Christ in Job: Our Victory

Most people are at least somewhat familiar with the first of the poetic books of the Bible, the story of Job.  We have all heard of “the patience of Job.”  But I’m not so sure that most people understand this book’s importance to the ancient Hebrew people or to us today.

The ancient Hebrew culture taught that if a person was successful, it was because he was a good person in the eyes of God.  Conversely, they believed that an evil person or one who did not follow God’s leadership would never be rich in this world.  At times, we see that God gives earthly blessings to those who are obedient to Him (Abraham, David, Solomon for example) and we do see, at times, that God removes earthly blessings from those who are not obedient (Cain, Lot, Saul for example).  But the correlation between worldly success or failure and obedience to God cannot always be made.  After all, God allowed foreign, pagan kings to overthrow Israel when Israel was disobedient.  Those pagan kings were not obedient to God, but He allowed them to prosper in order to chastise God’s people.  We will see in Job that his obedience was no guarantee that he would not suffer, just as our obedience today is no guarantee that we will not suffer.  As a matter of fact, we are told to expect suffering, especially if we are following Christ, since the world and it’s prince, Satan, are diametrically opposed to Him.

God has generously granted you the privilege, not only of believing in Christ but also of suffering for Christ’s sake. (Philippians 1:29)

As long as this world suffers under the penalty and consequences of sin, anyone living in this world will be subjected to suffering.  And at the same time, many will be rich and successful, whether they are following God or not.

He makes the sun rise on both the evil and the good and sends rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous. (Matthew 5:45b)

The main theme of the book of Job is the sovereignty of God.  Although Satan is allowed to devastate this world for the time being, his power is limited by Almighty, Sovereign God.  As a matter of fact, he is only like a pawn in God’s hand.  We can take great comfort in knowing that any suffering that we are allowed to face is no surprise to God and that God limits the amount of our suffering, just as Satan was restricted to taking all but Job’s life.

The Adversary answered the Lord, “Does Job revere God for nothing? Haven’t you fenced him in—his house and all he has—and blessed the work of his hands so that his possessions extend throughout the earth? But stretch out your hand and strike all he has. He will certainly curse you to your face.” The Lord said to the Adversary, “Look, all he has is within your power; only don’t stretch out your hand against him.” So the Adversary left the Lord’s presence.  (Job 1:9-12)

No temptation has seized you that isn’t common for people. But God is faithful. He won’t allow you to be tempted beyond your abilities. Instead, with the temptation, God will also supply a way out so that you will be able to endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:13)

So why did God allow Job to be tested?  God already knew that Job was a righteous man and, being all-knowing, he knew that Job’s heart would not be turned against Him.  I will not pretend to know God’s motives – His ways are higher than my ways, and His thoughts are deeper than mine.  But I can see at least three reasons for Job’s testing.  First of all, God proved the power of faith that Job had in Him to Satan.  That same power of faith is available to us, and Satan knows it.  Secondly, God proved the power of faith to Job.  He taught Job to not listen to the advice of men, but to trust only in God, never allowing his faith to be undermined by the wisdom of the world.  We need to learn that lesson, too.  We need to be careful about who we go to for advice, especially when we are suffering.  The wisdom of this world is in total opposition to faith in God.  Remember, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1, King James Version)  Worldly wisdom is based on logic and common sense, not faith.  And thirdly, God was preparing His people, Israel, to receive Messiah.  This third lesson is where we can see Christ in the book of Job, some believe to be the oldest book in the Bible.  From before the beginning, God was preparing this world to receive His Messiah, His Ransom for His sinful people.

Remember that the Hebrew culture taught that righteousness guaranteed blessings and that unrighteousness guaranteed curses.  God needed to change that way of thinking in order for His people to be receptive to Messiah, so He gave us Job, a foreshadowing, a type of Christ:

·   Job was a good man, wealthy and powerful.  Jesus, God’s Holy Son, owns all the silver and gold in the world.  He is all-powerful.

