Refined By Fire

 Job 23:10
But He knoweth the way that I take; when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. 

The separation of gold from ore requires many layers of processing and refining to get to 99% pure gold. Refining by fire is the initial step that is taken to remove the impurity from the ore that is mined. This is the analogy that Job uses to demonstrate that God is in the process of refining him. Job, a man of means, was totally wiped out of his material wealth and his possessions. His family was also the victim of natural disasters as a tornado came through their town, destroying the home that his sons and daughters lived in. Even his wife, who should have been the one standing next to him, told him, “Do you still retain your integrity? Curse God, and die!” Satan was doing all he could to get Job to give up on trusting God. The human reaction is to say, “If God loved me, all this would not be happening to me.” Where is God when life starts falling apart? Lost everything he owned, family gone, his wife forsaking him, the painful suffering of boils over his whole body, what else could go wrong? Job, a man of integrity, a man with an unshakable faith in God, looked beyond the temporal world into the eternal world of the kingdom of God, and said,” I was born into this world with nothing, and I will leave this world with nothing. The Lord blessed me with wealth, and he has chosen now to take it away.” Job knew in his heart that he was living right before God and that God knew his heart. Life is not fair. Not everyone is born with a silver spoon in their mouth. We put our trust in the sovereignty of God, who knows what is best. For some, it may mean the refining of the fire, for others it may be going through deep waters. God wants to remove anything that will keep us from fully trusting Him. Sometimes it will require things we love, to bring us to a place where we can be gold in the hands of God. Wholly sanctified, ready to be used by Him, and by Him for whatever He wants to do.

The Things of this World

Job 1:21

And he said, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”

How obvious it is when we attend a funeral that the person laid in the casket no longer is in possession of their worldly things. Without the life flowing blood of life, the flesh on the bones slowly decomposes and we return back to the earth. All of our striving for the things of this world are counted as insignificant compared to the eternal things of God. Society has conditioned our minds and hearts to desire the things of this world, that the things of this world will bring happiness and contentment. To a degree, they do, but they only last for a season. It is necessary that we maintain a spiritual mind set that our treasures are not of this world, but we have set our hearts on things above. We are born into this world without possessions , and we will leave this life empty handed. We are grateful for what God gives us and He desires that we be good stewards of it, but all things belong to Him, and like Job, we commit our lives into His hands, and praise Him regardless of the circumstances 

God Is Not Far Away

 Psalm 22:19

But you, O Lord, do not be far off! O you my help, come quickly to my aid!

There are times in our lives that we may feel that all is against us. Everything that happens cries out that God does not care, and He is far from us. Like Job, we look on every side and God is not seen. (Job. 23) We examine our hearts and ask God to search us for anything that may have displeased Him. Jesus went through his last days in a like manner. On His way to the cross, the Pharisee hated Him, the Roman government turned their back on Him. His followers denied and forsook Him, and on the cross, He cried out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me.” (Matt. 27:46). But God who not only searches our heart, but knows our desires. He looks into the depths of our heart and sees that our heart is set in serving Him. After Job looked and could not find Him, he declared, “But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.” God sees the big picture, and will not forsake us in our time of need. He knows the way we have taken, and will not be far off!

Naked I Came. Naked I Leave

 Job 1:21

And said, naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.

We came into this world with no worldly possessions, and we will leave this world the same. Yes, we may be buried in a nice suit or dress, and be placed in a fancy coffin, but when we take our last breath, we leave naked. We have only one possession that lives on for eternity, and it is the soul that God gave us when He breathed the spirit of life in us. “For what does a man profit, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” The words of Christ force us to take inventory of our life. What really matters? We all enjoy the things of this world and God-given desires to enjoy what is good and wholesome, but in the end it is what we have done with our lives and the choices we have made that will determine our destiny when this life on earth is over. Blessed be the name of the Lord, for He is all that matters.

Understanding Why?

Job 38:4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.

