Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
The Harvester Podcast is brought to you by the Florida School of Preaching. Listen weekly to take a dive into biblical topics and thoughtful studies on things that matter to our eternal souls.
Welcome to the Harvester Podcast.
We are happy that you have joined us today as we are continuing our study of
On the book of Job, that is lessons on the book of Job.
We're calling this series a bumper sode series because it is a series between seasons.
Forest Antemesaris and Steven Ford are usually with me in this podcast, but this is a
very busy time, and so it's hard to get all of us together for a for a full-blown season.
And so we are going to discuss some things here on the book of Job.
For the next few episodes.
We started last time uh talking about Satan.
Basically, it was a lesson about Satan because Satan does come before Job uh in chapters
one and two to challenge uh Job's faith before God.
And of course, Job has no knowledge of this in in the book, and we have more knowledge
than Job does on this, but we know uh Satan is there to accuse and to disrupt.
Job's faith, but Job comes out at the end uh very faithful and God assesses him very well.
And it's important to note that there's much more to the book of Job than the beginning
chapter, two chapters, and the last chapter.
Yet many times uh people only think of those two chapter or those three chapters when it
comes to the book of Job.
But in between those three chapters, there's a whole lot of discussion.
A whole lot of ups and downs in the faith of Job, and we'll see some of this as we go
along.
But there's much more to the book than Job having everything taken away and then
everything restored at the last chapter.
So today we want to discuss Job's suffering and our suffering.
Suffering is a big part of the book of Job, and also contrary to popular belief, the book
doesn't answer the question why do the righteous suffer?
That is never answered uh in that in the book of Job.
But what we do know is that because the righteous suffer does not mean that God has given
up on them.
It does not mean that those people who suffer are sinners above all.
And that's some of the things we'll get into this episode and the next episode on lessons
from the book of Job.
But we're happy that you are with us today.
And so we want to begin by discussing the prevalent theological view relative to human
suffering in Job's time and like today.
People think that because people suffer, that is a direct retributive act of God.
That is, and Job believed this as well as the three friends, that if I'm suffering, it
must be because I've done something wrong.
And so if I'm suffering a minor amount, like I stubbed my toe, and that means that God is
trying to wake me up for a little sin that I committed.
But if I'm suffering immensely, then I must be a sinner above all sinners.
And I remember several years ago when Hurricane Katrina went up through uh New Orleans,
actually it brushed by the side of New Orleans, and the hurricane wasn't the problem, it
was the flood damage, the rising water and the levees breaking and all that stuff.
But anyway, people were saying, well, New Orleans, that's you know, sin city of the East,
and so they deserve that, etc., etc.
Well, that's just an example of this retribution theology, as it is sometimes called.
And we see this in scripture.
For example, in Luke 13 1, uh there was present at that season some who told Jesus about
the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
And Jesus answered and said to them, Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse
sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered such things?
I tell you no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
Or those eighteen on whom the tower of Siloum fell and killed them, do you think that they
were worse sinners than all other men who dwell in Jerusalem?
I tell you no, says Jesus, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
And these questions are kind of expecting, yes they do think that, that these Galileans
were whose blood Pilate mingled with their sacrifices were worse sinners than all other
Galileans.
Because they suffered such things.
And of course, that's not the point.
Of course, Jesus' point here is don't worry about them, worry about yourself.
Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
But it does show that that retribution theology idea.
And then that next question in verse 4, or those eighteen on whom the Tower of Siloam fell
and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwell in
Jerusalem?
And of course the question is set up, they do think that, but
Jesus says, I tell you no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.
And then also we have in John chapter nine, and that's this is the account of the blind
man who was healed, but in John chapter nine, now as Jesus passed by, he saw a man who was
blind from birth.
And his disciples asked him, and notice this question, Rabbi, who sinned?
In other words, it's assumed that somebody must have sinned for this man to be born blind.
But who sinned that this man was, well, actually, who sinned this man or his parents that
he was born blind?
And of course, it's assumed that somebody had to sin for this very bad tragedy to have
happened to this child to be blind from birth.
Now, of course, we know that.
The blind man, the baby couldn't have sinned.
That's not why he was born blind.
