DEVOTIONAL 12/02/2021-12/03/2021
Job 1
6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.
7 And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
8 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?
9 Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?
10 Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
Among the people of Job’s generation, he was considered even by God as “a perfect and an upright man” (Job 1 8). Job was careful to fulfill his duties and diligent to perform offerings in case his sons might have committed any sins.
Job 1 5 And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt-offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually.
When the LORD of heaven declares someone as his servant (Job 1 8), there should not be a question raised up about that person. However, Satan will always try to find any points to excuse or to blame on the person before God. Seeing that Job had feared God and avoided evil deeds, Satan twisted the situation and said that because the LORD blessed Job so much, he had no reason to do evil against God. The wicked Satan then suggested that God should take away all the goodness in Job’s life and they should see how Job would behave. We can see clearly that Satan is a cunning creature full of evil and darkness. Satan is the one that invites havoc in people’s lives. Satan is the one that takes advantage of people in unfortunate circumstances to lure them to sin against God. Even with a person like Job, he could still find an excuse to destroy Job’s life. We can imagine how much he can do with sinners in the world. There is no love in this creature. There is no hope, safety, and blessing with this creature. Many celebrities are trapped to think that Satan gives them wealth and fame, but just in a short moment they will have to pay the hefty prices of their souls.
Yet, we have to remember God is the one that is in control. Every action that Satan does will need approval from God. When God says no, the creature cannot do anything.
Job 1 12 And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD.
Thus, Job lost his fortune and his sons and daughters (Job 1 14-19), but his life God spared it.
"Job hears bad tidings." "James Tissot (1836-1902) – The Jewish Museum, New York."
In many moments of life, we may face seemingly unbearable losses as Job went through. His cattle died, his servants perished, and his children did not survive. The pain was indeed so great for any of us to endure. Yet, Job experienced it. Only the trust and faith in God’s power of redemption would help us to go through such a phase.
We can see that Satan would not stop. He would do more things to push Job toward the edge.
Job 2
1 Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.
2 And the LORD said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
3 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.
4 And Satan answered the LORD, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life.
5 But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.
6 And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life.
7 So went Satan forth from the presence of the LORD, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown.
Remember one thing. Satan is relentless. He will not stop. He will excuse us day and night. There is not a moment he is not ready to find faults in us. No matter how much we have done for God’s Kingdom and even if we have repented from the sins we committed, Satan always watches to excuse us. We must be vigilant in all actions and circumstances. We must!
Sam Christian
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Vocabulary and grammar checks were done with the help of Collinsdictionary.com, Microsoft Word, and Google Docs.
The Bible used is the King James Version by Hendrickson Publishers. ISBN 978-1-59856-461-7. Some texts were inspired by boldfaced words and reference systems from this Bible book.
Some ideas of this devotional might come from the attendance at Deeper Life Bible Church, Bronx, New York.
Style of quotation followed partly APA style-7th edition.
In the title, "Excuser" was edited and changed to "Accuser" on December 5, 2021.
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