People you love don’t always give the best advice.
Mark 4:3 & 26 – Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow:….&…..So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground;
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In Job 2:9-10, we are introduced to Job’s wife. She is present for only a brief moment, but her words paint the picture of a lesson all believers need to know, especially when they find themselves in a battle against demonic forces in this life. After all the initial attacks from Satan that had taken all Job had but his wife and his life, his wife says to him, “Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.” I can only imagine how such a statement from his wife could have impacted him emotionally. Though Job held to his loyalty to the Lord, he was provoked to once again make a statement that accused the Lord of causing his troubles. Once again, we MUST remember here that Job’s reason for making such a statement came from a deceived servant who told Job that it was fire that came down from God out of heaven that brought destruction upon his sheep and shepherds. We, however, have a great advantage over Job in this story, for we read about it in hindsight. Therefore, let us not be hostile towards Job. At some point in our lives, we have all been deceived in some way by the enemy of our soul, and in that deception have said things that were not accurate. That is why it is so imperative for the believer to read and study the Word of God, to rightly divide the Word, and to accurately interpret and speak the Word of God in a way that pleases Father.
The lesson we need to take from this portion of Job’s story is clear. There are times when the enemy of our soul will try to use those closest to us, those who share our intimate lives, those with whom we have had years of life experience, in an attempt to distract us, cause us to speak wrongly, act wrongly, and in general, turn our backs on the Lord Who loves us with His great John 3:16 love. In the scenario we examine today, we see that at perhaps its highest level. It was Job’s wife, his lifelong partner, the queen of his home, the mother of his ten children, who attempted to provoke Job to “curse God, and die.” But thank God, Job retained his integrity. Even at the level of deception in which Job was found at that moment, he kept his integrity, giving honor to God. I would rather be found giving honor to God, even though I was somewhat deceived, than to be found trying to justify myself and dishonoring my Father.
Manna for Today – Mark 4; Genesis 3:7 & 21; Hebrews 9:22; Psalm 91; Isaiah 54:17; Ephesians 2:10; Deuteronomy 28:1-14; Matthew 24; Luke 17:26; Genesis 6:11; Job
My Second Miler by Dr. Beechard Moorefield 