But again, this whole idea that this retribution theology.
We also see this in Acts chapter twenty-eight, when Paul was shipwrecked, and you remember
in Acts chapter twenty-eight, when uh he was putting together some wood there.
Well notice in Acts chapter uh twenty-eight, verse one, that when they had escaped.
They had found out that there was a land called Malta, and the natives showed an unusual
kindness, for they kindled a fire and made us all welcome because of the rain that was
falling because of the cold.
But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out
because of the heat and fastened to his hand.
Then verse four.
When the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another, No
doubt this man is a murderer, whom though he has escaped the sea, yet justice does not
allow to live.
And so notice, no doubt, because this viper came out, which would have been an unusual
thing, this viper came out, latched hold of him and hung on.
And so they thought, no doubt this man must be a murderer, because you know, murder is a
pretty bad sin.
And this snake coming out of those sticks is a pretty bad punishment, if you will, pretty
bad tragedy.
And so he no doubt this man is a murderer.
But verse five tells us Paul shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.
However, they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead.
But after that they looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him, they changed their
minds and said that he was a god.
Okay, so they went from one end to the other.
But again, no doubt this guy must be a murderer because he suffered these things, that
snake coming out and biting him.
All right, so that's some ex biblical examples of this idea of retribution theology.
any kind of suffering means that God is punishing you uh for some sin.
Okay.
Also in Galatians six, verse seven, well, actually, before we get to Galatians six, verse
seven.
notice also people who suffered physically, financially or otherwise, were being punished
by God, the theory goes, uh, for some sins they previously committed.
Now, according to this retribution theology, the level of one's suffering corresponds
directly with the level of a person's sin.
And so the greater the sin, the greater the suffering.
And when we get to Job, the text of Job in in more detail.
We will find out that he suffered immensely, immensely, and so his sin must be huge.
And the three friends uh try to get that out of him, try to get them him to repent.
And so, while it is true that there is a law of sowing and reaping relative to sin, Job
emphatically teaches that this law does not apply in every situation without exception.
For example, in Leviticus chapter 26, as well as Deuteronomy chapters 27 through 30,
there's a whole bunch of statements that say, you know, if you do this, then this blessing
will come.
If you do that, then this curse will come.
And all these if-then statements are piled up, which does show that there is a a law of
sowing and reaping when it comes to these things.
also in Psalm thirty-four, verses eleven through twenty-two, Psalm thirty-four, verses
eleven through twenty-two, come you children, listen to me.
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
Who is the man who desires life and loves many days, that he may see good?
In other words, here's what you need to do: keep your thoughts from keep your tongue from
evil, and your lips from speaking deceit.
Apart from evil and do good, seek peace and pursue it.
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their cry.
The face of the Lord is against those who do evil to cut off the remembrance of them from
the earth.
The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, he delivers them out of all their troubles.
The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite
spirit.
So you see some conditions there.
Many are are are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them
all.
He guards all his homes, not one of them is broken.
Evil shall slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.
The Lord redeems the soul of his servants, and none of those who trust in him shall be
condemned.
And so that does show a sowing and reaping, if you will.
although I would kind of put these in the category of the some of the proverbs, that
they're generally the way things go, but not hundred 100% money-back guarantees.
Um, although God will always deliver us through trials, and sometimes he'll deliver us out
of trials.
But there is sowing and reaping.
Uh, Galatians 6, verse 7: Do not be deceived, God is not mocked.
For whatsoever a man sows that he will also reap, for he who sows to his flesh will of the
flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the spirit will of the spirit reap everlasting
life, and so there is a law of sowing and reaping.
For he who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil and his
lips from speaking deceit.
Let him turn away from evil and do good, let him seek peace and pursue it.
And so there is a sense of sowing and reaping, a law of sowing and reaping when it comes
to sin and the things we do.
However, as we stated before, Job teaches us that this law does not apply in every
situation without exception.
Sometimes there's other reasons why we are suffering, not sowing and reaping.
And in the case of Job, one could argue that Job's suffering and the whole ordeal that Job
went through was to for God to prove that Satan is a liar.
And of course, we'll get into some of that as we get more into the text during this
series.
