I
will never admit you are in the right; till I die, I will not deny my integrity.
(Job
27:5)
One
after another, first Eliphaz, then Bildad, and finally Zophar, Job’s three
friends spout off the same age-old retribution wisdom. If you’re suffering, it
must be because you sinned. Humble yourself and be restored.
But
Job couldn’t humble himself. He had nothing to confess. To feign guilt just to
gain relief wouldn’t have been right. Job was not about to let God off the hook
just to ease his own discomfort.
Is
there a lesson here for us? How often do we fall on our own sword, when we know
we’re not in the wrong, just to make peace? If Job is a theodicy, a defense of God’s justice in the face of seemingly
contradictory evidence, then it is also a study in the ethics of conflict.
How
many times have I taken one for the team?
While it sounds noble, it may be no better than a prizefighter taking a
dive. Romans 12:18 reads: If it is
possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. But avoiding conflict isn’t always the
ethical thing to do. Standing our ground may be more Christian than retreat.
Winning a battle for my own glory certainly does not display a proper
Christ-like attitude, but falling to the mat just to avoid the unpleasantness
of conflict doesn’t either.
Have
you ever kept the peace and lived to regret it?
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