A Test of Faith
A Test of Faith
Job was the perfect man; a model of integrity and piety, ambition and honor. He probably even flossed every day. We are told in the beginning of the story that Job is flawless, but as time progresses I found myself second guessing this fact. Job’s friends were insistent that he had wronged, that he was hiding some huge sin which caused God to punish him the way He had. I found myself wondering; what’s the twist? What did Job do? Perhaps from reading too many mystery novels, I figured there had to be something missing. But there wasn’t. Job hadn’t wronged God, and God wasn’t punishing Job. God was testing Job. To punish is to make somebody undergo penalty: to subject somebody to a penalty for wrongdoing. God does not punish those who do things right. Again: God does not punish those who are righteous. This we are told in both the New and the Old Testaments, through both examples and through God’s spoken word. This isn’t to say that righteous people do not suffer. There are plenty of biblical examples of righteous people who have gone through extreme hardship. Let’s just take Jesus as a blatant illustration. We know he wasn’t hiding some scandalous past or a memory box full of sins. Jesus was God’s own son on Earth, and Jesus suffered an immeasurable amount. Thorns through the head, nails through the palms. We know the pain Jesus endured, but we don’t consider it punishment from God. I see Job’s trials as tests of faith, not punishments. Now were I in Job’s position, I probably wouldn’t be able to say that, but maybe that’s why the story was written—as an example to us on Earth. Satan challenges God for Job’s faith, saying he’s only so pious because he’s been blessed with so much. Job is the richest man in the East, after all—and it’s easy to rejoice when there’s so much in which to rejoice. When God removes all Job’s comforts and blessings, he is testing Job’s commitment to his faith in the truest and rawest way possible. God is testing Job
Job was the perfect man; a model of integrity and piety, ambition and honor. He probably even flossed every day. We are told in the beginning of the story that Job is flawless, but as time progresses I found myself second guessing this fact. Job’s friends were insistent that he had wronged, that he was hiding some huge sin which caused God to punish him the way He had. I found myself wondering; what’s the twist? What did Job do? Perhaps from reading too many mystery novels, I figured there had to be something missing. But there wasn’t. Job hadn’t wronged God, and God wasn’t punishing Job. God was testing Job. To punish is to make somebody undergo penalty: to subject somebody to a penalty for wrongdoing. God does not punish those who do things right. Again: God does not punish those who are righteous. This we are told in both the New and the Old Testaments, through both examples and through God’s spoken word. This isn’t to say that righteous people do not suffer. There are plenty of biblical examples of righteous people who have gone through extreme hardship. Let’s just take Jesus as a blatant illustration. We know he wasn’t hiding some scandalous past or a memory box full of sins. Jesus was God’s own son on Earth, and Jesus suffered an immeasurable amount. Thorns through the head, nails through the palms. We know the pain Jesus endured, but we don’t consider it punishment from God. I see Job’s trials as tests of faith, not punishments. Now were I in Job’s position, I probably wouldn’t be able to say that, but maybe that’s why the story was written—as an example to us on Earth. Satan challenges God for Job’s faith, saying he’s only so pious because he’s been blessed with so much. Job is the richest man in the East, after all—and it’s easy to rejoice when there’s so much in which to rejoice. When God removes all Job’s comforts and blessings, he is testing Job’s commitment to his faith in the truest and rawest way possible. God is testing Job