October 25, 2016 - Job sat in the land fill, the dump, and scratched his sores with bits of broken pottery from the pile. He was covered from head to toe with running sores, boils.
His 10 children had all been killed in a storm. His possessions had all been stolen by thieves. His wife told him to just; "curse God and die". While his friends had accused him of grave sins for which he was surely being punished by the Lord.
Through it all, Job a man without sin remained true and strong in his faith, never once turning from God, but turning to God in his time of trouble and strife.
We know from God's Word that God had given Job over to Satan as a test of both Job's rightness and Satan's lack of power.
God gave Job over to Satan, withholding only Job's life, Satan could do anything to him, except to take his life from him. What a test, what a trial this was. A man, setting in darkness, no knowledge of what or why, holding fast to his Redeemer through the storms of life he had been given.
Job knew that he had done nothing to incur God's wrath, but he had no idea why he was being so severely punished.
How, you ask, could he remain so strong and true to God when he had no idea why he was being punished?
Our scriptures help us to understand how he could have such faith. (Job 19:25-27)
"For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand, at last, on the earth; And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh, I shall see God, Whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me."
You see, even though Jesus had not yet come to the earth, Job knew who He was and that He would indeed, one day come and stand on the earth.
All believers today have this same "blessed hope", knowing that one day Jesus will return for us and that eventually, He will again stand on the earth and will reign for 1000 years from His new temple in Jerusalem.
Believers today also know that even if we die a mortal death, when Jesus returns for His own, we will rise and in our own restored flesh, we will see our Redeemer, face to face.
The Bible tells us that we will be "like Him" and that we will "see Him as He is".
No longer will we have to look through the darkened glass of our own imaginations, we will finally, clearly, see the face of our Lord.
This blessed hope yearns within our hearts today just as it did with Job.
Let the trials and tribulations of Job be an example for each of us, to keep our eyes upon the heavens, knowing that our Redeemer does indeed live and that He is making ready a place for us and will, someday, return for us.
Glory to God, come Lord Jesus...
