"I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. Therefore, I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes." - Job 42:5-6
What you have just read is the entire purpose behind the book of Job. If you want the answer to the "WHY" question surrounding Job's story, these two verses of scripture answers it perfectly. In spite of Job's reputation as a "perfect and upright man", Job had some glaring issues that only the Potter was fully aware of; issues that prevented Job from becoming a 'vessel of honor' in God's kingdom.
I repeat, only the Potter knew Job's true condition. On the surface, Job was exactly as the Bible described him in Job 1:1. As far as his friends, family, and neighbors could see, Job was a pillar in the community and a man to be looked up to and honored. Job was a religious man. Back in the first chapter of Job, we are shown a glimpse into his regular practice of offering sacrifices on behalf of his children just in case they had "sinned and cursed God in their hearts". So, on the surface, Job looked like the most spiritually mature specimen that had ever graced this sin cursed planet.
But, like so many of us, Job had issues that prevented Him from truly knowing the God he sacrificed to. By Job's own admission, he had 'heard of [God]' but had never truly 'seen' Him.
Know anyone like that? Ever met anyone that had been so expertly trained in the 'way they should go' that they had convinced everyone (including themselves) that they had their stuff together? Have you ever had the privilege of serving God next to someone who was so blinded to their own flaws and weaknesses that they could not entertain the idea they actually had any?
I've met lots of people like that. In fact, for far too many years I saw one of those people every time I looked in the mirror.
The honest truth of the matter is, most of us struggle with this level of self delusion in some form or fashion. Rare is the soul that walks the Earth with a full awareness of their entire being; warts and all. Most of us put in an extraordinary amount of time creating images of ourselves that we want people to see. Everyone does this, especially in the church setting. In fact, the longer you go to church, the better equipped you are to project a false image of yourself to the masses and to yourself. All it takes is a few spiritual-sounding words, a few well placed scriptures, and even a few Christiany cliches and you are well on your way to crafting a persona of spiritual maturity that few people can see beyond.
But, the truth about ourselves is never hidden from our Potter and He is not even remotely interested in enabling us to live a lie. Thus, the Potter's process of perfecting his saints.
Contrary to popular belief, Job is not the poster child of superhuman patience and faith during times of trouble. As a matter of fact, if you read the entire book of Job, you will witness Job's faithful facade begin to crumble around about chapter 3. Yep, immediately after his faithful proclamation to his wife about receiving both good and bad from God, Job actually does do what every single one of us would do if we were in the same situation as Job. He throws himself the mother of all pity parties.
Just read all of chapter 3 and see if you can find any form of faith in God in there. Job chapter 3 is 26 verses long and every one of those verses is a long moaning wail from a man in terrible emotional pain. We understand that pain. We can sympathize with that pain. Many of us can even empathize with it. But make no mistake, the faith-filled, 'perfect and upright' citizen of Uz has been brought to his knees and it is ONLY when we are in this position that our true selves emerge.
Let me repeat, it is only when the fire of the Potter's kiln heats up that our carefully crafted self image melts away and all we are left with is the truth about ourselves. All of the Christian lingo, spiritual cliches, and memory verses that you've known since you were a fetus become powerless in the face of the Potter's kiln.
God is not fooled by a form of godliness and he is not interested in powerless religious practices. What the Potter wants is the same thing He wanted in Eden with Adam and Eve. He wants deep, abiding relationship with his most precious creations. He wants us to spend time with Him because we WANT to spend time with Him, not as a part of some religious duty. He wants us to pray because we crave that time with Him, not because a preacher told us we were supposed to. He wants us to get in his Word and 'learn of him', not because of a Christian checklist of obligations but because we hunger for that 'bread of life' that feeds us to our very core and brings us into an even deeper understanding of who He is.
The Potter wants a relationship with every single one of His children and He will do everything in his considerable power to destroy our self-image of spiritual superiority in order to achieve that...including send Satan to our doorstep.
THAT is the point to the Book of Job. It is a perfect example of the Potter's method of removing pride and selfishness from His vessels and filling them with Himself. If Job is the poster child of anything, he is the prime example of a religious, pride-filled, self-centered human being that the Potter had to break down and remake into a God-filled, Spirit-led vessel of honor 'meet for the master's use'.
