Thursday: Consider the Man Job
Read Job 1:8. How was Job described by God Himself?
That’s pretty good, having even God call Job “perfect” and “upright” (Job 1:8), so perfect and upright that no else on the earth at that time could equal him. Again, these are God’s own words, verbatim, about Job.
Image © Lars Justinen Goodsalt.com
Even after Job faced one catastrophe after another, God repeated what He had first said about Job, that there was no one else on earth like him, perfect and upright and so forth, except that then a new element was added. Job was still all these things, “although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause” (Job 2:3, NKJV).
And though we get a powerful glimpse of Job’s perfection and uprightness in how he refused to let go of God despite all that happened and despite his unfortunate’s wife’s taunt, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!” (Job 2:9, NKJV), the book reveals another aspect of Job’s life before the drama here unfolded.
Read Job 29:12-16. What is depicted here that gives us even more insight into the secret of Job’s character?
Perhaps what’s most insightful here are Job’s words, “And I searched out the case that I did not know” (Job 29:16, NKJV). In other words, Job didn’t simply wait, for instance, for some beggar in rags to approach him for a handout. Instead, Job was proactive in seeking out needs and then acting on them.
Ellen G. White suggested, “Do not wait for them [the poor] to call your attention to their needs. Act as did Job. The thing that he knew not he searched out. Go on an inspecting tour and learn what is needed and how it can be best supplied.” — Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 151. This is a level of money management and stewardship of God’s resources that is beyond the practice of many of God’s children today.
| Read Isaiah 58:6-8. How can we take these ancient words and apply them to ourselves today? |
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Job was a cape of good hope to the 'least of these' in the society.The Bible is specific that he addressed the felt needs,and for this,I want to believe that Job's social capital was just great.
We're leaving in a century of uncertainties,today you host a destitute and homeless only to wake up he's robbed you of valuables, or,he/she ends up killing all your family members.
Of recent,in my country, we've experienced shocking cases of such mishaps I've mentioned above. This leaves me with questions that beg answers;
1. As Christians,is it biblical to assess the degree of a need?
2. Should all the needs be addressed?
3. What are the parameters of hosting a stranger,should you just open your door to every Tom,Dick and Harry on grounds of being a good Christian?
You wrote, "What are the parameters of hosting a stranger, should you just open your door to every Tom, Dick and Harry on grounds of being a good Christian?"
Not at all! One of Satan's biggest tricks is to use your Christian affiliation for his purpose. With it Satan will steal and do you harm. I believe that Job was so close to God that he was sensitive to God leading him to do His works.
It's been My experience that even though Jesus guides me when He wants me to help a homeless person, that I will encounter many trials while helping them. With each trial I get to practice love, patience, kindness, gentleness and self control. At first I found I failed at times and had to repent. As I grew in the Spirit, I learned many ways to trust God to keep me in Him.
One example was when someone I met at church, who seemed to seek diligently after God, was homeless. The Spirit led me to take her in. She was a terrific artist. One day she gave me a thank you note for all I was doing for her; and she put a very simple form of a flower on the front. When she gave it to me it resonated spiritual peace. Because of this, I equipped her with all that she needed to paint a stand up easel and the paints that she wanted to have and all the equipment. I also gave her a good part of a room to work in. God had shown me that He gave her a special gift of artistry. It was God's intention to lead her to paint spiritual images of His Goodness and people are going to feel His love through her work. That would be His final intention.
However, there was something that needed to be done first through her paintings. It turned out that the pictures she did were dark and even satanic. Then the Lord showed me that every time she painted these things demons were coming out of her and into the pictures. Then I instructed her to just start painting and let the Spirit guide her through. The result was amazing! God allowed me to sense the evil within as I witnessed Him at work to heal her
She had been schizophrenic and very difficult at times. It came to the point that the Lord directed me to have her leave. I let her take most of the stuff that she did and all the equipment. But God had me I keep the last piece that she did.
When my granddaughter was visiting she told me that they were monsters in the picture, so I wrapped it good and hid it from sight. Much later, I ended up hanging it on my living room wall. One day after I got home from a Bible study, I opened the door and I could see with spiritual site a horrible demon. His eyes were wide and he was fiery; but he was terrified of me! I saw his essence whisk back into the picture. Then I saw the Lord put an angel by it to prevent him from coming out again. I have cast out demons before, but this time the Spirit wouldn't let me. I knew God was keeping me safe. The very next day when I got up I knew it was time to cast him out. I went to the picture and I just quietly told the demon to leave and I saw his essence go out of the picture and out a nearby window and disappeared from sight.
I am often reminded of her need of true salvation; and I find myself extending my love for her to my Father always asking that He heal her and save her. When the demons weren't at work, she was a very giving person.
