Thursday
Evening Bible Study
June
25, 2015
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it address the person who is: Empty, lonely, guilty, or afraid
to die? Does it speak to the broken
hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk – Meat – Manna Preach for a decision
Is the church loved? Target 3300 words
Video = 75 wpm
We are showing this movie in two weeks.
Deb and I watched it yesterday and it was pretty moving.
Job is going through the worst time anyone could imagine.
He’s lost all his possessions.
His children have died.
His health has failed.
What makes all this even more confusing is that Job is a good guy.
God has decided to allow Job to go through this difficulty because He is
proud of Job, not mad at him.
God wants to show the world what a godly man will do when he is going
through a difficult time.
Keep a couple of things in mind as we study Job:
Sometimes Job is wrong in his conclusions.
Sometimes Job’s friends are also wrong.
They can even say things that are true, but they are just not true about
Job.
Be careful about building doctrine upon some of the things said in the book
of Job.
Neither Job’s words nor those of his friends are meant to build doctrinal truths
on.
They simply show us how people respond to difficulty.
Job’s been debating his three “friends” as they keep trying to come up with
some sin that Job must have committed that led to all his trouble.
29:1-6 Remembering better days
:1 Job further continued his discourse, and said:
:2 “Oh, that I were as in months past, As in the days when
God watched over me;
:2 when God watched over me
watched – shamar – to
keep, guard, observe, give heed
Satan had made his challenge to God because God had placed a “hedge” about
Job, a barrier to protect him:
(Job 1:9–11 NKJV)
—9 So Satan answered the Lord
and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 10 Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and
around 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 now, stretch out Your hand and
touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!”
:3 When His lamp shone upon my head, And when by His light I walked through
darkness;
:4 Just as I was in the days of my prime, When the friendly counsel of God was
over my tent;
:5 When the Almighty was yet with me, When my children were
around me;
:5 When my children were around me
Remember, Job has lost all ten of his children. What pain he must have felt that not a single
child was still alive.
:6 When my steps were bathed with cream, And the rock poured out rivers of
oil for me!
:6 my steps were bathed with cream … oil
Cream is the product of healthy flocks.
A healthy olive orchard produces lots of olives that are crushed and
pressed in rocks to produce olive oil.
This is a picture of abundance, having an abundance of butter and oil. This is similar to the idea of the Promised
Land being a land of “milk and honey”.
Lesson
When God seems far
Sometimes I’m the one who has wandered away
I need to return to my first love
(Revelation
2:4–5 NKJV) —4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left
your first love. 5
Remember
therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I
will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you
repent.
Sometimes I just need to trust
Job hasn’t sinned.
There are going to be times when we feel like God has left us and we’re in
the dark.
Paul described it as:
(2
Corinthians 4:8–9 NKJV) —8 We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not
crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted,
but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—
This is when we need to remind ourselves that we walk by “faith”, not by
sight.
(2
Corinthians 5:7 NKJV) For we walk by faith, not by sight.
For those of us who can get quite emotional, we need to
remind ourselves that our walk with God is not based on what we “feel”, but on
our trust and obedience.
Building your
relationship with God upon your feelings is like building a house on the sand.
(Matthew 7:24–27 NKJV) —24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I
will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and
beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. 26
“But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and
does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and
beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
This is “walking by faith”, walking in the dark.
You may feel like God isn’t there, but He is.
I not only trust Him, but I do what He says.
29:7-10 Respect from the greatest
:7 “When I went out to the gate by the city, When I took my seat in
the open square,
:8 The young men saw me and hid, And the aged arose and stood;
:9 The princes refrained from talking, And put their hand on their
mouth;
:10 The voice of nobles was hushed, And their tongue stuck to the roof of
their mouth.
:7 When I went out to the gate by the city
The gates of a city was where the leaders would hang out, where local government
business was done, where legal issues were resolved.
Job had been one of the city’s leaders, an “elder” who would sit as a judge
at the city gates.
He was respected by his fellow leaders.
You see it in sports – when a guy is at the top of his game, everybody
loves him.
Yet as soon as he struggles, he starts getting “booed” by the fans.
