When Your World is Shaken - Job 1-3

1:02And on August 23rd, 2011, just before 2 o'clock, Central Virginia was suddenly and violently shaken by a magnitude 5.8 earthquake. The epicenter was in Louisa County, which is just a few miles down the road from where we lived. It's in what the geologists call the Virginia Seismic Zone. And until then, I'd never even heard that that even existed. I didn't even know that it was. A thing. It was the largest earthquake that had ever occurred east of the Rocky Mountains since 1897. It was felt across more than a dozen states and even up into Canada. And it was estimated that approximately one-third of the United States population could have felt that earthquake more than any other in U.S. history. And thankfully, no deaths occurred and only minor injuries were reported. Damage to buildings, however, was widespread and estimated between 200 and 300 million dollars. And if you remember the news reports, the Washington Monument started to sway like a giant stick, and it actually broke some of the top of it. And there's video of people rushing down the stairs as this thing is wiggling back and forth. It was actually quite an amazing thing to feel. And I really remember that afternoon. The earthquake came without warning. I was sitting in my room upstairs, and the kids were downstairs in the living room. And Kim and Amy, I don't even think we're in the house at that time. And our house started to vibrate. And from my previous experiences, I'm like, this is an earthquake. And I hollered down the stairs to the kids. I said, earthquake? And they're like, what? And all of a sudden, they knew what that was. Everything started to shake in the house. There were things that were dropping off the shelves. And it went on for several seconds.

3:00The only thing we could do was drop down on our knees and hold on to something. No one expected it. No one wanted it. It just happened. And do you know what? There are events in our lives that seem just like an earthquake. These events come without warning. No one expects them. No one wants them. But they just happen. Well, you might think, well, my life's going pretty good. I don't really have to be concerned about things like that.

3:39Take it from me. We all will. It's not a matter of if the earthquake in your life comes, it's a matter of when. So, as Christians, how do we deal? How do you deal with the situations in your life when your world is shaken? Two months ago, on Saturday, March 26th, some dear friends of ours in Virginia experienced a massive personal earthquake. Their Saturday morning started off as it had so many times before with errands in town, and then they would go back home and just enjoy some time together as a family. Three of the girls and a cousin went for a ride on their grandparents'. ATV. Again, just as they'd done so many times before, and it was always a lot of fun until that day.

4:41Just a few minutes after they had started the ride, cell phone calls from the girls started coming in. There'd been an accident. The ATV had rolled over, and Megan wasn't moving. My friend Mike quickly went to find the girls, and he found the overturned vehicle and his motionless daughter. Mike held Megan and cried out to God as his 16-year-old daughter died in his arms. And she went to be with the Lord. They didn't expect this. They didn't want this. It just happened.

5:27Megan was a Christian, and her parents and her older siblings are too. And Mike was the worship leader in our church and a deacon. And Kim and I prayed for them all that night and all the next day through Sunday. But the longer I sat there, the more I realized I can't be here. I've got to go and spend some time with them. I need to be there with them. So on Monday morning, I started the 22-hour drive back to Virginia. You know, you can think about a lot of stuff in 22 hours. Lots of things that you might want to say, lots of scriptures come to mind, and just the thought of why did this happen?

6:15And as I continued to drive, more and more my thoughts came back to the individual of Job, the passage of scripture that Russell read this morning. So please turn with me, if you would, to the book of Job. And we're going to be looking at chapters one and two. Job is right before Psalms. Now, nobody really knows who wrote the book of Job. Many have speculated about the author, but the text really doesn't give us his name. Job was likely not the author, though, for he would not have known about the events that occurred in heaven in chapters 1 and 2. And the book of Job most likely predates the books of Moses, possibly as early as Abraham, since there are no references to the Mosaic law, the priesthood, or the tabernacle. At the very end of the book, in Job 42, verses 16 and 17, it says that Job lived for about 150 years. 40 years after the book, the events in this book were written. So Job may have lived to be 200 years old.

