The Trial Of Despair

Since the beginning, man has had an adversary, namely the devil (Satan). The devil doesn’t work alone, he has many demons working under him. The demons are they who fell from heaven with him and were cast into the earth. The devil has always tried to drive a wedge between man and God. One of the tactics the devil uses is despair. The diagram below shows how this cycle of despair works.

First we walk away from God. Then the devil makes a claim to God that he should have access to our lives. God will either deny the devil access or allow him access to only certain areas. The devil makes our life terrible through accidents, sickness, loss of employment etc. The devil then tries to get us to blame God, by inducing thoughts of “If God loved you why are you suffering, why doesn’t he make the suffering go away?”  At this point we either walk further or closer to God.

Why have we termed this the devil’s trap? Because at stage 5 should we choose to go further from God, the devil is allowed to make a bigger claim to our lives, because if we’re walking further away from God, we’re choosing Satan. Satan will increase the calamities, making us more miserable, then we either decide to turn back to God or go for another round. This tactic is something the devil has used and will continue using time and time again. Why? Because it works against those who do not make God their rock. 

Why does God allow Satan access?!

Now one may ask “why is God allowing Satan access?”, God’s protection is a privilege not a right. Why do I say that? Well, have you lied? committed murder in heart? Adultery in heart? Committed fornication? Stolen? Disobeyed your mom and dad? Taken his name in vain? Broken the sabbath? Exalted money before God? So the real question is why should God protect a sinner? If you want perfect protection from God why don’t not obey him perfectly? You see therefore that it is God’s mercy that we are even alive. Lamentations 3:22 “it is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not”. That’s the case Satan makes. If God cast Satan out of his presence for sin, then is it unfair if technically we receive the same treatment? The point I’m making is, God’s protection and blessings are a privilege not a right and the fact that we’re still breathing shows how much privilege he’s given to all of humanity.

God also doesn’t allow Satan to tempt us with more than we can handle. 1 Corinthians 10:13 “…but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able” So things don’t start on an extreme level. First, it’s simple disobedience, “obey your parents”, as you keep disobeying, you’re left more to the devil day by day. The Lord also sometimes needs us to go through fire, so we can become pure. Think of a metal found in the ground, unless it goes in the furnance it can never become as beautiful as it can fully be. Malachi 3:3
"And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness".

The example of Job

Our God knows about the tactics of the Devil, but unfortunately, we can’t see Satan or his demons. God gave us an example of how this all works in the bible. God was careful about who he used for the task, he chose Job, as he knew Job wouldn’t lose the faith. It must be remembered that God will not allow Satan to tempt us with something we can’t handle. 1 Corinthians 10:13 “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it”. However, if we get used to losing although God may not allow the temptation to get any harder, it may mentally feel harder because we get used to the despair and depression. Let’s see Satan use this same cycle on Job.

Stage 1: The walk away from God

In Job’s case because he is the example, the Lord presses the issue. Job 1:8 “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?” The devil reveals information about what the Lord does for his people Job 1:9 “Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? 10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land”. The Lord gets Satan to admit what he does for us on a daily basis. If we’ve increased in Goods, it’s because the Lord has blessed it, even the wicked. Matthew 5:45 “That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust”. Ecclesiastes 5:19 “Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God”. We therefore learn that the default position of man is being blessed by God, we must walk away from him to lose things. When things start to go wrong, it should be a lesson that, either this is a trial, or I’ve stepped away from the Lord and I’m walking to Satan. However, every human has an angel protecting them (even the wicked), because if that angel wasn’t there, the devil would’ve eliminated them a long time ago (unless he has some twisted purpose for them, to which he’ll dispose of them when he doesn’t need them anymore). Matthew 18:10 “Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven”. Everyone has an angel assigned to them at birth. 

