Searching for God 3
Searching for God • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 1 viewNotes
Transcript
Game
Game
44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
11 I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—
4 But he answered, “It is written, “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”
105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Announcements
Announcements
Baptism - Sept. 22nd!
rGroup - next meeting this Monday at Dario in King going through 3 John
Merch - pushed back due to shipping issues
Revision night - a chance for us to have dinner and revision our self now that school has started!
Xtreme Winter - Sign-ups are live! Your parents have gotten an email! The cost is $190, if that’s an issue come and talk to me or Kasey after students! We want you to come!
Intro
Intro
This series has been a fun one so far!
We have tackled two subjects that I’m sure you have all faced at least once or twice in your life
We looked at the first week asking the question: Does God love people?
We sought to dispel the myth that God does love people — we just saw that love doesn’t mean acceptance
Then we looked at the question: Is God good?
This is another one of the questions that gets asked a lot and for the wrong reasons
We talked about how everything God does is for our good
How he gives perfect gifts and that God ultimately
Unfortunately there is still more questions that you are going to face
Maybe even a question that you have asked yourself
This is arguably the most asked question when it comes to Christianity
Here it is:
Why do bad things happen?
The natural progression from the question from two weeks ago is a simple one — why do bad things happen?
If God is love
If God is good
Why do bad things happen?
If we trust in Jesus and seek after Him — why are bad things happening in our life?
Why is the outcome that we want not happening?
More specifically we might ask the question — why do bad things happen to good people?
So tonight I want to look at the story of Job to help us understand evil and bad things happening
Job
Job
1 There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. 2 There were born to him seven sons and three daughters. 3 He possessed 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 female donkeys, and very many servants, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east. 4 His sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one on his day, and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. 5 And when the days of the feast had run their course, Job would send and consecrate them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, “It may be that my children have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts.” Thus Job did continually.
Job was declared a righteous man
He was blameless — constantly seeking to see God and grow closer to God
He was a man that did everything to serve God
He made sacrifices to God daily for himself and all of his children
God in every instance would be considered a good man
God had blessed him with money and wealth
But listen to what happened to Job
6 Now the day came when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord—and Satan also arrived among them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” And Satan answered the Lord, “From roving about on the earth, and from walking back and forth across it.”8 So the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one like him on the earth, a pure and upright man, one who fears God and turns away from evil.” 9 Then Satan answered the Lord, “Is it for nothing that Job fears God? 10 Have you not made a hedge around him and his household and all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his livestock have increased in the land. 11 But extend your hand and strike everything he has, and he will no doubt curse you to your face!” 12 So the Lord said to Satan, “All right then, everything he has is in your power. Only do not extend your hand against the man himself!” So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.
Satan goes to God and challenges Him, saying
“Job is only following you because you have blessed him”
God allows Satan some power and listen to what happens to Job — the righteous and blameless man of God
13 Now the day came when Job’s sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 14 and a messenger came to Job, saying, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing beside them, 15 and the Sabeans swooped down and carried them all away, and they killed the servants with the sword! And I—only I alone—escaped to tell you!” 16 While this one was still speaking, another messenger arrived and said, “The fire of God has fallen from heaven and has burned up the sheep and the servants—it has consumed them! And I—only I alone—escaped to tell you!” 17 While this one was still speaking another messenger arrived and said, “The Chaldeans formed three bands and made a raid on the camels and carried them all away, and they killed the servants with the sword! And I—only I alone—escaped to tell you!” 18 While this one was still speaking another messenger arrived and said, “Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 19 and suddenly a great wind swept across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people, and they died! And I—only I alone—escaped to tell you!”
In that moment everything happened
Job lost everything
He family, his money, his homes, his cattle, everything
It was all taken from God
A good and blameless man of God
A man who was making sacrifices daily lost everything he loved and cared for
All of it, gone
In chapter 2 we see that Satan attacks Job’s health
He gets sores on his skin that are painful with no treatment
He is a broken man
A man that was blameless in the eyes of God
This story leads us to question why do bad things happen?
If God is good, why did Job have so much evil happen to him?
