Conflict II - The Assault Against Job, The Enemy’s Assault through Trials

I have just completed my commentary on the prophet Hosea and am starting my second most ambitious project to date (second only to doing the book of Proverbs). I have been prompted by the Lord to start on the book of Job. The following is an excerpt from my book on the Armor of God and somehow it quickened afresh as it relates directly with the book of Job. In this portion it is revealed that the enemy is after one thing...our testimony! We can think he is after many things as he attacks but in reality, it is just one thing and that is to knock us off course and to disqualify us through our hearts attitude and our speech...

When Satan engaged with God to attack Job, what was the enemy really after? Was he looking to rob Job of his wealth and earthly substance or was he after something more? Consider the position of this great man of God, whom the Lord said there was not another man like him in the earth. In Job 1:8 it says, “And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?” Was the evil one’s scheme simply to remove Job’s blessing? Or was it to destroy Job’s testimony and make Job and God enemies? The answer is in the enemy’s own words in Job 1:11, “But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.” His scheme was to destroy Jobs testimony and turn him against God, to offend Job and to make him believe God was not just or fair. He wanted to see Job curse God. Satan knows what is in the heart of man and how to get him to react. Many times men and women sour when they suffer and tend to blame God when situations become difficult. It is a mature saint indeed that remembers all the good the Lord has done and does not doubt the character of God, even in the midst of suffering.

Job Never Curses God

It is worthy to observe that, when the trial began, Job was able to put forth a confession that was victorious. Job 1:21 states, “And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” It was only after the trial dragged on that we can see what needs to be purged from Job; there is manifested all kinds of wrong confessions. The same can be true with us, unlike Job they are not always put into words but nonetheless wrong confessions can be there lurking beneath the surface. That being said, we must note that faithful Job never did curse God to His face; he did not become an enemy of God or do at all what the enemy said he would. The secret to maintaining a good confession is to know and understand the character of God with deep conviction, so that we do not turn on him and begin to accuse Him as soon as He begins to deal with something in us. Many times mankind turns on the Lord as soon as the going gets rough. Job 2:4 says, “And Satan answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.” In many cases this is true enough.

Be Careful About the Opinions You Form When Suffering

As we stated at the beginning, the enemy is in the business of changing what people believe. He knows the power of a belief system and he knows how what we believe governs every detail of our lives. The enemy works evil to get us to form a belief in something that is not even true and the vehicle he is using here is pain and suffering. Men and women do this everyday, formulating opinions about God in their trials that are not true because they are suffering and cannot understand. The enemy will seek permission from God Almighty to take us through great trials in order to get our testimony to sour. Keep in mind that all of the enemy’s tactics deal in the realm of beliefs. He knows full well the reality of God and His plan. In fact, he might even believe more than many of God’s people! Of course, Satan is not born-again and his belief does not do him any good, none-the-less he believes “even the devils believe, and tremble…” (James 2:19) The devils know what you stand on is true; their diabolical plan is to undermine the integrity of God in one’s heart and shake your confidence in Him in order to produce fear and doubt. They want us to believe what the children of Israel believed in the wilderness, “God has brought us out here to die…” (Num 21:5). They want us to believe He has forsaken me… He is no longer here… He no longer cares…

The enemy was after one thing in the trial of Job. He was not interested in Job’s children, his cattle, his wealth, or his influence; these are all sideline issues! The enemy does not need camels and cows! He was after Job’s relationship with God; he was after his confession, his testimony and the promises of God. Please listen. The fact that God has allowed something to be removed from us is not the tragedy; the tragedy is when the enemy can steal one’s relationship with Christ and one’s testimony. Job 1:7 states that “…he will curse thee to thy face.” This is what the enemy is after. He wants our love for the Lord and our testimony to sour.

Things come and things go, as Paul said Philippians 4:11-13, “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. (12) I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. (13) I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me”. The things around us, wealth and possessions are less important. What is important in our trial is what we bring to it, such as our confession and opinions formed about our God. It is absolutely critical that we maintain a good confession and watch out for attitudes that do not please Him. You will recall that the scriptures say that we are chosen in the furnace of affliction. What this tells me is that God brings the fire to see what our confession will be in it and then He directs our lives accordingly. Please remember that there is grace in the fire if we will humbly cry out to Him because He wants our confession to be good.

The Devastation of an Evil Confession

Let’s consider the children of Israel for a moment. It was not the giants that kept them from entering into the land; it was their own confession of God. Those who maintained a good confession (Joshua and Caleb) survived. “As you have spoken in mine ears so will I be unto you” (Num 14). Be mindful of one thing; Satan cannot get access to us unless God first allows it. Therefore, the opinions we formulate in our trial (good or bad) are our opinions of God, who has allowed it. When Job said, “The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21), he crushed the enemy. By that testimony he contradicted the evil one, who said Job “will curse you to your face” (Job 1:7).

The First Children of Job, Unfruitful

Job 1:4 "And his sons went and feasted in their houses, every one his day; and sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them."

Up to this point Job's children had lived a charmed life; they were able to eat and feast on a regular basis. There is no mention of the work they did or their personal character in fact there is every indication from Job's actions that he had reason to be concerned that they did not share the same devotion to the Lord as he himself did ( 1:5 "And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually."). The brothers would feast on a fairly regular basis and the sisters would join them. This reminds me of many believers who go about life happy go lucky without a care in the world. They are unaware of the work God has called them to do and they simply exist. God want us to have a purpose about us, men and women who are aware of the importance of their lives. God gives to every man or woman a talent, a specific thing that He wants them to do. It could be quite simple or it could be very great but you are the one person who can do it.

God wants us to have a cry and a burden in our heart to serve Him and to have our lives produce fruit; not to only eat drink and be merry. Very early on in my Christianity there was this cry in my spirit "O' God give me fruit! I do not want to appear before you empty". In the parable of the sower (Matthew 13) 75% of the ground brings forth no fruit at all but even among the remaining 25% there are varying degrees of fruitfulness. There are some 30 fold, some 60 fold and some 100 fold. In Johns Gospel chapter 15 we have these three levels of fruitfulness identified for us: it is to bear fruit (30), to bear more fruit (60) and to bear much fruit (100). Jesus says it is your Fathers desire that ye should bear "Much fruit". Joh 15:8 "Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples." Lets desire to have our lives produce fruit and have meaning.

After Jobs trial he has more children (we learn very shortly in chapter one that he looses his first children as part of his trial) and these children are different, his daughters are mentioned by name and they all obtain a good inheritance. These children are very fruitful and God honors them by mentioning the daughters by name and revealing they were the fairest in the land, godly girls and fruitful children: Job 42:13-15 v 13 He had also seven sons and three daughters. v 14 And he called the name of the first, Jemima; and the name of the second, Kezia; and the name of the third, Kerenhappuch. v 15 And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job: and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren."

"O' God, please make us fruitful!!"