Tuesday 20th May 2008 Job 8
1Are you (Job) finally through with your windy speech? 3 God never twists justice; he never fails to do what is right. 4 Your children must have sinned against God, and so he punished them as they deserved. 5 But turn now and plead with Almighty God; 6 if you are so honest and pure, then God will come and help you and restore your household as your reward. [GNB]
The blame culture is well and truly with us – but is not new. Here in Job, written over 3000 years ago we find it too. Something’s happened to me? It must be someone’s fault (who can I sue?). If it isn’t obvious then it must be God’s or my fault. But since God is almighty and perfect it must be something I have done.
Then is the converse true? If things are going well then I must be pleasing God…?
Asking that question should make it obvious that Bildad, who speaks in this chapter of Job, is speaking out of his hat!
Blame is a very easy game to play – but eventually we have to see that it is a fruitless game. Rather like gambling games the ‘blame dice’ is loaded against you. The result is only bitterness, resentment and a growing sense that life is unfairly weighted against you.
Jesus has none of it. When his disciples went down that road (see the story in John 9) assuming the blind must have sinned since they were blind, Jesus firmly rejected that notion and turned the disciples round from looking back in blame to looking forward in what can be done to make our world better. Now there’s a thought!
A task: when something negative happens today, think how it can be used to advantage – maybe even to God’s glory! | 