Lesson
The world loves a “winner”
There are more than a few of what
we might call “the world’s greatest people” that have died penniless, perhaps
thought of by their generation as “failures”.
Ulysses S. Grant died
penniless. Beethoven, Mozart, Van Gogh,
and many others. When I Googled the
phrase “died penniless”, there were over 1.5 million hits.
Look at Jesus.
He died at the age of 33, after only
three years of ministry. He didn’t have
a penny to His name. He died a tragic
death. Some might think He was a
failure.
My point is that your current
situation is not necessarily a measure of who you are.
29:11-17 I’ve done good things
:11 When the ear heard, then it blessed me, And when the eye saw, then it
approved me;
:12 Because I delivered the poor who cried out, The fatherless and the
one who had no helper.
:13 The blessing of a perishing man came upon me, And I caused the
widow’s heart to sing for joy.
(Job 29:13 The
Message) The dying blessed me, and the bereaved were cheered by my visits.
In other words, he would visit those less fortunate. He would visit the hospital, those that have
lost loved ones.
:14 I put on righteousness, and it clothed me; My justice was like a
robe and a turban.
:15 I was eyes to the blind, And I was feet to the lame.
:16 I was a father to the poor, And I searched out the case that
I did not know.
:17 I broke the fangs of the wicked, And plucked the victim from his teeth.
:16 I was a father to the poor
This is in response to some of the mean accusations that Job’s friends have
made in hopes of uncovering the secret sin that has led to all of Job’s
troubles.
Zophar had accused Job…
(Job 20:19 NKJV) For he has
oppressed and forsaken the poor, He has violently seized a house which he did not build.
Eliphaz had also accused Job …
(Job 22:6–9 NKJV) —6 For you
have taken pledges from your brother for no reason, And stripped the naked of their clothing. 7 You have not given the weary water to drink, And you have withheld bread from the hungry. 8 But the mighty man possessed the land, And the honorable man dwelt in it. 9 You have sent widows away empty, And the strength of the fatherless was crushed.
Yet all their accusations were just fishing expeditions. They were making stuff up about Job that
simply wasn’t true.
Lesson
It might be true
Sometimes we get a little put off by people who try to justify themselves.
Yet in Job’s case, everything he’s said is true. God has already declared in heaven:
(Job 1:8 NLT) Then the Lord asked Satan, “Have you noticed my
servant Job? He is the finest man in all the earth. He is blameless—a man of
complete integrity. He fears God and stays away from evil.”
29:18-25 My counsel was sought
:18 “Then I said, ‘I shall die in my nest, And multiply my days as
the sand.
(Job 29:18 NLT) “I thought,
‘Surely I will die surrounded by my family after a long, good life.
Job used to think he would die
surrounded by his family after living a long and prosperous life.
:19 My root is spread out to the waters, And the dew lies all night
on my branch.
:20 My glory is fresh within me, And my bow is renewed in my hand.’
:21 “Men listened to me and waited, And kept silence for my counsel.
:22 After my words they did not speak again, And my speech settled on them as
dew.
:23 They waited for me as for the rain, And they opened their mouth
wide as for the spring rain.
:24 If I mocked at them, they did not believe it, And the light
of my countenance they did not cast down.
(Job 29:24 NLT) When they
were discouraged, I smiled at them. My look of approval was precious to them.
:25 I chose the way for them, and sat as chief; So I dwelt as a king in the
army, As one who comforts mourners.
:25 chief … king
We mentioned before that Job might be identified as “Jobab”, one of the
kings of Edom mentioned in Genesis (36.33) and 1Chronicles (1:44).
(Genesis 36:33 NKJV) And when
Bela died, Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his place.
(1 Chronicles 1:44 NKJV) And when
Bela died, Jobab the son of Zerah of Bozrah reigned in his place.
30:1-14 Mocked by the lowest
:1 “But now they mock at me, men younger than I, Whose fathers I
disdained to put with the dogs of my flock.
:1 But now …
Job is going to contrast the way things are now with his glorious past.
:1 I disdained to put with the dogs of my flock
In the old days, Job was praised by the other leaders of the city.
