beginning with verse nine in
Job 35. By reason of the multitude of
oppressions, they make the oppressed to cry. They cry out by reason
of the arm of the mighty, but none sayeth, where is God my
maker who giveth songs in the night, who teaches us more than
the beast of the earth and make it thus wiser than the fowls
of heaven. I read lots of people's comments
and ideas about the book of Job, some of which I confess left
me more confused than I was before I read them. The speaker in these verses is
a fourth friend of Job's, a younger man named Elihu. The first three named Eliphaz,
Bildad, and Zophar had heard about Job's trouble and they
had come to him back in the second chapter. This is after Job had
lost his children and his wealth and his health. And those three
sat with Job in his grief, seven days and seven nights. And the
Bible says they never spake a word. That's probably the most honorable
thing these three ever did. And after that, Job spake first
in chapter three, and he said some pretty bad things. And then at the beginning of
chapter four, one of the three friends Eliphaz speaks and for
28 chapters, the three of them go back and forth with Job about
the reason for his trouble. And, uh, they kept saying over
and over and over in so many ways, God's not like this. This is not like God. This is all on you because God
wouldn't do this type of thing. Well, this young man Elihu, he didn't
intend to voice his mind at all. But after hearing the other three
and hearing how Job responded to them, Elihu can't keep silent. And in chapter 32, he begins
to speak and we read there in the first two or three verses
that he got mad. His wrath was kindled against
those three. And also his wrath was kindled
against Job. Those three had said some bad
things. Sometimes God's process of getting our attention concerning
the truth includes some pretty harsh accusations. Things that are untrue, things
that are unkind. And instead of relieving any
burden, they add to it. But even this is not outside
of God's knowledge and God's doing. The book of Corinthians, Paul
wrote, and all things are of God. Now, all I hear around this religious
world is This is of the devil. That's of the devil. So-and-so's
of the devil. Yeah, yeah. The devil is God's devil. He can't lift a finger apart
from God's letting him do so. All things are of God. And we
ought to try in life to be conscious of that. You and I need not to be shocked
at anything people say. Most people don't get much right
anyhow. But your concern and mine should
be, what is it God is saying to me in this? So Job also got angry and defended
himself. maintain his innocence before
those other three. So young Elihu speaks. And in
these three verses we read, he charges us first in verse nine
with complaining about those who oppress us. And he calls
them the mighty. of which we have no strength
to contend with. They're not almighty, but they're
mighty. Who oppress us. When the Lord had said that that's
how it would be for his child in this world. In the world you
shall have tribulation. He didn't say anything about
seven years. It's been a lot longer than that for me. In the world you shall have tribulation.
And Paul said, yea, in all that we live godly in Christ Jesus
shall of a certainty suffer persecution, have tribulation. So in verse nine, we're charged
with this by reason of the multitude of oppressions. We're made to
cry. And we cry out by reason of the
arm of the mighty. Why does God allow that? Why
does God let him do that? If God is really a loving God,
why don't he step in and stop that? That's really complaining against
him. And then in verse 10, instead of complaining about
the mighty, the strong, the mean, he charges us with not crying
to the almighty. And then in verse 11, he reminds
us that we're God's people and he deals with us differently
than he does with the natural creation. He sends whatever is necessary
for us, though we understand very little of it. When I get
around folks that's really got a handle on everything, I get
nervous. Ought to run the other direction. Because they're nothing but a
bunch of liars anyhow, full of themselves. None of us know very
little. of our God. He's so big and so
wise. And his workings are so unlike
anything we could imagine. So he reminds us that God deals
with us differently. He sends whatever is necessary
for us. He sends what is necessary for
our teaching, who teacheth us More than the beast of the field. And he works wisdom, spiritual
wisdom, maketh us wiser than the fowls of heaven. And our subject this morning
is found in verse 10, where Elihu says this, but none sayeth, where
is God my maker? who giveth songs in the night. He said, you fellows talking
about everything under the sun as to the what's happened and
the why and all this other, there's nobody crying to God about it. And he's talking to these four
people, Job and his three friends. And he says, none of you four
have got it right. Not a one of you has acknowledged
God for who he is. And we're all so guilty of that.
He's not just somebody to complain to. He's our maker who give it
songs in the night. Now, most of God's children are
quite familiar. with sleepless nights, what it
is to have a heart torn over some situation, someone, and
don't sleep because of a troubled spirit, usually involving someone we
love or some dilemma we can't fix. And we sit up and we seek to be still and know
that God is God. That's about the only time we'll
do it. And in this time so often, he
has given me a song. God, our maker, give it songs
in the night. And the purpose of these songs
is not to cause the struggle to cease and fix the problem instantly.
