Have you ever read a book and it has such a slow start you think of just stopping? The book of Job is not that. It jumps right into the “deep end” with exactly what happened.
We get a quick background on this man… he was blameless, upright, fears God and turns from evil. He was wealthy, had a wife, and many children. All is going well, extremely well, for Job. And then we get a little peek into a meeting with the “sons of God” (angels), God, and Satan.
Satan believes that he has the power to turn a faithful person away from God and wants to prove it. How does God respond? He gives him permission and tells him about his faithful servant! He first gives Satan permission to do anything but harm Job’s body {1:12} and then, when that doesn’t work, God gives him permission to do something to Job as long as he spares his life {2:6}
Shocking to our human hearts who only want to think of God as loving and protective. This suffering Job experiences is not a punishment for anything Job has done. There is no unforgiven sin in his life. And yet God gives his permission (because God is in control of even what Satan can do) and also defines what Satan’s perimeters are.
In verse 1:21 Job says “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” and then in 2:10, after being inflected with sores that make him unrecognizable to his friends, he still says “Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?”
Having been through some trials in my life, I did not always first say blessed be the Lord. I eventually turn there, but Job seems to be quickly at that point.
What Christopher Ash says in his book “Trusting God in the Darkness” for this section is worth noting and remembering as we read forward and, more importantly as we walk with God.
First we must know that Job is blameless.
Second we need to know that Satan has real influence in our lives. That brings me to my knees to ask God to help me reject that influence.
Third we need to remember that God is absolutely supreme. Satan only has power that God gives him and even when I’m in a trial, I must have confidence that God is right there and he will prevail.
Finally, God can give sobering permissions to Satan. I am left to wonder if I could stand this test that God allowed in Job’s life? While we walk through chapter after chapter of Job crying out to God, the story ends with Job acknowledging the greatness and power of God.
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