where is god when i hurt? an overview of job

8/14/2019 Where is God when I hurt? An overview of Job

1/10

Overview of JobThe first chapter deals with Gods discussion withSatan, and what happens to Job as a result.The second chapter deals with the physical afflictionvisited on Job.

Affliction - 2:7 So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and afflicted Job with painful sores from thesoles of his feet to the top of his head. 8 Then Job took

a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it ashe sat among the ashes.

Note: Satan is not a name in this story, it is a title,which means accuser . The Character in this story ismore like a spy who goes out and checks on people tosee if they are fermenting revolt or evil toward theking. His job was to report it to the proper authorities.


2/10

Jobs suffering was real

But Job is not a patient sufferer. He is defiant in hisopposition to God.

So Job is concerned about suffering and evil in theworld. Jobs friends address WHY his suffering, and Jobis concerned with the HOW of responding to the crisiswe are in. What follows are some conclusions andobservations from the book, with reference toscripture.

A sense of isolation during a severe trial can be

overwhelming . We want to make sure that God knowsbecause when He finds out, surely Hell do somethingabout it! In Job we are given a behind-the-scenes lookat events of which Job was completely unaware. God,however, was very much aware of Job. In fact, GodHimself called Satans attention to Job. Christ remindedHis disciples that God, who even takes detailed note of the sparrows, is much more deeply interested in theaffairs of His own children. The Father is aware of everything about us down to the smallest detail. Eventhe hairs of our head are numbered.

When we are struck with personal tragedy orpersecution, we can be sure that God knows. This isvitally important to keep in mind to counteract thesense of isolation and loneliness that will often besetus at such times. No one understands what Im going


3/10

through, we think. But Jesus Christ does! We have afaithful High Priest who was tested in all ways like usand is therefore able to empathize and give us theneeded help (Hebrews 4:1516).Humanly, we like everything to be neat . We want theworld and events to make sense. But when we try togive an explanation for everything, we sometimes missthe point.This is the way it was for Jobs friends.The first of Jobs friends to speak was Eliphaz. Hedeclared, Remember now, whoever perished beinginnocent? Or where were the upright ever cut off?Even as I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sowtrouble reap the same (4:78). Eliphaz, Bildad andZophar, Jobs three friends, were all sure that Job musthave had some dirty secret at the root of his newfoundtroubles. They knew there had to be a reason. So,they badgered poor Job to confess this suspectedsecret sin.

Job knew there was no hidden scandal in his lifecausing his trials. He was defensive in the face of hisaccusers, but he also wondered Why? One of thedifficult things for us to accept is that many of thesufferings we go through simply cannot be neatlycategorized. The why is often elusive. Bad things do notonly happen to bad people. Job recognized that manytimes the wicked live to reach old age and even appearto prosper (21:713).Many times events demonstrate that I am completelyincapable of grasping the big picture. Qoheleth says

that God put eternity on our hearts. I have the abilityto be intrigued by the eternity written on my heart, butI certainly dont have the ability to comprehend it. Thatis often why we dont understand why we are in thissituation. We dont have the full perspective.Regardless, often times suffering and the presence of evil makes no sense, and there is no explanation.How do we keep a proper focus on the questions? It isnot WHY I am suffering, but my response or focuswhile I suffer or experience evil; it is HOW I respond.What is my response?

33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness,and all these things will be given to you as well.


4/10

There is much evil in the world...

Life can often seem unfair . There are those who makeno pretense of serving God and yet they seem to bedoing well. There are others who are genuinely trying,but they are experiencing many difficulties andsetbacks.

