Sunday Sermons
"There Was a Man"
“There was a Man”
Victor Hugo declared, “Tomorrow, if all literature was to be destroyed and it was left to me to retain one work only, I should save Job”. Tennyson called this book, “the greatest poem, whether of ancient or modern literature”. “The book of Job”, said Daniel Webster, “taken as a mere work of literary genius, is one of the most wonderful productions of any age or of any language”. This book that has made such an impression on so many people over the years begins with the words "There was a man". Intimated by a book containing 42 chapters? Don't be. In this lesson I simply want to introduce some of the characters in the book and specifically investigate their attitude toward the main topic of the Book of Job —human suffering.
Basic Outline of the Book
· Job is Tested: 1:1-2:13
· Three Friends Answer Job: 3:1-31:40
· A Youngest Friend Answers Job: 32:1-37:24
· God Answers Job: 38:1-41:34
· Job is Restored: Chapter 42
Satan
“And 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.’ Then Satan answered the Lord, ‘Does Job fear God for nothing? Hast Thou not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? Thou has blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But put forth Thy hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse Thee to Thy face” (Job 1:8-11).
God reveals to us in the book of Job, who Satan in actuality is— a real and restless (1:7) being, who knew who Job was, and thus knows very well who we are. Satan’s basic view of mankind and suffering is that people believe in God and serve Him only when they are prospering, that is, no man or woman really serves God simply because they love Him. What's Satan's view of suffering?
· Satan is cynical, asserted no one can be trusted, especially people.
· No one has pure motivation.
· Everyone is a hypocrite.
· Everyone has an angle and selfish motivation for why they do something.
Do we share any of these thoughts? The more that I look at Satan’s evaluation of Job, the less I see an evaluation of Job and the more I see Satan revealing his own nature. Satan views everyone as a manipulator and fair weather friend because that is his nature. Satan gives nothing, offers nothing for free and always expects something for himself. What Satan said too often proves true in the lives of some people, yet Satan was wrong about Job. Therefore, Satan is neither all-powerful nor all-knowing. Let's determine to see the potential for good in those around us, determine to be trustworthy, and prove our enemy wrong by not only doing what is right, but doing right for all the right reasons.
Job’s Wife
“Then his wife said to him, ‘Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!’” (2:9).
First of all, remember Job’s wife had suffered as well. While she was not stricken with boils from head to foot (2:7), yet she did lose all her children, as well as most of her physical comforts and now she was married to a man who she had to watch suffer in misery day and night. Why was Job’s wife spared when the rest of his family was taken? It could be that Satan knew that she would be a greater discouragement to him alive than dead. The attitude of Job’s wife seems to indicate she believed:
· Suffering gives one the right to be angry at God and angry at life.
· Suffering gives one the right to opt out by committing suicide.
· Nothing is to be learned from suffering, so why remain around for the lesson?
· She seemed to resent her husband’s good attitude in all this.
· Like many people, she was short-sighted. What use was it to curse God and die—if one then immediately met up with God again after this life? What a horrible way to introduce oneself to God to have murdered oneself, which obviously puts oneself in the position of having no time to repent.
· She likewise may have been selfish, that is, she did not look forward to carrying for a husband in such a condition. Many people in our culture feel the same way about the elderly or others—“Why can’t they just get on with it and die?” If we ever find ourselves in this taxing situation, may God grant us the realization of the blessings He has in store for us when we are involved in and are being entrusted with the care of another precious human being.
Job’s Three Friends
We do need to give these friends some credit. Many people had forsaken Job because of his suffering and poverty (Job 19:13-17), and these men had not. They showed up and they did not immediately talk, rather they saw the pain and misery that he was in (2:11-13). As these men begin to speak, their view of why people suffered begins to emerge:
· “Whoever perished being innocent? Or where were the upright, destroyed? Accordingly to what I have seen, those who plow iniquity and those who sow trouble harvest it” (4:7-8).
Their basic view of suffering was that suffering is always a specific punishment for sin, and that while Job had been faithful in the past (4:3), he must have done something quite evil to deserve all these misfortunes. In their eyes the righteous are always rewarded physically and the wicked are always punished physically, even in this life. Do we think as they did? Have you ever found yourself saying something along the lines of:
· “The car wouldn’t start this morning—God must be punishing me for something”.
· “My life is comfortable—I must be right with God”.
· “That person over there is prospering—they must be saved”.
· “That religious group is big and growing—God must be blessing them”.
Elihu/The Young Man:
This young man realizes that the viewpoint of the three friends was incorrect and that they had failed to prove their point (32:12), yet he addressed Job personally. He did not like the fact that Job had insinuated that while he was innocent, God must have made a mistake (33:8-12). He also rebukes Job for becoming so focused on having to have an answer from God for why all this was happening (33:13). This young man does introduce a valuable insight into suffering: that suffering may be used, not as a punishment, but as being allowed to refine and teach (33:16-19). God can use pain to get a person’s attention and bring them closer to Him (Romans 5:3-5; Psalm 119:71; Hebrews 12:5ff). C.S. Lewis was spot on when he called pain, “God’s megaphone”.
Job Himself
Job’s first reaction to suffering was inspiring (2:10). And the fact that he did not give up or curse God was likewise noteworthy. Yet there is something that got in the way and needed to be corrected: Job allowed himself to become focused and obsessed with why he was suffering to the point that he began to question God’s wisdom, love and handling of this situation, and therefore began to fixate on getting an answer from God (Job 13:22-23; 19:6-7; 13:15-19).
|
Suffering is Helpful When…. We turn to God for understanding, endurance, and deliverance. We ask advice of those we deem wise in understanding Biblical truths. We are open to being helped by others. We are ready to learn from a trustworthy God. We realize that Jesus can identify with us. We are sensitized to the amount of suffering in the world |
Suffering is Harmful When… We become hardened and reject God. We refuse to seek advice seek out the wisdom that can make use of our painful experience. We allow it to make us self-centered. We withdraw from the help others can give us. We reject the fact that God can bring good out of calamity. We accuse God of being unjust. We refuse to be open to any changes in our lives. |
Mark Dunagan | Beaverton Church of Christ | 503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net | mdunagan@frontier.com
