In Job 41-42, the LORD makes His closing comments to Job, and Job confesses his inferiority in the situation. After this, the LORD turns His attention to Job’s friends and tells them to bring sacrifices to Job, for Job to offer them to the LORD. The LORD tells them, He will accept them for Job’s sake and they will be forgiven. As the book ends, the LORD restores Job’s wealth and family. In fact, in the end of Job’s life he has twice the wealth he had at the beginning of the book. He has seven sons and three daughters, and the respect of all around him. The Lord restored Job to his former position and more. This isn’t always the case with righteous people. Jesus Himself, the only fully righteous man who ever lived, was condemned and crucified. But the rule of thumb is obedience to God produces blessing, and the blessings of God often means material blessing. As we go about our lives, we must remember the lessons we have learned from Job: Sometimes good people suffer in this life. Sometimes bad people prosper. In the end the LORD loves and justifies the righteous, even if it doesn’t happen fully until the end of this life and we receive our reward in the next.
As we return to Matthew 24, we find Jesus offering “end time” instruction to the disciples. Jesus’ doesn’t tell us exactly when He will return, or the precise signs that will take place before He returns. He does tells there will be wars and rumors of wars, famines and other natural disasters. He tells us these are only the beginning of the end. He tells us false Messiahs will come. He tells us there will be terrible suffering before His return. But as for the moment of His return, it will be as in the days of Noah. In those days life was going about as normal. People lived their lives, got married, had children, and then one day the flood came and everyone but Noah and his family were wiped out. In the same way Jesus’ return will be like the coming of a thief in the night. Therefore, we must be ready. Jesus uses the illustration of a master who has gone away, leaving his servants in charge. Once again, the point is to be ready when the master returns. As I have said so often over the years: Jesus doesn’t tell us when he will returns. He tells us to be ready when He returns. That is the bottom line: Be ready!