"God Is The Shield - part 3"

"I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee." Job 42:5
 

This morning I want to talk a little more about something we said yesterday. We said that when God allows satan to touch our lives, there are three things we need to remember: 1) God is still in control; 2) God loves us and only has good thoughts toward us; 3) God will cause what is happening to work together for our good. This third thing is the one I want to talk about.

 

Although what happened to Job was not good, God worked it out for good. What was the good? When you ask people this question, their answer is-- he got back more in the end than he had in the beginning. He received more sheep, camels, oxen and donkeys. He also received money and gold. He had more children. His daughters were the fairest in all the land. 

 

The material blessings and wealth that Job received at the end sounds good. But that was nothing compared to what the real riches were that he received. There are blessings that are more valuable than silver or gold. There is an immeasurable wealth that is not material in substance. Sadly, that is what we focus on though-- the material blessings of money, gold, silver, and things. These were not the "real" treasures that Job received. These are all temporary. He was rich one day and a pauper the next-- he lost them all once, it could happen to him again. Riches take wings and fly. Gold can become devalued. This is why the Bible cautions us to not lay up treasures on earth that moth and rust corrupt and thieves break in and steal.

 

So what was the real "good" that came out of Job's trial? "I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee." It was a revelation of God that he did not have before. Job was a perfect and upright man, who feared God, served Him, hated and shunned evil, and was a worshipper. God Himself gave this testimony about Job. But before his trial everything Job did, his service to God, his worship, and his faith was based on "hear-say". "I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear". But afterwards it was based on a personal encounter with God-- " mine eye seeth thee". He discovered in a personal way that God could do anything. He went from religious service and hear-say to an intimate relationship based on personal experience. 

 

Job's trial brought him into a personal, intimate encounter with God that forever changed his life. It changed his view of God; it changed his service for God; it changed his worship to God; and it changed his relationship with God. He received eternal riches, and they far outweigh material riches. That is how "all things work together for the good". They bring us into a personal revelation of God that causes us to know Him in a deeper, more intimate way and it increases our faith in Him. 

 

We need to change our focus and the way we think about what is truly valuable. Too often we want to embrace and settle for temporary riches-- money, houses, lands, cars, gold, etc.-- and forget about the eternal riches-- like a revelation of God that brings us into a deeper personal relationship with Him.

 

Have a great day. Are the temporary material blessings like silver and gold more valuable to you than the eternal blessings of a greater personal knowledge of God?

 

For further reading:

Job 1, 42

Matthew 6:19

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Coffee Break is a morning devotional written by Lorraine Ezell

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