I hope you'll follow along with
me in your Bibles this morning in the book of Job. The book
of Job chapter 33. The book immediately preceding
the book of Psalms. I hope you'll follow along. If
not, I hope you'll listen carefully as I read from God's Word. If you're going to hear the truth,
If you're going to learn who God is and who Christ is and
what salvation is, you'll have to hear it from God's Word, from
a preacher of the Word. And I hope you are sitting under
a man who is carefully, prayerfully, and diligently searching the
Scriptures and studying God's Word to bring you a message from
God's Word, line upon line, precept upon precept. Do not listen to
or watch these fellows who cavort around on stage in a show of
entertainment, merely using God's Word as a religious prop. But
find you a man who is preaching God's Word, actually, verse by
verse, line upon line, the truth, the Word, the Gospel of Christ.
All right, Job chapter 33. God sent a preacher to Job and
his friends. Job and his three friends were
sitting discussing all the things that had happened to Job, and
God sent a preacher named Elihu. And that's what God uses. It
says, Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1, it pleased God by the foolishness
of preaching. God hath chosen by the foolishness
of preaching, or that is what this world considers to be foolishness. Yet God is pleased to use preaching
to the salvation of the hearer. Job 33, Elihu says to Job in
verse 6, I am according to thy wish in God's stead. I am formed out of the clay.
I am in God's stead. That is, a spokesman for God,
Elihu said. Paul said this, he said, we are
ambassadors for Christ as though God did beseech you by us. And that man who stands and declares
God's word, he is the instrument of God to bring you his word. And this, Elihu says, I am formed
out of the clay. Elihu is quick to acknowledge
what he is. Just an earthen vessel. We have this treasure, this gospel,
the truth, God's Word, yet it's in earthen vessels. Finite, fallible
men, yes. But don't despise the vessel,
but don't admire it too much either. Don't think it to be
something more than it is. Just an instrument of God. Just a hoe, if you will, in the
hands of the landowner. a creature of clay. Verse 7,
Elihu says this also, Behold, my terror shall not make thee
afraid, neither shall my hand be heavy upon thee. It is not
a man that we are to be afraid of. We are not to call any man
reverend. That means to have a godly fear
and respect for. No, sir. Psalm 111, verse 9,
I believe it is, says, Holy and reverend is his name. God's name,
Christ's name. No man, no woman is to be called
reverent. Only God is to be feared and
revered. Now, so Elihu, who is a true
preacher, says, I'm not the one you're to fear. I'm not the one,
but fear God. That's the beginning of wisdom. Now, he says in verse 8, Elihu
goes on to say, Surely thou hast spoken in mine hearing, I have
heard the voice of thy words." I've heard what you have been
saying, Job, and the friends of Job. Elihu sat and listened. He said it was proper because
he was younger than they, and it was only fitting that the
elder should speak first. And so he sat patiently and listened
as they discussed things, and none of them, though, had the
answers. And so Elihu had to speak. He said, I've heard you
talking. And I myself, this preacher,
has heard the voice of my generation. And I hear them say much of the
same things that Job and his friends said. Look at verse 9. Elihu says, I've heard you say,
I'm clean without transgression. I'm innocent. Neither is there
iniquity in me. You hear people all the time
talk about someone, well, he's a good fellow. He's a good fellow. Well, Elihu says in verse 12,
in this thou art not just. And this is where men miss it
today. This is where all error starts. Most are ignorant of
the fact that man is not good by nature. Some famous preacher
wrote a book entitled, When Bad Things Happen to Good People. People, that is just not so.
That is a lie. God's Word does not call man
good. Far from it. He says there is
none good. There is none that doeth good.
No, not one. There is none righteous. No,
not one. There is not a just man, again
I'm quoting God's word, there is not a just man on the earth
that sinneth not. The Lord Jesus Christ one time
when a man called him good, a man said, good master. He said, why
callest thou me good? There is none good but God. God alone is good and holy and
righteous and just and true. Man is No good. Man is unrighteous. Man is guilty. Man is filthy and vile and false
and a liar. This is what the Word of God
says. The Word of God says, let God
be true in every man a liar. Now aren't we all guilty of this?