Need more proof of Job's pride issues? Read Job 29 and pay close attention to the number of personal pronouns ("I", "ME", "MY", "MINE", etc) Job uses when describing his role in the community during his heyday. Just take a look at what Job misses the most about those 'good 'ol days' when he was The Wizard of Uz.
Do you see what Job is lamenting? Do you recognize what Job is mourning over in this chapter? He isn't weeping over his lost cattle or even the loss of his children here (to be fair, he does do that earlier in the book). What he is really missing about all of this loss is the absence of his power and prestige in the city. He misses the position of authority he held in his 'seat in the open square'. He is lamenting the loss of his power over the crowds of people who lined up to hear his wisdom. He missed being in a position to deliver the poor and the fatherless and the perishing and the widows. He missed being "eyes to the blind" and "feet to the lame" and "a father to the poor".
Need I go on? Job's altruism wasn't born from a desire to help people; that was just a fringe benefit. Job's true motivations was he enjoyed the attention he received when he helped people. He loved it when "the young men saw me and hid and the aged arose and stood". His ego was fed when "the princes refrained from talking and put their hand on their mouth" when he was in the room. Job was overjoyed at the thought that his mere presence caused "the voice of the nobles" to be "hushed".
I mean, who needs God when you've got JOB?!?
Can you see why the Potter might want to do something about his pride-filled vessel? Just in case you need any further evidence of Job's hidden issues, I'll let God Himself shine the spotlight on why He took such extreme measures to get Job's attention. From Job chapter 38 to Job chapter 41, God shows up to communicate to his 'perfect and upright' servant. In those four chapters, God goes on a rhetorical rampage through Job's heart and mind with questions that no one on the Earth could ever answer, no matter how technologically and scientifically advanced we may think we are. I could spend the next year focusing completely on the things God brings up in those four chapters and not even scratch the surface of who our Potter is and what He can do.
But I digress.
My main reason for bringing up these four chapters is in the very last sentence God speaks to Job. After taking Job on a marathon of His power, abilities, and knowledge, God concludes his lesson on the very issue that is at the heart of the Book of Job:
"He (God) beholds every high thing; He (God) is king over all the children of pride." - Job 41:34
There it is, ladies and gentlemen, in black and white. The purpose behind the Potter's process. The king over all the children of pride is on the throne and He shares power with no man...including the nobleman-shushing Job.
Job's response to all of this is the most honest and deeply personal statement that you'll find in the entire Book of Job. Our hero confesses his empty and shallow head knowledge of God with an added confession of his newfound vision before coming to the point that the Potter is desperate to get all of us to...total repentance.
Yep, that word 'repentance' is a loaded word and we'll dive into it more deeply in later blog entries. But for now, just know that repentance is what fuels our growth as vessels of honor. Repentance is the attitude that God is looking for. Not words. Not even actions. Repentance is a condition of the heart and only the Potter can see it. It is what He is looking for in every single one of us. Repentance is not just for unwashed heathens or lost sinners. Repentance does not conclude at the cross or the empty tomb or the baptismal pool. Repentance is a mindset and an attitude that obliterates pride, destroys ego, and shortens the length of time we'll be in the Potter's kiln.
Don't believe me? Read the last chapter in the book of Job and watch how quickly Job's life turns around after his repentant encounter with God.
It should be noted that Job's statement about "the Lord gives and the Lord takes away" is very true. The beautiful thing about our Lord and our God is not only does he "give and take away" but he also gives back again. In fact, God LOVES to give good gifts to His children.
But, it must be repeated that God's definition of "good" and ours is not the same thing. What we consider a "good gift" and what our Heavenly Father considers to be a "good gift" is not in the same zip code.
It is this enormous chasm between our wants, wishes, and desires and God's that causes us the most trouble. It is our selfish pride that fuels the Potter's Kiln and prolongs our time in its fire. If we are not careful, our unrepentant pride can not only prolong our time in the fire, it can make us a permanent resident. Just like the exodus generation of Israelites who died in the wilderness...
...or our second Joe.
