I have been studying the book of Job and this morning it struck me how important it is to know God's word and to seek after His heart. The deeper we move into that, the better we know who we are as His child as well. Imagine the the additional grief, self condemnation and shame Job would have felt after his three misguided friends spoke to him, wrongly assuming Job's circumstances were a result of his sin. Instead, he was able to KNOW that they were off base. Granted, he was desperately confused and I believe wounded by his belief that God had abandoned him and was indifferent to his suffering. But, he knew there was something more going on and he knew it wasn't a result of his wrongdoing. He was aware that he needed to put these friends to the side and go straight to the Lord on the matter. The closer we get to the Lord, the more understanding and discernment we have about where we are and Whose we are. It will be easier to decipher when what we see and hear are not of God. This stuff can be tricky. Much of what these men spoke was truth but Job was healthy enough in his relationship with the Lord to acknowledge the friends were misguided, and their words pretty much worthless hot air.
This was Job's response after the third friend spoke:
"My eyes have seen all this, my ears have heard and understood it. What you know, I also know; I am not inferior to you. But I desire to speak to the Almighty and to argue my case with God. You, however, smear me with lies; you are worthless physicians, all of you! If only you would be all together silent! For you, that would be wisdom." Job 13: 1-5
Job was deeply suffering on every level and he lamented this. He was full of grief. He couldn't see or understand. He felt hurt by God and disgusted with his friends. But, in the depth of that, there is no doubt He KNEW God and his roots in Him were very much in tact.
Dee M. Kostelyk
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