KJB Daily
Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Thursday,
June 02, 2016
Chapters: Job
24-28
Message: I
Am Not A Stereotype

Hello
My Friend,

Stereotype, a widely held, but fixed and
oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing.
The world loves to place stereotypes on people, the psychologists
love to group people into what they believe
them to be by race, education,
lifestyles, and even gender. For instance, a
person who is overweight is automatically stereotyped as someone who
is not healthy and pigs out all day. Maybe some do, but that is a
false stereotype because many thin people eat more than overweight people do. The truth is, there
are people of all races, creeds, and lifestyles, we are all one race,
are guilty of something, and all bound for the same place. It is time
to stop placing stereotypes on people and start telling people there
us a real hell. “Know
ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be
not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor
effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor
covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall
inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are
washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of
the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”
- I Corinthians
6:9-11.

To
be honest, the world is not the only one who stereotypes people,
Christians do too. We must admit that we have done it ourselves, and more often
than we realize. You see a person with purple streaks in their hair,
a rich person, a poor person, a jobless person, a persons ethnicity,
an adult living with parents, whatever it may be, and automatically
made assumptions based on what you saw. This is what Job’s friends
were doing to him because he was not admitting to something he did
not do. Job continues explaining the prosperity of the wicked. “Why,
seeing times are not hidden from the Almighty, do they that know him
not see his days? Some remove the landmarks; they violently take away
flocks, and feed thereof. They drive away the ass of the fatherless,
they take the widow's ox for a pledge. They turn the needy out of the
way: the poor of the earth hide themselves together. They are exalted
for a little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out
of the way as all other, and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn.
And if it be not so now, who will make me a liar, and make my speech
nothing worth?” - Job 24:1-4,24,25.

“Some
remove the landmarks;” There is a big problem in society
today, the world has continuously removed the landmarks that
separated the Christian from man, and the Christians let them because
they did not want to be stereotyped. Oh, there are thousands of
churches all over the place, but is God in them? No. Instead of
hearing the truth, they want the feel good about themselves messages
that omit their punishment for sin. “For the
time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after
their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having
itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and
shall be turned unto fables.” - II Timothy 4:3,4.

Bildad
answers Job, quite perturbed by what he just said. “Then
answered Bildad the Shuhite, and said, Dominion and fear are with
him, he maketh peace in his high places. Is there any number of his
armies? and upon whom doth not his light arise? How then can man be
justified with God? or how can he be clean that is born of a woman?”
- Job 25:1-4.

“How then can man be
justified with God?” Bildad stereotyped Job as one of the
unbelievers, those who have no interest in God whatsoever. Bildad is
correct, man cannot be justified with God, that is, if we are
depending on our own works to save us. It is a false stereotype that
salvation has been about works before Christ came. Yes, they followed
the law of Moses, but that is not what saved them, if that really
were the case, people like king Saul and even Solomon would be in
hell because they both fell away from God and some point. Salvation
has always been about one thing, atonement, a reconciliation with God
over sins committed against Him. We will never be justified or
reconciled with God for our sins by ourselves, but Christ gave us a
way so we can through Him permanently, by His death, burial, and
resurrection. “Much more then, being now
justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For
if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of
his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”
- Romans 5:9,10.

Now, Job answers Bildad, although he felt
like God had taken away his understanding of what was going on, he
knew that the Spirit of God was in him ans that God had all the
power. Who was he to question it. “But Job
answered and said, How hast thou helped him that is without power?
how savest thou the arm that hath no strength? How hast thou
counselled him that hath no wisdom? and how hast thou plentifully
declared the thing as it is? To whom hast thou uttered words? and
whose spirit came from thee? Dead things are formed from under the
waters, and the inhabitants thereof. Hell is naked before him, and
destruction hath no covering. He divideth the sea with his power, and
by his understanding he smiteth through the proud. By his spirit he
hath garnished the heavens; his hand hath formed the crooked serpent.
Lo, these are parts of his ways: but how little a portion is heard of
him? but the thunder of his power who can understand?” - Job
26:1-6,12-14..

“his hand hath
formed the crooked serpent.” It is pointless to try to
understand with all the great power God has why He allows the devil
to have so much power himself. It is wise to understand that God has
a purpose for all that we go through and has we remain faithful to
Him He will get us through it. May we all have the boldness to join
Job as he stands by his integrity. “As God
liveth, who hath taken away my judgment; and the Almighty, who hath
vexed my soul; All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of
God is in my nostrils; My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my
tongue utter deceit. God forbid that I should justify you: till I die
I will not remove mine integrity from me. My righteousness I hold
fast, and will not let it go: my heart shall not reproach me so long
as I live.” - Job 27:2-6.

“God
forbid that I should justify you:” If someone is going to
stereotype us we have a right to defend ourselves and stand by our
beliefs. Job was never as concerned about knowing the answer to why
he was struggling as he was about knowing that God was in His life.
“Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the
place of understanding? Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living,
and kept close from the fowls of the air. Destruction and death say,
We have heard the fame thereof with our ears. God understandeth the
way thereof, and he knoweth the place thereof. For he looketh to the
ends of the earth, and seeth under the whole heaven; To make the
weight for the winds; and he weigheth the waters by measure.”
- Job 28:20-25.

“Whence then
cometh wisdom?” The word wise means having the power of
discerning and judging correctly. The word wisdom means the right use
of knowledge. You do not have to be a scholar to know that some
people do not need to know certain things because if they did they
would abuse it in the worst way. This kind of wisdom is evil and does
not come from God, pure wisdom is of God and everyone prospers from
it. “Who is a wise man and endued with
knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his
works with meekness of wisdom. But if ye have bitter envying and
strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This
wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.
For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil
work. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then
peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good
fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.” - James
3:13-17.

Jesus
Christ Revealed: Today, Jesus is revealed through Job as he would not give up
his integrity. The religious groups stereotyped Jesus as a blasphemer
for saying He was the Son of God, and even killed Him for it, but He
would not give up His integrity and was exalted. “The
God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a
tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a
Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.”
- Acts 5:30,31.

Today's
Prayer: God,
When I am facing affliction it feels like I am all alone and everyone
has something to criticize me about. It's a big challenge to find You
in the midst of all this, but I know You are there and that Your hand
never leaves me. Lord, give me Your power to endure my affliction,
give me the wisdom to know how to handle those who stereotype me, and
fill me Your mercy and grace so that I never lose hope of an end to
all this, with Your glory shining through. I ask these things in
Jesus' name, Amen.

God
Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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