The story of Job in the Bible is both striking and inspiring. He was a well-behaved, righteous and faultless character. He honoured and loved God, and he hated evil.
However, there came an instance when the sons of God came to present themselves to God. The Scripture say that satan came among them also. Then God said something that we must all give careful consideration to in order to discover the heart beat of God and to lead and effective life and ministry on earth.
"Then the LORD said to satan, "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?
So satan answered the LORD and said, "Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You no made a hedge around him,marooned his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But now, stretch out a Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!"
And the LORD said to satan, "Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person."
Job 1:8- 12
If you look at the Scriptures with the goggle of religion, you are likely going to say that Job was afflicted by the wicked devil and God even gave him permission to do it. But if you look carefully, you will discover that God was not brought into the matter as it were; instead, He initiated the matter! Here, will bother ourselves with the matter, so that we also can learn the will and heart of God over His servants on earth. Remember, God is in heaven; yet, He rules over the entire universe. The children of men are the delegated authorities on earth; however, among men, certain men and women single out themselves by their character and faithfulness to serve God and His purpose on earth. Such men are not extraordinary in basic sense; but they are servants of the sovereign and supreme LORD.
Job was a servant of God - he wasn't a preacher or priest as we may like to assume; yet a servant of God. He was simply a man assigned to his location and vocation by God! While discharging his assignment on earth; God took him up and invited satan to consider his life and work. If we must see beyond the surface, then we must look below the surface. The question we must ask is, "what does it mean to consider a man?" In basic language, I believe the word 'consider' suggests a pondering over something or someone for the purpose of decision making. When God asked the devil if he had considered His servant Job, God was simply asking the devil if he had judged His servant faultless and faithful! You see, God loves to showcase His chosen servants; however, He also loves them to be faultless and faithful - not just considered faultless and faithful by Him, but also by the prince of the world.
If the LORD chooses to deploy the devil to bring his searchlight or spotlight or critical-light over your life and ministry or work; what will be the testimony of your life and ministry? Most of us, we appear wonderful on the surface, but inside many of us lies many evil tendencies and injustice. Can the LORD summon the devil to destroy our possessions and still find our person's right? If you notice what God said to the devil about Job, you would realize that the consideration that God invited the devil into is the consideration of his person - however, the devil believed that his person was just as good as the volume of his possessions.
If we must be durable in the hand of God for our generation, we must learn to put possession in its proper perspective. Your possession is not you, and if you lose all your possessions, you still have your person. The consideration of God over His servants have always and will always be on and about their persons. Is it not rather wise to be more careful with the acquisitions of such possessions. Whatever we have can be taken from us; but who we are cannot not. Whether we have or we do not have, we must remain faultless and faithful in the service of God on the earth.
Please note, the devil can be invited into your marriage or ministry or life; when he comes, his all time strategy will be to take your possessions from you or to lure you with more possessions; thinking that your heart will follow your possessions, but you must tell him that he his wrong, even as he was wrong about Job: for your heart do not follow your possessions, but your purpose!
Thanks for the gift of your time, I am Gboyega ADEDEJI!
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