Little Man before a Big God

And the LORD said to Job: “Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty? He who argues with God, let him answer it.” Then Job answered the LORD and said: “Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you? I lay my hand on my mouth. I have spoken once, and I will not answer; twice, but I will proceed no further.” (Job 40:1-5 ESV). Our reading today is very forthright. God is telling Job that he simply doesn’t have the qualifications to question him. Don’t misunderstand. I am not saying that asking “why?” is unacceptable to God. When Job went before the Lord, as any person should do when they are suffering, he asked the question why. And there is nothing wrong with asking why. I have asked why many times. There is nothing wrong with asking why as long as you don't get the idea that God somehow owes you an answer. We don't always know why. And I don't even think there is anything wrong with saying, "I don't like or agree with this plan." In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed, "My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine." (cf. Matthew 26:39). Go to God with your whys. Go to God with your doubts. Go to God with your struggles. But ultimately, we need to say to the Lord, "Yet I want your will to be done, not mine." Job went off the rails when he asked a lot of questions and then he started giving his opinions, trying to explain things away. Finally, God had enough. He asked Job, "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding" (cf. Job 38:4). Effectively He was saying, "Well, Job, you are such an expert now! Will you tell me what is going on? I don't remember seeing you around when I was creating the universe." You know, it’s interesting that God never told Job why. Instead, He just revealed more of himself to Job. More than an explanation, what we really need is an encounter with God, an understanding of our relationship with God. Because when we see God for who He is, we see our problems for what they are. We have a great and mighty God. We, on the other hand, are neither great, nor mighty. Like Job we should come to the end of ourselves so that we can get a beginning with God. American pastor and author James H. Brookes told of visiting a friend’s house and hearing the music of a bird singing. It was not the ordinary sound of chirping; instead it resembled the strains of a lovely melody. At first Brookes didn’t know where it was coming from; but when he glanced around the room, he saw a beautiful bullfinch in a birdcage. The lady of the house explained that it had been taught to sing that way at night. The teacher would repeat the notes time and again until the bird was able to mimic them. But this was possible only because it was dark and the bird’s attention would not be diverted. How often we learn our sweetest songs when the blackness of trial closes in around us.