Job 16 (cont)

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What we didn't cover last week and then chapter 17, so remember where we're at just to keep us on track that Eliphaz one of the so -called friends of Job has come around the second round and Really pretty much just blasted
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Job for what he perceives to be Job's just punishment for his secret sin and his seeking to To live a double life and so as Job responds
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Just read with chapter 16 with me and Job says Then Job answered and said
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I have heard many such thing and miserable comforters. Are you all? And shall words of wind have an end
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What provokes you that you should that you answer? I could also speak as you do if your soul was in my soul's place
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I could heap up words against you shake my head at you But I would strengthen you with my mouth and comfort you with my lips and The and the comfort of my lips would relieve your grief
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And though I speak my grief is not relieved and though I am silent. How am I at ease?
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But now he has worn me out You have made desolate all my company you have shriveled me up and as a witness against me
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My leanness rises up against me and bears witness to my face He tears me in his wrath and hates me he gnashes at me with his teeth
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My adversary sharpens his gaze on me and a gape at me with their mouth and they strike me reproachfully on the cheek and They gathered together against me and God has delivered me to the ungodly and turned me over to the hands of the wicked.
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I Was at ease, but he has shattered me. He has taken taken me by my neck and shaken me to pieces
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He has set me up for his target his arches surround me pierces my heart does not pity
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He pours out my gall on the ground. He breaks me with the wound upon wound. He runs at me like a warrior
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And I've sewn sackcloth over my skin and laid my head in the dust my face is flushed from weeping and on my eyelids is the shadow of death and Although no violence is in my hands and my prayer is pure Or do not cover my blood let my cry have no resting place surely even now my witness is in heaven
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My evidence is on high my friends scorn me my eyes pour out tears to God all that one might plead for a man with God as A man pleads for his neighbor for when a few years are finished.
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I shall go the way of no return so If you remember we pretty much dealt with the first five six verses so I just Remember what we talked about last week in and I said to you that I found that this chapter was difficult because of I Couldn't come away with a firm conviction of who the
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Who the the speaker is speaking of who Job's talking about in verses 7 through 14 in particular where he says
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He has worn me out you have made desolate all my company you have shriveled me up and Verse 9 he tears at me and hates me
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He gnashes at me and it goes on and on and on and through these verses It's not as simple
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I don't think it's as simple to identify who he Job is speaking about Or who
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Job is speaking to if you will and I this was still up there from last week I said to you that Many have tried to think of it in three ways that it's either he's his friends that are in view or It's God who's in view or?
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It's his enemy which ultimately is Satan that's in view or and this is where I kind of Struggle, it's a combination of all those and I think if you look at these verses, that's where it becomes
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I Don't think you can make an identification. Good morning, Mary. I don't think we can identify One in particular now.
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I asked you guys to think about this over the week Has anybody thought about that? Is anybody come up with with any other thoughts?
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I know bro, Lee and I were talking after the study last weekend usually in the book of Job as In many other
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Persian scriptures when you see the word he and it's capitalized It speaks in terms of God But I do not think that's exclusive.
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In other words, I don't think every time you see he That we definitely have to associate that with God and I even told you if you look at it
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Let's see if I can remember it right in verse 7 where it says but now he has worn me out in some translations, it's
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God is there The word God is there and in verse 9 where it says he tears at me with his wrath in some translation
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I think the NIV does it the ESV says God in both of those verses or just one
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Seven says God and what's the other one nine? Yeah, see so and then in 11 it does say
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God in in every translation I guess what I'm trying to say is It's not always easy for us
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Especially when you come to the scriptures and especially when we're trying to look at it in the in the setting that it is
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In other words, we always need to remember the context and what's the context here?
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The context is this is if nothing else this is before the cross, right?
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This is before the coming of Christ. So for us to try to make everything
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Fit in a New Testament mind it is is Is not the best way to look at it
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In other words deal with it in its context and then if there's an application then we can make a broader application so I did say that to you and I and I did struggle although I do want to point out before we
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Move on to stuff. We haven't talked about And I said this to you in the last chapter
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There is a sense as you read through these words and you'll see it in the following chapters where Job could be
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Job is a type of Christ You know, and I hope we will see that as we go through the book of Job in other words
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The Old Testament in many ways is is a shadow, isn't it? It's a shadow of things to come
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But the reality of those things is who Christ absolutely, right.
