Job CVI

 Deception can only ever be allowed to take root in a heart when that heart is not fully saturated with the Word of God. Just as pesticide kills weeds, the Word of God kills deception. Even if we have to admit that some dream, or some vision was not from God, eating a slice of humble pie is by far preferable to being judged by God for speaking something He never spoke and attributing it to Him. Sober-mindedness is not an option; it’s a mandate, a command, and something we must strive to be, especially when it comes to spiritual matters. There is certainty, and then there is guesswork. There is revelation, and then there is personal opinion. These concepts cannot be conflated, nor are they interchangeable.

Job was being tormented by dreams and visions, and he assumed they came from God. Assumption is a dangerous playground to spend time in because, whether consciously or subconsciously, our preconceived notions, prejudices, partialities, and preconceptions will come to the fore, attempting to sway us and insisting that this one time, we can ignore what Scripture says because what we think or feel better suits us than what the Bible says. Assume nothing. Verify everything, and use the Word of God as your plumb line, litmus test, and absolute authority in every matter.

Although we have the benefit of the written word, Job didn’t, and after months of torment, night terrors, and demoralizing visions, he assumed they came from God, not understanding the purpose or allowing for the possibility that there was a nefarious third party at work. We can look our noses down on Job and insist that we would have proceeded differently, but all of us have been guilty of blaming God for something we did to ourselves with our own two hands and trying to circumvent accountability by insisting it was the devil rather than our lack of self-control. The devil didn’t make you eat the chocolate cake! You drove yourself to the store, put the cake in your cart, paid for it, drove back home, and proceeded to devour it in one sitting. Even though the box said there were fifteen servings, we all know that’s arbitrary.

Don’t blame God for what the devil does, and don’t credit the devil for what God does. When we fall into this snare, we tend to project an image of needless cruelty on a good and loving God or conclude that the enemy of our soul isn’t so bad after all, just misunderstood.

Job 7:17-21, “What is man, that You should exalt him, that You should set Your heart on him, that You should visit him every morning and test him every moment? How long? Will You not look away from me, and let me alone till I swallow my saliva? Have I sinned? What have I done to You, O watcher of men? Why have You set me as Your target, so that I am a burden to myself? Why then do You not pardon my transgression, and take away my iniquity? For now I will lie down in the dust, and You will seek me diligently, but I will no longer be.”

When we falsely attribute a season of testing to punishment of some kind, self-recrimination is a given. What did I do? When did I do it? It must have been something grievous since I am suffering, but I can’t think of anything. Still, there must have been something; otherwise, why am I going through what I’m going through?

It took months for Job to come to this place, but he arrived here nevertheless. Given enough time, without proper understanding, we all arrive at the same spot. Again, because it’s so important and relevant, Job did not have the benefit of Scripture to bring him an understanding of the possibility that this could be something other than God’s punishment. He felt as though God was targeting him, and he wanted some understanding.

Why? Why is this happening to me, and if the reason was a transgression, why do You not pardon it and take away my iniquity? How long must I suffer? Should not the punishment be commensurate with the crime, and if I’ve committed a crime or some offense, could I not be made aware of what it was? At least then, I’d understand.

Imagine if every time you sat down to take a test, you got all the answers in advance. It wouldn’t be a test, would it? This is why faith is so crucial. It gives you the strength to press on, persevere, and endure, even when the why isn’t clear. As long as I know the God I serve, as long as I know that His mercies are new every morning, and as long as I know He is a good Father, the why becomes irrelevant. This faith is not just a belief but a source of strength and comfort in the midst of trials.

If you have searched your heart and know that your singular desire has been to walk circumspectly and grow ever more into the image of the risen Christ, then whatever valley you may be traversing, know that it will have a good end. Your faith will ostensibly mature, your spiritual man will ostensibly grow, and you will come to understand the Father in a far deeper fashion than you did before your testing came. This growth is not just a possibility but a promise that you can hold onto in the midst of your trials.

But that’s just an anecdotal conclusion based on personal experience. One may be anecdotal, but if everyone who goes through a trial experiences the same growth once they’ve persevered through it, it’s no longer anecdotal; it’s the expected outcome of something based on the aggregate data available. If everyone who grabs hot coal gets burned, the evidence that hot coal burns isn’t anecdotal any longer but a settled fact.

We do our best to circumvent the reality that God’s ways are to be trusted, not understood, because no one likes being left in the dark and having to guess at why they’re going through their valley of suffering.

With love in Christ,

Michael Boldea, Jr.  

Posted on 29 January 2025 | 12:15 pm