But the idea that all personal sin leads to individual suffering is not the same as all
suffering is a result of personal sin in one's life.
Let me say that again.
There's a difference between the statement all personal sin leads to individual suffering,
and the statement all suffering is the result of personal sin in a per in one's life.
The assumption is that the wicked always suffer, and since Job is suffering, he must
therefore be wicked.
But again, the wicked do not always suffer.
In fact, Job addressed this in Job twenty.
twenty one beginning in verse seven.
Why do the wicked live and become old?
And this is Job's response to Zophar.
But why do the wicked live and become old?
Yes, become mighty in power.
Their descendants are established with them in their sight, and their offspring before
their eyes.
Their houses are safe from fear, neither is the rod of God upon them.
Their bull breeds without failure, their cow calves without miscarriage.
They send forth their little ones like a flock, and their children dance.
They sing to the tambourine and harp and rejoice to the sound of the flute.
They spend their days in wealth and in a moment go down to the grave.
Yet they say to God, Depart from us, for we do not desire the knowledge of your ways.
Who who is the Almighty that we should serve him?
And what profit do we have if we pray to him?
Indeed their prosperity is not in their hand, the counsel of the wicked is far from me.
And so Job is simply explaining, you know, the wicked, they prosper, they have peace, they
have big houses, they do well.
And so he's he's he's pointing out that it is not true that the wicked always suffer.
And so how do you explain that?
With this so-called retribution theology.
And so the wicked sometimes prosper.
And so uh this law of sowing and reaping does not always answer why people suffer.
And so we always have to keep that in mind.
And so with the next segment of this episode, let's address some reasons why people might
suffer, some reasons why people might suffer.
And some of this is adapted from some notes I took a long time ago from Jackie Steersman
when he was teaching maybe this class or ethics or something about suffering.
But anyway, here's some reasons why people suffer, seven reasons why.
Number one, it might be punitive suffering, that is the just wages of sin.
Romans six twenty three All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
Again, Galatians six verses seven and eight.
Be not deceived, God is not mocked, for whatsoever man sows, that will he also reap, for
he who sows to the flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the spirit
shall of the spirit reap everlasting life.
And so we just read that passage, but it applies right here as well.
All right, this may have another goal in mind beyond the individual guilty of a particular
sin.
That is the ultimate goal of correcting individuals and others who may know of the
punishment of such crimes.
In other words, there's a an element that you know may be a deterrent when we p we see the
the knowledge of someone suffering uh because of sin.
All right, secondly, there is a corrective reason why people suffer, that is, so that they
will learn from their mistakes and be encouraged not to repeat them.
Ah in Psalm ninety four verses twelve through fifteen, blessed is the man whom you
instruct, O Lord, and teach out of your law, that you may give him rest from the days of
adversity until the pit is dug for the wicked, for the Lord will not cast off his people,
nor will he forsake his inheritance, but judgment will return to righteousness, and all
the upright in heart will follow it.
And so people can learn from the mistakes that they have made.
In Psalm 119 67, the psalmist wrote, Before I was afflicted, I went astray, but now I keep
your word.
Notice before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word.
In other words, he is afflicted now, but that keeps him keeping God's word.
Down in verse seventy one of that same chapter, it is good for me that I have been
afflicted.
That I may learn of your statutes, or that I may learn your statutes.
And so notice it's good that I have been afflicted.
In other words, there was a corrective nature to the suffering.
And then Proverbs three, eleven and twelve, there the wise man wrote, the inspired wise
man, My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor detest his correction.
For whom the Lord loves he corrects, just as a father the son, in whom he delights.
And then in Proverbs thirteen twenty four, he who spares his rod hates his son, but he who
loves him disciplines him promptly.
And then fifteen five, a fool despises his father's cor instruction, but he who receives
correction is prudent.
And so there's some correction going on there.
And then of course the Hebrews writer kind of brings all this together in in a passage in
Hebrews chapter twelve verses five through thirteen.
Hebrews twelve, five through thirteen.
And you have you forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as sons?
My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked
of him, for whom the Lord loves he chastens, and scourges every son in whom he receives.
If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons, for what son is there whom the
Father does not chasten?