Now he is mocked by those who were not even fit to hang out with Job’s
sheep dogs.
Job goes on to describe these mockers…
:2 Indeed, what profit is the strength of their hands to me? Their
vigor has perished.
:3 They are gaunt from want and famine, Fleeing late to the
wilderness, desolate and waste,
:4 Who pluck mallow by the bushes, And broom tree roots for their
food.
:4 mallow – malluwach – a plant
that grows in salt marshes
And it grows up to look like this (Stay Puff Marshmallow Man - J)
:5 They were driven out from among men, They shouted at them as at
a thief.
:6 They had to live in the clefts of the valleys, In caves of
the earth and the rocks.
:7 Among the bushes they brayed, Under the nettles they nestled.
:8 They were sons of fools, Yes, sons of vile men; They were
scourged from the land.
:9 “And now I am their taunting song; Yes, I am their byword.
:10 They abhor me, they keep far from me; They do not hesitate to spit in
my face.
:11 Because He has loosed my bowstring and afflicted me, They have cast off
restraint before me.
(Job 30:11 NLT) For God has
cut my bowstring. He has humbled me, so they have thrown off all restraint.
:12 At my right hand the rabble arises; They push away my
feet, And they raise against me their ways of destruction.
:13 They break up my path, They promote my calamity; They have no helper.
:14 They come as broad breakers; Under the ruinous storm they roll along.
:9 I am their taunting song
Lesson
What others think
I think it’s one of the hardest things in life to separate yourself from
what others think of you.
It seems that we each have people in our lives from whom we long to receive
approval.
It’s not a healthy thing if you can’t be yourself when you
are dating another person.
It’s hard to go through life without caring what others think.
What Job is expressing is very, very real for most of us. We long to have “important” people fawn over
us. About the lowest humiliation we can
think of is to have people we consider to be stupid ridiculing us.
God’s hope is that we become more concerned about what He thinks of us than
what people do.
Towards the end of Jesus’ life, John records,
(John 12:42–43
NKJV) —42 Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but
because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be
put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.
When we love others more than God, we will try to please
them.
When we love God more than others, He will be the One we
aim to please.
I’m afraid that this can be tested
when it comes to sharing our faith with others.
(1 Thessalonians 2:4 NKJV) But as we
have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak,
not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts.
When you have an
opportunity from God to share your faith, could it be that God is testing you
to see who you love?
30:15-19 I’m miserable
:15 Terrors are turned upon me; They pursue my honor as the wind, And my
prosperity has passed like a cloud.
:16 “And now my soul is poured out because of my plight; The days of
affliction take hold of me.
:17 My bones are pierced in me at night, And my gnawing pains take no rest.
:17 My bones are pierced in me at night
Some suggest this is descriptive of some of his disease’ symptoms.
:18 By great force my garment is disfigured; It binds me about as the
collar of my coat.
(Job 30:18 NLT) With a
strong hand, God grabs my shirt. He grips me by the collar of my coat.
:19 He has cast me into the mire, And I have become like dust and ashes.
30:20-31 God is against me
:20 “I cry out to You, but You do not answer me; I stand up, and You regard
me.
:21 But You have become cruel to me; With the strength of Your hand
You oppose me.
:22 You lift me up to the wind and cause me to ride on it; You spoil
my success.
:23 For I know that You will bring me to death, And to
the house appointed for all living.
:24 “Surely He would not stretch out His hand against a heap of
ruins, If they cry out when He destroys it.
(Job 30:24 NLT) “Surely no
one would turn against the needy when they cry for help in their trouble.
:25 Have I not wept for him who was in trouble? Has not my soul
grieved for the poor?
:26 But when I looked for good, evil came to me; And when I waited
for light, then came darkness.
:26 I looked for good, evil came to me
(Job 30:26 The
Message) But where did it get me? I expected good but evil showed up. I looked for light but darkness
fell.
Lesson
False expectations
We have some magnificent promises as believers:
(Jeremiah 29:11
NKJV) For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of
evil, to give you a future and a hope.
