Clothesline - Edition 222

By Rev. Elizabeth L. Nelson, Pastor

October 23, 2024  

Why do people suffer?

That’s the big question that comes out of the Book of Job. As the story goes, Satan and God are discussing the character of Job, how devoted he is to God. God says that nothing will make Job lose his faith. Satan doesn’t buy it. And the challenge begins. God gives Satan permission to do whatever he wants to Job, short of killing him, and God declares that Job will not lose his faith.

Now, whether this is an actual story or just an allegory, we’ll never know. And it really doesn’t matter because the point of the story is that despite all the evil that happens to Job, he continues to praise God… “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that at the last he will stand upon the earth; and after my skin has been thus destroyed, then in my flesh I shall see God.” Job lost every part of his human existence—except his life—and he still clung to his faith. It made me think: Do I have a breaking point? Is there a limit to my faith?

When we were kids, negative situations that happened at school seemed like the end of the world, but I don’t recall if I ever prayed my way through those situations. Then as we got older, life became more intense, and the negative influences more serious. We’ve seen relationships crumble and families torn apart. We here in Florida have just experienced two hurricanes in a row. Many people lost everything they had, if not their own lives. Did our faith help us through those times? I’d like to think so.

The story of Job is about as intense as any such story could be. It’s about a person who has everything he could possibly want, and he loses it all, through no fault of his own. And yet…he doesn’t lose his faith.

Instead of looking at the question…why do people suffer…there’s another possibility here. What about the power of extremes: losing everything, yet gaining everything. Isn’t that actually what happened and probably the most important teaching in the story? And all Job had to do was trust God…and he did! He believed and he was rewarded. He surrendered all, and he was gifted a hundredfold.

In the storms of life, we would do well to remember Job—allegory or true—because our God will always honor our faith. This world and all that is in it will pass away, but our God remains steadfast. His love and faithfulness never ends…and you can take that to the bank!