But if you are without chastening, will
of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.
Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us and we paid them respect.
Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of Spirits and live?
For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but he for our prophet
that we may be partakers of his holiness.
Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful.
Nevertheless, afterwards it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have
been trained by it.
And so chastening or punishment or discipline sometimes is not always fun, but it is
corrective, and so sometimes we may suffer to be corrected.
And so there's punitive suffering, there's corrective suffering.
And then a third reason why people suffer is testing.
That is, God allows suffering to test people in order to prove their faith.
In order to prove their faith.
And in Job 23, verse 10, but he knows the way that I take, Job says, When he has tested
me, I shall come forth.
As gold.
And so Job is again, his faith is going up and down.
This is one of the up parts here, but I shall come forth as gold when he has tested me.
And so Job recognizes a testing element involved in suffering.
Also in James, the book of James in the New Testament, my brethren, chapter 1, verse 2, my
brethren counted all joy.
When you fall into various trials or tests, some translations have here, knowing that the
testing of your faith produces patience.
But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking
nothing.
All right, so he says, Count it all joy, not because of the suffering, but because of what
the suffering can bring, the fruit that it can bring, namely, as he says, patience, and
then perfect work.
That you may be complete lacking nothing.
Then a few verses down, beginning in James one twelve, blessed is the man who endures
temptation, for when he has been approved he will receive the crown of life, which the
Lord has promised to those who love him.
Let no one say when he is tempted, I am tempted by God, for God cannot be tempted by evil,
nor does he himself tempt anyone.
But each one is tempted when he is drawn away of his own evil.
Desires and enticed, then when desire has conceived it gives forth birth to sin, and sin
when it is full grown, brings forth death.
Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and comes down from the Father of
Lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
And so there's two kinds of testing there, two kinds of trials there.
The one and
Chapter 1, 2 through 4 is talking about things that come upon us that we have no control
over, like maybe a disease, a loved one dies, a car wreck, something like that.
But of course, once that happens to us, it's within ourselves how we're going respond to
that.
But James tells us in that one to count it all joy, because it will produce patience.
And then the second one in verse 12 is sin.
Now God never solicits us, solicits us to sin.
And he never does that.
But he will allow us to be tempted.
And this is the inward temptation that my temptation is different from yours, but this is
the inward temptation that can result in sin when we yield to it.
Now it's not sinful to be tempted, for Jesus was tempted in all points like we are.
The Hebrews writer, Hebrews 4 15, says, He was tempted at all points like we are, yet he
was without sin.
And so it's not wrong to be tempted, but it is wrong to yield to that temptation.
And so, but when we refuse to yield to that temptation, we become spiritually stronger.
And so there are some things in my early Christian life that I was tempted to do, but yet,
and sometimes I I succumb to that temptation.
But after I grew and matured, and and those temptations are no longer there.
I've overcome those temptations by the grace of God.
But we continue to grow in our Christian lives.
And so temptation is real, test is real, and sometimes we suffer because of that.
Now, Job, he passed that test, faithfully serving God in both his wealth and poverty.
But some suffering is essential for the development of the soul.
Uh we have to go through trial sometimes in order to strengthen ourselves spiritually.
And so there's punitive suffering, there's corrective suffering, and
And they're suffering as a result of tests.
Well, a fourth type of suffering is vicarious suffering.
And this is when we suffer voluntarily for the on behalf of someone else.
And of course, Jesus is our prime example of this.
He is the best example for this, for he suffered for our sins.
And Isaiah 53, verses 1 through 12.
That whole chapter is about his vicarious suffering for us.
He took upon our sins, he took upon our iniquities.
The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed, and so he
is the ultimate example of vicarious suffering.
In Second Corinthians 5 21, for he made him who knew no sin.
To be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him.
That is, God made Christ, who knew no sin, to be sin for us.
In first Peter one or First Peter two, twenty-four, who himself, speaking of Jesus, who
himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, having died to sin, might live
for righteousness by whose stripes.
You were healed.
First Peter 2 24.
And so those are example passages that testify to the vicarious suffering of Christ.
But you know, Christ is not the only one who suffered vicariously, although he is the
prime example.
