Curse God and Die?

      By Fern Horst

"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." (Job 1:21-22)

"Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:12)

"Curse God and die" was the advice Job's wife gave to him after he lost all that he had, including his possessions, his children and his health. In a sense he had lost his wife also when she looked at him and saw no reason for him to live. Can a man be any lower than Job was at this point?

The answer is yes. In a far worse position is the man or woman who chooses to curse God for what has transpired (or not transpired) in his or her life. They have cut themselves off from the only One who can comfort them, the only One who loves them perfectly, the only One who holds the answer to their suffering. These individuals have not only lost everything here, but in turning their backs on God, they will lose everything in eternity as well.

Job's suffering was a test initiated by Satan but carried out only because God allowed it. Job's suffering was not a result of sin in his life, or a mistake that he had made, or because he wasn't trusting God enough. Satan targeted him because he was a righteous man. If Job had failed the test, Satan would have been glorified since there was no one more righteous than Job to pass the test on God's behalf. Because Job chose to remain faithful to God, even though it looked like God had turned His back on him, God received the glory and Job's story has been told for the encouragement of many for thousands of generations.

Why did Job still praise God even though everything was taken from him? And why was God confident that Job would pass the test? Long before the testing ever came, Job's trust was in God rather than in his possessions or money or health or wife or children. God in His sovereignty knew this, and He also knew that if all those things were taken from him, Job would still trust Him.

We don't always know the whys of our own difficulties as Christian singles. But as we learn from Job's life, it is not the reason that is important, but rather our response. What are we depending on? If everything that is important to us is taken from us, will we still praise Him? If we never receive what we ask of God, will we still praise Him? If we can answer "yes" to those questions, we are blessed indeed - the blessings of health or money or relationships cannot measure up - "for theirs is the kingdom of heaven".

© 2000 Fern Horst

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