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“People of Hope” Sherry Lohman – October 4, 2009 Job 1:1; 2:1-10 “Curse God, and die.”// You heard what provoked Job’s wife to that end---searing words, that perhaps burned her lips as well as Job’s ears. What would it take for such words to slip out of your mouth? The death of your child? Divorce from your spouse? Loss of your job? A flood that carried away your home? Losing your vision, your hearing, a limb? Cancer? Job was a good and righteous servant of God, blameless; a God fearing man who, without fail, turned against evil. He lived a Godly life, compensating with burnt offerings to God for any sins his seven sons or three daughters might have committed…just to be on the safe side. Job owned animals, galore; 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 donkeys. That was his life. He loved his family, and God. You might say that Job was blessed by the work of his hands, by his family and all that he had. Yet as it would happen, in life, so it happened in this folktale. The story goes, that, with a blink of the eye, (and God’s permission to satan to introduce suffering), Job’s life was changed---not in a positive, transformative way, but to the detriment of all he had, and all that he was. First, his farm animals were stolen, then his sons and daughters were buried under a home that collapsed with a great wind. Imagine, all of your children taken in one fell swoop. His wife was spared. If he were your neighbor down the street, you would shake your head in disbelief at his unhappy fate. Poor Job, in his grief, tore his robe, shaved his head, and fell on the ground but still faithful, groaned, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” If this were a test of his faith, he had surely passed. Such tragedies are capable of sweeping away one’s faith. Even with less loss there may be times of distress when we wonder, “why God?” Or, “why me, God?” as if God has willfully chosen to “do” this awful thing that we are presented with.// It’s a little ironic, then, in this situation---these losses are not attributed directly to God---it’s satan who imposes the chaos. As you heard Susie read, the scene shifts, then, to the heavenly court, where maybe surprisingly, we find satan among them. It is his function to patrol the earth. Mind you, Satan, in this folktale, is not yet the demonic personification of evil that was assigned him later in Christianity. You might find it interesting to know that the word “satan,” in Hebrew, means adversary, or accuser. At the time of this writing (approx. the 6th century before the birth of Jesus), while satan was associated with evil and misfortune, he was not as an enemy of God. But he certainly plays the part of the antagonist./ So who’s in control, here, he wants to know, or rather, wants to prove. “Why do folks do what they do; believe what they believe?” He inquires. God seemingly sticks it right back to him, and asks, “Have you considered my servant, Job?” It appears that, if God were going to put his money on anyone, it would be the good and faithful Job—Job, full of integrity, and without sin. The question must have intrigued satan. So then he probed, “Does Job fear You for nothing? That is, does Job serve You because it is profitable, because You have been good to him? It is one of the most fundamental questions in the Bible. Do we serve God because of what we receive from God, or out of fear?// Satan’s question pose a direct challenge to God. “What if, things got worse? How, then, would Job react? Stretch out your hand,” satan proposes to God, “and touch all that Job has, and my guess….he will curse you to your face.” In our human thinking, this proposal puts God in a no-win situation. If God refuses, it looks as though God fears that may be a basis to satan’s claim. If God accepts, God comes out of it looking heartless. What will God do? We get caught up in the story, don’t we? I wonder, do we ever make deals with God? Have you ever proposed a no-win situation, putting God to the test? I’ve heard folks say, when they are faced with struggles, that they believe they are going through a time of testing, but perhaps it is the other way around, with us testing God.// Satan’s proposal conjures up all kinds of questions, not only within us, about us; who we are and what we believe, our thoughts about who God is, and how God acts within our lives, here, in this life, and in the afterlife. Because we don’t know. We live by our faith, but we still remain uncertain of our fate in the afterlife. We, like Job, may want to play it safe, not taking any chances. If there is a hell, we don’t want to end up there. We, here, probably all want to go to heaven…but just not today. I have heard others who live, unmotivated by fear of what may come after death. Some hold a strong belief that their creator loves them, unconditionally. Others simply confess that they don’t know, but hope for some place of peace, whatever that might be. So the challenge continues. God hands Job completely over to satan, with one condition, and that is that God insists satan must spare Job’s life./ What will satan do, to tease Job’s faith from him?// It reminds me a little of the story of Rumplestiltskin – remember that tale? The little goblin type character spins gold from wheat for the young maiden, but demands that she give up her first born child in exchange, unless she can come up with his name. There is a bit of hostage holding— So, too, it appears that God has handed over Job, and satan, now, will do everything in his power to prove that Job, when he is tested and tried to a bitter end, with the exception of bringing him to the door of death, will eventually give up his faith, his integrity, to satan. His children and livestock have already been taken from him…what more can satan do? The answer is “plenty.” Satan quickly turns from God, eager to inflict loathsome sores on Job, all the way from the sole of his feet to the crown of his head--- Job is covered with painful sores and scabs. He must have been quite a site. Even so, he has overcome satan’s second attack. Job’s response: he remains faithful to God./ His wife still believing in Job’s integrity but hoping to shorten his torture, allows the words to fall out of her mouth. “Curse God, and die.” Have you ever felt that way, if not for yourself, then, for a loved one who is suffering? Job’s trials are really just beginning. To his wife, he says, “Shall we receive the good at the hand of God, and not receive the bad?” You know what this sounds like to me? It sounds like what I’ve heard folks say about their own lives---that God has willed this unhappy fate; maybe directly imposed it. Job doesn’t hear the conversation between God and satan. He believes he has been blessed by God and that there must be some purpose in all of this tragedy. What do you think about that? Is that a part of your belief? Is it possible that in our life, bad things happen to us---not out of God’s doing or purpose, but just because bad things happen, or sometimes, bad things happen as a consequence of our own doings. The book of Job is forty-two chapters long. Already, in the first two chapters, we we are brought into a philosophical, moral and theological dialogue. What’s more, we are invited to step into the story and identify with any number of characters. We’ll be introduced to more characters next week. This story does not explain the mystery of suffering or justify the ways of God with human beings, but it does probe the depths of faith in the midst of suffering. We will not conclude, this morning, knowing how the story plays out. We will continue in the story next week, and there are a couple of things I would like to ask of you. First, I want you to go home and pray for more understanding and insight about this story, not just for today, but throughout this coming week. Ask God to open your eyes and heart, that you might learn directly, what’s in this story for you, personally. It has to do with your own faith. Second, after that prayer, I want you to read the first two chapters of Job. Hearing it, and then reading it, yourself, will help your understanding. Go someplace where it’s quiet and you won’t be distracted. Give yourself some time so that you can read it slowly. It’s only a couple of pages. Let it sink in. The book of Job falls right before Psalms, and almost everyone knows that the Psalms are practically dead center of the Bible. (By the way, if you don’t have a good Bible, we can always get you one. And while your favorite Bible might be your first and only Bible, if it’s the Old King James Version, I would really recommend you get a new revised standard version (NRSV)---it’s so much easier to read and understand, and you won’t get lost in the thees and thous. I have the New Oxford Annotated Bible. I often use the annotations for help in understanding the passages. You can get large print, too, for those of you who might need larger script. I’d be happy to help you pick one out! Finally, I want to give you a Psalm to read, Psalm 26:1-12. Read this Psalm, daily, this week. Make it your prayer for the entire week. |