Job noticed that there were wicked men whosehouses are safe from fear, neither is the rod of Godupon them. Their bull breeds without failure; their cowcalves without miscarriage (21:910). Yet he realizedthat was not the end of the story.Even though it may seem that life is not fair, God is aGod of justice.Ultimately, it is in the resurrection that God will rewardthe righteous and punish the wicked. However, thereare many times when even in this life events can makea sudden shift. The conclusion of the book of Jobreveals, Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job

more than his beginning (42:12). In the long run, thereare blessings for obedienceentrance intothe Kingdom of God is the greatest of all blessingsand curses for disobedience(discuss C. S. Lewis comments on fairness from MereChristianity .Sometimes life seems unfair because it doesnt fit ourdefinition of fairness)

Job was in despair . His whole life had been turnedupside down. He had lost his wealth and his loved onesin a series of sudden calamities. Now his health wasgone too. Why? Job was deeply frustrated because hecould not make sense out of his trials. Yet in the depthsof perplexity and despair he made one of the mostprofound declarations of faith recorded in the Bible:

Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him (13:15).

In Job 19 we read the words of anguish that pouredfrom Jobs lips. ...God has overthrown and put me inthe wrong, and has closed His net about me.... He haswalled up my way, so that I cannot pass, and He has setdarkness upon my paths.... My kinsfolk have failed me,and my familiar friends have forgotten me.... I amrepulsive to my wife and loathsome to the children of my own mother (vv. 6, 8, 14, 17 Amplified Bible).

Yet even at this low point of anguish andbewilderment, Job declares his heartfelt trust in God.For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall standat last on the earth.... I shall see God, whom I shall seefor myself (vv. 2527).

Job held out to the hope of a resurrection. If a mandie, shall he live again? Job asked. He went on torecord the answer: If someone dies, will they liveagain? All the days of my hard service I will wait for my


5/10

renewal to come (14:14 TNIV). Job knew that Godwould call and that he would answer and come forthfrom the grave, because God would have a desire tothe work of His hands (v. 15).

It is relatively easy to trust God when things aregoing the way we like them. When the world around usmakes sense it is fairly easy to believe God is in charge.But what about when things turn upside down andinside out? It is in the midst of such perplexity andanguish that faith in God is most needed.

One of the things Satan never understood about Jobwas his motive. Satan thought Job only served Godbecause it was to his advantage here and now. He wasconvinced that if God removed blessings andprotection, Job would curse and revile Him. But thatwas not true. Job loved God and served Him out of sincere devotion. He trusted God even when he wasfeeling abandoned. This lesson of steadfast trust is one

of the most important aspects of character we can gainfrom any trial.Job was in such deep despair, this was the only thingthat he could cling to; it was based on his ultimate trustin the love of God.

Job 14:14 If someone dies, will they live again? All thedays of my hard service I will wait for my renewal tocome.


6/10

Everything that we face has the potential to be a testor a temptation. Whether it is a test or temptation isbased on how we respond to it. If it leads us to sin,then it becomes a temptation. If it leads to building of character and our faith in Christ, then it is a test. Thelanguage is too loose in the Greek to assign onemeaning or another to whether something is atest/trial or temptation. The context determines howwe translate the words into English.

However, even though we may not see WHY we aregoing through this, we should still see that there is apositive aspect or side to what is happening to us,which relates to our RESPONSE.

Another purpose of trials and testing.

But it still comes down to this, sometimes life doesntmake sense, and not everything is about God testing usto see how we respond to him and our faith.

In order to answer this question, we need to look at afew points:What is your idea of God? John Locke and others wrote:If a perfectly good god exists, then evil does not.There is evil in the world.Therefore, a perfectly good god does not exist.Part of the problem with the debate over God andsuffering is the fact that the god of the philosophersdoes not look anything like the God of the bible.

1. Descartes, Kant, Diderot, and many others tryto provide a theodicy of God on philosophicalgrounds alone. It is normal to define God onthese 16 th and 17 th century terms. However,the concept or picture of God that they use in


7/10

not based on the covenant God that is servedin a worshipping congregation.

2. What is God like? What picture can we see?The answer is seen in what happens when achild falls and hurts themselves, or scrapes aknee or elbow. They dont want longexplanations, they only want mom or dad tomake it better

Who is the God to whom you are responding? WhatGod are you relating to?

The scary part is that sometimes this means that wewill have to walk by faith alone, without an idea of where God is, or what is going on.

