Standing Strong in the Storm: Trials into Triumph

Bible Passage: Job 42:8–17

The theme of the past few weeks is this you cant have a testimony without a test. Weve seen how Job has been tested and how he responded to being tested. Job is a prime example of what faith looks like. No matter what he went through it never got too tough for him to shake his faith. His friends that wept with him last week turned on him. They ended up feeling like Job had sinned against God and thats what caused his hardship. After his friends turned on him he truly felt alone and isolated. In this we see how not to show love to our neighbor. We never know what people are going through behind the scenes. There may be a day when our closest friends wont be there for us. We all will face hardship and loneliness, but we have to remain faithful to Christ. No one can restore us like God can.

1. Repentance Restores Relationships

Job 42:7–9 ESV

7 After the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite: “My anger burns against you and against your two friends, for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. 8 Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.” 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what the Lord had told them, and the Lord accepted Job’s prayer.

After his friends treated him so terribly God commands them to go back to Job. To offer a burnt offering to God for forgiveness. God was so frustrated with Job’s three friends that they had to seek out Job to pray for their repentance. To seek out repentance you have got to acknowledge that youve done wrong. God showed them the way that had sinned against him. They had to seek repentance not only with God but with Job as well. They had not only sinned against God but they had also sinned against their friend. Even though they went through some of it with Job they still turned on him. It got to hard on Job for them to stick around. When we put our faith in the people and things of this world all of that will fail us. Job even through all of his turmoil and suffering he remained strong in his faith and in his servitude to the Lord. When they did repent of their sins and Job prayed for them the Lord accepted Job’s prayer and their offering. All of us in here have made mistakes. We have all sinned against God and our brothers and sisters in this room and at school. When we seek repentance with God and the people that we have gone against then we can be restored as well as our relationships. The things we say and do to those around us may not seem like a big deal at the time but it is. It will weigh on us until we seek out restoration.

2. Prayer Precedes Restoration

Job 42:10–11 ESV

10 And the Lord restored the fortunes of Job, when he had prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. 11 Then came to him all his brothers and sisters and all who had known him before, and ate bread with him in his house. And they showed him sympathy and comforted him for all the evil that the Lord had brought upon him. And each of them gave him a piece of money and a ring of gold.

Job had had everything taken from him. Everything that he had worked for his whole life up until this time. The only thing that remained was his life and his relationship with the Lord. No matter the attacks that Satan did on him he was still able to hold onto those things because of his fear of the Lord. If at any point during his trials if he had surrendered his faith do you think he would’ve lived? If he had succumb to the darkness it wouldve taken him over and he would’ve either dwelled in it for the rest of his life or it would’ve killed him on the spot. But darkness didnt surpress him. When he prayed for his friends and the Lord gave him everything he lost and then some. Immediately the Lord gave it all back to him. Even though he had nothing God gave him more than he ever had because of his faithfulness. Even though we are sinners with nothin to offer God sent his son to de for us. I dont feel like we will truly ever be able to comprehend the sacrifice that was poured out for us on that cross. When we are faithful God will give us everything that we need. Nothing is possible outside of Christ. We will still be down in the grave if it werent for Christ saving us. Unlike Job we are not always faithful. We fail daily yet God still loves us and wants to give us everything that we need. He wants to restore us from our sin into glory to be better than we ever have been.

3. Triumph Through Trials

Job 42:12–17 ESV

12 And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. 13 He had also seven sons and three daughters. 14 And he called the name of the first daughter Jemimah, and the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-happuch. 15 And in all the land there were no women so beautiful as Job’s daughters. And their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers. 16 And after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, four generations. 17 And Job died, an old man, and full of days.

Job indeed had triumph through his trials. God had a plan for Job along. He wanted him to prosper. And in the end he indeed did prosper after everything that he went through. Even after all of the Lord’s blessings Job ever turned from his faith. Some people who come from nothing and through their blessings turn from God because they have everything they need so why do they need God. Look at some of these big mega pastors that have all the money and all the jets and everything they need in this world. Pastors like Joel Osteen and Kenneth Copeland. They are as crooked as crooked can be. There will come a day where their worldly riches will mean nothing. The things of this world will never truly fulfill us. Sin taints us and makes us have the apperance of happiness and prosperity when we truly arent. Only through God can we truly have Joy. After his trials Job lived to be an old happy man. He had 10 more kids. He got to watch the 10 of his kids grow up and start families of their own. According to Jewish tradition and textual analysis Job was likely around 70 when he was tested. He go to live 2/3 of his life prospering because of his faithfulness then he got to spend eternity with God all because of his faithfulness. When our faith can weather any storm (and the storms will come) we will truly prosper.

Maybe youre in the middle of a storm and your boat is being rocked and you dont have a life raft. Maybe tonight you are like one of Jobs friends and need to seek forgieness for your actions against someone. Maybe you feel like you have nothing and you need God to help you. There is no time like tonight.