God And His Reputation - His Name's Sake
I thought, "You mean God does all this for His name's sake?" In other words, to bring glory and honor to His name. That bothered me because I assumed that meant, that He's putting us through hell just so He can look good. Of course, a Bible study ensued!
Job's Friends:
When Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar had nothing more to say concerning Job's turmoil, Elihu became the fourth man up to get Job straightened out. This was the first and only time he spoke. Apparently Elihu was a bystander and much younger than the others, but he introduced a new viewpoint.
Job 36:26 (NKJV) "Behold, God is great, and we do not know Him; nor can the number of His years be discovered."
Job's three friends were mistaken about God in their speeches to Job. They clearly did not accurately reflect the character of God, and the reason He let Job endure his calamities. Because they didn't have any indepth knowledge of God, they assumed things about Him that is not His true character. In fact, God confronted Job's friends about that.
Job 42:7 (NKJV) The LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, "My wrath is aroused against you and your two friends, for you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.
The trials Job suffered were not related to his behavior at all. God said of Job that there was none like him on the earth, and that Job was a blameless and upright man, one who feared God and shunned evil? (Job 1:8) God used Job's sufferings as an answer to his prayers about his 10 children, that were possibly committing incest with their sisters (Job 1:4-5). Following Job's time of suffering, God blessed Job with twice as much as he had before (Job 42:10). God also blessed Job with 10 new children, whose behavior was a lot different than his first 10, who had been tragicly killed (Job 1:18-19; 42:13-14). Job and his friends came away from his experience with a much greater knowledge of God's reputation, and who He really is.
God stakes His name (or His reputation) on how we come to know Him. As we read these Bible stories, we also come to know Him in the way Job did. As we endure our own suffering, we come to know God in a way we wouldn't otherwise.
Psalm 106:8 (NKJV) Nevertheless He saved them for His name's sake, that He might make His mighty power known.
God does not permit us to go through hell so He can look good. He does it so we can come to know Him better and better. It elevates us to the next level of our spiritual journey.
Now, no chastening seems to be joyful while we're going through it, but it's painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it - and we come to know God in ways we never could have, had we not seen it for ourselves.
Job's story had a very, very, very happy ending... and so will ours.
Dee Richardson, Voice of the Dove †