What were responses of Daniel, Jesus, Paul?In light of Gods questions in Job 38ff, if the world isbigger than we can imagine, if life has no guarantees,how do we live our lives? See Job 28This is how we work out Job 28:28 - And he said to the

human race, 'The fear of the Lordthat is wisdom, andto shun evil is understanding.'

What was Jesus cry from the Cross? My God, myGod, why have you forsaken me? Yet after this, howdoes Jesus respond? into your hands I commend myspirit.

Is there Justice in the world. As we said earlier,everyone seems to have a sense of fairness, I think thatis wired into us by the creator. But in order to have

justice in the world, we have to pass laws asgovernments and institutions, or we try to define by

culture and practice what life in the world should belike. But there are no guarantees, and no promises.

When life falls apart, and our laws dont work, or lifedoesnt match up to how we think the world works, weblame God for it.


8/10

Not all evil is a result of our choices or actions.There is a difference between natural catastrophes

and events, and moral evil, spiritual evil.Sometimes natural events highlight evil in the world,

such as the Haiti earthquake, etc.Sometimes bad things just happen. They happen to

both bad people and good, unjust and just.

Five times in Job 3 he asks the question whyconcerning what has happened to him. That is seekingunderstanding, which is wisdom.

His three friends spend the next 25 chapters

philosophizing and conjecturing on why Job wassuffering, but it was all based on their observations andopinions about how life works.

The key comes in Chapter 28:The key is found in the first verse: There is ...There is a place where all the things listed in vs1-11 canbe found or discovered.

There is much that is evidence and the result of human wisdom, science, and technology.V12 and following points out that true wisdom is notthe product of human inquiry and discovery.

But v28 makes the statement 'The fear of theLordthat IS wisdom, and to shun evil isunderstanding.

Wisdom is found only in a relationship with God. ...toshun evil is the product of an ongoing, closerelationship with God, because we can take Godswisdom and put it to work in our lives. It is not apassive lifestyle. It is marked by an active engagementwith God.

A relationship with God through Jesus Christ is theway to work through the issues of Suffering and Evil.

If you read Job 28, then read job 38ff, the ending of Jobbegins to make sense.


9/10

Remember the verse earlier about God putting eternityon our hearts? Here is another take. All of this is stuff that happens TO us, it is external . What scriptureteaches is that it is the inside that gives us the ability toface up to evil and suffering when we encounter it inour lives. Or to say it another way, what is yourfoundation built on? You can try to stop the storms(good luck with that), or you can prepare to weatherthe storms that batter and crash on us.

We can focus on the CAUSE of suffering and evil, orthe RESPONSE to suffering.Remember the story of the two houses? One is built ona foundation of rock. What happens when a stormhits? It stands and weather the storm. The other houseis built on sand. What happens to it? It comes crashingdown because of its foundation.

Obviously, our response to suffering and evil shouldbe like the person who built their house on afoundation of rock, i.e., a close, living relationship with

God.If not, well, hope your insurance is paid up.Some concluding observations:

Did God answer Jobs questions about suffering andunfairness? Not really. He seemed deliberately to avoida logical, point-by-point explanation.

Philip Yancey writes: I find it ironic that so manypeople have written books attempting to defend Godsreputation as it regards this messy problem of painwhen God himself saw no need for self defense.

He goes on to say, My anger about pain has meltedaway for one reason: I have come to know God. He hasgiven me joy and love and forgiveness.


10/10

Conclusion: Two issues for Suffering and Evil 1) There is no magic bullet that will answer thequestion of why there is suffering and evil in the world,and how we can understand why . The evidence iscircumstantial and meant to show the consistency of the evidence, for the lack of a better word, to whywe suffer and the presence of evil.

The second issue is concerned with the two issuesinvolved in suffering and experiencing evil. We canfocus on one of two things:

2) We can address the question of WHY we aresuffering. As we have seen above, there are no easyanswers.

We can focus on HOW we should respond tosuffering and evil. That is the premise of the study wehave just finished. The importance of a relationshipwith God through Jesus Christ is the primary factor inthis. The resulting response to suffering is built on that

premise.

where is god when i hurt? an overview of job

Documents