WHEN YOUR MOMMA'S PRAYERS RUN OUT

Job Transitions of From Secondhand Knowledge To Intimate Relationship

Job 42:1–6 ESV

1 Then Job answered the Lord and said: 2 “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. 3 ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. 4 ‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you make it known to me.’ 5 I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; 6 therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”

Job 42:1–6 (The Message)

1 Job answered God:

2 “I’m convinced: You can do anything and everything. Nothing and no one can upset your plans.

3 You asked, ‘Who is this muddying the water, ignorantly confusing the issue, second-guessing my purposes?’ I admit it. I was the one. I babbled on about things far beyond me, made small talk about wonders way over my head.

4 You told me, ‘Listen, and let me do the talking. Let me ask the questions. You give the answers.’

5 I admit I once lived by rumors of you; now I have it all firsthand—from my own eyes and ears!

6 I’m sorry—forgive me. I’ll never do that again, I promise! I’ll never again live on crusts of hearsay, crumbs of rumor.”

Title: "When Your Momma’s Prayers Run Out"

When I was young, I would often hear the preacher and older members of the community say, “Learn to pray for yourself because your mamma's prayers are going to run out.” ‌ I didn’t know what they meant back then, but I do now. ‌

A good mother, father, grandmother, or grandfather covers their children with prayer. In fact, I can still hear my mother going down on her knees late at night and praying for her children. ‌ What I didn’t realize then was that not only was my mother praying for the well-being and protection of her children, but that those prayers would guide me through dangers seen and unseen for years to come.

However, as I began to grow and mature, there came a time when I had to take ownership of my own faith journey and cultivate my own personal relationship with God. There comes a point when your momma’s prayers cannot substitute for a direct, intimate connection and relationship with God. ‌

There comes a time when we have to grow up spiritually, so to speak. ‌ With that thought in mind, allow me to begin my sermon by posing a question. ‌ Do you know God? ‌ Do you truly know God? ‌ I'm not talking about second-hand knowledge, what you've heard from others or what you've read in the Bible. I'm talking about a first-hand experience.

Do you have a genuine personal relationship with God? You see, many Christians mistakenly equate knowing about God with personally knowing God.

I am not talking about understanding theological concepts or doctrinal principles.

I am talking about head knowledge of God. What I want to know is, has the stuff in your head gotten into your heart?

I am talking now about your momma’s God, but have you had an encounter with God for yourself? ‌

That is precisely what Job is wrestling with in our text this morning. ‌ Job experienced a transition, from knowing about God intellectually to knowing God personally.

KNOWING

Our modern-day meaning of the word “knowledge” affects our understanding of what it means in the Bible when it talks about knowing God. ‌ To us, the word "knowledge" means the accumulation of facts and information.

I have knowledge of President Barack Obama. ‌

I know that Barack Obama was born on August 4, 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. ‌

I know that he attended Occidental College in Los Angeles, California, where he completed his undergraduate studies. ‌

I know that Obama went on to study at Columbia University in New York City, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science. ‌

I know that later, he attended Harvard Law School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he received his Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree. ‌

I know that after completing his education, Obama worked as a community organizer in Chicago, Illinois. ‌

I know that the Obama family had two Portuguese water dogs during their time in the White House. Their names were Bo and Sunny. ‌

But that’s just information. I do not have a personal relationship with the man. I don’t know his cell phone number. I can’t call and say, “What’s up?” I know about him, but I don’t know him like that. ‌

In the Bible, the word "know" or "to have knowledge" means intimacy. It signifies a far deeper and more personal relationship. For example, in Genesis 4:1, it says, "And Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain." Here, the word "know" means more than a sexual act; it goes beyond mere physical intimacy; it speaks to a profound spiritual connection.

In a similar manner, when Job declares, "I see you for myself," it's not just about eyeballs on God. Nah, it's deeper than that, church. In Bible, "seeing" is not just about physical sight, it's about understanding and experiencing something deeper, something spiritual. Job, he is just talking about peeping with his eyes, he's talking about a soul-to-soul encounter with the Divine, where he's moved from head knowledge to heart knowledge.

When Job says he sees God for himself, he's shouting about a real revelation, y'all. He's saying he's had a one-on-one with the Most High, not just knowing about God, but knowing God personally, you feel me?

Job went from knowing facts about God that he gained through hearsay, through second-hand knowledge, to actually having a deep and personal relationship with God. ‌ In the text, we see Job experiencing a spiritual growth process.

