Text: Job 1
Job’s story is well known. Satan is given permission to take everything Job has: his business, his property, his family, and his health. But through this, Job defends the LORD at great personal cost to him. It’s often said that this book is about suffering and why good people suffer. That is certainly in here, but that isn’t the point of Job. Verse 1:22 brings out the point of this entire book. This is exactly how the book starts with Job’s concern for God’s reputation in his children.
Job is concerned with God’s reputation (1:5)
- If you’re a dad, you want your kids to enjoy life. You want them to have fun. You want them to be successful. I do too. I truly want my kids to be and have all those things. But there is something that is more important than all of those things that Job teaches us about fatherhood. That is, my job as a father is to make sure my children have the right perception of God.
- Job is a man who wants to protect God’s reputation in his children’s minds. The idea of accusing God shows up immediately in 1:5. It is Job’s chief concern that his family doesn’t have the wrong ideas about God. But the assault on God’s reputation begins early with the assault on Job’s family and home. This is what Job’s faith looks like among his family.
- Sometimes fathers give their children reasons to blaspheme God.
- While your children are held responsible for their own blasphemy, you’re responsible for giving them a reason to blaspheme God.
- King David brought adultery into his family and some of his children lost respect for him and his God.
- Eli, a priest, never corrected his sons. They were accountable for their own actions, but Eli was accountable for his parenting. Sure, he’d tell them to stop what they were doing, but by that time it was too late. He never corrected the behavior. Speaking isn’t correction if the behavior isn’t changing.
- Hypocrisy is a big turn-off to your children.
- Minimizing the things of God will make your children hate the things of God.
- Failing to show them the value of Christian living will hurt God’s reputation among them.
- Blaspheming the LORD
- Romans 2:24
- 1 Timothy 6:1
- Titus 2:5
Job is careful with the hearts of his children (1:5)
- Job will do more than pray for his children.
- He’s going to get up early.
- He’s going to sanctify his children.
- He’s going to make sacrifices for his children.
- You probably do all of these things or did all of these things at one time for your children. But Job doesn’t do these things just because these are his children who he loves. Job does these things because he is insistent that the LORD is not taken for granted or blasphemed in the hearts of his children.
- Hear this, please! Job’s reputation with God is directly in line with his concern for God’s reputation.
- God’s testimony of his servant Job is (1:8):
- Perfect
- Upright
- Fears God
- Eschews evil – he shuns evil.
- This is a man’s reputation with God who has chosen to defend God’s reputation.
Job’s faith as a father (42:10-17)
- What began as protecting God’s reputation and righteousness has led to the death of his children. What incredible confusion! Job has been so careful to make sure his children have not offended the LORD and now the LORD has allowed all his children to die.
- Now, what does Job do when he no longer has children to take care of. He’s no longer an active father. There is something about Job having a responsibility to his children and doing right, but what if there are no children? I think I’d feel a little entitled to a few accusations. The need for me to good in front of my children is gone. My life is ruined. Job is literally just left with his own integrity. Through it all Job refuses to curse God or accuse him of wickedness.
- The LORD frees Job from this captivity at the end of the book. It looks like many of the folks Job was good to in his life start to return the favor. They bring him possessions. Job becomes a father again. And he’s given twice as much life as he had before. He’s given twice as many possessions as he had before.
- There is hope in the end. Longsuffering pays off. Stay faithful. Concern yourself with God’s reputation. You’ll be tested on that for sure. But you’ll be rewarded for your faithfulness as well.