There is so much about life that we don’t understand. Scientist have been trying for years to determine how this world was created.  Yet, we have just scratched the surface of knowledge. Our knowledge is trapped into the life span of man over thousands of years. A collection of data left through markings on the walls of this earth and books written across the centuries. We our here for 70 plus years making old and new discoveries about this world. Man has come a long way in discovering the unknown, but yet they have fail to come to a better understanding of who God is and their real purpose in life. Job struggled to find answers to his fate and sought to find meaning behind the unfortunate events in His life. We all like to know why things happen and will surmise their purpose, but we are finite in our understanding and must come to trust God to do what is best. He sees the beginning and the end. He is the Alpha and Omega who hold the world in His hand. He shaped it, he created it and made us in His image. Let us find rest in knowing that He is in control and will do all things good and for His Purpose.

Forsaken, but not Forgotten

Psalm 22:1,3 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me.. But thou art holy, O thou that inhabits the praises of Israel.

Forsaken, but not forgotten. I have never experiences multiple tragedies at one time. But I can imagine those who lose everything in life they love and cherish wondering where God is. “Why have you forsaken me?” are the spoken words cried out in anguish. The heart cries out for answers to know why. I don’t pretend to know all the reasons why God allows some people to go through such unfortunate events in life. I asked myself, “What would I do?” There is reason to be cast down and try to seek answers. It is within our human nature and emotional makeup to cry out and to question.  Like Job and David we seek to find the answers. In the end, it is not necessary that we know why, but it necessary that we know the one who is sovereign and know the beginning to the end. We rest in the glory of God that He knows what is best and trust that His will be done. This is not a cop out for all the suffering people endure, but a reality that we are finite and God is infinite and will do what is right.

How Great Is Our God

Job 41:21  His breath kindleth coals, and a flame goeth out of his mouth.

it is uncertain when the book of Job was written. It is suggested that it was written somewhere around 500-600 BC, but it also seems that the content itself was pre historic. Such is the mystery of this dragon like character. One that is so formidable that there is no man that can stand against it. In context of the scripture, this creature is no match for man, but not for God. He who is greater than all, can defeat even the most fierce animal that is assume to exist. How great is our God, how great his is name. He who creates all things and controls the cosmos of the heavens knows what we face and the trails we are up against. We may not understand everything than happens and why it happens, but we can put our trust in a God who does. He who laid the foundation of the earth is able to help us overcome the forces of evil and life circumstances that we face from day to day.

Though He Slay Me

Job 13:15 “Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him; but I will argue mine own ways before Him.”-

Job, a man tested without understanding shows us that the things that happen in our life often go without explanation. We do our best to live right before Him and still we face situations that often cast us to the ground. We search our heart to see if there is anything we did that would have grieved the heart of God. We ask God for the reason, and the heavens are silent. We wander in the valley of the shadow, in the darkness of the day looking for a way out. Job was determine to find God in all that was happening to him. He disregarded those who accused him of doing wrong, and made up his mind that he was going to trust God to show him out of the darkness and into the light. He had resigned to possibility that he may die from his suffering, but he knew that God who knows the heart of all men would do what is right for him. The best counsel we have is to keep trusting God, in the good and in the bad times. For God is good, and He knows what is best. 

God's Majesty

August 26th, 2007
Job 38:1-6, 40:1-14
What a mighty God we serve! Who among us can stand face to face with God and contend that God doesn’t know what He is doing? Job is now in the presence of the Almighty. It is time to put away the mere words and arguments of man and let God speak. At some point in Job’s suffering, he began to question God’s dealing. In his finite human ability, he endeavored to try to understand the providences of God and the full purpose of his life. He knew that he had not sinned against God but, and began to question the goodness of God. He realized that God was Holy and Just and ruled over the affairs of Man, but God had somehow left job “out to dry”. God is good! And He does all things right. Often in our own life, we find ourselves wondering why God has allowed bad things to come are way. If we are not careful, we will begin to question the goodness of God and His divine providence. We would never blame God foolishly, but we begin wonder if God really loves us. Like Job, we may need to come to a point of “repentance” and cast all of our cares upon Him for He cares for us and is mighty to show His power in our behalf.