Stage 2: The devil claims access

Job 1:11 “But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face. 12 And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord”. Here we see a few things. Firstly, the Lord will never destroy a good man himself. Genesis 18:24 “and the Lord said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes…” Secondly, the Lord didn’t say to Satan, “terrorise Job”, the Lord merely gives Satan power over what Job owns. The Lord was very careful with his words. Satan is always seeking permission against us, and that the least chance Satan gets he will cause misery to us. Thirdly, the Lord didn’t give Satan access to Job’s health, he said to him “upon himself put not forth thine hand”. This means the angels on guard for Job’s health were still stationed there. The claims the devil will make to the Lord for access to our lives will typically come from our sins. He will claim a legal right to have access to us, because we’re doing the same things which got him removed from heaven.

Stage 3: The Devil makes our life horrific in any area he can

In the case of Job, all that he owned was transferred to the Devil’s power. Job 1:13 “And there was a day when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother's house: 14 And there came a messenger unto Job, and said, The oxen were plowing, and the asses feeding beside them: 15 And the Sabeans fell upon them, and took them away; yea, they have slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee. 16 While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The fire of God is fallen from heaven, and hath burned up the sheep, and the servants, and consumed them; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee. 17 While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, The Chaldeans made out three bands, and fell upon the camels, and have carried them away, yea, and slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee. 18 While he was yet speaking, there came also another, and said, Thy sons and thy daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother's house: 19 And, behold, there came a great wind from the wilderness, and smote the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young men, and they are dead; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee”. 

From Job’s calamitous events we learn a few things: Sometimes when people encounter other people doing evil to them ‘randomly’, for example a shooting on civilians, it’s because the devil has lined up events to happen in that manner.

The devil (if allowed) can manipulate the elements the same way we can but worse. If we can figure out how to create fire and manipulate it, why can’t a supernatural being? When we see certain natural disasters such as wind or fire, it can be the devil.

When we lose loved ones through an accident it can indeed also be the devil at work, in the case of Job, his sons and daughters were sinful, and Job knew this and hence he offered sacrifices whenever they would have these gatherings. Job 1:5 “And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually”.

We also learn however that Job didn’t blame God, Job 1:22 “In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly”. Why? Because it was Satan causing all the problems. Furthermore, as Job didn’t sin, Satan asked for his health. Job 2:4 “And Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. 5 But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face. 6 And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life. 7 So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown”. We learn from this verse that Satan can inflict disease. Therefore, if we’re still alive it’s because the Lord has allowed us to live. We must forever be grateful to God, because if he removes his hand of protection then we’d be dead much quicker than we realise.

Stage 4: Misery and despair

When the devil get’s us into this state, he will often then try to get us to cast the blame on God. Job 2:9 “Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die. 10 But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips”. Whilst the devil can use those close to us to push us to blame God, we must stand in the promises of God that there is a way of escape out of the trial and not blame him foolishly. Job at the beginning was holding strong but then we see how Satan uses his despair to try and slowly push him to blame God. 

The devil will push us to think suicidal thoughts

Job 3:2 And Job spake, and said, Let the day perish wherein I was born, and the night in which it was said, There is a man child conceived.

Job 6:9 Even that it would please God to destroy me; that he would let loose his hand, and cut me off!

The devil gets us to think it’s God who’s attacking us

Job 7:20 I have sinned; what shall I do unto thee, O thou preserver of men? why hast thou set me as a mark against thee, so that I am a burden to myself? 21 And why dost thou not pardon my transgression, and take away my iniquity? for now shall I sleep in the dust; and thou shalt seek me in the morning, but I shall not be.

Job 10:1 My soul is weary of my life; I will leave my complaint upon myself; I will speak in the bitterness of my soul. 2 I will say unto God, Do not condemn me; shew me wherefore thou contendest with me.

The devil gets us to compare our cases with the wicked.

Job 12:6 The tabernacles of robbers prosper, and they that provoke God are secure; into whose hand God bringeth abundantly.

We start to think we can argue with God.

Job 13:3 Surely I would speak to the Almighty, and I desire to reason with God

The devil convinces us we can argue with God.

Job 23:3-5 Oh that I knew where I might find him! that I might come even to his seat! 4 I would order my cause before him, and fill my mouth with arguments. 5 I would know the words which he would answer me, and understand what he would say unto me.