A man in the land of Uz was named Job. That man was honest, a person of absolute integrity; he feared God and avoided evil. He had seven sons and three daughters, and owned seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred pairs of oxen, five hundred female donkeys, and a vast number of servants, so that he was greater than all the people of the east. (Job 1:1-3)

The silver and the gold belong to me, says the Lord of heavenly forces. (Haggai 2:8)

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the one who is first over all creation, because all things were created by him: both in the heavens and on the earth, the things that are visible and the things that are invisible. Whether they are thrones or powers, or rulers or authorities, all things were created through him and for him. He existed before all things, and all things are held together in him. (Colossians 1:15-17)

·   Job’s wealth, family, and esteem were taken from him.  Because of His love for us, Jesus left the splendor of heaven to be born in a stable, raised by a carpenter, never to have earthly riches or esteem. When Adam sinned, all humanity was separated from Jesus by sin.

One day Job’s sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house. A messenger came to Job and said: “The oxen were plowing, and the donkeys were grazing nearby when the Sabeans took them and killed the young men with swords. I alone escaped to tell you.” While this messenger was speaking, another arrived and said: “A raging fire fell from the sky and burned up the sheep and devoured the young men. I alone escaped to tell you.” While this messenger was speaking, another arrived and said: “Chaldeans set up three companies, raided the camels and took them, killing the young men with swords. I alone escaped to tell you.” While this messenger was speaking, another arrived and said: “Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, when a strong wind came from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It fell upon the young people, and they died. I alone escaped to tell you.” (Job 1:13-19)

I have come down from heaven not to do my will, but the will of him who sent me. (John 6:38)

And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” (Matthew 8:20, New King James Version)

He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. (Isaiah 53:3, King James Version)

And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. . . therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. (Genesis 3:8, 23, New King James Version)

·   God allowed Job to be tested as we saw above, and God also allowed Jesus to be tested by Satan.  Neither Job nor Jesus lost faith in God.

Then the Spirit led Jesus up into the wilderness so that the devil might tempt him. (Matthew 4:1)

Because we don’t have a high priest who can’t sympathize with our weaknesses but instead one who was tempted in every way that we are, except without sin. (Hebrews 4:15)

·   Job suffered physical pain.  Jesus was beaten, crowned with thorns, and crucified, suffering pain unto death.

The Adversary departed from the Lord’s presence and struck Job with severe sores from the sole of his foot to the top of his head. (Job 2:7)

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)

·   Job’s riches, family, and health were restored to him.  Jesus was victorious over death, He lives and reigns in splendor and power, and because He ransomed us from sin and death, we now are able to have fellowship with Him, victorious for eternity.

Then the Lord blessed Job’s latter days more than his former ones. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand female donkeys. He also had seven sons and three daughters. . . After this, Job lived 140 years and saw four generations of his children. (Job 42:12-13, 16)

And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. (Matthew 28:5-6, King James Version)

And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. (Ephesians 1:19-23, King James Version)

So the lessons God was teaching the children of Israel, He is still teaching all of us today.  Don’t trust in your good works to save you, but trust only in Him and the ransom He paid to to give us victory over the power of sin.  When hard times come, don’t be surprised.  If God allowed His own Son to suffer, why should we not also suffer?  God loves us and will never give us more suffering than we can bear with His help.  When that suffering comes, be careful about who you go to for help.  Go to God first, and then if you go to friends, be sure their counsel is wise and Biblical, not just empty sympathy.

My prayer for you and for me this week is Job’s declaration: 

     Dear God, Though (You) slay me, yet will I trust in (You). (Job 13:15a)

All Scripture is from Common English Version unless otherwise noted.

