Job 1: 12
Then the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him.”
Do you understand the book of Job? The story of Job? Do you struggle with why God allowed Satan access to Job’s life? Well, I hope in this two part series I can add some clarity and perhaps impart some comfort to you.
In the first chapter of Job, Satan enters into the presence of God. That may be disturbing in itself, but let’s not stop there today. Satan challenged Yahweh about the faithfulness of Job. He said Job’s faithfulness was due to God’s hedge of protection around Job and because God prospered all Job set his hand to. Satan argued that Job’s righteousness was conditional; if God were to remove His hand of protection and His mantle of prosperity Job would certainly curse Him. So, God answered as you see above. What happens next is devastating. Job lost his children and his servants and livestock. Job was very wealthy, yet suddenly his wealth and his progeny were gone. How can this be? How could God allow such a thing?
Most people have faced a similar question. How could God allow this or the other bad thing to happen? Why isn’t God watching more vigilantly and guarding us? If God would allow Satan to destroy Job’s pleasant life, how can we trust Him to protect us? For many years my response to why bad things happen and the question, “Where was God?” has been twofold. First, Psalm 115: 16 reads,“The heavens are the heavens of the Lord, But the earth He has given to the sons of men.”Second, we live on an earth which has been corrupted. It’s hard to live in a septic environment and not get dirty.
Father God has given us power and authority in the earth. He even gave us some of His authority when He gave us the earth. That necessarily means that He cannot interfere in our affairs without overstepping His authority. That is why the partnership I write about frequently is so important. When we invite the Lord into a situation, it frees Him to act. Otherwise, He would be treading on our domain and that is not permissible. So, some of the time, when bad things happen, the unfortunate answer is that we have not exercised our authority. I don’t like this answer any more than you, but it is true and once we have understanding we realize that it is freeing and empowering.
The second problem, I think, is obvious. When Adam and Eve sold out to Satan, he gained some power in the earth. From that day until this, the earth has been in decay. The earth isn’t operating as it was designed to. It seems it is spinning a little off kilter. The corruption of the earth means there is bad in the earth and sometimes those things interfere with us, but, good news, God has provided for all these contingencies so that we may still live a life of joy and beauty, a life ordained for us.
Next week we will follow Job further and see how his story is insightful for our own lives and choices and how there is ultimate victory in this story. Until next week. . .
