Questions God Usually Doesn't Answer

QUESTIONS GOD USUALLY DOESN’T ANSWER

Part two of three in Deciding How to Approach God series

Job 38-41

Job 38:3-4: “Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me. Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell Me, if you understand.”

This shows God scolding Job [JOBE]. Have you ever been totally talked down like this? This is just the beginning of four chapters of God’s rant.

42:2-3 shows Job’s humiliated reply: “I know that You can do all things; no plan of Yours can be thwarted. You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures My counsel without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.” Poor Job. (Check out the lesson, linked below, for how God ranted, then restored Job).

Remember third grade twins Benjy and Danny? “Boys!” their mom yelled from the back door. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Ending a sand war in their back yard, Danny said, “Benjy wrecked my castle! Make him play somewhere else, Mom.”

“Danny won’t let me build a highway!” Benjy said, holding up his race car. “Why can’t we have separate sand boxes, Mom?”

“Because you need to learn how to play nicely with each other.” their mom replied.

“Why can’t I have my own sand box, Mom?” Danny echoed Benjy’s request.

“Because I said so!” mom said, and closed the back door.

That’s pretty much how our heavenly Father answers His kid’s ‘Why?’ questions, too. We can sometimes sense God walking away, and closing the door on our whining. In the midst of deeply hurting life circumstances, our loving God can seem cruel.

Why should God Almighty explain stuff to His created beings’ “Why?” questions? Don’t earthly parents discipline their kids? Don’t we hate the, “because I said so!” explanation?

It’s natural for humans to wonder why God allows bad things to happen to us. Job asked God “Why?” repeatedly during his terrible trials. Even Jesus asked the Father, “Why have You forsaken Me?” when He was dying on the cross, gasping for breath. (See Intuitively Obvious devotion to learn that we may cry out to God during distress). Why shouldn’t we also cry out the question, “Why?”

Take Home Nugget

Throughout God’s addressing Job, He never answers why questions. Apparently, God doesn’t explain Himself to His kids. But aren’t we grateful for—and actually prefer—that His business is to sustain us? I’ll not trade eternal life for answers to my 'why's this happening?' questions!

Besides, Jesus always consoles us when we don’t get answers from the Father. He really will walk with us through every trouble in life.

Thank You, Jesus, for sustaining me when our Father doesn’t bother explaining to me!

J.D. Griffith

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