NEXT: A TALE OF TWO JOES - PART THREE
What you have just read is the entire purpose behind the book of Job. If you want the answer to the "WHY" question surrounding Job's story, these two verses of scripture answers it perfectly. In spite of Job's reputation as a "perfect and upright man", Job had some glaring issues that only the Potter was fully aware of; issues that prevented Job from becoming a 'vessel of honor' in God's kingdom.
I repeat, only the Potter knew Job's true condition. On the surface, Job was exactly as the Bible described him in Job 1:1. As far as his friends, family, and neighbors could see, Job was a pillar in the community and a man to be looked up to and honored. Job was a religious man. Back in the first chapter of Job, we are shown a glimpse into his regular practice of offering sacrifices on behalf of his children just in case they had "sinned and cursed God in their hearts". So, on the surface, Job looked like the most spiritually mature specimen that had ever graced this sin cursed planet.
But, like so many of us, Job had issues that prevented Him from truly knowing the God he sacrificed to. By Job's own admission, he had 'heard of [God]' but had never truly 'seen' Him.
Know anyone like that? Ever met anyone that had been so expertly trained in the 'way they should go' that they had convinced everyone (including themselves) that they had their stuff together? Have you ever had the privilege of serving God next to someone who was so blinded to their own flaws and weaknesses that they could not entertain the idea they actually had any?
I've met lots of people like that. In fact, for far too many years I saw one of those people every time I looked in the mirror.
The honest truth of the matter is, most of us struggle with this level of self delusion in some form or fashion. Rare is the soul that walks the Earth with a full awareness of their entire being; warts and all. Most of us put in an extraordinary amount of time creating images of ourselves that we want people to see. Everyone does this, especially in the church setting. In fact, the longer you go to church, the better equipped you are to project a false image of yourself to the masses and to yourself. All it takes is a few spiritual-sounding words, a few well placed scriptures, and even a few Christiany cliches and you are well on your way to crafting a persona of spiritual maturity that few people can see beyond.
But, the truth about ourselves is never hidden from our Potter and He is not even remotely interested in enabling us to live a lie. Thus, the Potter's process of perfecting his saints.
Contrary to popular belief, Job is not the poster child of superhuman patience and faith during times of trouble. As a matter of fact, if you read the entire book of Job, you will witness Job's faithful facade begin to crumble around about chapter 3. Yep, immediately after his faithful proclamation to his wife about receiving both good and bad from God, Job actually does do what every single one of us would do if we were in the same situation as Job. He throws himself the mother of all pity parties.
Just read all of chapter 3 and see if you can find any form of faith in God in there. Job chapter 3 is 26 verses long and every one of those verses is a long moaning wail from a man in terrible emotional pain. We understand that pain. We can sympathize with that pain. Many of us can even empathize with it. But make no mistake, the faith-filled, 'perfect and upright' citizen of Uz has been brought to his knees and it is ONLY when we are in this position that our true selves emerge.
Let me repeat, it is only when the fire of the Potter's kiln heats up that our carefully crafted self image melts away and all we are left with is the truth about ourselves. All of the Christian lingo, spiritual cliches, and memory verses that you've known since you were a fetus become powerless in the face of the Potter's kiln.
God is not fooled by a form of godliness and he is not interested in powerless religious practices. What the Potter wants is the same thing He wanted in Eden with Adam and Eve. He wants deep, abiding relationship with his most precious creations. He wants us to spend time with Him because we WANT to spend time with Him, not as a part of some religious duty. He wants us to pray because we crave that time with Him, not because a preacher told us we were supposed to. He wants us to get in his Word and 'learn of him', not because of a Christian checklist of obligations but because we hunger for that 'bread of life' that feeds us to our very core and brings us into an even deeper understanding of who He is.
The Potter wants a relationship with every single one of His children and He will do everything in his considerable power to destroy our self-image of spiritual superiority in order to achieve that...including send Satan to our doorstep.
THAT is the point to the Book of Job. It is a perfect example of the Potter's method of removing pride and selfishness from His vessels and filling them with Himself. If Job is the poster child of anything, he is the prime example of a religious, pride-filled, self-centered human being that the Potter had to break down and remake into a God-filled, Spirit-led vessel of honor 'meet for the master's use'.
