If—the two-letter word that stalls our faith and produces worries and anxieties within that become a cancer that eats away at us from the inside out. When troubled, tested, and tried we fall to this word, if, when we wonder what we have done while seeking a self-made solution.  We follow our if’s with why as we try to figure out why we are going through the pain and suffering that seems unmerited or undeserved.

In Job’s last lament with wondering what he has done; Job uses the word if often as he personally takes inventory of his life as he seeks to discover the sin that has caused his suffering and losses.  His friends have hounded him unmercifully to do this very thing; for they truly believed Job’s sins are the reasons for his calamites.  So, in his “last words,” Job mostly does what they have asked him to do—list your possible sins as you cry out to God so he will put an end to your pain. But Job does this in his own way. He asks, “If…then show me, and I will repent.”

Job 31

“I made a covenant with my eyes
    not to look lustfully at a young woman.
² For what is our lot from God above,
    our heritage from the Almighty on high?
³ Is it not ruin for the wicked,
    disaster for those who do wrong?
⁴ Does he not see my ways
    and count my every step?

⁵ “If I have walked with falsehood
    or my foot has hurried after deceit—
⁶ let God weigh me in honest scales
    and he will know that I am blameless—
⁷ if my steps have turned from the path,
    if my heart has been led by my eyes,
    or if my hands have been defiled,
⁸ then may others eat what I have sown,
    and may my crops be uprooted.

⁹ “If my heart has been enticed by a woman,
    or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door,
¹⁰ then may my wife grind another man’s grain,
    and may other men sleep with her.
¹¹ For that would have been wicked,
    a sin to be judged.
¹² It is a fire that burns to Destruction;
    it would have uprooted my harvest.

¹³ “If I have denied justice to any of my servants,
    whether male or female,
    when they had a grievance against me,
¹⁴ what will I do when God confronts me?
    What will I answer when called to account?
¹⁵ Did not he who made me in the womb make them?
    Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?

¹⁶ “If I have denied the desires of the poor
    or let the eyes of the widow grow weary,
¹⁷ if I have kept my bread to myself,
    not sharing it with the fatherless—
¹⁸ but from my youth I reared them as a father would,
    and from my birth I guided the widow—
¹⁹ if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing,
    or the needy without garments,
²⁰ and their hearts did not bless me
    for warming them with the fleece from my sheep,
²¹ if I have raised my hand against the fatherless,
    knowing that I had influence in court,
²² then let my arm fall from the shoulder,
    let it be broken off at the joint.
²³ For I dreaded destruction from God,
    and for fear of his splendor I could not do such things.

²⁴ “If I have put my trust in gold
    or said to pure gold, ‘You are my security,’
²⁵ if I have rejoiced over my great wealth,
    the fortune my hands had gained,
²⁶ if I have regarded the sun in its radiance
    or the moon moving in splendor,
²⁷ so that my heart was secretly enticed
    and my hand offered them a kiss of homage,
²⁸ then these also would be sins to be judged,
    for I would have been unfaithful to God on high.

²⁹ “If I have rejoiced at my enemy’s misfortune
    or gloated over the trouble that came to him—
³⁰ I have not allowed my mouth to sin
    by invoking a curse against their life—
³¹ if those of my household have never said,
    ‘Who has not been filled with Job’s meat?’—
³² but no stranger had to spend the night in the street,
    for my door was always open to the traveler—
³³ if I have concealed my sin as people do,
    by hiding my guilt in my heart
³⁴ because I so feared the crowd
    and so dreaded the contempt of the clans
    that I kept silent and would not go outside—

³⁵ (“Oh, that I had someone to hear me!
    I sign now my defense—let the Almighty answer me;
    let my accuser put his indictment in writing.
³⁶ Surely I would wear it on my shoulder,
    I would put it on like a crown.
³⁷ I would give him an account of my every step;
    I would present it to him as to a ruler.)—

³⁸ “if my land cries out against me
    and all its furrows are wet with tears,
³⁹ if I have devoured its yield without payment
    or broken the spirit of its tenants,
⁴⁰ then let briers come up instead of wheat
    and stinkweed instead of barley.”

The words of Job are ended.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

We cannot and must not judge Job who uses if in his inventory of life; because we have played the “IF” game ourselves.  We have even taken it farther than we want to admit!  In fact, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” when we think we are in control of our lives and can figure out and explain life by mere circumstances.

We must also confess of using “IF” to bargain with God to get what we think we deserve; “Lord, IF you will provide this for me now; I will do what you ask of me later.” THIS IF is probably the most dangerous IF of all. “Do not test the Lord your God,” says the Law of God and reiterated by Jesus, His Son! 

As we are coming to the near end of God’s story of Job who is His faithful devoted servant who was allowed to be tested by Satan; let us lean into Eugene Peterson’s commentary with a lesson of compassion;

“In our compassion, we don’t like to see people suffer.  And so our instincts are aimed at preventing, and alleviating suffering.  No doubt that is a good impulse.  But if we really want to reach out to others who are suffering, we should be careful not to be like Job’s friends, not to do our “helping” with the presumption that we can fix things, get rid of them, or make them “better.”  We may look at our suffering friends and imagine how they could have better marriages, better-behaved children, better mental and emotional health. But when we rush in to fix suffering, we need to keep in mind several things.

First, no matter how insightful we may be, we don’t really understand the full nature of our friends’ problems.

Second, our friends may not WANT our advice.

Third, the ironic fact of the matter is that more often than not, people do not suffer LESS when they are committed to following God, but MORE.  When these people go through suffering, their lives are often transformed, deepened, and marked with beauty and holiness, in remarkable ways that could never have been anticipated before the suffering.

So, instead of continuing to focus on preventing suffering—which we simply won’t be very successful at anyway—perhaps we should begin entering the suffering, participating insofar as we are able—entering the mystery and looking around for God.

In other words, we need to quit feeling sorry for people who suffer and instead look up to them, learn from them, and—IF they will let us—join them in protest and prayer. Pity can be nearsighted and condescending; shared suffering can be dignifying and life-changing.

As we look at Job’s suffering and praying and worshiping, we see that he has already blazed a trail of courage and integrity for us to follow.” –Peterson, Introduction to Job, The Message Bible

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Galatians 6:2

There is more to come, for a turnaround is coming…Stay tuned!  “When the words of Job were ended, everybody sat in silence, wondering what would happen next. Would God send immediate judgment and prove Job guilty? Or would God accept Job’s challenge, appear to him, and give Job opportunity to defend himself? Perhaps God would speak from heaven and answer Job’s questions. Job had challenged God because he was sure God would vindicate him. Job’s three friends were sure that God would condemn him.” –Wiersbe Study Bible

More lessons are on the horizon!  In the meantime, do what God requires; “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with our God.” (Micah 6:8)

Lord,

Thank you for demonstrating your love to us by laying down your life to pay for our sins.  Help us now to lay down our opinions and wholly lean on Truth in Your Name, for our good and your glory!  You know before we know and have already prepared a way through the sufferings of this life—a life that is temporary and fleeting—until we see you face to face in all your glory.  I trust you with all my life because you are Life!  Help us again today to love others like you love us by your power working in us. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

In Jesus Name, Amen