Week Four - Observation 4

It's another scorcher here in the Texas panhandle - supposed to be 96F today following several days of right around 100F.   But tomorrow it's only supposed to be 91 and then low 90s for most of next week.  That sounds so nice right now!  Isn't that the way life is?  What doesn't seem all that terribly pleasant (92 degree weather) can sound absolutely delightful (after bearing up under >100 degree weather for a few days.)  In life, what didn't seem as particularly wonderful days in our lives, when viewed from days where "the heat has been turned up", can then be viewed as truly wonderful...days of bliss!  Guess the lesson here is - enjoy every day!  You don't know which ones will turn out to be the days that you remember as the best.  Even the "scorchers" bring blessings of their own - moments that we treasure in years to come. Just like 100 degree days bring remembrances of those joyful moments of running through sprinklers, jumping off diving boards, eating sno-cones and popsicles and laying in front of a box fan on a pallet in the living room floor at night!  I'm showing my age with that last memory - but that was summertime in my youth!  Tough times in life will bring moments of joyful remembrances as well - we just have to persevere to get to the time of remembrance!

Our question this week: How does suffering in a manner that honors and glorifies God change the life of the believer?

And our memory verse this week?  "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, kmowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."  James 1:2-4

OBSERVATION

Romans 5:1-5  "Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Also through Him, we have obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also rejoice in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. This hope does not disappoint, because God's love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

James 1:5-8  "Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith without doubting. For the doubter is like the surging sea, driven and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. An indecisive man is unstable in all his ways."

1 Corinthians 10:13  "No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to humanity. God is faithful and He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation He will also provide a way of escape, so that you are able to bear it."

We've got a lot of Scripture to wade through today.  Ready?  Let's pray first and ask God to reveal His message to each of us individually - we all need to hear what He has to say to us, personally.  What I bring out may not be what the Holy Spirit is impressing upon you today.  Be open to His voice, way over my, or any other person's, human words!  Listen to what He is telling you today.

Looking at our first passage from Paul's letter to the Romans, and quoting from Kay Arthur, "In Romans 1-4, the apostle Paul established that all are sinners and need salvation.  He also made clear that salvation is found only through faith in Jesus Christ.  In light of these truths, Romans 5:1 opens with the term 'therefore', indicating the result for those who have been justified or declared righteous by their faith."  

Everyone has probably heard this before, but whenever you see a "therefore" in Scripture, you need to see what it is "there for."  Which requires, just as Kay has done, to look back to see what it is referencing in the prior verses.

We're directed in the study  to read through this passage and circle all of the pronouns that refer to believers - we, our, us.  Do that, either actually or mentally, and then consider these questions:

What does every believer have as a result of being declared righteous?

What is every believer to do and why?

What we have is peace --- finally, peace with God.  I have long loved the verses in Luke 1 where Zechariah, finally understanding through the revelation of the Holy Spirit what God was doing through his son makes this bold proclamation:

Luke 1:67-79  "Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited and provided redemption for His people. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David, just as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets in ancient times;  salvation from our enemies and from the clutches of those who hate us. He has dealt mercifully with our fathers and remembered His holy covenant- the oath that He swore to our father Abraham. He has given us the privilege, since we have been rescued from our enemies' clutches, to serve Him without fear in holiness and righteousness in His presence all our days.  And child, you will be called a prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare His ways, to give His people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins. Because of our God's merciful compassion, the Dawn from on high will visit us to shine on those who live in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."

                                                     

I've loved these words because they show me that God wants so much for us to be at peace with Him - to serve Him without fear, as children who are accepted by Him as holy and righteous.  His merciful compassion is what drove Him to provide Jesus for us, to bring light into our lives of darkness, and to guide our feet into lives of peace, peace with Him forever.  Paul wants to remind us of this - that because of Jesus, we have peace with our Father.  We no longer have to view God as being mad at us for our sins and living in fear of His judgment - because of Jesus, our sins are forgiven and removed.  We are free to serve God without a moment of fear.  We should be at peace.

