Job's Faithfulness

It wasn’t Job’s wealth that brought Satan against him. It wasn’t his possessions that drew him into sin and then into great trials. It was Job’s faithfulness. Satan only used all of the things that Job had as tools to try to bring him down. It’s not what you possess that determines your real value and your real character, it’s not what you have that defines your life, its what is in your heart that really matters!

I also must say that it was not Job’s neglect of his family, or a self-centered lifestyle that brought on his trials.

Job 1:4-5, "And his sons went and feasted in their houses, every one his day; and sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink with them. 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."

It seems to me that Job had spread his wealth among his family. He didn’t just hoard it all in a cave somewhere but he wanted, just like we do, to see his children blessed and happy. All of his children had their own homes, and no doubt, their own share of the family fortune and influence among their neighbors. Job’s family name was well respected in the land.

But Job had the same problem that many of us do, as parents. He had some unruly, disobedient children, who loved the party life. Job’s children were living and enjoying life because of the blessings of their father. They hadn’t earned God’s blessings. They hadn’t learned to be faithful and true to God like Job. They just enjoyed the overflow of God’s blessings upon their father because of his faithfulness to God.

I know how Job must have felt. I believe that many of you can say the same thing. Job tried to teach his children by his own example, how to serve the Lord. There is no doubt in my mind that Job did everything he could to raise his children to serve the Lord because God called Job perfect in all his ways. But those children had to make up their own minds and live their own lives. They couldn’t go to Heaven on Job’s coat tails. They wouldn’t receive God’s best for their lives unless they chose to live for God. They would only experience God’s blessings second hand, because they didn’t serve God.

That didn’t stop Job from continually trying to reach them and teach them. He was constantly bringing them before the Lord God of Heaven. He was constantly praying for them and doing all he could to teach them to serve God, but it just didn’t seem to work.

I don’t read anywhere where Job’s children ever came back to God. They lived on Job’s blessings, but they died in their own sins in spite of Job’s witnessing to them.

God restricted Satan’s attacks against Job. Satan could not kill Job because Job was God’s child and God will not allow his children to be tempted above what they can bear. But that protection wasn’t on Job’s children because they weren’t God’s children. They were children of the devil who served Satan with their riotous living and God allowed Satan to do whatever he wanted to with them.