No, but it's to encourage and to strengthen, to bring us to
endure what it is God has sent until his time for it to end. People often refer to Paul's
statement, first Corinthians 10, 13, and they don't even get
the main point of it. He said, there have no temptation
taken you God's child, but such as is common to man. You're not
the first one that's been where you are. You're not the only
one that's ever went through what you're going through. And
then in the middle of that verse, he said, but God is faithful. Not faithful to you, but faithful
to himself. But God is faithful and will
along with the temptation make a way of escape. Now here's the
punchline that you may be able to. Bear it, not escape it, but bear
it. And that's what God's songs of
the night do for his children. The overall message of every
song he gives is this, Christ wins. The overall message of
the entire Bible, Old Testament and New, is this, Christ wins. It's the message of all history,
Christ wins. It's the message of the blessed
book of the revelation of Jesus Christ, Christ wins. That's the message. A lot of
folks get lost in somebody else's idea about the revelation. Get all wrapped up in all the
beasts and the scorpions and the warfare and all that. Some
man's interpretation of the future and they lose sight altogether
that it's the revelation of Jesus Christ who he is and he wins. He conquers death, hell, and
the grave. And that's the message, no matter what, Christ wins. And to you this morning, no matter
what in your life, Christ wins. And he'll give you a song to
teach you that. So I just want to say four things hurriedly
about these songs in the night. Number one, the source. He said, it is God our maker
that giveth these songs. Nothing is said about you and
I trying to muster up a song in our darkest hour, in our lowest
hour. There's no muster in us. It's easier to give up. What's
the use? It's not about positive thinking.
It's not about trying to pull yourself up by your own bootstraps.
The source of the song is not of us. You get so low, you have
no feeling and seemingly no faith to even consider cheering yourself
up that you'll ever be able to lift your head again. And then some religious nut comes
along and says, look on the bright side. There is no bright side. And you turn around and there's
another religious nut that says, well, it could be worse. It's
not necessary for it to be worse. You're perishing in what is.
It don't need to be any worse. It's bad enough now to kill you. Oh my. So. It's serious. It's serious. The
song that we need. We're not the source. Nobody
around us is the source. The song we need is not human. It's divinely given. It must be more than the so-called
inspiration of some cultured intellect of humanity. It takes sovereign deity to pull us out of the pit. So God is the source. Number
two, the subject of God's song. I said subject singular because there's not, but one
subject of any true and lasting value to you and us. And it's
the subject of God's dear son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Note Elihu said, he is God our
maker. The Hebrew word for maker here
is not limited to creation. We, we use the word that way.
Sometimes that certainly is true. He's the creator, but this includes
not just creation, but his making. Something out of what he's already
created. Making something precious, something
valuable, something worthwhile out of us after sin has ruined
us. He's making us. Psalm 100 verse three, it is
he that has made us and not we ourselves. Not just
created us, but made us his people and the sheep of his pasture.
That's his doing. John 1, 3, all things were made
by him. Not just creation, but, and without
him was not anything made that was made. This is God's sovereign
rule and providential hand. and everything that moves and
changes for time and eternity. He's God, our maker. It is He
that melts our hearts. Then it is He that molds us.
It is He that gives us any measure of maturity. And it is He that
ministers to us with His songs in the night. You can have all the self made
men I've known. Give me a God made man. Big difference. He's the source of our song.
He's the subject of our song. And notice this word, giveth.
G I V E T H. That's A past tense with an ongoing
giveth. Giveth songs. Our God don't sell
his songs. He don't even loan his songs. He composes one just for you,
his child. Not exactly like the one He gave
somebody else. But then He gives it to you. And then the third thought would
be the season of His songs. Note the text. It says, in the
night. Boy, that's big in the Bible. You don't need a song when things
are going So well, you're on top of the world. The
doctor says you've got perfect health. You're gaining wealth, marching
to the bank every week. You've got plenty of friends.
The bright lights are on you. You couldn't even hear a song
then, let alone need it. but it's in the darkness in the
night. Not darkness outside after sunset,
but darkness inside. In your heart, in your spirit, when the wolves of hell are howling
on every side and there's no way to turn, And they're howling, you're through. You'll never survive this. It's over. Not a friend in sight. No one
cares. And those wolves will convince
you that God don't even care until he gives you a song. The enemy will tell you that
God couldn't possibly care about a miserable failure like you. Why couldn't you just be like
other people? Why couldn't you make something of yourself? Friend,
it's then that you need a song. And only God's song. You have to quit singing your
song. That's what Elihu charges these
with. You guys have been singing your
own song through all these chapters about what's wrong with you and
right with me. Quit singing your own song. You can't speak. and listen at
the same time. You can't sing your song and
hear another song at the same time. I don't know why I thought of
this silly little memory in the night. 50 years ago now, I knew two
old men out here off of Berea Church Road. Their names were
Arnold and Will Stepp brothers, and they were both way in their
seventies, maybe 80. And they ran a sawmill. And when anybody came to see
them start up the drive, they see somebody coming. They were
watching for somebody coming. And they'd cut that saw off.
By the time you got up there and got out of your vehicle,
here they stand side by side, ready to start talking. And they'd start talking at the
same time. And one of them wouldn't stop.
Neither one of them would stop. And it didn't bother them. And you
had to stand there. Me and many men have talked about
this. And you had to stand there and pretend you wasn't ignoring
one of them. They're both looking you in the
eye and both just jabbered and talked right off. It was impossible to deal with.