Man’s Finite Comprehension
• Our understanding is limited to our knowledge
• The reasons and purposes of life are not ours to always know
Man’s Finite Knowledge
• Man’s knowledge is limited
• We will forever be learning more about God and His knowledge
God is Omniscient
• What a mighty God we serve- All knowing from start to finish
• The eternal God who has all things in his control
Job is Speechless
• In the presence of God we have no argument
• Job realizes his Woe is me!
Job Acknowledges his Faults
• Reflected on the providence of God
• Reflected on the wisdom, kindness, goodness, mercy of God
God Does All Things Right
• How far do we question God before start doubting Him
• He does all things well and is right and holy
Man’s Inability to Rise Above His Own Fate
• New age philosophy
• Man’s futile attempt to be God

Elihu's Advice to Job

August 19th, 2007
Job 36:1-18
With confidence, Job puts his faith in God and His mercy. He was resolute in his convictions that as far as he knew in his heart, he did not do anything that would cause the suffering he was going through. Realizing that Job was not going to admit that he had sinned against God, Elihu takes a different approach. It may be that Job was going through all this because God was unhappy with Job in some area of his life. That he may be experiences bad things, because God was correcting or chastising him for some things in his life that was not sin, but bad judgment. God does chasten those that He loves, and sometime the chastisements of the Lord are not pleasant. Once again, the words that Elihu speaks are full of truth and speak accurately about the nature and attributes of God, but like his counter partners, he too assumed that Job was doing something wrong, and it needed to be corrected. The words we speak are often true and accurate, but are they always appropriate. May we always be wise as a serpent and gentle as a dove and we speak and minister to others.
Compelled to Speak
• When are you compelled to speak up?
• Elihu’s could not restrain himself any longer
Convince of Speech
• His doctrine was right- Stayed with truth
• He was confident of his words
Colossal God
• A mighty God is He
• The holiness of God’s might
Condemnation of the Wicked
• Belligerently break God’s law- mistreatment of others
• Life is short for the wicked-Death waits at the door
Chastisement of the Righteous
• His eyes are always on the righteous
• Why? Change ways, listen to instruction, turn around.
Cry of the Hypocrite
• Lord! Lord! Have we not….
• Cry of sorrow without repentance
Christ Paid the Ransom
• We all deserve the wrath of God
• Mercy through Christ and the ransom He paid

Job's Confidence

August 12th, 2007
Job 19:1-11, 19-27
In the shadow of despair and hopelessness, Job sees a ray of light shining through the dark clouds that surrounded him. He sternly rebukes those who have accused him wrongly and stands firm in his belief that he has done nothing that would cause the torrent of calamities that he is facing. He still does not understand why God is allowing all the pain and suffering, but he maintains his integrity toward God and is confident that God will see him through. We often go through trails and hardships without understanding the purpose, but God who stands alone as all knowing will judge right in the end. We may never know all the reasons why, but we can know that God lives and He is ultimately in control.

Agony of soul
• Beyond physical pain
• Rebuke those who cause more suffering
Accepting of fault
• “ I could be wrong, but it is not God’s Fault”
• We must always realize that we might be mistaken
Ascribe his suffering from God
• All things do come from God
• Caught in the net of God without know why
Anguish and hopeless
• Fence up- no where to go, no hope for the future
• A Tree uprooted with no hope to live again
Abhorred by friends
• When Friend turn on you
• Don’t give pity, but show compassion and sympathy
Affirming of our faith
• Epitaph of our life- Let it be know
• Though He slay, still he lives
Avenger of right
• God will make all thing right
• We live not for this world, but for the world to come
• Like the beggar, our reward may be in the life after.

Zophar, The Religous Dogmatist

August 5th, 2007
Job 11: 1-16, 20
Job is now in the midst of confusion. He is crying out to God for answers. He does not understand why he is being afflicted when he has done his best to flee wickedness and live right. Zophar, a man of self- importance, and one who values his opinion very highly is tired of Job’s “whining”. Job must see that there is only one cause for this suffering. Job has sinned, and he needs to stretch out toward God and confess his wickedness to God. Zophar leaves no room for any other possibilities, his ideas on how God works are right and there is only one way to deal with it. He usurps himself as God and passes judgment on Job with an air of arrogance and self-righteousness. When defending the faith, we must always stand for truth, but it must always be done in a spirit of meekness and humility.