THE FAITH TRANSITION OF JOB

1. Awareness of God's Existence (Job 42:1-2): Initially, Job realized that God exists. He conceded that there is a God. In verse Job 42:2, his understanding is basic. He knows and believes that God exists and has power and authority.

But there, Job demonstrates a basic understanding of God's power and authority, but it is more of an intellectual acknowledgment rather than a personal relationship.

Survey suggests that 80 to 90% of Americans believe that there is a God, but only 40 to 50% of those who identify as Christian attend church. For the ones who attend church, only about 40 to 50% of them pray or have intimate time with God. Guess what, we do not get a medal for believing in God. In the Bible, the demons believed in God. So we do not merit a spiritual trophy for know or believing that God exists. This is the very basic and first level of faith.

2. Self-Reflection and Humility (Job 42:3): Then Job moves from a surface-level understanding to a deeper introspection of himself in relation to God. In other words, when you really see God and really know God, it will change what you think about yourself. ‌

Job says, "Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know" (Job 42:3). ‌ Job recognizes his limited understanding and humbles himself before God, realizing that there are aspects of God's ways that surpass human comprehension. ‌

That’s why it confuses me when I see arrogant people who think that they know everything. Arrogant people who assume they are smarter than everybody else. Arrogant people who think that their opinion is the only opinion. ‌

For I have found that knowing God humbles me. The more I know God, the more I realize how much I don’t know. ‌

Encounter with God's Presence (Job 42:5): Job goes from believing there is a God to thinking about himself in relation to and in comparison to God. Then Job has a direct encounter with the presence of God. ‌

He says, "I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you" (Job 42:5). Something is shifting in Job’s spirit. He transitions from mere hearsay or secondhand knowledge of God to a firsthand experience of His presence.

For the first time in his life, Job's encounter with God goes beyond intellectual understanding; it becomes a deeply personal and experiential revelation. ‌ You see, we are living in the information age.

There is information about God everywhere. Get a load of this: while there is more information about God every, there is less evidence that the world knows God. There is a point at which the information in your head becomes revelation in your heart. ‌

Do you remember in "The Color Purple" by Alice Walker, Mrs. Sophia utters the line, "I knew there was a God." Mrs. Sophia transitioned from an acknowledgment of God's existence to experiencing God's presence in her life through the help she receives from Mrs. Celie. ‌

This realization deepens her faith and transforms her understanding of God in a powerful way.

Have you ever been there?

God showed up in your life in such a powerful way;

He did what only God could do, causing you to say, “I know there is a God.”

I have been there. ‌

The power of God has blown my mind.

The grace of God has overwhelmed my spirit.

When I witnessed the breathtaking beauty of a sunrise over the mountains, I knew there was a God, whose creativity. God, that master painter, created the heavens more beautifully than any human hands.

When I held my newborn daughters for the first time and felt the overwhelming rush of love and protection, I knew there was a God. ‌

During those moments of despair and uncertainty, when I felt utterly alone and lost, I cried out for guidance, and amidst the darkness, I sensed a comforting presence, assuring me that I was not forsaken. ‌

In that moment, I knew there was a God, whose unfailing love and steadfast presence offered peace and hope, restoring my faith and strength.

When I encountered acts of selfless kindness and compassion, witnessing strangers extending a helping hand to those in need without expecting anything in return, I knew there was a God. ‌

When I realized that when I cut myself, God has designed my blood to clot on its own, when I get sick, the medicine treats my symptoms but God heals my body, when I breathe the good air and exhale the bad air, and then breathe in again the good air that God has created, then I know there is a God. ‌

It is at that moment, that the God that I heard about in Sunday School, the God that momma told me about all my life, the God that I read about in my own Bible becomes real to me. ‌ Finally, when God becomes real to you, there will be a change in you. ‌

Repentance and Contrition (Job 42:5-6): Job responds to his encounter with God's presence with repentance and contrition. He confesses, "Therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes" (Job 42:6). Job's repentance signifies a turning point in his relationship with God. ‌ It is not just about acknowledging God's existence or even understanding His ways; it is about a profound transformation of the heart, leading to confess your sins and ask for forgiveness. ‌

If you ain’t never wrong, let me suggest that you don’t know God. ‌ If you are so big, so smart, so knowledgeable that you know everything, may I suggest that you don’t know God in your heart.

You may know God in your head, but you don’t know him in your heart. ‌

Submission and Surrender (Job 42:6): The final stage in his faith journey culminates in complete submission and surrender to God's will. He acknowledges, "Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know" (Job 42:3).

