God asked Satan, “Have you seen My man Job? What a righteous fellow!”
“Anyone can buy allegiance,” whined satan. “Stop giving your pampered pet everything he wants, and he will curse You. You aren’t worth worshipping for who You are – so You have to bribe people.” Neither standing on ceremony nor pulling rank, God treated satan with an amazing degree of equality. Stating a challenge more than asking, I imagine God saying, “Really?”
And so it was that the bet was struck. The Super Bowl of the spirit world would be played out in a very small stadium – the mind, will, body and emotions of Job.
Job was a righteous man. He had an excellent family. His adult sons and daughters enjoyed each other enough to dine at one another’s homes. Few things please parents or impress others as much as non-competitive, loving, happy adult sons and daughters.
Did you notice that God initiated this conflict? He did. He raised the question and while not happy about Job’s suffering, He does not seem uncomfortable with it either (knowing what the Lord Jesus would endure).
The presence of the sons and daughters in one location – introduced in 1:13 – was the key to the satanic barrage Job suffered. Satan was able to manipulate the separate attacks of the Chaldeans and the Sabeans. There is nothing in the text that indicates that (1) either knew of the attack of the other, or that (2) they knew satan was the prime mover. Then the text returns to satan’s go-for-the-jugular move – the death of all Job’s children. Who can measure the anguish that Job and Mrs. Job experienced from this?
Satan’s power is also seen in the fact that one messenger was spared to carry this news to Job. Without that news arriving the attacks would have been meaningless.
Satan orchestrated the simultaneous arrival of the news of these attacks. We expect to see the sufferer explode or implode into spiritual insanity. Satan did not need Job to curse God for long – a white-hot burst of denial and anger would do rather nicely, thank you very much. Instead, Job “fell to the ground in worship.” Job the giant!
This teaches us:
1. We can still worship in spite of mysteries.
2. Knowledge is power.
3. Suffering focuses the issues of ownership, worth and value.
4. Nothing is exempt when God sets about to develop faith.
The Bet, based on Job 1, is days three of Eight Days with Job
Other Posts In This Series:
Job: Spiritual Sushi (Eight Days with Job, #1)
Balance (Eight Days with Job, #2)
Lessons from Job 1 (Eight Days with Job, #4)
Round Two (Eight Days with Job, #5)
A Few Good Men (Eight Days with Job, #6)
Eliphaz and His Demonic Dream Revelation (Eight Days with Job, #7)
Satanic Terrorism (Eight Days with Job, #8)
“Satan did not need Job to curse God for long – a white-hot burst of denial and anger would do rather nicely, thank you very much. Instead, Job “fell to the ground in worship.” Job the giant!”
Indeed! Thank you for this important reminder Keith.
Thomas
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