God, Good, and Evil

When was the last time you were completely in awe of God? When was the last time that you just felt floored by his hugeness, his magnitude, and his otherness? As humans, we often want to bring God down to our level. We want to be able to explain everything about him or we try and make him fit into our categories rather than realizing that he is a category in himself. This is one of the reasons I love to frequently visit the book of Job.

Uncomfortable

Job is a book that is meant to startle us. I think Job is a book that should cause us to feel a little uncomfortable. This book tells us that God is not like us. He's much bigger, much smarter, and he works in ways that we would never choose.

One of the most shocking things for us to realize is that God is completely in control of evil. We see this in the opening act of Job where Satan is permitted into God's presence and they have a dialogue regarding Job's service and devotion to God. God allows Satan to test Job, but he sets the limits. Having this picture may startle us. "God allows Satan to test us? I'm not sure I like that," we might say.

Job essentially loses everything but his wife and life. This is also shocking. God allows Satan to wreck Job's life and kill his servants and kids. What's even more shocking is Job's response to this tragedy. "Then his wife said to him, 'Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die.' But he said to her, 'You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?' In all this Job did not sin with his lips" (Job 2:9-10).

Good and Evil

Job doesn't sin in the midst of losing almost everything including all of his children. Instead, he defends God. He recognizes that God's hand is in control of all circumstances. He says that we must realize that not only does God give good, but he also gives evil.

Where is the comfort in this? A God who dishes out both good and evil doesn't seem very good. Much of the rest of Job is him maintaining his innocence while his "friends" argue with him that he must have done something to bring all of this on from God. This goes on for quite some time before God enters the scene and silences them all.

No Purposeless Evil

It is in Job chapter 38 that God speaks. When God speaks, we are floored. When he speaks, we are undone. When he speaks, we realize just how small we are and just how huge he is. Does he answer every one of Job's questions? No. But, he does proclaim his glory and show that he is worthy to be worshiped and praised. His ways are so far above ours and his wisdom is so vast that we can't stand before such a holy God; we must bow.

Job shows us a good God and an incredibly gracious God. In Job 42, we see that God doubles Job's fortunes. He gives him more children. Job 42:12 says, "And the LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning." God is truly a good God and his control over both good and evil is good news for us who follow him.

Job shows us there is no purposeless evil. With God being in control, he is not the author of evil, but uses it to achieve his good purposes. He works all things for the good of his children (Romans 8:28) and for his glory. We can be confident in a good God who is in control of evil. We also take comfort in knowing that in the midst of that evil, he is near. He holds us. He draws us near.

Jesus Should Shock Us

Ultimately, Job points us to Jesus. Job suffered to silence Satan, but we don't know any other purpose. Jesus experienced more suffering than we could possibly imagine, took on himself God's punishment for the evil of the world, and ultimately silences Satan. God shows us his very good purposes in the evil inflicted upon his Son. It was God's will to crush him (Isaiah 52:10). But it was also his will and pleasure to raise him and seat him at his right hand (Ephesians 1:20) and to save those who trust in him (Romans 10:9).

The story of Job should startle us. The story of the cross should shock us. Job might make us feel uncomfortable at times, but so should the cross. The God of all creation sent his Son to a cross to save a wretch like me. Be floored at the foot of the cross.