The Hits Keep on Coming;Job 2:1-10
Notes
Transcript
Main Idea: Maintaining Integrity Despite Continuing Adversity
Main Idea: Maintaining Integrity Despite Continuing Adversity
Important that we know where we’re going on this, before we start the journey
Back-story
Back-story
We looked at the problem of theodicy—a good God tolerating evil
Even if we don’t fully understand that, we recognize that there are heavenly realities of which we are not aware…and we see that again here
Last week’s message had Satan, the LORD, Job’s integrity, Satan’s challenge
Job’s testing…
In all this Job did not sin or charge God with Wrong (1:22)
His statement was
Blessed Be the Name of the LORD
With that in mind…we open the second round and Satan—the accuser/adversary ups the ante
He’s a sore loser
Scholars unsure of exact nature of the phrase “skin for skin”
Could be a reference that the loss of lives of his children had not been enough…but attacking his OWN skin would be
So, Job was attacked with
…loathsome sores…from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head
He went to sit in the ash heap—the garbage dump—and scrape himself to relieve the pain
Other symptoms described further: weight loss (19:20). fever (20:30) nightmares (7:14), sleepless ness (7:4); read the whole rest of the book! It was ugly
Family, Friends, Feelings
Family, Friends, Feelings
Family
Family
The family coming in here is the wife—and she’s not much help
We’ll find his brothers at the end of the story…never showed during the crisis
Best-case scenario, looking out for Job’s best interest—get him out of his misery
Curse God and die!
Worst-case scenario…her faith was weak…shaken and she was disgusted with God
Job being gone would end her misery
Shows a lack of understanding and trust
Job calls her a foolish woman…can’t get away from the concept of foolishness
unlearned, simple—can’t quite get to brain-dead...
Job remains faithful
However, he will get into dealing with his feelings
Friends
Friends
We begin to meet them in v. 11
Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite
Meet Elihu in chapter 32
They came all together…appears to be a planned, joint venture to bring comfort to their friend
Obviously, this had gone on a while
Possibly men of means…high-status, in keeping with the status of Job
Unknown what their relationship was to God—their theology leaned toward cultural wisdom
Some concept of God…but...
They really don’t get it
But they came…sat with him in silence for 7 days…length of mourning in Jewish culture
The don’t believe Job’s faith, they don’t believe he is the upright man he is…he was hiding something
They think God is punishing him for some hidden sin
Short summary of the dialogue
Eliphaz: You’re not really perfect…you need some correction and discipline here
It does not get the desired response
Bildad: echoes the cause and effect theme of Eliphaz; even hints that Job’s children died as a result of their own sins
Zophar: directs him, as a secret sinner, to repent; tells him to do all the things he has been doing
Back and forth....
Elihu steps in and chews out the other three…and adds his 2 cents against Job
Feelings
Feelings
He regrets that he’d ever been born 3
He believes he’s become God’s enemy: 6:1-13
My life has not hope: 7:6
He can’t force God to be just (as he sees it)
Worries that if could speak in open court, his situation would overwhelm him and he would accuse God of wrongdoing…wouldn’t end well; not that he wanted to accuse God, he wanted to hear the evidence against him
He denies the wisdom of his friends
HOWEVER through it we see his faith
Faith
Faith
So many places it shows through
Though he slay me, I will hope in him;
yet I will argue my ways to his face.
Even though he’s having problems with the outcome; he trusts
Tell the Guatemala trip story
For I know that my Redeemer lives,
and at the last he will stand upon the earth.
and if that’s not enough
And after my skin has been thus destroyed,
yet in my flesh I shall see God,
It is here we get the first clear picture of what happens at the end of time for all believers
It’s where we get the foundation for the hymn
I know not why God’s wondrous grace to me He hath made known
Nor why, unworthy, Christ in love redeemed me for his own
But I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able
To keep that which I’ve committed unto Him against that day
…paraphrase of 2 Tim. 1:12
What we confess to Him…is forgiven, never to be brought up again
Job got it!
At the end of the ordeal God took him to task for his attitudes…though not directly calling them sin
Job reaffirmed his faith,
“I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
‘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.
‘Hear, and I will speak;
I will question you, and you make it known to me.’
I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
therefore I despise myself,
and repent in dust and ashes.”
Future
Future
Ultimately, it worked out for Job—his faith sustained him; God gave him some direction
His wealth was restored doubly!
He had the same number of children AGAIN in his older years
We could say that he ended with double all, since we can believe that his first children all had the same relationship
…But…About our Future
…But…About our Future
Job had understood there was more than just the temporal nature of life
Saw the eternal component and had the faith in God to have eternity under control
Therefor, he has the present under control
In spite of all the calamities
The future is secure, the present may be tough…but it’s doable
Where are the Parallels?
Where are the Parallels?
Bad advice…based upon bad theology
Generic sense of God out there; Paul cites a pagan poet with Acts 17:28, “In Him we live, move and have our beings” but the poet didn’t really know God
Even the apostles had some bad doctrine, Jn. 9:2 “Who sinned?” Man born blind
Anything build on a flawed foundation will be flawed…so much of today’s advice
“It isn’t fair!” a fair is a place to judge pigs and pies!
Throwback to some lessons last year from 1st Corinthians
The advice we get comes from pop-culture; folks with the designer Jesus
Has a ring of truth to it—most likely because we’ve heard it so much;
May even contain some good stuff; but flawed at its foundation
Its foundation is in the heart of man which is sinful and evil at its base
There are also preachers—supposedly Christian—who proclaim a false gospel
They give false hope, just like the snake oil salesmen of old
We need the power of the cross…not verses ripped out of context and put into catchy-looking posters…not words of prophecy misapplied to this—or any other crisis
For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away.
But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.
Satan can throw anything he wants at us…all to no avail if our faith is sound
We look back to Isaiah 54:17 for some assurance for God’s people that still stands today
no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed,
and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment.
This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord
and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.”
When we deal with crisis upon crisis, the more we understand of God the more solidly we can stand
Fear is the product of lack of knowledge and understanding of God
The book of Job gives us a couple things here
1) A behind the scenes look at what went on in Heaven to provoke that series of events
2) God explains much of Himself as he chastises Job throughout chapters 38-41
Invitation...