Day 155

When We Can’t Understand God’s Ways

Read: Job 12-14

Job’s problem is that he cannot understand why God is treating him as he is. He knows the explanation of his “friends” is wrong, but he doesn’t understand the right explanation. At times we cannot understand why God is dealing with us as he is, so we should be able to empathize with Job.

Each of his “friends” having spoken, Job now gives a rebuttal. They think they know it all, but Job refuses to accept the attitude that they know more than he does. He seems to have calmed down somewhat. When one deals with a problem over a length of time, the person’s feelings change for better or for worse. Job points out that there are instances which show that sometimes the righteous suffer and the ungodly seem to get away with it. From our limited perspective God often seems to be using his omnipotence in ways which puzzle us.

Job turns from speaking to his friends to speaking to God. He recognizes that he is a sinner, but he is sure that he has not committed some terrible secret sin as his “friends” claim. He cried out to God, “Why?” and he did not get an answer. Job’s problem was compounded by the fact that he does not seem at this point to have a bright hope of a world to come which we have. “We’ll understand it all by and by.”

PRAYER
Father, help us to believe in your love even when we cannot understand your dealings with us. In Christ. Amen.