(Romans 8:31–32
NKJV) —31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us,
who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all,
how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?
We need to be careful just how we treat these promises.
These promises don’t mean that we will never go through difficulty.
Jeremiah’s promise came to those who had been in captivity in Babylon.
Paul’s promise in Romans goes on to remind us that we are like sheep led to
the slaughter, but we can be more than conquerors through Christ who loves us.
God is for us.
That doesn’t mean life will be easy.
We live in a fallen world and sometimes we may be touched by great evil – think
of the nine folks who died in Charleston last week – all attending Bible Study
when they were killed by a man filled with the evil of racism.
We need to keep our expectations real.
God is for us, and He will help us in this fallen world.
:27 My heart is in turmoil and cannot rest; Days of affliction confront me.
:27 My heart is in turmoil
heart – me’ah – internal
organs, bowels, intestines, belly
The old King James reads,
My
bowels boiled, and rested not
He might be talking about his heart, his emotions being in turmoil.
He might be talking about stomach ailments.
:28 I go about mourning, but not in the sun; I stand up in the assembly and
cry out for help.
:29 I am a brother of jackals, And a companion of ostriches.
:30 My skin grows black and falls from me; My bones burn with fever.
:31 My harp is turned to mourning, And my flute to the voice of
those who weep.
(Job 30:31 The
Message) My fiddle plays nothing but the blues; my mouth
harp wails laments.”
31:1-8 Innocent of lust
:1 “I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a
young woman?
:1 a covenant with my eyes … look
look – biyn – to discern,
understand, consider
Lesson
Close the gate
James gives us a map of how temptation progresses into sin.
(James 1:12–15
NKJV) —12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has
been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to
those who love Him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God
cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. 14 But each one
is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when
desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown,
brings forth death.
Our own inner lusts are stirred up with temptations and
that leads to sin.
One of the ways we stir up those lusts can be through the
“eye gate”.
What James is describing is a sort of domino effect.
Video: Domino Chain Reaction
The easiest way to keep that large domino from falling
over is to stop it at the smallest domino, the thing that starts the chain
reaction.
I find that when I am exposing my brain to too many sexually oriented
images, my heart starts heading in the wrong direction.
You can fight those inner lusts much easier if you learn
to shut that “eye gate”.
You can’t always protect yourself from seeing things.
We live in a world filled with images.
But you can take measures to limit the kinds of things you are exposed to.
You can make choices to limit the kinds of things you
expose yourself to.
You can choose to filter out “explicit” content on your
browser or when on YouTube.
You can choose not to subscribe to “R” rated content.
You can learn to not stare at people that catch your eye.
(Job
31:1 The Message) “I made a solemn pact with myself never to undress a girl with my
eyes.
Luther said, “It’s not a sin for a bird to fly over your
head, just don’t let it land and build a nest in your hair”.
:2 For what is the allotment of God from above, And the inheritance
of the Almighty from on high?
:3 Is it not destruction for the wicked, And disaster for the
workers of iniquity?
Job knows that God will punish sin.
:4 Does He not see my ways, And count all my steps?
:5 “If I have walked with falsehood, Or if my foot has hastened to deceit,
:6 Let me be weighed on honest scales, That God may know my integrity.
:7 If my step has turned from the way, Or my heart walked after my eyes, Or
if any spot adheres to my hands,
:8 Then let me sow, and another eat; Yes, let my harvest be rooted
out.
31:9-12 Innocent of immorality
:9 “If my heart has been enticed by a woman, Or if I have lurked at
my neighbor’s door,
:10 Then let my wife grind for another, And let others bow down over
her.
:10 let my wife grind for another
Job is saying that if he has been unfaithful to his wife and committed
adultery, then let another man commit adultery with his wife.
Lesson
Put the sin on the other foot
I hope this makes sense.
You may at times be tempted to start fantasizing about a person other than
your spouse.
How would you like it if someone was fantasizing about your spouse?
Or even worse, committing a sexual sin against your spouse?
How would that feel?
:11 For that would be wickedness; Yes, it would be iniquity deserving
of judgment.
:12 For that would be a fire that consumes to destruction,
And would root out all my increase.
