10 ENCOURAGING Reasons for TrialsSample

If only Job and his friends had a window into heaven to see and hear the conversations between God and Satan!

The tenth reason for affliction comes from God's relationship with Satan.

This is a reason we will never be able to identify or be sure of unless God reveals it to us in Heaven one day.  

Satan was wandering about in heaven, and God chose to challenge him by saying what an amazing servant Job was.

Of course, God knew the rebuttal the devil would give and in the end, God gave the devil permission to wreak havoc and destruction in Job's life.  

The point of mentioning this reason for affliction is to magnify the truth that we may never know which of the 10 reasons our trial is serving.  But what we do know based on this study, and especially on the account of Job’s life, is that just because we have a sickness or tragedy or a string of bad luck, it is not scriptural to blame all these things on ourselves.

We can’t live in the freedom and abundance that God promises if we go through life thinking every negative thing is our fault or a result of our sin and shortcomings. It’s just not true.

So where do trials and circumstances caused by our sin fit into this picture?

That is what we will talk about tomorrow.  We would not want to ignore the truth that sin has a price.

But even in tomorrow's study, you will see the merciful hand of God, even as He chastises us.

For today, relish in the goodness of God that He has placed proof throughout scripture of how He uses the hand of affliction to refine us, draw us to His Word, to benefit others, to equip us to comfort others, to allow His power to rest upon us, to protect us from pride, to bring Him glory, to teach us obedience, to prove our resolve, and even for God Himself to win a challenge against Satan!