Be Patient, Stand Firm, Trust in God

Today we're going to continue in our series in the book of James,

but as you will see, we will be learning from the life and faith of actually

a character in the Old Testament that's referred to in this passage of James.

So we're going to look at James chapter 5, verses 7 through 12.

James 5:7–12

Is that big enough to see? Okay, I just want to make sure that's what I've been

normally doing, and we want to make sure it's big enough on these new screens.

Be patient then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord's coming.

See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop,

patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains.

You too be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near.

Don't grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged.

The judge is standing at the door. Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience

in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.

As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered.

You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about.

The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.

Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear, not by heaven or by earth

or by anything else. All you need to say is a simple yes or no,

otherwise you will be condemned.

And so throughout the centuries, the story of Job has been used to help people

in times of sorrow and sickness.

Many have interpreted that God was responsible for allowing Satan to afflict

Job, and therefore he allows sorrows, suffering, poverty, and sickness to come upon his children.

They would believe and portray that by allowing those trials and tribulations,

God is responsible for them and may even be the cause of those trials and tribulations.

However, God was not responsible for Job's calamities. Satan was.

It says in Job 2, verse 7, it says, So Satan went out from the presence of the

Job 2:7

Lord and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.

I don't know what that affliction was, but that sounds absolutely excruciating.

Not a part of your body is free from an affliction.

You can't sit. You can't stand. You can't lie down. You can't do any of that without being in pain.

And so Job accused God of bringing about the evil during a conversation he had

with his wife about all that had happened to him.

He said, shall we accept good from God and not trouble from God?

The reality is that Job didn't know it was the devil alone who was making him sick.

It appears that the people of that time did not even know that the devil existed,

so they attributed everything to God, including evil.

And yet we know that God is totally good and cannot stand evil.

Job was a man who was blameless and upright. He feared God and shummed evil,

but he had to repent for speaking things about God that were not true.

Scripture reveals to us that Job lived a morally pure life, but his understanding

of the character and nature of God was distorted.

Job was blessed and financially secure, but he walked in constant worry.

He offered sacrifices in the possibility that his relatives did something wrong

without even knowing it, and he had to sacrifice for them.

It's kind of like taking preemptive measures to pay for someone else's sin that

might not even have been committed.

It would seem almost insincere and just as meaningless ritual if one did this for no reason.

And the book of Job reads that this preemptive sacrifice was a regular habit for Job.

This can be seen in the numerous insurance offerings he made on behalf of his

children, and especially recorded in Job 1, verse 5.

Job 1:5

It's like he continually did these sacrifices because he knew that his children

must be doing something wrong.

You know, it's kind of like when our kids were growing up, I used to give them

preemptive spankings just in case they did something. No, I didn't. I was just kidding.

Job was only one in the Bible who did this. In this way, Job was trying to give

his relatives his own hedge of protection.

It's kind of strange to say this, but fear is actually trusting.

Did you know that? Did you think about that?

It's faith running in reverse.

Fear is the strong belief, the faith, that something bad will happen.

It's kind of like Murphy's Law. You know that something's going to go wrong,

and it's going to go wrong at the inopportune time.

It just seems like fear is this faith that something's going to go wrong.

It opens windows of opportunities for the enemy to terrorize and inflict harm.

Job did not know that he needed to repent of this fear.

The accuser took advantage of that and began inflicting him with many trials.

However, God restrained the enemy.

He did not allow to do all that he wanted to do, all that Satan desired to do

against Job, even though fear had opened the door for him to do nothing.

What he wanted to. God did not commission the enemy to afflict or harm Job other

than this affliction of source.

He didn't allow him to kill him or anything like that.

He placed a hedge of protection around Job that even though he was under a covenant with God,

which every born and again, Christian is under, that excluded Satan from causing

multiple affliction on him.

Job didn't have the old covenant promises, let alone the new covenant promises, to stand out.

It is believed that the story of Job that is recorded in our scripture may have

actually been pre-Abramic,

pre-Abraham, because we don't see his name recorded in any of the lineage of Abraham.

There's no historical reference given in the book of Job that would allow us

to place his living in a certain time frame.

So that's why people think that he was probably born and probably lived before

Abraham, but his accounts were recorded in the Hebrew history.

The Egyptians afflicted Israel with cruel servitude for many generations,

Yet the law of Moses said that an Israelite did not have to be a slave of another

nation if they served the Lord.

During the time that Israelites were under bondage in Egypt,

the law had not yet been given, and so there was no promise of deliverance that

they could stand on because they didn't have the law.

