to read the verses under discussion

Job 9:1-3 NIV Here, Job is not acknowledging that the righteousness of man is as filthy rags to a Holy God. Rather, he is saying that no matter how good a person is or strives to be, he has no standing before God.

God seems oblivious to man’s efforts to please and serve him. It is impossible to communicate or to connect with him. This is what Satan wants us to believe.

Job 9:4-12 NIV God is marvelous and inscrutable. So wonderful, so distant and unapproachable.

Job 9:13-15 NIV Job is thinking of creatures so much more powerful than himself who could not stand before God. Rahab, a legendary sea monster whose name means “storm” or “arrogance,” was destroyed by God, and her cronies then bowed in terrified submission. He seems to feel that if God easily contends with monsters, how then can a mere human dispute with him? One could only plead for mercy, not because he is guilty but because he is at such a disadvantage.

This is illogical. Simply because those whose aim is to defeat God are crushed by him, it does not follow that the righteous servant who would ask God for answers will be banished. For these, the Lord has promised, Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear. (Isa 65:24)

Job 9:16-18 NIV Job is angry with God, and no wonder! Look at his property; dead children– dead servants – dead and stolen animals— bitter wife. Look at Him! Diseased skin; surrounded by superior-acting friends.

He believes God hates him and is sick with apprehension because his rightful expectations – yes, rightful – have been disappointed and even mocked. The righteous person has the expectation of God's blessings. True, as God's servant, he has no rights; nevertheless, as a servant, he ought to be able to count on the Master's provision of care. This is not demanding one’s own way; it is a logical expectation, and it is not presumptuous.

When the Lord withholds the support or protection we expected, does it mean he has turned against us? We are led to question.

Job 9:19-22 NIV Analyzing Job's feelings of despair and depression, we see he has concluded that God is not just. Everything black and white has turned to gray. How can one serve a God who makes no distinctions between right and wrong? Why do right? No reason. Why live? No reason. If there is no reward for righteousness, why try?

Job 9:23-31 NIV Job continues on in his perplexity and discouragement. He reflects on the sickening weightlessness of his life. Time is passing. But without his servants to oversee and without his family, there is nothing to focus on. There is only a feeling of seasickness and emptiness. In this predicament, he turns again to address God directly, expressing his deepest inner feelings (Job 9:28). Then he has a divine insight!

Job 9:23-31 NIV In his agony, he longs for an arbitrator. An intercessor. Someone to shield him from God’s wrath. Job is seeking Jesus, but millennia would pass before Jesus Christ would come in the flesh.

Despite the huge difference between then and now, God nevertheless wanted more from Job than obedience to known laws. He wanted his true, heartfelt worship, as we will see.

If God had the right to seek true worshippers before Calvary, how much more so now, since giving his only begotten son?

If we would worship the Giver

20 July 2020 AnneT Blog, Job An ordered list of links for each blog series is on the Archive page. (0)

Job Sees The Light - Ninth in a series

Hover over the Scripture references to read the verses under discussion

Bildad the Shuhite lives up to the meaning of his name, Son of Contention, in Chapter 8. He is offended by Job’s cries to God (previous chapter). It is certainly obvious that Job has offended God colossally! He will correct him and provide needed guidance for “next steps”:

Job 8:1-4 NIV Stop! What could be more contentious and certain to wound and provoke controversy than to suggest that God intentionally killed Job's children for their sin?

Job 8:5-7 NIV Bildad’s perception of Job's situation and his remedy are like Eliphaz’s — confession and good behavior are the keys to his restoration. Yet, we cannot earn our standing before the Lord by our deeds. In Old Testament and New, faith is what makes man acceptable in his sight. (Rom 4:1-25; 5:1-2) Works then complement our faith.

What about the idea that God will rouse himself on behalf of the pure and upright in an instant? God will certainly come to the defense of his righteous ones, but not necessarily on a timetable that humans can comprehend. It is presumptuous to believe that God will rescue us from trials in an amount of time that seems logical and just to us.

Job 8:8-10 NIV Asking former generations is a wonderful idea. Job is not averse to learning from the past; he is simply blind to such help at the present. His situation is indeed unique.

Job 8:11-15 NIV Every believer accepts that the ungodly will eventually come to ruin, but not all are able to see that a ruined man may be very godly, not one who has been rejected by God.

Job 8:16-19 NIV The contentious Bildad, or Satan through him, here accuses Job of deceiving himself that he had hold of God when in fact he was drawing strength from cold and lifeless sources. For shame, Job! The godless prepare their own demise by grasping and holding on to what cannot save. Consequently, they will be plucked up, disowned by their former home, and replaced by better people.

Satan wants believers to question their faith and relationship with God. He takes advantage of us during times of hardship by causing us to question whether we ever had faith. “You never had roots! God never knew you!.”

The believer must firmly resist such attacks.

Job 8:20-22 NIV To Bildad, everything is black or white. He has judged Job to be an evildoer and the evidence of that is the destruction of his possessions, land and family. Obviously, God would not do this to a good person. But in the end, we discover that all those tragedies were merely instrumental in divesting Job of self-approval. If we would worship the Giver, at times the gifts must be removed.

Work out your salvation

13 July 2020 AnneT Blog, Job An ordered list of links for each blog series is on the Archive page. (0)

Job Sees The Light - Eighth in a series

Hover over the Scripture references to read the verses under discussion

Job 7:1-4 NIV For Job, living is ruling. It is to be in charge. To have choices. To create choices. Not long ago he was the boss; now he feels like a slave, disinherited by God. Each day he sets his mind on the evening for he has no stake in the activities of the day.

Job 7:5-8 NIV The diseases and deformities of the skin are among the cruelest and most aggravating illnesses. They are painful, messy and they ruin one’s looks and distract the attention of others, causing the victim to feel tense and uncertain as he communicates.

As Job reflects on his suffering and pain, his appeal shifts to God. This is his first direct appeal to him.

Job 7:9-12 NIV What are my powers? What is my nature? Am I so incorrigible that I require the most severe level of discipline?

Job 7:13-16 NIV We must distinguish in a trial between and among God's judgments, what we have brought on ourselves, and where Satan has meddled. Had the Lord chosen to speak to Job at this time, perhaps he would have said, “I’m not the one torturing you in your sleep.”

He has said to us who have his full word — Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? (1 Cor 6:2) We normally relate this to judging legal matters, but so much in life is less complex and only requires discernment.

Job 7:17-19 NIV Job has fallen into a state of confusion, and no wonder. He views God as a bully who has cornered his victim and will not let him go. He is like a policeman intent on forcing a confession from a suspect, but the suspect is innocent.

Job 7:20-21 NIV Job has been knocked down into a deep and waterless well. Through his words he is waving to God, crying out for attention and help. He wants to understand God's mind; to discover why God has turned his back on him. He is striving to work out his relationship with the Lord. This we must all do. (Phil 2:12)

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