7:38You think, well, that's a little long. Well, think about this. In Genesis 25, verse 7, it says that Abraham was 175 years old when he died. So their ages would be somewhat similar. Job was a real person. Many commentators look at this book and they say, this is just a story. This could never have really happened to an individual. Yes, it did. Job was a real person. In Ezekiel chapter 14, verse 20, this lists Noah and Daniel and Job as real individuals. The writer of Scripture said, these are real people. In James 5:11, it also speaks of Job as an historical person and not some fictional character.

8:32In Job chapter 1, verse 1, we are introduced to Job and his character. It says that Job was a blameless man and an upright one, one who feared God and turned away from evil. If suffering is intended as a punishment for evil, none of these things should have happened to Job. He turned away from evil because he feared and worshiped God. He pursued what is right and avoided evil. His reputation was blameless. Just like it says in 1 Timothy of a pastor, one who is above reproach, one who is blameless. Job honored God in all that he did. In verses 2 and 3, it describes the way that God had blessed him because of his righteousness. Now, Job had seven sons and three daughters, and a large number of sheep and camels and oxen and servants. And he was the greatest, the greatest of all men of the East.

9:43Verses four and five describe a specific instance of Job's fear of God and his concern for his children. Every time, not just once in a while, but every time his sons and daughters gathered together for a feast, Job would get up early the next morning and offer burnt offerings for each one of them, just in case any of them had sinned or cursed God in their hearts. In other words, Job was extremely zealous for the honor of God, and he was extremely vigilant for the sake of his children, not wanting any of them to perish.

10:27This is one of the guys that you'd really want to have as one of. Your neighbors. He's a really, really good guy. And then out of nowhere, this really good guy was struck by earthquakes. Four of them. Four earthquakes came upon Job's life. Skip down to verse 13. And there was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking in the eldest brother's house, and there came a messenger and said unto Job, Here comes the first one: that the Sabaeans had just attacked and stolen all his oxen and donkeys and killed the servants with them. And as he's giving this report, another one comes in right behind him in verse 16 and says that the fire from God, maybe lightning, we're not really sure what it is, but the fire of God had fallen and destroyed all of his sheep and servants with them.

11:34And then as those words are coming out of his mouth, the third earthquake comes and another servant comes in and says that the Chaldeans had just raided the camel herd and taken them and killed the servants. And just as he's saying these words, the final and most devastating earthquake hits him. In verses 18 and 19, a man of the Message has come that all of Job's children were crushed to death when a great wind caused the oldest brother's house to collapse.

12:13All of Job's possessions and all of Job's children were taken away in that one afternoon. Earthquake after devastating earthquake. Job didn't expect this. Job didn't want this. But it just happened. And we might ask, what in the world is going on? But the better question seems to be: what in heaven is going on? And here the scripture writer gives us a rare glimpse into heaven to better understand what had happened to Job. And Job will be experiencing two testings, two times of testings from the Lord, and this is the very first one. So move back up again to Job chapter 1, verse 6, and we'll be looking at verses 6 through 12.

13:10Job 1, verses 6 through 12, describe a conversation between God and Satan. And from the text, Job is totally unaware that this conversation ever happened. In verse 7, when God asks Satan, where he's been, Satan says he spent his time roaming around the earth, just walking around. And then God mentions a man with whom he is very well pleased. He says, My servant Job is blameless and an upright man, one who fears God and turns away from evil. And God honors Job by saying that there is no one like him in all the earth. What an awesome thing that God could say about a human being.

14:07But Satan wasn't impressed. In verses 9 through 11, Satan sneers and says something like this: Do you think that Job does all of that out of the goodness of his heart? You pamper him, God, and you make sure nothing bad ever happens to him, to his family, to his possessions. You bless everything Job does, and he can't lose. He only worships you because of the good life and the good things that you give him. I tell you what, take away all of that, God, and he will curse you to your face.

