Why Is the Book of Job in the Bible?

A New Look at Job's Story

What kind Of man was Job, really? Job's three friends argued

with him that he was a great sinner -- that something just had to

be wrong in his life, or else God would not have punished him so

severely. But God Himself declared: "There was a man in the land

of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was PERFECT" (Job 1:1).

Do any of us dare to disagree with God? But if Job was righteous,

why did God punish him so? The baffling mystery of the life of

Job deserves careful inspection and analysis -- its lessons for us

are mind-boggling and very relevant to our lives, today!

William F. Dankenbring

In the book of Job, we read an amazing, incredible story -- a story that has baffled, perplexed, and astonished men and women for scores of generations. It is, simply put, the story of a good man, a man who has no equal when it comes to being good, who suddenly loses almost everything. His life at first seems to be coasting along well enough. He is blessed with lovely children, a wonderful wife, many friends, and incredible wealth, public esteem, honor, fame, fortune, and power. He is a godly and a good king, and feeds the poor, helps the widows and orphans, and -- when his life is analyzed and weighed in the balances -- it seems he is the most upright and honorable of men.

Yet in an amazing sequence of events, staggering the imagination, bandits and gangs of thieves stole all his cattle and killed or put to flight all his servants and hired hands. The same day, lightning struck, and burned up his sheep and herdsmen -- which the sole survivor called "the fire of God from heaven" (Job 1:16). And, to top it all off, suddenly a tornado roared down from the sky and killed ALL of his children in one fell swoop.

Imagine the devastating grief! O the pain, the misery, the calamity of it all! O the horror and shock!

Yet, in the midst of these awesome adversities, we have the testimony of God: "Then Job stood up, and tore his robe in grief and fell down upon the ground before God. 'I came naked from my mother's womb,' he said, 'and I shall have nothing when I die. The Lord gave me everything I had, and they were his to take away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.' In all of this Job did not sin or revile God" (Job 1:20-22).

Can you imagine it? Such horrible trials and calamities -- and yet Job blessed God! He did not accuse Him. He did not rail upon Him, or shake his fist at Him, or criticize God for having allowed these horrible events to take place. Job meekly surrendered, accepted his calamity, as the will and doing of God. He did not understand it, as the story will show -- but nevertheless, he accepted it and did not accuse God of breaking His promises, or failing to fulfill His Word. He did not attack God in any manner or fashion.

Put yourself in Job's place, for a moment. How would you react, if God struck you down, all your children suddenly died in mysterious "accidents," or were gunned down by thugs and gangsters; your home burned to the ground; a flood swept away your business and possessions; and your bank account was cleaned out by your trusted financial accountant who fled to Brazil with all your millions, leaving you penniless, destitute, and poverty-stricken! And, on top of this, you were then struck down with a terrible skin condition for which there was no cure. How would you feel? How would you react?

Even Job's wife finally had enough. She turned on him with rage and fury, and scolded him, "Are you still trying to be godly when God has done all this to you? Curse Him and die" (Job 2:9). Even his wife turned against him!

But Job remained faithful and trusting in God. Can you comprehend it? He replied to his sorely stricken wife, whose grief was more than she could handle, "You talk like some heathen woman. What? Shall we receive only pleasant things from the hand of God and never anything unpleasant?" The Scripture then states: "So in all this Job said nothing wrong" (Job 2:10).

At this point, Job's three friends visited him, to attempt to comfort and console him in his misfortune and tragedy. But when they saw him, "Job was so changed that they could scarcely recognize him. Wailing loudly in despair, they tore their robes and threw dust into the air and put earth on their heads to demonstrate their sorrow. Then they sat upon the ground with him silently for seven days and nights, no one speaking a word; for they saw that his suffering was too great for words" (v.12-13).

Truly, Job's story -- and his suffering -- have no equal in all the annals of human history. Often people think they have it rough. But they have seldom considered the sufferings of Job! He makes most of us look like pikers!

Job and the Nazi Holocaust

When millions of the Jewish people were herded into concentration camps, by the Nazis during World War II, and lost all their possessions, were transported cooped up in cattle cars on the railroads, with no facilities for going to the toilet, but had to pee or defecate while jammed up alongside other people, this seemed bad -- horrible -- too horrible to describe. But it was only the beginning of their sufferings.