They didn't understand that there was a need for sacrifice and a need for forgiveness.

The enemy had the authority to afflict Israel in Egypt.

However, once God gave his law through Moses, he also gave a covenant to the

Israelites, and Satan's rights were restricted. He could only give Israel into

bondage if Israel forsook the Lord God.

As he had promised to walk with them. So the real story of Job is that he was

a man of genuinely remarkable patience who honored God,

even though he did not understand the whys of what happened here.

So it's like we obey God just because we see God as an infinite being.

It's not because of all the benefits we get. We just see how God is an infinite,

loving, caring God, and we are going to serve and obey him regardless of what happens.

And in Job 5, verse 11, it says, As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered.

Job 5:11

You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about.

The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.

One of the great lessons of Job is that God honors patience.

But nowhere in the Bible is Job's commended for being a man of great faith,

but he is a man of great patience. He's not the perfect example of patient sufferings,

but he's still a man of patience.

The book of Job teaches that sickness does not come from God,

for God is the one who heals.

And so the enemy afflicted Job in many ways for a season.

His sickness and troubles were just a fraction of his life, and troubles were

hard coming to him, perhaps lasting this entire story of the book of Job,

might have lasted only seven months.

If you account for all that was going on, it looks like it was only a period

of about seven months that was recorded there.

Job never asked God to heal and restore him.

However, this simple fact remains. Even though Job didn't ask to be delivered,

God healed and delivered him completely.

And there's a record of him, and there's no record of him ever getting sick

again for the rest of his life after this encounter.

And so Job didn't know the mediator, but he did know the great redeemer.

It says in the passage of Job chapter 33, chapter 10, verse 1,

Job 33 · chapter mention

in fact, this is oftentimes some of what we read as an honoring.

It says, if only there were someone to mediate between us, someone to bring

us together, someone to remove God's rod from me so that his terror would frighten

me no more, then I would speak up without fear of him.

But as it now stands with me, I cannot. I loathe my very life.

Therefore, I will give free reign to my complaint and speak out in the bitterness of my soul.

The Bible speaks of only one mediator, and that is Jesus.

Only one mediator between God and man. Job believed that if he had a mediator,

if he had someone who could be his redeemer,

someone who could go to God and speak on his half, that he would be free of all these troubles.

Job 19, verses 25 to 26 says, I know that my redeemer lives,

Job 19:25–26

and this is one we often repeat at funerals. I know that my Redeemer lives and

that in the end he will stand on the earth.

And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh, I will see God.

So even in all of his troubles and all of the turmoil and all the things have

taken away his family and his wealth and all of that.

Job says, I know who my Redeemer is, and I know that in the end I'm going to

see God. I have faith that I'm going to stand before him.

So Jesus Christ is the great Redeemer. He has promised to deliver, heal, and restore.

God has placed a hedge of protection around every born-again Christian that

is made impenetrable by the shed blood of Jesus.

It's because of the blood of Jesus that we cannot be permanently harmed if we're following Christ.

Now, we're going to have some trials and tribulations and some sicknesses and

all of that, but we are not going to be permanently harmed because we know what our future holds.

And while he may allow us to experience sickness, he will never allow the enemy

to terrorize his children in such a way that would destroy their faith in God.

God does not create horrible circumstances so that he can provide opportunities

to prove he's faithful, or so that people can prove they trust in him.

God does not make those opportunities for us.

The word allow is defined as to forbear or neglect, to restrain or prevent.

God was allowing. He was not restraining Satan in doing all of these things.

God desires pour up blessing upon blessing to those who trust him with their entire being.

He will never neglect his bride or prevent her from experiencing deep intimacy

when she cries out in desperate longing for more of Jesus.

God has blessed his bride with every spiritual blessing according to Ephesians 1, verse 3.

Ephesians 1:3

He only gives her gifts that are good and perfect according to James 1,

James 1:17

verse 17, and pain, suffering, and tragedy are diametrically opposed to good and perfect.

Job made many foolish and untrue accusations against God, but he did not accuse God of wrongdoing.

He may have accused God of not caring for him or in not seeing him in all his trouble.

And yet God rebuked him, and Job had to repent of that. God said that Job had

darkened counsel without knowledge.

And through Job's experiences, he came to understand that terror,

hardship, trials, and tribulations could overtake a person like a flood or a

hurricane and knock them off their feet.

But it was most important that in the end, we will see God and God will stand with us.

