Two
Rivers Pastoral Charge
Sunday October 6, 2024
Scripture Reading: Job 1:1, 2:1-10
I will be the first person to confess that the Book of Job troubles me, and I
know that I’m not the only one. When I was off on Sabbatical earlier this year,
I downloaded a couple of bible studies for the Wednesday morning group to use,
one on Job and one on Ecclesiastes, and the first thing that I heard from the
group when I got back in May was “We don’t like Job.”
Our reading today introduces the book, but it also skipped over most of Chapter 1, so let me just give you a quick summary of what happened first. We heard that Job was blameless and upright, a good man who revered God. Chapter 1 also tells us that he was a wealthy man, with many children and much livestock; but he never forgot to give thanks to God, knowing that God was the source of all that he had. Then, in Chapter 1, we encounter the first dialogue between God and Satan (whose name literally means the Accuser or the Tempter), where God is bragging about Job’s faith, and Satan says that Job has it easy, because look at all of his material belongings, no wonder that he is faithful. God and Satan then make a bet – God believes that Job will remain faithful even if he has nothing, but the Tempter believes that Job’s faith will falter if he has nothing.
Then, in one fell swoop, all of Job’s livestock are taken away by raiders, and a building collapses killing all of Job’s children. And Job mourns – he tears his robe and shaves his head – but he also remains faithful to God, saying “the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”
And then we come to chapter 2 that we heard today, and Job’s tragedy continues. God and Satan, the tempter have another conversation, and God continues to brag about Job’s faith. Even throughout his tragedies, Job has remained faithful. But the Tempter still wants to tempt Job away from worshipping God. Satan says, “That’s nothing. It was just things that Job lost. What will Job do if his own health is affected. Surely he will forget to praise you when the tragedy touches his very body!” So God agrees, Satan inflicts a painful affliction on Job’s whole body, and yet still Job doesn’t lose his faith.
His wife doesn’t understand. She says to him, “Do you still persist in your integrity? Why don’t you just curse God and let God strike you dead?” But Job replies, “Why should we only receive the good things in life, and not the bad?”
On the surface, it seems as though Mrs. Job is on the side of Satan, tempting her husband away from worshipping God. But that interpretation troubles me. I don’t think that God’s ego is so fragile that our questions or even our anger would bruise it. I sometimes say that God can handle our questions, our anger, our grief better than any human can.
And also, if we believe that God is love, if we believe that God’s love is unconditional, then our anger, our questions, shouldn’t have any effect on that love.
Those of you who are parents might be able to relate to this. Especially in the teenage years, children can say some very cruel things – things that are intended to cause hurt. But even in your hurt, you don’t stop loving your children less. In your compassion, you know that hormones are raging, you understand that they are figuring out who they are, you understand all of the different pressures and expectations that they are trying to navigate, you know that they are lashing out at you because you are a safe person to receive their anger. You are hurt, but you still love them unconditionally.
And if a human parent is able to be this compassionate, think of how much more compassionate God is. Our questions, our anger, our words – none of these can ever make God love us less.
In some ways, I almost wonder if Mrs. Job’s response is just as faithful as Job’s response. We don’t get to see Job’s thoughts that led him to his words, that led to his acceptance of the bad alongside the good. It’s likely that he has been wrestling with similar questions of “why me” as his wife, but we don’t get to see his inner dialogue. We only get to see the conclusion that he has come to – that life brings both good and bad.
But Mrs. Job has lost just as much as her husband has. The children that she has carried in her body have all died, and her family’s livelihood has been lost. And she doesn’t hold back from blaming God. (With very good reason, as we have seen in our behind-the-scenes view of the theatre of the heavens.)
I don’t know about you, but when I’ve experienced loss, one of my first reactions is to be angry at God. When my brain is trying to make sense out of loss or tragedy, there is often no meaning or sense to be found, so God is the only one I can blame.
I also need to point out that Mrs. Job is not struck dead, despite her outburst. If cursing God was all that bad, surely she wouldn’t have survived this moment. But she did.
Job is a book that wrestles with questions of tragedy. Why do bad things happen to good people? How do we respond when faced with un-understandable tragedy? How do we make meaning out of tragedy and loss? These are questions that are fundamental to the human experience.
It's not a historical book. There has never been a place called Uz. There are no indicators of when the book is set – no historical references. It is almost as if the book begins, “Once upon a time, in a land far, far away.” It is a story written specifically to wrestle with questions of suffering. And while I don’t agree with the premise of the book, that God permits suffering, I do relate with the urge to try and find meaning in suffering. There must be a reason for it, so why not a wager between God and the Tempter?
We’re going to get more of Job’s story in two weeks’ time (next weekend is Thanksgiving, and it didn’t feel right to focus on Job on Thanksgiving weekend) when we’ll hear how the story ends; but for this week, the message that I will take away is that there is no wrong way to respond to tragedy.
Whether you respond like Job, steadfastly praising God through the bad times as well as through the good; or whether you respond like Mrs. Job, shouting at God, cursing God, or blaming God – both of these are faithful responses. And there is nothing about how we respond that will ever shake or lessen God’s love for us.
No matter what tragedies or curveballs life throws your way, you are a beautiful and beloved child of God. You are loved more deeply than you can ever know. God’s unconditional love is always wrapped around you like a warm blanket or a hug, whether our senses are able to perceive it or not.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
“Figure of Job” circa 1750-1850
Much to reflect on. THx Kate
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