Many Questions, Few Answers

Today we are starting a new book of the Bible. We're going to look at the book of Job.

It is not, as we said last week, it's not Job. This isn't the book of the Bible that tells us about our faith and work.

This is the book of Job.

And it is a shockingly bewildering account of a good and honest man and how he suffers unbelievably.

And he suffers for a reason that he doesn't know or understand.

And even those of us that have the Bible and get to see behind the scenes, even we struggle with it to understand it.

And we're going to look at it for the next seven weeks.

Now, the book of Job is part of a genre or the section of our Bibles known as the wisdom literature.

So it's not part of the history. It's not primarily narrative.

It doesn't involve the nation of Israel and how God's salvation history through them or the covenant people of God.

Really, it's the wisdom literature like Proverbs and Ecclesiastes.

And one of the things that wisdom literature is concerned about is who God is rather than what God has done

and how we get to live wisely in light of who he is.

And so, while most of the Bible has to do with the people of God as a community,

the wisdom books really push us individually.

They say, what about you?

If you were in Job's shoes, how would you respond?

And they call us, they question us.

But one of the things that's interesting about the wisdom literature

is you'd think that a section of the Bible called the wisdom literature

would have all the answers to life's big questions.

And actually, they very seldom do.

One of the things that the wisdom literature does is it actually asks us the questions

that we should be asking but very seldom ask.

And they kind of provoke us and they prod us by asking these really big and challenging questions.

For instance, last year we looked at Ecclesiastes.

What is the meaning of life?

Where can we find hope and purpose?

And Job is going to do similarly.

Secondly, the wisdom literature helps us find wisdom by asking us these questions

that are going to bring us face to face with who God is.

They're going to challenge us with who is our understanding of God.

Now, at first, the book of Job seems to be about suffering.

And in some ways it is.

And we're going to see an incredible amount of suffering by this really good man.

But actually, the book of Job is much more than just about suffering.

What it's really about, it's actually about the limits of our understanding.

It asks us the question, what will we do when our understanding of God and who He is

and how He ought to run the world makes no sense to us?

When our understanding of who God is and whether God is really sovereign is turned on its head,

how will we respond?

Will we throw our hands in the air and say, that's it, I'm done?

Or will we come and trust Him?

Will we trust Him?

And so what the book of Job wants us to do is to step back and to see that our knowledge

and our understanding of the world and how it works

and how we think God ought to run the world is tremendously limited.

And when our questions aren't answered and when the world seems completely disorientated

and storm-tossed and when God's ways of dealing with the world seem nonsensical, unfair, even unjust,

will we walk away or will we trust Him?

That's what the book of Job is going to ask us.

And so let's listen as we, Angelina comes and reads to us,

Job chapter 1 and most of Job chapter 2.

Job 1 · chapter mention Job 2 · chapter mention

So let's listen to the reading of God's word this morning.

Reading from Job chapter 1 and 2.

Job 1 · chapter mention

Starting in verse 1 we read,

There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job.

And that man was blameless and upright,

one who feared God and turned away from evil.

There were born to him seven sons and three daughters.

He possessed 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels,

500 yoke of oxen and 500 female donkeys and very many servants,

so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the East.

His sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one on his day.

And they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them.

And when the days of feast had run their course,

Job would send and consecrate them.

And he would rise early in the morning

and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all.

For Job said,

It may be that my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.

Thus Job did continually.

Now there was a day when the sons of God came

to present themselves before the Lord,

and Satan also came among them.

The Lord said to Satan,

From where have you come?

Satan answered the Lord and said,

From going to and fro on the earth

and from walking up and down on it.

And the Lord said to Satan,

Have you considered my servant Job,

that there is none like him on the earth,

a blameless and upright man

who fears God and turns away from evil?

Then Satan answered the Lord and said,

Does Job fear God for no reason?

Have you not put a hedge around him

and his house and all that he has on every side?