And what are we to do with this knowledge?  Through the faith that we have in our redemption by Jesus, we stand in His grace.  We rejoice in the knowledge that we will see the glory of God.   And "not only that", but we rejoice (exult in some translations) in our tribulations.  (We really are supposed to do this, aren't we?  Paul tells us, James tells us, and Peter tells us - I think this is important - I think this is something we must learn and ask God for help with!)  Again, quoting from the study, 

"Exult  means 'to boast in regard to anything.'  In Romans 5:3 the preposition in may seem like a small insignificant word, but it is key to understanding the full impact of this passage,.  It is translated from the Greek word en, which means 'remaining in place or resting in.'  Rather than moving into or out of the situation, it indicates a total lack of motion.  In other words, one is at rest, not attempting to get out of the tribulation.  The Greek word translated as brings about [produces] is katergazomai, which means 'to carry out a task until it is finished.' In the context of this passage in Romans, the phrase indicates completing a task, the result of which is to bring out something that is already present.  Tribulation in the life of the believer brings out perseverance, because the grace to persevere comes from the inner strength God has given us."

Wow!  This brings a whole other concept into play when we "rejoice" in our tribulations...we rest in them as well.  We're not filled with anxiety or craziness in the middle of our troubles - we're at peace!  We rest and we wait because we know God is watching, that God knows exactly what is going on, and that God will be the One to bring this trial to an end.  We rest and we wait and we persevere - and through all of that, the task of proving our Christian character is accomplished.  We come through knowing that God does not disappoint, and an affirmation of His great love for us - poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit.  This love is what allows us to rest - and this ability to rest confirms His love.  Beautiful, isn't it?  Resting in troubles, at peace with our Father.

Jumping back over to James, we get some very practical advise for what to do when we feel that we aren't resting - when we are getting anxious and we need more of God's insight into our situation.  Well it's pretty simple, really - we ASK!  James tells us that whenever we feel in the dark, ask God for His wisdom and He's going to be generous to respond - no questions asked!  The only condition is that when we ask we have to really believe that He is going to answer us - that we will receive His guidance.  That means not jumping ahead, not growing impatient - it means resting until we gain what we know is His wisdom, His insight, His direction.  

And finally, hearing from Paul again writing to the Corinthians, we are reminded that no "temptation" (that same Greek word peirasmos, which can be translated as temptation, trial or testing) comes to us that is greater than what other people experience in this earthly life as well.  We ALL have temptations - we all have trials that can provide opportunities for us to follow Jesus in obedience, or strike out on our own in sinful responses.  Our faithful God will always provide a way of obedience out of the temptation - it is our choice whether to follow His way, the way in which He promises His strength to sustain us, or to rely on our own strength which is certain to be inadequate.  Let's learn to first ask for God's way,  for His wisdom, insight and direction - let's remember that He has provided us with such a great escape that we can make it through and honor Him.  

What great lessons today - I hope you have had your own insights as well - I'd sure love to hear them!  Either comment via blog or e-mail me at janicehodges1356@gmail.com!  

In His Amazing Love,

Janice

Week Four - Observation 3

Here we are - the middle of August already!  How, in this strange time of COVID with its isolation and lack of normal events, is the time going so fast?  I know people say let's get this year over with, but I don't know why 2021 will look any different and I'd just as soon not wish the days of my life away - even strange days that are sometimes really hard to get through.  Psalm 90:12 says, "Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts."  Let's use our days, even strange days we don't understand, wisely.  And let's, hopefully, develop some godly wisdom along the way!

Remember our question this week: How does suffering in a manner that honors and glorifies God change the life of the believer?

And our memory verse this week is one we will "consider" today:  "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."  James 1:2-4

OBSERVATION

James 1:2-4  "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."  James 1:2-4

1 Peter 1:6-7  "You rejoice in this, though now for a short time you have had to struggle in various trials so that the genuineness of your faith--more valuable than gold, which perishes though refined by fire--may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

