THE ULTIMATE TEST OF FAITH

He has removed my brothers far from me, and my acquaintances are completely estranged from me.

My relatives have failed, and my close friends have forgotten me.

Those who dwell in my house, and my maidservants, count me as a stranger; I am an alien in their sight.

I call my servant, but he gives no answer; I beg him with my mouth.

My breath is offensive to my wife, and I am repulsive to the children of my own body.

Even young children despise me; I arise, and they speak against me.

All my close friends abhor me, and those whom I love have turned against me. (Job 19:13-19; NKJV)

  Job was stricken with boils, lost his prestige, and his property was taken from him. That was made clear in the earlier chapters, but now Job talks about his isolation from his servants, friends, and even his family. Of all the despair thus far, communion with those closest to him was his greatest loss.
  I have written on several occasions about the importance of a man’s family. The family, after the “Church,” was the second institution constructed by God. Think of the Church as no more than communion with those who are loved, and they who have accord with God and each other (Acts 2:1). Of course, the Garden of Eden was not populated before sin entered in, but the Garden was the tabernacle of God, and was his first tent of meeting.
  Like most new churches, it began with the husband and wife team. Their role was to “dress and keep” the “Tabernacle” (Gen 2:15), so to speak, or better to yet, to serve and preserve those who would reside in the Tabernacle. Obviously, God’s Plan was for bliss for humankind to be in Paradise, and that remains His Plan to this day! In fact, that is the intention of all His Covenants with mankind.
  The Adamic, or Edenic, Covenant can be found in Genesis 1:26-30 and 2:16-17. The curse for its violation is in Genesis 3:16-19. The Covenant was that man would be like God, the condition was that they honor God’s Will, and the curse for breaking the Covenant was hardship. The grace of God in their breaking the Covenant was that they were still His creatures, and that He would keep them safe by covering them with the flesh of a dead animal, most certainly an innocent lamb! (Gen 3:21).
  Note that Adam worked himself and made aprons of fig leaves. His work and partial coverage of their shame was insufficient, and God made them coats of skins; thus Jesus Himself, covered all their flesh with his own handiwork! Then Adam and Eve were cast out into desolation – outside Paradise. That’s much like where Job found himself after living in bliss in the land of Esau right inside the boundaries of what would become the boundaries of the Kingdom of David, or Promise Land.
  Adam sinned, and he was cast from the presence of God. However, because he wore God’s coat, he was protected to some degree. He still had to suffer his sin, but the coat protected him from the elements and death. The hedge around the Garden had been his safety, but outside Paradise, the coat was his portable safety shield. Wherever he went, God went with him as long as he kept on God’s coat. Think of that coat as Job’s hedge of safety shield because of his faith. In apostolic times, Paul admonished Christians to, “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked” (Ephes 6:16).
  Adam’s shield was the coat that God made. It kept Satan’s barbs out, in that part of the curse was that, “thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee” (Gen 3:18). Job’s shield was his faith, it protected him from all the barbs that Satan threw at him! Not by coincidence, Jesus had a crown of thorns placed on his head by Satan’s representatives who tried once more for God to deny His Flesh. That was the last barb that Satan would deliver to Jesus – the man without sin or blame! The Father never abandoned His Son although Jesus felt isolated from His Father.
  Job was feeling that same isolation. Just as Jesus was abandoned by family, friends, acquaintances, apostles, and nearly everyone; Job was as well. Like Job, all Jesus’s disciples were his “children” and they abandoned him too!
  Job was without blame. That did not mean that Job had not sinned because he was born in iniquity and all men have sinned. However, because of his faith, God had covered and “forgotten” Job’s sin in that they were not held against him. Jesus, on the other hand, never sinned at all! Thus, Job was only a type of Christ, and his temptations were the Temptations of Christ. Satan attacked Job intensely, whereas Satan did not go after Jesus’s “biological” family, he did Job’s. Why did he do that? Because in ancient times, families were a father’s pride! In the case of Jesus, he was God’s “family” and His source of pride. Job was required to give up what the Father gave up at the crucifixion of His Son.
  Job was not God, and he certainly was not Jesus! That was part of his faith; that he knew his value compared to God. In fact, he was God’s servant, and Job served him well. Satan desired to see just how well Job served God.
