Calendar

IMPROPER REASONING
MONDAY, APRIL 18
Job 8:1-7

Deuteronomy 32:1-10

 

“He hath not dealt with us

after our sins…”

 

IMPROPER REASONING
 
Job’s second friend, Bildad, now began to reason with him. His argument, like many we hear today, was a mixture of truth and error. Since our minds tend to focus on the truth of such arguments, the error often hides itself. Due to this, we sometimes come to a false conclusion as it was with Bildad.
 
Bildad began by correcting Job, saying that his speeches were like the wind with no content – Job had continued far too long in protesting his innocence (Job 8:1-2).
 
Bildad spoke about God’s attributes to strengthen his argument. God was just and righteous in all His dealings (Gen 18:25). God never needs to change His decisions. Since God’s knowledge is complete, His judgments are always right. Therefore, it had to be assumed, although Bildad did not say it directly, that Job’s children died because they had sinned. It was clear to Bildad that God, being just, would not have allowed them to die for any other reason. We see here an example of man beginning with truth but coming to an erroneous conclusion (Job 8:3-4).
 
Continuing in his train of human reason, Bildad challenged Job to seek the Lord. He had to admit that his suffering was for some specific sin. If he did this, God would surely accept him and return him not only to his former position but to an even greater one (Job 8:5-7).
 
Again, we see the dangerous mixing of truth and error. While it is true that God will accept and restore any of His repentant children, it is not true that all suffering is caused by sin. Such instructions as Bildad’s can cause an uninformed Christian to be filled with self-condemnation and confusion if there is no specific unconfessed sin in his life.
 
We must not be misled in this way. Part of our confidence in God is based on His just and gracious dealings with us. He has forgiven our sins and does not hold them against us (Ps 103:10-11). He will forgive us of sins knowingly committed (1 John 1:9) and He will take us safely through any temptation (2 Pet 2:9).
 
THOUGHT: What was wrong with Bildad’s reasoning?

PRAYER: Father, may I not rely on human reasoning to know Thee.

Search