In the beginning of chapter 6, Job replies to Eliphaz. His friend Eliphaz had stated that Job probably had sin in his life and that he needed to repent. He thought that God was punishing Job for his disobedience. But we know from the beginning of the story that Job did not sin against God, even in his torment and anger.
Job expresses how the Lord has dumped all He can upon Job to make his life miserable. He admits that he cannot take much more of this, and so asks God to kill him and be done with it before he gets pushed to the point of possibly cursing God. He then complains that his friends are inconsistent, “gushing with water” or full of the light of God one minute and “waterless gulches” the next moment. They are not much help to him at all. Job goes on to say that he never asked for his friends to come, so why do they dodge all his questions and negate his heartache if they truly want to help? He wants the truth, if he has really gone off track somewhere he wants to know. None of this guessing and drawing at straws trying to figure out what happened.
Followers of Christ know that when several bad things occur at more or less the same time, it is because of attacks from the enemy. However, they don't always realize that these attacks are allowed by God. Just like with Job, we are tested and therefore refined, sometimes for reasons only the Lord will ever know.
Job's turmoil is increased with scabby, pus-filled sores that sprout all over his body. He cries out that he is fed up with this life, and that he cannot even rest because he is plagued with nightmares and visions of ghosts. He goes so far as to ask God, in Job 7: 20-21 (MSG), “Even suppose I'd sinned-- how would that hurt you? You're responsible for every human being...Why make a federal case out of me? Why don't you just forgive my sins and start me off with a clean slate?” In other words, he is placing the blame on God by saying that He is responsible for every human being so if Job did sin, it should not really hurt God because the Almighty could have prevented it. This is true. But he has not taken into account God's love for us that is so strong to give us free will, His love so unfathomable to acknowledge that sin DOES hurt our Lord. Job continues with the statement that he will soon be dead, and this also brings into realization that a dead man can neither repent or give praise to God, so why doesn't the Lord just forgive him already so he can continue in his life walk with God? He cannot honestly find any sin that he has committed, and therefore gives God the authority to simply wipe any sin away. He comes to a point in his prayer where he recognizes that he is not perfect, but only human, and that if he did sin, then the Lord is to take that sin away from him, not only before he dies, but so that he can recognize his faults. It has been my experience to ask for forgiveness of sins that I do not know if I have committed (but they are sins, nonetheless) and then the Lord reveals things to me that were sinful so I can ask for forgiveness of a specific sin with a fully repentant heart.
Next: Study of Job Part 6
Because God created humans as spiritual beings in physical form, anything that happens in the spiritual realm is manifested in the physical world. This is why conflicts & stress arise in our daily lives, why there is all types of physical & mental illness, as well as disorders such as anxiety, addictions, and OCD. Come now, the time is here & many are being called...let's dive into this daily act of surrender that leads to wholeness & healing & reap the blessings of God.
