Good morning,
According
to God, Job was the most righteous man on earth in his day. He was
always conscious of the need to do the right thing, but we are told that
God still brought Job up in a conversation he had with Satan. As the
story unfolds, God allowed Satan to test Job by taking away his wealth,
his health and the support of some very special friends. As the testing
time dragged on and as Job’s friends became more convinced then ever
that Job’s sin was at the root of all his pain, Job was forced to
examine his faith in God at the very roots of his being. Job’s faith in
God was clouded in pain and unmet expectations, but he still knew what
God had said to the people he had created. Job summed it up when he
said ‘The fear of the Lord is true wisdom; to forsake evil is real
understanding.’(Job 28:28) When Job’s creator and Savior, Jesus, was
here on earth, he reminded his disciples that their love for him
required those who loved him to keep his commandments. (John 14:15) God
didn’t change his mind or his rules for those who lived in the Old
Testament or in the New Testament. What has happened is that our Enemy
has been able to twist what God has said to confuse us about what makes
up a righteous person in the sight of God.
Paul, who began to
live by rules to prove that he was God’s man, learned the meaning of
what Job and Jesus said and shared it with those who became God’s kids
as a result of his ministry. When writing to the Thessalonians he
explained it this way. To begin with, the Lord is faithful. God has
asked us to obey him to guard us from the power of our evil enemy. The
Savior who has begun this wonderful work in our lives will stick with us
through every growth stage of our lives no matter how confused we
become in the process. Then Paul pointed out that the Lord will lead
us, not just at our head level, but at the heart level. His guidance is
designed to lead us to a fuller understanding of his love as we
willingly obey his commands in the face of the slow and painful process
that follows our obedience. Finally, the Lord is patient as we learn in
the testing to draw our strength from our Savior and stop depending on
our hard work and self righteous service. Please Lord, open our hearts
and minds to the wisdom of willing obedience to a loving Savior and a
patient Lord.
2 Thessalonians 3:3 But the Lord is
faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one. 4 And
we are confident in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do
the things we commanded you. 5 May the Lord lead your hearts into a full
understanding and expression of the love of God and the patient
endurance that comes from Christ.
Roy Wisner