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So when we when we read the scriptures Like if you go through the Psalms there are those
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Psalms that are called by many as Messianic Psalms.
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What's a messianic song? It's exactly what it sounds like It's a song that speaks
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Either directly or Indirectly of the coming of the Messiah and the coming of the
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Messiah would be no other than Christ, right? So again as we as you think about it
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Always remember that so again, this is my simple thing. This is the beginning
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Here's the cross and Then here's eternity Right simple stuff.
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Yes, but as God unfolded his revelation time out as God unfolded his revelation to bring us to here was everything just a clear line
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Was there perfect understanding from from the very beginning? No, it couldn't have been right because God in God uses history to unfold so this is called
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Progressive Revelation right God unfolds things and then there's all these stops along the way and certainly this would have been the garden
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Right with the fall of man and then the great promise of God coming in to do what?
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To have the seat of the woman crushed the head of the serpent, right? And then there's another stop along the way you could you could break it down anywhere
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You got Cain and Abel Abraham Moses and so on so on so on Till you get to the cross and what's interesting is
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We fall in somewhere in here, right? so as they Did this?
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We do this great and so this was more of And this is more of the the reality of it great
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So where is joke? Well depending on how you view the book of Job, but nevertheless
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Not all the way back here, but I think It's somewhere really early right could have been a generation apart from Abraham Isaac and Jacob, so My whole point is again
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God still in bits and pieces is Revealing Christ and so as you look at this chapter, and I'll just just highlight it for you look at verse verse 9
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I Think of it in terms of Christ now and the adversaries that he faced and the opposition that he endured and Then put that thought into these words.
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He tears at me in his wrath and hates me Could that be the way the Jews treated
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Christ He gnashes at me with his teeth. My adversary sharpens his gaze on me.
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They gape at me with their mouth. They strike me reproachfully on the cheek now that certainly is
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Goes along with what Isaiah says right where they actually pulled his beard out and I Guess what
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I'm asking us to think about as we go through the book of Job in a sense I do believe Job is a picture
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Not a not a one -on -one Don't ever get caught in that that it has to be if it if it appears as a picture of Christ in one place
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Does it always have to appear as Christ in every other place? Agree, brother
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Lee would say something Yeah Yeah, sure, um and we'll see it in the next chapter two where it said it'll say that they spit at him
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Well, didn't they spit at Christ? They most certainly did So I guess I guess what
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I'm trying to get us to think about as we go through the book to be aware that in this setting
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We are looking for Pictures not necessarily reality and ultimately
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As we get through this so like in verse 21 Where it says all that one might plead for a man with God Well when we get a little further on in chapter 19, you'll see it it's even clearer who is
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Job looking for What is Job looking for? He's looking for someone to be an intercessory to intercede between him and God And who would that ultimately be?
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Christ right because he's the one who intercedes on our behalf. So as you go through this
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Don't try to make Don't try to make too much of Thinking of Christ, but don't try to make too little of it wherever it fits it fits and if it doesn't fit fine
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And again people have different ways of looking at it And I hope that at least that gives you some understanding and and the reality of The friends that are so -called friends
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Well, what about the ones who the Jews and the Pharisees who said that they were the friends of God?
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Were they really friends of God? No, did they were they friends of Christ? No Did they not ash at him with his with their teeth?
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Yes So think of that as we go through it Okay, so with that as an introduction
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I guess There are a couple things I do want to point out as we move through it so like in verse 10
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I I do believe you can truly say where it says they Because if you read this it kind of stands out.
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So At the end of verse 9, he says my adversary sharpens his gaze on me and then it uses a plural, right?
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It says they gape at me with their mouth. They strike me
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Reproachfully on the cheek they gathered together against me. So in that kind in that setting who would be in view
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I Would say it's his friends, right? It's certainly not God in that way
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I guess you could say it's Satan if you use that in the analogy of an enemy, right?
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But again in these verses And even in verse 11
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God has delivered me to the ungodly Again, what does that speak of?
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It speaks of the sovereignty of God, right? that God has determined both the beginning and the end and God has purposed and remember what it says in Acts.
