Job: Wisdom through Suffering

Introduction:

Series through Bible

Now we have approached Wisdom Literature

And like I said a couple of weeks ago

Wisdom literature is a little bit different than the other parts of the Bible

You can’t read the Psalms or Proverbs like you would read a story

You have to slow down, meditate on the words, and let it speak to you

And it’s not primarily concerned with history or nations or individual leaders as examples

It’s concerned with how we live our lives

So two weeks ago I taught on the Psalms

And how they teach us how to pray

To pray what is in our hearts—not just what we think God would want to hear

That God can take our toughest, hardest, prayers

Last week, we sat in main, and Char taught on the Proverbs

And how the Proverbs guide us to how we should live life

That God is inviting us to build our lives around his knowledge, understanding, and wisdom

And that if we live according to God’s way, we will flourish

And today we are going to be tackling one of the most difficult books in the Bible

The Story of Job

Now most of us might not think of Job as wisdom literature but it is

It is categorized with wisdom literature and if you’ve read it you might have noticed its poetic nature

The first 2 chapters are narrative—like a story

But after the introduction it is a bunch of poetic speeches that can be difficult to read through

But my prayer today is that we all would grow wiser through looking at the book of Job

Scripture Reading:

(SLIDES)

Job 2:8–13 (CSB)

Then Job took a piece of broken pottery to scrape himself while he sat among the ashes.

His wife said to him, “Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!”

“You speak as a foolish woman speaks,” he told her. “Should we accept only good from God and not adversity?” Throughout all this Job did not sin in what he said.

Now when Job’s three friends—Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite—heard about all this adversity that had happened to him, each of them came from his home. They met together to go and sympathize with him and comfort him. When they looked from a distance, they could barely recognize him. They wept aloud, and each man tore his robe and threw dust into the air and on his head. Then they sat on the ground with him seven days and nights, but no one spoke a word to him because they saw that his suffering was very intense.

(SLIDES)

Job 42:1–6 (CSB)

Then Job replied to the Lord:

I know that you can do anything

and no plan of yours can be thwarted.

You asked, “Who is this who conceals my counsel with ignorance?”

Surely I spoke about things I did not understand,

things too wondrous for me to know.

You said, “Listen now, and I will speak.

When I question you, you will inform me.”

I had heard reports about you,

but now my eyes have seen you.

Therefore, I reject my words and am sorry for them;

I am dust and ashes.

(SLIDES to Title)

Exceptions to Biblical Wisdom

Job is a very difficult book

As we read it so many questions might pop up, but we have to realize that Job was not written to answer all of our questions

Job himself didn’t have all of his questions answered by the end of the book

However, Job teaches us that Biblical wisdom is not a formula

What do I mean by that?

Someone could read the Proverbs and think if I do these things… then my life will look like this...

(SLIDES)

Proverbs 10:9 (CSB)

The one who lives with integrity lives securely,

but whoever perverts his ways will be found out.

Proverbs 10:16 (CSB)

The reward of the righteous is life;

the wages of the wicked is punishment.

Proverbs 10:30 (CSB)

The righteous will never be shaken,

but the wicked will not remain on the earth.

Proverbs 11:8 (CSB)

The righteous one is rescued from trouble;

in his place, the wicked one goes in.

Proverbs 11:19 (CSB)

Genuine righteousness leads to life,

but pursuing evil leads to death.

Proverbs 11:21 (CSB)

Be assured that a wicked person

will not go unpunished,

but the offspring of the righteous will escape.

And so much more—all of these were just in two chapters of Proverbs

So one might read the Proverbs—and come to the conclusion that:

If life is going well for somebody—they must be on good terms with God (righteous)

If life is going downhill for somebody—they probably have some sort of problem or sin that is causing it

The righteous will lead prosperous lives

The wicked will be punished and destroyed

But what happens when this is not the case?

I think that we have the book of Job to add nuance to wisdom literature

That proverbs sets the general rule but Job gives us the exception

That living a godly life usually does result in a prosperous life

But there are exceptions

It is not a guarantee that our lives will be prosperous even if we do all of the right things

So what happens in the story of Job

(SLIDES)

He is a godly and righteous man

Job 1:1 (CSB)

There was a man in the country of Uz named Job. He was a man of complete integrity, who feared God and turned away from evil.

