hanger #7

I am going to leave the book of Genesis this week and focus upon another book that probably fits in to the same time frame that we have been in and that is the book of Job. Job probably existed sometime in the years of the Patriarchs after the tower of babel and sometime before Joseph went to Egypt but it is rather unclear. So I thought this would be as good of place as any to stick him in.

Starting with verse one of chapter 1 we read: There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job; and that man was blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil. 2 Seven sons and three daughters were born to him. 3 His possessions also were 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and very many servants; and that man was the greatest of all the men 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 When the days of feasting had completed their cycle, Job would send and consecrate them, rising up early in the morning and offering burnt offerings according to the number of them all; for Job said, “Perhaps my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” Thus Job did continually.

Here is a man much like Noah in his generation: blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil. Is he any different than all the others before him? In one sense no; he was born a descendant of Adam. He was born in sin. So what this passage tells us is that Job also found grace in the eyes of the Lord. The scripture clearly tells us that there is no man righteous no not one. But God tells us that Job was blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil. Job was in Christ Jesus by faith in the God who promised redemption. I want you to understand that if you are in Christ Jesus the very same thing can be said about you. Listen to what God says about you: You are blameless. You are upright. You fear God. You turn away from evil. Don’t listen to those lies you tell yourself; listen to what God says about you.

The scripture also tells us that Job was a rich man and that he had been paying attention to the covenant commands because he has 10 kids. He is being fruitful and multiplying not just with children but in every area of life. From the passage it seems that the brothers and sisters would celebrate their birthdays by getting together and having a feast. Job was concerned for the spiritual wellbeing of his children and so each year after their birthdays had passed he would offer sacrifices to God on behalf of his children saying: Perhaps my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.

But then comes the rest of the story. In verse six we read: Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. 7 The LORD said to Satan, “From where do you come?” Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.” 8 The LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil.” 9 Then Satan answered the LORD, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 10 Have You not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11 But put forth Your hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse You to Your face.” 12 Then the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him.” So Satan departed from the presence of the LORD.

This passage is the second time in scripture that the phrase the sons of God is used in scripture. The other time is in Genesis chapter 6 when the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful. I don’t think that scripture is talking about angelic beings in either of these passages. Rather the phrase can just as easily be translated the sons of the judges.

In this passage I believe it refers to the rulers of the age. They are all gathered together in one place to stand before the Lord. God is still coming into their presence just like he did with Cain and just like he did at the tower of Babel. At the same time Satan, the king of the earth comes with them also. He has been roaming and walking over his Kingdom.

It seems like God can’t help but rub it in Satan’s face a little bit saying: “Hey, King of the Earth have you noticed that there’s a guy in your kingdom that’s in rebellion against you and is a part of my kingdom? Did you notice that he has humbled himself before me and I have made him righteous by the one that is going to crush your head with his heal one of these days?

I realize that is a paraphrase but we really need to look at this passage in the context of the whole testament of God. God is doing nothing more than reminding Satan of the promised curses and of the promised blessings of walking on the path of life.

Satan gets a little p.o.’d about God’s comments and says “Hey, the only reason he’s being good is because you protect him, his family and everything he has. You made him rich. Everything he touches is blessed. If you weren’t keeping your covenant promises to him he’d give up following you in a heartbeat. If you’d take away all that he has then he’ll curse you to your face. So God said to Satan: Alright then everything he has is in your power just don’t touch his body. Satan left the presence of God probably with a smile on his face.

I want you to see something here. Satan has to ask permission to bring trouble into your life. You are God’s if you have humbled yourself before him. You are in covenant with him and Satan has to ask permission mess with your life. Trouble comes because God knows what you need in order to be all that you are meant to be. That being said, it doesn’t make it any easier to go through knowing that God has allowed it to happen for your good but it is nice to know.

Anyway, Satan doesn’t waste anytime destroying Job’s life. Verse 13 says: Now on the day when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 14 a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the donkeys feeding beside them, 15 and the hells angels attacked and took them. They stabbed the servants to death, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 16 While he was still speaking, another also came and said, “A meteorite fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants and consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 17 While he was still speaking, another also came and said, “Al queda formed three bands and made a raid on the camels and took them and killed the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.” 18 While he was still speaking, another also came and said, “Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, 19 and behold, a tornado came from across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people and they died, and I alone have escaped to tell you.”

That hits home doesn’t it? In one day Job lost almost everything that he held dear. All the good things that God had given him are gone. A lifetime of taking dominion for God; gone in the blink of an eye: His children dead all on the same day.