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It says that Speaking of Christ that he was delivered into the hands of wicked men By what by the determinate counsel and for knowledge of God.
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So again If if we really consider where job is
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And he's pretty far back in the process if you will if you're thinking about it from a revelation standpoint
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That job has some really good understandings. I said to you a while ago. I thought job was a good
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Calvinist And job only lived a couple thousand years before Calvin Right, but job is no
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Job has a very clear understanding of what he could have in that day
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Could he have had the understanding that we have today? Okay in what way
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Okay, so certainly he had a right view of the God was holy agree as he speaks of that's the righteous one.
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What else? What what else could we associate in the same way how about this agree
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In whatever way God had revealed it to him. Job was a man of faith right
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Absolutely I'm laughing because I can spell sovereignty frontwards and backwards, but I can't spell cat sometimes
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Here's one to think about This is where I might start spelling wrong. I think
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Job had an understanding that he needed somebody to intercede for him Now did he know the name
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Jesus Christ? Yes, no, maybe so He knew right he knew and we'll see we've seen it in little splashes so far
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I'm gonna see it further as we get through it that he knew In some way there had to be someone
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To stand in the gap because job understood Said job understood his depravity didn't he?
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I mean we've read through it job says he's a worm and he's a he's a Nothing, and it's he understood his frailty.
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So there I agree with you brother Mike. There were many things that we can line up But they don't always line up the way
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They line up here do they Right because we have the clearer understanding now
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Again, if you just think about that one thought How privileged we are? in our day
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Right, yeah, this probably falls underneath sovereignty, but I think you know some ways
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Joe understood the wheel God's wheel, you know, he sure did and that probably falls under sovereignty.
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I understand. Yeah Here's something to think about too, I think this well, this is where to me
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The book is really is working us through this right I I did miss you.
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Well, you were gone by the way because there was no way to spell check Job understood the providence of God.
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Did he struggle with it? Okay. Let me ask you a question Anybody struggle with the providence of God now
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At least I know there's some heads that are moving. Um Yeah, of course, we we still struggle with the wet workings of Providence, right?
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So in many ways job is much different than us In many ways job is no different than us
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Because there's nothing new under the Sun. Remember what Solomon says? He says what has been will be there's nothing new under the
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Sun. Is there different understandings? Yeah, was it a different culture? Was it a different civilization?
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Was it a different time? Was it was history different in that way? Yes But again as far as the
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As far as the things that pertain to man and God It's never really
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Changed that much hasn't it's always been an issue of God's holy man is sinful
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Man needs to have faith that God can provide For forgiveness and he and Understanding that that has to be through a mediator right that and Joe says that remember when we read
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And I don't want to take us back too far, but if you remember what Job had said where he
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He kind of complains and actually look at in chapter 13 real quick, and then
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I'll move on We Has friends have blasted it blasting
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Adam and telling him he's just a sinful man. He's a hypocrite. He's getting what he deserves and then Job Defends himself against that in verse 20 of Chapter 13.
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He says oh and he's speaking to God. It's just two things do not do to me and Then I will not hide myself from you and then remember what he said
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We draw your hand from me in other words, I think he was asking God to take away some of the physical
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Maladies that he had because it was draining him and then don't let the dread of you make me afraid in other words
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I think he what he was asking God was You're so big and I'm so small let's level the playing field, but the point was he says in verse 22 then call
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And this is where people have interpreted a couple different ways, but then call and I will answer or let me speak
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Then you respond to me And remember we discussed that it was Joe being too forward.
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Was he challenging God? I Mean first he says to God, you know, you speak and I'll listen or if you like,
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I'll speak and you answer me and Remember I mentioned to you that as we get to the end of the book
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That's exactly what God does right? Remember God at the end of the book and we'll get to it sometime in the next century
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Where he God says you stand up now, I'm gonna question you and you answer me so God didn't forget what
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Job said in this chapter A trial or even when we're going through through something good.
