Justifying One's Self

Scripture: So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes. Then Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram, became angry. He was angry at Job because he justified himself rather than God. Job 32:1-2

Observation: The interaction between Job and his three friends ends with a long speech by Job, where he challenges the idea he has done wrong. He lists all the wrongful he has not committed ... the list goes on and on. Now Elihu will enter the conversation because he has identified this issue with Job's argument: Job defends himself through and by his own actions, rather than relying on the Lord.

It is established all throughout the bible that no person can be righteous enough to save themselves. They cannot meet God's standard. Job even says several times he needs an intermediary to make his case and provide his salvation before God. And now a young man - whose name means "my God is he" - will remind Job that he cannot justify his own redemption through his acts. He can only surrender to the Lord, with faith in the promised love and mercy of God.

Application: Is there any Old Testament book that better declares the future coming and mission of Jesus than Job? Job is all of us, a person who strives to live right, yet suffers a mix of joy and misery. In the end he breaks down and declares that life is not fair ... that he does everything "right" and still suffers is a true tragedy of the world.

It is then that God remind him that in fact ... yes, it is a tragedy, but that isn't the point. The point is to have faith in the Lord, seek his love, and to do this by believing in his Messiah for redemption and justification, because we cannot ever find sufficient justification in our lives. No matter how good we are, we will fail in some way, sometime. We need Jesus.

And sure, life will have hardship. Yet there is no relationship between our works and those hardships. There is only a relationship between God's love, and our decision to respond to that love with our faith in Jesus.

Prayer: Lord, my faith is in Jesus Christ, and I know my salvation comes from him as a gift of your love. Thank you for your blessings in my life. May I honor you this day, and even when I fail in my thoughts and deeds, may I remember that I could never have justified myself through a perfect life anyway. Amen.