JOB 14:1-2 – Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble. He comes out like a flower and withers; he flees like a shadow and continues not.
THEME OF THE DAY. LIFE AS IT REALLY IS. King Solomon is recognized in the scriptures as the wisest man ever to live but we may add our friend in today’s scripture, suffering Job, to the list of wise people. His book bearing his name is one a Christian should frequently visit. It offers a wealth of instruction on such topics as the sovereignty of God, the workings of the devil, suffering, and the depth of agony a believer may go. But it is also extremely practical and one such lesson is in today’s scripture – seeing life as it really is this side of heaven. Let’s settle in and take away two applications for our lives.
First, life is short – man who is born of woman is few of days. He comes out like a flower and withers; he flees like a shadow and continues not. Now I know this is not some revelation dropping out of heaven to any of us. We know life is short and fleeting. Just look in the mirror and see the quickly fading youth of our yesterdays. But knowing life is short must shape our lives. If our knowing the brevity of life does not determine our priorities in life, then the knowing is not impacting our lives. Take inventory right now. Is the aging process and how fast life goes by causing us to invest our lives on eternal things with a greater sense of urgency? Let us face it. We are going to arrive at a point physically and mentally when our abilities to serve the Lord with great zeal and clarity lie in the past. If we keep this before us, then we will maximize each day for what matters most – the spiritual and eternal, not the physical and temporal.
The second relevant application from Job is another reality about life. It is hard. It is full of troubles. It is burdensome. It hurts. It brings grief. It produces sorrows. It causes pain. And none of those suffering experiences are going to go away this side of heaven. Job proclaims, “Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble.” One of the most delusionary things a Christian may experience is to think life this side of heaven should be relatively easy, problem-free, and without much difficulty. It reveals how “sheep-like” we really are to expect in this life what is only in heaven. Why do we get surprised when trials come? Why do we seem shocked over the failures of people? A main reason why many Christians live discouraged, depressed, and disillusioned is they have lost the Biblical worldview of what life is really like this side of heaven. Sin damages everything. Sin touches every relationship, every situation, and every circumstance making life hard, painful, and often feeling unbearable. Forget this, and we are Christians looking for heaven on earth and unless that changes in our thinking, welcome to a life of joyless depression, discouragement, and disillusionment.
Yes, King Solomon is tops when it comes to wisdom, but don’t short-change Job. He has a lot of wisdom to give us and especially when it comes to seeing and living life as it really is this side of heaven.
PRAYER: “Father, forgive me when I think my life should be problem-free and easy.”
QUOTE: “Don’t expect in this sin-cursed world what is only found in the perfect next world.”