Job recognizes that God's wisdom and understanding surpass his own, and he surrenders himself fully to God's sovereignty and authority. God, I don’t always understand your will, but I surrender my ways to your will. ‌

God, I don’t always see where you are taking me, but I surrender my path and choose to follow your path.

Job quiets himself; he stops operating off of his second information about God and has a firsthand encounter with God. ‌

Everything changes when you experience intimacy with God. ‌

It silences your heart. ‌

It calms your fears. ‌

It blesses your soul in a way that nothing else can. ‌

It changes the way you worship. ‌

Do you know what the definition of worship is?

Worship is to have a divine encounter with God. ‌

Some people have secondhand worship experience. ‌

They listen to the songs about God. ‌

They hear the prayers about God. ‌

They read the Scriptures about God. ‌

They hear the sermon about God, but they leave without having a divine encounter with God. ‌

They are in the worship service, but the service never gets in them. ‌

It is fully possible, like Job, to be busy engaging in God-centered activity but never have a God-filled encounter. ‌

Job was doing all the right things. ‌

He worshiped in the presence of God. ‌

He sat at the gate of the city with important men of his community and talked about God. ‌

He gave his tithe to the temple for God. ‌

He told his children about God. ‌

But Job merely had information about God and no relationship with God. ‌

So God allows Satan to test Job. ‌

How many of you realize that there is a blessing in the storm? ‌

The blessing was that God used the trouble that Satan put Job through in order to get Job’s attention and He used it to develop a right relationship with Job. ‌

You know the story. Job lost everything—home, children, wealth, and health.

But in the process of great loss, he found greater gain. Not to mention, it all belonged to God anyway. ‌

We love to run around talking about everything WE have accomplished. ‌

Look at MY house. ‌

Look at MY children. ‌

Look at MY spouse. ‌

Look at MY bank account. ‌

Look at MY car. ‌

Look at MY retirement fund, ‌

My big-screen TV, ‌

My video games, ‌

My computer, ‌

My clothes, ‌

My jewelry. ‌

But wait! ‌ Job had all that and lost all of it. ‌ And yet he gained something more valuable than all of his assets put together. ‌

He gained the knowledge that GOD is the BOSS….that God reigns supreme, and that God is in control! ‌

Job lost everything, but he FOUND God! And in the end, he got twice as much material blessings as he had before. ‌ God wants a personal relationship with us. ‌

I stopped by this morning to let you know that you can’t get into heaven with secondhand salvation. ‌

Your Mamma’s Prayer won’t get you there. ‌

Your Daddy’s Religion can’t earn you a spot. ‌

You must know Him for yourself. ‌

Do you know the man? ‌ Do you walk with Him and talk to Him?

Songwriter says:

I come to the garden alone While the dew is still on the roses And the voice I hear falling on my ear The Son of God discloses

And He walks with me and He talks with me And He tells me I am His own And the joy we share as we tarry there None other has ever known

When you have secondhand information about God you learn about Him; when you have intimacy with God you experience Him personally.

When you have secondhand information about God you comprehend theological concepts; when you have intimacy with God you feel His power firsthand.

When you have secondhand information about God you gain insight from others; when you have intimacy with God you feel His love and grace personally.

When you have secondhand information about God you acknowledge His power through stories; when you have intimacy with God you experience His miracles firsthand.

When you have secondhand information about God you recite prayers or religious texts; when you have intimacy with God you establish a personal connection with Him.

When you have secondhand information about God you participate in religious services and rituals; when you have intimacy with God you experience His presence in a profound way.

When you have secondhand information about God you discuss theological doctrines and beliefs; when you have intimacy with God you receive divine insight firsthand.

When you have secondhand information about God you study religious texts and scriptures; when you have intimacy with God you experience His wisdom firsthand.

When you have secondhand information about God you admire the works of creation; when you have intimacy with God you feel His divine touch firsthand.

When you have secondhand information about God you accept His existence intellectually; when you have intimacy with God you connect with Him on a deeper level. Do you have intimacy with God?

Is your relationship right with God?

It is if God rules in your life.

It is if you spend time daily with Him.

It is if you daily repent and confess your faults, and ask Him to mold you and shape you into one who is pleasing in His sight.

I ask you again…is your relationship right with God? If not, now is a good time to let God break you so He can make you.

Consider the benefits of a right relationship with Him.

He gives joy to the miserable,

Strength to the weary,

Life to the lifeless,

Hope to the hopeless,

Rest to the wretched,

Love to the outcast,

Delight to the discouraged,

And salvation to the sinner!

God gave you the key.

Won’t you unlock the door?