You have blessed the work of his hands

and his possessions have increased in the land.

But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has

and he will curse you to your face.

And the Lord said to Satan,

Behold, all that he has is in your hand.

Only against him do not stretch out your hand.

So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

Now there was a day

when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking

wine in their oldest brother's house

and there came a messenger to Job and said,

The oxen were plowing,

the donkeys feeding beside them

and the Sabians fell upon them

and took them

and struck down the servants

with the edge of the sword

and I alone have escaped to tell you.

While he was still yet speaking,

there came another and said,

The fire of God fell from heaven

and burned up the sheep and the servants

and consumed them

and I alone have escaped to tell you.

While he was yet speaking,

there came another and said,

The Chaldeans formed three groups

and made a raid on the camels

and took them

and struck down the servants

with the edge of the sword

and I alone have escaped to tell you.

While he was yet speaking,

there came another and said,

Your sons and daughters

were eating and drinking wine

in their oldest brother's house

and behold,

a great wind came across the wilderness

and struck the four corners of the house

and it fell upon the young people

and they are dead

and I alone have escaped to tell you.

Then Job arose and tore his robe

and shaved his head

and fell on the ground

and worshipped.

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.

In all this,

Job did not sin

or charge God with wrong.

Again,

there was a day

when the sons of God

came to present themselves

before the Lord

and Satan also came among them

to present himself

before the Lord.

And the Lord said to Satan,

From where have you come?

Satan answered the Lord

and said,

From going to and fro on the earth

and from walking up and down on it.

And the Lord said to Satan,

Have you considered my servant Job

that there is none like him on the earth,

a blameless and upright man

who fears God

and turns away from evil?

He still hoses fast his integrity

although you incited me against him

to destroy him without reason.

Then Satan answered the Lord

and said,

Skin for skin,

all that a man has

he will give for his life.

But,

stretch out your hand

and touch his bone

and his flesh

and he will curse you

to your face.

And the Lord said to Satan,

Behold,

he is in your hand.

Only

spare

his life.

So Satan went

from the presence

of the Lord

and struck Job

with loathsome

sores

from the sole

of his feet

to the crown

of his head.

And he took

a piece

of broken pottery

with which

to scrape himself

while he sat

in the ashes.

Then his wife

said to him,

Do you still

hope fast

your integrity?

Curse God

and die.

But he said

to her,

You speak

as one of the foolish

women would speak.

Shall we receive

good from God

and shall we not

receive evil?

in all this

Job

did not

sin

with his lips.

This

is the word

of God.

Angelina,

thank you for reading us

this long passage.

Let's pray together

as we come

with us.

Heavenly Father,

Lord Jesus Christ,

Holy Spirit,

your word

is so challenging,

God.

It confronts us,

it challenges us,

it sometimes offends us.

But God,

we know it's true,

we know it's good

because it comes

from you

and you are true

and you are good.

And so God,

I pray,

won't you help us

to understand

your word?

Won't you open

the eyes of our hearts

to see you

in your word?

God,

bring us

to your throne room

this morning,

God.

Help us to see

you afresh.

God,

won't you both

challenge us

and comfort us

from your word

and help us

to trust you,

I pray.

God,

this morning

we also want to

just pray for

our friends

Gary and Kathy

as Gary's in hospital

and just going

through his

tremendous trial.

Won't you again

draw near to them?

Won't you by

your Holy Spirit

really draw near

to them today,

God?

Won't you bring

healing to Gary's

body in the hospital bed

as they're in Beijing

this morning

and as they come back

to Hong Kong tonight?

Father,

we pray for your

protection

just on the

transition

back to Hong Kong

and we pray

for the doctors

to have profound wisdom.

God,

we pray above all

for your healing hand

to be involved

in Gary

this weekend

and the next few weeks

as he recovers

from his fainting episode

this week.

Lord,

we bring our friends

before your throne

of grace this morning

and ask in your mercy

won't you heal them?

