Job 1:20-22 “Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.”
Ephesians 5:20 “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
1 Thessalonians 5:18 “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
Job 19:25-27 “For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.”
Anytime we see a “…” in a sentence it expresses a train of thought and direction or a transition if you will. That “…” is very important to this message.
Times of transition can be good and bad. When one is engrossed in unpleasant circumstances a nice change of pace can be just what the doctor ordered. It breathes new life into you and lifts your spirits high making you feel as if you are on cloud nine. At the same time, when one is entering times of affliction, lack of any sort of substandard anything compared to what they are used to, the feelings of dread and just suffering through take over.
There are different seasons that everyone goes through in life. There are times of joy and there are times of pain. While we don’t mind dealing with the seasons of joy and happiness that come our way, a whole other story could be told for the times of pain and suffering we encounter.
There are seasons, even for the Christian, that come that are not too pleasant. There are times when the people of God had to endure trials and tribulations. There are episodes of turmoil that have wiggled their way into our families, our lives, our jobs, and our finances.
Sometimes difficult and new stuff pops up out of nowhere, things you weren’t looking to happen in this season of life, and it has blindsided you and caught you off guard. There may be things that surprised you and now you just don’t know which way you are going. The road hasn’t always been easy to travel. We are looking for the new. We need a transition. We are in need of a “…” moment.
It’s time to move from the victim mentality and don a praise mentality. It’s time to move from the feeling defeated mentality to no matter what’s going in my life, “…Lord, I just want to thank You” mentality.
A praise mentality says no matter the situation we are going through I still have a reason to worship. We still have a reason to lift our hands in utter adoration! We still have a reason to fall to our knees in prayer! We still have a reason to believe His grace and mercy is at work in our lives! I still have a reason to say, “Thank You!”
Job is one of the most figurative Bible characters who we surmise as suffering outside of Jesus Christ our Savior. So, I figured if anybody can teach us how to be thankful despite what we’re going through it could be Job.
Job was a man whom God describes in the Bible as being upright and perfect, Job 1:8. He is known for turning himself away from the path of evil, not giving it a foothold in his life. Yet, in his righteous living, he was still susceptible to being tested in some of the worse ways possible. He lost everything from possessions down to the very people he loved the most in life.
Job’s experiences can be summed up in that one word: suffering. Job knew suffering. Job knew what it was like to love and lose; to have and to have not. What’s more is he lost everything at the same time, piling traumatic event after traumatic event on till he thought his heart couldn’t take any more (read Job 1-2 for greater detail).
Sitting in a pile of ashes with seemingly nothing left, could he at least find comfort in the good word of a friend? Will they speak encouragement to help him carry the weight of his burdensome troubles?
The answer sadly is, “No.” His friends started out with good intentions but by the time they reach chapter 4, Job’s friends became what is known as “miserable comforters.” They decided to chime in with their opinions of what was right and wrong. This was where their attempts at comfort went downhill. They berated Job and blamed him for all that he was going through.
Job literally had no one and the weight of the world was upon his shoulders, but his response to his trials is what blew my mind away. When things first began to unravel for him, in the verses we read in chapter 1 he shaved his head, fell down on his face and he worshipped.
The words that came out of his mouth were of praise and thanks. He said, “Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD!
That word “blessed” is synonymous with celebrating God with praise in spite of. That word blessed is acknowledging God is good no matter what the circumstances around me say. That word blessed is also translated in the New and Old Testament to give thanks! “Blessed be the name of the LORD!” Job, with his shaved head of sorrow and humble spirit, gave God thanks amid the sorrow he was going through!
His response reminds me of Psalm 34:1 where the psalmist proclaimed, “I will bless the Lord at all times and His praise shall continually be in my mouth!” I will thank God always and I will never stop celebrating His goodness! I will show God gratitude always and I will never stop lifting Him up. I will appreciate God even in this and I will never stop recognizing that He and He only is God of my life.
Ephesians 5:20 says, “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” My always for all things may not look the way I want it to right now, but Lord I thank You, is what he’s saying! I am not saying thank you because I like problems, but I am saying thank You because I know the God I serve. I am saying thank you because He is working on the inside to change things on the outside. I am saying thank you because God is setting us up for a future that is glorious in Him! Therefore, “…Lord, I just want to thank You!”
1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us, “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” I am in Christ; therefore I give thanks! I have been washed by the blood, therefore I give thanks. Yes, life hurts sometimes and yes, the walls come crashing down sometimes, but I owe God a praise. I thank God for seeing me through every trouble, every storm that blows my way! “…Lord, I just want to thank You!”
Job’s response went even further than this. In Job 19, he said, “For I know that my Redeemer lives.” Things were not exactly turning in his favor. At that time, his today didn’t look any better than his yesterday. His friends are still in his face challenging him with their accusations. But, despite his personal persecutions, he emphatically declares, “I know . . .”
Knowing speaks of assurance. A declaration of knowing tells doubt there is no place here for you. “Know” is certain that this is what it is. And, what he is certain of is “my redeemer liveth.” God is alive and will always be alive. “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty,” (Revelation 1:8).
“He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth.” Job knew that God was and is the end-all of all authority, victory and power. Standing upon anything denotes mastery and dominion of said object. Job knew where his trust lies. In God who is victorious: “Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him,” (Psalm 68:1). Paul, speaking of Christ said He, “hath put all things under his feet…,” (Ephesians 1:22). Even this.
“And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God.” There is hope beyond the here and now. Physically, it didn’t look good for Job. He had “sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown,” (Job 2:7). He, in dealing with the pain of his body and the pain of his heart must have thought there is not that much more time left. At one point of desperation, things had gotten so bad, Job prayed for death (see Job 6:8-9).
Despite it all, he knew that there was a better day beyond the corruption of his flesh. His body, when the time came, would lie in the ground and the worms would have their way with him, but he looked forward to another glorious time when “in my flesh shall I see God.” Things were hard for Job, but in his speech, you can still see his faith alive and active in what he believes: and he believes GOD! Therefore, “I bless God! I give God thanks!”
Job teaches us how to respond to God in midst of trials and troubles. He may have been down, especially when his friends attacked him, but he still recognized God for who He is. He basically transitioned his mentality to shift his focus from what was before him to the God who can save Him.
Yes, he grew weary and even questioned why he was going through what he was going through. Who wouldn’t? But, through it all you still see his faith in God come to the forefront in the midst of his story.
In the end, Job was blessed with a double portion of blessings. God testified of Job to his friends. God spoke up for Job and said, “My wrath is kindled against thee, and against thy two friends: for ye have not spoken of me the thing that is right, as my servant Job hath,” (Job 42:7).
It’s not too late for God to turn it around and to testify on your behalf. The week of Thanksgiving is here, and this year is not over yet. There is still room for a blessing. And, even if not – if God never does another thing for us, can we say, “Lord, I thank You?”
At the end of the day, as hard as it may be sometimes, we must transition our thinking and say “… But Lord, I thank YOU!”
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