In the Nazi death camps, many were forced to live on gruel, a pittance of soiled bread and thin soup, and to perform slave labor, wearing rags and filthy garments. Disease killed multiple thousands, and others died of malnutrition, wasting away until they were barely skin and bones. Families of course were torn apart, children separated from their parents, husbands and wives separated from each other.

Bad as these conditions were, the German extermination camps, like Dachau, Belsen Belsen, and Auschwitz, gassed millions to death, and then cremated them in fiery ovens, after stealing the gold and silver from their teeth and cutting off their hair to use to stuff pillows! O the horror and the indignity of it all! Women were forced into prostitution. Survival was minimal. Only a few managed to escape, to live, to tell their incredible stories. When General Eisenhower was the German death camps first hand, close up, for the first time, and saw thousands of "survivors," mere human skeletons, grim and gaunt-faced, he was outraged.

But how soon we forget.

As a result of what the Jewish people refer to as "The Holocaust," which is a term that means, literally, a "fiery offering or sacrifice," in which an estimated six million of them perished as a result of Hitler's "Final Solution" to the "Jewish problem," many Jews today, and their relatives, have had a very difficult time dealing with the tragedy. "Where was God?" they wonder. "Why did He allow this?" And many as a result, have turned their backs on God, embraced atheism, or become agnostics, doubting and questioning the very existence of God.

Why can blame them? Humanly speaking, I surely cannot. However, I see an anomaly here. In the case of Job, when his tragedies occurred, he never questioned God's existence, nor did He accuse God or blame Him or curse Him -- but he did acknowledge that God had all power, and that He was ultimately responsible for Job's sufferings. And God's Word says that he was right on target! Even though it was the devil who caused the disasters to strike, it was GOD who allowed the devil to do it! (Job 1:6-18; 2:1-7).

Obviously, when disasters of this magnitude strike, men and women seek answers. Sometimes, or even often, such answers do not seem to be readily forthcoming. People cry out to God. There is no answer. They complain bitterly to God. There is still no response. God is holding His peace. He is waiting. Time passes on. People become impatient. They lose faith. They begin to think maybe there is no God. Or they begin to think God is a sadistic, callous, inhuman Monster -- as bad as the Nazis themselves! So they fall into the trap, and unlike Job, who refused to curse God, they turn on God, and blot Him out of their lives, and refuse to have anything whatsoever to do with Him!

Isn't this often the case, when really severe trials come, and there seems to be no let up, no relenting, no intermission, no cessation -- they just keep on coming, like the waves of the ocean, one right after another, crashing into our lives without remorse or respite.

Many, under such circumstances, would "curse God and die," as Job's wife suggested. That would be the "human" thing to do. When innocents suffer, when really good people incur great tragedy and grief, that is the "last straw" to most people. They throw up their hands, cannot understand how God could allow such things, and decide to have nothing to do with such a God! They don't merely "question" why God allows such things, but they cannot "forgive" Him -- and so they "curse" Him and put Him out of their lives!

And so they never learn the deep, penetrating, awesome lessons taught by a true understanding of the book of Job -- they don't understand why it was written, and what it has to do with you and me!

The Facts of the Case

Job was an amazing man! He really was upright -- honest, compassionate, merciful, a very good man. He feared God and worshipped Him. Although his trials were a tremendous grief to Him, and he didn't understand them, nevertheless he did maintain faith in God. Some of the most inspiring words ever written are found in Job, where he said from the depths of his personal "hell": "For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God" (Job 19:25-26). one of the most inspiring passages from Handel's Messiah is an oratorio based on this verse.

What kind of man was this fellow called Job?

His friends kept on insisting he must have sinned; but Job was a tenacious, bold man. He did not compromise with their arguments, or assume that they must be right. He was honest with himself, and before God. He refused to compromise with his

conscience -- and this was right in God's sight. This was not self righteousness, but honest integrity. If you were falsely accused, should you meekly assume that your accuser is right? Absolutely not! Solomon wrote, "A righteous man falling down before the wicked is as a troubled fountain, and a corrupt spring" (Prov.25:26). It was right for Job to honestly defend himself in this case, before his friends. His mistake was not that he maintained his righteousness -- but that he succumbed to the temptation to blame God, to falsely accuse Him, and to condemn Him.

Job would not compromise with evil. He said to his friends, "God forbid that I should justify you: till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me. My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go: my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live" (Job 27:5-6).

