THE DRAMA BEGINS

Jam.5: 11 Yes, many people have heard about Job and his trials; but not many people understand what those trials were all about and what God was trying to accomplish. Nor do they realize that Job suffered as he did so that God’s people today might learn from his experiences how to be patient in suffering and endure to the end. As we study the book of Job together, I trust that two things will be accomplished in your life: you will learn to be patient in your own trials, and you will learn how to help others in their trials. The book of Job is not religious fiction. Job was a real person, not an imaginary character Ezek.14: 14, 20. Jam.5: 11. Because he was a real man who had real experiences, he can tell us what we need to know about life and its problems in this real world. These first three chapters introduce us to the man Job and reveal four important facts about him.

1. Job’s Prosperity – Job.1: 1- 5. Job was perfect and upright. He was not sinless, for nobody can claim that distinction, but he was complete and mature in character and straight in conduct. The word translated perfect is related to integrity, another important word in Job 2: 3, 9; 27: 3- 6 Job.; 31: 6. Job maintained his integrity, and the Lord ultimately vindicated him.

The foundation for Job’s character was the fact that “he feared God and shunned evil.” Job.28: 28. To fear the Lord means to respect who He is, what He says, and what He does. To fear the Lord is the loving reverence of a child before a father, a respect that leads to obedience. The remarkable thing about fearing God is that when you fear God, you fear nothing else; whereas if you do not fear God, you fear everything else. Job was prosperous in his family. In the days of Job, a large family was seen as a blessing from God Gen.12: 2; 13: 16; 30: 1. The children must have enjoyed each other’s company since they met frequently to celebrate their birthdays. This speaks well of the way Job and his wife raised them. Job was a pious man and wanted to be sure his family was right with God. In those days, wealth was measured primarily in terms of land, animals, and servants; and Job had all three of them in abundance. Being rich did not turn him away from God. He acknowledged that the Lord gave this wealth to him Job.1: 21, and he used the wealth generously for the good of others Job.4: 1- 4; 29: 12- 17; 31: 16- 32.

Job.2: 11 While it is true that his three friends hurt Job deeply and wronged him greatly, they were still his friends. When they heard about Job’s calamities, they travelled a long distance to visit him, and they sat in silence as they sympathized with him. Their mistake was in thinking they had to explain job’s situation and tell him how to change it. It was Henry Ford who said “My best friend is the one who brings out the best in me”; but Job’s friends brought out the worst in him. However, in the end Job and his friends were reconciled Job.42: 7- 10. To have true friends is to be wealthy indeed.

2. Job’s Adversity – Job.1: 6- 19. In one day, Job was stripped of his wealth. One after another, four frightened messengers reported that 500 yoke of oxen, 500 donkeys, 3000 camels were stolen in enemy raids; 7000 sheep were struck by lightning and killed; and all 10 of his children were killed by a windstorm Eccle.9: 12. Job knew what had happened, but he did not know why it had happened; and that is the crux of the matter. Because the author allows us to visit the throne room of heaven and hear God and Satan speak, we know who caused the destruction and why he was allowed to cause it. But if we did not have the insight, we would probably take the same approach as Job’s friends and blame Job for the tragedy. Several important truths emerge from this scene:

(A) God is sovereign in all things. He is on the throne of heaven, the angels do His will and report to Him, and even Satan can do nothing to God’s people without God’s permission. No matter what happens in this world and in our lives, God is on the throne and has everything under control.

(B) Satan has access to God’s throne in heaven. He is free to go about on the earth Job.1: 7; 1Pet.5: 8; and can even go into God’s presence in heaven.

(C) God found no fault with Job, but Satan did. God’s statement in Job 1: 8 echoes the description of Job in verse 1, but Satan questioned it. The word Satan means adversary, one who opposes the law. This is a courtroom scene, and God and Satan each deliver different verdicts about Job. As we study this book, keep in mind that God said “Not guilty!” Job.1: 8; 2: 3; 42: 7. There was nothing in Job’s life that compelled God to cause him to suffer. But Satan said “Guilty” because he is the accuser of God’s people and find nothing good in them Zech.3: 1; Rev.12: 10. Satan’s accusation against Job was really an attack on God. We might paraphrase it like this; “The only reason Job fears you is because you pay him to do it. You two have made a contract. You protect him and prosper him as long as he obeys you and worships you. You are not a God worthy of worship! You have to pay people to honor you.”

Job’s three friends said Job was suffering because he had sinned, and that was not true. Elihu said that God was chastening Job to make him a better man, and that was partly true. But the fundamental reason for Job’s suffering was to silence the blasphemous accusations of Satan and prove that a man would honor God even though he had lost everything. It was a battle in the heavenlies Ephe.6: 12, but Job did not know it. Job’s life was a battle field where the forces of God and Satan were engaged in a spiritual struggle to decide the question, “Is Jehovah God worthy of man’s worship? Job held fast to his integrity and blessed God even though he did not understand what God was doing. What a defeat for the prince of darkness!

(D) Satan can touch God’s people only with God’s permission, and God uses it for their good and His glory. Phillips Brook said “The purpose of life is the building of character through truth.” God is at work in our lives to make us more like Jesus Christ Rom.8: 29, and He can use even the attacks of the devil to perfect us. When you are in the path of obedience and you find yourself in a severe trial, remind yourself that nothing can come to your life that is outside His will.

3. Job’s fidelity – Job.1: 20- 22. The hosts of heaven and of hell watched to see how Job would respond to the loss of his wealth and his children. He expressed his grief in a manner normal for that day, for God expects us to be human. First, he looked back to his birth; “Naked came I out of my mother’s womb.” Everything Job owned was given to him by God, and the same God who gave it had the right to take it away. Job simply acknowledged that he was a steward. Then, he looked ahead to his death; “and naked shall I return.” Nothing that he acquired between his birth and death would go with him 1Tim.6: 7. Finally, Job looked up and uttered a magnificent statement of faith Job.1: 21. Instead of cursing God, as Satan said Job would do, Job blessed the Lord. It takes real faith to say in the midst of sorrow and suffering “Blessed be the name of the Lord.”

In Conclusion – We may not know until we get to heaven why God allowed certain things to happen. Meanwhile, we walk by faith and say with Job, “Blessed be the name of the LORD”.