It is not until Job 38 that God responds to Job’s complaint. He does so ‘out of the storm’ and in a passage which sets one poetic image after another leaves us in awe both of God’s power and the sheer variety of his creation. It is one of those moments which will leave Job more or less silent, reminding us of the other times when people find themselves face to face with God and can do no more than fall to their knees (other examples would be Isaiah encountering God in the temple – Isaiah 6:5 – or Thomas – John 20:28). God does nothing however to answer Job’s question about his suffering. Confronted with the presence of God, his question falls away.
Whilst the book of Job (and the Bible itself) does not
answer the question of suffering, Luke 23 gives us a different perspective. We
see that God is far from aloof or indifferent to suffering but immerses himself
in the worst experiences of this world. Jesus is put on trial before Pilate and
then Herod, rejected by the crowds in favour of Barabbus, an insurrectionist
and murderer, mocked, crucified and put to death. But this is more than just solidarity
with us. Suffering and death is not the last word and ‘the first day of the
week’ will bring a new dawn…
For thought:
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<!--[endif]-->Is there anything you feel angry with God about?
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<!--[endif]-->How do you think God feels about it?
(Christ Church lay preacher)