In your great name

we pray.

Amen.

Amen.

Okay,

well,

if you've got your Bible

or your bulletin,

keep it open.

We're going to be looking

at this passage,

Job chapter 1 and 2.

Job 1 · chapter mention

Now,

Job 1 starts off

telling us really

how amazing Job is.

I mean,

that's the point

of the first few verses,

right?

It says,

there's this man

in the land of Uz

and his name was Job

and he was blameless

and he was upright

and he feared God

and he turned away

from evil

and he was super rich

and had all sorts

of amazing,

life was really

wonderful for him

and it says,

verse 3,

he was the greatest man

of all the people

of the east.

And the narrator

is not just trying

to give us

background information,

he's not just

painting the scene,

he's making a point here

and he's saying,

Job was a really,

really good man,

a really righteous man.

In fact,

a more righteous,

more good man

you could,

you would struggle

to find.

He says he's blameless,

which doesn't mean

sinless perfection.

Later on,

Job repents

of his sin

and he says,

listen,

I've sinned in my youth

but what it means is

he's genuinely authentic.

His inside life

and his outside life,

his public life

and his private life

are completely aligned.

He's not one thing

in public

and another thing

in private.

It says he's upright

in his dealings

with people,

fair and honest,

just,

transparent.

He's one who fears God.

He relates to God

out of reverence

and humility.

In verse 5,

we read that he offers

sacrifices on behalf

of his children

in case his children

might possibly

have sinned

in their hearts.

He's someone

who loves

what God loves

and hates

what God hates.

We're told he's

someone who

turned away

from evil.

Whatever is even

smells of anything

unlike God,

he wants nothing

to do with it.

And in verse 8,

we see that God

says the same thing

about Job.

He is blameless

and upright,

fears God

and turns away

from evil.

In chapter 2,

God says the same thing

about him a second time.

And so three times

we read,

here is this amazing,

amazing man.

And the narrator's point

is in Job,

we have someone

who is truly righteous,

truly God-fearing,

truly honorable

and honest.

He's walked with God

and he's reaped

the blessings.

He's abundantly

prosperous.

He's blessed.

He is prosperous

and successful.

He's described

as the greatest

of all the people

of the East.

And the narrator

wants us to have

no doubt

that a more

upright,

godly,

religious,

devout,

wonderful man

you will never find.

Christopher Ash writes,

here is a good man

who's become

a great man,

a pious man

who's become

a prosperous man.

It's a picture

of the world

as the world

ought to be,

a world

where the righteous

lead and are prosperous,

where prosperity,

gospel of health,

wealth,

and happiness

seems to be true.

Job is faithful

and everything

is good

and wonderful

and very short-lived

because the picture

doesn't last

very long.

Five verses

of Disneyland

and 41 and a half

chapters

of hell

because verse 6

everything seems

to go wrong

and it goes wrong

for anybody

who takes Job

seriously.

From verse 6

onwards

and the rest

of the scripture

that Angela

read to us,

there are two

narratives

that are going

to happen

in parallel,

one in heaven

and one on earth

and these two

narratives

are deeply troubling

and challenging

and Job

is somehow

caught in the

middle of them

and so let's look

at what happens

here.

Verse 6,

one day God

is having a meeting

with his angels

here called

the sons of God,

kind of like

God's heavenly

counsel

in the spiritual realm

and there's this

character called

the Satan

that somehow

appears and arrives

and I picture

that he's off

in the distance

somehow,

I don't think

he is part

of God's heavenly

counsel

but he's in the

spiritual realm

and God is meeting

with his heavenly

counsel

and he calls off

to Satan

and says,

Satan by the way

just come and

talk to us

for a minute,

what have you

been up to?

And the Satan

says,

oh you know,

I've been going

to and fro

of the earth,

walking up and down

and doing my business

and what is his business?

