God Painted A Portrait of Devotion....

 

If you were asked directly about your spiritual temperature, what would you say? What terms would you use to describe your present spiritual condition? White-hot devoted, on fire for God, a little lukewarm, or as cold as ice…which fits best? I know these questions are a little intrusive, but we are only required to answer them before the Lord. I know this does not make it any easier to supply an answer, but at least God will not talk about us behind our backs! Seriously though, how would you describe the depth of your devotion and commitment to God?

According to Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary, devotion is “a feeling of strong love or loyalty: the quality of being devoted”. It is expressed in the usage of our time, money, energy, resources to achieve a certain design or purpose. We can always evaluate or validate what we are truly devoted to by glancing through our calendars and checkbooks! We spend our time and resources on what we value most. With regards to spiritual disciplines, devotion applies to private time with the Lord (in the Word and prayer) on a daily basis. Talking with the Lord and listening to Him speak truth into our souls through reading, studying, and meditating on His Word. With regards to Job, he evidenced a strong love and loyalty to the Most High and he generously used his resources in His daily worship of God (1:5, 20-22; 2:9-10). What was Job’s purpose? Evidently, he simply desired to please the Lord!

GOD’S PORTRAIT OF DEVOTION

If you will bear with me, I have one more question, how would God describe me and you? Do you think He will begin His sentence with a well-placed disclaimer? Well…oh…well…ah…Wayne? Yea, he is…well…sort of…kind of... "devoted,” but you know…only in a remote sort of way…. Actually God would speak the truth in clear straight-forward terms! But, the question still lingers for an answer, what portrait would God paint of the real me and you? Those Believers who make a sincere attempt to be transparent with God typically do not expect God’s summary of them to be bursting with soaring superlatives. I know I would not expect that either. It may surprise us to know that God, on several occasions in the Bible, actually gave glowing reports of certain faithful individuals (Ezek. 14:14, 20). Remember, He is not in anywise known for gross exaggerations, insincere flatteries, or blatant lies! What God said about these people was indeed the case with them. Would you like to read one such honest portrayal of a devoted servant He held in high regards? Consider perhaps the first thing God ever had written down as Scripture from the incredible Book of Job:

There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil (Job 1:1).
His substance also was seven thousand sheep, and three thousand camels, and five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred she asses, and a very great household; so that this man was the greatest of all the men of the east (Job 1:3).
And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? (Job 1:8)

Did you hear God bragging on the commitment, devotion, and character of Job?! God viewed this man as fit and able to withstand any tests, trials, or temptations the devil could throw at him. The Lord had fantastic confidence in Job’s love for Him and commitment to Him. It is to our shame that we think of God as only recognizing our failures and hardly ever noticing our faithfulness. If we are honest in our heart of hearts, we need to admit that we have felt God was impossible to please. We may also have unwittingly espoused the notion that God is unwilling to even acknowledge what we do well. Actually, nothing could be further from the truth! Beloved, God bragged on Job with full confidence as He refuted Satan’s mischaracterization of Job as shallow, disloyal, and more self-interested than God-enthralled (2:1-9). That is correct; God defended Job’s devotion and character to the devil! This is incredible to recognize because so many Believers are convinced their devotion to God does not count for much. In reality God does appreciate genuine faithfulness and He will reward such Believers in this life and in the future. Still, do not miss what is happening here; God painted a portrait of devotion and Job was His subject. What picture would He paint of me and you?