Convinced opinion
• Job’s words go unanswered
• “Job, you are wrong, now listen to me”
Contend for the truth
• “Bless God! I’ll sent them right”
• More concern about being “right” than showing mercy
Condemnation of others
• Only God truly knows the heart of man
• Praying for others with compassion
Comprehension of God
• Man’s finite ability to comprehend all
• God’s sovereign will is accomplished
• Nothing is hid from God
• God knows the heart no matter the outward appearance
• Job’s declaration of righteousness is put the question
Confession of sin
• Prepare your heart- attitude of sorrow
• Stretch out your hand- Humility and God dependent
• Put iniquity away- confession and restitution
• The tabernacle is free of wickedness- sin is no longer entertained
Confidence toward God
• Clean conscience toward God and man
• Doubt and fears are swept away
Consequences of un-confess sin
• Hope is gone, life ends in despair

Bildad the Legalist

July 29th, 2007
Job 8:1-14,20
The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. (Ps. 19:9) Who can escape his Justice? The “comfort” that Job received from Bildad was that Job was paying for breaking God’s laws. God was exacting punishment on Job by bring him calamity and suffering. The wages of sin is death, and Job was received what was due to him. Job was mystified concerning his fate. He did not comprehend the purpose and reasons for his misfortune and questioned God’s dealings with mankind. Bildad approached the problems of Job through the eyes of a lawyer. If Job is experiencing bad things, then God is punishing Job for doing something evil. The law of sowing and reaping is implied to the calamity of Job’s life. How quick are we to say, “They deserve what they got”. “They made their bed, now they must lay in it”. Where is mercy and compassion? Until we have walked in their shoes, it is always best to lean toward love and mercy and leave the judgments and justice to a Holy God.

Provoke response
• Bildad rebukes Job for not taking Eliphaz advise
• React to Job’s questioning of God’s character
Perverted justice
• God’s standard for right and wrong are always the same
• God is just, therefore Job has sinned
Presumption of sin
• Assuming is not good policy
• Innocent, until proven guilty- Then What?
Prosperity is absent
• What is meant by, “the righteous shall prosper”
• Prosperity is not a sign of God’s approbation
• The rich man and the beggar
Profound wisdom from the past
• We can often glean wisdom from past experience
• Must be careful how we apply past to the present
• Is right and wrong always the same for all generations
Parables from the past
• Papyrus and bulrushes- sudden destruction when God is gone
• God’s blessings is short lived for the hollow life
• May look good on the outside for short while, but will soon collapse because they are empty inside
• Spider web- Self-righteousness- no substance- all show
• Job is accused of being like papyrus and a spider web

Eliphaz the Moralist

July 15th, 2007
Job 4:7-9, 5:2-8, 12-18
After several days of silent mourning, Job finally speaks about his treaded conditions and wishes that he had never been born. Such is the rueful condition of Job experiences. He was at the end of his endurance, weak, feeble and emotionally spent. His nerves were probably shot and his mind in a deploring state. How much worse can life get? “If this is what living is about, I wish I would have never been born.” It is not uncommon for people to lose all hope of life when life seems to “bottom out”. It is normally comforting to have a friend close by during these times of despair. But, it is important that advise from friends be based on God’s Word and not on human moral reasoning. Eliphaz response to Job had a lot of good things to say if Job was truly a sinner. Job did not need accusation and his righteousness questioned, he needed comforting and understanding. The reproving words of Eliphaz admonished Job to repent and return to God. He needed to admonish Job to trust God, and lean not on his own understanding, but acknowledge God as sovereign.