Job’s response? He mourned and he humbled himself before God. The scripture says: Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head –that was the form of mourning in those days. And then he fell to the ground. Now contrary to popular opinion the passage doesn’t really say he worshiped. It says he fell to the ground and he bowed down. It says he was so overwhelmed with grief that he fell to the ground and while he was there he humbled himself before God. He was already on the ground so the bowing down had to be more than just kneeling before God. He humbled his heart before his maker in the mist of more devastation than you or I have probably ever known, though some in Joplin Missouri or Tuscaloosa might be able to relate.
And in the midst of that devastation he cries out: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.” 22 Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.

Oh that I were half the man Job was. I blame God for a hangnail. But here Job thoroughly understands the Sovereignty of God in the giving and taking away of life and yet he does not blame God for any of it. Oh that I would trust my God that much. Oh that I would humble myself before my God like Job when hard times come.
Eventually, maybe I do but not without giving him a lot of grief first, not without a lot of kicking and screaming on the way there. I am all too familiar with my lack of being humble and not being bowed down before my God.

Of course we all know it doesn’t end there with Job. When you think things can’t get any worse here comes Satan again. There is another gathering of the sons of the judges and King Satan shows up as usual. I want you to understand something from this passage God calls a meeting and Satan shows up. He may be king of the earth at this point but he is still under God. He does what God allows him to do nothing more nothing less. When God says jump Satan says how high.

So God says to Satan: “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man fearing God and turning away from evil. And he still holds fast his integrity, although you incited Me against him to ruin him without cause.” Satan answered the LORD and said, “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life. 5 However, put forth Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh; he will curse You to Your face.” 6 So the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your power, only spare his life.”

7 Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and smote Job with skin cancer from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head. 8 And he took a potsherd to scrape himself while he was sitting among the ashes. I changed it from boils to something we are all more familiar with because I don’t want you to be able to just skim over it.

Notice that God says that he was incited against Job to ruin him. Satan cannot do anything unless God gives him permission. Nothing comes into your life that God hasn’t allowed for a purpose. When I think of some of the things that have come into my life, horrible things that shouldn’t happen to anyone I have to put them into the perspective of the whole word of God: When scripture says that all things work to the good to those who love God and are called according to his purpose it is including the horrible things.

I am reminded of the words of Joseph which we will get to one of these days: You meant it for bad but God meant it for God. Satan meant those horrible things that happened to me as a child to be my destruction but God meant them for my good, he meant them to soften my heart for the broken. If I had not been broken I would not have compassion on the broken. I would say, just like the Eagles sang: Get over it. Quit whining. However, God is more gracious and promises that all things work to the good. All things.

Notice also that it doesn’t say that you will have all things figured out and know why stuff happens to you. The secret things belong to God. Our call is to trust that if we are in Christ Jesus all things will work toward the good. We must also remember Job as a picture of what covenant keeping can look like. Just because you are walking on the path of life doesn’t mean that your life will always be a piece of cake. Yes job had a pretty cushy life He was one of the richest and most powerful men in the east. We was in right relation with God and then bam he loses everything for no reason whatsoever. This passage should be the first thing that pops into our head when hard times fall upon someone who loves the Lord. Too often our first response is: What sin did he commit to cause this? Sometimes bad times come just to test us.

Now we come to the famous words of Job’s wife. 9 Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!” 10 But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

I don’t think that Mrs. Job was being mean to her husband. I think she was probably broken hearted over him and all that had happened. Really, how much worse could it get? She just lost all of her children in a single, all of her possesions and standing in the community. Her husband has lost his health. If this is what righteousness gives you then maybe the best thing for you to do is die. Jump off the path of life. Turn your back on God.

Here Job responds with words that need to be heard and understood in our day and age: Should we accept good from God and not adversity? Should we take the good times and then get mad when the bad times come? All that comes into our lives comes from God. Now the book of Job tells us that it doesn’t always come directly from the hand of God. God uses secondary causes to bring about his plan but if he hasn’t planned it then it doesn’t come to pass. If he has planned it then it will come to pass.

This is his world and he does what he wants. Just because you can’t understand it doesn’t mean that it won’t work for your good. Is God a liar because you say so? I don’t think so. It wasn’t true when Adam and Eve said it was true and it won’t be true when you say it. God promises that all things work to the good. We need to learn to receive all things good and bad and trust that God knows what he is doing. Not an easy thing to learn I know but helpful when the hard times of life fall down on you.

Questions?

Let’s pray. Oh Father, please be merciful to us. Help us to be aware that all things come from your hand for our good. Do what it takes to humble us before you. In Jesus name I pray, amen.