Our God is in Heaven; He does whatever He pleases

Who gets blessed? And, what does getting or being blessed look like?

Why does the family down the street get the big house and the nice cars and the perfect kids? Why does one person get healed from cancer and another does not? Is being born in one country instead of another a blessing?

Why do the wicked seem to have no consequences?

Why does God do what He does? Or, why does God not do other things?

These are tough questions that we all have asked at one time or another.

In the story of Job, the question of blessings and ‘the law of retribution’ caused Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar to get stuck.

They believed strongly in the idea of cause and effect. They assumed that what happened to Job was 1) done by God, and 2) because of  sin. Neither of which was true.

Eliphaz speaks.

You will pray to him, and he will hear you,
and you will fulfill your vows.
28 What you decide on will be done,
and light will shine on your ways.   Job 22:27

Bildad speaks.

Since your children sinned against Him,
He gave them over to their rebellion.
⁵ But if you earnestly seek God
and ask the Almighty for mercy,
⁶ if you are pure and upright,
then He will move even now on your behalf.    Job 8:4-6

Zophar speaks.

But if only God would speak
and declare His case^[b] against you,
⁶ He would show you the secrets of wisdom,
for true wisdom has two sides.   Job 11:5-6

If Job would just repent and change his ways everything would be better, so they thought.

They were stuck. They couldn’t fathom a cause outside of themselves – meaning humanity. They couldn’t fathom the cause being all about the glory of God and not  Job or his children.

How often do we get stuck like these men? We can’t figure out why God gives blessings to some and not others.

I’ve lived a righteous life, why is this happening to me?
Why is God not answering my prayers and healing me?
Am I being punished for something?
Why did God protect their child and not mine?

We think that it is all about us. We are so wrong.

But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases.  Psalm 115:3

Everything God does is ultimately for His own glory. It’s not about us.

How often do we look at the questions of life through the lens of our own humanness; our own importance; our own significance?

The world revolves around the human race, right? After all we dominate over the earth. We are far superior to any other living thing. We like the idea of being the center of the universe.

However, this mentality is exactly what keeps us stuck.

What if we viewed life through the lens of God’s glory?

Once we grasp the fact that it is all about Him and not us, it takes the pressure off. Then, we are free to be His children, and free to be who He created us to be.

God doesn’t necessarily give us what we deserve or don’t deserve, or try to make everyone happy. He doesn’t do things for this person or that nation. It is about His glory, and His glory alone.

“Be still, and know that I am God.
   I will be exalted among the nations,
   I will be exalted in the earth!”   Psalm 46:10

The fact that God does everything for His own glory does not make Him selfish. If we look at it through very human eyes, then we might see it as selfish. But, if we look at it through His eyes, the picture is very different.

The fact that it is all about Him is a good thing. Because He is good!

According to John Piper in his book, Desiring God,

“God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.”

We want God to be glorified and He wants us to be satisfied. It’s mutually beneficial. The way He designed it is perfect. He goes on to say . . . .

“God’s passion to be glorified and our passion to be satisfied are one experience in the Christ-exalting act of worship–singing in the sanctuary and suffering in the streets.”

“We get the mercy; He gets the glory. We get the happiness in Him; He gets the honor from us.”

He is so good! And when we live to glorify Him, our lives are transformed.

We should be thankful that the universe does not revolve around us. If it did, the world would be an empty, lonely and dark place. It would be a black hole without the glory of God. He brings light. And, He brings everything that’s good in the world.

So, does God do whatever He pleases? You bet He does! And, thank God for it!

“But he stands alone, and who can oppose him?
   He does whatever he pleases.   Job 23:13