Well his business

is to tempt

and to taunt

those who want

to follow God

and remain faithful

and trust him,

to tempt them

away from trusting God

and following him

to living lives

of self-dependence,

self-sufficiency,

ultimately lives

of destruction.

And we know

from the rest

of scripture

that Satan does

this in various ways,

sometimes division

and conflict

in the church,

sometimes through lies

and accusations

that he'll put

in our mind,

sometimes through

suffering and sickness,

sometimes through

bitterness and resentment

and hardness of heart,

sometimes actually

he'll do it through

prosperity and blessing

and pride,

but Satan uses

various mechanisms

to tempt

and taunt

those that want

to trust God

and follow him

away from trusting

the Lord

towards trusting

themselves.

And so,

God starts

this conversation

and he says,

well,

Satan,

this is your job

to draw people

away from trusting me.

Have you considered

my servant Job?

And it looks like

you're not doing

a very good job

because here's my

servant Job

and he's pretty blameless,

pretty upright,

pretty faithful.

He loves what I love

and he hates

what I hate.

Have you seen Job?

It doesn't look like

you're doing a very good job.

And Satan replies,

look what he says,

does Job fear you

for nothing?

In other words,

does he trust you

for no reward?

You've put a hedge

around him.

You've blessed him.

You've protected him.

You've made sure

that nothing wrong

can happen to him.

Take that hedge

of protection away.

Withdraw your hand.

Let him suffer

for a bit.

Let him go

through hardship

and you will see

he will curse you

to your face.

Satan says,

Job doesn't love you.

He doesn't serve you

because he really

honors you

or treasures you.

He serves you

because you serve him.

And as long as

you serve him,

he will keep on

serving you.

Satan says,

as long as you're

good to him,

he will be good to you.

But Job doesn't

actually love you.

He just loves,

he's just using you.

This is why

he's devoted.

He doesn't love you.

He loves the things

that you give him.

He doesn't truly

treasure you.

No, he loves

the treasures

that come his way

because he serves you.

Job doesn't really

honor you

or think you are

worthy of worship.

No, he is faithful

because faithfulness

gets him

certain results.

And so Satan says,

remove your blessings

from his life.

Let him suffer

and come to difficulty.

Pain and heartache

will come his way

and he will curse

you to your face.

Now friends,

it's a profound

question that

the Satan asks,

right?

It's a question

that we need

to ask ourselves.

Friends,

do we truly

love God

or do we simply

love the benefits

that come our way

from serving him?

Do we truly

treasure him

or do we treasure him

simply because

we think

that doing so

will allow him

to bless us,

cause him to bless us?

Friends,

do we adore God

or do we simply

use him?

Satan says that

Job is someone

who simply uses God

for the good things

that God will give him

and bless him.

And so God

amazingly

gives Satan

permission

to test,

to tent,

and to taunt Satan

and to allow

hardship to come

his way.

Now,

before we continue,

a couple of things

to think about here.

This raises all sorts

of questions,

right?

Especially about this

character,

the Satan.

I mean,

who is this guy

and what's going on

with this?

Well,

there's a lot here

that's not particularly

clear.

Whether he's the same

character as the rest

of the Bible calls

the Satan or not,

we're not sure.

I think he is.

But here are a couple

of things to think about.

One thing,

it's clear that

Satan is certainly

not as smart

as we generally

think he is.

We tend to think

of the Satan

as this omniscient,

all-knowing,

powerful being.

But look,

there's actually

a whole lot

that he doesn't know.

He doesn't know

what's going on

inside Job's heart.

He says,

this is what's going

on inside Job's heart.

And he's completely wrong.

He doesn't know

the future.

He says,

listen,

if you do this,

this is what's going

to happen.

Just like you said

in Genesis chapter 3.

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

And yet he's

completely wrong.

So Satan

is certainly

not as smart

as we sometimes

think he is.

He doesn't know

what's going on

with Job

and he doesn't

know the future.