14:50Satan's suggestion was that no one, including Job, would ever worship the Lord if they enjoyed no personal gain. But God knew the heart and faith of his servant Job, and God allowed a demonstration to bring glory to himself, to silence Satan, and to deepen Job's spiritual understanding. God said to Satan in verse 12, everything that Job has is in your power, but you will not lay a hand on Job himself. Here we see that God sets limits on Satan's power in this world. Satan cannot act independently. That is without God's permission. John Piper commented on this passage and he said, Satan may be a roaring lion, but he's a lion on a leash. And God reins him in or gives him slack according to God's own sovereign purposes. In other words, Satan was the agent of God's suffering.

16:00But it was our sovereign God who allowed Satan to test him, to afflict him. And Job will openly declare this truth in his response to these four earthquakes. Skip back down to Job 1, verses 20 through 22. Job had now lost all of his wealth and his children. And so are we to assume these horrible losses had no Emotional effect on Job that somehow he stoically accepted his situation? No. No, Job wept bitterly over his losses, especially the loss of his children. Those life-shaking events were a horrible blow to this man.

16:52It says that Job got up and he tore his robe. One of the things that you're going to see many times in the Old Testament when someone is stricken, they tear their mantle. He shaves his head and he falls to the ground in intense anguish and pain. And as the tears ran down Job's face, he began to think about God. And as he did, Job began to worship. Job began to worship God. He said, I brought nothing into this world. I was born naked, and everything that I possessed was given to me by the Lord.

17:40In Psalm 50, verse 10, it says that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. John, you may know this song. Well, God owns the hills, too. We're just stewards of what God has given us. And Job went on to say, That I will take. Nothing to the grave. You may have heard this one line or two. Hearses don't pull you hauls. And listen to what Job says next. The Lord gave and Satan has taken away. Is that what it says? No, Satan didn't take it away. The Lord removed his possessions.

18:27Just like the song that we just sang a little bit ago, you give and you take away. What's the next phrase in the song? Blessed be the Lord. Blessed be the name of the Lord. I love that song. Thank you for John for choosing that one. It fits in so perfectly here. The Lord removed his possessions. Job recognized the sovereignty of God in all things, and he blessed the name of the Lord. And I love verse 22. And it says, in all this, Job did not sin or charge God foolishly. Job's righteous response had proved Satan wrong. Job did not curse God when he lost his wealth and his children. Instead, he worshiped and blessed God.

19:20And the purpose of God's testing was fulfilled, that the glory of God would be clearly evident through Job's righteous response. To suffering. But I'm sure that Job did not want to be or enjoyed being the object lesson. Our oldest daughter, many of you don't know her, her name is Kathy. Kathy was born with muscular dystrophy and it affected her body over the years. When she was about 10, she started using a wheelchair. And as she continued to grow, she had multiple hospital stays.

20:10And everyone would talk to Kathy and say, Oh, you're such an inspiration to me, Kathy. I don't know how you go through all of these difficult times in your life. You just amaze me. And Kathy confided in us and she said, Mom and Dad, I don't want to be the object lesson, I just want to be a normal kid. But sometimes God has other plans for us in our lives. In John chapter 9, verses 1 through 3, we encounter another individual whose world had been shaken, a man who was born blind from birth. Jesus' disciples asked him, Rabbi, who sinned? This man or his parents that he was born blind?

20:58And Jesus gave an amazing response. Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. The man's life, as difficult as it was, turned out to be an amazing object lesson to the glory and the power of God. And Jesus displayed the power of God by healing this man's blindness, something only that God could do. James Dobson, in his book, When God Doesn't Make Sense, wrote, The human spirit is capable of withstanding enormous discomfort, including the prospect of death, if circumstances make sense. Many martyrs, political prisoners, and war heroes have gone to their graves willingly and confidently. They understood that the sacrifice they were making was acceptable and honorable, meaning to the end of their lives.

22:01But by contrast, several Christians who experience these earthquakes, like Job, are shaken to their foundation. Their trials seem to have no meaning, at least from their perspective, and they can lose heart. God appears to be silent, Dobson said, distant and uncaring in the moment of their greatest need. Look at the experience of Joseph in the book of Genesis. You'd like this one, Russell. Joseph's entire life was a series of earthquakes, if you know that story. This eventually, though, all through the imprisonments that he had, all through the false accusations, everything, being sold into slavery, all the things that happened to Joseph, eventually led up to the reunion of his entire family in Egypt many years later. And again, there's no indication that God ever explained to Joseph what he was doing through those series of life-shaking experiences. And what pleased God the most was Joseph's faithfulness when nothing made sense.