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We can't see that Something that we can't see that God what God has in it for us until it's already done and happened
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So we have to look back at that Yep, I agree and and If we're really being honest
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In many of the providences of life We're not happy With how they're working out
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Right, we know it And if we believe we believe that all things work together for good to them that love
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God to them that are called According to his purpose, right? So we believe that God has nothing but good thoughts for us
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But tell me which one of us would say that as we go through these different providences in our life and there's different trials tribulations hard times and even good times
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That we don't necessarily like the terms and if it if God would allow us we would change the terms a little bit, right
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You give it think of it in so many different ways. I mean, I don't particularly like the term of my eye being like a flounder
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But I can't change the terms now Would I would I not say that it's been times where I would say
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Lord, maybe something a little different perhaps All I'm saying is we really have to think about these things and as you say as things come at us
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Many times we view them as to our harm to our hurt and just like Joseph and his brothers where Ultimately Joseph says to his brothers you meant it for evil, but God meant it for good
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We'll take the Yeah, we mess it up anyway, yeah, we and again that plays to the thought that That job is really and his friends.
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That's why he said it in verse 5 by the way or Verse verse 2
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Miserable comforters are you you're no help You have not helped me one bit
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Eliphaz build that as old fast matter of fact, all you're doing is throwing salt on an open wound
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I can't get any help from you. And that's why he says whether I keep silent or whether I speak
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It doesn't matter I'm all bound up all right, we need to see if we can at least get through the remainder of this chapter, so I was at ease, but he shattered me
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He is taking me by my neck and shaking me to pieces now. I Do think that job is in some ways reflecting on his situation before all this came upon him
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In other words in the days of his prosperity in the days when when everything was good
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His wife was happy as kids were happy people were happy. He was everything was great
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He says I would I was at ease, but he has shattered me now again
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Who has shattered him? Can't be his friends, right? Why not? Because they weren't even involved in this situation at that time
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Can it be can we say that that definitively is God? Yes, because is if we keep it in mind it
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God rules over what Everything right? Yeah Can we also say
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I was at ease, but he has shattered me Could we not make some sort of application that it's the evil one?
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And this is where I take a little bit of a view and then lean a little bit towards that not not that that's the
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Remember what he wanted What did Satan say? Take what he has and he want he'll curse you to your face and Then who was given the permission to go out and take from him
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Satan right and then God made them God said to him set the parameters you can take everything but his life and Guess what?
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Satan took everything but his life, right? I mean After the first round that wasn't severe enough and then he came back and took a second round at him
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So I Do think if someone were to take the view that that's who's in view in verse 12
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I wouldn't have a problem with it as long as we understand it Long to be understood we never forget this
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There's God And then there's man
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Long as we never lose sight of this folks, right that God rules over at all and that Satan in many ways is nothing but a creature servant of God right system
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Sure, that's what Correct and that was
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Joseph when his brothers had sold them and wanna hit just in Job flip back to chapter 12 for a minute
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Chapter 12 verse 16 and again, just just to make sure we we always remind ourselves in this look what it says in chapter 12 speaking of God It says in verse 16 with him our strength and prudence and then it says this the deceived and the deceiver of both his
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So again, what is he saying? He's saying that God rules Satan has a
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Delegated realm and even that is within what there's restrictions in that right?
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Just like he said to Satan. You can't take his life. You can take everything else and then there's us and certainly
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That's way we would then go back to there and that we need a mediator So just keep that in mind as job is struggling.
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Remember Job does doesn't have a Little boo -boo They don't just have a splinter in his in his foot
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Job is devastated. I mean just think about that just Just as we would think of think about those people in in the
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Middle East on certainly not getting into politics but just think of waking up going to the beach
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Next thing, you know There's people come in and they're looking to do nothing but kill you and destroy you and that people's lives get torn up in a moment the situation in Maine Nobody went to that bowling alley at night thinking that they were gonna get massacred, right?
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So all these things play into it and Meanwhile job is still
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Frustrated at his friends And then it says at the end the last part of verse 12
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He has taken me by my neck and shaken me to pieces. He has set me up for his target and His arches surround me
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He pierces my heart and does not pity Pours out my gall on the ground.
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He breaks me wound upon wound and he runs at me like a warrior now Depending how you understand this
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Job could be complaining about the providence of God that God is the one who has set him up as a target and God is the one who sent his arches to surround him and you could think about it that way or again, there's the thought at this point of his friends because He's found no pity with them.
