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Teaching podcast from the Eagle Community Church of Christ in Mont Belvieu, TX.
Hey, friends. Welcome back to the Eagle Community Church of Christ podcast. My name is John Gunter. This week, we are in week 2 of our series 9 common lies that Christians believe and why God's truth is infinitely better. This is a book by Shane Pruitt and and so interesting each week will be a different lie.
John Gunter:This one is God gained another angel. Have you ever heard that before? Yeah. So this is really looking at is is what we believe about the afterlife influenced by scripture or popular culture? Let's find out.
John Gunter:Thanks again for listening. We, just started another series last week. We're talking about the book by Shane Pruitt, 9 Common Lies Christians Believe. And, I think it's going to be an interesting ride. This is not if you have said or thought any of these things as truth, that's okay.
John Gunter:You are not a bad person because of it. But what we're aiming to do with this series is just kind of understand what scripture says versus what we might read in a meme, or on a bumper sticker or even find in Hollywood at times. And so last week, we talked about lie number 1, God won't give me more than I can handle. How many of you have heard that before? God won't give me more than I can handle.
John Gunter:I know that. I know God won't give me. Well, the answer is not that. God never promises that. What he says, the promise is not that he won't give you more than you can handle, but rather that he won't give you more than he can handle through you.
John Gunter:That's a different thing. One of them is my power and my ability, and I'll take over from here, Lord. And the other one is this, where we say, okay, I'm going to get out of the way. God, you are in control. And that's a big difference.
John Gunter:And so as we confront those things, I don't want you to be offended. You may have heard lie number 2 today: God gained another angel when someone passes. You heard that before. Sure. I did a test this morning as as Katie and I were getting ready.
John Gunter:I said, every time a bell rings, and I just stopped. And you know what she said? An angel gets its wings. Now that is a, that is something because of Hollywood that we have said for a long time. Do you know there's no scripture about that at all?
John Gunter:And so what we are going to talk about today is the idea of when someone passes, God gains another angel. And that can be an odd, kind of awkward time period for people anyway. You ever wanted to be there for someone, you just don't know what to say or what to do? Right? My dad is that way.
John Gunter:My dad is an introvert. He is a dentist and a farmer. And I think he would much rather be a farmer, because every time he would come in from work, he would immediately put his overalls on and go out into the pasture, go work on something, go weld on something, go take hay to the cows, all of the stuff. But he is an introvert and so he is awful around death. He doesn't know how to deal with it, he doesn't know how to talk about it.
John Gunter:We really have not ever had conversations about his parents passing. They passed when I was pretty young. And even when he's had buddies of his that either passed or had their relatives pass, he doesn't know how to do that. Do you ever find yourself in that kind of situation? Yeah, well, the answer is, a lot of times, just be there.
John Gunter:Just be there and sit with the person, just tell them you're here and you love them. But out of these situations, a lot of times, we get things like this. Well, God gained another angel, or maybe God needed another angel. You probably heard that version as well. And so, that's that's one of those things that, as we kind of just say it and say it, it becomes this mental truth that, well, God gained an angel.
John Gunter:When my dad's mother passed away when I was about 10, And I remember being at the funeral, and in my mind, I pictured her just flying around as she was there, just messing with people. You ever had that kind of idea when somebody passed away, like, they're just just flying they gained their wings, right? They're flying around. And that kind of helped me through the time. I'm in an emotional state.
John Gunter:It would be funny if nanny was just flying around right now, you know? But God gained another angel. One of the things we want to talk about this morning is Job. Job is a guy who certainly experienced loss. And I know for a lot of you, you know this story, but we're going to rehash some of it, starting in Job 1:1-five.
John Gunter:In the land of Uz, there lived a man whose name was Job. This man was blameless and upright. He feared God and shunned evil. Now, I hope that someone says that about me, that I am revered in a way that Job was revered. But he said he had 7 sons and 3 daughters, a blessed man, and he owned 7,000 sheep.
John Gunter:I don't think I'll ever be able to relate to this. 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 donkeys, and had a large number of servants. He was the greatest man among all the people of the East. You're talking about lofty. How could you not have a big head if somebody said that about you?
John Gunter:The greatest man among all the people of these. His sons used to hold feasts in their homes on their birthdays, and they would invite their 3 sisters to eat and drink with them. When a period of feasting had run its course, Job would make arrangements for them to be purified. Early in the morning, he would sacrifice a burnt offering for each of them thinking, perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts. This was Job's regular custom.
John Gunter:What this is saying is, Job feared God so much. He he respected God and wanted it. He he loved his family so much. He wanted that relationship with them that he would even have this sacrifice just in case. How many of you prayed for your your your sons and daughters, and, man, I hope they get back on yeah.
John Gunter:That's what Job is doing here. I will do whatever I can to help that relationship with god, and we say, amen. Yeah. I would. But this this whole introduction is just to tell you that there was nothing wrong with Job's life.
John Gunter:It doesn't say Job was living a sinless life. Right? He was not a perfect man in that way. Nobody was but but Christ. But what we see is a man above all men and the way that he loved god, he loved his family, he cared for them, and he wanted everything to be right.