And hey, it's just that impossible.
to go on singing your song instead of crawling off somewhere and
shut your mouth, shut your mind, and listen for God's song. You read about Elijah in the
cave, didn't you? Oh, he said there was a whirlwind.
Boy, that was really something. And there was an earthquake.
I was pretty sure that was it. But he said, no, no. A still,
small voice told me everything would be all
right. That's what's needed in your
life and mine. Instead of complaining, when
am I getting out of this? I want to try asking God, what
am I getting out of this? What is it you're doing for me
in this? And agree with him that he has
a purpose and he's never wrong. To argue with the Lord about
anything is to contend that he's wrong about this and I'm right. And to argue that I don't deserve
this is to contend that he's unjust. We all deserve a lot worse than
we get, I promise you. To be honest with God is to confess
I'm wrong and you're right. To confess that I can't really
handle this, though I want to act like and give the appearance
that I can. Maybe this morning, Well, I feel
sure someone this morning really needs a song. Maybe Satan has blinded you to
any thought of God at all, except to tell you that God don't really
care about you. The Psalmist, he heard that. The enemy said, where's your
God at now? Well, you're in all kinds of
trouble. But he had a song. God had given
him a song. He said, I'll tell you where
he's at. This is Psalm 115. Our God is
in the heavens. He had done whatsoever he hath
pleased. You ain't telling him what to
do. I'm not telling him what to do. He's doing all His purpose
to do. He worketh all things after the
counsel of His own will. And He's not wrong about any
of it. God is running His business.
That's all the explanation we need for anything. And then a
fourth thing would be the satisfaction that God's songs bring. It's God's song. that puts his
positive self into your negative you. God does it. In 2 Kings chapter 6, there's
a story. Bitter enemy of God's people,
the Assyrians, they were surrounding the prophet Elisha. And they
had him trapped, so they thought. And things looked bad. And Elisha's
servant got up early in the morning and went out to the dredge and
looked around. And he saw on the mountains round
about the enemy armies, the Assyrian
hosts. And he went flying back in to
tell the prophet Elisha, And he used that word, alas, he used it four times. And he
said, we're done. It's over. Alas, master, what
shall we do? Well, Elisha had God's song in
his heart and he told his servant. There's more with us than there
is with them. And that servant said, say what?
It's just me and you. Are you out of your head? And Elisha prayed, and the Lord
opened his eyes. And the servant went back out,
and he saw between him and the Assyrians a mighty host of heaven. God's army in between. If you didn't know it this morning,
God, if you're God's child, God's army is in between you and anything
hell can bring up. There'll be a lot of religious
folk around still getting their licks in, but God's in on that
too. but hell can't touch you. What
a blessing. What a blessing. It's God's song that strengthens
and satisfies. It's God's song that causes us
to trust in him. It's God's song that keeps us
from giving up. And you sometimes think you're
fighting this alone. You've never been alone. You've
never been alone. Even when you were full of hell,
God was on your trail. Paul and Silas, Acts chapter
16. They're in jail at Philippi.
Not because they robbed a bank or shot somebody, but for preaching
the glorious gospel of Christ. And they were given a song at
midnight. You remember that? Everybody
else trying to sleep and here these two birds are start singing.
Amazing grace. How could they sing at midnight?
Was it because they had no problems? No, they had lots of problems. The same because God's song did
more for them. than their problems did to them.
That's what you need. That's what I need. And that's
the only way we can sing in our suffering and in our sorrow and
in our shame a song. Then in the book of Acts chapter
12, Simon Peter in prison, he's on death row. And it's just a
matter of hours. He's to be executed in the morning. And he's sitting there awake,
nervous wreck. No, he's not. And he's not actually singing.
He's snoring. He's got God's song in his heart
and he's sleeping like a log. Matter of fact, you go read it
in Acts 12, the angel had trouble waking him up. Like some of you. He's facing Herod's sword at
daylight, but he's sleeping like a baby. You reckon it's possible for
you? I reckon it's possible for me. God gave Peter a song and God's song taught him this. Here's what it taught him. Herod don't really have a sword.
It's God's sword. And it's God that will determine
who uses the sword, when they'll use it, and who they'll use it
on. All things are of And I repeat,
we tend to forget that the devil is God's devil. If you listen
to this religious mass all around us, you have to give the devil
a whole lot of credit because they do. They've got God trying
to do a whole lot of things he can't do because folks won't
cooperate. Well, that's not who our God
is. He came to save his people. He's
saving his people. All hell gets is the leftovers. Christ died for His people, redeemed
His people. We are certain to be conformed
to the image of God's Son. We are certain to be in His presence
forever. No question about it. Hell will not be able to claim
even one that Christ died for. The devil will not be able to
shake his fist in God's face forever and say, I got one you
wanted. No, no, no, no. God's running
it. God's running things. We can't change the night. We can't end the night. Oh, how many times we've sat
and waited for daylight. Just like those, Paul and them
in that, in that storm at sea in Acts 27, we waited for the
day. We can't change it. We can't
bring sunrise soon enough, but it's God that give us songs
in the night.