He lived a prosperous life

Job 1:2–3 (CSB)

He had seven sons and three daughters. His estate included seven thousand sheep and goats, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred female donkeys, and a very large number of servants. Job was the greatest man among all the people of the east.

And for some reason Satan approaches God

And God points out Job to him, because He is proud of him

Satan then accuses Job and God

He accuses Job of working for pay

He accuses God of paying for popularity

So Satan makes a wager—and God accepts

Satan is not allowed to harm Job but he could do what he wanted with everything he owned

So Job loses EVERYTHING

His livestock, his wealth, and children

And Job responds well

(SLIDES)

Job 1:20–22 (CSB)

Then Job stood up, tore his robe, and shaved his head. He fell to the ground and worshiped, saying:

Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

and naked I will leave this life.

The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away.

Blessed be the name of the Lord.

Throughout all this Job did not sin or blame God for anything.

Satan comes back—and God is still proud of Job

Job 2:3 (CSB)

Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? No one else on earth is like him, a man of perfect integrity, who fears God and turns away from evil. He still retains his integrity, even though you incited me against him, to destroy him for no good reason.”

So Satan attacks again

He is able to physically attack Job as long as he doesn’t take his life

And why does Satan do what he does?

This is the crazy part—he copies and pastes from Deuteronomy

He is trying to make it look like Job has forsaken God

(SLIDES)

Deuteronomy 28:15 (CSB)

“But if you do not obey the Lord your God by carefully following all his commands and statutes I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overtake you:

Deuteronomy 28:18–19 (CSB)

Your offspring will be cursed,

and your land’s produce,

the young of your herds,

and the newborn of your flocks.

You will be cursed when you come in

and cursed when you go out.

Deuteronomy 28:20 (CSB)

The Lord will send against you curses, confusion, and rebuke in everything you do until you are destroyed and quickly perish, because of the wickedness of your actions in abandoning me.

Deuteronomy 28:35 (CSB)

The Lord will afflict you with painful and incurable boils on your knees and thighs—from the sole of your foot to the top of your head.

And Job still responds well

(SLIDES)

Job 2:9–10 (CSB)

His wife said to him, “Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!”

“You speak as a foolish woman speaks,” he told her. “Should we accept only good from God and not adversity?” Throughout all this Job did not sin in what he said.

And then the rest of the book of Job comes after

Job has three friends that come to sympathize with Job and comfort him

And then the rest of the book is a series of speeches

Job speaks

One friend speaks

Job replies

Another friend speaks

Job replies

A third friend speaks

Job responds

And then it happens all over again—another round of speeches and responses

The first round of speeches are relatively polite

They are encouraging him to return to God

But the second round of speeches is raw

They are calling Job’s character into question

Remember—Deuteronomy says these sorts of thing happen to people who abandon God and reject him

They are reading their Bibles

They are saying—hmm… it looks like you’re actually cursed by God—what could you have done

Please just confess your sin—return to God

And after we see that Job stands firm and declares his innocence

And after Job says this another friend comes and chews Job out

He is angry at Job and is demanding that he has done something wrong

And we’ll get to this later but at the end, Job has a conversation with God about everything that has been happening

And the book ends with Job being restored and actually being more blessed than he was before

What do we do with this crazy story?

It’s really hard to teach this entire book in one sitting

I took a whole semester of Bible college on this book

But here are some key take aways that I think we can take from Job

Suffering with Others

I think that there is a lot from Job’s interactions with his friends that we can learn from

Unfortunately most of it is a negative example—what not to do

Instead of listening to Job—they are giving him unsolicited advice

Instead of patiently caring for Job—they are probing him and trying to find a solution to his problems

Instead of trusting Job—they question his character and heart

The way that Job’s friends treated him did not relieve his suffering—they added to his suffering

This is what friends are for, to help us through difficult times

(SLIDES)

Proverbs 17:17 (CSB)

A friend loves at all times,

and a brother is born for a difficult time.

But unfortunately, Job’s friends blew it

They used God’s word—not to encourage him—but to condemn him

They were unwilling to sit with him in this difficult time, and instead were treating his life like a problem to be solved

And I think we can learn so much from this

How do we love and care for friends that are suffering?

