Read Job 1:6-22 What was Satan implying in verses 9-11 about Job's faith?
List everything Job lost that one day. How would you feel if this happened to you? Explain your feelings.
Why do you think Job was able to respond the way he did in verses 20-22?
Think about It
Define faith in your own words. Be as detailed as possible.
Was Job's faith based in the present or in something else? What do you think Job's faith was rooted in?
How could a good God allow all these bad things to happen to Job? Why didn't God stop the bad circumstances from happening?
The Old Testament character Job was faced with a series of terrible circumstances that we wouldn't wish on our worst enemy! Fortunately, Job's faith didn't depend on his circumstances. He had faith despite his circumstances.
Circumstantial faith is fragile. It is totally dependent upon our ability (or inability) to interpret events. Kim prays and prays and prays for God to help her pass a test -- but she fails. So Kim interprets that failure to mean that God doesn't answer prayer or that maybe He is mad at her. She concludes that God can't be trusted. Her faith is shattered by her interpretation of the circumstances around her.
We are all prone to misinterpret events. Ask a four-year-old being carried by his father into the doctor's office if Daddy loves him. When the doctor brandishes a needle for a tetanus shot, the little boy might have his doubts! But years later, ask that same child about the doctor's visit. He will have a completely different perspective. He will know that his father showed his love by caring enough to protect his son's health.
Just as a child cannot correctly judge his parent's character based on one scary trip to the doctor, so we dare not draw conclusions about God's goodness based upon the immediate circumstances of life. God's faithfulness and loving character do not hinge on the unfolding of circumstances.
Circumstantial faith is fragile because our frame of reference is too small. It is hard for us to look at the significance of events in the context of a lifetime, much less weigh those events on the scale of eternity.
Consider Joseph, the boy who spent fifteen years as a slave in Egypt after being sold into slavery by his own brothers. His "tragedy" was a part of a beautiful tapestry that God was weaving behind the scenes to save an entire region from famine. (You can find Joseph's story in Genesis 37-45.) Then there was Moses, the great leader who spent forty years in the wilderness before God sent him back to Egypt -- freeing a nation from slavery and unfolding a wonderful purpose in Moses' seemingly purposeless existence. (Read Moses' story in Exodus 2-14.)
For many teenagers, the ever-changing landscape of circumstances defines God. How about you? If God doesn't answer your prayers by next week, do you wonder if He even exists? If you don't see God at work in your immediate circumstances, do you lose your confidence in Him? Do you get stressed out over things like taking a test, getting a date, winning a game, or being left out? (Neutrogena and Oxy10 are making a killing off of your stress!)
Can your faith be summarized by this statement: "What's happening now and what I'm feeling now determine what I believe for now"? If so, you may have a faulty understanding of faith. Are you ready to replace that faulty understanding with an authentic faith? In the spaces below, journal what God is saying to you in regard to your faith.
Read Hebrews 4:14-16
When the writer urges us to "hold firmly to the faith," what does that suggest to you?
Why does the fact that Christ is our high priest hold so much significance?
This passage seems to imply that the Hebrew Christians had a faulty understanding of the nature of their high priest, Jesus. What were they missing, and why?
Think about It
Could you describe the foundation of your faith? Explain.
Do you tend to worry and doubt God when bad things happen? Why?
Can you think of a time when you nearly abandoned your faith? What happened and why?
In the book of Hebrews the author addresses a group of Jewish Christians who were being pressured by the Jewish community -- and tough circumstances in general -- to abandon their faith. Being a Christian seemed to have few practical benefits for these believers. On the contrary, their faith was costing them both socially and financially. Not only were they ostracized in their community, they were banned from the synagogue, which was the hub of their society.
To make matters worse, the Hebrew Christians had been led to believe that Jesus was coming back soon -- and thus far He was a big no-show! Now they were beginning to wonder whether or not this Christianity thing was for real.
The author of Hebrews writes this letter to encourage his readers not to abandon their faith. The basis of his argument is the identity of Christ. In the first three chapters, he presents a mountain of evidence pointing toward the conclusion that Christ is God. We believe, he declares, because we know that Jesus walked on this earth, claimed to be God, gave evidence supporting His claim, died for our sin, rose from the dead, and went back to heaven in plain view of hundreds of witnesses. He concludes by stating, "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess" (Hebrews 4:14).
If Christ really is who He says He is, then you don't need to worry when bad things happen to you. You have a high priest who understands. If Jesus really died for your sins, then you have no reason to doubt His love. You have a friend who has laid down His life for you. And if He really meant it when He promised to come back for you, then you don't have to be afraid of what happens next in your life. You have a heavenly Father who has your best interest in mind!
If your faith rests on anything other than the person of Jesus Christ -- who He is and what He has do...