Job was a truly noble man. He bore witness, "For I, as an honest judge, helped the poor in their need, and the fatherless who had no one to help them. I helped those who were ready to perish and they blessed me. And I caused the widows hearts to sing for joy. All I did was just and honest, for righteousness was my clothing! I served as eyes for the blind and feet for the lame. I was as a father to the poor, and saw to it that even strangers received a fair trial. I knocked out the fangs of the godless oppressors and made them drop their victims" (Job 29:12-17, The Living Bible).

What a wonderful man! Here is an example we should all emulate. Remember, God Himself said that Job was "PERFECT."

Job was a very wise man. He knew the place of wisdom. He said, "Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding" (Job 28:28).

These are not the words of a self-righteous man. Not at all! These are the deep sayings of a truly converted, sincere, dedicated man -- a true worshipper of God! This is not the "Lifestyle of the Rich and Famous" of the world around us, but rather the "Lifestyle of a True Servant of God"!

So, the question -- the riddle -- the enigma -- remains.

Since this was the case -- and God Himself bore witness to the fact that Job was indeed a righteous man -- a man that was, in God's own words, "perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil" -- then the mystery remains. Why did God allow Satan the devil to afflict him?

It wasn't because of any sins in Job's life. Whatever sins he had, he had repented of. He truly sought God with all his heart and soul. He was called "righteous" even by God Himself!

It wasn't because of his attitude. Job had a fine, wonderful, humble, perfect attitude! Notice! Even when stricken down, and devastated, he still worshipped God, and said: "Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord." And God's word goes on to say: "In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly" (Job 1:21-22).

No, despite the self-appointed critics, who would attempt to find some fault with Job, some blemish in his life or heart, the simple truth is that Job was a righteous man!

God again bears witness to this fact in the book of Ezekiel. God told the prophet, "And when I pour out my fury by sending an epidemic of disease into the land, and the plague kills man and beast alike, though Noah, Daniel and Job were living there, the Lord God says that only they would be saved, because of their righteousness" (Ezek.14:19, TLB). Also, in verse 14, God says: "Son of dust, when the people of this land sin against me, then I will crush them with my fist and break off their food supply and send famine to destroy both man and beast. If Noah, Daniel and Job were here today, they alone would be saved by their righteousness, and I would destroy the remainder of Israel, says the Lord God."

Thus God Himself places Job in the highest spiritual company, with both Daniel and Noah! Why, then, did a loving, merciful God give Job all these horrible trials?

Job Was a Righteous Man

Notice, again, the very opinion and declaration of the Living, Almighty God about His servant Job. "And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a PERFECT and an UPRIGHT man, one that feareth God and escheweth evil?" (Job 1:8).

God Himself gave witness that Job was "perfect and upright," a man who feared God and shunned evil!

What greater witness can we have than that of God Himself?

But if Job was a GOOD man, then WHY on earth did God allow the devil to strike at him, kill his children, destroy and remove all his wealth and possessions, and even to plague Job himself with a horrible disease?

Indeed, the thundering question remains, roaring to be answered: WHY?

In the same way, true Christians often wonder WHY does God sometimes allow great and heavy trials to come into the lives of His servants, who are doing their best to obey and serve Him?

Why is it that sometimes true Christians go through great and horrendous pain and suffering and physical afflictions? Why does God allow some of His very own people to suffer cancer, lingering illnesses, or go through horrible accidents? Why does He even sometimes allow them to die from illness, diseases cancer, heart attacks or accidents?

This is the paradox of the ages! This is the question that philosophers and ministers have puzzled over with great head-scratching perplexity! Why must good men suffer?

Even after Job lost his possessions and his children, he still did not turn against God. We read: "Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped. ,And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly" (Job 1:20-22).

Although Satan the devil brought these trials upon Job, God Almighty is the One who permitted him to do so! God, in effect, sent them! Job did not sin in holding God responsible for his trials. Nor did he curse God, or refuse to worship Him, or turn his back on Him, because of them. What a man!

After this, we read: "And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a PERFECT and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause?" (Job 2:31).

Did you get that? God Himself admitted that Job was "blameless" -- that he was "innocent"! God admitted that there was NO JUST CAUSE for Job's misfortunes and trials! God admitted that He had allowed the devil to afflict Job "WITHOUT CAUSE"! That is, God admitted that Job was righteous, and did not deserve to be treated this way!