Are we like Job’s friends?

If we have a friend that is suffering…

Are we quick to throw a Bible verse at them?

Are we uncomfortable with their suffering and want to fix things—not because we care but because we want to avoid the uncomfortablilty?

Are we willing to listen to their problems without giving them advice?

Or waiting until they ask you for advice to give it?

When it comes down to it a good friend:

(SLIDES)

1

Bears our burdens with us; not solves our problems for us.

Is committed to us and to be with us through a difficult season—not quick to offer advice and fix our problems

2

They are willing to sit with you in your own difficulties, to listen and sympathize

I'm sorry to hear that, I know that must be difficult. And I know there's not much I can do to change things, but I’m committed to being by your side through this.

3

They gently point us back to Scripture and the goodness of God

They don’t slam Bible verses at you

Theydon’t answer all of your questions

But they remind you of who our God is

And I don’t know if you all have walked through different problems with people… but it makes the world of difference

I’ve had people that have counseled me through hardships that just was not beneficial

I opened my heart and shared my pain—and I felt like I was just another problem to solve

Although I spoke a lot—I did not feel heard

My pain wasn’t acknowledged—it was avoided

And I’ve also walked through things with people that meant the world to me

They didn’t have much to offer—they couldn’t change my circumstance—they didn’t offer me life changing advice

But I knew—I’m not crazy—I know I was heard

I know this person cares for me and understands my pain

And it’s deeply comforting.

And so I think the way in which Job’s friends interact with him give us a great amount of wisdom to how we are to be good friends in a time of suffering and hardships.

Secondly, I think there is a lot we can learn from

Job’s Conversation with God

Job is upset and distraught and cries out

(SLIDES)

35 “If only someone would listen to me!

Look, I will sign my name to my defense.

Let the Almighty answer me.

Let my accuser write out the charges against me.

(NLT)

Job is asking why all of these things have happened to him

He maintains is innocence and wants to know why all of this has happened

And unfortunately Job (and us) never get the full and satisfactory answer

God approaches Job and has some words for him at the end of the book

And I don’t think this is a slap-down on Job, but hes giving him perspective

(SLIDES)

Job 38:3–7 (CSB)

Get ready to answer me like a man;

when I question you, you will inform me.

Where were you when I established the earth?

Tell me, if you have understanding.

Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know!

Who stretched a measuring line across it?

What supports its foundations?

Or who laid its cornerstone

while the morning stars sang together

and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

“You do a great job at what you do, I do a great job at building universes”

In chapter 39

“You care about your goats?—I care about all of the animals—even the ones no one sees”

In chapters 40-41

Job says “You win; I give up”

God says “Get up and speak”; don’t stay silent

He rejects Jobs silent concession

Job 40:1–8 (CSB)

The Lord answered Job:

Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him?

Let him who argues with God give an answer.

Then Job answered the Lord:

I am so insignificant. How can I answer you?

I place my hand over my mouth.

I have spoken once, and I will not reply;

twice, but now I can add nothing.

Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind:

Get ready to answer me like a man;

when I question you, you will inform me.

Would you really challenge my justice?

Would you declare me guilty to justify yourself?

Then God continues—I limit the behemoth and the leviathan

Death and the serpent—evil

And in this Job finally sees things correctly

Job 42:1–6 (CSB)

Then Job replied to the Lord:

I know that you can do anything

and no plan of yours can be thwarted.

You asked, “Who is this who conceals my counsel with ignorance?”

Surely I spoke about things I did not understand,

things too wondrous for me to know.

You said, “Listen now, and I will speak.

When I question you, you will inform me.”

I had heard reports about you,

but now my eyes have seen you.

Therefore, I reject my words and am sorry for them;

I am dust and ashes.

Job

“I withdraw my demands for answers”

“I am not healed, but I have seen God”

It is alright to not understand everything that is happening

God restores his honor and his possessions but Job receives no explanations

And I think for us… this is one of the main takeaways from this book

The key to going through suffering—for suffering well

Is not finding answers—its knowing who God is

And listen—pain and suffering are unavoidable

We will face hardships, trials, and tragedies in our lives

And Job is teaching us that we won’t always have the answers we are looking for

But that we have a God who we can take our tears to

And guys—this is honestly a really hard topic

I know people who have left the faith because of this

I know people that refuse to become Christian because of it

Why does a good God allow such evil things to happen in his world?

