Do You Either Blame God Or Make Excuses For Him?

What do you do when things happen to you that you are not happy with? Do you either blame God or make excuses for Him? In the book of Job, it was God who allowed the afflictions done to Job. And his wife who wanted him to give up.

But Job replied, “You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” So in all this, Job said nothing wrong.  Job 2:10

Don’t Blame God

In the first couple of chapters of Job, God and Satan had a conversation. Satan told the Lord that he had been patrolling the earth. God asked him a question in verse 8. “Have you noticed my servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. Job is blameless—a man of complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil.”

Satan’s answer to the Lord is in verses 9 and 10. Job has good reason to fear God. You have always put a wall of protection around him and his home and his property. You have made him prosper in everything he does. Look how rich he is!

So God told Satan, “All right, you may test him.” “Do whatever you want with everything he possesses, but don’t harm him physically.”

After a second conversation God said, Job fears God and stays away from evil. And he has maintained his integrity, even though you urged me to harm him without cause. Satan ended up taking all of Job’s possessions including his children and his health.

Job’s body was filled with painful boils, and that’s where we pick up the verse for today. His wife was scraping the boils with a piece of pottery saying. “Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die.”

Job’s response was, Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?

Don’t Make Excuses For God

I’m not sure if you realize what happened with Job. God was bragging on him about how he lived a life of integrity. Satan was permitted to afflict Job up to just short of taking his life. Job didn’t let God down at all.

I believe we should thank him the first chance we get. Because I know my life and I can’t see God bragging on me. Job passed the ultimate test from Satan so we don’t have to.

Even though Satan will test and tempt us, compared to what Job went through our afflictions are minimum. At that, nobody likes to go through pain and suffering. At one time or another though, we are all going to experience both of them.

Blaming God is not the solution because He is always the answer. Do you struggle to understand things you have gone through? Or are going through things right now? Welcome to the club! God is still the answer.

We know we will experience ups and downs in this life. The question is, are we willing to receive not only good from the Lord but also the bad?

We make clichés out of scripture verses. God does everything for our good. Our steps are ordered by God. And of course, he won’t give us more than we can handle.

As much as Job went through he kept his integrity with God. There is no reason that we can’t depend on Him and keep our integrity intact, also.

Check out this related post, What are You Blaming for Your Sinful Actions?

Lord, thank you for being there for us all the time, even when we aren’t enjoying a situation

You would enjoy reading the cornerstone post on discipleship called How To Be An Effective Devoted Disciple Of Jesus 

Read the first 2 chapters of Job starting here.

You might be interested in reading a devotion call I’m Sinless

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