Christ in Esther: Our Salvation

In preparation for this week’s study I read several different opinions of how Christ is foreshadowed in the book of Esther, and I came to the conclusion that each of these opinions has some valid points.  One opinion was that Christ was typified in Mordecai, sitting at the gate of the city, making intercession for his people to the king.  Another said that Christ was typified in King Ahasuerus.  And Esther certainly could represent the Church as the Bride of Christ. Although that opinion offends my senses since Ahasuerus was not at all like Christ, but instead he was a self-indulgent man, detached from his people and his duties, I must admit the correlation could possibly be a valid one if we looked at the story of Esther in light of the definition of allegory -- a parable or symbol.  In any allegory, the parallels will fail at one point or another.  And in any foreshadowing, we see only a “shadow” of what is to come, not a clear picture with every detail intact. But the opinion that I will use for this study is that Queen Esther foreshadows and typifies Christ.  I am by no means saying the other opinions are not correct, but only that, for this study, we will look at the third option.  I would encourage you to read the ten chapters of the book of Esther for yourself and come to your own conclusion.  I would be interested in hearing what you think.  Trusting that you will read it for yourself, I will not recount the entire story here, but will just point out some interesting parallels in this true story about a real, live, heroic queen of Persia.  

When Queen Vashti refused to go to King Ahasuerus when he called for her, it made the king angry.  He consulted with his advisors and they recommended that she be removed as queen and that the king choose another queen to replace her.

If it pleases the king, let a royal decree go out from him, and let it be recorded in the laws of the Persians and the Medes, so that it will not be altered, that Vashti shall come no more before King Ahasuerus; and let the king give her royal position to another who is better than she.  (Esther 1:19)

Here Vashti represents good works and the law.  Vashti was beautiful, and she was something in which the king took great pride.  She looked good on the surface, but her heart was not right.  In the same way, our good works look good on the surface, but our good works cannot bring us into a right relationship with God.  No one can be good enough to keep all the law perfectly.  When we say no to God’s grace and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ as payment for our sin, we are like Vashti, cast away, never to come into the presence of the King of Heaven.

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.  (Ephesians 2:8-9)

We are not told a lot about Esther’s childhood.  We know who her parents were, and that she was raised by her cousin, Mordecai, who loved her very much.  We know that Esther also loved Mordecai and trusted him completely.

And Mordecai had brought up Hadassah, that is, Esther, his uncle’s daughter, for she had neither father nor mother. The young woman was lovely and beautiful. When her father and mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.  (Esther 2:7)

Esther had not revealed her people or family, for Mordecai had charged her not to reveal it. And every day Mordecai paced in front of the court of the women’s quarters, to learn of Esther’s welfare and what was happening to her.  (Esther 2:10-11)

In much the same way, we are not told a lot about the childhood of Jesus.  We know that His step-father, Joseph, was a carpenter and that Jesus worked with him.  We know that He was taught by Mary and Joseph.  And we know that He loved them, and that He loved and trusted His Father completely.

Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. (Luke 2:51-52)

The king chose Esther to replace Vashti.  Esther spent a year in preparation before she was called into the king’s presence. 

Each young woman’s turn came to go in to King Ahasuerus after she had completed twelve months’ preparation, according to the regulations for the women, for thus were the days of their preparation apportioned: six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with perfumes and preparations for beautifying women. (Esther 2:12)

Jesus was 30 years old before His ministry on earth began.  He had spent His entire life in preparation for His work.  And when He was baptized by John the Baptist, He demonstrated to His followers how they should be prepared to follow Him.  Then He spent 40 days in the wilderness in prayer and fasting, preparing to face all the opposition that He was about to confront.

When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:16-17)

In our look at the parallels in Esther’s story, we see Haman as a parallel to the devil.  Haman had become a powerful man in the court of the king, just as the devil has become powerful in our world.  Haman was indignant that Mordecai would not bow down to him, so he convinced the king to order that Mordecai and all of the Jewish people be killed.

And the letters were sent by couriers into all the king’s provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to annihilate all the Jews, both young and old, little children and women.  (Esther 3:13a)

The devil wants nothing more than for us to turn away from Jesus Christ and bow down to him instead.  If we do, he will destroy us.

