Central Thought:Those who endure the test of Faith will experience god’s great reward.
Hymn: O God, our help in ages past
Text: Job 1:1-12
Introduction:
Job was a man who lived in the land of Uz, located South of Edom and west of Arabia (Dake’s Bible). Job was portrayed as a wealthy man, having a sizeable household of a wife, ten children and many servants. He was perfect and blameless.
He was upright in all his ways, loved God and eschewed evil. Yet, God allowed Satan to destroy all that he had including his children, his flocks of sheep, camel, oxen and donkeys. As if that was not enough Satan afflicted him physically with ill health. In all these, Job refused to give up on God, even when his wife told him to curse God and die. His friends tried to persuade him to believe that he was suffering as a result of his sins, and all he needed to do was to confess his sins and repent, so God may have mercy on him and deliver him. Job did not understand what was happening to him, and God did not explain to him, in spite of all his questions.
In all these, Job did not place his hope on his experience, wisdom or friends, rather he focused on God. May God through this study, teach us to trust Him in all situations.
Lesson Objectives:
At the end of this study, we should be able to:
- Know what it means to be perfect, upright, one that fears God and eschews evil, as Job was described.
- Understand the extent of Job’s wealth and how he was rated among the men of the East.
- Understand how strict Job was in his religious beliefs and practices and the challenge it poses to Christian parents
- Expose some of the operations of the devil
- Reassure the righteous of God’s protection
Question 1.a) How as Job described in Job 1:1?
Job was described as a man who lived in the land of Uz, who lived a perfect and upright life; he feared God and stayed away from evil. He was a man of integrity. It could also be said that Job walked in close fellowship with God.
Question 1.b) Explain what it means to be perfect, upright, one that fears God and eschews evil.
To be perfect means to be excellent, complete, the best of its kind, very good, ideal having everything that is necessary.
Upright stands for straight forward, strictly honest or honorable, in accordance with God’s expectation or will.
One that fears God and eschews evil refers to someone who loves God so much that he would not like to offend Him in any way and so stays away from anything that offends God. These were the attributes of Job, which explains the seriousness of his relationship with his Holy God.
Question 2. a.) Identify what constituted the riches of Job.
Job was blessed of God that he had ten children, 7000 sheep, 3000 camels, 500 teams of oxen and 500 female donkeys. He also had many servants and these were regarded as great riches in his time.
Question 2.b) How was Job rated among the people of the East? Job 1:3-8
Job was rated as the greatest (richest) man among the men of the East, a man of upright character who loved God and did not tolerate or accommodate evil tendencies. A servant of God, as testified by God Himself. He was a man who showed deep concern about the spiritual welfare of his children. He could be rated a priest to his family, because he offered sacrifice to atone for the sins of his children. In spite of his wealth, he was humble and unassuming.
Question 3.a) H0w strict was Job in his religious beliefs and practices?
Job was so committed, devoted and strict in his religious practices that it could be said that he was proactively conscious of his entire family’s relationship with God. This made him to form the habit of presenting a burnt offering for each member of the family every morning, saying to himself, “Perhaps my children have sinned and have cursed God in their heart”. Even for the unknown sins, Job was ready to atone, to ensure that he and his entire family did not in any way offend God.
Question 3.b) What challenge does this post to Christian parents today?
Though there was no scripture or the law of God at that time, Job demonstrated a character that every Christian parent needs to emulate. The present family value system coupled with harsh economic challenges appear to have a great toll on some families- Christian families not exempted. Some parents hardly spend time with their children, so the children are hardly instructed in the things of God. The society and the world of I.C.T. have taken over the responsibility of parents. The irony of the situation is that some parents do not even spend time to pray for their children or introduce God to them. God expects parents, especially Christian parents, to teach and pray for their children (Proverbs 22:6; Ephesians 6:4). Job is a character to emulate in the demonstration of Christian parental care.
Question 4.) What does Satan’s answer in verse 7, reveal to you about his operations?
Satan, who is also called the devil was originally an Angel of God, was cast down to the earth as a result of his pride and rebellion against God. He considers God his enemy and tries to hinder God’s work in the life of people who serve God. He is the arch enemy of God’s children, and goes around seeking every opportunity to attack them with diverse temptation in an attempt to make them hate God. He operates with his lies and deceptions in order to hold people captive ( 2 Timothy 2:26). Our Lord Jesus called him a thief, a murderer and a destroyer, which he really is (John 10:10; 1 Peter 5:8). He never releases anyone who falls into his snare. He keeps such in perpetual captivity here on earth, leading him to eternal damnation. His dialogue with God before the attack on Job made us understand that Satan has knowledge of God’s purpose for the righteous. He also knows all that God has done to protect them from falling into the hand of their enemies, as God always put a wall of protection around them. Satan cannot breakthrough this wall by his own power. He can operate only to the extent God allows him. Having known these things, we as believers need to be on guard always to ensure that we do not fall prey to Satan, the arch enemy of God and His children. We must put on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:13-18) so we will be able to resist him.
Question 5.) What do you also learn about God’s protection for the righteous?
God has put in place very strong and divine measures for the protection of the righteous. These include, a hedge (wall of protection) around him, the whole armor of God, God’s watchful eyes over the righteous, the name of the Lord (Tower of security) and many more. God has perfected these protective measures and Satan cannot breakthrough any of them by his own power, unless God permits him.
However this does not give the righteous a license to live carelessly. The effectiveness of these measures depends to a large extent, on the believer’s relationship with God. His lifestyle must be in consonance with the demands of a Holy God. He should live a life of total commitment and obedience to God, as exemplified by Job.
Daily Living Application
Job demonstrated the kind of trust believers should have on God. When everything is stripped away, we are to recognize that God is all we really have and He is all sufficient. We must remember that this life with all its pains and gains is not all there is, in the life of a believer. We should serve God for who He is, not what we feel. We should understand the sufficiency of God and must hold on to Him. Job’s experience should teach us not to despair, no matter the level of our challenges, our God is ever faithful.
Memory Verse: 1 Peter 5:8
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about seeking whom he may devour”.
Daily Devotional Guide:
Monday: Have faith In God
Job 13:14-16, Psalms 118: 6-9, Luke 7:6-9
Tuesday: Strive to please God
1 Kings 3:9-12, Proverbs 16:7,
Wednesday: The affliction of the righteous
Psalms 34:17-20, 22, Job 1:1, Job 1:19-22
Thursday: The faithful God
Job 42: 12-17, 1 Thessalonians 5:24, 2 Thessalonians 3:2-3
Friday: Satan the arch enemy of the righteous
Genesis 3:1-8, Ephesians 6:10-12, Job 1:8-11
Saturday: Watch and pray
Matthew 26:39-41, Acts 20:29-31, 1 Peter 5:8-9