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He said that you miserable confidence. You have no use matter of fact Remember, they go back and forth. You're a windbag. No, you're a windbag and they keep calling each other
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In a sense keep calling each other names or you could think of it as again In the realm of the evil one trying to come against them and I'm not trying to confuse you this morning
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I'm just trying to give you something to think about Mm -hmm
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Yeah, absolutely and that's where he in and that's the point in Much of the book is that through it all
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Job retains his Integrity that was the issue right Satan said you take you take the hedge down you take the fence
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Around that you put around him and he'll curse you to your face and in that it says that Job Retains his integrity but retaining our integrity and Maintaining a right walk.
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Are they the same? Okay, kind of yes, okay, that's thank you for that definitive answer sister
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I Know yes, but kind of no, I think anyway. In other words, there's a difference between Remaining our integrity in other words
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The true Christian never loses his faith, does he? Because if he lost his faith, he would lose what?
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Salvation right. So so I think we can say that for sure Does that does it not also happen that there are times when our faith is is like?
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Demeter is all the way up here and there's other times when the meter is all the way down there Yeah, right.
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So so I think we got to be careful when we when we think about these things and and how
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Then you can go back and how the Providence is the Providence is of God in many ways
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Because of our frailty dictate where we are Sometimes we listen sometimes do you not feel super spiritual?
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Okay, and sometimes you feel I ain't spiritual at all You would say something
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You know, we as a church Believe and stand on the doctrines of grace.
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Yep. Okay Sovereign the God's sovereignty God's Providence and you would think and maybe
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I'm just speaking for myself. So that's what I'll do You would think that I would have more faith
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I guess to know that God's will is going to be brought about regardless of what we think or what we fret or or our
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Fears or whatever so we should we should have our resolve
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More on we know that God's will is gonna be brought about we but I guess my point is
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I bring a whole lot of Stuff on myself that I don't need to absolutely listen If you are a real an honest and true believer in Christ, do we not believe that God will preserve us forever and ever and ever and ever
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Somebody say amen Okay We'll continue okay, I Think there are times in all of our lives
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Where we trust God for eternity, but we're not so sure if we could trust him for tomorrow
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Right that God's gonna provide for us for eternity, but will he provide for me tomorrow?
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right and in that sometimes the outward situations of life again dictate where we
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Fall in on that meter if you will and it ought not to be that way, right?
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And that's one of the things and we'll have to end Realize we ran out of time so fast
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But if you remember I mentioned to you earlier that Job is never mentioned in Hebrews 11
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Which is the great chapter of faith right all the the great warriors of faith that it's it's a little striking that Job wouldn't be mentioned there and Yet James mentions him where in his epistle and it talks about the patience and perseverance
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Of Job and I think that's the point, right? It's in many ways
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Job is a picture of one who regardless of life remains
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In our terminology remains a believer Because remember you can't you you can't be a believer today and an unbeliever tomorrow
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Right either is he ain't? Right the in Christ the United Christ one or the other.
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There's no There's no neutral neutral place to be in so I'm gonna take 10 seconds to finish the chapter because Somebody's gonna say
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We should have finished it So And then
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Job in the remainder verses 15 through 22 basically just rehearses his whole situation I have sunk sackcloth.
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I've laid my head in the dust. My face is flush My eyelids are is the shadow of death
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Basically Job is saying he's at wits end You ever get there? You ever get to that place where you feel like you know what?
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It really is not gonna get any better. It's only gonna get worse And Lord it would be
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Just take me take me away from this Lord. I mean and certainly I'm not saying that's the way it should be because Until God's done with us.
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We're pretty much immortal anyway, right? The one thing I will reserve a little bit is the last couple of verses and we'll pick that up next week
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Where he's actually again seeking for this I Hope just discussing these things will help us to understand not only the book of Job but then make the application for us in our lives, right because The things that were written a for time were written for what
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Our instruction they're written as examples to us Not that so and you don't mind
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I saw brother Steve this morning said hey man, how you doing? He said I had a week like Job I had a car accident
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Things so many times we have weeks like Job don't we so it's it actually is helpful to look at these things
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Well, thank you for who you are thank you that you rule over it all
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Lord it's It's an amazing thought for us
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Lord and it's actually a thought that we so often don't understand and and Struggle with so help us in our worship