What a shocking admission! Why, then, did God DO it?

I am sure that many Jewish victims of the Holocaust wonder the same thing about the Holocaust. God certainly ALLOWED the Holocaust. I have visited Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Museum, in Jerusalem, Israel. It portrays unspeakable tragedy and horror, suffering and cruelty. Yet God allowed it! And the heart of faith must bear witness that, since He did, He must have had a purpose in allowing it! The next question is, can we understand that purpose? And what if in a particular trial, God does not explain His actions, or the reason why He allows it?

WHY Did Job Have to Suffer?

We know that "sin" -- that is, transgression of the laws of God (I John 3:4) -- brings about a penalty -- a curse -- in the lives of those who transgress God's laws (see Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28). Sin incurs a penalty. Ultimately, that penalty for sin is DEATH (Rom.6:23).

But in Job's case, we have the witness of God Himself who said that he was a "perfect" man, who feared God and shunned evil! Therefore, it is a waste of time to try to figure out what "sin" Job committed to incur such wrath from a righteous God! Yet this is the very thing most people do! Job's three friends, for example, just could not believe that such tragedies and suffering could befall a righteous, innocent man. They just KNEW in their hearts that Job MUST have had many horrible secret sins that he was covering up, to bring about such calamities! So in the remainder of the book of Job, from chapter 4 to chapter 31, we have the record of the tussel -- the wrestling match -- the argumentation between Job and his three friends, who insisted he must be a wretched and miserable sinner, and Job who insisted that he was a righteous and an innocent man, and that God has sent these trials on him regardless of that fact!

Does this mean that the statements and reasonings of Job's three friends are foolishness, a waste of time, and useless? A former professor of Old Testament Survey class once said that he thought the vast majority of the book of Job was useless and should be scrapped! But if that is the case, why did God Himself have it included as Scripture?

The truth is, every statement of Job's three friends was TRUE! Their reasoning was impeccable. They said that God punishes sinners -- and they were right. They said that none could hide his sins from God -- and they were right! Where then were they wrong?

At the end of the book, we read this profound statement: "After the Lord had finished speaking with Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite: 'I am angry with you and your two friends, for you have not been right in what you have said about me, as my servant Job was. Now take seven young bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer a burnt offering for yourselves; and my servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer on your behalf, and won't destroy you as I should because of your sin, your failure to speak rightly concerning my servant Job" (Job 42:7-8).

They were in error because they ASSUMED that Job was an evil man -- based on the "evidence" of his sufferings alone! They had NO PROOF of any of Job's alleged sins that they accused him of -- but they just could not believe that he was guiltless, and so they tried with all their might to convict him of sin, when he was sinless! They missed the whole point of Job's sufferings, just as most people do, today!

One minister, Herbert W. Armstrong, used to say that Job really was a sinner, after all -- that he was guilty of the sin of "self-righteousness." He used to say that even Satan could not spot this sin, because it was his own sin, and therefore he could not recognize it! This, however, is sheer nonsense. How can we say Job was "self-righteous" when God Himself says that Job was "perfect," a man who "fears God" and "shuns evil"? If we say Job was self-righteous, then we make God out to be a liar -- we accuse His Word of being wrong -- and we become JUDGES of God Himself -- a very wicked thing! By accusing Job of being self-righteous, the truth is that Herbert Armstrong put himself right there beside Job's three friends -- Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar -- and will one day have to repent, and ask Job's forgiveness, just as they did!

We read at the conclusion of the book of Job, these remarkable words: "Then, when Job prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his wealth and happiness! In fact, the Lord gave him twice as much as before! Then all of his brothers, sisters, and former friends arrived and feasted with him in his home, consoling him for all his sorrow, and comforting him because of all the TRIALS the Lord had brought upon him. And each of them brought him a gift of money, and a gold ring. So the Lord blessed Job at the end of his life more than at the beginning. For now he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 teams of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. God also gave him seven more sons and three more daughters" (Job 42:10-14, The Living Bible).

The REAL Lessons of the Book of Job

What, then, is the REAL lesson of the book of Job? The first lesson, I would say, based on what we have already discussed, is do not get angry with God, and falsely accuse Him, when He allows TRIALS to come into your life. If He allows them -- and He often does, as we will see -- there has to be a REASON!