GOD WAS FOREMOST IN JOB’S LIFE

Well by now you are wondering how this portrait turned out…right? What is God’s portrayal of devotion and what did He see in Job? Well, God begins by describing Job as “perfect” (v. 1, 8) that is, excelling in virtue—morally blameless—and free of any ethical stains. There is also an inherent idea of maturity, completeness, and wholeness that characterized this dear man of God. Today we would describe him as well-rounded and full of integrity. It is not that he never made any mistakes or sinned. You see, Job did not leave his failures unaddressed before God and his fellow man. He took responsibility for settling, correcting, resolving, and compensating for these in a righteous manner. He was also “upright” (v. 1, 8) meaning that he was categorically devoted to the revealed obligations God had specified for him. Job was strong in his devotion to absolute standards of morality. He habitually lived in the center of God’s will for his life, and he was not at all given to deviations for the sake of doing his own thing. He is also marked by a well-founded “fear of God” (v. 1, 8). This man of God lived in holy awe of the magnificence and majesty of God. He also feared God’s displeasure and earnestly craved His delight! This palpable abiding respect stirred and purified his motives, and strengthened his resolve to honor His Majesty in all his ways! Yes, this grand patriarch correctly held the mighty Creator-God, in the utmost regard. No one else could even remotely ascend to such heights in Job’s estimations. God was incontestably preeminent in his life.

SINFUL PRACTICES WERE UTTERLY REFUSED

Accordingly, Job was not the kind of person who often inquired about “what is ok for Christians.” There were no privately cherished notions of living as close to the world as possible. No, this Believer customarily “eschewed evil” (v. 1, 8). It was his decided intent to sidestep wickedness, and definitively rejected sinful practices of all sorts. He did not play the dangerous game of making strong public statements to condemn sinful practices while secretly enjoying them…even looking forward to being around those who indulge in them. Job did not dismiss certain iniquities simply because society regarded them as mere entertainment, acceptable, or desirable. Evil was no laughing matter with this Brother! No, his devotion to a holy God conjured feelings of hatred for sinful practices that offended Him. I would also imagine that Job was marked by a healthy fear of sin. Some of us, at least, ‘eschew certain evils’ because we have felt their sting, chains, or death! Clearly, this man Job epitomized holiness and righteousness from the heart—a man of God of the highest order.

SUCCESS COULD NOT STEAL JOB’S HEART FROM GOD

Furthermore, God mentioned Job’s abundant wealth and affirms that he was the “greatest” man in that part of the Eastern world (1:3). Job by today’s standards would be considered a multi-billionaire commanding a vast and diverse ranch and farming company! Yes, he was a man well respected and appreciated by others both far and wide. This godly man had worked hard and made wise decisions free of manipulations and shady underhanded business practices. He was successful! God had also generously blessed His devoted servant because of his wise and righteous private and public life. Is it not interesting to note how Job never permitted his incredible wealth to displace God in his life? Most Christians cannot handle wealth because it tends to steal their hearts from devotion to God (1 Tim. 6:6-12, 17-19). Material prosperity has destroyed or diluted the faith of more people than poverty ever could; this is a fact of biblical history! As a result God cannot bless some with material riches because this would only set up an unhealthy rivalry in their souls. Such was not the case with Brother Job; you might say his devotion to God was profoundly peerless. He was indeed the “greatest” (1:3) man because of his great devotion! God even went as far to say that there was no other person like Job in the entire world (v. 8). Again, without overstating the facts, God viewed Job in a class all by himself. Why? I think it is because of Job’s love and loyalty to Jehovah God.

Finally, it is important to note that these statements are not the assessments of mere whimsical human beings caught up in the celebrity of this great man Job. No, this appraisal fell from the lips of an all-wise all-knowing God. Please do not overlook the weight and significance of this passage; we have the clear-eyed perspective of a supremely judicious Lord recorded for our consideration (Job. 1:1, 3, 8). Few men or women in the entire Bible received such a sweepingly credible declaration of their deeply spiritual lives as did Job. Actually you can count such biblical instances on your fingers (Ezek. 14:14, 20)! While God faithfully recognized the faithfulness of all His servants throughout the Scriptures, only a select few of them received an endorsement of this magnitude! Yes, I am saying that it is God who ‘painted’ this accurate, but astounding portrait of Job. Beyond any doubt, Brother Job was indeed the authentic article—the epitome of devotion!
Are you willing to acknowledge one more little fact about Job? He did not even have the luxury of a complete Bible, yet He knew God deeply and enthusiastically welded his soul to that of the Most High God! Truthfully God testifies to this fact. That is correct; Job is the subject of God’s painting entitled, “Devotion.” So then, that brings us back to my question from earlier…what would He say about me and you? What portrait would God paint if I was His subject?