The Way

Job 23:10-11 shows us we are never far from God, even in the toughest times, and encourages us to choose wisely.

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But he knoweth the way that I take:
when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.
My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined.
—Job 23:10-11

“But he knoweth the way that I take”

You’re making choices every day, for good or for ill. Navigating the everyday issues of life. We don’t know the end result of our choices, but God does.

God isn’t ignorant of what you’re doing each day, hour, and moment. He knows. Not to the limited what we know, as in, only what’s right in front of us.

No, he knows the way. The full course and fruit of those decisions. If he just knew and watched us like a play on a stage, we would be sore alone and likely headed for destruction.

“when he hath tried me”

Our choices are part of God’s purpose in testing us. God never tempts us with evil, but we are the ones who are drawn away from God all on our own because of our nature to satisfy ourselves (James 1:12-15).

And yet, God knows the way we take. The testing is not a quiz, perhaps, except for the single question—will you choose to follow God during this trying time, or will you follow your heart?

“I shall come forth as gold.”

If you follow God during this time, you will bear the heat of the flame as it burns off the dross of our fleshly desires. The trying is not without intensity, since that’s what it takes to separate impurities from precious metal.

Even so, the result is more valuable than what you were before. God knows the way you take and knows there’s gold at the end.

“My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined.”

Following God is simple to understand, but in the trial is easy to abandon. It’s his steps, it’s his way. Our way will lead to destruction because our flesh is bent on sin. His way leads to life. We want to decline when the going gets tough, but God’s way lifts us up.

Only a loving God would spare us from eternal death by giving us not just a general way, but The Way in the form of his son, Jesus.