Sermon Tone Analysis

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Anger
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Anger
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And through this part of the story God teaches us the importance of trusting in His absolute wisdom and plan.
There are two reasons given for why we need to trust God’s wisdom even during severe suffering.
We looked at the first reason last week: We need to trust the absolute wisdom and plan of God because
I. God is absolutely in control of any suffering He allows into the lives of believers
II.
Satan is absolutely cruel in the suffering he causes in the lives of believers
A. Satan uses human suffering as a weapon in his war against God
1.
He avoided specific facts (v.
7)
Notice even from the beginning of the encounter Satan is subtlety antagonistic toward God.
God asks, “Where did you come from?”
Satan replies, (with a ring of sarcasm) “from going to and fro in the earth.”
He avoids answering God directly and his report provides no real information at all.
He is like the smart aleck teenager who when asked by his parents where he has been says, “around” or “nowhere.”
What do they real mean?
I have been around- I have existed someplace on planet earth.
Really?
If you existed at all you have existed around planet earth!
Or nowhere, i.e. nowhere that I want to tell you.
This is Satan’s first attempt at thwarting God.
Satan moves on from being subtle to openly contradicting God.
In v. 8 God puts Job forward as the prime example of a faithful servant.
By the way- I find this statement by God about Job astonishing.
Not because God calls Job blameless and upright, but because God uses the life of Job on the grandest stage in the cosmos to bring glory to Himself.
God is holding His kingly court in the grandest throne room possible!
God is seated in heaven surrounded by the sons of God and the glories of heaven.
And the accuser is there as well, and what does God choose to bring glory to Himself?
The life of a small insignificant man- Job.
What does that say about the importance of being faithful in our every day lives?
Could God use your life in His throne room some day to bring glory to Himself?
Satan, however, is not going to let a statement like that go unchallenged.
So, Satan openly disagrees with the Lord
2. He accused God of favoritism (v.
10)
(1) Because the Lord “hedged” Job on every side.
i.e. “Job was successful according to every possible measurement of success.”
(2) Because the Lord increased Job’s possessions in the land greatly.
Job did not attain this level of wealth by being frugal, God caused Job to be prosperous in every area of life.
(3) This level of prosperity is unusual in human experience.
3.
He claimed God’s statements to be false (v.11)
(1) He arrogantly contradicts the pronouncement of Yahweh
(a) By giving a virtual command to Yahweh.
“Put forth your hand, curse all that he has”
(b) By the underlying assumption was that Yahweh was wrong about Job.
“He will curse you to your face”
What was God’s estimation of Job?
He fears the Lord and turns from evil.
But Satan contradicts God and says, “he will curse you to your face”
(2) He confidently contradicts the pronouncement of Yahweh
In the Hebrew Satan uses a conjunction that is most likely interrogative, and so assertative because the question is rhetorical: ‘Won’t he curse you?’
That is, ‘He is sure to curse you.’
This conjunction is also used to state the condition of a vow with an oath, which becomes an auto-imprecation.
[if he doesn’t curse you, may I be judged would be the idea]” (Andersen, 85).
(3) He boldly challenges the pronouncement of Yahweh
(1) “Whereas Job continually feared that one of his children might have cursed God in his heart, the Satan projected that Job would become so angry he would curse God to his face.”
(Hartley, 73)
(2) In other words, according to Job’s own previously stated definition of righteousness (Job believed that it would be sin to contemplate cursing God in one’s heart even if one did not verbalize the curse), he would go well beyond and do the worst possible thing: curse God defiantly.
SUMMARY OF SATAN’S CHALLENGE:
“That Satan believes nothing to be genuinely good – neither Job in his disinterested piety nor God in His disinterested generosity.
... His argument is clever.
Job’s godliness is artificial.
It has never been proved by testing.
And God is no better.
He has made it easy for Job to be good.
He has secured Job’s devotion by bribery, and shielded him from harm.” (Andersen, 84).
Illustration:
Witnessing on State St in Madison just days after 9/11.
Many were seeking God.
We stood in a square and 50 college kids sang praises to God, and a large crowd gathered and listened and we were able to hand out tracts to all of them.
Not everyone was that receptive.
I remember witnessing to a man in a bus stop and handing him a tract about 9/11 and how God was loving and merciful through those events.
He screamed in my face, “You people are sick, you disgust me” and he ran away.
What happened?
This man saw the suffering caused by 9/11 (and it was horrible), and what did he do?
He blamed God.
He in effect cursed God to His face.
He could not bare the idea of believing in a God who would allow something so cruel.
Now while God was in control and He did allow it to happen, He was not the cause.
Satan and fallen mankind were the cause of that terrible event.
Yet Satan uses suffering as a weapon against God to discredit Him, and cause us to curse Him to his face.
Refutation:
Now I do not want to give you the impression that if you put one toe out of line, if you mess up even one time in your life, that you are giving Satan the victory, or that God is somehow made out to be the looser.
No that is not the case at all.
While Satan might be the accuser of the brethren, who accuses us day and night Revelations tells us, we also have and advocate Jesus Christ the righteous.
We have a great high priest who ever lives to make intercession for us.
So when Satan accuses us night and day, Jesus intercedes on our behalf with His blood.
We benefit from the blood of Christ not just at the moment of our salvation, but every day when Satan would accuse us, Jesus answers- I have paid for them with my blood, they are covered in my righteousness.
Where Satan gets the victory is when we turn away from faithfully following God.
When we curse God to His face.
When we decide it is too hard to follow Christ and we go our own way.
Application:
You see Satan uses human suffering as a weapon in his war against God.
He will do anything he is permitted to get you to curse God to His face.
Satan is absolutely cruel in the suffering he causes in the lives of believers.
That is why it is imperative that we trust the absolute wisdom and plan of God.
Does it seem like Satan is using suffering in your life as a weapon against God?
Are you being tempted to think that life is just too hard?
That God is not being fair or just?
Are you tempted to curse God?
Don’t let Satan win! Don’t stop faithfully following God even through the suffering.
God is in control.
He will not allow you to be tempted above that you are able, He will work together all things for your good.
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