It is unsettling to the mind of flesh to come to terms with
the reality that not only does God choose how to respond to His creation, but
also chooses when, within what context, and how clearly. Sometimes, God chooses
to be silent. More often than not, it’s when He’s already given us clear
direction, we didn’t like the directions we were given, and so return to Him
with the same question hoping we’ll get a different answer. God didn’t stutter.
He is neither double-minded nor duplicitous. He meant what He said, He said
what He meant, and it’s incumbent upon us to obey. God’s not one for playing
games, and usually, His answers are direct and forthright, without ambiguity or
any wiggle room for our minds to interpret something other than what was
intended.
When the Word of God says one thing, and men insist it says
the opposite, it’s not that the Word itself is ambiguous. It’s that men are
attempting to twist it into a pretzel to make it say something it clearly
doesn’t. If you’re wondering why men would do such things, then you haven’t
been paying attention. Life isn’t an oasis, a paradise, a safe place where we
can while away the hours staring at our navels waiting on Christ’s return. It
is a warzone rife with infiltrators, deceivers, betrayers, double-dealing faux
brethren, and an enemy ever on the prowl.
If you’ve ever wondered how far the church has strayed from the
gospel, take a verse deemed controversial by the modern-day church, read it to
a six-year-old, and ask them what they think it means. You’re likely to get a
more biblically accurate interpretation than you would from some of the clowns pretending
to be shepherds who call evil good, darkness light, and bitter sweet.
Their aim is to sow confusion, doubt, and unbelief in the
hearts of God’s children, to steer them from the way of truth into the murky
shadows where personal opinion supersedes the word of God and where men become
defacto gods, following their own way rather than God’s way.
There is purpose in God’s silence, just as there is purpose in
God speaking. Especially when we are going through a trial, we would prefer He
addresses us sooner rather than later, but our preferences, like our feelings, don’t
enter the equation, contrary to what we may have been told by those trying to
sell us a course on how to force God’s hand to do our bidding.
Job was not perturbed or deterred by God’s silence because
his faith was well-established, and he knew the nature and character of the God
he served. Here he sat, covered in boils, upon the ashes of his former life,
scratching at himself with a potsherd, and his attitude was not one of
self-pity or bitterness at having to endure something he’d concluded was
undeserved.
When the knowledge of the God we serve has no depth, when we have
not entered a relationship or fellowship with Him but possess only a superficial
understanding of His glory, whenever sudden trials come upon us, the feeling
that we are being maltreated or abused will inevitably rise to the fore, attempting
to sow bitterness and despair.
My grandmother was a strict disciplinarian. While some might
have the requisite “Bless This House” or “Joy Lives Here” needlepoint pillows
about their homes, if my grandmother had ever gotten into needlepoint, I’m sure
her pillow would have had “Spare The Rod, Spoil The Child” as its preeminent
message. Even in her later years, when she needed to employ the aid of a
walker, she found a way to administer discipline in varied and inventive ways.
Granted, we lived in a small apartment, and few corners were
out of reach of her outstretched hands, even from a sitting position on the
couch, but however many times she chose the way of the rod, I never doubted
that she loved all three of us. Since my brother Daniel is the youngest, I tend
to think she preferred him, but even he was not spared her discipline when it
was deemed necessary.
God doesn’t stop loving us when He allows us to undergo
testing. On the contrary, His correction is proof that we are His and that He
considers us sons and daughters. He loves us enough to steer us clear of the
pitfalls that would ensure our demise were we to follow through with what the
flesh insists we ought. The flesh might resist the idea, but whenever a trial
or a test comes upon us, it is intended for maturing and growth.
Proverbs 3:11-12, “My son, do not despise the chastening of the
Lord, nor detest His correction; For whom the Lord loves He corrects, just as a
father the son in whom he delights.”
If you’re a parent, you know that love as your children as
you might, sometimes correction is necessary. It’s love that compels you to use
the stern daddy voice, as my little one likes to call it, whenever you see them
doing something you know will end in a bruise, a cut, or something much worse.
To them, climbing things that shouldn’t be climbed and
jumping off is all in good fun—until it isn’t. The tile floor they’re about to
belly flop on is unmerciful in its consistency, and rather than have to rush to
urgent care to cast a leg or splint a finger, I step in as a loving father and
end the festivities before mirth turns into tears. Those of you who have sons
rather than daughters are likely rolling your eyes, thinking I don’t know the
half of it, but I, too, was young once, with two little brothers, so I do know.
My brother Sergiu still has a scar on his foot from when we played chicken with
lawn darts. He didn’t move; a pyrrhic victory, indeed.
God never stops being a loving father, even when He chastens and corrects us. As wise children, we must never stop seeing Him as a good and loving father. I keep returning to this point because it is of paramount importance: Job never once, throughout his entire ordeal, doubted the character of the God he served. Had he done so, it would have unraveled in real-time, and he likely would have taken his wife’s advice to heart and done the unthinkable.
With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea, Jr.
Posted on 30 October 2024 | 11:47 am
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