Secondly, when trials befall others, do not be quick to JUDGE them, and condemn them, for "imagined sins" and transgressions, ASSUMING they must be great sinners before God! Like Job, they may not be sinners at all. Their trials may be due to altogether different reasons! Therefore, do not be quick to judge your brother! Rather, as Jesus Christ declared, "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment" (John 7:24). And, as the apostle Paul wrote: "But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ" (Rom.14:10).

These are two of the greatest lessons we can learn from the book of Job. However, there is a greater lesson, still, that we must learn from the example and experience of Job. That is, the answer to the age-old question: Why do bad things sometimes happen to good people?

Let's be sure we understand this truth -- the trials that came upon Job -- and great and sore trials they were -- were not due to any imagined SELF RIGHTEOUSNESS that some people think he was guilty of! They were not due to any SIN at all!

This is a very important point! Because it is at this very point that most people stumble -- and many lose heart, become discouraged, or bitter, when trials seem to balloon up and blow up in their lives, unexpectedly, and seemingly without any just cause -- and they lose faith in God, condemn Him, and put themselves out of the Church of God!

They have never learned the deep lesson of the book of Job. Like most people -- and like Job's three friends -- they have ASSUMED that Job was really only "getting what he deserved!" Even Herbert W. Armstrong, when all was said and done, thought the same thing, by accusing Job of the sin of self-righteousness!

Therefore, when such people find themselves being mistreated, as Job was, they cannot understand it. When things don't seem to go right, even though they are tithing, and obeying all God's commandments, they become discouraged. Some become angry, resentful toward God, and become bitter, lose faith in God, and leave the Church in bitter anger and hostility!

Remember this vital point: NOTHING IN THIS WORLD CAN HAPPEN WITHOUT THE FOREKNOWLEDGE AND PERMISSION OF ALMIGHTY GOD -- NOTHING.

Therefore, learn this lesson well: If God allows anything at all to happen in your life, to you or your loves ones, He must have a very good reason,, even if you are temporarily blinded, and don't see what it is, or understand it at the time!

The apostle Paul stated this lesson -- this fundamental truth -- plainly. He declared: "And we know that ALL THINGS work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose" (Rom.8:28).

When we understand and grasp the profound wisdom and truth of this simple statement, then we realize that even such things as the Holocaust during World War II happened at the express will of God and WILL WORK TOGETHER FOR GOOD to all those who love God, and who called according to His purpose. This truth means that even such horrible nightmarish events have a righteous and holy purpose in the sight of God. Humans may not, at the time, understand why God allows some things, but that doesn't mean He doesn't have a reason. Ultimately, that reason is to bring us to Him, to teach us to re-evaluate our lives, and where we may have been wrong, and to use introspection into our own lives, motives, and hearts. Some suffering may well be due to our sins. Other suffering may be totally undeserved and unearned. Nevertheless,

God has a reason for allowing ALL suffering!

Let's understand this fundamental, basic, foundational TRUTH!

Is It a Mistake to "Serve God"?

Is it a mistake -- to serve God? Is it a shortcut to "failure" to devote your life to God and His Work?

The Psalmist wrote of the wicked who seem to have it so good -- who own vast plantations, wineries, thousands of acres of prime agricultural lands, oil wells, oil companies, huge corporations, thousands of head of cattle, and so forth. David wrote of the wicked: "For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm. They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men. Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment. Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish" (Psalm 73:4-7). Doesn't that often appear to be the truth? The wicked get rich; and the righteous suffer.

It doesn't seem fair!

Has your attitude ever been affected, because you saw the wicked "getting ahead"? Have you noticed the wicked even rise to high positions in the Church of God? It has happened -- time and time again! The wicked seem to succeed; and the righteous are ignored, put down, suffer wrongfully, and never seem to "get ahead"!

Have you seen those playing party politics, flattering the boss, getting promoted over you? Why does it happen? Have you ever wondered whether it really makes sense doing things God's way, since it always seems to end up in more trials? Has your faith in God been sorely tested by what you have seen in the Church of God, in your business, or around you?

Notice what the Psalmist says about the wicked, who seem to "have it all"! David wrote: "They are corrupt, and speak wickedly concerning oppression: they speak loftily, they set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth" (vs.8-9).

Have you at times been a victim of such oppression?

