You Never Know…

By Dean Collins

Maybe you’ve said it before as you anticipated some aspect of the future. It might have been when your team was thought to be the underdog in an upcoming football game. Or maybe it was something you said when you decided to buy a lottery ticket when the prize had reached a billion dollars. We often hear or say, “You never know,” suggesting a moment when you have a fantasy version of hope for an outcome you cannot really imagine but theoretically could happen.

But there are other times when you long to know and cannot really imagine. When facing a devastating diagnosis, or maybe when a family member walks out the door with their suitcase and you wonder if it is even remotely possible that they will return to the ones that love them so much. It is hard to muster hope of a positive outcome in situations that are severe.

Whenever I read the book of Job, I find myself wishing it was shorter and resolved more quickly. I suspect that you might feel the same when you consider the 42 chapters that tell a story of long-suffering. Yes, we know it all turns out well in the last chapter, but it seems like a long story, maybe even an unnecessary story, of suffering. As you read, you wonder if God couldn’t have made the challenge with the devil a bit shorter. Did God have to let Job suffer so much and so long just to prove that he was indeed faithful? 

I suspect that in reading Job we often think about our difficulties or seasons of suffering and wonder if they too could be shorter. What we never know when we are going through hard times is how long our challenges will persist. And we also do not know the outcomes. Maybe this is precisely why we need to read Job once a year or with some frequency.

I used the think the climax of Job was chapter 42, either verse 10 or verse 17. 

“And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had pray for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.” (10)

“And Job died, an old man, and full of days.” (17)

We love the books, movies, and real-life events that end like these two verses. And we know from scripture that ultimately God will bring full renewal and restoration to all that is broken. But when we are in the middle, or suspect we are in the middle or beginning, of a long, hard season, it is easy to forget that God is with us and will be with us, even triumphantly, in the end.

Reading Job 28:23-28 this morning makes me think that this passage might be the central message of the story. It is certainly a message we need to hear and remember. Earlier in this chapter, Job is wrestling with where and what is the source of wisdom: 

“But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? Man does not know its worth, and it is not found in the land of the living.” 

We, too, might have the same question as we chase answers to problems we can’t solve and seek solutions that seem to escape us. But in verse 23, Job affirms what we must remember: “God understands the way to it, and he knows its place.”

Job is teaching us something that God wants us to know and to remember. God knows all things. God holds the future in his hands. God has put in place the best possible outcome for us and for all his creation. And he made it all possible through the gift of his beloved son, Jesus, whose birth we will soon celebrate.

So, what did Job do that we must do when facing our questions and our suffering? He chose to revere the Lord and turn away from evil. 

“Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.”

When we choose to follow what Solomon and Job both agreed was critical to our pursuit of God, we will discover strength and peace for today and for our future. We cannot figure out and solve all that is broken in our lives, our situations, or in the world, but when we choose to seek God’s wisdom and trust that our reverence for his power, love, and plan is better than anything we can imagine, we will find ourselves on a firm foundation. And one day soon we will indeed see the beauty of what we cannot imagine today.

Father, give us the faith to trust you in every situation and on every day. We confess our inability to save ourselves or fix all that is broken. Thank you for being the source of all wisdom. Thank you for the gift of Jesus who changes everything for eternity and who grants us peace even in the middle of our storms. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Your Time with God’s Word
 Job 28:12-28, 42:2-6, 10, 17; 1 Corinthians 1:4-5, 7-9 ESV

 Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
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