Job. He was the man who had it all…a wife, 10 kids, riches, position, esteem, good health. He had it all one day, and then the next it was gone. Words like tragedy, disaster, or calamity may come to our minds when we imagine what Job went through. It is difficult to even fathom what it would be like to lose all that Job lost. One might even question if life would be worth living after such devastation. But…is it?
What do we know about Job’s character before he loses everything? We know from the 1st verse of chapter 1 that Job was a man who lived a holy life, feared God, and had a good reputation. We also know from chapter 29 that he reached out to the needy in his community, he was greatly respected by all, and many came to him for wise counsel. We see in chapter 1 that God had greatly blessed Job with his family and possessions. According to Job 1:3 he was in fact, “the greatest of all the men of the east.”
What do we know about Job after disaster strikes? Well, we know he had moments when he did not feel God’s presence. He was devastated. He felt very alone at times, and even questioned his very existence in the world. He did not understand why God had allowed the unthinkable. Job 10:18-19 “Wherefore then hast Thou brought me out of the womb? Oh that I had given up the ghost, and no eye had seen me! I should have been as though I had not been; I should have been carried from the womb to the grave.” But the Bible tells us in Job 1:22 that “In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.” Throughout his intense grief and suffering, Job continued to praise and lift up his God.
How is this possible? Well, a more in depth look at what Job has to say about God’s character reveals a lot. We see in Job 12:13-25 that Job has a clear understanding of God’s sovereignty. He knew God was in control of everything that happens. We can also see in Job 23:8-14 that Job knew God had a plan for his life, even when he couldn’t see it. He declares in 23:9b-10, “he (God) hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him: But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.”
Even when Job could not feel God’s presence, he did not falter because he was grounded in what he knew about God’s unchanging character.
Finally, in Job 19:21-27, we see where Job’s faith was founded. In verses 25-26 he says, “For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:” It did not matter that he lost everything. He knew that his flesh would perish anyways.
Job’s hope was not in his earthly relationships, health, or possessions.
Rather, his hope was in the Lord, and in the Lord only! In Psalm 27:4, David declares, “One thing have I desired from the Lord, that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in His temple.” Like David, Job was living with an eternal perspective. Their hope was not in the things that would fade away, but in the eternal!
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