  Christians are not God, and good people suffer bad things because their faith is being tested. Of course, they are not truly “good” but only forgiven people just as Job. Contemporary men and women still face hardships as tests of faith. The prosperity gospel is silliness; the story of Job and even Paul and all the apostles, demonstrated that. God still allows Satan to have his way with Christians to see which way they shall go as tests of faith.
  My family has always been my pride. My siblings and I were my parents crown: “Children’s children are the crown of old men, and the glory of children is their father” (Prov 17:6). My children and grandchildren are this old man’s “crown” and my own father was my glory, and it is my wish that I be my children’s glory! Familial love is paramount for me; it always has been. The family of my youth was my safety and source of love. Today’s youth miss that glorious feeling of familial love.
  In a previous relationship, my mate could not get revenge on me through me, but she soon realized that she could through my family. In times of discord, I remained unscathed until she hurt a family member. I don’t think it was planned that way, but that is how it was. The M.O. was the same for my parents and my children. I have forgiven her of that because hurt people need relief, and that was her way for revenge. My point is that my family is my glory and “crown” and by removing that crown, my glory is lost. Even loved ones often do Satan’s will because Satan directs them to what hurts the most. For Job, he endured until it came for his loved ones, and then he was in despair. Even Jesus endured until he felt as if his Father had abandoned him.
  Jesus deposited all the sins of mankind in Hell during his three days of “rest.” While God’s Flesh was resting, the Father continued with His Plan as the Holy Ghost deposited the sins of mankind in Hell. Jesus was not abandoned, but surely felt the isolation of relinquishing His Father and Ghost for a while. Indeed, in Hell, sinners will suffer isolation from friends, families, and God. Job lost his friends and family, but he still had God!
  That is the way many are in this age of dishonor; where it is socially acceptable to dishonor parents, and it is assured, that if anyone can dishonor parents, they may certainly dishonor friends! Job found himself in a situation where everyone dishonored him, and that was his greatest curse. For myself, sometimes I feel alone in a crowd, even a crowd of “friends.” Added to that, I feel alone in the world, as my family is in isolation from me in other places and attitudes. When my wife and I are in discord, as most sometimes are, I feel alone in the world. In those times, my home is nothing more than an empty house.
  Job actually was alone in his despair. Everyone had abandoned him. Why? Because Satan willed it, and God allowed it as a test of faith. When I feel alone in the world, God Comforts me with His Holy Ghost. Jesus is with me even when my friends and family are not! Job, likewise, lost all his human comfort, but through his shield of faith, he was still safe! If Job endured the Devil’s test - he would be saved. He did and was! For us Christians who endure to the end, we too shall be saved!
  I have it easy. I always say, “Parents should never outlive their children!” I saw my own Mom outlive her son, and it was devastating! My cousin outlived her son, and it was as if she lost part of herself. (I sense that from our conversations.) Is it worse to lose a son by death or lose one by deed? God accepted the loss of his Son by death, but He will not accept the death of His other children by deed. God’s children must always revere their Father, and in like manner, God expects children to honor their own fathers. That is not really an expectation, but evidence of the ability to love and honor!
  Church friends become family in the absence of family. Have you ever felt alone in a church? Many of us have! It is a feeling of despair when Christians feel is if close friends have abhorred them, and turned against them. I have had Christians, even church friends, unfriend me for my beliefs and actions. What if God abandons us if we transgress His Will. He comes even closer to those who need it, as Jesus demonstrated, when he even made drunks and brawlers his friends.
  It is a shame when churches fail to include their Christian brothers. Rather than churches as  sanctuaries for accord, such churches are prisons in discord! It’s a shame when Christians feel alone even in church. The Holy Ghost reveals his presence only where his children are of one accord (Acts 2:1). Without accord in the church, Christians are isolated from God, and are merely play-acting church, as well as presenting faux love as the real thing. That’s how Job felt, but he clung to his faith and to God. Even when God does not reveal himself to others, He is evident to faithful Christians.

Credit: teespring