God’s Purposes In Our Suffering # 5

The Book of Job

Here is an outline of the concluding chapters of the Book of Job

God now speaks, face to face, with Job

Job 38-39, Job 40: 1-2, 6-24, Job 41

Job responds to God

Job 40: 3-5, Job 42: 1-6

God chastises Job’s 3 friends

Job 42: 7-9

God restores Job’s health, wealth and family

Job 42: 10-16

When God speaks to Job face to face, God does not explain to Job the reason He allowed suffering into his Life

From our study in the Book of Job we learn 5 reasons God allows suffering into our Life

1/ Like Job, God allows suffering into our Life to test our faith

God draws the devil’s attention to Job

Job 1: 8 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.”

The devil claims that Job only fears God because God has blesses him

Job 1: 9-11, Job 2: 4-5

God allows the devil to bring suffering into Job’s Life to ‘test’ Job’s faith in God

Job 1: 12, ‘test him’ Job 2: 6

Job suffered the loss of his children, his wealth and his health (Job 1-2), he suffered the contempt of his wife (Job 2: 9) and the false accusations of his 3 friends who blamed him for bringing this suffering upon himself and his family (Job 4-31)

Under incredible pressure, Job’s faith weakens and he begins his long complaint against God that he is ‘innocent of sin and God is at fault’ for bringing this suffering into his Life (Job 6: 5)

Through all of this, the loss of God’s blessings in his Life, and the failure of his faith – Job did not curse God, as the devil said he would.

Q. Did Job pass the ‘test’?

A. Yes!

The devil was wrong, God was right and was glorified through Job’s suffering

So, what about you?

How will you respond when suffering comes into your Life?

Usually, when suffering comes into our Life we think “Oh no, I better tell God about this, He obviously knows nothing about it”!

We then blame the devil and ask God to take the pain away, now!

We complain, “I’m a Christian, I am entitled to God’s blessing!”

Dear Friends, we need to remember that there is a suffering that comes into our Life that ‘pleases God’

1 Peter 4: 19 ‘So if you are suffering in a manner that pleases God, keep on doing what is right, and trust your lives to the God who created you, for he will never fail you’.

Is your faith in God’s blessings, or is your faith in God alone, in the absence of any blessing?
James 1:12 ‘God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him’.

God’s Purposes In Our Suffering # 4

The Book of Job

Job’s suffering was terrible and under great pressure, his faith in God fails him and he complains against God that he ‘is innocent and God is at fault’ for allowing suffering into his life

Job’s 3 friends now give up arguing with Job (Job 4 – 31) because he refused to accept their opinion about the reason for his suffering

Job 32: 1 

 Now, another friend, a 4^th friend, arrives on the scene and begins to offer his opinion to Job (Job 32-37)

His name is Elihu and he has the same opinion as Job’s 3 friends

Job 32: 2 

 Was Elihu right?

No – (Job 1: 1, Job 1: 8, Job 2: 3)

Elihu is younger than Job’s 3 friends (Job 32: 4) and even though he was wrong about the reason for Job’s suffering he does make some good points about understanding God’s ways:

‘Just because someone is older, does not mean they are always right in what they say about the ways of God’

Job 32: 9a 

 So, where does wisdom come from – how do we know God’s ways?

Job 32: 8 ‘It is the spirit of Almighty God that comes to us and gives us wisdom’

If we want to avoid being like Job’s 3 older friends, offering our own opinions about God’s ways, we must listen to God and then speak what God says

Listening to God is a challenge for us who live in the Age of Technology

Job 33: 14 

 Modern communication has become a priority in our Life

How can we hear from God when we are ‘tuned in’ 24/7 to the Inter Web, Netflix, Movies, Face Book, Radio, ITunes, Wechat, and WhatsApp?

“OK Pastor smarty pants – How can I hear from God”?

We hear from God in quietness!

When we are quietly asleep, God speaks to us

Job 33: 15    

When we are quietly listening, God speaks to us

Job 33: 16a 

 When we are subdued and quieted by pain, God speaks to us

Job 33: 19 

 When we are quietly meditating in God’s Word, God speaks to us

(Job’s friends had no access to God’s Word as we do)

Matthew 4: 4 (Jesus said) ‘It is not just bread that keeps people alive. Their lives depend on what God says.’

By God’s Word we know that Job’s friends were wrong in accusing Job of sinning and bringing this suffering into his and his family’s lives

Job 1: 1, Job 1: 8

And by God’s Word we know that Job was wrong in his complaint that God was at fault in allowing this suffering into his Life Job 2: 3

Here’s a few other things we learn from Elihu:

1/ when suffering comes into our lives we must not complain against God about it

 Job 35: 16 ‘you are talking nonsense, Job. You have spoken like a fool.’

 2/ when suffering comes into our lives we must maintain our faith, turn to God in prayer, and expect Him to bring our suffering to an end

Job 33: 26 ‘That person will pray to God, and God will listen to him. He will see God’s face and will shout with happiness. And God will set things right for him again’

3/ when suffering comes into our lives we must submit to God’s sovereignty

 Job 34: 10-15 ‘The Almighty can do no wrong…Who set the whole world in place…If God were to take back His Spirit and withdraw His breath, all life would cease, and humanity would turn again to dust’.