Well, where did we stop? Oh, yes, we were talking about Job and the tragedy that came on his life (read about it here).
So there he is no money, no family, no support, no health... he hit rock bottom, like the Americans say. In the midst of all that tragedy, Job's "friends" accused him of being guilty for being in that situation. Like we can choose what will happen to us, ha ha.
Anyway, Job's response to all that is: "Why do the wicked live on, growing old and increasing in power? {That is, they are old and healthy} They see their children established around them, their offspring before their eyes {Remember Job lost all his children at the same time}. Their homes are safe and free from fear; the rod of God is not upon them. Their bulls never fail to breed {In today's terms, their investments always make a profit}. (...) They spend their years in prosperity and go down to the grave in peace." (Job 21: 7-10a;13). P.S. The note between {} in italics are mine.
Basically what Job is doing here is comparing his life to the wicked man's life, and by wicked he means the one who does not care for God or follow His commands. So there it is: Job is a God-follower and his life sucks and the non-follower's life is soooooooo much better than his. He adds: "One man dies in full vigor, completely secure and at ease, his body is well-nourished, his bones rich with marrow. Another man dies in bitterness of soul, never having enjoyed anything good. Side by side they lie in the dust, and worms cover them both." (Job21:23-25)
What I believe he is saying is that some wicked people will live their whole lives, until the end, in prosperity and without being punished for their sins, while others, where God-followers or not, will have a whole life of suffering and end like that. And then they will both die and that will be the end of it. Or will it?
For us, finite beings with a finite perspective of life and death, that is the end. That is until how far we can see. God, however, sees it differently. It is like those movies that have a "hidden" scene at the end of the credits. Let's say that us humans leave the movie theater as soon as the credits start ("The end" at the screen means our bodily death in this illustration).God, however, already knows what that "hidden" scene will be.And He is so kind to show it to us. In the case of Job, however, he dies without seeing it.
YES, I know that in the end his life turns around and he has double children and double riches (Job 42:12-17), but that is not what I am talking about. That is not what Job 21:23-25 talks about either. I am sure you or someone in your circle of friends knows someone who was mean until the end of their lives and all went well to them. And also someone who was the sweetest person you have ever met and their lives were miserable. Verses 23-25 are talking about those people.
Ok, I am going to stop here today and leave you wondering (hopefully) what and where the "hidden" scene is. Let me just tell you upfront it is not in the book of Job. It is not even in the Old Testament. But it is in the Bible. And I will talk about it on the next post of this series.
The Brazilican Learner
Friday, June 14, 2013
Thursday, June 13, 2013
The Perfect Teacher - Part One
After surviving the first few months of teaching and being a mom, I am back to blogging!!! :) Sorry it has been so long and I will update you guys on my New Year's Resolution on another opportunity but today I want to write about The Perfect Teacher.
Remember the three part series I wrote called "What is a lesson after all?" (Read part one here, part two here and part three here) ? Well, this series"The Perfect Teacher" is a follow-up to that series.
Last time we talked about it we discussed the attributes of a teacher and decided no one will ever be the "perfect teacher". Well, no human being. But there is a Perfect Teacher, and he is GOD. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. Let's take a look into the Bible and see just a glimpse of His infinite knowledge and perspective versus our finite human mind.
We are going to start by taking a look at the book of Job in the Bible. Who was Job? In a nutshell, Job was a good man who followed God and had a bunch of kids and money (which translated into cattle and sheep back then). This is what God thought of him: 'There is no one on earth like him [Job]; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil'. (Job 1:8b)
But his status quo on earth was about to change and some of you may already know. He was about to lose everything. You see, Satan thought that Job was 'blameless and upright' because he had all those blessings from God. This is what Satan told God in response: "You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will curse you to your face." (Job 1:10b and 11) Basically he was saying that what Job really worshipped were the blessings, not the Blesser.
So God gave permission to Satan to take everything from Job, including his cattle and sheep, his children and his own health. All that Job was left with was a wife - who advised him to 'curse God and die' (Job 2:9b) and friends - who kept telling him that what happened to him was his own fault - of course he must have sinned and that is why all this disaster came upon him. To sum it up, he was left with nothing good, no family, no possessions, no health, no support. Nothing.
Now let's pause for a moment... Job is suffering physically, financially and emotionally, when all he did his whole life was to seek God... that seems unfair, right?
BUT GOD...
... The Perfect Teacher...
had and has a lot in store to teach Job and us in this whole situation....
I am going to stop this post here, before I continue I would like to hear from you...
What do you think those lessons are?
Why do you think God allowed all this to happen to Job?
Have you ever been in a similar situation?
The Brazilican Learner
Remember the three part series I wrote called "What is a lesson after all?" (Read part one here, part two here and part three here) ? Well, this series"The Perfect Teacher" is a follow-up to that series.
Last time we talked about it we discussed the attributes of a teacher and decided no one will ever be the "perfect teacher". Well, no human being. But there is a Perfect Teacher, and he is GOD. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. Let's take a look into the Bible and see just a glimpse of His infinite knowledge and perspective versus our finite human mind.
We are going to start by taking a look at the book of Job in the Bible. Who was Job? In a nutshell, Job was a good man who followed God and had a bunch of kids and money (which translated into cattle and sheep back then). This is what God thought of him: 'There is no one on earth like him [Job]; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil'. (Job 1:8b)
But his status quo on earth was about to change and some of you may already know. He was about to lose everything. You see, Satan thought that Job was 'blameless and upright' because he had all those blessings from God. This is what Satan told God in response: "You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will curse you to your face." (Job 1:10b and 11) Basically he was saying that what Job really worshipped were the blessings, not the Blesser.
So God gave permission to Satan to take everything from Job, including his cattle and sheep, his children and his own health. All that Job was left with was a wife - who advised him to 'curse God and die' (Job 2:9b) and friends - who kept telling him that what happened to him was his own fault - of course he must have sinned and that is why all this disaster came upon him. To sum it up, he was left with nothing good, no family, no possessions, no health, no support. Nothing.
Now let's pause for a moment... Job is suffering physically, financially and emotionally, when all he did his whole life was to seek God... that seems unfair, right?
BUT GOD...
... The Perfect Teacher...
had and has a lot in store to teach Job and us in this whole situation....
I am going to stop this post here, before I continue I would like to hear from you...
What do you think those lessons are?
Why do you think God allowed all this to happen to Job?
Have you ever been in a similar situation?
The Brazilican Learner