John Gunter:What we get in verse 6 kind of changes. Says, one day, the angels came to present themselves before the lord and Satan also came with them. I need to pause for just a second to say something. A lot of our versions, including what we're looking at right now, will have Satan as a proper noun. It is not a proper noun when we read it.
John Gunter:It is the Satan or the Satan, which means the accuser. What we're setting up in Job is an interesting Heavenly Council type of setup, where God is is there and you have other beings there that are kind of questioning. That's what you get with the accuser with what we'll see is Satan is a proper noun, but it wasn't. Some people think that this person turned into Satan at some point because of the way he speaks to God and the way he confronts God. But right now, we're just talking about someone who's almost playing, excuse the the phrase, devil's advocate.
John Gunter:Okay? So, of course, this is happening because of that type of thing. And so just know that as we go. So again, one day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord and Satan also came with them. The Lord said, again, you could just read this to the accuser, Where have you come from?
John Gunter:Satan answered, The Lord from roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it. Then the Lord said to Satan, have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him. He is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. Does Job fear God for nothing?
John Gunter:Satan replied. You see, again, the questioning, how can I poke a hole in what you've set up here? This is what what exactly he's doing. Have you not put a hedge around him saying, well, you've got a hedge around him. Nobody can touch him.
John Gunter:Of course, he loves you. Right? You have blessed the works of his hands so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face. The Lord said to the accuser, Very well then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.
John Gunter:Then the accuser went out from the presence of the Lord. How many of you know what happened after that? Yeah. So what we've done here is the accuser has set up, of course this man is upright. Nothing has gone wrong in his life.
John Gunter:So what he is saying is once something goes wrong, once you touch him or destroy something in his life, he will surely curse you. The next few verses tell us exactly what happened. One day, when Job's sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the older brother's house, a messenger came to Job and said, the oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, and the Sabeans attacked and made off with them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you. While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, the fire of God fell from the heavens and burned up the sheep and the servants.
John Gunter:You remember how many sheep he had? That's a great big fire. He said, he burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you. While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, the Chaldeans formed 3 raiding parties and slept down on your camels and made off of them. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you, this day is getting worse quickly.
John Gunter:While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the older brother's house, when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them, and they are dead. And I am the only one who has escaped to tell you. I can only imagine the way that as this progresses, Job has said, okay. Well, I need to get some more sheep.
John Gunter:And now I'm gonna have to buy some more camels. And now I'm gonna have to get some more servants. And all of a sudden, not only is all of that gone, but now his family is gone. At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground and cursed God.
John Gunter:No. What do you mean? It says he fell to the ground in worship and said, naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. May the name of the Lord be praised.
John Gunter:In all this, Job did not send by charging God with wrongdoing. That's a gut check for us today, isn't it? How many times do we ask God, Why did you do that to me? Why did you take that person? Why did this happen?
John Gunter:Why did that happen? Why did this happen and not that? And Job, when all of this goes wrong, remember the accuser said what will happen is, when this goes wrong, he will curse you. And what happened? It all went wrong, and Job hit the ground in worship, praising God.
John Gunter:That's a crazy story. We know the end of the story, that Job has another family, And for some reason growing up, I understood that to mean that everything was fine again. But I don't know anybody that has lost a loved one, and though they might have added another loved one in their family, they thought, okay, well that replaces that one. No. You never replace.
John Gunter:That hole is always there. That emptiness is always there. Job, again, did not do anything to get any of it. He lived a life that was great, and he praised God through all of it. Now there was a time when Job had some friends that were not exactly helpful, and we will talk about that in just a few.
John Gunter:But in the book, Shane talks about a friend of his, a family that he knew named Dean and Lynn. He said Dean kind of reminds him of Job because, well, guess what, it wasn't because he had a bunch of sheep. It was because he experienced loss. They were raising 2 boys, Elliot and Evan, I can remember that last one, pretty easy. But Lynn finds out she has pancreatic cancer.
John Gunter:And they prayed, and they studied God's Word, and Shane said, you know, a lot of times I would go over to the house wanting to encourage them, and it seemed like I was always the one leaving encouraged by them. Because through this, their faith showed to the world. They would read verses like Isaiah 4 1 10, So do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you.
John Gunter:I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. How many of us go to Scripture in those times? Go to Scripture, the Psalms. The things that remind us of who god is and what he does. And they did this over and over, and what Shane says, it seems like their faith got stronger, even as Lynn got weaker and struggled.
John Gunter:And it said July 27, 4 days before their 12th anniversary, Lynn passed away, leaving both Dean and the 2 boys. About two and a half years later, Shane says that Dean met another woman named Crystal. She had a boy and a girl, as well. They become this blended family. And everything kind of seems to, kind of start going again.
John Gunter:Right? You know how things are going wrong, you know how fast this year has gone? But if we go and I get sick a little bit, or Katie gets sick, and we have to go to the hospital, you know how slow that clock goes on the wall? You've been there, haven't you? You've seen it.