23:20And in the end, Joseph finally understood that his brothers had meant evil against him, but God had meant it for good so that many people should be kept alive as it was that day, it says in Genesis 50, verse 20. And here, Romans 8, 28 stands like a lighthouse in our storms. And we know that how many things? All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose. And again, we say, all things? Really?

24:01Yes. Somehow, within the sovereign plan of God, all things work together for our good. It doesn't mean that everything that happens to us is good, but it works for our good. And verse 29 tells us the purpose, the outcome of these trials. That even in times when our world is shaken, we might be conformed. to the image of his son. That's what all this is about. That we more and more, through all the things we experience in this life, are made more and more into the image of Jesus. That's why these trials come.

24:47Even in our struggles and pain, these things are sanctifying us. They are making us more and more holy into the image of Jesus. Let's read very quickly chapter 2, verses 1 through 10. And again, there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came among them to present himself before the Lord. And the Lord said unto Satan, Where have you come from? And Satan answered the Lord and said, From going to and fro in the earth and from walking up and down it, much like he had said in chapter 1. And the Lord said unto Satan, Have you considered my servants? Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and upright man, one that fears God and turns away from evil. And he still holds fast his integrity, although you moved me against him to destroy him without cause. And Satan answered the Lord and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man has, he will give up for his life. But put forth your hand now and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face.

26:04And the Lord said unto Satan, Behold, he is in your hand, but do not kill him. So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord and smote Job with sore boils from the top of his head to the sole of his feet. And he took a piece of pottery and scraped himself with it. And he sat down among the ashes. And then his wife came to him and said, Do you still retain your integrity? Curse God and die. But he said unto her, You speak as one of the foolish women. What? Shall we receive good from the hand of God and not receive evil? And in all this, Job did not sin.

26:49Just as Job began to recover from the shock of losing his wealth and his children, he contracted a horrible disease that affected him from his head to his toes. And he took A piece of broken pottery and he scraped himself as he sat on the ashes. If you look in Job chapter 7, verse 5, it actually gives a little more depth description of what happened to this guy. It says that he was covered with boil-like sores that oozed. And if that's not bad enough, the oozing got covered with dirt and ash and clumped, and it was infested with worms. This guy was in absolute agony. And we might ask again, what in the world is going on? But again, the better question seems to be, what in heaven is going on?

27:42Job 2, verses 1 through 6 describe a similar exchange between God and Satan. And God once again mentions his servant Job as if somehow Satan might have forgotten. And God again extols Job's steadfast faith in and love for God. In verse 4, Satan again sneers and he says, skin for skin. All that a man has will he give for his life. So again, the glory of God is being challenged. Job has shown that God is more valuable to him than family and possessions.

28:20But what about his health? So to demonstrate that God alone is Job's treasure, God gives his servant into the hand of Job. Satan, and the Lord says in verse 6, Behold, he is in your power. Only spare his life. And again, we see that God sets limits on Satan's power in this world. What's Job's response? When Job's health began to fail, it proved too much for his wife. She had just endured the loss of her children and their family's wealth, and now her husband's health was draining away from him, and her faith begins to waver. And she says to Job in verse 9, Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die.

29:14What a horrible thing to say to somebody. Just die. And when she says that, we can imagine a sinister smile spread across the face of Satan. Tens of thousands of angels watched to see if both of them would fall. But then comes Job's statement of faith in verse 10. From beneath his tears of intense pain, Job looks up at his wife and says, You are talking like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good from God and not adversity?

30:00And in all this, Job did not sin in what he said. Job's confidence in the sovereignty of God did not diminish, and neither should ours. Again, John Piper shared this image. Picture Satan in heaven, surrounded by 10,000 angels, awaiting Job's response. And when Job answers, unknown to him, 20,000 arms are raised, and 10,000 voices shout mightily, Worthy is the God of Job. And what does Satan do? He's out of there. He flees from the presence and the praise of God, utterly humiliated and defeated. And that's the last we hear of Satan in this book.

