Read: Job 40-42
Focus Verse: “My ears heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.” (Job 42:5). Devotion: I have heard many teachings on Job, from Sunday school and beyond. Most of what I can remember centered around the idea of God scolding Job and the moral of this story is we aren’t God so don’t com;plain or challenge God because we can’t understand why God does what God does. So part of that I would still agree with, but I’d take it a bit further. Job didn’t know God till he saw and spoke to God, that’s the point I see here as the moral of the story. Until then he’d only ever heard about God. It’s like this; I’ve heard about Robert Downey Jr, but I’ve never met him, so it would be wrong to reach conclusions about his character before I’ve ever met him. Secondly, God’s words don’t feel like he’s scolding Job, rather that he’s trying to teach him. God even says Job was right about what he was saying about God (42:7). So the point is that Job was right in his knowledge about God, but he never really knew God. After he comes to know God his life is even more blessed than before, and everything he lost is restored to him too (42:10-12)! My conclusion is the moral of the story of Job is that in our walk with Christ the goal is not only know about Jesus, but to know Jesus and have a relationship with him.
Pray: LORD help me go beyond knowledge and facts so that I may know You and be in relationship with You. Let relationship with You be my goal. Amen.
Additional Scripture: “God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)