Prase You in The Storm

Intro and opening

Who here knows what a platitude is?

Do they help?

Has anyone had one used on them at a really inappropriate time?

Has anyone use one themselves at a bad time?

Why do we do it?

We run into a hard time that either we are having ourselves OR someone else is having around us. We want to say the right thing.

We want to make it better.

My father in law died of Cancer after a 4.5 year fight against it.

I got a lot of at least he isn’t suffering and he is in a better place and I even got an “I am glad he isn’t suffering anymore” which to someone who is grieving IS NOT the same thing as at least he isn’t suffering.

One is a fact while the other is say you are glad they are dead so they don’t have to suffer anymore.

Or maybe we try to rationalize why people suffer. We try to create reasons.

The scientific experts will tell you that Tuesday's magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Haiti was caused by tectonic forces along a seismic fault line that runs through the island of Hispaniola which Haiti shares with the Dominican Republic.

But Pat Robertson, the Christian televangelist, has a different explanation guaranteed to scandalize untold numbers. On the "700 Club" he said Haitians made a pact with the devil to be freed from their French colonizers in the 18th Century.

THAT IS NOT THE CASE. We cannot speak for God. Hatti is on a major fault line and they get bad earth quakes. Not vengence because of devil pact to over throw the french.

We can’t speak to any of that.

Pat Robertson clearly has a bad Theology of suffering. Of what it is and why we go through it.

Which brings me to my main question this morning.

Does each one of us have theological answer for why suffering happens?

OR Do we know why it happens and where it comes from and what is God’s role in it?

Main Point

Having a good understanding of pain and suffering needs to happen BEFORE we are in pain or suffering.

Why it Matters

any 70’s or 80’s kids here today?

Who here thought that catching on fire was going to be a bigger problem as an adult than it actually is?

There were so many commercials and songs about stop, drop, and roll.

Like this one

Or does anyone remember the old lady who lived in a shoe. Her brother and kids were ALWAYS catching on fire!

That was to teach us how to stop a fire if we ever caught fire.

Why?

Because if you don’t know Stop, Drop, and roll and you catch on fire… you won’t know what to do.

It’s the same idea. Going through pain is NOT the time to work on your theology of pain and suffering. It is a reality of this life and we need to be in a healthy place while we figure out our position on it.

We are going to look at Job. That is our scripture this morning. THE WHOLE BOOK OF JOB!!! Get comfortable. it’s 42 chapters long.

I am kidding, I am not going to read the whole thing. But I am going to walk us through Job’s journey. Because it is important we look at him and learn.

Scripture

Job 1:6–11 NIV

One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.” Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.” “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.”

Here is a faithful God fearing man, Job. God is proud of him.

Satan replies “Ofcourse your are proud of him he hasn’t suffered a day in his life. I bet I can get him to curse you.”

God agrees to test Job. I dont’ know why he does. There have been many books written on the subject and this book will give an answer to this question. Let’s not get lost in the forest through the trees.

Job has had apretty easy life so far…He has not thought about pain and suffering...

Job 1:13–22 NIV

One day when Job’s sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, and the Sabeans attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, “The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, “Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother’s house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!” At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.

Then chapter 2

Job 2:7–10 NIV

So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes. His wife said to him, “Are you still maintaining your integrity? Curse God and die!” He replied, “You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?” In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

Shall we accept good from God and not trouble… and

The New International Version Chapter 1

Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

and naked I will depart. v

The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away;

may the name of the LORD be praised

There we have it…platitudes.

Don’t we do that? Say the “right thing”. Try to trust God? Force ourselves to move on.

I used to read the words of Job here and feel bad for not having this reaction when I was suffering. Here the problem with stopping here. We miss out on the eye opening Chapter 3

Job 3:1–10 NIV

After this, Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. He said: “May the day of my birth perish, and the night that said, ‘A boy is conceived!’ That day—may it turn to darkness; may God above not care about it; may no light shine on it. May gloom and utter darkness claim it once more; may a cloud settle over it; may blackness overwhelm it. That night—may thick darkness seize it; may it not be included among the days of the year nor be entered in any of the months. May that night be barren; may no shout of joy be heard in it. May those who curse days curse that day, those who are ready to rouse Leviathan. May its morning stars become dark; may it wait for daylight in vain and not see the first rays of dawn, for it did not shut the doors of the womb on me to hide trouble from my eyes.

That’s a very different response than the lord give and the lord takes away or should we only accept the good.

He cursed the day of his birth he was a mess.

THEN his friends come along and in their grief they try to figure out their theology as to why this happened to Job.

One friends was like WHAT DID YOU DO??? God must be mad.

Then another friend tries to teach Job about God’s justice and agrees that job must have done something bad or angered God in some way.

ANother friend tells Job to repent and God will forgive him.

When Job doesn’t agree with them thay claim he is being arrogent.

Then in Chapter 16Job says this

Job 16:2 NIV

“I have heard many things like these; you are miserable comforters, all of you!

Job goes on to be confused by “God’s Actions.” Which is ironic because he said inthe first 2 capters “should we only expect the good and not the bad?” Yet he is confused when the bad of this workd comes.

Job must have thought himself an exception.

for 20 more chapters his friends double down and they get quite agressive with their opinions.

They sound just like that Televangelist Pat Roberson.

they have not really thought about it and what they thought about doesn’t reflect who God is.

Then it happens God speaks up. He reminds Job who set the foundations of the land and has control of everything from the tiniest breeze to the mightiest animal.

He reminds Job that God will sustain him and though he doesn’t understand why this all happened to him he needs to trust in God.

Job questioned God, He questioned his mercy, his judgment, his grace, his soverignty.

Then he turned to the friendsand said

Job 42:7 NIV

After the Lord had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has.

God may confuseus and we may not understand the why. But we know that he is God and wins in the end.

Job felt his feels and God continued to bless him. He was pleased with job even though he was lost and angry and sad.

Job now has a grasp of a theology of suffering.

So you see...

Application

Job’s words were correct in the beginning. But God is big enough for our hurt and our anger and our pain. He is not only big enough to handle it he WANTS us to come to him with it.

Jesus did, Here are two times Jesus laid it all out for God in pain.

Luke 22:41–44 NIV

He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.

Matthew 27:45–46 NIV

From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).

one more Lazarus

John 11:33–36 NIV

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. “Where have you laid him?” he asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they replied. Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”

Jesus was hurting and he called out to God and felt his emotions. He knew that Lazarus was coming back. But his friend died. He had the knowledge but it still pained him.

Grief and a healthy understanding of pain and suffering is so important and we need to have that figured out so we know what to do when we are in it.

Closing

The answer we get from God is I know this hurts and it is confusing but you have to trust me. Hold on to the fact that He loves you.