Wednesday of 26th Week, Year II: reflection

Theme: Hardship in our lives doesn’t mean God has abandoned us

Reading: Job 9:1–12,14–16

Job’s unwavering faith in God in his response to his friends in today’s reading has an important lesson to teach us.

The chapter that preceded the one we read in today’s mass presented the speech of Bildad, one of Job’s friends. Bildad maintained the traditional position of Judaism that God cannot allow the just to suffer, even physical pain. He told Job that hardship only comes to those whom God has abandoned or those He is punishing for their evil deeds.

The Jews had believed that suffering is only the portion of the wicked and evil men, that God rewards the wicked with all kinds of physical punishment for their wickedness, and that physical harm will never come to those who are just before God. They believed that God will not allow the righteous to suffer any harm because they believe in Him. By his speech, Bildad implied that Job’s physical suffering must have been the result of his wickedness and sins.

Many Christians of nowadays share the thoughts of Bildad. They believe that once someone believes in God, no hardship or physical harm can come to him. Many Christians still believe that suffering is not their portion since they believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Then, going beyond the thoughts of Bildad, these Christians believe that when a Christian experiences hardship, it is either a sign that he is not in the right church or his pastor is not a powerful man of God. To that effect, the solution they will proffer to such person is either to leave his church in search of ‘a powerful one’ or to search for powerful men of God to pray for him. For these Christians, those who believe in God and serve Him sincerely should never suffer.

But Job’s response teaches us that no one is just before God and no one has perfect knowledge of his operations because He is a mystery. Job made us to understand that suffering on earth is not a sign of God’s abandonment, failure, punishment in our lives, nor is it a sign of weak faith in Him; it is rather part and parcel of the world we live in.

May the fruits of your labour this Wednesday be abundant, Amen.

Fr. Isaac Chima.