But also,

he's not as powerful

as we tend

to think he is.

Satan is

on a chain.

God gives him

certain latitude.

God allows him

to inflict injury

on Job.

But notice,

he can affect

Job's circumstances

if God allows,

but he cannot

touch Job's heart.

He is not

the master

of Job's destiny.

He is not

the captain

of his fate.

Friends,

Satan can test us,

he can tempt us,

he can taunt us,

he can lie to us,

but he cannot

make you do anything.

He has no power

over your heart,

over your decisions.

He does not

control your life.

And the reason

is because thirdly,

Satan is not

equal to God.

Friends,

the spiritual realm

of the Bible

is not yin and yang,

of two cosmic beings

battling it out

for the good

of the world.

There is a God

and he is sovereign

and he rules

the world.

And there is

a created being,

a fallen angel

called the Satan.

And yes,

he is a rival

to God in sense

that he wants

to bring down

his kingdom

and draw people

away from,

but God

has no equals.

He has no rivals.

Satan is a

fallen created being

who will one day

be consigned

to an eternity

in the lake of fire

which is always burning

but never consuming.

And so friends,

do not fear the Satan.

Do not be anxious

or worried about him.

He is not in control

of your life.

Submit to God.

Surrender to God.

He is the only one

who is all powerful.

Satan does not own you.

He does not control you.

He is not all-knowing.

He is not all-powerful.

He is not God's equal.

And so what happens

is God says to Satan,

okay,

Job is in your hands

to a limited extent.

You can cause difficulty,

pain,

and suffering

to come his way

but do not touch him.

And what happens next

is maybe apart

from Good Friday,

one of the most dreadful days

in the history

of the world.

First,

the Sabians,

this dreadful nation

from the north,

come and attack

Job's,

his oxen,

his donkeys,

his wealth,

his portfolio

of animals

is wiped out.

While he's hearing

the report of this,

a fire falls from heaven,

possibly lightning,

and wipes out

a second part

of his portfolio.

His sheepfold

and all his servants

are killed.

While he's hearing

the report of this,

his manager

is busy giving him

the bad news,

another messenger

comes in

and says,

this other part

of your portfolio,

your thousands

of camels

are all killed

and so are your servants

at the hands

of the Chaldeans.

And just when Job

thinks things

couldn't get

any possibly worse,

the final servant

comes in

and says,

natural disaster

is struck

and all your children

have been killed

and all your servants

and I alone

am left.

And friends,

suddenly everything

that is precious

to Job

and everything

that makes Job

a great man

and everything

makes his life

worthwhile

and worth living

in one miserable

and disastrous day

is taken from him.

It all comes

crashing down.

It's like the music

in the playground

in Disney Park

suddenly comes

to a screeching halt.

The rides come

to a grinding halt

or the laughter

and the joy

fade out

in the background

and Job

goes from looking

at this happy scene

to staring

into the abyss

of darkness

and hell itself.

And the point

that the writer

of Job

wants to make

is that

the end

of Job chapter 1

Job 1 · chapter mention

couldn't possibly

be more different

from its beginning.

In the beginning

we have this blessed

and prosperous

and happy

and wonderful man

and at the end

we have a man

who is marked

with shame

and disgrace

and despised.

And the point

is why is this?

Is it because

Job is secretly

in his heart

a wicked man?

Is it that he is

reaping what he has sown?

No, the point

is just the opposite.

It's not because

he's a bad man

it's because

he's such a righteous man.

If Job was somehow

harboring some evil

or darkness

in his life

the whole story

wouldn't make sense.

It's precisely

because he's such

a good man

because he's so

God-fearing

and righteous

that the story

makes sense.

That Satan

can allow this

to happen.

Job's suffering

is simply

beyond comprehension.

And so look

at verse 20.

Job hears

the report of this

and it says

Job rose

and tore

his robe

perhaps symbolizing

the tearing

that is taking place

in his heart.

