Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book! That they were engraved on a rock with an iron pen and lead, forever! For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God, Whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me! (Job 19:23-27).Many people come to a conference for writers because they have a story that they feel needs telling. They haven’t written much more than letters or email prior to coming, but they have something on their heart that needs expression and they hope to find out how to do it.
A few years ago at another conference the main speaker said that writing is such a challenging profession that unless your heart burns and you “must” write, don’t bother. He made some people a bit angry, but I think he was correct. Writing isn’t about getting a single story off your chest, but about a passion to communicate. For Christians, it is a passion, even an obedience, to communicate what God puts on our hearts.
Job had something on his heart and he longed for those words to be preserved forever. Yet his passion was not for ‘his’ words, but the truth that he knew. Some commentators think that Job said what he did by divine inspiration and really didn’t know the fullness of what he had written. While that could be true, I cannot underestimate the power of the Holy Spirit to communicate truth to this man, even at in his time in history.
Job is likely one of the oldest books in the Bible. Statements in commentaries imply that because he lived so long ago, he couldn’t possibly know as much, or at least as much theology as we do now. However, I’ve also read that sin ruins everything, including intellectual ability. While we might have all kinds of modern inventions and technological advances, can we really think as clearly and as biblically as those who were less affected by generations and generations of sinful heritage? I wonder.
Anyway, Job’s desire was to communicate what he knew about God and redemption. He knew that his Redeemer was a living Redeemer. One day he would be vindicated by Someone who lived eternally. He also knew that this One would stand on the earth in the last days. Job himself would have been long dead by that time, yet Job knew that he would, in his flesh, see God. Job understood New Testament teaching about the resurrection of the body, of new life, of perfect eternal fellowship with his Maker, his God. His heart burned within him because he wanted others to know this truth.
I’m challenged by this. By nature, I am a consummate information-gatherer. Out of all the data in my head and heart, what do I want people to know? If I could preserve my words in a book that would last forever, what would they be?
Whatever the conference challenges me with today, God has already pushed me with a very good question!
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