When Night Won’t End
Job 7:1-7— “Does not man have hard service on earth? Are not his days like those of a hired man? Like a slave longing for the evening shadows, or a hired man waiting eagerly for his wages, so I have been allotted months of futility, and nights of misery have been assigned to me. When I lie down I think, ‘How long before I get up?’ The night drags on, and I toss till dawn. My body is clothed with worms and scabs, my skin is broken and festering. My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle and they come to an end without hope.”
If you know Job’s story at all, these words don’t surprise you. You know that Job longed for the daylight to come because then he’d be one day closer to the sweet release of death.
Job’s suffering was extreme, but by no means unique. You all know what it is like When Night Won’t End. You all know pain, loss, suffering, illness, frustration, anger, betrayal, heartache, guilt, etc. When the night of these troubles won’t seem to end is when you are tempted to think God has forgotten you, maybe even punishing you. You’re tempted to doubt God’s promise to save you.
Satan’s goal was to make Job’s life miserable enough that Job would curse God to his face and turn away from him. And that is Satan’s goal with you. Whether or not he is bartering with God to let him do these things to you like he did with Job, we don’t know. But we do know that the devil is using every hardship, trial and suffering to get you to lose heart, and doubt God’s promises of grace and every blessing so that in anger, frustration and exhaustion you would cry out, “God, what are you doing? What’s the point?”
While it is true that God allows Satan to bring trouble into your life just like he did with Job, it is also important to remember that Satan does not have free reign to do whatever he pleases. God set boundaries for Satan with Job and he does the same with you. But even more important to know is the goal God has in letting these things come into your life. God’s goal is the complete opposite of Satan’s goal.
In part, God allows night to come into your life to break you of your arrogance, pride, greed, vanity, selfishness and self-reliance. All these things are tools of the devil. The other reason God allows night to come is to strengthen you and cause you to trust him and rely on him even more. He allows night to come into your life so that you would see even more how much you need your Savior and to show you how much he has given to you in his Son!
Consider how deep, dark and long Jesus’ night was. In a way you could say it lasted his entire life! He was perfect in enduring temptation. That means that he suffered through every temptation of the devil to the bitter end! Yes, not even with one little slip in thought or desire! Consider his night during his ministry where it took so long for his own chosen disciples to understand. Consider the constant night of people following him because they wanted him to fill their bellies but not their souls. Consider the night of the spiritual leaders not only rejecting him, but even plotting and carrying out his public execution!
Friends, Jesus endured this deepest night of all so that in his resurrection you would have an eternal day! When Night Won’t End you are assured that it will. God will see you through your night because he has promised he will. He will at last bring you into the never-ending day of heaven where there is no night or darkness at all! Even now in this life he gives you little sunbeams of that day when he brings you relief by shining his gospel promises into your heart and even sometimes relieving you of your night!
Remember that God’s plan in all things is to bless you. In what you see as good and in what you think is bad, God blesses you. He uses even the darkest night to bring you closer to himself. Put your trust in and call on the only One who can relieve you of your night, knowing that he who did not spare his own Son from the night has promised you an eternal day!