Our memory verses of this week are well known, but how well-practiced?  How often do we "consider it all joy" when we are going through the trials of our lives?  When we are facing our trials from a totally earthly perspective with no spiritual goals in mind, there is no reason to find joy in them, is there?  Trials are hard - trials are what we aim to avoid in life - times of trials are not the fun times we remember.  And when we look at the Greek word (peirasmos) that is translated as trials in this passage, we find that it can truly mean various kinds of trials. Strong's Bible Dictionary lists all of these possible meanings for the word peirasmos: "An experiment, attempt, trial, proving; the trial of man's fidelity, integrity, virtue, constancy; an enticement to sin, temptation; an internal temptation to sin as of the temptation by which the devil sought to divert Jesus the Messiah from his divine errand; of the condition of things, or a mental state, by which we are enticed to sin, or to a lapse from the faith and holiness; adversity, affliction, trouble: sent by God and serving to test or prove one's character, faith, holiness; rebellion against God, by which his power and justice are, as it were, put to the proof and challenged to show themselves."

So we can see that the trials James is referring to can mean a multitude of meanings, but they all come down to a testing.  Either by means of a temptation or affliction - trials have a purpose and that purpose is the testing of our faith.  This is not an earthly perspective at all - this is what changes our view of trials from just something that we are going through that we don't want to be going through, to seeing God's hand right in the middle of our trouble - allowing us to see just what our faith consists of.  Faith should, if we are truly grounded in our belief that God is sovereign and will always see us through, keep us going through the trial.  And when we've come to the other side, we can look back and see where the faith that allowed us to endure has increased, matured and brought us to a more complete state of understanding of our Father and reflection of His glory.

                                

Peter uses the very same word, peirasmos, in his first epistle, with very similar language to that of James.  He was telling the scattered exiles who were facing lots of various trials, that they are able to rejoice in their "short time" of trials --- a short time could be their whole lives, but we have to remember, compared to eternity an earthly life of 100 years is so very relatively short! --- because there was a great result coming out of those trials:  the genuineness, the proof of their faith!  We can rejoice when we see that we really do rely on God and that He really is who He says He is and He really does what He has said He will do.  When our faith is proved genuine, that is the greatest asset that we can acquire here on earth.  For it will pass through the fire unharmed (1 Corinthians 3) and go with us into eternity where it will allow us to glorify God forever.  We need to welcome trials that prove our faith, for when our faith is proven, it grows stronger and will enable us to greet the next trial with even greater joy!

God does things in a really different way than we would, doesn't He?  He is working on us in so many ways - thank Him for His great wisdom in transforming us into people who reflect Him!  God is so very wise and so very good to us!

In His Amazing Love,

Janice

Week Four - Observation 2

I'm discovering that in this particular stage of my life, there is no structure!  What I think will work one day as far as a schedule, doesn't work at all the next day.  So, from here on out, this all happens when it happens...that's a little different for me as I tend to like things on some what of a schedule, but I'm finding out that a lot of things that I thought were important, really aren't.  And my ideas of when and how things should happen are certainly becoming less important all the time.

JOB - what a hard lesson from the Bible.  I really don't get it all, and we're going to look at this poor man and his sufferings again today.  I will say, we always hear about "the patience of Job", but when you read through the book there were times when Job really wasn't very patient.  He wanted answers.  But Job did endure, he did persevere, and he kept his faith in His God - even surrounded by people who weren't always very (or at all) encouraging.  

OBSERVATION

Job 1:20-22  "Then Job stood up, tore his robe and shaved his head. He fell to the ground and worshiped, saying: Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will leave this life. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. Praise the name of the Lord.  Throughout all this Job did not sin or blame God for anything."

Job 6:10  "It would still bring me comfort, and I would leap for joy in unrelenting pain that I have not denied the words of the Holy One."

Job 42:10 "After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his prosperity and doubled his [previous] possessions."

James 5:11  " See, we count as blessed those who have endured. You have heard of Job's endurance and have seen the outcome from the Lord: the Lord is very compassionate and merciful."

