There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” This opening line from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens could easily be the opening line from the book of Job. Even unbelievers know the famous story and what happened to Job and no one has lived their life without feeling like Job at least a little bit. If any opening line of a Bible book sets us up for a shock, it would have to be this one. If life were fair. If this line is an indicator, Job should be sitting pretty, being good, going to heaven, with plenty of riches that never decrease. We all know that is not what happens, but his entire world crumbles around him. What did Job do to deserve this? Nothing. And everything. Job was born in sin as are we. We all deserve this.
We do not deserve easy lives any more than Job did. We deserve Hell. That is a harsh thing to say about a baby born with disability or an elderly woman murdered for no apparent reason. One minute of honest thought about our past lives should put paid to the notion that we have been good enough to earn our way to Heaven. If not, try again. All fall short of the glory of God and the wages of sin is death. Now does the mercy of God sound a lot better than a few minutes ago? Job was blameless and upright, and needed a Savior. Thank God in prayer today for the saving grace of Jesus that makes us…
Blameless.
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church