(Job 31:12 The
Message) Adultery is a fire that burns the house down; I wouldn’t
expect anything I count dear to survive it.
:12 a fire that consumes to destruction
Lesson
Playing with fire
Lust is a fire that can destroy everything.
Don’t feed those flames.
(Proverbs 6:27–29
NLT) —27 Can a man scoop a flame into his lap and not have his clothes catch
on fire? 28 Can he walk
on hot coals and not blister his feet? 29 So it is with the man who sleeps with another man’s wife. He who
embraces her will not go unpunished.
Just like a real fire, lust needs fuel to keep burning.
Sometimes that fuel comes through the eyes or the senses.
Job has said that he’s made a covenant with his eyes to be careful about
what he looks at.
Be careful where you take your eyes.
You have somewhat of a say in where your eyes “go”.
Flirting with lust can cause you trouble.
Video: Flirting commercial
Solomon wrote about a foolish young man who took his eyes
to the wrong place.
(Proverbs
7:6–12 NLT) —6 While I was at the window of my house, looking through the curtain,
7 I saw some
naive young men, and one in particular who lacked common sense. 8 He was
crossing the street near the house of an immoral woman, strolling down the path
by her house. 9 It was at
twilight, in the evening, as deep darkness fell. 10 The woman approached him,
seductively dressed and sly of heart. 11 She was the brash, rebellious type, never content to stay at home. 12 She is often
in the streets and markets, soliciting at every corner.
She wounds like every young man’s fantasy. In the end the young man fell into sin.
And the end of it?
(Proverbs
7:23b NLT) …He was like a bird flying into a snare, little knowing it would
cost him his life.
It’s like the fellow on a diet who says to the Lord,
“Lord, if you don’t want me to have a donut, then don’t let there be any open
parking spots in front of the Krispy Kreme store!” But of course he had that donut because sure
enough, there was a parking spot right in front of the store, the tenth time around the block.
Don’t go looking for temptations. You’re already doomed if you do.
31:13-15 Fair to servants
:13 “If I have despised the cause of my male or female servant When they
complained against me,
:14 What then shall I do when God rises up? When He punishes, how shall I
answer Him?
:15 Did not He who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same One
fashion us in the womb?
:15 Did not the same One fashion us
Job says that the same God that made him made his servants, his employees.
We ought to treat our bosses and our employees with grace.
Lesson
Kindness at work
Kindness and goodness should go
both ways at work – to and from the employers and employees.
(Ephesians 6:5–9 NKJV) —5 Bondservants,
be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and
trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; 6 not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of
Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, 7 with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, 8 knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same
from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free. 9 And you, masters, do the same things to them, giving up
threatening, knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no
partiality with Him.
Paul says it’s because we’re all
created by the same God – the same principle Job used.
31:16-23 Kind to the poor
:16 “If I have kept the poor from their desire, Or caused the eyes
of the widow to fail,
:17 Or eaten my morsel by myself, So that the fatherless could not eat of
it
:18 (But from my youth I reared him as a father, And from my mother’s womb
I guided the widow);
:19 If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, Or any poor man
without covering;
:20 If his heart has not blessed me, And if he was not warmed
with the fleece of my sheep;
:21 If I have raised my hand against the fatherless, When I saw I had help
in the gate;
:22 Then let my arm fall from my shoulder, Let my arm be torn from
the socket.
:23 For destruction from God is a terror to me, And because
of His magnificence I cannot endure.
:16 If I have kept the poor from their desire
Lesson
Compassion for the poor
Even back in Job’s ancient days, people recognized that the godly thing was
to help the poor. This is what Job did.
David wrote,
(Psalm 41:1–3 NKJV)
—1 Blessed is he who considers the poor; The Lord will deliver him in time of
trouble. 2 The Lord will preserve him and keep him
alive, And he will be
blessed on the earth; You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies. 3 The Lord will strengthen him on his bed of
illness; You will
sustain him on his sickbed.