It's most often when a person is in the whirlwind of trials and tribulation

that God speaks as he did to Job.

Head knowledge and experiential heart knowledge of God are often seen in opposition of each other.

We think of the head and the heart, and we almost think that it's just opposite

of each other, but yet God determines to reveal himself in the middle of our

darkest storms as things are spinning around seemingly out of control.

In the middle of his trials—.

Job finally repented and acknowledged his own sinfulness and lack of trust in God.

In fact, there's a part in Job, if you remember right, God says,

where were you when I set the heavens in place? Where were you?

Job was kind of moaning in all of this and acting as if he was just some super

being. And God says, where were you when I did this?

Where were you when I held back the snows?

Where were you when I created all this?

Who are you but one to observe me?

So, Job admitted to having a prideful head knowledge of God that was passed

down from his ancestors.

They knew there was God. They could see him. They could experience the things

of creation, but he didn't have that heart knowledge.

And as a result of the humility of repentance, his spiritual eyes were opened,

and he suddenly understood God's providential sovereign grace and his goodness.

Just as with the prophet Isaiah, Job saw God with his eyes and was ruined.

We remember in Isaiah chapter 6, it says, I saw God and he realized that he

Isaiah 6 · chapter mention

was ruined, that he was a man of unclean lips living among a people of unclean lips.

And this was Job, he realized that he was ruined, that his life was worthless without God.

In God's eyes, he was just dust and ashes.

Every born-again Christian who learns to live in the humility of repentance

and trusting faith before God will also be ruined by our own sinfulness.

When we look, especially look at ourselves and realize who we are in light of

God's mercy, in light of God's grace, in light of God's goodness,

in light of God's perfection, when we look at ourselves, kind of like in a mirror

in the morning, we will see there's absolutely nothing wrong.

Good about us compared to God's goodness.

We will see the filthiness of our ways, and we will understand that we must

repent in the eyes of God.

The enemy of humanity is determined to terrorize and destroy every human being.

He's the accuser of the brethren, and he is continuously seeking divine permission

to tempt every Christian.

The pride, Pride is what gives the enemy permission to attack us because God

opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble.

Pride gives Satan a chance to attack us because, say it with me,

the root of all sin is self.

The ability to resist the enemy is contingent upon walking in humility.

We have to understand the root of all of our sin and our filthiness is self.

And when we turn and repent, we are giving up ourself to God and letting him make us in his image.

Suffering is as much a part of this life as air and water are because humans live in a sinful world.

The creator doesn't cause suffering.

Only God's arch enemy can be accused of terrorizing and tormenting Christians.

God is not the author of pain and suffering. It's the devil.

It's just like God is not the author of evil, but evil is the absence of good,

just like dark is the absence of light.

God is all good, and when there's an absence of God, we have evil and we have darkness.

The devil, Jesus said, has been a murderer from the beginning.

No one else would do such terrible things. Only the liar, deceiver,

and accuser himself would do such things to destroy God's people, God's children.

It's time to place the blame where blame is due.

God is not the tormentor. He doesn't put disease and suffering on our person

to teach them something or to punish them, although there may be consequences for our misbehavior.

Jesus came that people may have life and have it to the full abundance.

The Bible says that when Jesus walked the earth, he healed all those who were

under the power of the enemy.

The enemy has no authority over a born-again Christian.

He has no authority to oppress us.

He has been allowed to do that when we allow sin to enter in our lives.

But in the Greek language, the word oppressed means to exercise dominion.

And Satan cannot have dominion over us if we're born again followers of Jesus.

Yet sickness is a part of the devil's kingdom and in the fallen nature of humankind.

Through the shed blood of Jesus, every Christian has already been rescued from

sin and from death and from the dominion of darkness and from evil.

The Heavenly Father does not put or allow suffering on us other than that we

are able to endure with him and in grace.

Job questioned God about this when he asked, why do the wicked live and grow

old and increase in our power? Don't we sometimes question that?

Why do the evil people have all the good things?

Later, Job shows that he acquired a greater understanding of God's mercy when

he said this in Job chapter 36 verse 15.

Job 36:15

But those who suffer, he delivers in their suffering. He speaks to them in their affliction.

In Psalm chapter 23, there's one phrase in Psalm chapter 23 that I take as a huge promise.

Psalms 23 · chapter mention Psalms 23 · chapter mention

In the middle of Psalm 23, there are four words, he is with me.

What an amazing, abundantly good benefit that is to know that God is with us.