It’s not because God is evil

He is not the author of anything evil

God is actively against and at war with evil, sin, and death

God respects people’s free will which means some terrible things happen

But God uses even the evil for his purposes

(SLIDES)

Genesis 50:20 (CSB)

You planned evil against me; God planned it for good to bring about the present result—the survival of many people.

(SLIDES)

Romans 8:28 (CSB)

We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.

And these are nice answers—in theory—but when YOU are going through pain and suffering

We want to know why

And Job does not help us here

It’s frustrating and disappointing… but this book is telling us that we are missing the point

It’s not about having answers but about Knowing God

One of my favorite books “Till we have faces” hits on this theme time after time

The main character goes through it

Trial, suffering, hatred, distrust… and the whole time she is blaming the Gods

She writes a book about all her grievances and how she has been dealt unfairly to present to the Gods

And at the end of the book we read:

“I ended my first book with the words 'no answer.' I know now, Lord, why you utter no answer. You are yourself the answer. Before your face questions die away. What other answer would suffice?

When it boils down to it… is God enough?

Can we trust God, in the midst of chaos and suffering?

Can we beleive the words of Isaiah:

(SLIDES)

Isaiah 55:8–9 (CSB)

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

and your ways are not my ways.”

This is the Lord’s declaration.

“For as heaven is higher than earth,

so my ways are higher than your ways,

and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Do we trust the words of Peter:

(SLIDES)

1 Peter 1:6–7 (CSB)

You rejoice in this, even though now for a short time, if necessary, you suffer grief in various trials so that the proven character of your faith—more valuable than gold which, though perishable, is refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

This pleases God

Faith—even when nothing makes sense

John Chubik story

Finally, one of the most important things we see is how Job is

Pointing us to Jesus

The character most like Job in the Bible is obviously Jesus

He is a righteous man that has not done anything to deserve wrong

Yet he suffers—terribly

Yet in his suffering and rejection from his friends he remains faithful

Job even becomes a priest—to restore his friends

Job 42:7–10 (CSB)

After the Lord had finished speaking to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your two friends, for you have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has. Now take seven bulls and seven rams, go to my servant Job, and offer a burnt offering for yourselves. Then my servant Job will pray for you. I will surely accept his prayer and not deal with you as your folly deserves. For you have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has.” Then Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the Lord had told them, and the Lord accepted Job’s prayer.

After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and doubled his previous possessions.

Job endures the sins of his friends, and is able to reconcile their relationship with God

Not only does he not reject those who rejected him—he brings them in and stands in the gap between them and God

Job is pointing us to Jesus

(SLIDES)

1

And I think one of the most profound things about this is that we see that God is not immune to the suffering of this world

God doesn’t let us suffer while he is off in his high place—protected from all of the pain

2

In Jesus, God came down into this mess—God became vulnerable to pain and suffering

3

That Jesus suffered, and died for us

And guys, this models for us—what it means to follow Jesus

It means that we don’t seek after a life of comfort and ease

But we should be willing to give up our comfort for the sake of other people

That we should be vulnerable to pain and suffering too

And that we don’t ignore the difficult things—but that we work through them with God and others

A mature Christian isn’t so strong that they are immune to pain—and nothing phases them

A mature Christian experiences pain—and knows God’s care and comfort in the midst of it

Conclusion

Like we started with, Job is a book of wisdom—it’s not just a crazy story

It’s meant for us to meditate on and learn from

So lets learn from this very difficult book

(SLIDES)

1

Let’s learn how to love and support others who are suffering

2

Let’s learn how to look for God in our suffering and not necessarily for answers

3

And let’s look to Jesus—who knows suffering

And with that we are here for you

We are here to suffer alongside you—to support you in difficult times

And like I said earlier—even if you’re not suffering now—you will later

I want you all to know that you can come to us

I will sit, listen, and cry with you

I may not have the answers—but I know how faithful our God is