Be at rest with the knowledge that Holy Spirit is God and greater is He in you than he that is in the world.
Psalm 34:7
The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him,
And delivers them.
God restored to Job everything that satan had stolen from him. If not in this life, in eternity, we will be made whole!
God always has the final say in our life!
Job 1:6–12
6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. 7 And the Lord said to Satan, “From where do you come?” So Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it.” 8 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?” 9 So Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 10 Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11 But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!” 12 And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person.” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord. The New King James Version
The sons of God are celestial beings or angels who were created by Him and who serve Him as his “holy ones”. The imagery seemingly indicates a heavenly council over which the Lord sits as Supreme King.
Strictly speaking, Satan may be a title rather than the personal name of the leader of all evil forces. The Hebrew word was not clearly used as a proper name until 1 Chronicles 21:1, chronologically one of the last OT books written. Nevertheless, the characteristics of the “Adversary” in the Book of Job imply that he was in fact Satan. He answered God’s questions in an antagonistic manner and accused Job of ulterior motives. That Satan came among the hosts of heaven at this time suggests that Satan still had access to God’s court, and that his final banishment was still in the future.
The Hebrew word Yahweh, usually translated the Lord, is the personal name of the true God of the Old Testament. It is the particular name of God in covenantal relations with His people Israel. This indicates that though Job was not an Israelite, he had a relationship with the true God.
From where do you come: God’s inquiry does not imply an ignorance of Satan’s behavior but was part of the conversation with Satan. See the similar function of the question posed to Adam after the Fall (Genesis 3:9).
My servant refers to the proper relationship every person should have with God—that is, a joyful and reverent trust in God. Job was a model of this type of relationship with the Lord in the prologue and the epilogue.
Satan, always “the adversary,” questioned Job’s motives for fearing and serving God. The expression for nothing is emphatic in the Hebrew text. The question may be paraphrased, “Is Job really free of ulterior motives?”
God had placed a hedge of protection around Job and his household. No harm could come to him unless the Lord permitted it. Believers today should take great comfort from the biblical teaching that the Lord protects His people—whether by a cloud, or by a wall of fiery hosts, or through guardian angels.
Satan ignored customary court etiquette that would not permit him to address God directly as You, or use the personal references Your hand or Your face. Such irreverence was part of his constant strategy to demean God.
The sin of cursing God is a pivotal issue for the Book of Job. Job feared that his children might think or speak irreverently of God. But Satan asserted that Job would surely curse God if his prosperity and blessings were removed. Even Job’s wife would urge him to “curse God and die”.
That Satan must receive permission from the Lord to lay a hand on Job indicates that God limits Satan’s power. Believers can find strength and assurance from the fact that Satan’s actions are limited by God’s sovereign control. After the prologue, Satan is never mentioned directly again in the Book of Job; he is only a minor character compared to the Lord of the universe.The NKJV Study Bible
Job’s afflictions began from the malice of Satan, by the Lord’s permission, for wise and holy purposes. There is an evil spirit, the enemy of God, and of all righteousness, who is continually seeking to distress, to lead astray, and, if possible, to destroy those who love God. How far his influence may extend, we cannot say; but probably much unsteadiness and unhappiness in Christians may be ascribed to him. While we are on this earth we are within his reach. Hence it concerns us to be sober and vigilant, 1Peter 5:8. See how Satan censures Job. This is the common way of slanderers, to suggest that which they have no reason to think is true. But as there is nothing we should dread more than really being hypocrites, so there is nothing we need dread less than being called and counted so without cause. It is not wrong to look at the eternal recompence in our obedience; but it is wrong to aim at worldly advantages in our religion. God’s people are taken under his special protection; they, and all that belong to them. The blessing of the Lord makes rich; Satan himself owns it. God suffered Job to be tried, as he suffered Peter to be sifted. It is our comfort that God has the devil in a chain, Revelation 20:1. He has no power to lead men to sin, but what they give him themselves; nor any power to afflict men, but what is given him from above. All this is here described to us after the manner of men. The Scripture speaks thus to teach us that God directs the affairs of the world. Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
1 Peter 4:12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.
Peter warned them that in the future they would have fiery trials to test them. When Jesus returned if they had suffered with Him they would rejoice with Him and their joy would be complete.
If you are reproached because of your faith trust in Holy Spirit who will sustain you and bring you peace in all trials. Judgement begins in the Church. We are to be the example of God’s hands in the lives of those who choose to believe in Jesus. It begins with believers. How much more we will be held responsible for our actions.
1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
Revelation 12:9–10 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.
Whether it is our body, mind, heart or faith that needs healing, God has the power. His desire is to see us, any and every part of us, whole. We can have confidence that even in our trials, God is working to make us "perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" (James 1:4).
For followers of Jesus, in any area of our lives where wholeness doesn't happen in this life, God will absolutely make it so in eternity.
All things are possible for one who believes" (Mark 9:23). "For nothing will be impossible with God" (Luke 1:37). God accomplishes all things in His time and purpose. Do not lose hope, even when a situation feels impossible. Ask God to increase your confidence in His power at work by crying out like the father in Mark 9:24: "I believe; help my unbelief!" First5
Here's the deal: We are not outrunning life. Or outrunning the bad parts of life. Resilience involves inviting all of life in... the longing, hunger, vulnerability, wildness, energy, uncertainty, appetite, hope, humor, beauty, and irony.
Only when we embrace do we see. Today, I thank… for the grace that allows me to risk loving this day.
To be unafraid of a life that can be messy.
To make a space for something less than perfect in myself and in those around me.
To offer kindness or compassion in a glance. In a word. In a touch. In a gesture.
To create sanctuary spaces where healing and hope are offered; where hatred is turned away.
To believe in goodness after harm.
And to know that planting seeds of love will always spill to the world around me. Sabbath Moments
It seems to me that I have a greater peace and am closer to God when I am not 'trying to be a contemplative,' or trying to be anything special, but simply orienting my life fully and completely towards what seems to be required of a man like me at a time like this. Thomas Merton
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