Job 22:2-3. “Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wise may be profitable unto himself? Is it any pleasure to the Almighty, that thou art righteous? Or is it gain to him that thou makest thy ways perfect?”
CAN A MAN BE PROFITABLE TO GOD? Our limitations are obvious – limited to time, space and matter How can mortal man profit God who is limited by neither? We have a few senses including touch, taste and smell – And God with no limits at all truly does everything well! So with such limitations on frail and mortal man – What can I give God – is there something I possibly can Bring to Him; something that is uniquely from me? What could I do? What could such a thing possibly be?
An early morning talk with God, and a listening ear – May be one way I can honor Him and some reasonable profit bear To His throne of grace, and to the world around me Where through my human frailty, something of God people might see I cannot add to His creation, it is completely done – and good But I can avoid abusing it; maybe even display it if I would An explanation of an earthquake; of a mountain – even a flower Might be profitable to God as I tell others of His power.
If I could tell others of His grace, of His love and of His mercy Perhaps there would be some response to Him that can be used profitably And given, that would shed light on some dark and hidden spot And life would spring forth and glory given to God where previously was naught By preparation of my heart and mind, can I be profitable to God? Is there some glory and some blessing for Him when I am in His Word? I really hope there is, for at this stage of my life – Perhaps the best profit I can bring is to shed some simple light.
I am not discouraged – just perplexed as to how I can best God profit To sing a hymn of testimony or praise – or if a difficulty – rise above it Is probably one of the best ways my service can bring to Him Some profit that glorifies Him as the dawn of each day begins And through the day control my tongue and actions along the way So, profit to God may be a little here and a little there in the journey of this day When day is drawing to a close and my eyes are growing dim – May there still be some thanks and appreciation that is profitable to Him.
“O God of all grace, I feel so unworthy of thinking the thoughts I just wrote. But if there is some truth in those things I am thinking, then be glorified in it and if there is profit – may it honor Thee today. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.”
Job 23-24 "WHERE IS GOD?" Job had repeatedly listened to the discourses of his three friends, and each time they had made the same arguments based on the same premise. To their way of thinking, even though they approached the subject from different points of view, Job was guilty of hidden sin. As a result of that he was also guilty of hypocrisy and lying because he did not accept their verdict. He had answered each time with a open defense of not knowing what he had done that was wrong, and therefore was innocent of all their charges.
They were convinced that suffering is only because of sin, and it will come promptly during one's lifetime. Their opinion was the righteous prosper now, a similar position to the "prosperity Gospel" some teach in our day. They did not even consider Job's view that God brings suffering on both the just and the unjust. He can and may bring suffering on one who is righteous for His own sovereign reasons. That was what Job was longing for. An answer, "Why is this happening to me? If only I knew what God is doing and why!"
In this part of the whole dialogue, Job doesn't answer nor make even a brief response to all that Eliphaz had to say in his third speech. It was just more of the same, only in harsher words and a more bitter challenge. He was not going to try to appease God by making up some imaginary sins to get God to act. Job was confident God knew what he was doing, but he just wanted to know why.
Again, for our learning, we may never know why some things happen to us. We may wonder for a lifetime why God gave life to our child for only a short time and then took it away. Or why we experience debilitating strokes, heart disease or cancer. Even an accident that took the life of a loved one may never be given an explanation. But like Job, we know, "The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the name of the Lord."
When Job spoke this time, he had nothing to say to the three men there with him. But he had two main observations to which his thoughts and words are drawn. First, in chapter 23, why must the righteous go through such difficulty. In chapter 24, why are sinful people able to enjoy prosperity and seem not to suffer.
Injustice has always been a concern of most people, because we want it dealt with right at the moment and quickly eliminated. It doesn't seem fair to us that justice is put on the back burner in so many cases until the crime is almost forgotten. We need to remember that sin is sin, whether in the mind, motives, attitudes or actions. God is just - always. But He is also the "Justifier" of those who believe in Jesus.
There is much more to the character of God than justice. He is holy, of that there is no doubt. But God is also full of grace and is plenteous in mercy. His love for people isn't earned or haphazardly given. His love to all mankind is part of His divine nature.
In Job's discourse he is groaning and miserable as one may become when approaching a painful death. Because the bitterness of his suffering and the accusations of his friends, he is longing to find God. He is sure he would get justice if he could plead his case personally before God. What caused his great spiritual problem, even more than physical and emotional, was, "O, that I knew where I might find Him!" He speaks as a man who is before an earthly judge. When one knows they are in the presence of God, "Every mouth is stopped..."
Even though God is the Father of those who believe, it is a danger to us and our understanding of Him if we communicate with Him, and/or consider Him as we would a benevolent grandfather who is willing to give us what we really don't need and may not even be good for us. We do not deserve "the least of His mercies," but we do put our faith in Him personally and in the confidence that His will is being done justly, even if we do not understand the reasons behind the action. One is constantly impressed when reading through the book of Job, that over and over again, he confidently affirms that though he is not claiming to be sinless, he is upright and righteous in his life. He would gladly go to court, even the Supreme Court with the Supreme Judge on the throne, and plead his cause openly. He is sure he is not hiding anything from God. He just wants to be back in fellowship with god and enjoy Him as he did before. He wants his communion with God restored.
Job is not hiding from God because of sin, but is anxiously and earnestly looking for Him everywhere he can. Even though he could not find God, he was confident God knew where he was, what he had done, including what he was going through. He was confident in God's omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence, but he was not experiencing it, and was grieved by that loss. In his experience of pain and suffering, Job had come to accept, and perhaps understand, that he was in a refining process that will come out better in the end. But it seemed like he was looking beyond death for the final results.