He shaves his head

as a sign of mourning

and an identification

with the dead

and he falls

on the ground.

And so friends

let me ask you

have you ever

gone through

a dark night

of the soul

where everything

that was precious

and good

was taken from you?

Friends

have you ever

found yourselves

so crushed

and compressed

by the weight

of pain

and agony

and desperation

having nowhere

to turn

and nothing

to hold on to

that it seems

like the insides

were going to burst.

Friends

maybe you've

had to bury

a child.

It's not the way

it should happen.

Children should bury

their parents.

Friends

maybe you've watched

a loved one

being eaten alive

by cancer

until you eventually

had to say goodbye.

Friends

have you been

unfairly accused

sidelined

ridiculed

have your name

tarnished

dragged through

the mud

your reputation

your career

destroyed

unfairly

unjustly

and how

did we respond?

How do we respond?

This is the question

that Job

is asking us.

When we are

unrighteously

and unfairly

and unjustly

brought to our knees

how will we respond?

Well I must confess

that I have not

experienced

many of those things

not to the level

that many of you

have this morning

but let's look

at how Job responds.

Look at verse 20.

Job arose

and he tore his robe

he shaved his head

he fell down

onto the ground

and he

worshipped.

he worshipped.

Friends

how few

of us

find worship

to be our first

reaction

even at the best

of times.

Many of us

struggle to worship

even when it's all

laid out for us

and all we have to do

is just arrive.

And here is a man

who is staring

in the face

a multitude

of losses

and bereavements

who's been

utterly stripped

of everything

that's precious

to him

and is walking

through loss

after loss

after loss

and his first

response

is to lift

his eyes

God would

and somehow

whether out of

instinct

or discipline

or maybe

just sheer

desperation

he falls on

his knees

and he

worships.

And when it says

he worships

I don't think

that means

he belts

out a worship

song.

I think

it means

that he

somehow

finds the

strength

to out of

the words

of his mouth

and out of

his mind

if not yet

his heart

to say

God

you are God

and you are

worthy of

adoration

and reverence.

It's

shockingly

provocative

and challenging

and C.S. Lewis

I don't have

the exact quote

to paraphrase him

in his book

The Screwtape

Letters

says

there is nothing

so dangerous

to the cause

of Satan

as when a person

no longer

desiring

but still

attending

to do

God's will

looks round

upon a universe

in which

every trace

of God

seems to have

vanished

and asks

why he has

been utterly

forsaken

and yet

still trusts

and obeys.

