Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him. Job 13:15
Job believed he was putting his life in jeopardy by what he was saying (verse 14). He thought that God would kill him because he was challenging him to let him argue his case (verse 3). Yet, Job continues with his challenge. Getting answers to his suffering was more important than life itself.
So often when we suffer we think God is angry with us. Perhaps this comes from our experience as children. If we did something which resulted in our parents being angry then the consequences were often unpleasant for us. As adults, we assume if we’re experiencing unpleasant circumstances it must be because God is angry with us. Yet this is a flawed way of looking at life.
Anger is a choice parents and others make in response to someone behaving in a way that inconveniences them or blocks their goals in some way. It’s impossible to make someone angry without their free choice. They could choose to respond differently. Consequently, we don’t make God angry by our actions or non-actions. We might disappoint God but he is well aware of our shortcomings so he isn’t surprised or angry with our behaviour.
God wasn’t angry with Job. If we read the first two chapters of Job we find God boasting about Job’s righteousness to Satan. There was no need for him to protest his innocence, God already knew it. Ultimately God was seeking to draw Job into a deeper relationship with himself and to do this God temporarily allow his blessings to be removed so he learnt to rely on God alone.
Through it all Job decided to hope in God, even if it killed him.
Let’s do likewise.