Need more proof of Job's pride issues? Read Job 29 and pay close attention to the number of personal pronouns ("I", "ME", "MY", "MINE", etc) Job uses when describing his role in the community during his heyday. Just take a look at what Job misses the most about those 'good 'ol days' when he was The Wizard of Uz.
Do you see what Job is lamenting? Do you recognize what Job is mourning over in this chapter? He isn't weeping over his lost cattle or even the loss of his children here (to be fair, he does do that earlier in the book). What he is really missing about all of this loss is the absence of his power and prestige in the city. He misses the position of authority he held in his 'seat in the open square'. He is lamenting the loss of his power over the crowds of people who lined up to hear his wisdom. He missed being in a position to deliver the poor and the fatherless and the perishing and the widows. He missed being "eyes to the blind" and "feet to the lame" and "a father to the poor".
Need I go on? Job's altruism wasn't born from a desire to help people; that was just a fringe benefit. Job's true motivations was he enjoyed the attention he received when he helped people. He loved it when "the young men saw me and hid and the aged arose and stood". His ego was fed when "the princes refrained from talking and put their hand on their mouth" when he was in the room. Job was overjoyed at the thought that his mere presence caused "the voice of the nobles" to be "hushed".
I mean, who needs God when you've got JOB?!?
Can you see why the Potter might want to do something about his pride-filled vessel? Just in case you need any further evidence of Job's hidden issues, I'll let God Himself shine the spotlight on why He took such extreme measures to get Job's attention. From Job chapter 38 to Job chapter 41, God shows up to communicate to his 'perfect and upright' servant. In those four chapters, God goes on a rhetorical rampage through Job's heart and mind with questions that no one on the Earth could ever answer, no matter how technologically and scientifically advanced we may think we are. I could spend the next year focusing completely on the things God brings up in those four chapters and not even scratch the surface of who our Potter is and what He can do.
But I digress.
My main reason for bringing up these four chapters is in the very last sentence God speaks to Job. After taking Job on a marathon of His power, abilities, and knowledge, God concludes his lesson on the very issue that is at the heart of the Book of Job:
"He (God) beholds every high thing; He (God) is king over all the children of pride." - Job 41:34
There it is, ladies and gentlemen, in black and white. The purpose behind the Potter's process. The king over all the children of pride is on the throne and He shares power with no man...including the nobleman-shushing Job.
Job's response to all of this is the most honest and deeply personal statement that you'll find in the entire Book of Job. Our hero confesses his empty and shallow head knowledge of God with an added confession of his newfound vision before coming to the point that the Potter is desperate to get all of us to...total repentance.
Yep, that word 'repentance' is a loaded word and we'll dive into it more deeply in later blog entries. But for now, just know that repentance is what fuels our growth as vessels of honor. Repentance is the attitude that God is looking for. Not words. Not even actions. Repentance is a condition of the heart and only the Potter can see it. It is what He is looking for in every single one of us. Repentance is not just for unwashed heathens or lost sinners. Repentance does not conclude at the cross or the empty tomb or the baptismal pool. Repentance is a mindset and an attitude that obliterates pride, destroys ego, and shortens the length of time we'll be in the Potter's kiln.
Don't believe me? Read the last chapter in the book of Job and watch how quickly Job's life turns around after his repentant encounter with God.
It should be noted that Job's statement about "the Lord gives and the Lord takes away" is very true. The beautiful thing about our Lord and our God is not only does he "give and take away" but he also gives back again. In fact, God LOVES to give good gifts to His children.
But, it must be repeated that God's definition of "good" and ours is not the same thing. What we consider a "good gift" and what our Heavenly Father considers to be a "good gift" is not in the same zip code.
It is this enormous chasm between our wants, wishes, and desires and God's that causes us the most trouble. It is our selfish pride that fuels the Potter's Kiln and prolongs our time in its fire. If we are not careful, our unrepentant pride can not only prolong our time in the fire, it can make us a permanent resident. Just like the exodus generation of Israelites who died in the wilderness...
...or our second Joe.
NEXT: A TALE OF TWO JOES - PART THREE
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