(A Continued Study on Faith, Righteousness, and Spiritual Warfare)
ON BEING RIGHTEOUS - January 15, 2026
Scripture References:
Genesis 3:1; Job 1–3; Job 13:15; Isaiah 55:8–9; Ephesians
6:10–18; 1 Peter 5:8
I’ve often heard it said that Christianity is for the weak;
viewed by some as a crutch for those who cannot cope with life’s difficulties
and having to rely on a supreme being for support rather than exercising
personal strength. Yet in our continued study on faith, righteousness, and
spiritual warfare, last night’s Bible Study made something very clear:
FOLLOWING CHRIST REQUIRES STRENGTH & OUR GOD IS
SOVEREIGN
It takes
strength to pick up your cross and follow Jesus.
It takes strength to deny oneself fleshly pleasures that offend God.
And it takes strength to surrender to God’s will rather than insisting on your
own.
This week’s study was not about the Book of Job; it was a
study of Job as an example of a man whom God Himself called righteous. As we
read the first three chapters of Job, we looked closely at the Scriptures that
reveal why God called Job righteous. Job was described as blameless and upright
- terms that, in the original language, speak not of sinless perfection but of
integrity, wholeness, and right orientation toward God.
Together - “blameless and upright” - describe what
Scripture means by righteous: a life aligned with God in reverence,
repentance, and faith.
As we read Job chapters 1 through 3, we were reminded of
Job losing all of his possessions in a single day, in addition to losing all
ten of his children. We discussed Satan and pointed out that what he was doing
then, he is doing today. He continues to walk about like a roaring
lion, seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8); seeking whose life he may
destroy. For us, our need to study Ephesians 6:10–18 was
reinforced. We need to understand that spiritual warfare is
real and that believers must be fully armored every day so that they
may be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one (Ephesians
6:16)
We noted how cunning it was of the devil
to leave one witness from each catastrophic occurrence
ensuring that Job was overwhelmed by hearing one report after another without
pause or relief. Scripture reminds us, “Now the serpent was more
cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made” (Genesis
3:1).
FIRST ATTACK (God’s Initial Permission – Job 1:12)
Under the first attack - the initial permission granted by
God - Satan unleashed multiple coordinated occurrences. In each case, one
servant survived to deliver the news:
- First Occurrence – The Sabean Raid: All of Job’s servants were killed except one; and his oxen and donkeys were taken.
- Second Occurrence – The Fire: All of Job’s sheep and servants were consumed except one. One servant lived.
- Third Occurrence – The Chaldean Raid: All of Job’s servants were killed except one, and his camels were taken.
- Fourth Occurrence – The Great Wind: Job’s seven sons and three daughters were killed and swept away with the house they were in. One servant lived.
Each survivor was not spared for comfort but preserved
to deliver devastation - a calculated strategy meant to
compound grief, shock, and despair.
God allowed Job to be tested not because Job was
unrighteous but because he was faithful. This was a hard pill for many of us to
swallow, especially because God allowed Satan to attack Job a second
time. Yet even after Satan afflicted Job physically from head to toe
with painful boils, Job refused to curse God. Despite his wife urging him to do
so, he would not blame God for what was happening to him declaring “Though
He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15).
Our discussion also led us to Isaiah 55:8–9 where we gained
a deeper understanding of who God is when He declared through the prophet
Isaiah that His thoughts and His ways are higher than ours. Like Job, God’s
people in Isaiah’s time struggled to reconcile His promises with their present
reality. What both passages teach us is that God does not have to explain
Himself, but He does reveal Himself.
God never tells Job why the suffering happened. He never
mentions Satan to Job, and
God never gives a cause-and-effect answer. Instead, in Job chapters 38 through
41, God reveals who He is, not what He did, and Job is brought to reverence
rather than a reason.
God reveals Himself as sovereign—a God answerable to no one
but Himself. We accept who He is, knowing Him as Jehovah-Jireh, our
Provider; Jehovah-Rapha, our Healer; and Jehovah-Nissi,
our Banner and Protector. He is Jesus, our Lord and Savior,
and the Holy Spirit, our Helper and Comforter. He is a God who can
do all things and never fail. He is that—and so much more.
Finally, we were reminded that God does not turn away from
His people because they question, lament, or even express anger. Job did all of
these things, and God still considered him righteous. We learned that
righteousness is not about being perfect – it’s about relationship and trusting
God even when understanding fails.
Don’t quit in ’26.
Not because the road will be easy,
but because God is faithful even when the journey is hard.
Peace & Blessings,
Yetta N.A.