Remembering yesterday's passages, all of Job's problems came about following God's discussion with satan regarding Job's righteousness and faithfulness to God.  God was bragging on His servant, Job, and satan couldn't stand to think that someone would love God just for who He is, and not for the blessings that He had given them.                                                     

But today we read that Job has lost all of those blessings - his children, his servants, his livestock, his fortune, and ultimately his own health.  Reading the first referenced passage, what do we see as Job's response to his loss?  Worship!  Acknowledgement that everything he had been given had been given to him by the Lord.  Praise!  When God had told satan that Job was a righteous man, God really knew who Job was, didn't he?  This is a truly godly man - and this verse should be one that we all remember - "the Lord gives and the Lord takes away.  Praise the name of the Lord."  Whatever we have in life, it is all from God.  And if He chooses to take it away, He has reason.  We may not ever know that reason this side of heaven, but we know God has purpose in His taking from us.  Job reveals his absolute trust in God by his worship and praise - and he reveals the relationship that he has established with God, never blaming Him for his pain.

The second verse reinforces Job's relationship with God - no matter the pain he was going through, and Job went through unrelenting physical pain - he did not deny God's words to him.  This brought Job comfort in the fact that he realized he was being faithful, no matter what.  We need to remember this source of comfort when we're going through difficult, painful times - we are staying faithful, and that is what God is asking of us.  

Job 6:10 did prompt a question in my mind - Job is considered by most to be the oldest book of the Bible, the writing of it predating the writing of Genesis by Moses.  It is not certain who wrote Job, possibly Job himself.  Studies estimate the writing of Job between 2100 and 1800 B.C., approximately the same time as Abraham lived. That being the case, what are the "words of the Holy One" that Job references?  How did Job receive God's words to him?  Had the stories of the God of creation and of the great flood been passed down through the generations?  Had God spoken to him personally, as He did with Noah and Abraham?  

                                                

And then we know the end of the story - after Job had gone through his period of suffering and pain, after he had acknowledged that God is sovereign and that he was a man of little understanding of the great things of God, God restores and blesses Job - greater than before.  And one of the biggest blessings that I think may get overlooked is in Job 42:5 "I had heard rumors about You, but now my eyes have seen You."  I think this answers the previous question of Job's knowledge of God's Word - this makes it sound like it was all of the God-stories that Job had heard, told from parent to child through the generations.  And Job had believed them and had sought to please God.  But through this experience, through the suffering, through the loss, through the pain, Job had seen God and had come to know Him at a deeper level than ever before possible.  God had revealed Himself to Job through the worst time of his life. 

James tells us that we "count as blessed those who have endured" and cites Job as such an example.  Job was blessed on earth, but Job is being blessed even greater in eternity.  All who endure will receive such wonderful blessing.  Won't it be great to meet Job?  Paul?  Joseph?  Peter?  Jeremiah?  John?  Everyone of these, and so many more, endured to the end - and we will all be home with Jesus - the One who endured the very most for all of us!

In His Amazing Love,

Janice

Week Four - Observation 1

"The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry," or so the saying goes!  That was today!  Good plans to get up early and get blog posted, but didn't allow enough "early" time to be able to get everything else done that new regimens require before making a morning doctor appointment.  Good news is that Robert's thrush showed some slight improvement, and recommendation was to extend IV antifungal meds.  Somewhat concerning is that doctor is not convinced that laryngitis is 100% due to the infection and may have some other causes.  Going to have to give it some time and see once the thrush is resolved.  But we would really appreciate prayer that the thrush continues to decrease and that Robert's voice returns without any other problems.  He is growing weary of whispering, and having to clap to get my attention if I'm out of the room!  

We've seen how Paul suffered and chose to trust in God rather than himself; we've seen how Jesus suffered and did so with obedience to His Father, entrusting Himself to our righteous Judge; and we've seen how fellow Christians suffer for their faith and for doing what is right (we may have even experienced that), and that all trials allowed in our lives can purify and refine us so that we reflect God's image more accurately.  This week we're going to look at how living out these truths impacts the life of the believer.

That's our question this week: How does suffering in a manner that honors and glorifies God change the life of the believer?

And our memory verse this week?  "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, kmowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."  James 1:2-4

OBSERVATION 1

Job 1:6-12  "One day the angels came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came with them. The LORD said to Satan, 'Where have you come from?' Satan answered the LORD, 'From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.' Then the LORD said to Satan, 'Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.' 'Does Job fear God for nothing?' Satan replied. 'Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.'  The LORD said to Satan, 'Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.' Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD."

