When the world is in the middle of bewildering changes–a big shift in global power, even a war–we wonder what is going on behind the scenes–really behind the scenes, in heaven itself. What is God doing in all this? We do not know, but we would like to. For if we knew what God was doing, we could truly understand our world.

In today's passage, we read two ″behind the scenes″ parts (Job 1:6-12 and 2:1-6) and two events on earth (1:13-22 and 2:7-10). Try reading the events on earth on their own. You'll read of a good and great man suffering the bankruptcy of his great business and the bereavement of all his children, and then, the loss of his health.

On the face of it, this is caused by a toxic mixture of what we might call terrorism (the Sabeans and the Chaldeans) and what we loosely call natural disasters (although they are not really natural). The big question–and it is a very big question–is: Why did these things happen? And why to such a good man?

That question opens up the wider questions of why bad things happen to genuine, God-fearing people. In the end, it makes us ask: Why did the supremely good man Jesus die by crucifixion?

Now read behind the scenes. Here we meet the Lord, who is the Sovereign God in complete control of His world. He is governing His world through a sort of Cabinet meeting of angels (1:6; 2:1), who are more powerful than humans but less powerful than God. Among these is one called Satan, which means adversary or enemy.

The Bible teaches that God is in complete control; and yet He exercises His control through intermediary powers, some of whom are evil. God is not evil, but in His infinite wisdom and power, He uses evil to work His purposes of good.

Astonishingly, Satan has a job in God's government. It is a strange but vital job. He must determine whether someone who looks like a worshipper of God is a genuine worshipper. And he does it by taking away their blessings.

Only when our blessings are taken away, will it be seen if we genuinely worship God because He is God. Satan asks to test Job, and the Lord says he may. In some deep way, it is necessary for the glory of God that Job should suffer and be proved genuine.