Well I want to notice three things about the story of Job
Observation #1
Observation #1
Here’s the first observation:
Evil comes from Satan
The first thing I want you to notice is that the evil that befell Job was from Satan
It was not God that destroyed anything, it was Satan
God blessed Job with all that he had
It was Satan that came and devoured it
Listen to how satan is described:
8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
Satan is constantly seeking people to devour
He is seeking to take and destroy
He is also called the enemy who is seeking to kill, steal, and destroy
Often times we are look at the evil in our lives and question why God would do this too us — the reality is, God did not do this Satan did
In Ephesians 6 Satan is called the ruler of the air
He has power on earth right now to do what he wants — not because he is powerful, but because God is allowing it
When bad things are happening to you, we must remember that it is because of Satan, not God
Observation #2
Observation #2
Here’s the second observation:
God didn’t leave Job
Both instances of the evil that befell Job weren’t without God being with Him
Notice that Satan couldn’t attack him without getting permission
God was with Job and watching over Job
God at first told Satan to do what he wants but don’t touch Job
In chapter two God said you can touch Job, but don’t kill Job
God was with Job in the pain and the brokenness and evil
God didn’t leave Job but stayed right with him
When you are facing things that are bad and evil it is important for us to remember that God is with us
He is always with us, protecting us and caring for us
He doesn’t leave us
8 The Lord is indeed going before you—he will be with you; he will not fail you or abandon you. Do not be afraid or discouraged!”
God will never leave us and never abandon us
When we feel far from God He is there
Observation #3
Observation #3
Here’s the last observation I want us to see:
God has a plan
God had a plan for Job and the suffering and evil that attacked Him
God didn’t just allow the evil and suffering to happen
Just like he was with Job he only allowed Satan to do so much
That’s because He had a plan for Job
21 Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.
One of my favorite verses — we have a plan, but God has a purpose much higher than ours
He is doing that we don’t understand
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
God is working on a level that we don’t see or understand
For us we only see the pain and evil — for God he sees the whole picture of life
He knows everything and is working things out in a specific way
We may not always understand God’s plan, or like it, but we must trust that God is good and that God loves us
Suffering comes to all
Suffering comes to all
Here’s the reality
A lot of us might feel like Job
We are ay-okay with people who deem evil as getting punished and having bad things happen
But when it comes to us we aren’t because I’m following Jesus
“I’m a Christian, I’m reading my Bible, praying, seeking Him… It’s not fair”
Here’s the reality suffering comes to all
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Because of sin, because of Satan, because creation is groaning for Jesus to come back and take away, we all feel the effects of sin
We all feel the pain and evil and suffering
Even Jesus wasn’t immune to it
2 He sprouted up like a twig before God, like a root out of parched soil; he had no stately form or majesty that might catch our attention, no special appearance that we should want to follow him. 3 He was despised and rejected by people, one who experienced pain and was acquainted with illness; people hid their faces from him; he was despised, and we considered him insignificant. 4 But he lifted up our illnesses, he carried our pain; even though we thought he was being punished, attacked by God, and afflicted for something he had done. 5 He was wounded because of our rebellious deeds, crushed because of our sins; he endured punishment that made us well; because of his wounds we have been healed.
Jesus came to earth perfect
He was the greater Job
No sin, completely spotless
YET
He bore the weight of our sin on the cross
He is the one that took our punishment
The evil that came to Jesus was unfair
He shouldn’t have been on trial, He shouldn’t have been crucified, yet it came to Him
Listen to what Jesus said
18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.
We are not greater than Jesus
If Jesus faced evil and suffering and bad things — of course we are going to
Conclusion
Conclusion
Bad things happen because of Sin
Bad things happen because Satan is running loose and destroying everything
Bad things happen because if Jesus faced them of course we will face them
Job proved that bad things happen no matter what we do
But I want to leave us with this hope:
4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death will not exist any more—or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the former things have ceased to exist.”
One day Jesus will come back
He will bound up Satan
He will wipe away every tear from our eyes
Death, sin, pain, cancer, divorce, abuse, drugs, none of it will survive
Jesus will wipe it away