The name Job is synonymous with pain and suffering. Job’s three friends started out with seemingly right motives.
In Job Chapter 2 verse 11 when his friends heard about his troubles they came together to sympathize and to comfort him. They left their nice homes to go to the city dump, travelling a great distance without anyone sending for them. When tragedy happens to a friend you should go immediately to offer hope and comfort. You don’t have to be invited. You just go. You count the cost. You don’t have to be invited to a funeral home.
Secondly, in Job 2 Verse 12 it says they wept and tore their clothes. They identified with Job in His sufferings and losses as much as they could. There is a time to rejoice and a time to weep. Now was the time to weep.
Thirdly, they sat on the ground with him for seven days and nights. They didn’t pull up a comfortable lazy boy chair or a soft plush carpet. His friends sat on the hard ground in the dust with Job and they sat not just for several minutes but for several days.
Fourthly, verse 13 also says that they sat in silence. Not one of them said a word to Job. Sometimes when we try to comfort a loved one we can be much more effective simply by putting our arms around them..weeping with them and being silent… These kind gestures can speak volumes when there isn’t really anything to say.
Job’s friends did this but it was short lived. Unfortunately a short time later they would blame and accuse Job of having unconfessed sin in his life. Job would eventually call them miserable comforters. There is a time to speak and a time to be silent. May we all depend on the Holy Spirit to give us the words to say or not to say and to pray honestly, aloud or in silence, for the wisdom and comfort of the Holy Spirit for our family and friends in their dire state of need.
Finally…let’s get personal. What kind of comforters are you and I ? May we not be miserable comforters but channels of grace to help them, to be merciful to them and to love them in their desperate hour, in Christ’s Name and for His sake.
Pastor Gary