30:51Those are just the first two chapters in the book of Job. There's 40 more. We probably won't deal with them this morning. Is that okay? Job still has much more to learn about the character of God, just like the rest of us. And my comments this morning are not intended to be an exhaustive explanation about human suffering. But I have always been amazed by Job's emotional and spiritual responses to these massive personal earthquakes, aren't you? And since in each case, Scripture says, In all this, Job did not sin.

31:35I wanted to know why. How can I demonstrate a Christ-honoring response when my world is shaken to its core? Kim and I have experienced that a couple times. In 2015, Kim was diagnosed with cancer. And she went through a horrible time of surgery and chemotherapy. And now, seven years later, she's just about done with her medicine. And we're looking forward to the day when that stuff's gone. That's been a hard time for us. But one of the hardest things came in 2016 when our daughter Kathy died.

32:28That muscular dystrophy had ravaged her body for 27 years. And she wasn't well. Hospice was coming to the house for quite a while to help us take care of her. And I remember the last night we had given her some morphine to rest. And we were talking, and I remembered something that happened in the hospital years before. We had, I don't know, I can't count anymore, Kim, how many times. We were at UVA, and she would be there for three, four weeks at a time. You get to know the back halls of hospitals that way. Actually, they gave me the code to the back door of ICU. I'm like, does anybody ever get that?

33:17Because I was in and out so much. And as we were in that room, we would take time, we would talk to the nurses and the doctors as they would come in about their spiritual lives. And you know what? We found lots and lots of nurses that loved Jesus. They were believers, and they encouraged us, and we encouraged them. And I remember one time we were there, there was a doctor. I don't remember his last name, we just called him Dr. Steve. And Dr. Steve came into the room, and we were trying to talk to him about spiritual things, and he cut us off. And he said, I don't believe in God. I have no time for this. And he left.

33:54And later that afternoon, I remember Kathy was sitting in her wheelchair, and she had a powered chair, and she rolled back in her chair, and I was looking up at her, and these big tears started rolling down her face. And I'm like, what's wrong with you? Did somebody say something to you? And she goes, don't you remember earlier today when Dr. Steve came in here? He said he didn't believe in God. She said, and I stuck with this, this stuck with me for years. Wouldn't it be a shame if we came to this place? We never told anybody about Jesus.

34:34I'm thinking, wow, kid, through all the pain and the hurt that you're going through, you're thinking about somebody else. And I use that illustration when I preached your funeral. And I got to preach Jesus to 300 people that day. We learn a lot from our suffering. We learn a lot about the glory of God. We learn a lot about the way that He can sustain us through these hard times. And maybe you're going through a hard time right now.

35:21So, what are some things that we can do when we need to remember? Or what we need to remember when our world is shaken? Let me just give you a couple. Even during your earthquakes, remember that God is always with you. Even during the earthquakes, remember that God is always with you. For God Himself has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. It says in Hebrews 13:5, which is a quote from Deuteronomy chapter 31. And in Psalm 34, verse 18, the Lord is near to the brokenhearted, he saves those who are crushed in spirit.

36:00Secondly, pray. You might think, well, that's obvious. Uh-uh. Pray without ceasing. It says in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, pray in the good times, pray in the bad times, pray in all the times. Stay close to your heavenly Father because we need that continual moment-by-moment contact with God. And sometimes this one's hard. Remember that God is sovereign and we are not. God is sovereign. God really is in control of everything that happens in His creation. Colossians 1:16 says, For in Him, in Christ, all things were created, things in the earth, things on the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authority, all things have been created through him and for him.

37:03And in Psalm 115, verse 3, we read, Our God is in heaven, he does whatever pleases him. This is his creation. We are his creation. He takes care of us. But sometimes God's actions in our lives may not be clear to you. To us, but God's purpose for our lives and our suffering is very clear. It says in Deuteronomy 29, 29, I think some of you may know this one. The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law. Isaiah 55, verses 8 and 9 says, For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither your ways my ways, declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. And just as we read a little bit ago in Romans 8:28 and 29, all things work together for our good.

