Tag: Job

Our Mediator

On By vickleaIn Scripture1 Comment

Do you know what a mediator does? What is his/her responsibility? What they do is to get between parties who disagree and help them to reconcile differences. That is the dictionary definition. Did you know that Jesus is our mediator? He stands between us and God and reconciles sinful man to our holy God.

Arbiter is a synonym of mediator. Have you ever seen this verse in light of the appearing of Jesus? Job was being assailed by one calamity after another and he recognizes God’s sovereignty. He also acknowledges that he needs a mediator…way back in the Old Testament. Some say Job was written before Abraham and after Noah. I don’t know about that, but I do know it was long before Jesus came and Job noticed that he needed a mediator between him and God. So do we all. That’s why God, in His sovereignty and wisdom sent Jesus.

One mediator…Jesus Christ! He is before the Father always and He always defends us once we know Him as Savior. He is the mediator that Job pointed to (with or without prescient knowledge, I don’t know). What I am thankful for is that there is so much in the Old Testament that points to Jesus in the New Testament. The two parts of the Bible all tell one story, of God’s plan. Aren’t you glad that you are part of it?

Need a Vacation?

On By vickleaIn Scripture, YouVersion AppLeave a comment

www.bible.com/reading-plans/23192/day/6

Everyone looks forward to getting away for a while, escaping the humdrum of everyday life. But I have found that when my husband and I get away, we take the humdrum stuff with us. My husband still listens to news like it’s his source of life and reports the things he considers important to me diligently. I have told him numerous times that I don’t watch the news for a reason, but he has decided that it is his obligation to keep me informed. So, I just listen without commentary. Anyway, the news goes with us. The challenges we face in life before we go away don’t disappears; they are just placed on a back burner and continue to simmer there. I like the advice in this column that tells us to be thankful and know that God is right there through it all. Being thankful is a choice, just as focusing on the things that make us need a vacation to begin with. If we could just keep our focus on the “author and finisher of our faith”, we would be much better off and more likely to be thankful first and complain later, if at all. God listened intently to the whining complaints of Job’s friends and how they blamed Job for all his own troubles. Then, God listened to Job and his complaints about how he had been faithful and still suffered. When God answered, it was not to tell Job that he had valid points and should have been able to complain. No, instead, God reminded Job of who He is and His sovereignty. Job recognized God’s control all along and pointed out to his friends that God was still his Lord in spite of his circumstances. If we could only get to the point where we can be thankful regardless of our problems and the world’s pressures on us, I think that we wouldn’t be feeling as much pain in our dilemmas and we would be able to be thankful all days in all ways. Vacations are necessary, but they shouldn’t be to get away from problems. I think they should be used to get closer to God and to ask Him to see our problems with His perspective.

What Encouragement Looks Like

On By vickleaIn Scripture2 Comments

In my devotionals this morning, I read first about David about to take the city of Jerusalem. He met opposition and ridicule from the Jebusites who were there.

Basically, they were saying even the blind and the lame could hold him off. The next verse is very telling about David’s faith.

Look at that word, “nevertheless.” In spite of the ridicule and bullying from the Jebusites, David took the city. He knew Who was going before him so he was not afraid, but rather bold and fearless. There weren’t encouragers in that Jebusite crowd, were there? David knew the Lord was with him and that was all the help he would need. He ignored the taunts of the Jebusites and went ahead and did what God had told him to do.

My next devotional was about encouragement and the scripture took me to the book of Job. I thought to myself as I read, “Why would the verses be from Job when his friends didn’t encourage him and he was sitting in a pile of ashes, miserable and basically waiting to die?” Then, God shed His light on the Word and showed me that Job had previously been an encourager to others. He was known for his encouragement. In fact, his “friend” Eliphaz is the one who speaks these words to him. Eliphaz lets us know what encouragement should look like even as he goes about discouraging and judging Job.

Job instructed, strengthened and held people up when they needed it. Now that he needs encouragement, it is not to be found in his so-called friends who are there more to judge him than to encourage. But Job’s steadfast encouragement of others is noteworthy because this is the kind of encouragement we should be giving to others every day. We instruct them in the ways of God and help them physically when they need help. Even if we are unable to help others physically because of our own limitations, we can use our words to help people not to stumble in their faith and to be firm in their faith.

Are you a Jebusite or a Job? I would prefer to be a Job, but I know that sometimes I slip into the role of a Jebusite, a naysayer who doesn’t have enough faith to believe that God can carry through with what He has promised. I pray to be more like Job, more of an encourager. After all, God is going to carry out His plans with our without me…I need to get on His side and be the encourager needed to help the plans move forward! How about you?

Godly Wisdom

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

Where do we find Godly wisdom? In His Word, of course. So, with that thought, here is a potpourri of verses that I read and meditated on this morning. These are in no particular order except as I read them in my devotionals this morning. They all spoke to me in different ways. Which one, if any, speaks most to your heart?