Ruefulness of Job
• He pities the day he was born
• His countenance is full of anguished
• Death is received with “open arms”
Response of Eliphaz
• Base on observation
• Logic- “it stands to reason”
Righteousness Questioned
• Law of sowing and reaping
• God does judge wrong doings with vengeance
• What does God’s word say about the righteous suffering?
Reproving Words
• Speaking foolishly (job’s cry wishing he had not be born)
• The curse of sin- suffering of man
• The opinions of man are often tainted with misconceptions
Return to God
• Assumption that we have sinned
• Plead guilty and be done with it
• Accept what happens as “God’s correction”
• Seek God- rely on His mercy
• Truth is spoken, but not applied appropriately
Rest in God’s Sovereignty
• Lean not on our own understanding
• He is in Control

Job's Faithfulness

July 8th, 2007
Job 2:1-13
It was enough that Job suffered the lost of his children and processions. We often feel that we have reached the end of our endurances. And, often asked the questions. Could it get any worse? Why is this happening? What have I done to deserve this? Will it every end? No doubt, Job went through an emotional trauma as he was informed of his misfortunes. He was at the bottom and it seemed that he could not go any further down. But, the spiritual warfare still rages between good and evil. Satan’s desire is to bring ultimate defeat to man’s faith in God. It is said that every man and women has a price. And, at some point will be willing to sell. Satan was determined to bring down Job. God believed in Job’s undying faith and determination to do what was right no matter what happen. The testing of Job was more than physical anguish, but he also had to struggle with the hard questions in life. Does God really love me? Where is God when I need Him? What is the purpose of my life?

Spiritual Warfare vs.1-3 (Satan came... before the Lord)
• We fight not against flesh and blood
• Satan attacks the “apple of God’s eye”
Severe Trails (vs.4 skin for skin)
• Material and social lose
• Physical, emotional, and mental
Sovereignty of God (vs.6 save his life)
• God is in control
• He will not allow a temptation-more than we can bare
Sorrow and Suffering (vs.8 sat among the ashes)
• Dealing with pain
• All that live Godly in Christ Jesus will suffer…
Speech Betrays (vs.10 thou speaketh… foolish)
• For out of the mouth comes cursing and blessing
• Let no corrupt communication proceed
• The power of words and speech
Sympathy of Friends (vs. 11 come to mourn with him)
• Bare one another burdens – so fulfill the law of God
• So glad to be apart of God’s family
• Sincere grief for those who suffer lose
Silence in time of Grief (vs13 and none spake a word)
• Custom of the day- Protocol, having respect for others
• Presence can do when words fail

Job, God’s Servant

Job 1:1-13, 19-22

It is speculated that Job lived before the time of Egypt captivity. He may have even been alive before or during the time of Abraham. Since Job makes no reference to the laws of God given on Mt Sinai, It is safe to say that his knowledge of God was based on his family’s upbringing of the one true God. Job was taught to fear God, abstain from evil, and to always do right. Job lived a prosperous and successful life. Like Abraham, who God blesses, Job was a wealthy man who honored God with his substance. He was a servant of God who understood that he was a steward of God’s earth. The test of Job’s servanthood and devotion to God had not yet come. It is Satan’s desire to cause man to fall and fail, but God desires that men’s faith grow stronger by trusting and giving all things into the hand of God.

Character of Job- (upright. vs.1)
• He was a man of righteousness- like Noah
• Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom
Cumulation of Wealth- (greatest. vs.3)
• Are riches a sign of God’s blessings?
• The love of money is the root of all evils.
Continual Sacrifice- (continually vs.5)
• Job concern about his family spiritual condition
• Burnt sacrifice- Christ died once and for all.
Coming to the Lord- (Satan came vs.6)
• Sons of God- to give an account
• Satan comes with evil motives
• Like a lion seeking whom he can devour.
Consider Job- (hast thou consider vs.8)
• Putting Job to the test
• God’s faith in Job’s integrity
Curse Predicted- (he will curse thee vs. 11)
• The hedges of God- What are they?
• Accuser of the brethren- Why do we serve Him?
Consent of God- (all he has vs. 12)
• Nothing can happen without the permission of God
Calamity Hits- (they are dead vs. 19)
• The storms of life will test are resolve
• Why bad things happen to good People
Charged not God- (nor charged God foolishly vs. 22)
• Job’s determination to serve, remain a servant of God
• Full consecration to the God’s will without bitterness.