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. (1 Peter 5:8)

As we have seen in our two previous studies of Ezra and Nehemiah, Esther was placed in a position of authority by God.  She was loved by the king.  But even though the king loved her, she could have been put to death for daring to approach him without first being called by him.  It took a great deal of courage for her to go to the king to beg for the lives of her uncle and all the rest of her people.  Mordecai was wise enough to know that God had placed her where He had for a purpose.

“For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)

Jesus had a purpose when He came to earth as a man.  He was placed here by the authority of God the Father at just the right time in human history to fulfill every prophecy that had been written about Messiah.

And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. (Luke 24:44)

Esther loved her uncle, and she loved her people.  She prayed and fasted, asking God to save her people and to protect her, if it was His will to do so, but she was willing to die for them, if need be. 

“Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!” (Esther 4:16)

Jesus loves us.  He loves us so much He was willing to die for us.  He prayed, asking God to save Him if it was possible, but He was obedient, even to death on the cross.

He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” (Matthew 26:39)

Through the artful and intelligent work of Esther, Mordecai and the Jewish people were saved, and Haman was defeated and killed.  Not only was Mordecai saved, but he was exalted to the position that Haman had once held.  All the Jews living in Persia were happy and were honored because of Mordecai and Esther.

So Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, with a great crown of gold and a garment of fine linen and purple; and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad. The Jews had light and gladness, joy and honor.  (Esther 8:15-16)

Through the saving work of Jesus on the cross and because He rose from the grave on the third day, our enemy, Satan, is destroyed, and we are saved to live a life of eternal joy, honored as children of the King of Kings!

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. (Ephesians 1:3-6)

I hope you have enjoyed the study of Esther as much as I have.  And I hope you will also have the kind of faith that she demonstrated . . . not a faith that is just wishful thinking, but a genuine, deep, abiding faith in God who loves us so much that He sent His Son to come to earth to die for us.  My prayer for you and for myself this week is inspired by Esther 4:16:

“Dear Father in Heaven, please show me your will for my life.  Give me the courage to do your will in every area of my life.  Protect me if it is your will to do so.  And if following you causes my friends to laugh at me, they will laugh at me.  If I perish, I perish.  Thank you for sending your son to die for me. Amen.”

All scripture is from the New King James Version

Christ in Nehemiah: God's Faithful Servant

Although he was Jewish, his family brought into captivity by the Babylonians, Nehemiah had risen to a position of influence in the king’s court.  As a matter of fact, the King Artexerxes trusted him so much that he was the king’s cupbearer.  It was during this time, at the time Ezra had become the high priest in Jerusalem, and during the time that the rebuilding of the temple there was being completed, that Nehemiah learned that the walls of Jerusalem and the city, itself, were still in ruins.  This distressed Nehemiah.  He was so distressed that he wept and mourned for days, fasting and praying to God.

As we noted in our study of Ezra, God places men in positions of authority and He uses them to accomplish His purposes, whether they are aware of it or not.  Not only did God place Nehemiah in the king’s court, but God also caused the king to notice and to care that Nehemiah was distressed.  When Nehemiah told the king the reason for his distress, God softened the heart of the king.  Not only did the king dispatch Nehemiah to Jerusalem to oversee the rebuilding of the city and its wall, but he also gave Nehemiah letters which gave him the authority to do the task and granting him safe passage through the outlying territories.  And on top of that, the king also provided timbers from the royal forest to be used to rebuild the gates of the fortress near the temple, the gates of the city, and the house which Nehemiah would build for himself.  Contrast all that we read in chapter 2 of Nehemiah that I have paraphrased here with what we read in Ezra when this very same king ordered that the city NOT be rebuilt.  Only God could have caused such an about-face in the heart of the king:

Therefore, issue an order to stop these people: this city is not to be rebuilt until I make a decree. (Ezra 4:21)

Once Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem, he organized the people into work crews to rebuild the wall around the city.  They worked day and night, threatened by neighboring tribes that were violently opposed to their work.  Their work was attacked by mockery, conspiracy, extortion, compromise, slander, and treachery (see chapters 4 – 7), but “the people were eager to work.” (Nehemiah 4:6)  Nehemiah appointed guards to keep watch, armed with spears, shields, bows, and breastplates.  Those who were carrying building materials to the builders with one hand also carried a weapon in the other.  Those who were actually doing the construction work wore a sword as they built.  A trumpeter stood near Nehemiah in order to sound an alarm in case of an attack.  Despite all the opposition and the added stress and work that opposition created, the wall was completed in just 52 days!

