"For what is the hope of the hypocrite, though he may gain much, if God takes away his life? Will God hear his cry when trouble comes upon him?"
--Job 27:8-9 (NKJV)
From the daily Bible reading on September 2, 2013 of Proverbs 1:28-33; 1 Thessalonians 2:1-16; Job 26-27.
Job continues defending himself before his friends, insisting he is innocent of the sin of which they accuse him. While he may have reached a turning point in how he views his current state when weighed against future redemption (please refer to "My Redeemer Lives"), he is still leaning on what he has done in his life, or more specifically on what he has not done, which is sin against God. In this regard, Job tends to justify himself as deserving of that future promise due to his own efforts rather than as an act of grace by God. This will soon come back to haunt Job as he will be chastised for this very attitude, but for now he holds forth against those who would dare accuse him of some nameless but horrendous sin, so severe that God would punish him this harshly.
The accused appears to become the accuser. Job may be speaking in generalities when he refers to "my enemy" as "the hypocrite", but all this time he has been addressing only the three men who are adamant that he has sinned grievously against God, a charge he vehemently denies. How long will a man stand being attacked before he fights back? It appears Job is doing just that, striking back and calling his friends hypocrites, perhaps implying they do the very thing they accuse him of. What gain can they possibly receive from all this, Job wonders, if God takes away their lives? Or what would it gain him, for that matter, if he is the hypocrite they seem to think him. This calls forth the similar question Jesus posed when He asked, "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" (Please see "Profit and Gain".)
And this is part of the lesson for us to understand here. The words Job uses in today's focus verses to accuse his accusers pretty much describe himself. His main complaint has been that God has not answered his question of why all this could happen. When trouble came upon him, God seemingly did not hear his cry, or at least did not immediately respond to it. All he ever gained has been taken from him. So is Job the hypocrite he appears to accuse his friends of being?
Sometimes we are too much like Job in that we may be a little too quick to go on the offensive when we feel we are being unjustly attacked, rather than just turn the other cheek as Jesus instructs (please see Matthew 5:39). But perhaps our greater failing we share with Job is that we can somehow justify ourselves, that by our efforts alone we can earn our place in heaven, that God will be pleased simply because we do not sin (which is, of course, impossible for we are born in sin and can not help but sin in the light of God's righteousness). Or maybe we feel the complete opposite, that we are such terrible sinners God could never allow us into His home. We can never justify ourselves in God's eyes, never merit His love, and our Father knows and understands this. That is exactly why He sent Jesus to us, that we might be justified through Him to receive God's generous and unmerited grace. Jesus is our Redeemer, and none other. Amen.
Father, no matter how much we might try, no matter what we might do, we can never justify ourselves to be righteous in Your sight. Only through Your Son can we receive justification and redemption for our sin. Only by Your unmerited grace may we gain entry into heaven and a life eternal with You and Jesus. Thank You, Lord, for this wonderful gift! Thank You, Jesus, for making the sacrifice on our behalf so that we might be justified in God's sight. In Your holy and precious name, Lord Jesus our Christ we pray. Amen.
The accused appears to become the accuser. Job may be speaking in generalities when he refers to "my enemy" as "the hypocrite", but all this time he has been addressing only the three men who are adamant that he has sinned grievously against God, a charge he vehemently denies. How long will a man stand being attacked before he fights back? It appears Job is doing just that, striking back and calling his friends hypocrites, perhaps implying they do the very thing they accuse him of. What gain can they possibly receive from all this, Job wonders, if God takes away their lives? Or what would it gain him, for that matter, if he is the hypocrite they seem to think him. This calls forth the similar question Jesus posed when He asked, "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" (Please see "Profit and Gain".)
And this is part of the lesson for us to understand here. The words Job uses in today's focus verses to accuse his accusers pretty much describe himself. His main complaint has been that God has not answered his question of why all this could happen. When trouble came upon him, God seemingly did not hear his cry, or at least did not immediately respond to it. All he ever gained has been taken from him. So is Job the hypocrite he appears to accuse his friends of being?
Sometimes we are too much like Job in that we may be a little too quick to go on the offensive when we feel we are being unjustly attacked, rather than just turn the other cheek as Jesus instructs (please see Matthew 5:39). But perhaps our greater failing we share with Job is that we can somehow justify ourselves, that by our efforts alone we can earn our place in heaven, that God will be pleased simply because we do not sin (which is, of course, impossible for we are born in sin and can not help but sin in the light of God's righteousness). Or maybe we feel the complete opposite, that we are such terrible sinners God could never allow us into His home. We can never justify ourselves in God's eyes, never merit His love, and our Father knows and understands this. That is exactly why He sent Jesus to us, that we might be justified through Him to receive God's generous and unmerited grace. Jesus is our Redeemer, and none other. Amen.
Father, no matter how much we might try, no matter what we might do, we can never justify ourselves to be righteous in Your sight. Only through Your Son can we receive justification and redemption for our sin. Only by Your unmerited grace may we gain entry into heaven and a life eternal with You and Jesus. Thank You, Lord, for this wonderful gift! Thank You, Jesus, for making the sacrifice on our behalf so that we might be justified in God's sight. In Your holy and precious name, Lord Jesus our Christ we pray. Amen.
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