Jim Gallagher

Job 31:1 ​

“I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman?”

A covenant, like a treaty, is an agreement between two parties that results in peace. Job realized that he was at war, not with others, but with himself. The battle that raged within him was for control of his thoughts. He came to realize, the only way to be victorious, was to be certain his eyes did not look at what would stir his lusts.

I find it interesting that Job was not a young man when he penned these thoughts. His children were grown and had children of their own, and yet Job still had to guard his eyes against looking at what was inappropriate, and what would lead to further sin.

Jesus expounded upon this same idea, exhorting us to “pluck out our eye,” if it leads us…

2 Corinthians 6:16

“For you are the temple of the living God.”

Although this verse is tucked away in a passage not well trodden, this portion of the text is fairly well-known. It is not uncommon to hear this verse quoted, even among those who have not chosen to surrender their lives to Christ. When donuts are on the table and we are about to indulge, we might hear someone say, “You know our bodies are the temple of the living God, we should not defile the temple.” While it is true, what we eat can have an effect upon how we feel, and thus distracts from what we are capable of accomplishing, that is not the primary message of this passage. Paul is talking about the danger of establishing relationships that will lead us astray. He wrote,

“Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has…

Job 29:2

“Oh, that I were as in months past, As in the days when God watched over me”

My phone currently contains over 900 photos. Each one reminds me of something from the past few years. Most are pictures of my family or some fun activity we did together. Whenever I travel, I find myself scrolling through those photos and remembering the times we spent together. Job has a similar experience, in the midst of his trial, he begins to look back at a time in his life when things were much better. He reminds himself of how things used to be and longs for those days to return. Looking back, especially in trying times, can be very helpful, but it is important how we look back.

As Israel walked with God, they experienced some pretty amazing things. They received tablets written by the finger of God, had manna…

2 Corinthians 5:10

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”

A few years ago, I watched a very interesting story on the news. An armored vehicle, after leaving a local bank, had neglected to properly close the rear truck door. Upon making a turn, bags of money fell out of the truck and broke open on the street. People, seeing what had happened, went nuts, rushing into the street, picking up cash and shoving it into their pockets. In the midst of the chaos, a young boy grabbed a handful of coins and ran off. That night, he felt so guilty he could not sleep. The next day at school, the little boy dropped eighty-five cents on his teacher’s desk and told her about the…

Job 28:12

“But where can wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?”

Job is considered to be the oldest book in the Bible. It may have been written as many as four thousand years ago. Job declares, during his day, men were involved in mining the earth in search of precious stones. He refers to successful expeditions in search of silver, gold, copper, iron and sapphire. No doubt, great wealth and power came as a result of their findings. Yet, with all of man’s endeavors, Job declares they had failed to find the source of true wisdom. It cannot be located in the depths of the earth, or be purchased for the price of gold.

Job 28:14-15 “The deep says, ‘It is not in me’; and the sea says, ‘It is not with me. ’ It cannot be purchased for gold, nor can silver be weighed…

Job 27:4

“My lips will not speak wickedness, Nor my tongue utter deceit.”

Most of us understand there is certain speech that is ungodly, and therefore unacceptable. We realize gossip, backbiting, course jesting and profanity should never proceed from the mouth of a follower of Christ. Yet, we also realize that at times we are all guilty of this, in one way or another. When we do fail, we usually have an excuse for it. We used profanity because the situation called for it, or our emotions got the best of us. We talk about a person behind their back because we feel the need to “get it off our chest”, or vent our frustrations. I think we might be able to learn a little something from Job.

Job was suffering great physical and emotion pain. His situation was aggravated by his friends trumping up charges against him and maligning…

2 Corinthians 4:3-4

“But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.”

A few years ago we purchased a pool table for the kids as a Christmas gift. Because of the size of the table it was not practical to wrap, so we set it up in the middle of the living room, threw a table-cloth over it and set our breakfast on it. Our disguise worked. The kids went about the morning without even noticing there was a huge gift right under their noses.

Paul writes, God has given us the precious gift of eternal life. A gift received by recognizing we are sinners, and placing faith in…

Job 25:4

“How then can man be righteous before God? Or how can he be pure who is born of a woman?”

Righteousness is a biblical word that speaks of standing before God. A person who is righteous is one who has met God’s standards, is living pleasing to Him now, and will be accepted into heaven when this life comes to an end. When it comes to views of righteousness there seems to be contrasting positions. Some people, like the Pharisees of old, consider themselves to be righteous because of their heritage or accomplishments. They believe they will be accepted because they are inherently good. They neglect to fully understand the far reaching effects of sin or the holiness of God. Paul wrote,

Romans 10:3“For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.”

Right standing…

Job 26:14
“Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways, And how small a whisper we hear of Him! But the thunder of His power who can understand?”

After describing the power of God in His acts of creation, Job concludes, everything he has ever known about God is but a glimpse of what He is truly like.

Psalms 19:1 “The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork.”

The Palmist declared, God revealed Himself to man in creation. When we take the time to look at the marvels of the universe, we learn much of the nature of God. We are reminded of His power, majesty and even His creativity. Creation, however, is much too limited, it can only give us a glimpse into the character of God.

Psalms 19:7 “The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of…