Is God for Me or Against Me? - Job 19

5/14/2017

When trouble and tragedy hit, one of the first questions we ask is “why?”. Why did my spouse have to die? Why was my child born with this illness? Why did I get into this job? WHy was my childhood so difficult? Why did my parents split up? Why am I living with the consequences of other people actions? The list goes on. Eventually we begin to question is God is really for us or is he against us?

In Job 19, Job finds himself in this same place; and he’s so alone. Everyone who was near him has abandoned him. He has at the depth of loneliness. “Does anyone know what this is like? If I could only write these words down to be preserved for all time.” Such is the intellectual integrity of the book of Job.

In the midst of the suffering we experience, we desire to be heard, to be understood, to have someone who cares. What Job discovers is that he has a Saviour who does more than just listen, he provides us what we all truly need; redemption. Our Kinsman Redeemer, Jesus Christ, shines through like a ray of light in a dark room.

The comfort we truly need is the comfort we have through our Advocate, Jesus Christ. Because of that, one day, all of our suffering will be turned to glory. Our suffering is never wasted. Now we can go and offer comfort to others with this same truth.