Worthy of Suffering
By Susan Klein
“Then the Lord said to Satan, ‘Have you considered my servant Job?’”
Job 1:8a (NIV)
How do you feel
about suffering? Are you a willing participant? Are you even worthy to suffer? (What…”worthy?”) In
my most recent reading of the Old Testament Book of Job, I became convicted
that I want to be like Job because he was “worthy” of suffering. Let me show
you three ways in which he was worthy, and you decide for yourself.
First, God sees that
Satan has been prowling the earth (no doubt looking for someone to devour), and
God says, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one like him on the
earth; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.” (1)
God knew Job’s heart, and that he could withstand any amount of suffering while
keeping a proper perspective on life and God. He went so far (in His
sovereignty) as to suggest Job as Satan’s next victim.
Second, after four
messengers come to deliver the anguishing news to Job that everything he’d possessed
is now gone, including his children, Job tears his robe, shaves his head, and
falls to the ground in worship. (2) I don’t know about you, but that probably would
not be my first response. Mourning, yes, worshiping, no. I’d likely be too
consumed with grief to even think of worship. Job recognizes that he came into
the world with nothing, and he will leave with nothing. He knows that God is
the giver of all things, and He can also take them away if He so chooses. Job does
not doubt God’s sovereignty. He worships Him, not for what He does, but for who
He is.
Third, as if all of that
is not enough to deal with, God, yet another time, gives permission to Satan to
strike Job, this time in his physical body, proclaiming, “He still maintains
his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him for no reason.”
(3) Wow! God knows Job’s integrity is intact, and can withstand yet another
blow of suffering! Job had to have amazing faith in God, as well as being
secure in God’s love for him.
Like Job, I want my
faith to be so intact that I not only suffer well through the little things,
but that God would consider me worthy of any catastrophe, knowing I would
glorify Him with a right response.
What about you? Are
you worthy of suffering? Can you hear God saying, “Have you considered my
servant ________?”
GOING
DEEPER:
1. Meditate on Job’s story and seek
the Holy Spirit’s assistance with any perspective changes you might need to
make.
FURTHER
READING:
Susan is married to Mark, and has two adult children. She enjoys
teaching Bible studies, writing, and tutoring with the Literacy Council. She is
a member of the Peace Team at Oakwood and also co-leads a small group.
