Devotional insights #1

(To encourage and instruct, I thought I would take the time to write down insights gained during my devotions.  I hope this can benefit you in your day to day life.)

Job 37: 14-24: “Hear this, o Job!  Stop and consider the wondrous works of God.”

It’s hard to know how to understand the character of Elihu in the book of Job.  However, I argue that we can reasonably say that he speaks for God.  He rightly desires to justify God, and he does not talk with the simplistic theology of Job’s friends.  Finally, when God himself comes and speaks to Job, he uses similar arguments.  “Consider who I am, Job!”

Elihu points out the power of God, how God is far beyond our thoughts and imaginations.  He wants to demonstrate to Job that God’s ways are far beyond the wisdom of man.  Job does not acknowledge this, particularly in his final summary defence.  Elihu’s primary concern with Job is that Job does not take the time to justify God’s actions.  Job has gone on at length, defending his righteousness. He has gone on at length, asking the question, “why?”  In themselves, this is not necessarily wrong, but Job fails to defend the goodness of God and the justice of God in his life. 

Job is a righteous man.  He does not deserve what is happening to him.  Job rightly asks, “Why is God doing this to me?”  How can God treat a righteous servant in this way?  But in asking that question, Job must recognize that the ways of God are far beyond him.  We can compare Job’s words to the words of the Psalms, where the Psalmist does ask why and speaks of his great misery, but, at the same time, recognizes the character of God is beyond human understanding. 

We can point to Psalm 13, where David wonders at how God forgets him.  David is in deep distress, and he wonders how God will get him out of that.  But at the same time, David recognizes that God is a God of steadfast love.  God has not stopped being God at this moment. 

Job’s friends made the mistake of thinking that they could understand the ways of God.  They could understand how God works.  If God strikes Job, he must have sinned against God.  Unfortunately, Job makes a similar mistake.  He argues for his case, he justifies himself, but he does not seek to justify God to his friends. 

We certainly may bring our weaknesses to God.  We may wonder what he is doing in our lives.  Christians experience deep suffering, and it’s not always clear why.  In doing that, we must all remember who God is.  In our situation today, with self-isolation, Covid-19, and a sick economy, we are anxious. We are rightly troubled.  We wonder what God is doing.  What happens to our plans now?  But we must remember God is good God is loving, and God is powerful.  We can never grasp the fullness of God.  He is utterly transcendent. 

To demonstrate this, Elihu appeals to the wonders of God’s creation. We don’t know why lightning is bright.  God created that within his perfect order.  We can’t find a better way to balance the clouds that the way God has done it.  We cannot spread the skies.  God did that when he created the world.  If God’s work in nature is far beyond our ability and our understanding, so is God’s work in our lives.  Perhaps we begin to understand the ways of God, but even in that, we know there is always more to learn, a greater maturity to achieve. 

Elihu points to the works of God in creation as proof of the supreme wisdom and power of God.  And if God keeps in mind the good of his creation.  The doctrine of God’s providence comes out here.  God is both all-powerful and completely good.  Those who trust in him believe that he always has a purpose in what he does.   He will also keep those who love him in his mind as well—even, and especially, in our most profound suffering. We trust in the Lord, the creator of heaven and earth.