For he will complete what he appoints for me,
and many such things are in his mind.
Therefore I am terrified at his presence;
when I consider, I am in dread of him.
God has made my heart faint;
the Almighty has terrified me;
yet I am not silenced because of the darkness,
nor because thick darkness covers my face.
Job is under duress. His suffering must have been so, so painful. When studying Job and his friends dialogue we must never forget the condition of Job. We some times might get brought into the thought that these are four guys sitting at Starbucks having a theological discussion. But, that is not the case. Job is probably sitting on the ground or laying on a bed and his afflictions are open wounds, untreated by modern medicine. To our knowledge he is scraping his open wounds with broken pottery lying on the ground around him. It is only by God's grace that he doesn't die from this suffering and pain. When we read the above passage, note the pain and the internal affliction Job is in. He sees God as the holder of all the cards and the one who has "many such things" in His mind. Job is in a place where the sovereignty of God has turned him to a man who is questioning God's plan for him. His flesh is experiencing a spiritual crisis, even if his heart and mind are not. The sovereign plans of God for us are a great mystery to man. If we recognize that God is sovereign and is not bound by the circumstances of man or the acts of man, we are torn in conflict. How then is prayer worth practicing? If God does what He does and we have no voice in the matter (either audibly or via our actions) why then care for the lost and voice our beliefs in open forums? Job is indeed lost in his thoughts. He has failed to realize that God's sovereign will includes the actions and prayers of man and that everything God does for us and with us and to us is done in His extreme love and concern. Note how another writer in the Old Testament views God's sovereign rule:
Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Note a New Testament author:
Philippians 1:6
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
God is in the business of completing good things for us. The only limits on God are His own character and Word. God cannot break His promises and His actions must fit perfectly within His perfect love, justice, mercy and grace. The truth is our circumstances sometimes cause us to have a false view of God, but our circumstances never cause God to have a false step in His plans for us. Job was right, God WILL complete what He has planned for Job. But, Job need not fear that. God will complete the plans in perfect harmony with His love, justice, mercy and grace.
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