My text this morning is Job chapter 9, if you would turn there with me. Job chapter 9, I'll begin in verse 20. I titled this message, Helpless Yet Hopeful. Helpless Yet Hopeful, Job chapter 9, verse 20.

Even the casual reader of scripture is familiar with the story of Job. Job is a book about human suffering. That's something that God's people know something about from experience. But Job is also a book about divine sovereignty. Throughout this book, Job's trials are intense. and seemingly undeserved. Yet we know that God's ways are beyond human understanding. His ways are past finding out. We can't fathom God's ways or His thoughts. And regardless of what God sends in the way of trouble and suffering, we know also from Paul's writings in Romans 8, It always, always, did you hear me? Always works together for his people's good.

Job is introduced in this book as being blameless and upright. It says he was a man who feared God. He reverenced God and he shunned evil. His faith is tested to the extreme. He experiences loss of wealth, loss of family, and loss of health. But he never charges God with unfairness or folly. That's what the word foolishness means, folly. In the midst of all, losing everything, losing all 10 of his children, losing his health, being inflicted with boils from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet, and scraping them with broken pottery. He never once charged God with folly.

The book of Job expresses the conflict, and this is so important, between human ideas of justice in God's sovereign rule over all things. See, the world assumes, and you know this is so, that good people prosper and bad people suffer. The book of Job proves that assumption's not always true. God is not accountable to human definitions of justice. That's why He's often claimed to be unfair. Whatever God does, With whomever he does it, it's right. The scripture is very plain about that. Shall not the judge of all the earth, that's God, shall he not do right? Genesis 18, 25.

And here's the thing, and men by nature don't like it. God is not required or obligated to explain himself. Well, why not? First, because He's God. He does not have to conform to human standards of fairness. You think it changes God or affects Him in any way that you call Him unfair? Or that men call Him unfair? And the Scripture answers to those who question Him by asking, who are you? Who are you that replies, that word means disputes against God. Who are you to dispute against God? Shall the thing formed, that's me and you, say to him that formed it, that's God, why hast thou made me thus? No creature, one who's created, that being any and all of us, has the right to question God as to why they are the way they are. or why things turned out the way they have for thee. God has no need to explain Himself.

I suppose, however, the most important revelation seen in the book of Job, which I never really thought about till I began to, well, I thought about it, but not in the context of the book of Job, is the need of a mediator. This is our greatest need. In our text, we'll clearly see Job's plea for someone to bridge that gap between God's justice and their weakness, which is due to sin. See, there's a great gulf between us. Remember when Lazarus and the rich man died and the rich man cried? send an angel or send Lazarus to my brothers. There's a great gap here. I can't get to them. But send someone to warn them of the impending... There's a great gulf between us and God. And we in need of a mediator to fill that gap. to fill that gap. And in our text, we clearly see Job's plea for an advocate, one to please his case before God. And this foreshadows humanity's need for a mediator. We need a mediator. We need one to stand before God to plead our cause and our case. And there's only one that fits that bill, and that's the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now there are at least seven truths that I hope that we can see and learn and find some comfort in this morning. I want to give them to you quickly before we look at the text.

I hope that we can see in these few verses that God is sovereign over suffering. No matter what you're going through, whatever trial, whatever trouble, God is sovereign. He's in charge of it. He's in control of it. God is in control even when life seems chaotic, and it often does, doesn't it? Many of you are going through some things right now, and you think, my, my, I never had any idea that I would have to go through these things. Well, life often seems chaotic and unfair, and we must learn to trust Christ's Lordship in every circumstance, even when we don't understand Him.

Secondly, faith can coexist with doubt and trouble. Job openly, in these verses, questions God. He expresses grief, and even at times he complains. Yet Christ always meets us in the midst of our struggles. Faith doesn't require pretending that everything is just fine. But faith always admits that it was God who sent the trouble and he sent it for his people's good.

Thirdly, I hope that we can see human righteousness is insufficient for justification for salvation. Job's integrity doesn't earn him favor with God. He relies completely on God's mercy. Salvation is of the Lord and it's not by our works. How many times do we see that in the scripture?

I hope, fourthly, that we see our need. of a mediator, our need of a substitute, our need of a Savior. In our text, Job recognizes there's no advocate between him and God. His so-called friends come and they begin to accuse him and say, this don't happen to somebody who didn't do something wrong. And he pleads for a mediator, one to plead his cause. It's revealed to the children of God, as it evidently was to Job, that Jesus Christ is that perfect mediator who reconciles them to God. That's what Paul said to Timothy, 1 Timothy 2, 5, for there's one God and one mediator. How many? Just one. One. One mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. Paul said in Romans 5 verse 10, for if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God, how? By the death of His Son. Much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. That's what a mediator does. That's what a substitute does.

And then fifthly, I hope we see God's wisdom and providence. You know, the book of Job reminds us that God's ways are just so much higher than ours. I don't know why we think we can figure God out. In Christ, we trust God's wisdom. We trust God's providence. Even when life is often confusing and chaotic and even painful, painful.

Sixthly, our restoration and hope. I hope we find Job's ultimate restoration of all that he lost points to our restoration and all that we lost in Adam. God restores to us all we lost and much, much more. In the end of the book of Job, he receives a double. God took all of it away from him and gave him back twice as much. Isn't that what the Lord does for us? He gives us much more than what we lost. And then lastly, I hope that we can see that it all comes down to dependence on God. Are you dependent on God this morning? Are you resting and trusting in Christ's finished work for you?

Job continually calls out to God, showing complete dependence on God rather than self. Now listen, there's no help to be found within self. Christ tells us to come to Him, rely on His grace, to trust in His work alone, not our merit. What is our work? It's filthy rags and God won't accept it.

So as I told you, I've titled today's message, Helpless Yet Hopeful. I'm hopeful this morning. Not because of me, not because of what I do or what I have done, but because of what Christ has done.

Now in chapter nine, Job here is acknowledging God's power and justice in his own inability and his need for a mediator. And the book of Job, especially chapter nine, is about the sovereignty of God in the presence of man's helplessness. Has God shown you that when it comes to matters of redemption, that you're helpless? I don't mean you need a little help to get you over the trouble. I mean helpless. Helpless.

When God saves a man or a woman, He shows them their helplessness, and He shows them their need of a mediator. Has God shown you that? Because of our sin, we all, all of us, need someone who can approach God in His justice for us. We need one that is capable of bridging that unbridgeable gap that I was talking about between the helpless sinner and a holy God.

And that's what's left out of preaching today. Men talk about God being love and God being this, but you won't hear much about God being holy. And you won't hear much about, oh, we'll mention in passing, oh, that we're sinners. Listen, we are depraved. We're capable of doing anything and everything.

So how is a depraved sinner gonna be reconciled to a thrice holy God? One way, one mediator, the man Christ Jesus. That's the question that the scriptures clearly answer.

Now in verse 20, look at what Job says here. He says, if I justify myself, in other words, if I declare myself righteous, he says, mine own mouth shall condemn me. If I say I am perfect, it shall also prove me perverse. Job recognizes here his personal inability to justify himself before God.

And no matter how righteous he or we might claim to be, his and our conscience, actions, and our defense expose our imperfection. If we say that we have no sin, John said, we deceive ourselves and the truth's not in it. It's impossible for any of us to attain perfect righteousness that God requires. And Job here points us to the necessity of God's grace in a substituted mediator.

Salvation is no way based on any righteousness that we offer. Well, you say that all the time. I'm hoping it'll sink in. I'm hoping it'll sink in on me. Because why do I still think to myself, well, God's got to be pleased with this. He's not pleased with anything that we do outside of Christ and what Christ has done for us.

Recognizing our own insufficiency, friends, prepares our hearts to receive the gospel with humility. Only God can justify and say. And when Job says here, if I say I am perfect, he's not claiming to be perfect. He's saying if I claim to be perfect, my own mouth condemns me. Anyone born of flesh and blood who claims perfection in and by their own righteousness is just simply revealing their perverse, obstinate thinking. That's right. We open our mouths and we remove all doubt that we were perverse when we claim to be perfect and righteous before God. That's what Job is saying in verse 21. He said, though I were perfect, yet would I not know my soul? I would despise my life. And he's honestly here, Job's honesty concerning himself here comes by God's divine revelation to him. He says, even if I were blameless, I still couldn't stand before God with any confidence.

You see, moral integrity does not give a man peace with God. It doesn't give him clarity about his own soul. He says, yet if I were perfect, if I was morally perfect, if I did everything right, I still wouldn't know my own soul, and I would despise my life. Now if God doesn't give us clarity about our own soul, we'll never have it. Moral integrity doesn't give us peace. Human righteousness cannot secure assurance. Job says, though I were perfect.

Now hypothetically, if our morality was perfect, it's far from it. It's definitely a hypothetical statement. Even then, it wouldn't help us. Because it exposes the lie that being good enough brings peace with God. If I could just be good, if I could be just a little better, if I could just improve, if I could just reform myself, that's a word commonly used today. Won't do it, it won't do it. Self-knowledge collapses and it caves under God's holiness. Job said, I would not know my soul.

Listen, Jeremiah said, the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. It's deceitful. How deceitful? Above everything. Anything that you can think of being deceitful, your heart is more deceitful than that. Your heart is wicked. How wicked? Desperately so. And then he asked the question, who can know it? Only one. Only one can know your heart and mine. God knows our heart. We can't.

Job says, I would despise my life. When righteousness is based on self, now listen to me, the result is not joy, it's self-loathing. And God makes our existence to us detestable and despisable. In Job chapter 42, Job said, I've heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eyes seeth thee. What was the result of that? Job said, wherefore I abhor myself. I hate myself. I've heard of God. I've heard about Him. I've heard about His holiness. I've heard about His sovereignty. I've heard about His righteousness. I see that I fall short. But now, it's more than hearing. I see Him. God has revealed Himself to me.

Well, aren't you happy about it? Yeah, but I hate myself. I hate myself for being the way that I am. That's what Paul said in Romans 6. And so he said, oh wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from this body of death? And then what did he say? There's only one that can. Maybe I should have titled this One. Only one that can. Job sees, as does every believer, that our righteousness must, must, must come from outside of ourselves. It's got to come by grace, and that grace comes in and by and through Christ.

Now look at verse 22 here in Job 9. This is one thing, therefore, I said it, he destroyeth the perfect and the wicked. Now here we see another great truth that is proof that both the righteous and the wicked are subject to suffering. God doesn't just punish the wicked and prosper the righteous. Both are subject to suffering. The false teaching that a believer walks through this life unscathed by trouble is just nonsense. It's through much tribulation that we enter the Kingdom of God. Isn't that right? Hasn't that been your experience? A lot of tribulation. Going through some right now, some of you are. A lot of tribulation that we enter the Kingdom of God. But we get through it, and we do enter. And even those made perfect in Christ by His perfect righteousness are not immune to suffering and trouble.

Our suffering and trouble is often the ordained means that God uses to bring us to the end of ourselves. God sends trouble to reveal to us that we need Him. When do we cry out to God the most? When we're in trouble. Let's just be honest. We cry out to God the most when we're in trouble.

Throughout the book of Job, Job's so-called friends that I told you about a moment ago, tried to convince them, Job, you had to do something wrong for God to do this to you. God doesn't do bad things to good people. Oh, yes, He does. In the end, they see that they're not bad things, that they're good things, because He causes all those things to work together for good. So what we think is bad often proves to be good things. And that wasn't the case with Job.

The trouble God sent Job was to teach him, to test him, to prove that his devotion was genuine. to demonstrate God's sovereignty. God's gonna show you, child of God, that you don't have any control over anything. And He does this so that you depend totally and completely upon Him. Faith involves trusting God, even when the reasons for suffering are hidden from us. And the believers suffering in judgments are chasing him, just correction and discipline from a loving father who's teaching us who and what we are.

And I know we talk about that. We even giggle about it. You know, when our parents used to spank us and then try to convince us it was for our good. But it was, wasn't it? It was. And at the same time, these God-sent tribulations wean us from this world, wean us from our flesh and this manner of life. You know, I'm just a few days away from 70, and if there's anything that I've learned is that I don't really want any part of this life, this world. I really don't. And that's the beautiful thing about Christ's mediation is that it was God's purpose to inflict the strict justice, his strict justice, for offending his law on the Lord Jesus instead of me. Instead of you that he chose and called and saved by his grace. He's the mediator who bridges that gap. between sinful humanity and a thrice holy God. In, by, and through Jesus Christ. How many times do we read it? In, by, and through Christ.

The destruction that Job fears is turned into salvation for all who believe. And this reveals again our helplessness and the reality of God's sovereign rule. It sets the stage for the gospel. Salvation comes not through human perfection, but through Christ's perfect righteousness imputed or charged to us.

Now I know there's a book somewhere that's recording all my sin. I don't want to see it. I don't want God to see it, but God has it, God knows. But because of Christ, That's stamped. Paid in full. Put this in and that's in all of them. Paid in full. He paid them in full. They can't be charged against me. The law cannot charge them against me. The justice of God has been satisfied against me because of what Christ did for me. He's our only hope. Christ in you is what? He's the hope of glory.

We're helpless, yet hopeful in Christ. Look at verse 23. He says, if the scourge, that's the whip, if the whip slay suddenly, he will laugh at the trial of the innocent. Now in the midst of Job's sufferings, he acknowledged how swiftly this came upon him. It came suddenly, it came without warning. Now you think about this. Job woke up one morning. It was another day like every day. And everything was just fine. He had 10 healthy and wealthy children. He was a rich man. He owned 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels. He had 500 yoke of oxen, which is 1,000. He had 500 she-asses. And it says he had a very great household, meaning that he had a large number of servants. And he's recognized in Job 1, verse 3, as the greatest of all men in the East.

Now, I don't know, in today's standards, if he was a billionaire, I'd say probably so. He was one of the greatest men in all the East. And in one day, within just a matter of a short period of time, he loses everything. Everything. He loses it all. Except for his wife, and she taught him to curse God and that. But Job didn't lose his life. Why? Because God preserved it. He lost his health, but not his life. And God was behind it all. Do you believe that? Oh, I do. I do. I believe that. What didn't Satan take it all? Only at God's suggestion. Only with God's permission. And God then put restrictions on it. Well, you can take all he's got, but you can't touch him. And then Satan said, well, you put a hedge about him. You let me strike him personally, and he'll curse you to your face. And God said, okay, you can touch him, but you can't take his life.

Now who's in control there? I hear about the devil today, and the devil made you do it, and the devil did this, and the devil did that. You're giving him too much credit. He's God's devil and he's on a chain doing the bidding of God. And Job in verse 23 observes that trouble, calamity, the scourge, the whip, the troubles, the trials can strike anyone at any time and they can strike suddenly. It's beyond human control. We have no control over it. No one can predict or control God's providence.

Many folks go to church to be built up. I think I told you one time where I was at the barbershop and I heard a lady talking about, she said, I just love my church. And the fellow she was talking to said, why do you love it? She said, because I always feel so good when I leave. It always builds me up and it always makes, well, that's good if it's in Christ. But men today have just become, preachers today are just spiritual cheerleaders is all they are. You can do it. Help God to help you. Let go, let God, give your heart to Jesus, let Him have His own way. You're like go sinner go, win sinner win. Cheerleaders. But true preachers point men and women to Christ. And they say, bow to Him. Come to Christ and find rest for your troubled souls.

And when it says here that God will laugh at the trial of the innocent, that doesn't mean that God rejoices in the suffering of the innocent. It means that God is so sovereign So above all accountability to man, that when innocent people do suffer as Job did, God has no need to explain Himself. God always does what's right. And God is never obligated to answer to human notions of fairness. Who art thou to reply against God? God's not unjust. God's not unfair. God is always right and just. We just can't see the whole picture.

I've often thought about, you know, being late for an event or something. And I'm not a calm driver. When folks don't drive like I think they should, I can really show myself quick. Don't ask my wife. But you know, I've often thought about afterwards, the Lord was in control of that delay. Maybe He spared my life from an accident or whatever. God's not unjust. God's not unfair. And He doesn't have to explain things to us. He does what He wills in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth. And we can't stay His hand. We can't question Him, Lord, what are You doing?

Now in verse 24, it says, the earth is given into the hand of the wicked, and he covereth the faces of the judges thereof, if not, where and who is he? Job admits some 4,000 years ago what we know to still be true today. There's nothing new under the sun. Job is lamenting here that the wicked often prosper and justice seems to be absent from them. This world in which we live is under the sway of sin and injustice. And the Word of God declares that when it all is said and done, God is the ultimate righteous judge who will execute perfect justice. So though we are helpless, we are yet hopeful. Justice will prevail for the people of God. How do I know? God said so. He says so right here in this book. Christ's death and resurrection ensures that sin and oppression and injustice is going to be dealt with.

The wicked may seem to be in control, and everything may seem to be going their way. David talked about that. He said, why do the wicked prosper? It may seem like they're in control, but they're not. God is. He's the rock, His work is perfect, for all His ways are judgment, a God of truth and without iniquity, and just and right is He. Deuteronomy 32, full. Justice and judgment are the habitation of Thy throne. Mercy and truth shall go before Thy face. Psalm 89, 14. And how wonderful, friends, is it that righteousness and judgment are the habitation of God's throne, Psalm 97.

And in verse 25, Job says, Now my days are swifter than a post. Now a post is a messenger, a courier, one that runs quickly. They flee away, they see no good. And here's another reality that every single one of us must face. And what is it? The brevity of life. Brevity of life. I can vividly remember being Molly's age, 19 years old. I can remember like it was yesterday. In just a few days, I'll be 70. Not long ago, I was 40 years old, and I thought, man, I'm old. And now I look at somebody 40, and I go, that's just a young whippersnapper. It's life brief. It's like a vapor that faded away. You know that. I know that. That's something I hear from many today. I used to hear my parents talk about it. Now I talk about it. The years just keep rushing by, don't they?

Verse 26, they're passed away as the swift ships, as the eagle that hasteth to the prey. I don't know if you've ever seen any of these nature programs, but when an eagle dives to kill something, boy, it's quick and swift, isn't it? That's the brevity of this life. Like fast ships pass quickly over the water. You look up and you see them and then they're gone. Like swift eagles swoop in on their prey, just quick, fast. Human life passes at such astonishing speed. And what a reminder this is of our temporal existence here on earth. Life moves forward with a force that we can't control. And again, We see that we're helpless, but we're not hopeless.

Man, my nature never seems to stop and think about depending and trusting God. It seemed like if we really saw and really believed and knew just how fleeting this life is, that we would stop and think more about depending and trusting on God. He's the master over time. He's the master of every circumstance. Yes, this life is fleeting, but the next life's eternal. And our God is in control of all of it, should we not trust in Him. Always remember that God governs the swift fleeting moments of our temporal existence, but more importantly, He controls the eternity that waits. And that's when it really, life really begins. Life without sin. My, my. Those that we love that's gone before us, I look around this morning and so many faces and names come to mind. It won't be long. Child of God won't be long. We'll be with them. And it seemed like they never left us and we never left them.