I have also taken in people suffering from addictions. One was recovering from drug abuse. She secretly started dealing drugs while in my home. When I found proof of such, it was time to let her go. In spite of her problem, she was always good to me in every other way. I really enjoyed her company and missed her dearly when she willingly left. She got help and did well for a long time. She kept in touch on rare occasions. Then I received a call from her young daughter. She had died from an overdose. So sad.
I also had taken in a few more people suffering from addictions. One has become one of my best friends. She just graduated from a long time in rehab. Today she's traveling a good distance to help me with some packing. I am selling my home and moving into an apartment with a special spiritual Christian with whom I can share Christ on my level of growth in Him. I consider this is a great blessing now that I seem to be finished with the work He gave me here.
Jesus is alive and doing His work in those who love Him.
The lessons this week have been titled, "The least of these" and most of us have some notion about who these least people are and what we should do to help them.
I read a story some years ago now about a prostitute who used to provide her services to some very "least of these" people. She would visit the homeless, the terminally ill, the drug dependent, the paroled, and the incapacitated. She was not some sort of kinky person having weird sex. In fact, there was not a lot of sex in the story at all. Mostly it was about the enormous compassion this woman had for people who through their particular circumstances were lonely and found themselves short on human relationships.
The really confronting thing for me about this story is that this woman, in a career we tend to despise, was in fact teaching me a lesson in empathy and compassion for people who were much more in need than she.
Routinely we lack the ability to walk in someone else's shoes. A reminder to practice empathy.
We need to constantly pray for the Holy Spirit to fill us as we search for the least of these, bearing in mind that this attitude of helping other is not just a business of Christians only; pagans can do the same job. What we need is to make a difference by stepping in Jesus' foot, repenting from our evils deeds and dishonest acts because of God's love.
What a call! A call to the uncomfortable. What kind of religion is mine if I am basically just working for my own survival, without worrying about the needs of others around? Everyone was created to be blessings for others; am I fulfilling this? A call to the uncomfortable.
May we all be presented to God, today, as living sacrifices, because He has given us His most precious gift in order to buy us back and restore us to perfection.
God described Job as unique (i.e. there is none like him in the earth), perfect, upright, fear God, and escheweth evil. The secret of Job’s character is that he helped the poor and widowed. He also put on righteousness, was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame. The cause he didn’t know, he searched out.
In my own line of work, I help to loose the bands and undo heavy burdens that weigh on the minds of others. One doesn’t need to have the training that I had to do this. One can search for other ways to lighten the load of others (ex: provide a meal, clothing).
Jesus said to live in a way as to "Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." Matthew 6:34 I take from these words of Jesus as to "Live one day at a time." In other words to always live in the present and only in the 24 hours of that "Present." Someone once said that we are to live without worrying about yesterday because it is now history, and tomorrow is still in the future. And today is "A Gift," and that is why it is called "The Present." Isn't it amazing as to how Jesus quoted the words in Matthew 6:34 2,000 plus or minus years ago? And here we are today worrying about our past sins and also about how we are going to survive tomorrow? Yes, today we are to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit those in prison etc. and etc. because in Jesus we have freely received and therefore we are to freely give.
The man Job is just a wonder and challenges my life.The holy throne itself affirms that he is perfect and upright above all in earth.A heavenly citizen so to speak because of his social and religious character. May God fill us with this latter rain in these evil days.
I realise that it is also through serving where great works of holy ghost manifest in his children.
The lesson started out with God talking to Satan and pointing out Job's character. He was blameless. The last part of that verse says how he was blameless: “He fears God and stays away from evil”. I think those two things go hand in hand with how we too can be blameless.
How do I 'consider the man Job'? One Scripture translation speaks of Job as ‘blameless and upright’, and other ‘perfect’. I see compassion and mercy as the hallmark of Job’s faith. His life was not focused on accumulating wealth, his focus was on living 'righteously' - his inspiration when he ‘feared/honored’ God as he balanced giving and receiving.
In response to the loss of all possessions, even his children, he responded saying: ”Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither; the LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD,” - Job.1:21. When we share resources, this would be the place were our heart is.
Job’s faith was still strong when God withdrew His protection of Job and gave him into Satan’s hands a second time – Job 2:7. He is recorded saying: ”…. What? Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips." – Job 2:10.
Ours, like Job’s faith, needs to be genuine, remaining strong when placed in the Refiner’s fire. It ought not depend on circumstances one is confronted with. Like Job - ”.. a “perfect and upright” man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil, this would be our position as well; the hallmark of the faithful believer who continues on living a life of genuine love of God and care for his fellow man.