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Good afternoon GBC,

I hope you enjoyed an excellent Memorial Day. I hope you didn’t picnic without some prayers of thanksgiving for the sacrifices which have secured and preserved our freedom.

 Midweek Meditation:

 Job 4:7; 17

Minimizing Through Misunderstanding

7 “Remember: who that was innocent ever perished? Or where were the upright cut off? 17 Can mortal man be in the right beforeGod? Can a man be pure before his Maker?” 

Have you ever jumped to judgmental conclusions because you hadn’t heard the whole situation? We all have! I remember once as a dad my girls were crying after I had put them to bed. I went in, minimized the tears as sleepy emotion, told them to go to bed or there would be consequences, when one of them cried “but dad the spider on the wall is scary!” I assumed the motive, misunderstood, and dismissed the reality of the situation. In Job, his three friends dismiss the trouble by oversimplifying the situation and jumping to “judgy” conclusions. Job’s friend Eliphaz in chapter 4 minimizes Job’s trial by misunderstanding misery and mercy. 

1. Misunderstood misery- V. 7

 Eliphaz makes a shortsighted assumption that suffering is always due to sin. His question in verse 7 implies that Eliphaz that perishing is linked to innocence and being cut off (or not) is due to how upright one may be. The implication behind the question to Job is clearly “would you be perishing if you were innocent? And would be cut off if you were more upright?” Basically what he’s saying is, “I know you’re life’s bad, but let me tell you what’s wrong with you!” The New Testament equivalent of this is the disciple’s question in John 9 about the blind man, “did this man sin or his parents?” To be clear, sometimes difficulty is discipline from God. Yet, often, the adversity of our life is due to the sovereign ordaining of God to prove his goodness and reveal his person to us. Remember Job is in this pain because God permitted the affliction of Satan, and specifically ordained Job to experience it. Misery is not always by our doing, but by God’s ordaining. Therefore no pain is purposeless, fruitless, or chaotic. The afflictions of our life are neither God’s accidents nor our inadequacies. They are God sent rays of light through which we may see him more clearly in a world darkened by sin and all its ruinous effects. The circumstances of one’s life are not ours to judge. They are God’s to rule and refine. May God keep us from Eliphaz’s shortsighted assumption.

2. Misunderstood mercy- V. 17 

What made Eliphaz’s perspective one-dimensional, though? He didn’t see the whole story because he didn’t have a whole picture of God. He viewed God as a divine auditor, coming in to make sure everything is clean with the accounts and all the guidelines are followed. If they are not, he establishes guidelines for correction and slaps the penalties until everything is square. He certainly doesn’t account for a God who would provide sufficient mercy to forgive the penalties and balance the account with reserves of grace. The answer to verse 17 is a resounding, “Yes! Men CAN be in the right before God and be pure before his maker!” But only by the sufficient payment to satisfy the accounts and pay the penalties. We shouldn’t totally fault Eliphaz here. We have the New Covenant, after all. Yet, he had enough evidence of God’s mercy on man that he should’ve been more merciful in his perspective of Job. Very simply, Eliphaz should’ve known God better than this. We should know God better than this. We should not wish for the judgement, affliction, and vengeance of God on others. We should desire the repentance of sinners because we of all people know the mercy of God to grant us repentance. 

 May God keep us from the empty and merciless perspective of Eliphaz.

 

Ministry Prayer Requests 

• Pray for our collective endurance. 

• Pray for parents who have a little more time with their kids now that summer has started— that they would be the presence of Jesus to their kids. 

• Pray that our people, individuals and families, would commit themselves to being with God in His Word.

 Ministry Reminders 

• Don’t forget we are back to our Wednesday night inductive studies for “Family Church.” It’s at 6:30 on Wednesdays through the summer! 

• We have VBS fast approaching. Sign up your kids and bring your neighbors! https://www.gracebibleelkhart.com/wonder-junction-vbs-2026/ 

• Young Adult SS class starts this coming Sunday. 

• Remember upcoming open houses! We include these in the bulletin for you. 

Grace and peace, 

Pastor Kyle