Nehemiah remained in Jerusalem for 12 years and served as governor there, under the authority of the king, at which time the city was rebuilt and repopulated.  The temple was once again the center of worship.  However, during a short time period when Nehemiah had returned to the king, the people once again failed to keep God’s laws.  The priests had become corrupt and were allowing the temple to be desecrated.  Upon Nehemiah’s return, he revived the people, cleansed the temple, reprimanded the tribal leaders, and brought God’s law back to the city.

Be careful to understand, the book of Nehemiah tells us a story that is full of hope and faith in the middle of adversity and disobedience, and it would make a wonderful movie.  But this is a true story, a story of events that actually happened some 2500 years ago.  It is not a parable.  The facts that are given in our Bible are also documented in secular historical documents.  These were real people, used by God, and their story can be used to point us to Christ and our relationship with Him.  So where do we see Christ in the history recorded by Nehemiah?

·   To begin with, Nehemiah was in an exalted position in the house of the king of Persia when he left to do his work in Jerusalem.  Jesus was also in an exalted position, One with God, Creator of the Universe, when He left Heaven to do His work of salvation on earth.

At that time, I was a cupbearer to the king. (Nehemiah 1:11b)

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. . . The Word became flesh and made his home among us. We have seen his glory, glory like that of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John1:1, 14)

·   Neither Nehemiah nor Jesus Christ attempted to begin their work without intense, fervent prayer and fasting.

Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in honoring your name. Please give success to your servant today and grant him favor in the presence of this man! (Nehemiah 1:11a)

Jesus returned from the Jordan River full of the Holy Spirit, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. There he was tempted for forty days by the devil. He ate nothing during those days and afterward Jesus was starving. (Luke 4:1-2)

·   Both Nehemiah and Jesus Christ faced opposition.

But when Sanballat, Tobiah, the Arabs, the Ammonites, and the people of Ashdod heard that the work on the walls was progressing and the gaps were being closed, they were very angry. They plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to create a disturbance in it. (Nehemiah 4:7-8)

When they heard this, everyone in the synagogue was filled with anger.  They rose up and ran him out of town. They led him to the crest of the hill on which their town had been built so that they could throw him off the cliff. (Luke 4:28-29)

·   But Nehemiah and Jesus Christ completed the work they were sent to do.

So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month of Elul. It took fifty-two days. (Nehemiah 6:15)

When he had received the sour wine, Jesus said, “It is completed.” Bowing his head, he gave up his life. (John 19:30)

So what does this mean for me and for you?  Although Nehemiah completed his work, the city and its wall and the temple were all rebuilt, the people did not remain faithful.  They were led astray by corrupt leaders and false teachers.  And although Jesus completed the work of salvation for us on the cross, unless we accept His payment for our sin and give our lives to Him, we will be found guilty because of our own corruption.  Unless we study His word, and unless we allow Him to lead us every day of our lives, we can be led astray by false teachers whose words sound good, but are contrary to God’s holy Word.

My prayer for you and for me this week is adapted from Nehemiah 9:5-6 and from Psalm 119:10-11:

(Here I) stand and bless the Lord (my) God.  From everlasting to everlasting bless your glorious name, which is high above all blessing and praise.  You alone are the Lord . . . I have sought you with all my heart.  Don’t let me stray from any of your commandments!  I keep your word close, in my heart, so that I won’t sin against you.

All scripture is from the Common English Bible