Thinking too highly of ourselves and therefore feeling sorry for
ourselves and our lot in life? and even complaining against
God's sovereign and wise providence or control? That's what Job began
to do after a while. Job said, he finds occasion against
me. God's doing this to me. And after
a while, he began to wonder why. Well, Elihu answers him justly
and says, you're not just in this. You're not right in what
you're saying. I will answer thee, Elihu said. I will answer thee. God is greater
than man. Now, here's the key, people.
Number one, man is ignorant of what man is, thinking man is
some noble creature, by nature a child of God, worthy of the
love of God and the goodness of God. That is not so. That
is not so. And they're ignorant of who God
is, his holy and just and sovereign person. Elihu says God is greater
than man. Religion today has God on man's
level, doing, thinking, acting as a man, wishing, wanting for
things that he cannot have, reacting to things like we would a man? Well, God said in Psalm 50, He
said, Thou thoughtest I was altogether such a one as thyself. God is
not a man. God is greater than man, Elihu
said. God is God. That is holy, sovereign
creator, sovereign ruler. One who reigns and rules, Daniel
said, among the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of
the earth, and none can stay his hand. But God in whose hands
our breath is and all our ways, Daniel said. God is God. He is the potter. We are the
clay, Paul said, Jeremiah said. God is God. We are mere mortals
in His hands to do with as He pleases, not vice versa. God is greater than man, Elihu
said. God is holy. Man is full of iniquity. God cannot sin. God cannot even
look upon sin. Man can do nothing but sin. God is greater than man, Elihu
said. God is in heaven. We are on the
earth. God is everything. We are nothing. God is sovereign, independent,
having need of nothing and no want. We are totally dependent
on our God. God is greater than man, Elihu
said. And so he says in verse 13, Why
dost thou strive against God? Argue with God. Get mad at God. For he, listen to Job 33, 13.
Listen carefully. He says, God giveth not account
of any of his matters. God giveth not account of any
of his matters. No, if I had a title to this
message, it would be this. There's no account given to no
counts. No account for no counts. God doesn't stop. to give an
account of what he does, but worketh all things after the
counsel of his own will and purpose. I do not stop and consult the
ants in my yard before I cut the grass. I do not stop and
consult my dogs before I do something. Neither does God Almighty consult
His creatures. The Scripture says this over
and over, particularly in the book of Isaiah. saying, where
were you when he made his counsel? This is what God says to Job
over in chapter 38. Listen as I read Job 38 verses
1 and 2. Then the Lord answered Job out
of the whirlwind and said, Who is this that darkeneth counsel
by words without knowledge? Who is talking here? Every man,
every human being seems to have an opinion of God Almighty, something
to say about his Creator. Everybody is doing the talking.
This is what Paul said in reply to those who argued against the
sovereignty of God. In Romans 9 he said merely, O
man, who art thou that replies against God? And Elihu says,
God giveth not account of any of his matters. No, no. God does not give an account
to men, but is men which must give an account to God Almighty. Well, Elihu goes on in Job 33
and says, God has spoken once, verse 14. He has spoken twice,
yet men perceive it not. Paul wrote in Hebrews 1, God
in sundry times and diverse manners spoke unto the fathers by the
prophets. He spoke audibly. Yet in these last days, he said,
he hath spoken unto us by his Son. The word was made flesh
and dwelt amongst us. Yes, God has spoken once, yea,
twice. And I must conclude this message.
But Elihu goes on to say to Job, Job is only one hope. of finding
out the truth, and that is, if God Almighty will send a messenger. Down in verse 23, he says, ìIf
there be a messenger with God, an interpreter, one among a thousand,
to show unto man his uprightness.î Who is that? Well, that is the
Lord Jesus Christ, the messenger of the covenant. ìYea, the Word
made flesh.î For no man knoweth the Father save the Son, and
he to whom the Son will reveal him, the interpreter of God,
the one to show unto man God's uprightness. Yea, Christ's, his
uprightness, his righteousness, to show unto man that there is
none righteous, no, not one, but only Christ, the righteous
one, the Holy One of Israel, the Holy One of God, who came
to be the righteousness of sons. Verse 24, if God shows a man
his uprightness, Christ's uprightness, Christ's righteousness, Christ's
salvation, then God is gracious unto that man and says, deliver
him from going down to the pit. I found a ransom. Yes, the message
of deliverance is of the deliverer, which is Christ the Lord, our
righteousness and our salvation. Well, I hope God will be merciful
to you as you hear this. And you may hear the message
of the Deliverer, Christ Jesus. Until next Sunday. Amen. Thank you very much.