Do you have a favorite verse that speaks to your heart and resonates within your soul? Please share it in the comments.

Note that all illustrations above were created by me on Canva. I usually use the YouVersion Bible App and its designs but it was down this morning, so I created my own. Glory to God for His Word that gives me comfort, intelligence and all I need to face a new day!

When Adversity Happens

On By vickleaIn Quotation and Citations, Scripture1 Comment

What is our normal reaction when things go wrong? I don’t know about you, but I usually withdraw and question God’s sovereignty. Both are the incorrect approach to adversity. I am currently in an online Bible study with the women at my church, using the Chronological Bible and the book by Tina Wilson entitled STEP INTO SCRIPTURE. We are only on Day 6 of this amazing study and I am already learning so much about God and about myself. Here is what I took away from today’s lesson.

This is a key verse in Job as he struggles with all of his misery and his friends blame his adversity on his own sin. Job’s reply is that he will still hope in God. I want that to be my heart’s cry when the thunder rolls and the mountains quake, but I’m not there yet. Just knowing that Job could have his eyes and heart fixed on God gives me hope that when the time comes, I will be able to say the same thing. The point is not that Job is blaming God for his troubles, but He knows that God knows what is happening to him and he recognizes God’s sovereignty over all.

This is the book that we are using and a quotation from today’s study. God isn’t angry with us when things go wrong, nor has He turned His back on us and is ignoring us. He is watching over us and seeing how we react to our troubles. Will our faith grow stronger as we turn to Him or will we turn away? Obviously, God loves us and wants our faith to grow as we mature into all that we can be for Him. Jesus was committed enough to go to the cross for us. His faith is the model for the kind of faith we should have when we face any kind of trials or challenges in our lives.

I highly recommend this Bible study, especially if you are doing it with a group, but it can be done individually as well. Here is a link to get the book if you are interested. It is free on Kindle Unlimited if you have that resource.

Amazon

I am thoroughly enjoying the insight that I am learning from this book as it delves deeply into the Scripture and explores what is happening in the heart of the author as well as how we can and should respond. I hope that you will check it out.

Let me know what you think. Does adversity build faith or tear it down? How difficult is it for you to trust in God in the hard times?

The Steps We Take

On By vickleaIn Scripture3 Comments

Wherever we walk, there is someone looking at us and perhaps following in our footsteps. Jesus followed His Father in Heaven and His guidance in the steps He took on earth, leading Him ultimately to the cross. It’s hard to fathom, but Jesus was born to die for us. His destiny was established from the beginning of the world because God always had a plan to save mankind. Thus, His steps were ordered. So should ours be and we should always be fully cognizant of the fact that others are watching. Some scoffers watch and are gleeful when we fall. Some of the faithful are watching, praying for us to make it to the end and giving them the hope that they, too, can end this life in victory. Whatever steps we take should lead us closer to our Heavenly Father and should leave no doubt in the minds of others about our dedication to the Lord. Thus, we leave a good witness in the path behind us and forge a witness of faith for others to follow.

Note that the author of this verse is Job. The same Job who lost everything and sat in a pile of ashes afterwards, but he never lost sight of the One in whom he had complete faith. He can say that he never turned aside. It’s like setting your compass for a particular destination and following it to the end. Our one true compass who always leads in the right way is God and when we are following Him, we don’t have to worry about getting lost along the way during all of the hazards that life throws at us.

Have a blessed day and may your feet tread steadfastly in the path that God has established for you, without hesitation or wavering, but with full confidence that God goes before you.

Redeemed

On By vickleaIn Scripture, Song1 Comment

Many decades ago, my grandmother collected green stamps in a little booklet. I enjoyed helping her lick the stamps and place them in the booklet in the correct spots so that when she had enough booklets she could go to the green stamp store and use them to redeem something she was saving for. I don’t remember everything she got, but I do recall the ice cream maker, with the nice sturdy crank, that would make yummy goodness after a few hours of cranking, adding salt and ice. Those little booklets weren’t worth anything until Nanny took them to the store to exchange them for a prize.

Jesus is my redeemer. I didn’t have to save up stamps or go to a special place. He just gave His life for me because He knew I needed to be redeemed, to be exchanged for a better version of me, one that is all cleaned up and ready to stand before the Father in His righteousness. No stamps, nothing I had to do except confess, repent and live for Him. In exchange, I get to spend eternity with Him. It amazes me that Job, one of the men most likely to turn from God turned to Him and recognized this truth, long before Jesus came as a baby in Bethlehem. Job knew with whom his salvation lay, in spite of all he had to go through. I know with whom my salvation lies, and I am thankful for Jesus and His sacrifice every day.

“My Redeemer Lives”-Hillsong Worship