Preschool
In my Father’s house are many mansions. John 14:2
Resignation in Affliction
Memory Verses
Primary
In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. John 14:2
Junior
In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. John 14:2
Background Scripture: Job 1-2
Lesson Scripture: Job 1:1-3, 6-22
Introduction
It is difficult to imagine a world without affliction. We can be sure that God allows His children to be afflicted by adversities only because these afflictions fill a vital need in His great plan. Since the fall, man’s predisposition is to stray from God due to his independent, self-willed nature. One of affliction’s distinctive qualities is its ability to refocus our distracted attention back to God while reaffirming how wholly dependent we are upon Him.
Many in crisis make promises to God for a deeper consecration in return for His present deliverance. But without true resignation, these pledges merely join the long list of unfulfilled vows. Resignation requires faith and trust, and the fruit of completely resigning one’s self and his affairs into God’s care is a deep experience of rest, peace, and humility. The storm of adversity and affliction will come. Resignation opens the door to worship God in the midst of the storm.
Key Verse
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28).
Lesson Scripture
Job 1:1 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.
2 And there was born unto him seven sons and three daughters.
3 His substance also was seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she asses, and a very great household; so that this man was the greatest of all the men of the east.
6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them.
7 And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
8 And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?
9 Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought?
10 Hast thou not made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
12 And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord.
13 And there was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house:
14 And there came a messenger unto Job, and said, The oxen were plowing, and the asses feeding beside them:
15 And the Sabeans fell upon them, and took them away; yea, they have slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
16 While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The fire of God is fallen from heaven, and hath burned up the sheep, and the servants, and consumed them; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
17 While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The Chaldeans made out three bands, and fell upon the camels, and have carried them away, yea, and slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
18 While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, Thy sons and thy daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother’s house:
19 And, behold, there came a great wind from the wilderness, and smote the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young men, and they are dead; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.
20 Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped,
21 And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return hither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.
22 In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.
Studying the Lesson
The book of Job relates the story of a righteous man’s prosperity and sufferings, while reminding us that spiritual warfare is being waged behind many of the events of life we often take for granted. The Scriptures are silent about the author of the book of Job, what era of time Job lived in, or what his nationality was. We do know that he lived in the land of Uz, which would likely place him in the eastern portion of Arabia, and that he feared God, had a large family, and was very wealthy.
The writer, through the inspiration of God, reveals the ongoing battle Satan instigates against God and His saints. Revelation 12:10 tells us that Satan is “the accuser of our brethren . . . which accused them before our God day and night,” and our lesson scriptures illustrate how he frames his accusations. God commends Job as an example of the righteous remnant who continue in faithful worship and service despite the evil one’s unrelenting attack upon them. Satan’s ensuing question “Doth Job fear God for nought?” is as much an accusation toward God as it is toward Job. Satan insinuates that God is not worthy of Job’s worship and accuses Job of only serving God for the gifts He receives. It is here that Satan proposes a challenge to determine the foundation of Job’s devotion.
God knew Job thoroughly and, because of His confidence in the sincerity and integrity of Job’s faith, He gave Satan the liberty to take away all that Job possessed. In a single day, messenger after messenger came to Job with the reports of the total loss of all that he once possessed. Last of all came the devastating news that his children, seven sons and three daughters, had all perished.
Few have ever experienced so great a test of their faith. The measure of Job’s affliction was not just in the extent of his loss, which was very severe, but also in its cruel suddenness. But Job’s faith held. It held, in large part, because of his deep trust in the providence of God. He understood that everything he lost was not really his but God’s. He declared, “The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” The fact that this vision was a settled conviction long before this day is evident in his immediate reaction to the tragic news. The Scripture tells us that he “fell down upon the ground, and worshipped,” which was a traditional mourning ritual.
Practical Truths for Today
The need to feel secure is universal. In the world, people seek to find security in their bank accounts, good health, and extensive holdings. These things are pursued as a guarantor of personal well-being, albeit without Christ. Yet as a testimony of the chronic uncertainty of their confidence, we see men’s need to protect their assets through many kinds of insurances. The question is, Are we affected by the present affluent, materialistic world? Our priorities indicate where we place our confidence.
Throughout the centuries, Christians have accepted and exemplified the biblical narrative that life is a short pilgrimage to prepare them for eternity. This understanding appears to be in jeopardy in our day. Today’s culture of entitlement conflicts with the spirit of humility, thankfulness, and unworthiness for which faithful believers have been known in past ages. We will have these virtues when we recognize that all we have has been given to us of God and, as the giver, He has the right to take them back. This knowledge reveals that we have already been given far more than we deserve when we are granted forgiveness of sins, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and a promise of heaven.
“Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward” (Job 5:7). For all of us, afflictions in different forms and of varying severity are inevitable. They may come as a health crisis, a financial distress, a mental or emotional struggle, or a physical handicap. While some distresses may assail us for a very short time, others persist throughout life. As in Job’s life, God is rarely the initiator of life’s adversities, but He has a purpose in allowing them to come that we can be shaped by them. It is a true saying that the setbacks we experience can make us bitter or better. How resigned we are to God in our small, everyday challenges will likely determine how we respond in a significant crisis.
Pain, difficulty, and loss are all the results of living in a fallen world. The evil one would like to accuse God in our time of test to undermine our confidence in Him. He whispers doubts in our hearts and questions whether God really cares. Self-pity and resentment can develop subtly, yet swiftly, in times of disappointment, and our faith is too often diminished by them. God has a better plan for His people.
Resignation to God is a venture of faith and trust. It takes faith to truly believe that God is greater than our troubles, regardless of how great our distress may seem or how bleak the future may appear. By faith we understand that God is worthy of our trust regardless of the outcome. When we trust, we do not bargain with God or set forth conditions for continuing our allegiance to Him. We do not feel the need to give God advice on how to resolve our present difficulty. In trust we relinquish the control and authority of our life to God and accept His path. “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him” (Job 13:15). In a time of loss, trust takes an unknown future and places it confidently into the hands of a known God, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for though art with me” (Ps. 23:4). Lack of trust will make true resignation difficult.
Satan’s objective is to use affliction to build a wall between us and God, but God intends it to draw us closer to Him that we might be “conformed to the image of his Son” (Rom. 8:29).
Illustration
After many years of adversity, a faithful sister was welcomed home by her Lord. All those who remembered her in her youth spoke of her as a devoted, consecrated Christian. She obviously had hopes and dreams and looked forward to her future with eager anticipation. When she was in her twenties, having dealt with health issues for a number of years, she was diagnosed with a degenerative disease. Eventually, her parents were no longer able to care for her in their home, and she moved to a church nursing home where she lived for the remaining twenty-seven years of her life.
One of her outstanding characteristics was a consistently joyful spirit. It was not that she did not have moments when she wished things were otherwise, but the stability of an overriding resignation to God’s plan and an appreciation of His care for her left no room for self-pity. When she was asked how she was doing, her responses were commonly punctuated with thanksgiving and praise, and she always seemed more interested in how her visitors and their families were faring than her own well-being. Though her humility and kindness were an inspiration to many, may we never forget that it was through affliction that her spirit was molded in Christ’s image as she resigned herself to God.
Questions
- We often hear the saying, “In acceptance is peace.” Is acceptance the same as resignation?
- What are signs that we are or are not finding our security in Christ?
- How do we know whether we are fully resigned to God?
- Are all afflictions the work of the evil one?
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Source: COGICM Daily Bible Readings (Daily Bible Readings, PO Box 124, Glenn, CA 95943).