(Job 19:9) He has stripped me of my glory, And taken the crown from my head.
Job had it all. He was the richest man in the East with a large family and enjoyed good health. He also was a very godly man, and I’m sure the envy of many. But in a short period, he lost it all; his business wiped out, his children perished, and his physical wellbeing shattered (Job 1-2). Then when you look through the Bible you find others who went through adversity and loss. It makes you wonder why God allows the righteous to have times in their lives when things are taken away from them. Let’s talk about the stripping of God.
Was Job the only one who was stripped? Remember Joseph and the coat of many colors? He was favored above his brothers by his father who gave him a coat of many colors. But do you recall what his brothers did to him? (Gen 37:23) So it came to pass, when Joseph had come to his brothers, that they stripped Joseph of his tunic, the tunic of many colors that was on him. 24 Then they took him and cast him into a pit . . .
Wow, so that’s two already in the Old Testament. How about in the New? (Mat 27:28) And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him . . . You guessed it. Jesus Himself was stripped of His garment as He entered His passion on the way to being crucified for our sins.
So now that we have Biblical precedent for the stripping of God, we have to ask ourselves why does God allow stripping? Well, think of how each person we have described had former glory and then that glory was taken away. But that wasn’t all. The outcome of these stories builds your faith because in each case God brought about something so glorious. Job’s losses were restored, and he had twice as much as before (Job 42). Joseph became second in command in Egypt and saved his family from famine (Gen 50). And Jesus rose from the dead to become our glorious Savior! (Phil 2:6-11)
Are you entering a time of stripping in your life right now? Have you had better times than you are having now? Have you been more prosperous and successful? More popular and influential? Had more money in the bank and gas in your tank? Then it looks like God has allowed stripping in your life. Take courage my friend; good things are ahead for you.
I like what Jesus said: (John 15:2) . . . every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You just have to believe that. God has more for you to do for Him. He wants to broaden your reach of the world He wants to touch and heal. But the pruning must happen first. God has to break us before He makes us. It’s just a period of probation and trial to test us and to get us ready for greater usefulness. Don’t fight it anymore. Soon you will be growing back and bearing fruit in abundance for the Lord in such a way that only He can get the glory!
Louie