Where Were You?

And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.  

Colossians 1:17 

Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding. 

Job 38:4 

Job asked a lot of questions during the days of his suffering. These were, from our human perspective, natural questions considering all he was enduring. By the time Job and all his friends had ended their speeches it was God’s turn. He spoke to Job out of the whirlwind, just as He had spoken to Moses out of the burning bush. Therefore when we read the words of God in these chapters, we should understand that it is Christ speaking. Our text is the first question He asks Job. He says, ‘Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?’ This further confirms that Christ is speaking based on what the rest of Scripture says about Christ’s role in creation. His question to Job is a challenge. Job has questioned God. Now God asks the questions. He is not seeking information, but rather asking these questions to bring forth facts about His Own sovereignty. What He says about Himself underscores the first part of our text that He is before all things and in Him all things consist. Chapters 38 through 41 of Job are full of examples all of which lend weight to the categorical statement of Colossians 1:17. If we want an extremely detailed declaration of exactly what that verse means, we have only to read what God says to Job. This puts all these things into perspective.  

Our Creating, Upholding God, 
we rejoice that You know all that we do not know. 
We praise You that You can do all the things that we cannot. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning