Turn back to Job chapter 10. I'm just going to deal with probably
the first 13 verses or so. The title of this message, Answers
to Hard Questions. Answers to Hard Questions. Joe
was in great misery. In my mind, I could see him sitting,
scraping those boils, maggots, maggots all over his body. His appearance was appalling,
stinking odor smell. I mean, I just, I can't describe
the misery this child of God was in. But I know this, only our Lord
knew greater misery. He knew greater misery. He suffered
the wrath of God. He was forsaken of God. Job was
not forsaken of God. It looked like it, but he wasn't.
The Lord Jesus Christ was actually forsaken. My God, my God, why
hast thou forsaken me? Why are you so far from the words
of my roaring? He suffered more misery than
anybody on this earth. He suffered the wrath of God.
Job's suffering was due to the mercy of God on him. Does that
look like mercy? Sitting there in his misery,
in his pain, in his suffering, sitting there is the mercy of
God on him. God is bringing him out from
this world. God is separating him from this world. God is refining
him. He's burning the dross off. It's
what's going on. His suffering is due to the mercy
of God. But not so with our Lord's suffering. Christ suffered condemnation
without mercy. Awake, O sword, against my fellow.
The sword of God justice came down on the Lord Jesus Christ
with absolutely zero mercy. Zero mercy. Christ suffered the condemnation
for our sins. Job's suffering came from his
heavenly father contending with him because he loved him. He
loved him. There is a great difference between
condemnation and contending, and let us never confuse the
two. Condemnation is eternal. Contending is a loving father
guiding and directing his children. He's contending with Job here.
Job doesn't say, why, why are you condemning me? He said, why
are you contending with me? That's what he wants to know.
And Job, Job is allowed of God to ask hard questions. And it hit me when I was reading
this, it just struck me so strong. He's asked, he's allowed to ask
these questions for our sake, for our sake. and hopefully we
can see that as we go along. You see, we have the complete
word of God to shine its light on these questions that Job asked. We have the advantage of having
the whole word of God. Job had light, but not like we
do. Job, and this just struck me, Job did not have Romans 8.28. Job did not have, and we know
that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called according to his purpose. So you and I
can look at the sufferings of Job and understand it's for his
good. He didn't have Romans 8 28. Now
he had he had the principle of it in grace and in knowledge
that the Lord had given him and saving him. He had the principle
of it. But you and I have such clear revelation of it. We know
why these things are happening. And so he's allowed to do this.
He's allowed to ask these questions. Listen, Job did not realize that
he would be a brother born for adversity. Even for us, he's
our brother. What he's going through is for
us. He's part of the body of Christ. He's for us. His sufferings are for us to
learn from. These hard questions that he brings up is for us to
learn from. And we learn from them from the
Word of God. Job did not realize that his sufferings were a picture
of Christ's sufferings. He was a whole lot of his sufferings
was a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. And then Job did not
realize that he was being prepared for greater use and greater blessing. This This struck me. You know, after
this was over with, this trial was over with, God doubled everything
Joe had, except for his 10 children. He didn't double, he didn't get
20 children, he had 10 children. I thought this, this is a good
picture that after we suffer a while, remember what Paul says,
after we suffer a while, we will reign with him. that after we
suffer in this life a while, that we will have double, even
much more laid up for us in heaven. You know, we suffer, but that
doesn't mean we're going to get double of these material blessings
like he gave Job, but I'll tell you what we will have. We'll
have the riches of glory. Well, we'll have we'll have untold
riches when we leave this life of suffering and we enter into
glory. He says in verse one, and this
is such a such a lament. My soul. You know, my soul is
who that's me, that's who I am. And Job knew that his Redeemer
lived. He knew that he was redeemed. You know, we have a Redeemer.
We know that the Lord Jesus Christ is our Redeemer also, as he was
Job's. And he's speaking here as a believer,
as one who believes God. He said, my soul is weary of
my life, my life on this earth. I'm just so weary of it. One
of the reasons for afflictions is to wean us from this life.
We are so much a part of this earth. We were made from the
dust of the ground. Our bodies, you know, you go
take a blood test, it has all these minerals in it. It came
from the dust of the ground. And we are so attached to it.
We are attached naturally to this world, this earth, like
a magnet attaches itself to metal. And God has to wean us from it. Because that which is born of
the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is
spirit. And the spirit has no part of the flesh. It has no
part of this world. None of it. And material blessings
have a way of dulling our spiritual senses. They have a way of just
taking our attention away from Christ. And then Job speaks of
his soul in this earthly life. This life can become so, so wearisome. It can become so painful. I've
seen it. I've seen it in some over the
years. I've seen some people be so weary and have so much pain that they
just wanted to leave it. I've seen believers want to leave
this life where it was just so, not only just to go be with the
Lord, but it was just so painful. So painful. Even for unbelievers,
it can be painful enough. They want to commit suicide.
This life, because of sin, because of sin, it can be so painful,
so wearisome. The one thing I've learned about
growing older It doesn't get better. It's like every day is
my best day. I used to tell my dad that before
he passed. I said, well, dad, every day
is your best day because it's not going to get better. Sin
doesn't make anything better. You cannot point to one thing,
one thing that sin has touched and made it better. We don't
grow healthier. As we get older, we don't get
healthier. We get more bodily aches and
pains and heartaches. That's this life, the life that
we live here in this sinful world and in this sinful body and this
sinful old man that we carry around with us. It makes life
weary, weary. And the Lord lets these things
come upon us to wean us from this life. You know, when I was
in my 30s, I wanted to get in business. I started a business.
By the time I got out of it, I was sick of it. I wanted to
let it go. I was tired of it. It wore me
out. It wore me out. I learned that
it was running me. I wasn't running it. I mean,
I got weary. Everything about this life, everything
about this life, sooner or later, will become wearisome. We will
become wearisome to ourselves. We'll become wearisome to ourselves. So often, my mother, she said
to me, I don't want to be a bother to you kids. She knows as she
gets older what it is, what's coming. She knows that. But that's
this life, that's just this life, it's it. But Job says, my soul
is weary of my life. I will leave my complaint upon
myself. Job refuses to charge God with folly, even though he
didn't know the reason for his afflictions, but he wasn't going
to blame God. He wasn't going to curse God.
Satan said, he'll curse you. He's not going to curse God.
He's going to blame himself. I'm the problem. I'm the problem. I'm going to speak in the bitterness
of my soul as though he's been holding back, but he's saying
now I'm not going to hold back. God knows my heart. I'm going
to speak. I'm going to freely release the bitterness of my
soul. I'm going to vent. I'm going to vent out my frustration
and misery. Joe was not speaking in a calm
mind, but tormented mind. He was in such misery. such misery
that he couldn't even think. You ever been there? Not like
he has. I know you haven't been there
like he has. We say things we wish we hadn't said when it's
over with. That's what Job's gonna do. Now here's his prayer. I will say unto God, this is
my prayer to God, do not condemn me. Show me wherefore thou contendest
with me. You know, we all know we are
condemnable. We know that. But we know this also, that there
is no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus. We know
that. And so Job's first request is
not to be condemned. Do not cast me away guilty or
charge me as guilty. I don't want to stand before
God as guilty. I want to stand before God as
righteous. That's how I want to stand before
God. You know, it says this in Romans 3 19. Now we know that
all that what things whoever the law sayeth is sayeth to them
who are under the law that every mouth may be stopped and all
the world may become guilty before God. There's one thing I know,
one thing I know that every one of you who believe the gospel,
you know what guilt is. You know what it is to be guilty.
If God has saved you, you know what it is to be guilty. That's
why you flee to Christ. That's why you have called upon
the name of the Lord. It's because you're guilty. He's
the city of refuge. Without him, you're a goner.
And you know that God's taught you that. But I tell you, he's
also taught you this. There is therefore now no condemnation
to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh,
but after the spirit. Lord, don't condemn me. And he
may be saying, don't condemn me for what I'm about to say,
because I'm going to vent. He said, I'm just, you know,
look over here in verse 15. He said, if I be wicked, woe
unto me, and if I be righteous, yet will I not lift up my head.
I am full of confusion. I'm full of confusion. Lord,
don't hold me guilty for what I'm saying, for what I'm about
to say. And don't hold me guilty, period. Because if I'm guilty,
if I stand before God guilty, the misery of this life is nothing
compared to the misery of that which is coming. There's no comparison. Now Job desires and he asked
God to show him why he was contending with him. You know, when God
brings affliction on us, we should consider, that's what it says
in Ecclesiastes 7, 14. When you're in adversity, he
says, consider, sit down and think, what's going on here?
Lord, why am I being afflicted here? There's no problem asking
God why this affliction if we do it respectfully. and not out
of anger, but if we do it respectfully, we ask the Lord why, knowing
that he gives no account of his matter, knowing he's the sovereign,
God's the sovereign, and we can ask him, Lord, why have you taken
this away? Why? And if he gives us an answer,
that's his will, and if he doesn't, that's his will. We submit to
it. But he's asking here, I believe, Lord, show me why you contend,
why you're contending with me. If I have sinned, enable me to
depart from it. If it's a trial of faith, help
me go through it graciously in a manner that's glorifying to
your name. Help me to walk through it in a gracious manner. Show me why you're contending
with me. Why all this affliction and suffering? Why you're not answering? My
friends are casting all these doubts on me and calling me a
hypocrite. Why is all this going on? Why
is all this going on? Well, part of it is this. It's
for us. that we can see that the hand
of God is in our life, just like it was in his life. You and I
get a glimpse behind the curtain of that conversation going on
between Satan and God, and we can see this is what goes on. This is what goes on. It's not
things are just happening. God has purposed all things,
and Satan is out to destroy the glory of God, the church of God,
the name of God. And God, every now and then,
lets him have one of his own to show and to prove his grace
is sufficient. God's grace is sufficient for
all our sufferings. However heartbreaking they are,
God's grace is sufficient. Then Job here, he has some questions that he
asked God. and uh we have the answers to
in the word of god we know these answers he says in verse three
is it good or does it give you pleasure does it lord does it give you
pleasure is it good unto thee that thou shouldest oppress or
is it good to you do you get pleasure out of oppressing people,
your handiwork. Do you get pleasure out of that?
Boy, that's a hard question, isn't it? That's a tough question. Is it good unto thee that thou
shouldest oppress, that thou shouldest despise the work of
thine hands? I'm your handiwork. Lord, I'm
your handiwork. I'm your work. I'm not only your
work of creation, I'm your work of grace. He says, is it given you pleasure
that you oppress and despise the work of your hand, and you
shine upon the counsel of the wicked? You bless the counsel
of the wicked? What Job was doing here, he brings
up the character of God. He's saying, is it becoming of
such a one as you to be oppressive? That's unbecoming of God. That's
not who God is. The answer to that is no. No. It would be inconsistent with
the divine character of God to oppress the work of His hand
and shine upon the wicked. God said He couldn't even look
upon sin. He's a purer eye than to look upon sin. God speaks against oppressing
the poor. He speaks against that. And shall
He do it? Listen to Lamentations 3.31. For the Lord will not cast
off forever, But though he calls grief, you notice as we go through the
book of Job, he never brings up Satan or charges Satan with
doing this. This is the hand of God, he says.
He knows the first cause of all things. He knows the cause of
his afflictions. He knows this is God's hand.
This is of God. And he says here, for the Lord
will not cast off forever, but though he cause grief, yet will
he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies.
For he doth not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men,
to crush under his feet all the prisoners of the earth, to turn
aside the right of a man before the face of the Most High, to
subvert a man in his cause. The Lord doesn't approve that,
no. The answer to that is no. that is not consistent with the
divine character of God. What's going on with Job is mercy.
God having mercy on him, bringing him out of this, separating him
from the world. Does God, then he says here in
verse four, does God see as man sees? Does God see as man sees? by outward appearance only. You
see, he was being judged by his three friends by outward appearance
only. They were judging him as a hypocrite,
as having done something very evil or sinful in order for all
this to come upon him. He said, Job, look at you. If
you're righteous, this wouldn't be happening. If you were righteous,
there's no way that God would treat you like this. And yet
he's the only righteous one sitting there. And that's God's child. That's God's child. But Job says
to God, have you eyes of flesh? He's saying this to God. He's
just venting. That's what he's doing. He's
venting. Hast thou eyes of flesh? Or seest thou's man see it? Is God's knowledge limited to
his sight? Does he not know all things? Well, absolutely. God knows all
things. God knows and sees the heart.
Listen to 1 Samuel 16, 7. But the Lord said unto Samuel,
Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature,
because I have refused him. For the Lord seeth not as man
seeth, for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord
looketh on the heart. He looks on the heart. And God is working on Job's heart. And Job 42 too, Job said this,
I know thou, I know that thou canst do everything. His tone
really changes it at the end. I know you can do everything
and that no thought can be withholding from thee. And then in Job 28
10, he cut it out rivers among the rocks and his eye seeth every
precious thing. He said, no, he doesn't see his
man see it. God sees the heart. God knows
all things. He's infinite in knowledge. Infinite
in knowledge. And then Job asked this question
in verse five. Are thy days as the days of a
man? Are thy years as man's days that
thou inquires after mine iniquity and searches after my sin? Does God live by time? Is God,
is God, is he constrained by time? Does He have a time limit
to get this done? That's what He's saying. Are His days numbered like mine?
Is that the reason He's pursuing me so vigorously? He knows His
time is short to execute justice. Is that why this is going on? No. No, you and I know by the
Word of God that God's eternal. God's eternal and God's not as
man. He doesn't see as man. His knowledge is perfect. He's
eternal. He's not subject to time. Satan's time is short. Everybody's
time is short except God's. Listen here in Revelation 12.
Concerning Satan therefore rejoice ye heavens and ye that dwell
in them Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and of the sea for
the devil has come down unto you Having great wrath because
he knoweth that he hath but a short time His time short Man's time
is short says in Romans 9 28 for he will finish the work The
Lord will finish the work cut it short in righteousness because
a short work will the Lord make upon the earth What's going on
is short. Our time is short. Man's day
shall be three score years and 10, 70 years. That's basically
our life. I'm almost, I'm what, I'm less
than three years away from the time limit, if you want to look
at it that way. Three score years and 10. Almost
70, I'm 67. Moving to that, I call it the
dying age. We can die at any time, we know
that. You look statistically, it matches,
it matches. Our time is short, but God's
time is not like man, God's eternal, God's eternal. And Job says this in verse seven,
thou knowest that I'm not wicked, The Lord said, Peter, do you
love me? And the third time he said it,
it grieved Peter to his heart. And he said, Lord, thou knowest
all things. You know that I love you. You
know I love you. And Job says here, Lord, you
know, I'm not wicked. You know, I'm not, you know,
I'm not a hypocrite. You know what, what my three
friends are charging me of. I'm not guilty of. Job's not
saying that he has no sin. We know that we all have sin.
But he said, I'm not wicked. I'm not what they say I am. And
he said, and there's none that can deliver out of thine hand.
I know that. You have all power. I'm in your
hand. I'm in your hands. I'm not in
their hands to condemn. You know, nobody can condemn
me but God. Nobody. If God condemns me, nobody can
pardon me. If God pardons me, nobody can
condemn me. It's Christ that has justified
us, and no one can unjustify me. No one. But what he's saying here also
is Job cannot point to a particular sin that would bring all this
suffering on him. This is why he's full of confusion.
See, David could. David could point to a particular
sin and say this is why the sword has not left my house. This is
why my son raped my daughter. This is why Absalom is trying
to dethrone me. David could point to a sin, an
action of Bathsheba and Uriah. He can point to that, but Job
says, Lord, you know I'm not wicked. There was nothing that
came to his mind that he could say, this is why this is happening.
This is why this is happening. You know, I'm not wicked, but
here's, here's the good news of the gospel in Christ. We are not wicked. In Christ, our sins are gone.
Our sins are gone. There is a difference in knowing
that you are wicked, as Paul said, O wretched man that I am,
and living in wickedness. There's a difference. I know
what I am by nature. I know what you are by nature.
I know that we were born in sin and shaped in iniquity. I know
that by nature we drink iniquity like water. We did. We used to.
We drank it like water. We sought for the pleasure of
this flesh. We wanted nothing more than to
fulfill the lust of this flesh. But not now. Not now. Now we have a desire to be holy. If you could, if you could, every
one of you who believe, you would not sin again. If you could,
you would be absolutely holy in this life, as you walk through
this life. In Christ, I am. In Christ, I'm
righteous. But as I walk through this life,
I sin constantly, constantly. But my confidence is this, Lord,
you know. You know, Father, you know that
in Christ, I'm not wicked. You know that I'm not wicked.
And then notice what Job pleads as an argument for mercy here
in the next few verses, eight through 12. And he uses this
as a plea for mercy. Thy hands have made me and fashioned
me together round about. Lord, I'm yours, you made me.
You made me, I'm yours. I didn't evolve, I'm yours. He said, yet thou destroyest
me. Is God destroying Job? He's refining him. It felt like
to Job he'd be destroyed. When God's taking everything
away from you, it feels like he's against you. And he's not. He's not. He's conforming you to the image
of Christ is what he's doing. He's conforming Job to the image
of Christ. That's what he's doing. God cannot
and will not destroy the believer in Christ. He'd have to destroy
himself in order to do that. What was the one thing God said
to Satan? You can touch, take what he has,
touch what he has, don't touch his life. Scripture says our
life is hid with Christ and God. Our real life cannot be touched. If we could ever get a hold of
that, we wouldn't be afraid of dying. We wouldn't be so concerned
about it. When we get sick, we wouldn't
be anxious about it. Our life is hid with Christ and
God. What Job is going through and
what God puts all his children through is for God's glory and
their good. And he says in verse nine, remember,
I beseech thee that thou hast made me as the clay. You made me out of clay. You
formed me. This is the image of a potter,
the potter and the clay. You made me, what did Paul say? Paul said, I am what I am by
the grace of God. You've made me what I am. You've
taken this clay pot and you've made a son of God out of me.
You've done, I'm the work of your hands. Isn't that a way
to come before God? He doesn't come before God and
say, I preached in your name. I cast out devils in your name.
I've done many mighty works in your name. Look what I've done.
Look what I've given. He said, you made me, I'm yours.
I'm yours. You made me as the clay and wilt
thou bring me into dust again? Will you destroy what you've
made? No, no. God has not only made us from
from clay but has made us a new creation in Jesus Christ and
he will never destroy us. He will never destroy us and
bring us back to dust again. It says in Ephesians 2 10 for we
are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works. We are created, we are his workmanship,
the workman, the creation of God, the forming of God, and
he's still working on you. He's still working on you. He's
still forming you and molding you into the image of his son.
And it's gonna take afflictions and sufferings in doing so. And
we ought to expect it. We see this from Job, we ought
to expect it. And hast thou, hey listen, hast
thou not poured me out as milk and curdled me like cheese? I looked at that and looked at
that and I read a bunch of commentaries on it. And he's saying here,
that he's saying, Lord, have you not taken me from an embryo? Or just an embryo? You've taken
me from just an embryo. And you have fashioned me and
made me into this person that I am. this person that I am in Christ.
You have taken me from an embryo. You have fashioned me. You have
marvelous. Listen to what David says in Psalm 139, 14. I will
praise thee for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. That's
what he's saying. When he's talking about here, you poured me out
as milk and curdled me as cheese. You took me from an embryo and
you've fashioned me and you've made me into this person that
I am. And I owe this to you, nobody
else. I'm not a self-made man. I'm
not a self-made man. I'm a creation of God. God created
me, God made me. Not only did he do that from
the dust of the ground through Adam, but he did that, he made
me a new creation in his son, Jesus Christ. When that seed
was planted, And now here I am, a mature man
in Christ. That's your work. Lord, that's
your work. There's nobody else's work but yours. And what an argument
he uses here. He says, you not only took me
from an embryo and made me and fashioned me into who I am, you
have clothed me with skin and flesh. You've clothed me with skin and
flesh and have finished me with bones and sinews. Went from that
embryo to this body. In Psalm 119, 73, it says, thy
hands have made me and fashioned me. Now give me understanding. Lord, you made me. I'm your creation. Give me understanding. Let me
know you. Make yourself known to me. Reveal
yourself to me. I can't know you unless you reveal
yourself to me. What an argument to use at the
throne of grace. Give me understanding that I
may learn, not memorize. Learn thy commandments. And not only have you done that,
thou hast granted me life and favor. Job was talking about
what God has done to him and for him. Thou hast granted me
life and favor. The evidence of this is that
God has granted him life and favor is thy visitation hath
preserved my spirit. He said, you granted me life,
not only just physical life. We know that God gives all physical
life. Christ is the light that lighteth every man that cometh
into the world. He gives us our life. He gives us the life we
have right now, and he'll be the one that takes it. Nobody
else. Nobody else. But thou has granted me life,
not only physical life, but you've granted me spiritual life and
favor. I have favor with God. God has granted me favor with
Him in His Son. And what Job was saying here,
he's saying, you've done all these things. But I'm confused. I'm confused. You know, Rebecca said this in
Genesis 25, when she was pregnant with Jacob and his brother Esau,
and the children struggled together within her. She said, if it be
so. Lord, if it's your will that
I have these children, these two twins, if it be so, if it's
your will for me to have them, why am I thus? Why am I having so much pain?
Why is there so much fighting? They were fighting in her womb.
Why are they fighting? She felt like she was going to
die, or they were going to die, or she was going to die. She
had such a tough pregnancy with them. Of course, you know, they're
the perfect example of the new man and the old man. When you're
born of God, you've got that fight, that struggle within. And she said, why am I thus if
I'm you? Have we not all at least thought that one time or another
going through some difficult, difficult situation? Lord, if
I'm yours, why? Why is this? Why is all this
going on? Why? Why you not hear me? And she said, why am I thus?
And she went and inquired of the Lord. He got a question,
take it to him. Take it to him. And I'm going to close with verse
13. And this is a verse right here,
this is really I started just do this verse, probably should
have. But this verse, Job asked all
these questions. You know, he's in this. Misery,
my soul is weary of life. And he's asking all these questions.
He's asking all these questions that you and I know the answers
to by the word of God. We have the advantage. But he
knows that Job knows that all these things concerning him is
purposed of God. And these things as thou hid
in that heart, God, you've hid these in your heart. I know that
this is with you. Not only are the blessings purposed
of God, but so are our afflictions. And Job understands, or understood,
that all the while God was blessing him, buttering his steps, that
he also purposed to take it away. He's also purposed to take it
away. And Job says, I realize this,
I realize this, that all of this that's going on, I'm confused,
I can't explain, but I know this, it was hid in your heart. You had purposed this before
creation. You purposed all my blessings
and you purposed all my afflictions. You purposed them. Our lives are ordered by God
in sickness and in health, in poverty and in wealth. Our lives are ordered by him. Every day, every day, every single
day, every single hour, the very purpose of God for me and you
is being unfolded. And he is seeing that it comes
to pass. And he's conforming us to the
image of his son, Jesus Christ. He's separating us from this
world. You know, when your baby is born
and when it's born into the world, what does the doctor have to
do? What's the first thing doctor have to do? Cut the cord. You got to cut that cord from
the mother. Separate it. And these afflictions, so to
speak, is God cutting the cord, separating us from this world.
And sometimes it's very, very painful. All right.