Verse 27, if I say I will forget my complaint, I'll leave off my heaviness and comfort myself. Now, here Job is considering trying to comfort himself. We do that very often, don't we? We try to comfort ourselves. And most of the time, we try to do so by looking within instead of looking to Him. True comfort only comes from God. When in trouble, you can't just put a smile on your face. and skip around and all your trouble just goes away. It doesn't work that way. We need someone, capital S, we need someone who can truly take away our sorrow and justify it. That someone is Jesus Christ, the great high priest. There's only one, only one. who's been touched with the feeling of our infirmities and was in all points tempted as we are. He knows something about this and he's compassionate toward us. Only then can we come boldly into the throne of grace and obtain mercy and find grace in our need.

Verse 28, I'm afraid of all my sorrows. I know that thou will not hold me innocent. Oftentimes like Job, our sufferings terrifies. They do so, why? Because we know it's what we deserve. And it's then that we must remember the Lord's mercies. God doesn't give us what we deserve. It's only through faith in Christ that we can be declared righteous before God. And if I attempt to stand before God in my own so-called righteousness, He will not hold me innocent. As Job says in verse 28, He will not hold me innocent. Why? Because I'm not. Only in Christ am I innocent. And again, the Gospel turns dread into hope. The child of God is declared righteous by grace.

Verse 29, if I be wicked, why then labor I in vain? If I wash myself with snow water and make my hands never so clean? Job, along with every believer, feels overwhelming shame and guilt. We become desperate before God. That's a good thing. It's then that we appeal directly to God, knowing that our only hope is in Christ. And if we're guilty, then all our efforts to be righteous are just meaningless. And if we attempt to wash ourselves even with snow water, we cannot remove our sin and our guilt and secure our righteousness ourselves. Salvation is of the Lord, not by works of righteousness that we have done. And again and again we see that our attempts at purity are just inadequate to make ourselves acceptable for God. So what's the result of our efforts? Yet shalt thou plunge me in the ditch, and mine own clothes shall abhor me." Outside of Christ, friends, God's judgment will always be against us. Without Christ, we're plunged into a ditch, a pit, and our own clothes, these filthy rags of righteousness that cover us, shall hate us. Human righteousness can never save us. Our best efforts cannot prevent the pit or shame.

Verse 32, for He, God, is not a man as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment." We talked about that great gap between God and man. We can't stand on equal footing with God. We can't plead our own case before Him. Human reasoning cannot change God's judgment against us. So what are we going to do? I thought you'd never ask. Job has said all that he said in order to say this, everything that I've said so far in this message comes down to this, verse 33. Neither is there any daysman betwixt us that may lay his hand upon us both.

And it's here that Job expresses a desperate longing for a mediator, someone who can stand between him and God. That's what a daysman is. A daisman means mediator, an arbitrator, a person who can reconcile two parties. Job recognized that no human can bridge that gap. He recognizes his helplessness. And he says, I need a mediator.

Has God brought you to that point? Do you see your need of a mediator? Verse 34, let him take his rod away from me and let not his fear terrify me.

Now I want you to listen to me closely in closing. Only through Christ our mediator is that accomplished. The rod of judgment is removed in Christ. The rod fell on him, not us. In Christ, the fear of the Lord is removed and we now have boldness and access to the throne of God with confidence. In Christ, the debt of sin's been paid. The strict justice of God's been satisfied. Judgment has been taken away. Fear's been turned into faith.

Verse 35, then would I speak and not fear Him, but it's not so with me. And here we see the real problem. Job knows God is righteous and that He's not. I know God's holy and I'm not. That's the first step to seeing our need. If God speaks as a judge, Job has no hope and neither do we. Job admits he cannot fix this himself. He says, it's not so with me. It can't be so without a mediator.

That's why we call it good news. That's why we call it the gospel in Christ, and with Him as my mediator, my helplessness has turned into what? Hope. And all my hope's found in Him. And though in and of myself I'm helpless, in Christ, full of hope. Because it's all in Him, none in me. Helpless, but not hopeless.

May God reveal that to your soul in a new way.