Saturday, February 26, 2011

Success!

Job was perfect and upright and eschewed evil according to God (Job 1:1, 8, 2:2:3). A lot of challenges hit him all at once but through it all Job maintained his righteousness. (Job 27:5-6) His friends who thought they knew the why's and wherefores became 'miserable comforters' as they tried to dig out sin in Job's life. Job stayed steadfast. He was a good man(God says it 3 times in the first couple of chapters of Job) who didn't deserve all he got, but he didn't condemn himself. He just didn't understand some things. There is an adversary in this world and it was him who tried to take Job out. The adversary is not named directly very many times in the Old Testament but  most of them are here in Job.
What God says about Job in 42:7-11 is very telling.
And it was so, that after the LORD had spoken these words unto Job, the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath. Therefore take unto you now seven bullocks and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and my servant Job shall pray for you: for him will I accept: lest I deal with you after your folly, in that ye have not spoken of me the thing which is right, like my servant Job.
When adversity hits too often we condemn ourselves and that is unproductive and an impediment. Condemnation keeps us out of the throne room. God is all good and he knows our frame and that is precisely why we have a savior who came to expose destroy the works of the devil( I John 3:8). We have access to the throne room of God.
1 John 3:20-22 For if our ❤ condemn us, God is greater than our ❤, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our ❤ condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
Believing is the key to pleasing God. The Message has an interesting version of Hebrews 11:6:
It's impossible to please God apart from faith(believing). And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him.
Often there are  things that we don't understand.  It is where we go first for the answers that determines the results we get. God is ready willing and able to answer us 'liberally', we just need to ask. How could anything be simpler! God  will direct us to the appropriate path to take. Going to God first in anything, be it finances(lessons in Genesis regarding  Joseph are the cutting edge of financial advisement), health, relationships, goals etc, insures success!

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