The devil gets us to the point where we think “Where is God?”

Job 23:8 Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: 9 On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him: 10 But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. (Job says something very interesting here, it’s true that these trials make us stronger, however he’s begun to justify himself)

The devil finally tries to get us to justify ourselves

Job 30:25 Did not I weep for him that was in trouble? was not my soul grieved for the poor? 26 When I looked for good, then evil came unto me: and when I waited for light, there came darkness.

Job 34:5 For Job hath said, I am righteous: and God hath taken away my judgment. (Had God not allowed Job to go through this fire, Job would've thought he was righteous by his own power, these secret thoughts were in Job but the trial revealed it).

Here Job was at a crucial point, had he turned and said “Therefore for all this, God is evil and doesn’t care about me, let me do evil”. Then he would’ve done what the devil was trying to get him to do, which is curse God and choose evil, he would’ve given up his integrity. In Job’s state of despair whilst his faith was being tested, he concludes by asking if there’s any fault with him that he’s overlooked. Job 31:39 “If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money, or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life: 40 Let thistles grow instead of wheat, and cockle instead of barley. The words of Job are ended”. Job still put his faith in God, he was just being tricked into thinking his ordeal was because of God. When really all God did was remove his protection from Job.

Stage 5: The decision

After going through all the grief we will either decide to walk further from God, or cast all our cares on him. 1 Peter 5:7 “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you”. Jesus told us that we should give him all our burdens Matthew 11:29-30 “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light”.

Should we choose to go further from God, guess what the devil will do? He’ll go back to the Lord (not in heaven) and use the new sins we are committing as an excuse as to why God should give us into his hand and why the Lord should remove his protection. His justification will forever be “You cast me out of heaven for doing this sin, if this person is also doing this sin why are you protecting them?”. When he gets a bigger foothold in our lives he’ll put thoughts into our minds of “God did this, it’s his fault, he doesn’t love you”. If we start to speak against God, then he’ll give us up to Satan by removing the angels stationed there. Then Satan will take us back to stage three and the cycle continues again, and again and again. It gets to the point where God will completely give us up to Satan, if we just continue to choose sin. 2 Chronicles 30:7 “And be not ye like your fathers, and like your brethren, which trespassed against the Lord God of their fathers, who therefore gave them up to desolation, as ye see”.

Why did God allow Job to go through all this he was righteous

God allowed this trial to come on Job because he knew Job could handle it and not lose faith, as we saw, although at times Job used the same arguments even unbelievers use today, he didn’t become an unbeliever. Furthermore, God knows we can’t see alternate futures, if this didn’t happen to Job, then we wouldn’t know this is how Satan operates. We wouldn’t be aware that if we’re still breathing it’s because God is still protecting us. God knew that this would all be put into a book well in advance even though Job didn’t. Job 19:23 “Oh that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book”! We now have evidence for how Satan works, so if we see the same pattern, we can diagnose what stage of despair Satan has a person in. 

The greatest lesson through all of this is that if we’re still breathing, it’s because God hasn’t fully removed all his blessings and protections from us. That means even for the unbeliever, if they are still breathing it’s because God is protecting them, whilst Satan wants to kill them. 

How did God reward Job for holding out

After correcting Job’s thoughts (from Job 37-42) God blesses Job more than before. Job 42:10 “And the Lord turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before”. Job 42:12 "So the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses”. What did Job say when he finally had his arguement with the Lord? Job 42:3 ..."therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not". Had Job not gone through all this, he may have even become too prideful, for he said earlier during his trial Job 30:1 "But now they that are younger than I have me in derision, whose fathers I would have disdained to have set with the dogs of my flock".

In conclusion, whenever we’re at a point where we feel “Why me Lord?”, always remember that he’s constantly watching over us, cast all our cares on him and he will deliver us in times of trouble. Psalm 34:17 “The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles”. Our Lord can deliver us from times of trouble, Our God hears our petitions. Trust in the Lord with all your hearts, cry unto him “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me”. Psalm 50:15 Amen.