“You ask, ‘Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me. My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.” Job 42:3-6
None of his questions had been answered, but it didn’t matter anymore. In fact, for the last few hours, all God had done was question him.
In the midst of the storm’s howling winds, the voice of God had cut through the insidious darkness of his heart like a surgeon’s knife. It had been a good thing that God had told him to brace himself like a man for at times the gale force winds of God’s presence had almost carried him away (Job 38:3).
The Lord had been right; in the darkness of his heart he had lost sight of the God who had always loved him. Now, as he saw his mighty God afresh, he was pouring dust and ashes over his head.
Although he had been covered in dust and ashes for days, this time it was different. In the past he had been mourning over his situation, but now he was grieving over his sin.
Have you seen the reflection of God in the horrors of your storm? Before you answer that too quickly, let me explain what I mean.
It is one thing to hear about God, but it is an entirely different matter to see Him.
For example, Saul, the persecutor who had heard about God all of his life, became Paul the Apostle after he saw Him on the road to Damascus. Moses was a fear-ridden fugitive until he met God in the burning bush.
Sadly, this type of experience with God is almost unknown in the church of the western world. Despite all of our Christian books, CDs, messages, and television, we have produced a generation of Christians who know a lot about God without really knowing Him.
I am not talking about salvation when I refer to “knowing Him”; instead, I am describing the reality of experiencing His changing power and sensing His divine presence in your life. Many of you are probably asking, “How can I experience God like this?”
First of all, it is critical that you spend quality time with God on a regular basis. As you read the word, worship Him, and wait on Him, the Holy Spirit will begin to make your Heavenly Father very real to you.
In John 14:17, Jesus, speaking of His Father, said, “The world cannot accept Him because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you know Him…”
Do you see it yet? Although we will not be able to physically see God until we get to heaven, there is a place of knowing God that is almost like seeing Him. As you are faithful in your spiritual disciplines, with the help of the Holy Spirit, you can be one of those who know Him in this way.
Second, through his friend’s misrepresentation of God and the pain and bitterness in his own heart, Job was unable to see the reality of his loving God; a false view of God was slowly subverting the clear image of Him that had always been there.
In 1 Corinthians 13:12, Paul says, “We see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.” One of the mirrors through which we attempt to see God is our internal view of what God is like. If that internal lens has been distorted or defiled, you and I will find it almost impossible to see clearly the God who loves us so much.
Never forget that the same God who revealed the light of His countenance in the darkness of Job’s soul is more than able to reveal Himself to you in a fresh way today.
© Copyright 2005 by Jim Laffoon
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