Friday, June 23, 2017

A Double Funeral

I find it quite humorous the way that we sum up a person by one idea, thought, or word.  We tend to put others in a corner and define them by one trait that is most significant.
If I were to ask you about the biblical character Job you might say "he was the one who remained faithful to God no matter what.  He had faith even when God did all kinds of horrible things to him. What a great man!"
But if you read the book of Job you will see that he was really a whiny butt.  Now, I was going to title this post "Job was a whiny butt" but I figured that you would all find that either immature or offensive.  But seriously7, chapters of the book are basically him whining.  This is from chapter 17 in the Message.

If all I have to look forward to is a home in the graveyard,if my only hope for comfort is a well-built coffin, If a family reunion means going six feet under,and the only family that shows up is worms,Do you call that hope?Who on earth could find any hope in that?No. If hope and I are to be buried together,I suppose you'll all come to the double funeral!"
There are so many blog posts that I could write about the book of Job and I might write several, but this is the one I want you to learn from today.

People don't have to be "either-or."  They aren't good or bad, smart or stupid, kind or mean, etc.   Human beings are complex and we can be "both-and."   We can be both patient at work and impatient at home, polite to strangers and rude among friends, talkative at a party but quiet in meetings.   And sometimes we can be different in one day."

So that is how Job, the whiny butt, can also be the guy who states loudly,
"I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth." (Job 19:25)
David was the guy who killed a dude after sleeping with his wife AND was a man after God's own heart.  Abraham was the man who was known for his faith AND slept with his servant to get a son faster than God planned.

And maybe the people around you have visible stuff that put them in the category of "bad" but actually are people that God sees as good.

A thought worth pondering.




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