We recently traveled to Washington, D.C., embarking on a whirlwind, self-directed tour. I vaguely recalled field trips there as an elementary student, but enjoyed the visit much more as an adult. An unseasonable heat wave did not deter us from walking miles, up and down the National Mall, impressed and amazed. Seeing photos in books or online could not compare with being there in person.
This reminds me of the book of Job. Preachers, congregants, and even some who barely know the Word of God like to quote from this oldest book of the Bible. They hone in on the second part of Job 1:21, where Job laments, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” Uninformed people treat this statement as if it were the gospel!
Yet too many ignore the context. The Lord had richly blessed this man. But that display of God’s goodness infuriated the devil so much that he brought all kinds of sorrow and pain in Job’s life, hoping to turn him against God. After a few weeks, or possibly months, of listening to his so-called friends giving him bad advice, and doing quite a bit of griping himself, Job had a change of heart! Job’s final word on the subject, after actually seeing God’s true nature, put his earlier impression of Him in perspective.
The punchline comes at the end, in Job 42:3-6 “…I have declared that which I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know . . . I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear; but now my eye sees You; Therefore I retract, and I repent in dust and ashes.” In other words, Job realized he had no business blaming God for his suffering. Based on third-hand information he had come to wrong conclusions. An accurate glimpse of God led Job to retract his former accusations.
At home, we couldn’t possibly appreciate the scale or grandeur of the Washington Monument from pictures in a book. But standing at the foot of something 555 feet high offered a different perspective.
And perspective is one reason Jesus came to us in person. He wanted the world to know the Father’s true nature. Based on a cursory reading of the Old Testament, one might accuse God of being hard, angry, and vengeful. However, in every single OT book we find evidence of God’s goodness, patience, grace, mercy, and kindness. We see this more clearly in the New Testament. Hebrews 1:3 tells us that Christ is “the radiance of (the Father’s) glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power.” When we see how Jesus behaved, healed, and pointed people to the new and better covenant of grace, we see the Father’s heart. Jesus sums it up nicely in John 10:10. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”
So, the next time you’re tempted to blame God for your problems, remember Job and remember Jesus. They both reveal that God is a good, loving Father, not your enemy.
Thanks, Carrie. Your post echoes the sentiments about Christ’s heart in a book I’m reading by Dane Ortlund, “Gentle and Lowly – the Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers.”