Job was a blameless and upright man before God; he was blessed with health, wealth, and family. Everything a man could ask for.
In the story of Job, he lost it all very quickly. I guess you could say 'the rug got pulled out from beneath him'.
He lost EVERYTHING.
During his suffering, his wife seems to ridicule him for holding fast to his faith and his friends mocked, rebuked, and accused him...it was terrible! The worst part for many people to come to terms with is God allowed it.
You read that right - God allowed it. Just like we see in many of our own lives or in our loved ones' lives - we suffer. Even through the harshest adversity one could imagine, Job continued to praise God.
Faith like Job. I don't know about you, but that's goals!
There is so much to unpack in the story of Job. Why did God allow Job to be tormented so much to the point of near death?
So many upright people have suffered to the point of losing it all; suffering is a part of life in a fallen world and in a world where our choices have consequences. That's the price of having free will, maybe. Sometimes other people's choices affect us.
So was the story of Job recorded so that we would understand how to suffer and still not sin against God? How to keep our faith amidst suffering? To show us the lengths the enemy will go to lie, kill, and destroy? How strong is our own faith? Can we endure such adversity? We have a cunning and formidable enemy that cannot be underestimated.
Additional Reading: The Whole Armor of God
While all of those points are great studies on their own, my main focus is going to be on Job's friends. They offered up some misguided, harsh advice and wisdom on why Job was suffering so horribly. It's possible they meant well as their wisdom could have been applicable in different situations. However, Job was an upright man! We can't forget that important fact when we are reading the book of Job. Have you ever been in a terrible situation or going through a hardship and someone told you it was due to your lack of faith? Or because you must have sinned? Well, Job had that experience with his friends.
Job's Friends
Job was surrounded by friends who attempted to fill his head with nonsense on why bad things were happening to him. They may have been well intentioned, thinking they were giving godly advice, but oh how wrong they were! You can tell they knew God and and wanted to walk in a way that pleased Him. The biggest problem is they tied "blessings" with their performance.
We don't use our relationship with God to obtain blessings in this life. That's false worship and praise! While there are blessings in obedience, we submit to God because we love Him! A relationship with Him is THE greatest blessing. Expecting riches in this life in exchange for following the Father is surface level!
A person that is following the Father on a deeper, spiritual level understands the riches of this world are equivalent to DUST when you look at the level the Father operates.
It’s important to know 'who said what' and 'why' when you are reading scripture.
For example, if you share a verse from the book of Job, it could just be comments from one of Job’s misguided friends, eek! When you are reading any parts of the bible, it's important we figure out who it was said to and why.
Have we ever mistakenly quoted something said by Job's friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, Zophar, or Elihu? Have we ever criticized a friend without having all the facts? This is what Job's friends did. Bildad even accuses Job of not knowing God! Wow! (Job 18:21)
At one point, Job got so fed up with his friends that he said: "I'm taking my case straight to God Almighty; I've had it with you - I'm going directly to God."
We are fallible people and sometimes when we are trying to figure things out on our own, we mess it up real good. We may hurt our friends instead of helping them and they may do the same to us. Especially when we are trying to figure out why God allows certain things to happen and why we have to go through some difficult things.
Sometimes our ideas about God’s justice are just too simple – and not true to the complexity of the world OR God’s wisdom.
If you have people who are telling you that you are going through something due to lack of faith or because you did something wrong, maybe there's some truth to that. But Job was a godly and upright man. So that is DEFINITELY NOT always the case and someone telling you that during hard times can be devastating if it's simply not true. Sometimes, the Refiner's fire is HOT.
If someone clearly has a heart for God, is upright, and is suffering, sometimes it's best to just be there for them and humbly say, "I don't know why this is happening to you, but I will be here for you and pray for you."
Why do people suffer? What kind of things did Job's misguided friends have to say? Job's friends don't have "terrible" wisdom; however, it was absolutely misdirected at Job, an upright man in the eyes of God.
Introducing Job's friends at 11:36 in this powerful short video. Please take a moment to and listen. See if you can identify yourself or any of your own friends when you hear the descriptions of Job's friends.
In the book of Job, we read how Job cries out to God. Raw and real, Job powerfully cries out to God. God answers Job in Chapter 38.
I pray you take time to read this entire book. The book of Job. The link below was a blessing to me. I paraphrased a few things in my post here that were gems in the Seeking Scripture Job outline.
Click the link below or the photo to read along: https://seekingscripture.com/category/bible-study/job/
Many that read the book of Job ask, "Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people?"
Maybe it'd be better to ask, "How should I respond, react, and live when I or someone I love is experiencing difficult times?"
"Blessed are those that remain steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job and seen the purpose of the Lord. He is compassionate and merciful."
James 5:11
Hold on tight when you are in the Refiner's fire! May you come forth as gold!
God never promised us a life free of troubles. Jesus said: "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I (Jesus) have overcome the world.” John 16:33
Jesus' disciples asked Jesus what sin caused a man to be born blind.
Jesus said:
"It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him." John 9:3
We are troubled on every side, yet NOT distressed;
We are perplexed, but NOT in despair;
We are persecuted, but NOT forsaken;
Cast down, but NOT destroyed;
These verses remind me it's ok to feel! But trust God and lean not on your own understanding.
2 Corinthians 4:8-18, Proverbs 3:5
In closing:
I have shared this Job message a few times on social media, but I wanted to put it here on my site so it's tucked away and can be easily shared.
This message could save your life, child of God! The world is full of sickness, suffering, death, bad news, and evil. I share about a lot of it, too, but only because it helped me to understand why I don't put my faith and trust in man or the fleeting things of this world.
To be able to look evil in the face, call it out, and remain in the faith only comes from steadfast faith in the Way, the Truth, and the Life. The Alpha and the Omega. Our health, wealth, and prosperity can disappear in a moment. We must have enduring faith like Job. I pray you take time to read, click around on the links, and watch the video.
This world, the things of it, and this flesh will pass away. Your soul has an eternal destiny.
This calls for the endurance of the saints, who keep God’s commands and their faith in Jesus (Revelation 14:12).
Ignoring the mockers, scoffers, and people who attempt to lead you out of faith because bad things happen.
In good times, we praise God. In dark times, we praise God. Nothing - absolutely nothing can take away our praise. Our God paid the price for our sin debt. That's worthy of praise!
We can have all the wisdom in the world, but without the fear of the Lord - it's worthless. The fear of the Lord IS wisdom (Job 28:28). Even King Solomon, sitting on his ivory throne with riches we could never wrap our minds around, knew that it was striving after the wind if it was apart from God (Ecclesiastes 2).
May His grace be your peace! God bless you.
See comment section below for additional notes I may add.