31:24-28 Innocent of greed, idolatry
:24 “If I have made gold my hope, Or said to fine gold, ‘You are my
confidence’;
:25 If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because my
hand had gained much;
:24 If I have made gold my hope
Job was not a greedy, materialistic man.
(1 Timothy 6:10
NKJV) For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for
which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced
themselves through with many sorrows.
:26 If I have observed the sun when it shines, Or the moon moving in
brightness,
:27 So that my heart has been secretly enticed, And my mouth has kissed my
hand;
:28 This also would be an iniquity deserving of judgment, For
I would have denied God who is above.
:26 If I have observed the sun when it shines
This is a description of idolatry, falling in love with the things of God’s
creation rather than God.
Paul says that all men are aware of God because of the witness of creation
around them. It’s when men who reject
the truth about God …
(Romans 1:25 NKJV) who
exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature
rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
31:29-32 Loved enemies
:29 “If I have rejoiced at the destruction of him who hated me, Or lifted
myself up when evil found him
:30 (Indeed I have not allowed my mouth to sin By asking for a curse on his
soul);
:31 If the men of my tent have not said, ‘Who is there that has not been
satisfied with his meat?’
:32 (But no sojourner had to lodge in the street, For I have
opened my doors to the traveler);
:29 rejoiced at the destruction of him who hated me
Job lived just the way that Jesus taught.
(Luke 6:35 NKJV) But love
your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward
will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the
unthankful and evil.
31:33-40 Somebody help me
:33 If I have covered my transgressions as Adam, By hiding my iniquity in
my bosom,
:34 Because I feared the great multitude, And dreaded the contempt of
families, So that I kept silence And did not go out of the door—
:33 covered my transgressions as Adam
Lesson
Hypocrisy
Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s commandment.
Here’s what they did after they blew it:
(Genesis 3:8–10
NKJV) —8 And they heard the sound of the Lord
God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid
themselves from the presence of the Lord
God among the trees of the garden. 9 Then the Lord God called
to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?” 10 So he said, “I heard Your voice in
the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
Job has not been a hypocrite – covering up sins and hiding instead of
confessing and forsaking them.
In contrast, John wrote,
(1 John 1:7 NLT) But if we
are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with
each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.
Don’t hide your sins in the dark. Bring it all out into the light where there
is forgiveness, cleansing, and help.
:35 Oh, that I had one to hear me! Here is my mark. Oh, that
the Almighty would answer me, That my Prosecutor had written a book!
:36 Surely I would carry it on my shoulder, And bind it on me like
a crown;
:37 I would declare to Him the number of my steps; Like a prince I would
approach Him.
:38 “If my land cries out against me, And its furrows weep together;
:39 If I have eaten its fruit without money, Or caused its owners to lose
their lives;
:40 Then let thistles grow instead of wheat, And weeds instead of
barley.” The words of Job are ended.
:40 The words of Job are ended
This is the last of Job’s rebuttals to his friend’s accusations.
:40 Then let thistles grow instead of wheat
Job is throwing out all kinds of ideas and saying that if he’s done any of
these things, then let God punish him.
We talked about this last week.
Lesson
Sin hunting
Job is expressing what we’ve expressed many times when we don’t understand
our circumstances.
We wonder, “What have I done to deserve this?”
If you don’t know, don’t go looking.
Some people follow this idea that
there are some kinds of curses that are handed down from one generation to the
next.
They feel that if your great
grandfather did something terrible, you might be paying the price for it.
(Ezekiel 18:1–4 NLT) —1 Then
another message came to me from the Lord:
2 “Why do you quote this proverb concerning
the land of Israel: ‘The parents have eaten sour grapes, but their children’s
mouths pucker at the taste’? 3 As surely
as I live, says the Sovereign Lord,
you will not quote this proverb anymore in Israel. 4 For all people are mine to judge—both parents and children alike.
And this is my rule: The person who sins is the one who will die.
The Bible says
that each person will be judged for their own sins.
If the Holy Spirit hasn’t convicted you of sin, I’m not sure you ought to
be hunting for things in your life.
Job wasn’t experiencing God’s punishment.
Job was being tested to show Satan that Job wouldn’t turn
from God if things got hard.