But sometimes people will often choose to suffer themselves rather than their spouse or
children, for example, to suffer.
For example, a mother may do a lot of things to prevent, she may go through suffering
herself to prevent her child from suffering.
And so there is vicarious suffering.
So sometimes we suffer because of that.
A fifth one is redemptive suffering, redemptive suffering.
That is, by the price of suffering, that which was lost is regained.
And again, Jesus is our prime example of this for our redemption.
Jesus again serves as that example.
In Acts twenty twenty eight, as Paul met with the elders of Ephesus on the island of
Miletus, he told them, Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock among which
the Holy Spirit has made you overseers to shepherd the church of God which he purchased
with his own blood.
And so Jesus suffered.
on behalf of others purchasing the church with his own blood.
And of course that goes back to the crucifixion and the tremendous amount of suffering
that he bore on our behalf.
Also in Colossians chapter one and verse fourteen, in whom we have res we have redemption,
and the in whom there is Christ, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the
forgiveness of
of sin.
And so Jesus is the best example of redemptive suffering.
However, this redemptive suffering is also realized when people lose their freedom to the
enemy and then regain their country with the price of blood and much suffering.
And so people in war can, you know, do s things similar, although it doesn't even come
close to the redemption that Christ brought us.
And so there's punitive suffering, corrective suffering, testing suffering, vicarious
suffering, redemptive suffering, and then consequential suffering that is the result of
violating law.
And this of course applies to breaking God's laws for sure.
In 2 Samuel, for example, 2nd Samuel 6, verses 1 through 7.
Here it says David gathered all the choice men of Israel, 30,000.
And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Balay Judah to bring
up from there the ark of God, whose name is called by the name of the Lord of hosts, who
dwells between the cherubim.
So they set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it out of the house of Abinadab,
which was on the hill, and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of uh
Abinadab drove the new cart, and they brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was
on the hill according to the Ark of God, and Ahio went before the ark.
Then David and all the house of Israel played music before the Lord on all kinds of
instruments of fir wood, and harps and stringed instruments, and tambourines and cisterns,
and on assembles.
And when they came to Nakan's threshing floor, Uzzah put his hand
to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled.
Then the anger of the Lord was aroused by Uzzah, and God struck him there for his error,
and he died there by the ark.
And so we're somewhat familiar with this story sometimes, but Uzza, and of course there's
all kinds of things wrong with this scenario, the details of which we'll save for another
lesson, but they weren't to carry an ark on an ox cart anyway.
certain sons of Levi were instructed to carry the cart and all that stuff, all these many
things were violated in this, but Uzzah broke God's law, and then thus he suffered for it,
lost his life because of it.
But this can also apply to violating natural law.
For example, gravity.
If I take a step thinking that there's a secure platform there, but there's not, I'm gonna
fall.
And again, because I've violated the law of gravity, I'm gonna fall.
There's no way to to get around that.
And so we suffer consequentially, sometimes by breaking law.
And then finally, a seventh reason why people suffer is circumstantial.
Suffering results from the very nature of reality.
For example, all creatures with a central nervous system will feel pain when hurt.
In other words, if I hit my thumb with a hammer, there's some pain there.
And that's not because I sin, not, you know, it's just consequence of my central nervous
system.
But yet God gave us that for a reason.
He gave us that in order that we may learn from it.
And so if I hit my thumb with a hammer, I will learn to be a lot more careful next time.
And so that pain can be good.
And so
Those are some reasons why people suffered.
So Job's suffering uh brings to mind our suffering.
And so we do suffer, but there's but it doesn't mean we have sinned necessarily.
And so don't think that because I'm suffering, I must have sinned.
And there are people who think this, even in the church, many people I talk to uh will
talk about this, you know, I must be doing something wrong because I'm going through this
suffering.
Or brother Joe got cancer, must have been, you know, God is is reminding him of some sin
he committed.
And this, my brethren, just is not right.
It is not is very discouraging, not encouraging.
And so in the next episode, we will address why this retribution theology is wrong, why it
is wrong and should not be uh adhered to.
And so stay tuned for that one.
But in the meantime, we're thankful that you have joined us, and we invite you to join us
again.
Your feedback would be appreciated, and so please let us know.