Job's Christmas

We often turn to the book of Job to understand more about the sovereignty of God and why bad things happen to “good” people. However, I think we often miss the overall point of the book of Job – and that it is really a story about the grace of God.
First, a quick recap of the story of Job – he was a righteous man, declared so by God himself. Job was wealthy, not just in monetary standards but also in family – he had 7 sons and 3 daughters. His love for his children was so great that Job regularly offered sacrifices on their behalf. He was a man who had everything going for him. Life was good, and Job was quick to give God the glory. Satan debated with God over what was the catalyst for Job being a righteous man – was it because of faith or because he had it so good? God allowed Satan to test Job – all of his finances was wiped away, his children were killed, and his health suffered from it. Yet, in the midst of this happening, Job made this profound statement: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD." In the midst of his suffering, Job recognized the grace of God. After this, Job’s 3 friends - Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite – came to comfort him. It is during his conversations with his friends that Job begins to wrestle with the grace of God – and whether God has truly been gracious to him.
We need to understand that Job behaved more valiantly and graciously than many of us would have --- imagine all of your finances taken away … your family being killed … your health taken away from you … how would you have responded? Surely we can understand why Job struggled --- and, if we can understand why, then God would understand even more. It was the Lord who allowed Job to be tested in this way – it was the Lord who set up the boundaries of what Satan could do to this righteous man. What happens next is truly telling of God’s grace – God responds to Job’s charges.
God hears the complaints of Job, and he comes down for a meeting with Job. He challenges Job on whom Job thinks he is --- and he does so by first pointing to creation, and asking Job if he was there when God created all things? The Lord goes on from that point and asks Job if he knows how everything works? God challenges him on whether Job thinks he is God – or is God truly God?
At the end of this challenge, Job verbally recognizes that God is God – and that he is a gracious God. God then graciously restores to Job his fortunes – both in money, family and age. The end of the story of Job is a climax of God’s grace … here is a man who struggled with doubt over whether God was truly gracious, and after being confronted by this God, he repents – and God pours out even more grace on him! Job’s story is truly a story of God’s grace.
This is an important story for us to remember during the Christmas season – because the real story of Christmas is grace. It is easy for us to get caught up in the trappings of Christmas and we can easily forget the meaning behind this season. When we think about Christmas, we need to think about the grace of God. It is grace that called forth the son of God to be born to a woman. It is grace that named this child Immanuel – God with us. It is grace that brought this child to adulthood – and to the cross. It is grace that is the opening chapter of the story of Christmas. We, too, are a people like Job --- we doubt God for various reasons, and challenge the notion that He is truly a loving and gracious God. Each week, from the pulpits of Christ church, we are confronted by God, in His Word, about his true gracious nature. Constantly, we are renewed in grace by God through the Holy Spirit. You see, our story isn’t much different from Job’s – we each struggle and fail, and God’s grace is always there to prop us back up and to go forth to proclaim God’s glory. May we remember the story of grace as we celebrate this season. May the story of grace be our reason for celebrating Christmas.

Soli Deo Gloria --- Pastor James