38:20Any of you ladies, maybe some of you guys do this too, I'm not sure. Do cross-stitch. Anybody like that? Maybe that's just an older thing. But if you've ever seen pictures of cross-stitch, people are working on this piece of cloth and they work and they work. And on the back of the cloth, it's just a mass of string and knots, and it just looks horrible. It's like, ew, what purpose is this? But then you turn that piece of cloth over, and there's a beautiful picture. And I think sometimes our life is like a cross-stitch. Stitch. It looks like the backside of the cloth, all stringy and knotty, but yet God is making something very, very beautiful out of our lives.

39:12He is conforming us to the image of his son. And it's okay to cry. It's okay to ask God why. But it's not okay to tell God that he doesn't know what he's doing. That you're wrong, God, that somehow your actions are unjust and unfair. And why would you do this to me? Because eventually Job's going to do that in the next several chapters in this book. Job certainly expressed his sorrow and his grief and his intense pain after this loss. And he tore his robe, he shaved his head, he fell on the ground in anguish and pain. And Job began to remember the goodness of God. And he remembered the sovereignty of God in all things. And then Job blessed the name of the Lord.

40:17And as he does this, we are told that Job did not sin or charge God foolishly. Now, what should we do for our friends, those that we see who are suffering like this? The first thing is the same. Pray. Pray for them. Pray with them and pray for them. Job's three friends had it right at first. Now, when Job's three friends heard about all the trouble that had come upon Job, this is the very end of chapter two, each of them came from his home and met together and went to sympathize with Job and to comfort him. And when they saw Job from afar, they could barely recognize him. And they began to weep aloud. Each man tore his robe and threw dust in the air over his head, and they sat on the ground with fear for seven days and seven nights. And not a one of them spoke a word because they saw how great his suffering was.

41:21And it was only after they opened their mouths in chapter 3 that they started to mess things up. 40 chapters of that. And don't try to explain this situation or debate theology with them at this time. That's not the time to do this. But that's what Job's friends did. Yep, and it didn't go well for them. So just be there and hug them if they're huggers and pray. And I remember when a young man. From our church in Virginia was in a terrible automobile accident. The doctors weren't sure that he was going to survive. And I went into the ICU with this young man's mother. Just as we stood there on the other side of the bed, the doctor came in and started to remove big fragments of glass from his face and his lips. And she said, he's not going to remember any of this when he wakes up. But his mom and I sure remembered that moment.

42:29And I asked her several months later if she remembered anything that I said during that night. And her response taught me a really, really good lesson. She said, I don't remember a word that you said, but I remember that you were there. Are you going through a difficult time right now? If you are, many of us here would love to pray with you about your situation. And I hope all is well with each of you this morning. But as I said earlier, it's not a matter of if the earthquakes will come, it's a matter of when.

43:19But for now, today, I trust we can all echo these words. When peace, like a river, Attendeth my way when sorrows like sea billows roll, whatever my lot thou hast taught me to say, it is well with my soul. Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, let this blessed assurance control that Christ has regarded my helpless estate and has shed his own blood for my soul. Let's pray. Father, thank you for giving us this illustration of a man who was suffering, one who did not deserve to receive the things that happened to him from our perspective. But, God, in your sovereign design, you used Job to glorify yourself, to defeat Satan, and to build the faith of your servant Job.

44:45Father, if there are some here this morning that are struggling with things in their lives, that may be in the midst of their own earthquake, that their lives right now are just being shaken, God. I pray that you would allow them just to stop and talk with you. us before they go today, and we'd love to pray with them. Love to encourage them and comfort them in any way that we can. Father, if there's someone here today that does not know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, I pray that even before they would leave, they would also speak with one of us and we can show them from the scriptures how they can be saved.

45:28Father, thank you for loving us, for sending your Son Jesus Christ to die on a cross for our sins. Lord, may we be worthy servants to serve you wherever we go and whatever we do. God, we bless you and we thank you and we glorify your name. And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.