A Job Reminder
Matt Miles • March 19, 2021
When reading the 38th chapter of Job recently, I was reminded that the Lord speaks to Job “out of the whirlwind”. Job, in the midst of the storm and chaos of his life, heard the Lord answering – His voice was not after the storm or during a lull. When Job needed to hear His reassuring voice the most is exactly when the Lord verbally reminded him who is in control. It is through creation that Job is reassured of his valued place in the Lord’s will.
Standing out to me, of course, is Job being reminded that he has nothing to do with the heavenly objects in verses 31-33. The constellations of Pleiades, Orion, Ursa major and minor are given as examples of the Lord’s governance. Job could never affirmatively answer the Lord’s questions about controlling the stars of Pleiades or Orion in their form, nor could he direct them to move and appear at the correct time in the sky. Pay close attention to the details of celestial movement and “ordinances” that we might say today are laws of motion. These verses speak volumes to the sovereignty and power of the Creator.
We are reminded, just as Job was, any night we gaze into the heavens that the Lord’s governance is still in control. Even in the midst of the chaos at present, HE IS STILL OVER ALL, speaking to each of us that desire and need His guidance and comfort during these stormy times. Keep looking up. Blessings to all of you as we celebrate our Creator’s salvation gift in a few weeks.The body content of your post goes here. To edit this text, click on it and delete this default text and start typing your own or paste your own from a different source.
In Genesis 12 the Lord calls Abraham (Abram) to be the father of a great nation. This all happened to Abraham at 75 years old. Some might say that is too late in life to start something new, especially a calling of that magnitude. Yet that was not the overwhelming part to me; that would come in verse 7 when the Lord said the land would be his offspring’s. Wait, what?! The Lord had a plan and His Providence would guide Abraham, even when Abraham did not have offspring and did not wait on the Lord. I have to wonder how I would have reacted to such a call and covenant. As we know from Psalms, the Lord guides and sustains all by His Providence for His name sake, which we are focusing on this year. But does Providence act on our timing? When God called Abraham, he had no children. Yet the promise given was that his offspring would be a great nation in a land saved for them. What we know now is that Abraham wouldn’t have his son Isaac until he was 100 years old, a full 25 years after the covenant was made. Most of the time we expect the Lord’s hand working in our life to be immediate, but that is not always the case. In some cases it might take years to experience the Providence coming to fruition. Remember Genesis 21:2 states Isaac’s birth was at the “appointed time.” This understanding should give us peace as we rely on Providence and, at times, are called to patience. Providence was again on display for us to understand that even in obedient sacrifice He will be glorified, as Abraham was asked to sacrifice his son, Isaac, who was inherently tied to the covenant of the Lord. Abraham was faithful in all aspects, even when most of us might say “no way” to that sacrifice to the Lord. Yet at the right time, through faithfulness in Abraham’s obedience, there was Providence providing behind him in the ram. Our faithful obedience sometimes feels like a tough ask from the Lord, but rest assured He is there, ready to lift up His name through us. Providence continued through time, 100 years later, after Isaac had his sons, Jacob and Esau. Then Jacob was blessed by the Lord with 12 sons, one of which was Joseph, who was sold to Egypt by his brothers. You probably recall all the ups and downs of Joseph’s life, yet he was faithful to the Lord throughout them all. Remember, there was a covenant at stake. The Lord, through His Providence, made sure he had Joseph where He needed him to save the great nation of Israel from famine. This Providence secured the covenant line to continue to Christ. Many times throughout history Providence has guided and protected His covenant, and now you and I can be blessed with inclusion in His great nation through Christ. If it had not been so, then we literally have no assurance of our salvation. Praise be to our Lord Jesus Christ that His Providence is faithful for all eternity, so we may know peace and have confidence in the promised destiny. Our ministry here at CTF has always emphasized the importance of Genesis 12, Abraham’s covenant. We share there is no difference in importance of Genesis 1-11 over chapter 12 and through the entirety of the Bible. The whole Bible is inspired to be trustworthy and to show His Providence throughout history for His name’s sake and also for our salvation. Blessings.
Fort Necessity, also known as the Battle of the Great Meadows