One of the very many reasons that the Old Testament Book of Job is so amazing is because it mirrors many of our behaviors as human beings. We’d like to think that we are so complicated, but in God’s eyes we are not complicated at all. Our likenesses far outweigh our differences. This is one of the reasons that His Word covers every issue we could ever possibly encounter. It doesn’t matter what the problem is, Jesus Christ is the solution. When we depend on the world for the answers to our problems, we open the door for fear and doubt to come in and make themselves at home. In many ways this is what Job did, and God’s Word demonstrates how our Heavenly Father rerouted Job’s fear, answered his questions, and brought restoration to Job’s life.
2Timothy 1:7(NLT) tells us, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” Fear doesn’t come from the Kingdom of God, it comes from the kingdom of darkness which is controlled by satan. Fear is the antithesis of faith. They are polar opposites, and God has given us this earth experience to decide which side we’re going to be on. Every believer in the Lord Jesus Christ must choose to have faith in God.
The interesting thing about us humans is that we can’t reach out and touch faith or fear, but more of us choose fear than faith. When we don’t believe in the goodness, power, and love of God and trust Him with all our hearts, we are dabbling in fear, because we not choosing to have a fully persuaded faith in Him. Many individuals have been convinced by the devil that fear is inevitably our reality and we don’t have another choice. This isn’t true. We always have a choice, and God holds each of us accountable for the choices we make. To be clear, Heavenly Father commands us in 2Corinthians 13:5(NLT) to “Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine.” This tells us that there’s a possibility that we can think we’re believing and trusting God the way we should when actually we’re on the wrong track.
This happened to Job. He understood that sin has a payment, that it has a terrible consequence that must be paid. He was always concerned because his children were on the unruly side. They did things that God was not pleased with. Job feared that they would have a really bad slip up, so he offered sacrifices to God as a “just in case.” Job 1:4-5(NLT) says, “4 Job’s sons would take turns preparing feasts in their homes, and they would also invite their three sisters to celebrate with them. 5 When these celebrations ended—sometimes after several days—Job would purify his children. He would get up early in the morning and offer a burnt offering for each of them. For Job said to himself, “Perhaps my children have sinned and have cursed God in their hearts. This was Job’s regular practice.” These sacrifices were not offered because Job trusted God. They were offered because he feared that God might let something happen to his children.
Job had fear in his heart, and unconsciously or not, he thought this fear was acceptable to God, but we learn in his record featured in the Old Testament Book of Job that this was far from the truth. Fear belongs to the devil. It does not come from God. Because it belongs to the devil, he has a legal right to go wherever he finds it. In other words, fear allows an opening for satan to come into a person’s life and that’s exactly what happened to Job. Legally, the devil had grounds to vex Job’s circumstances because Job wasn’t trusting God, he was trusting a ritual. He moved away from relationship and moved into fear.
We can’t have fellowship with God in a way that pleases Him when faith isn’t in the picture. God wants a relationship with us that is built on our faith in Him. He demonstrated this through Job’s example. As a father, Job was pretty sure his children would do something to harm their relationship with God, but in the beginning of his troubles, he showed no sign of understanding the harm that his failure to trust God was doing to him. God tells us in Galatians 5:6 that we can partake in all the rituals of tradition and culture in the world, but nothing will come close to the practice of expressing our faith through God’s love. This is the lesson Job had to learn before restoration could take place.
Job thought God had it all wrong. He thought that God had allowed satan to trouble the wrong person. This shows us his mindset. Job thought that the rituals made him and his kids righteous. He had to learn the hard way that only being in a love relationship with God can do this. We must trust that God is forever and always right, and that He will be faithful to keep His promises to us. We must be obedient to His Word, pray often, and listen for His guidance in all that we do. When we do this, God will restore us, help us stay on the right track, and keep us covered in His blessings, just as He did for Job. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Never Put Ritual Over Relationship”, written by K. Lizzie, edited by Reverend Fran Mack for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2021. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.