Leadership: The Top 5 Success Principles of Jobናሙና

4. No Other Gods

Job lived in the time span between the time of Noah and Abraham; after the flood, but before God established the nation of Israel. It was also the time before God gave the Ten Commandments.

Even so, Job’s fourth Top 5 principle (with 3 verses dedicated to it) for us today lines up exactly with the very first of the Ten Commandments:

You shall have no other gods before me. – Exodus 20:3

In the days of Job, the sun, moon, and even the stars were regarded as being of the gods – and, with that perspective let’s check what Job himself says:

If I have regarded the sun in its radiance or the moon moving in splendor, so that my heart was secretly enticed and my hand offered them a kiss of homage... – Job 31:26-27

Despite local culture, Job held fast to the belief there was only one God to worship, and none other. Even when his culture would have said that blessing came from the sun, moon, stars, and nature itself, Job refused to believe it.

Again, it’s as if Job had already heard the words spoken by God to the Israelites some 700 years later:

And when you look up to the sky and see the sun, the moon and the stars—all the heavenly array—do not be enticed into bowing down to them and worshiping things the Lord your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven. – Deuteronomy 4:19

Today, the expression “thank your lucky stars” still resonates with many, suggesting other factors are at play in generating your success. Of course, as a Christian, you know this to be untrue, and so you should stand with Job in worshipping and thanking God for each and every opportunity and success that may come your way.

But be warned. This can be more difficult than it sounds.

Just as sunshine and weather played a role in Job’s success, today’s “gods” of self-help, positive thinking, education, the right connections, fitness, work-life balance, and more all play a role today. But, just as in the time of Job, none of these deserve your credit; instead, your thanks and worship for any success you achieve belong only to God.

Reflection / Application

1. Job worked hard and remained “counter-cultural” in his belief that only God was to be worshipped and thanked for his success – nothing else. Do you share a similar “counter-cultural” approach to your success?
2. What factors have you pointed to when asked about your success? Is it right to credit those factors without acknowledging the hand of God?
3. Think about your last success and how/why it came about. Have you thanked and worshipped God for it?