Friends

one of the things

that the Bible

tells us

is that

if you live

long enough

you will

suffer

tremendously

and every

one of us

will go

through some

kind of

dark night

of the soul

we are

looking

around

the universe

upon us

it will

seem

as if

every trace

of God

has vanished

where God

is silent

and the world

seems amuck

with injustice

and pain

and heartache

and God

will seem

either not

to care

or not

to be able

to do

anything

about it

and in

those moments

the question

that Job

asks us

is

how will

we respond

how will

we respond

Job

arose

and tore

his robe

shaved

his hair

fell

to his

knees

and worshipped

verse 21

he says

naked I

came from

my mother's

womb

naked I

shall return

the Lord

gave and the

Lord has

taken away

blessed

means praise

blessed be

the name

of the Lord

in all this

Job did not

sin or charge

God with

wrong

it's an

unbelievable

conclusion

to the

most shocking

story

except it's

not the

conclusion

it's only

half way

and the

book of

Job is

going to

keep on

shocking

us for

another

41

chapters

it's

going to

be an

emotional

rollercoaster

of the

next

seven

weeks

and so

Job

Job 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2

starts off

the same

way

we are

back in

heaven

and God

is meeting

with his

council of

angels

at some

point

God

sees

Satan

and he

says

Satan

come over

here

and talk

to us

for a

second

he says

have you

considered

my servant

Job

that upright

and blameless

man

who

trusts God

and honors

him

he still

holds to his

integrity

though you

incited me

against him

to destroy

him

without

reason

Satan

you father

of lies

says God

your cynical

ignorance

has found

you out

you thought

you knew

Job

you thought

you could

turn him

against me

you thought

his devotion

depended on

his circumstances

but you

were wrong

for you

are always

wrong

Satan

and even

after you

did that

even after

I allowed

you to

nearly

destroy

him

still

he

worships

so the

Satan

goes again

he says

oh that's

because you

haven't really

allowed me

to touch

him

you only

allowed me

to touch

him on

a surface

level

skin for

skin

which is

a shocking

statement

as if that

didn't penetrate

deeply

allow me to

really hurt

him

and then

you'll see

he'll curse

you to

your face

and Christopher

Ash points

out that if

we were

writing the

book of

Job

or if

we were

God

we would

have said

that's

enough

enough

is enough

the man

has suffered

more than

anyone else

in one day

he has

suffered

tremendously

no more

Satan

be banished

but we're

not God

and that's

the point

and one of

the things

we're going

to learn

again and

again

in the book

of Job

is that

we are

not God

and God

does not

act like

us

and so

God

agrees

to allow

Satan

to strike

Job

once again

more intensely

and more

intimately

than before

and so

verse 7

of chapter 2

Satan

went out

from the

presence

of the

Lord

and struck

Job

with loathsome

sores

from the

sole of

his foot

to the

crown of

his head

a total

and intimate

suffering

all of

Job's

personhood

is invaded

with this

suffering

and verse

8

Job

goes out

in the

rubbish

heap

of the

city

he takes

a piece

of broken

pottery

scrapes

himself

and he

sits

in the

ashes

and as if

Job

hasn't

suffered

enough

now

the

person

closest

to him

his wife

turns to

him

and says

curse

God

and die

curse

God

and die

but in

all this

Job

did not

sin

friends

what do

we do

with

Job

chapter

one

and

two

well

one of

the

things

as I

said

earlier

the

book

of

Job

doesn't

actually

give us

many

answers

and even

when he

gets

right

to the

end

God

does

not

answer

many

of

Job's

questions

and

that's

deeply

provocative

and

challenging

it's

offensive

it's

gut

wrenching

it's

confrontational

so what

are we

meant to

do

with

it

well

I

think

coming

back

to what

I said

in the

beginning

the

book

of

Job

asks

us

this

question

when

God

and

his

ways

seem

deeply

unjust

unfair

and

make

no

sense

when

God

allows

severe

hardship

to

come

our

way

and

it

seems

that

God

leaves

us

and

is

abandoned

us

what

will

we

do

will

we

shake

our

fists

at

the

heavens

and

walk

away

will

we

accuse

God

or

will

we

somehow

turn

our

eyes

heaven

would

and

say

God

I

do

not

understand

I

do

not

know

why

you

are

doing

the

things

you

do

but

one

thing

I

know

is

you

are

God

and

I

am

not

and

I

will

let

you

be

God

and

so

what

are we

to

do

with

this

well

Job

asks

us

one

question

and

that

is

the

question

how

will

we

respond

when

God's

ways

seem

unjust

friends

when

we

read

God's

word

and

it

offends

us

and

it

challenges

us

when

God's

ways

go

against

how

you

feel

what

must

be

right

with

the

world

will

you

curse

God

and

die

will

you

shake

your

fist

at

God

and

walk

out

or

will

you

somehow

resolve

out

of

desperation

better

still

out

of

faith

to

will

you

find

it

in

your

heart

to

trust

him

to

worship

him

to

obey

him

will

you

let

God

be

God

the

question

that

Job

asks

us

but

maybe

you're

thinking

Kevin

you've

got to

be

out

of

your

mind

right

after

all

we've

read

this

morning

how

on

earth

why

would

I

ever

trust

God

and

that's

a

good