I have been meditating on the book of Job this morning. The book of Job is a lesson on suffering. But, the lesson is not the lesson that we want. When we are suffering we want two things: First, we want the suffering to end. We want a cure. Second, we want to know why………why did the suffering happen…….what can we do to avoid it in the future. The book of Job does not offer much help on these two fronts. God allows suffering. In Job, God turns Satan loose to torment Job. There is no explanation as to why. God ultimately restores Job. But, there still isn’t much in the way of explanation. God doesn’t use Job’s situation as a “teaching moment”.
The lesson of the book of Job, it turns out, is not a lesson for Job. It is a lesson for me…….and you. I’ll get to the lesson in a bit. But, first, I’ll share an experience that looks to me like a metaphor for suffering, Job, and his relationship with God.
I was once a lifeguard. In my teens, I had an unusual amount of sun exposure. And my skin shows it. Because of this, I see a dermatologist once a year for a “spot check”. Over the years I have had 3 or 4 skin cancers removed. This year I saw a new doc…….probably fresh out of his residency. He looked me over……pronounced me clean. But, then, he prescribed a treatment for my face. It was a cancer drug, 5FU, that would pretty much cause my face to “rot off”. In the process this would kill tiny cancers and pre-cancers. After about 5 days, the rotting began. It was awful: sores all over, constant pain, bleeding, and very little sleep. It was at its worst if I tried to talk, smile, yawn, or eat. I did a Google search and found, to my surprise, that the rotting of my face would last a couple of weeks. At that point, I was not very happy with my dermatologist. Today, the rotting is winding down. I am left with a face that is in much better shape than before. My dermatologist…….still not on my “Christmas list”.
This episode looks like a metaphor for the suffering that is a part of daily life. We don’t like to talk about it; but, much of our suffering is either sent by God or, at best, allowed by God. Consider the worst suffering you can recall. God could have prevented it. But, he didn’t. And he doesn’t give us an explanation. Just as he didn’t explain things to Job. God does as he pleases. He promises that he is looking out for us……..but he doesn’t share the details with us.
The lesson is in how we are expected to react to God when we suffer………and God either allowed the suffering………or caused the suffering:
Deny God
Hate God
Trust God
Recognize God’s sovereignty
This is the lesson of the Book of Job:
God does as he pleases…….we don’t get to pass judgement on God’s decisions. We don’t get to challenge God’s sovereignty.
God loves us…..we are required to trust him to look out for our best interests…..in the long run……in an eternal time frame……even when we don’t understand.
Job got it.
Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”
In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong.
Job’s prayer….after disaster struck, Job 1: 20-22, ESV