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Understanding the Book of Job
On this program the hosts are beginning a three-part series exploring the book of Job. What is the meaning and purpose of this book? What does it teach us about dealing with pain, suffering, and loss? How does Job deal with his many trials, and how should we think about the advice he gets from his various friends? That’s the focus of this edition of White Horse Inn (originally aired 03-02-14).
Show Quote
Michael Horton: We keep returning to the story of Job because it never fails to scratch where we itch. When trials overwhelm us, we keep coming back to it. Job was a man deeply devoted to God. Satan chided God for Job’s faithfulness. “Why wouldn’t he be faithful?” Satan asked. After all, he lived a pretty charmed life. He was happy, wealthy and wise. His household was carefree. So God allowed Satan to test Job. There’s no getting around the facts of the case. God not only foreknew Satan’s testing, he sanctioned it. Job 1:6-12. It’s pretty clear from the story that Satan couldn’t have had access to Job apart from God’s permission. The next day, disaster followed disaster and overnight, Job lost everything. Yet, Job responded, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away. May the name of the Lord be praised.”
Term to Learn
“Sovereignty of God”
The biblical teaching that God is king, supreme ruler, and lawgiver of the entire universe. Several divine names reflect God’s sovereignty. He is called “God Most High,”, “God almighty,” “Sovereign Lord,” and “Lord God Almighty.”
Theologians generally consider “sovereignty” one of God’s communicable attributes; “sovereignty” expresses an inherent characteristic of God, and a distinction is sometimes made between “sovereign will” and “sovereign power.” God’s sovereign will and power are not arbitrary, despotic, or deterministic; his sovereignty is characterized by his justice and holiness as well as by his other attributes. (Adapted from Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, s.v. “Sovereignty of God”)
(This podcast is by White Horse Inn. Discovered by Christian Podcast Central and our community — copyright is owned by the publisher, not Christian Podcast Central, and audio is streamed directly from their servers.)