“Blessed Be the Name of the Lord” (Job 1:21)

“And [Job] said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there: the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord”.

Job blessed the Lord, and so do you and I. We say, ‘God is great and God is GOOD” by TRUSTING Him, in spite of, the hardships that we endure (Rom 4:20-21). We JUSTIFY God in His grace and believe that He loves us, even when it appears that He’s forgotten us completely. We believe the promises, so we can be saved, believing that He gives and takes away, that all is RIGHT, all is love, and all will work according to His perfect purpose and grace (Rom 8:28).  God is GOOD to sinners, even WHEN He makes us cry deep and hurtful tears. God rules this world, so Satan is NEVER to be sought for comfort; we look to God who gives the pain to remove the pain, as He promised, for even Satan only afflicts as much as God allows - “And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that [Job] has is in your power; only upon himself put not forth your hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord” (Job 1:12). Thus, we JUSTIFY God rather than cast off Christ when all is bad, because we know that even this pain is for good.

Unbelievers, like Job’s wife, will curse and quit God in the bad times, and people who don’t have a suffering hope… a hope that is stable in storms… will flee to something else to REMEDY their sins, their storms, and their pain, “Then said [Job‘s] wife unto him, do you still retain your integrity? Curse God, and die“ (Job 2:9). But believers are KEPT by God THROUGH faith, so that we cannot deny the gospel that we believe. God gets glory in rewarding faith, keeping the tempted, and working things out for good. We shall see the end of the Lord, that He is gracious, and He heard our every cry - “Behold, we count them happy which endure. You have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy“ (James 5:11). God kept Job, and He will keep all for whom Christ died. Now, is our hope in Him, or do we believe in “good times” and happiness? If happiness is your god or getting everything that you want is your god (or even the things you most want) then you will perish, because God will let Satan loose upon His church, and only those who believe endure the storm.  Therefore, don’t preach some feeble “do as your people say” god who couldn’t hurt anyone and has no power over Satan. Preach the God who ensures us that we won’t make it, unless He gives strength and grace - “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men [following Christ] is impossible; but with God all things are possible“ (Matt 19:26).  The Lord WILL give grace to survive this world’s pain, and He will give glory, which is the REWARD of believing.

Here are some words from Charles Spurgeon on Ps 147:3, “He heals the broken in heart, and binds up their wounds” (Ps 147:3):

… He restores broken hearts as well as broken walls. The kings of the earth think to be great through their loftiness; but Jehovah becomes really so by his condescension. Behold, the Most High has to do with the sick and the sorry, with the wretched and the wounded!  He walks the hospitals as the good Physician! His deep sympathy with mourners is a special mark of his goodness. Few will associate with the despondent, but Jehovah chooses their company, and abides with them till he has healed them by his comforts. He deigns to handle and heal broken hearts: he himself lays on the ointment of grace, and the soft bandages of love, and thus binds up the bleeding wounds of those convinced of sin. This is compassion like a God. Well may those praise him to whom he has acted so gracious a part… uncover your wounds to him who so tenderly binds them up!