John Gunter:But he said, you know, two and a half years after this happened, he meets Crystal, and they go along with his family and everything seems to be okay. Their oldest son, Elliot, had just graduated the year before and he was actually going to his girlfriend's high school prom. And he said that Elliot was just a fantastic student, he had all kinds of academic things that he had accomplished. But as they were at that prom, all of a sudden Elliot just passed out. And after testing they had finished they had finished that, until 4 years later, he passes out again.
John Gunter:And in that moment, he finds out he has an inoperable brain tumor. So Dean has lost his wife to pancreatic cancer and now his oldest son has an inoperable brain tumor. And Shane said, again, I would go over there and try to encourage them and walk away encouraged, because they would be talking about verses like this. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Again, he said it seemed like their faith, as Elliot got worse, they all got stronger, Moving not away from God but closer to God.
John Gunter:Elliot did finally pass away. And if any of you have lost someone before, you have heard all the things that, people can say to try to encourage, like God gained another angel, right? What would you say? Job's friends were, again, less than helpful. You remember that they came to Job and kind of tried to comfort him, but then they said, Well, what have you done to deserve this?
John Gunter:So we know God wouldn't punish anybody that didn't deserve it. What kind of sin have you done? Just tell us. I hope they weren't his friends after that. How about you all?
John Gunter:Nobody needs a friend like that, right? But that's what Job had. But God didn't gain another angel. That is not the story we see in Scripture. Humans are humans.
John Gunter:Angels are angels. Everywhere throughout. I know when you hear that bell around Christmas, you might think about an angel gaining its wings, but scripture tells us something else. From first Peter well, that's what I just said. Humans are humans and angels are angels.
John Gunter:First Peter 112, it was revealed to them, again, Peter is talking about the prophets before. It was revealed to them, that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that they have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, even angels long to look into these things. So, part of our understanding about God gaining an angel is this picture we have about angels. Again, gaining wings, we go up, maybe we fly up. Up.
John Gunter:And what we see is angels are kind of looking into this, going, okay, this is interesting. Even angels long to look into these things that prophets have talked about, that Peter is saying that this is about you, that Jesus has come to the earth for you. Angels are messengers. You see that in Scripture? Angels are messengers.
John Gunter:Think about Mary and Joseph and the angel that came to them. Think about Zechariah. They are just doing the work of God. They are coming to people on behalf of God. It doesn't say that they were, again, former people, but they are messengers.
John Gunter:Angels are also protectors. We can read in Daniel 6 22, My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me because I was found innocent in his sight, nor have I ever done any wrong before you, your majesty. Daniel talking to the king and saying, God's angels are what protected him from the mouth of the lions. Angels are also warriors.
John Gunter:I can't imagine this scenario, but from 2nd Kings 19, we read, That night the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a 185,000 in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning, there were, all the dead bodies. Can you imagine? Now, I am sure we have got a bunch of men in this room and you have probably considered whether or not you take a black bear and want hand to hand combat. But can you imagine being powerful enough to, are you sure you want to fight us?
John Gunter:We've got 185,000. Oh yes, no big deal. But angels are warriors in a way that we can't even. Can you wrap your mind around that? I can't.
John Gunter:But God did not send Jesus for angels. As great as angels are, God did not send Jesus for them. He sent them for me and for you, for humans, for humanity. Jesus did not come to this Earth as an angel. He came to this Earth to experience life and to be relatable to us as humans.
John Gunter:From Romans 5:8. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Again, I don't want you to if you've ever said this to someone that god gained another angel, that you walk away going, oh, man. I'm a terrible person. No.
John Gunter:Don't want you to say that. But what I want you to see is God loves you, as a human, for humanity's sake. That while you were still a sinner, He sent His one and only Son. There was nothing we brought to the table, but He sent His Son to die for all of us. Not to become an angel.
John Gunter:We see even in Revelation where both humans and angels are worshiping God. Together. Not as one angel. And so when we think about the passing of someone, and I know it can be awkward, we come back to scripture and we see the promises. Paul says this in 1 Thessalonians, he said, brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind who have no hope.
John Gunter:We believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him. According to the Lord's word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. So we will be with the Lord forever.
John Gunter:Therefore, encourage one another with these words. Be encouraged that death does not even separate you from Christ. That we, again, as humans, will meet Jesus in the air to be with him forever. Be encouraged by that church. Next week, we talk about 1, a different topic.
John Gunter:God just wants me to be happy. That'll be a fun one, won't it? Have you heard that one before? God just wants me to be happy. If you're not happy, God still wants it, you're just not experiencing it yet.
John Gunter:And so I think again every week that we will have a lot of fun with this and hopefully you didn't get offended if ever, if someone has said, God has gained an angel or maybe that's your saying to people, God gained an angel. But to know that that God loves each and every one of us enough to send his one and only son to die for us, Lowly human being. But that's God and that's who, that's how he loves us. We've got an invitation song picked out this morning. If you have walked away from God and need to see that relationship restored, we'd love to to pray with you.
John Gunter:If you haven't put on Christ in baptism and like to do that today, we'd love to see that and see that walk begin. But would you come?