                  

We're going to start off with one of my least favorite Bible stories - isn't that an encouraging note to start out on? :)   JOB   Now I know it all ends well, but there are some really bothersome things that go on in this story.  Things that make us go...."huh???"   Like the passage above!  Does the picture of God and satan having this discussion bother anyone other me?  But as I've said before, when something bothers us in Scripture, that's when we have to study and dig and try to learn.  Don't ever try to assume or presume the meaning in difficult passages - that's where we can really get into trouble and head off into bad theology!

Read Matthew Henry's commentary on these verses:

Job's afflictions began from the malice of Satan, by the Lord's permission, for wise and holy purposes. There is an evil spirit, the enemy of God, and of all righteousness, who is continually seeking to distress, to lead astray, and, if possible, to destroy those who love God. How far his influence may extend, we cannot say; but probably much unsteadiness and unhappiness in Christians may be ascribed to him. While we are on this earth we are within his reach. Hence it concerns us to ( 1 Peter. 5:8 ) This is the common way of slanderers, to suggest that which they have no reason to think is true. But as there is nothing we should dread more than really being hypocrites, so there is nothing we need dread less than being called and counted so without cause. It is not wrong to look at the eternal recompence in our obedience; but it is wrong to aim at worldly advantages in our religion. God's people are taken under his special protection; they, and all that belong to them. The blessing of the Lord makes rich; Satan himself owns it. God suffered Job to be tried, as he suffered Peter to be sifted. It is our comfort that God has the devil in a chain, ( Revelation 20:1 ) . He has no power to lead men to sin, but what they give him themselves; nor any power to afflict men, but what is given him from above. All this is here described to us after the manner of men. The Scripture speaks thus to teach us that God directs the affairs of the world.

When I read through the above commentary and then re-read the verses in the Bible, I come to these conclusions:

1. We have an enemy that doesn't really know us, but can observe our circumstances and knows our history.  He roams the earth watching our actions and looking for our vulnerabilities.

2.  We have a Father who completely knows us - knows who we are, because we are His creation.  He knows our strengths and He knows our weaknesses.  

3.  Our earthly blessings, while gifts from God, are not guaranteed to us.  As Matthew Henry states, "It is not wrong to look at the eternal recompence in our obedience; but it is wrong to aim at worldly advantages in our religion." We do not obey God in order to gain earthly reward.  God gives, and God can take away.  It is all in His hands. 

4.  God does allow satan to oppress His children, but He has power over satan to limit his oppression.  

5.  God is completely powerful and sovereign over all - including satan.

Do you think those are fair assessments of this situation?  I feel better about this heavenly scene than at my first glance, do you?

Now let's look at our second passage for the day:

1 Peter 5:8  "Be sober! Be on the alert! Your adversary the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for anyone he can devour."

Doesn't this verse just dovetail into the account of Job?  Satan had been out prowling around and noticed Job - but what he noticed was that Job was faithfully obeying God so satan naturally assumes it's because God has given Job everything he has ever wanted.  Who wouldn't be loyal to a God who had blessed them so abundantly?

Do we ever fall into this trap?  Do we find ourselves praying, "Thank You, God, for all you have blessed me with and please keep blessing me.  I really don't want a life with anything less.  You've been really good to me and I will do whatever You want if You'll just keep blessing me like You have."  Now we may not be that direct, but when we pray for continued lives of comfort and plenty rather than God's best will for us, then we may be falling into the level of faithfulness that satan assumed Job was.  

Or, "God, what did I do to deserve this?  I've been faithful and obedient and now You've allowed this problem to invade my life.  Why would You do that to me?"  

Does our obedience to God and our faith in God promise us anything here on earth?  We have no idea of the bigger picture that God is dealing with in spiritual realms --- and we have no idea what He is working together for our future good by allowing us hard things to deal with today.  We just have no idea!  "For as heaven is higher than earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:9

So for our first day, I think we can say that suffering should allow the believer to see that God is truly sovereign and that we ever may never understand all the reasons.  We should come to a greater level of absolute surrender to God's will and His purposes.  

What do you think?  I'm really wanting to hear from you all on this one!  It's a tough lesson!

In His Amazing Love,

Janice