You might be glad to see that this will just be a short one. (A first for me!) I just want to share 2 Bible verses.
The first is from Job, right after he was afflicted with sores all over his body. His wife told him to 'curse God and die.'
But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips. (Job 2:10)
Compare this statement with some of Solomon's wisdom:
In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him. (Eccl. 7:14)
or as the NIV puts it:
When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider this: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, no one can discover anything about their future.
Do you thank God when something good happens to you? Nothing wrong with that. But do you consider that bad things can also be a gift from God? If we believe God is sovereign, it has to be true - God allows good and bad things in our lives for our own eternal benefit. He is not the creator of evil, but as long as we live in this sinful world, God will use anything - good and bad, but more often than not the bad - to draw us closer to Himself. We must understand what it is that Satan came to kill, steal and destroy... do you think he cares about our current comfort, or our souls? If he can draw us away from God with money or good fortune, maybe he will! Just because it seems good doesn't mean it's from God, and just because it seems bad doesn't mean its from Satan. We must learn to receive both good and bad from God's hand, as these verses teach. Again, we can learn so much from Job's case study. Satan only did what God allowed him to do. Ultimately it was God who used adversity in Job's life to draw Job closer to Himself. Remember, in Job 42:5-6 Job says:
"I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you
therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes.”
Job recognised God's work in his life through adversity. He also repented that he ever questioned and complained to God. Sometimes we do not know why. We also do not know the future, as Ecclesiastes states. We can only hold on to what we do know, and that is that God is trustworthy, loving, faithful, all powerful, infinite in wisdom, unchanging, merciful, just, all knowing, sovereign, good and perfect. I believe this honours God. I don't pretend to get it right all the time. Like Job, I fail to remember who God is and fully trust Him when things don't work out the way I would like. I cannot remind myself too often of these facts. In it is wrapped my peace and joy and contentment.
How do these verses fit into your theology?