The Psalmist, inspired by God Himself says, "Behold, these are the UNGODLY, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches." He goes on to lament, "Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency. For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning" (Psalm 73:12-14).

Is that the way you sometimes feel?

"Tote dat barge! Lift dat bale! Get a little drunk, and you land in jail!" go the words to the old song, "Old Man River." Do you sometimes feel oppressed -- afflicted -- smitten down to the ground? Have the ungodly persecuted you? Has your employer sometimes mistreated you?

The truth is, no matter where you work on the face of the earth, you cannot escape the oppression of the wicked. It even occurs right in the end-time churches of God! Satan the devil has had his instruments, doing his work, even in the midst of God's own Work, during these "last days"!

The wicked seem to get away with everything. But if you are a servant of God, a true Christian, it seems you can't get away with anything! Your life is like that of a fish in a goldfish bowl -- everybody sees everything you do! But the wicked can hide their devious schemes and dastardly plans and pull the wool over the eyes of even some of God's own servants in high places!

But, the Psalmist goes on, "If I say, I will speak thus [i.e., complain about it!], I should offend against the generation of thy children [that is, righteous brethren -- who ought to be encouraged by what we say, and not discouraged]. When I thought to know this [i.e., understand why it is this way], it was too painful for me; until . . ."

Until when?

"Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end," David cried.

The Psalmist continues, "Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction [eventually, when God decrees, they will pay for their evil ways and wicked deeds and heinous attitudes and sins!]. How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors. As a dream when one awaketh; so, 0 Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image [the whole life of the wicked has been a mere image, an illusion; a vaporous, shifting desert mirage]" (Psalm 73:l5-20).

By the end of this Psalm, the writer's attitude is golden -- he has admitted his error in thinking -- in having been envious of the wicked. But now he rejoices, "Thus my heart was grieved, and I was pricked in my reins. So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand. Thou shalt guide me with thy counsels and afterward receive me to glory" (vs.21-24).

Here is the vital lesson -- the key to proper understanding! The wicked may indeed prosper for this life, for the temporary moment, as the rich man in the parable of Jesus about the beggar Lazarus and the rich man. But, even though God's servants have a tough time of it during this life, and have constant trials and tests, straining and stretching their faith, these trials actually strengthen us -- teach us important spiritual lessons. One of these lessons is that our reward -- our inheritance -- is not now, in this life, but in the world to come -- the world tomorrow! As David declared -- "Thou shalt afterward receive me to GLORY"!

Therefore the Psalmist writes, "'Whom have I in heaven but thee, and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. My flesh and my heart faileth: but GOD is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish; thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee. But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord God, that I may declare all thy works" (vs.25-28).

All these trials and troubles and tests of faith are meant for one basic, underlying purpose: To cause us to draw near to God. They are meant to teach us to learn to RELY on God when trouble comes -- to teach us to DEPEND on Him-- to LOOK to Him, eyes fixed on Him, riveted on Him, locked in on Him, sighted in on Him -- when trouble strikes, and when we don't know what to do otherwise!

"Of All Men Most Miserable"

There are those who think that because Christians obey God's laws in this life, that they will be enormously blessed, and be much better off than their counterparts in the world, who trample on God's laws. I heard a minister in the Worldwide Church of God, Richard Plache, many years ago claim this as a fact, in a sermonette he gave at Pasadena.

But this idea is a total fiction! It simply contradicts human experience. In this life, it is the wicked who really prosper -- just as David wrote in the Psalms!

In the long run, of course, as Solomon wrote, is it true that eventually, all things will work out for the good of the righteous! Solomon declared: "He that feareth God shall come forth of them all" (Eccl.7:18). He added, with keen insight, "Though a sinner do evil an hundred times, and his days be prolonged, yet surely I know that it shall be well with them that fear God, which fear before him" (Eccl.8:12).

Nevertheless, although God may bless His people in many ways, as they obey Him, yet their lives will also be filled with trials and troubles. We must never forget this! We must never be led into complacency, thinking that no further trials can come because we are obeying God! Job's example should print this lesson indelibly upon our minds forever!

