Job’s friends are increasingly inflicting more pain on Job than they are consoling him. It seems that they feel that his situation threatens them. They want to believe that Job is suffering specifically for some sin he has committed. They want to believe this because it makes sense and they want to live in a world that makes sense. They also want to be assured that they themselves could ward off such suffering by not sinning (as if absolute innocence was a possibility). So they are really not thinking about what Job needs at this point. They are feeling unsettled by this situation and feel the need to distance themselves from Job by assuring themselves that he is so much more sinful than they are and that is why he is suffering. Inexplicable suffering is hard to live with because it reminds us that it could happen to us at any moment. Rationalising the suffering of others, however, will not prepare you for when suffering comes upon you. What will prepare you is empathising with those who suffer now and choosing to share their suffering. Sharing the suffering of another is a great gesture of love, but it also acclimatises the heart to the realities of this fallen world. “Man is born to trouble,” said Job, “as the sparks fly upward.” And your turn for trouble will come. Sharing the suffering of others will save you from the climate-shock that comes when the cold wind of reality blows through the windows of your relatively sheltered life. Share the suffering of others.
Reflect on the love you have received from others in hard times and thank God for the people God has put in your life.
Read Job 15-17
