Encouragement 4 The Day-"When God answers a question with one of His Own."

Aside from turning Job’s focus away from himself, I never understood why God answered Job in the manner in which He did when He finally decided to acknowledge his cries. I felt as if He (God) was being rather hateful, arrogant and unsympathetic towards Job’s plight. Did Job not have the right to ask “Why?” Here was a man who had been careful not to sin, petitioned before God everyday for his children, befriended the poor and less fortunate and not only was his behind being kicked up one street and down the next, but his friends were harassing him with their accusations. Job held out for seven days and after the seventh day he wanted to die. Not only was he in emotional pain, but he was suffering physically and spiritually because he could not find God. If there ever was a hell on earth…this was it!

Still, when God finally answered Job He seemingly lashed out. Now don’t get me wrong. God being God had every right to retaliate but here again, I could not reconcile this reaction with the painted picture of a loving parent and a child. After all, how many of us sinful parents, if a child cried out in pain, would not acknowledge them and when we finally did, would not then lovingly answer as to why we’d taken so long to respond. Only the sadist personality would react unkindly…so why this seemingly unkind reaction from God?

The answer in my opinion lies in Job’s reaction to this onslaught of questions. He HUMBLES himself! Me? I probably would have flared up with self-righteousness indignation and begin rattling off the reasons why I DID NOT deserve this treatment. But Job, he humbled himself. I would love to hypothesize that God responded in this manner to establish yet another example for us-that Job still loved Him even though the very nature of His response could have been the straw that broke the camel’s back. How like a child…that rare humility.

Unless you become like little children, you cannot enter the kingdom of God. (Matthew 18:3)

“May God, instill in us the desire to become more childlike…always loving, always forgiving. In Jesus’ name-Amen”