December 14, 2006

Good Morning Brothers and Sisters,

Job 19:1-6 (NLT)
¹ Then Job spoke again: ² “How long will you torture me? How long will you try to crush me with your words? ³ You have already insulted me ten times. You should be ashamed of treating me so badly. ⁴ Even if I have sinned, that is my concern, not yours. ⁵ You think you’re better than I am, using my humiliation as evidence of my sin. ⁶ But it is God who has wronged me, capturing me in his net.^[1]

Isn't it interesting when you look at it?  Aren't these the exact same charges that people lay against Christians today?  I can't count the number of times that people have told me that the church is full of hypocrites, people who have their heads so far in the clouds that they are no earthly good. 

This chapter is interesting because Job reveals his attitude toward his trouble for us.  It gives us a practical tool to work with when we are going through times of trouble.  Our first lesson is to remember humility; all of us are just one step away from poverty.  All of us are just one heartbeat away from terminal illness.  We all stand vulnerable to the fallen nature of the world that we live in.  With this taken into consideration, should we be treating those who are going through trouble badly? 

One of the cancers of our society is that of divorce.  There are several ways that we can handle this in our world.  One is that we can come alongside the person and support them through the divorce, another is to reject them because of the sin that they are entering in their lives, another is to support them personally, but not to condone their actions.  Which one is right?  I suppose that lies in your moral convictions.  If though you reject a person and come against them, does this draw the person to fellowship?  In other words, how can we return them to fellowship?  If we treat them "badly", won't that just build another wall of bitterness that will drive them further from God?  Returning to Job's situation, what about a person who is a suffering saint?  It's miserable to visit with a person who is going through something like this, yet if we distance ourselves, are we extending the hand of fellowship to them? 

Matthew 25:31-46 (NLT)
³¹ “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. ³² All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³ He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left. ³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. ³⁵ For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. ³⁶ I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’ ³⁷ “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? ³⁹ When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ ⁴⁰ “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ ⁴¹ “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. ⁴² For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. ⁴³ I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’ ⁴⁴ “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’ ⁴⁵ “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’ ⁴⁶ “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”^[2]

Jesus addressed this in an interesting way, it shows how important that this was to Him.  The righteous do suffer, and when they suffer, it's the same as Jesus suffering.  Think about it.  what about those who are down on their luck, hungry, and have bills overwhelming them?  A spiritual battle is going on, and people are suffering due to it.  We live in a fallen world, and suffer as a result of it.  It is important to remember, when we experience this type of situations, treat them like you would Jesus.  That is where our true Christianity lies at.  That is where our heart beats because that is where Jesus is sharing His agape love through us. 

We must be extremely careful not to think highly of ourselves.  Know for certain that God is in charge of every circumstance. Closing with this scripture:

Romans 8:18-28 (NLT)
¹⁸ Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. ¹⁹ For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. ²⁰ Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, ²¹ the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. ²² For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. ²³ And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. ²⁴ We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. ²⁵ But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.) ²⁶ And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. ²⁷ And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. ²⁸ And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.^[3]

Father, as we consider Your words today, draw us to understand that You control every circumstance in life.

In Him,

Joe Turner.

December 17, 2006

Good Morning Brothers and Sisters,

I apologize for going underground for a few days.  Just went through a bout with a bug that sapped my energy, and finished the final exam for the fall course.  I hope to keep the study going strong until January at least. 

Job 19 (NLT)
¹ Then Job spoke again: ² “How long will you torture me? How long will you try to crush me with your words? ³ You have already insulted me ten times. You should be ashamed of treating me so badly. ⁴ Even if I have sinned, that is my concern, not yours. ⁵ You think you’re better than I am, using my humiliation as evidence of my sin. ⁶ But it is God who has wronged me, capturing me in his net.

⁷ “I cry out, ‘Help!’ but no one answers me. I protest, but there is no justice. ⁸ God has blocked my way so I cannot move. He has plunged my path into darkness. ⁹ He has stripped me of my honor and removed the crown from my head. ¹⁰ He has demolished me on every side, and I am finished. He has uprooted my hope like a fallen tree. ¹¹ His fury burns against me; he counts me as an enemy. ¹² His troops advance. They build up roads to attack me. They camp all around my tent.

¹³ “My relatives stay far away, and my friends have turned against me. ¹⁴ My family is gone, and my close friends have forgotten me. ¹⁵ My servants and maids consider me a stranger. I am like a foreigner to them. ¹⁶ When I call my servant, he doesn’t come; I have to plead with him! ¹⁷ My breath is repulsive to my wife. I am rejected by my own family. ¹⁸ Even young children despise me. When I stand to speak, they turn their backs on me. ¹⁹ My close friends detest me. Those I loved have turned against me.

²⁰ I have been reduced to skin and bones and have escaped death by the skin of my teeth. ²¹ “Have mercy on me, my friends, have mercy, for the hand of God has struck me. ²² Must you also persecute me, like God does? Haven’t you chewed me up enough?

²³ “Oh, that my words could be recorded. Oh, that they could be inscribed on a monument, ²⁴ carved with an iron chisel and filled with lead, engraved forever in the rock. ²⁵ “But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and he will stand upon the earth at last. ²⁶ And after my body has decayed, yet in my body I will see God! ²⁷ I will see him for myself. Yes, I will see him with my own eyes. I am overwhelmed at the thought! ²⁸ “How dare you go on persecuting me, saying, ‘It’s his own fault’?

²⁹ You should fear punishment yourselves, for your attitude deserves punishment. Then you will know that there is indeed a judgment.”^[1]

I noticed a pattern as I read through this chapter.  It is rather interesting, compare verses 7 and 13; 8 & 14; 9 & 15; 10 & 16; 11& 17; 12 & 19.  This is interesting because it contrasts what Job perceives that God has done with what Job views from his perspective.  We see the human perspective compared with divine perspective.  It gives a much clearer understanding of how that Job viewed his situation.

Verses 20-23: Job has not improved in his condition in any way. 

Verses 24-28, take the same comparison verses above and compare these verses to the original comparison, the results are tremendous.  It may be helpful to use a hard copy of the Bible to make this comparison.  I have separated the passages to make it easier.  Look at what God took away, Job's perspective, and the promises of God lined up with these verses.  When God takes something from our lives, He replaces it 100 times over.  Which would you rather have?  How often do we just look at the trouble, our situation, and fail to consider God's perspective? 

Verses 5-6; 21-22; 29:  Compare these verses. Job sends a warning to his friends.  The message is simple, they were bringing charge against Job, but in reality they were bringing charge against God's work in his life.  It is dangerous to place ourselves in a position where we get in the way of God's work! 

The scripture speaks for itself.  Enjoy the comparisons.  If you would like to comment, please feel free to write in.

Father, as we consider Your word, open our eyes so that we can understand how magnificent Your work is in our lives.

In Him,

Joe Turner.