Finding Job #1

It is said that Job is the oldest book in the Bible. I was always taught that it was written as a play with five acts. All I know is that there are so many intriguing things in the book of Job that it is worth all the time it takes to pull as many of these things out and take a look at them as we can. Now I am not a theologian nor am I particularly bright compared to others, but I have a strong desire to understand EVERYTHING. In my line of business I am required to teach sometimes. I get paid to bring about cultural change in businesses, change in the basic business philosophy of management and in the ethic of those who actually do the work.

One of the things I teach is that it is not enough to know something, we must know HOW we know. We simply must know the source of what we think we know. Only then can we be relatively sure of the accuracy of the information we hold. Only then can we be relatively sure of the things that we use to shape our responses and base our beliefs. There is a statement in the Bible that says, . . . "from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. . . " That means, what's inside comes out and I KNOW this is true through personal experience. So it is not acceptable to base your words and actions on questionable information.

I do not absolutely know if Job was written as a play. I do not absolutely know if Job is the oldest book in the Bible but I do know it is part of God's Word. I do absolutely, positively and completely believe the Bible is the inspired word of God. I do not believe there are any mistakes in the Bible because of the definition of the word God that I use. My God is not capable of making a mistake. My God is not dependent on mankind to get his will accomplished. Though God used some very blessed people to hold the pen, all and I mean ALL of the words in the 66 books came from God. Also I do absolutely believe that the book we all know as the Christian Bible is complete, whole and infallible, nothing missing and nothing broken. I hope I am clear that there is no source of information that is more solid, more complete and more worthy of our belief. The ultimate source of truth is found infallibly in the Christian Bible. So, how do I know what I know. . . "for the Bible tells me so!"

So it is in this context that I undertake to understand and impart to you what I have learned. A wise man also told me that the Bible is like a diamond with many facets. You may think you have experienced all of the beauty and have a complete view of all of its truth until you move, grow, change and suddenly you see a completely different facet. Another and completely different but not less correct truth appears to you. Complimentary, not destroying the previous truth or even changing its essence, just showing you that there is much more to it than you ever dreamed.

I thought I had the book of Job in the Christian Bible all figured out. I thought I knew the main message but I had only scratched the surface. The gem turned, actually I went looking for additional facets and I found several of them. I found a completely different way of looking at some things, issues of life, that will continue to shape the man that I am for years to come.

The next few posts to this blog are going to be an attempt to convey to you what I have recently learned by revisiting the book of Job. I hope you are as affected as I have been in the learning of some more of its secrets. Remember, as sincere as I am about my new knowledge, you must study it out for yourself. Let the Holy Spirit teach you what you need to learn. . .