Job and His “Friends”

Many know the story of Job, how Satan inflicted great pain and suffering on Him to try to show God that He only praised Him for His blessings. It was a test. This is a hard read, and I am sure I will not do it justice, but I will try.

As with all of us, He didn’t pass all of the test, but He kept his integrity and faith, even through his doubt and questioning. Job lost his children, his house, his wealth, his friends and family more or less abandoned him, even his wife told him to curse God and die. He was inflicted with disease, pain, and great suffering, but in the end, He stayed strong in his faith in God and eventually repented of his pride. But he had some so-called friends that came to him to explain why he was suffering based on their own experience and short-sighted knowledge. From the end of chapter 1 through chapter 31, the author writes of the debate between Job and his friends, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, as well as Job’s complaints against God. You should read through this on your own, but I will give some of the highlights. In another post I will write about God’s reply and the encounter between God and Job, and God and Job’s 3 friends. Between these events, another person comes into the scene, Elihu, and reveals some flaws in the arguments of both Job and his friends. So this younger man, after listening and respecting his elders, gave his opinion which contradicted the other men, explaining the character of God and the shortcomings of their argument. God does not rebuke Elihu as He does his 3 , but reminds everyone who He is and His power and righteousness, and sets them straight.

Continue reading “Job and His “Friends””

Of Angels and Demons

Do you believe in ghosts? I do not. Do you believe in guardian angels? I do not. Do we each have our own angel looking over us? No. Do people become angels when they die? No. Why? You ask. Because it is not in scripture. What is in scripture is that there are demons and angels fighting amongst us. The devil works hard to destroy us. His fallen angels (demons) help him in this mission, and God’s angels fight against evil for good. God also gives us other weapons to fight these spiritual battles and He is there to fight for us if we ask Him.

Continue reading “Of Angels and Demons”

Value of the Kingdom

Today we will discuss the last of the parables of Jesus in this series. Here He talks about the value of the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus tells 3 short parables describing God’s Kingdom, and when people realize how great it is, the treasure of it far outweighs any sacrifice or struggle they might encounter.

Continue reading “Value of the Kingdom”

The True Reason for Easter

Easter is a great time to celebrate. Many get together with family, share a meal and perhaps have special treats for the kids. But why do we celebrate? It has nothing to do with bunnies and eggs. It is not about fertility as some religions believe. It is about victory over death and sin. It was God’s plan all along for His one and only Son to come to this earth, take the sins of the world and pay for them by giving His life, dying on the cross, and being raised on the third day. So this day is much bigger than many realize. It is the day that we can declare victory over sin and death because Christ did. All we have to do is believe and trust in Him.

Continue reading “The True Reason for Easter”

To Judge or Not to Judge

Each of us have strong convictions about certain things. Others may have different opinions. When you interact with someone who disagrees, how do you handle it? I was listening to a study on Romans where they talk about disputes within the church. Some of these disputes are based on the gospel and salvation and should be disputed. While other matters are opinions, and we ought to respect other’s convictions and learn to love each other first and not quarrel over things that do not matter. That is what Jesus is trying to tell us in this parable.

Continue reading “To Judge or Not to Judge”