Job 1-5

Scripture:

 

Job 2:9-10

His wife said to him, “Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!” He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” 
      In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

5:17-18

“Blessed is the man whom God corrects; 
       so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty. 

For he wounds, but he also binds up; 
       he injures, but his hands also heal.

Observation:

 

The comment from Job’s wife comes shortly after all his wealth is either stolen or destroyed, along with his sons and daughters, and his body has been ravaged by sores, inflicted by the devil himself. And Job responds in a way which matches exactly with what we have heard about him so far in the book – that he is righteous, and loves the Lord. Then 3 chapters later we get the first comments from one of Job’s friends (Eliphaz in this case). In the rest of the book, lots of what they say is quite unhelpful towards Job, trying to convince him that it must be some great sin that has caused his woes, but looking at these 2 pairs of verses together, it’s clear that they were not so far apart in their thinking. They both tell the reader that while God can give abundantly, he can also take away; though God expressed his love through blessing, he also shows it through discipline.

 

Application:

 

The books of the Bible which come under the ‘Wisdom’ genre are, as far as I know, the closest we get to ancient philosophical writings, and many scholars think that Job is one of the most ancient texts we have access to. And it certainly is a book where the writer is expressing, or struggling with, various ways to understand the world, and dealing with what is encountered in life. And in the verses I’ve selected today, we have a God–centred mindset dealing with the extreme troubles that presented themselves in Job’s life. If He can bless me, then He can bring trouble too – and Job managed to praise God despite losing all his children. Can I continue to praise him when things aren’t going well? I’ve never had such an extreme set of ‘misfortunes’ befall me, and to my knowledge I don’t know anyone who has, so do I have any reason to stop praising God?

 

Prayer:

 

Thank you lord, for the example of Job, and his ability to accept everything you gave him in his life. Help me to keep a God-centred mindset in everything I do, and to keep praising in good times and in bad.

 

Romans 11-12

Scripture

Romans 11:33-36

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! 
      How unsearchable his judgments, 
      and his paths beyond tracing out! 
“Who has known the mind of the Lord? 
      Or who has been his counselor?”
“Who has ever given to God, 
      that God should repay him?”
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

Observation

What’s interesting to me about this passage is less the content than the context in which Paul writes this. He has just completed a section in chapter 11 all about the Jews, how they fit into God’s plan for salvation, and how the Gentiles are not to look down on them because they havn’t yet understood the truth about Jesus. What seems to happen is Paul sort of write himself up into a frenzy of praise just thinking about the way God has planned it, and can’t help but let out this doxology. He then calms down a little and goes into how, therefore, the Gentile believers ought to live worshipfully in every way, so as to be a shining light and an example to Israel.

Application

A few things:

1. I wonder whether I have ever worked myself up into praise through thinking about God’s orchestration of events, in the same way that Paul does here. Possibly I am too English and unemotional (an accusation I have heard once or twice from certain people near me), or possibly  I could do with just letting some praise out a bit more forcefully now and again.
2. I too, as a Gentile, need to follow Paul’s advice about not being haughty re: the Jewish faith. If it weren’t for the nation of Israel, at least as it was in the 2,000 years or so before Christ, I wouldn’t be here writing this today. I don’t have nearly enough knowledge about the current nation of Israel to try to apply the passages to that situation, and I’m not sure they even do apply – Paul is writing much more about faith than about any geographical notions.

Prayer

Help me, Lord, to praise you when I am in wonder about what you do! And help me to do it fearlessly, boldly, and unhindered – this is the maker of the Universe I’m praising, so it’s worth getting worked up! And teach me how to regard Judaism correctly, without pride or judgmentalism, but with humility and gratefulness.