What a comfort that is in trials and tribulations to know that God is with us.

A great deal of suffering that people experience is actually brought upon by themselves.

The adversary and his minions cannot indwell the spirit, mind,

and body of a Christian, but they can motivate them by whispering in their ear,

no one can really say the devil made me do it.

But I got to stop there. This is a story that's not in there,

but I was reminded of a story of a church, a little old country church,

where they were having a testimony service.

And one little old lady stood up and said, the devil has been tempting me.

He's been right beside me all along. And he's been tempting me,

and he's been trying me. He's been working hard on me.

And she was a little old widow lady. and everybody started looking around to

see who the devil was, what man it was in the congregation.

But anyway, so we oftentimes say that the devil made me do this, right?

Don't we say that? Well, the devil doesn't have any power to make you do anything.

But he can try to persuade us to do that. And remember this,

the root of all sin is self.

And so the mind is the devil's playground.

The result is that people tend to look to either God or Satan to blame,

when in fact it's most often the wrong actions that we take on our own.

So controls and limitations. The Lord determines the limits of those things that happen to people.

He is not the one who causes evil.

He allows those things to happen. 1 John 2.16 says, For everything in the world,

the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes, the boasting of what he has

and does, comes not from the Father, but from the world.

When Job was going through his terrible ordeal, the Lord did not give permission

to Satan to touch Job eternally, even though Satan wanted to.

The Lord said to Satan, Very well then, everything Job has is in your hands,

but on the man himself do not lay a finger.

Note that it was in the Holy Spirit who restrains the evil of sin from taking his full toll on earth.

The enemy can't escape or circumvent the sovereignty of God.

In all cases, God remains in control even when the devil is attacking.

So when we believe that we are under the attacks of Satan, we do not have to lose heart.

We can take heart knowing that God is still the one in control.

And God is faithful. 1 Corinthians 10, verse 15 says, And God is faithful.

1 Corinthians 10:15

He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.

But when you are tempted, he also provides a way out so that you can stand up

under it. You know what? You asked me about songs this morning.

Waymaker would have been a good one. But all of them were good.

But you asked me about that this morning, and I didn't come up with it.

Sorry. Should we do that now?

Almost every book in the Bible contains a variation of the words, fear not.

The enemy uses fear, but God wants his children to trust him and have no fear.

He says, fear not, or peace be with you, or whatever oftentimes is referred to in Scripture.

It's a reminder that God is in control.

And although Job was a righteous man and would not speak evil,

he opened the door through thoughts of fear that allowed the enemy to work.

For the thing, Job 3, verses 25 and 26, For the thing which I greatly feared

Job 3:25

is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come upon me.

I was not in safety, neither had I rest, neither was I quiet, yet trouble came.

And the speaking of when his kids were killed and all of that.

In other words, Job says, I did what was right, but I was afraid that God wouldn't take care of me.

The Bible also says this, God did not give us a spirit of timidity,

but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline.

So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord or ashamed of me,

his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel by the power of God

who has saved us and called us to a holy life.

God has not given us the spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power and love

and self-discipline. God provides tools that every Christian can use to combat fear.

God's provision can empower us to defeat the influence and power of the enemy in our lives.

Through the power, love, and sound mind that God offers us, we can find freedom from fear.

Conquering fear is not a matter of self-determination. We can't make ourselves conquer fear.

It's a matter of depending on what God has already done through us through the blood of Jesus Christ.

It's a matter of recognizing the enemy's attempts to immobilize us with fear

and trusting in God's grace.

The Heavenly Father knows each

person intimately, and he wants to give us everything that he can in that.

God only desires what's in our best interest.

And here's a fraction of his promises in James 1, verse 17.

James 1:17

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of heavenly

lights who does not change like shifting shadows.

Born again Christian can rest in God's promise.

1 John 4, 4, Little children, you are from God and have overcome them,

for he who is in you is greater than the one who is in this world.

Nothing, including the enemy or his minions, can separate us from the love of

God, which is in Christ Jesus.

Write these verses down, Romans 8, verses 37 to 39. Read those often.

Romans 8:37–39

In the end, the enemy and the father of lies will be defeated.

We know the end of the story. We've read that. That Revelations chapter 20 tells

Revelation 20 · chapter mention

us that his power will be gone, but that God's power will reign forever.

Thanks be to God. We can understand and we can know that God delivers us from

all of these trials, and that's what James was talking about.

Have faith and know that even in the persecution of all these trials and all

these tribulations, God is still God. Amen?