The Trials and Troubles of Abraham

Abraham was a man who obeyed God from the heart. God said of him, "Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws" (Gen.26:5). And God did bless Him as He obeyed, and prospered him, and he became a wealthy man (Gen.13:2-6). However, he went through times of famine with his family (Gen.12:10). He almost lost his wife to an Egyptian Pharaoh (Gen.12:11-15), except for God's intervention (vs.17-20). He lost his nephew Lot to an armed invasion of the land, and had to go and rescue him (Gen.14:12-16). His faith was tested and tried, and he waited twenty five years before God fulfilled His promise and gave him a son.

But toward the end of his life, after he had obeyed God for many years, and after Isaac was finally born, as a gift from God, Abraham entered upon the greatest trial of his life! You might think that by now surely he had proven himself to God. Why, hadn't he obeyed God throughout his life? But now God required that he take his only son Isaac, and to go to Mount Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering (Gen.22:2).

"Wha-a-a-t?" Abraham might have exclaimed. "That's it! I've had it with you! You are impossible!!! Who can serve You??? This is preposterous -- I flat out won't do it!"

At this point, after a life of total obedience to God, Abraham might have put his foot down, and argued with God. He might have said, "No, Lord, that is ridiculous -- nonsense. No loving God would require that of a father! Why, you made me wait for 25 years, before you gave me Isaac, the son of your promise! Surely you don't want me to kill him, now! Have you lost your mind? Have you gone crazy? I won't do it!"

And humanly speaking, Abraham's arguments would have made perfect sense, wouldn't they? Would you be willing to obey God in a matter such as Abraham's trial? This was undoubtedly the greatest trial of his life, and it came after a lifetime of trials, and obedience to God!

Do you think Abraham was feeling the "abundant life," as he trudged up to Mount Moriah, leading his son, knowing that soon he would be plunging the knife into his body? It was the lowest point of his life. He must have experienced immeasurable grief -- the greatest misery any man can ever know!

Yet this trial, like all trials, worked out for the best -- God did intervene, and save Isaac (Gen.22:1-14)! And by this example of obedience, God revealed His awesome plan to sacrifice His own Son, Jesus Christ, for the sins of the world! God, the Father, revealed how much grief, and misery, and loving compassion, He felt, as His own Son went to the stake on the hill, and gave up His life for our sins!

Because Abraham was faithful in this trial, God blessed him more than ever, and confirmed and magnified the promises which He had made to him, and Abraham became the "father of the faithful," because he steadfastly obeyed God's voice (Gen.22:16-18).

The Trials and Tribulations of the Apostles

The apostle Paul also had a life filled with trials and troubles. Did he experience all the "good things" of life, and grow incredibly rich, because he was a servant of God? Not at all! Paul confessed, "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair [in other words, sometimes things happen in our lives which perplex us, which we cannot understand -- but even so, we never give up!]; persecuted but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed" (II Cor.4:8-9). Did Paul experience what most would call "the abundant life" here and now? It depends on what you mean by "abundant." His trials were abundant enough!

Paul said, in recounting his own life's experiences, and that of the other apostles of Jesus Christ: "We patiently endure suffering and hardship and trouble of every kind. We have been beaten, put in jail, faced angry mobs, worked to exhaustion, stayed awake through sleepless nights of watching, and gone without food" (II Cor.6:4-5, TLB).

Paul added, "The world ignores us [they received no fame, no honor, no glorious position!], but we are known to God; we live close to death, but here we are, still very much alive. We have been injured but kept from death. Our hearts ache, but at the same time we have the joy of the Lord. We are poor [he didn't have much in the way of money, unlike some ministers today, who seem to live high off the hog!], but we give rich spiritual gifts to others, We own nothing, and yet we enjoy everything" (vs.9-10).

What was Paul's life really like? He said, "I have worked harder, been put in jail oftener, been whipped times without number, and faced death again and again and again. Five different times the Jews gave me their terrible thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I was in the open sea all night and the whole next day. I have traveled many weary miles and have been often in great danger from flooded rivers, and from robbers, and from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the hands of the Gentiles. I have faced grave dangers from mobs in the cities and from death in the deserts and in the stormy seas and from men who claim to be brothers in Christ but are not. I have lived with weariness and pain and sleepless nights. Often I have been hungry and thirsty and have gone without food; often I have shivered with cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm"

(II Cor.11:23-27).

As I said, I once heard a minister -- Richard Plache -- give a sermon where he claimed that those who obey God are better off in this life than those who do not, because they obey God's laws. He said that even if we only have a r