Job LXXXV

 Job 5:1-7, “Call out now; is there anyone who will answer you? And to which of the holy ones will you turn? For wrath kills a foolish man, and envy slays a simple one. I have seen the foolish take root, but suddenly I curse his dwelling place. His sons are far from safety, they are crushed in the gate, and there is no deliverer. Because the hungry eat up the harvest, taking it even from the thorns, and a snare snatches their substance. For affliction does not come from the dust, nor does trouble spring from the ground; yet man is born to trouble, as the sparks fly upward.”

The subtext and innuendo in Eliphaz’s discourse are staggering to behold. As we continue into the fifth chapter of Job, about halfway through, you can see the tonal shift once again, as if two different men were speaking. If we pay close attention, we can see where Satan’s influence ends and Eliphaz’s own thoughts begin.

You’re all alone, buddy, is what the subtext implies. Call out now. Is there anyone who will answer you? You trusted in God, you served Him, you feared Him, and He’s brought you to this low point in life. You’re crying out, and He’s remaining silent. Perhaps he wasn’t worthy of your veneration. Perhaps you misplaced your faith. Which of the holy ones will you turn to now? Given that this God has failed you, which god will you pursue now? The depth of evil in Satan’s implications is jarring. That he would use one of Job’s closest friends to deliver this message is cunning and unseemly.

Not to belabor the point, but oftentimes, you can tell when someone is speaking their words, sharing their heart, and when an external, nefarious force is using them to sow despair in your heart. Perhaps unintentionally, unwittingly, without his knowledge or consent, but it is evident that Satan was using Eliphaz to dispirit Job, to the point of questioning if he’d picked the right God to serve and obey.

This was not Eliphaz talking. It was his voice, his tongue, his cadence, but as far as words are concerned, these were not his words. It’s a terrifying prospect when you start to think about it. Here he was, having traveled a long way, having sat with his friend in silence for seven days just hoping to be a comfort, and now that he opened his mouth to speak, his words were anything but comforting or encouraging. On the contrary, up to this point in his monologue, his entire focus was on getting Job to doubt his resolve and make him question whether his service to God was worth it.

If the Word tells you to hold fast to your faith, to put on the whole armor of God, to resist the devil, and to persevere, and a friend, a family member, or even one you deem a spiritual authority comes along and tells you it would be better if you just gave up, packed it in, perhaps find another religion you should gravitate toward because the God you currently serve isn’t taking any calls, you should know without doubt that they are being used of the enemy to try and shake your faith.

The enemy is fully aware that faith to the spiritual man is like oxygen to the physical man. It is the stone thrown into a still pond, causing ripples in every area of life. Once you begin to understand faith, you cannot remain unchanged, unaffected, or unmoved. If you deprive the physical man of oxygen for any lack of time, then he will surely die. The same is true for the spiritual man, and the enemy’s goal for anyone who comes to faith in Christ is to diminish, weaken, or destroy the faith of the individual, knowing that it will separate him from the vine, wherein he will shrivel and begin to die because no life is flowing into him.

If the devil can use some circumstance, acquaintance, temptation, or sin to separate you from faith in Christ, he has ostensibly separated you from Christ Himself. True faith is an active reality that fuels our desire to grow deeper and stronger in God, leaving the world and the things of the world behind.

The entire argument within the household of faith regarding faith and works is utterly pointless because when you possess true faith, the fruit thereof will be evident for all to see. It is faith and hope in the life to come, the eternal reward, the saving power of Christ, and His sacrifice that gives us the wherewithal to endure and persevere. Don’t let the enemy shake your faith or separate you from it, for if he accomplishes this, then victory will forever be out of reach for you.

This was now the enemy’s new strategy: to use Job’s friends to weaken his resolve and shake his faith in the God he served. If at first you don’t succeed, try, and try again seems to be the devil’s motto when it comes to attacking God’s faithful, and this is a truth we would do well to remember. Far too often, we are busy celebrating a victory and don’t notice the next attack that’s more devious than the last. There will be time to celebrate, to rejoice, and to be exultant, but that’s when we’ve finished the race, crossed the finish line, and stand before God, hearing well done. Any celebration or chest-beating before that glorious day is a recipe for disaster, and a moment of inattentiveness can set our faith journey back months if not years.

The journey isn’t over until it’s over. Whether in a valley or on the mountaintop, whether you can’t wait to escape the season you’re in and be on to the next, or you want to remain in it because it’s comfortable, your duty is to look up and keep walking toward Jesus with the same enthusiasm, focus, and commitment. It’s the goal, the prize, the finish line that we must focus on regardless of current circumstances, and with faith that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him, we press ever onward.

Romans 6:4, “Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”

With love in Christ,

Michael Boldea, Jr.