11-16-14. Job 36:1-33. Lord, Speak To Me In My Affliction– my devotional

Job 36:1-33                                                                                   Kevin E. Jesmer

Key Verse: 36:15                                                                            11-16-14

“But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering; he speaks to them in their affliction.” (NIV)

Part 1: God Speaks To Us In Our Affliction (1-15)

Verses 1-15 read, “Elihu continued: 2 “Bear with me a little longer and I will show you that there is more to be said in God’s behalf. 3 I get my knowledge from afar; I will ascribe justice to my Maker. 4 Be assured that my words are not false; one who has perfect knowledge is with you. 5 “God is mighty, but despises no one; he is mighty, and firm in his purpose. 6 He does not keep the wicked alive but gives the afflicted their rights. 7 He does not take his eyes off the righteous; he enthrones them with kings and exalts them forever. 8 But if people are bound in chains, held fast by cords of affliction, 9 he tells them what they have done— that they have sinned arrogantly. 10 He makes them listen to correction and commands them to repent of their evil. 11 If they obey and serve him, they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity and their years in contentment. 12 But if they do not listen, they will perish by the sword and die without knowledge. 13 “The godless in heart harbor resentment; even when he fetters them, they do not cry for help. 14 They die in their youth, among male prostitutes of the shrines. 15 But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering; he speaks to them in their affliction.”

This is Elihu’s 4th and final speech. Just because Elihu may not have been totally correct about his knowledge of God, there are still things that he says that are true. And we can learn from him. Let’s see.

In a very quick overview, Elihu proclaims God’s justice. Even though God is mighty, he does not despise anyone. His eyes are on the righteous. When those who suffer repent of sin and seek him, he blesses. But the sad reality is that godless people become stubborn and bitter when they suffer. With rebellion in their hearts they persist in sin and eventually reap its consequences. This is what he is saying in a nutshell.

Where do we go for true knowledge? Do we have to go to the top of a mountain? Do we have to seek answers in a temple in some South East Asian jungle? No. We go to the Lord, the God of the Bible. In Job 36: 3-5, Elihu says, concerning God, “I get my knowledge from afar; I will ascribe justice to my Maker. 4 Be assured that my words are not false; one who has perfect knowledge is with you. 5 “God is mighty, but despises no one; he is mighty, and firm in his purpose.”  Elihu seems a little proud and presumptuous, especially when he says, “one perfect in knowledge is with you”. Elihu is not perfect in knowledge. But God is. God does give us knowledge from afar. It comes all the way from the heart and mind of God, from before his throne in the Kingdom of God. It is far, but at the same time it is near…near to our hearts. God has made it this way by his Word and His Spirit. We can trust the knowledge that God gives. God is mighty and yet he despises no one. That means that he is willing to impart his knowledge to anyone who humbles themselves and seeks wisdom. Jeremiah 31:33-34 reads, “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel    after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 34 No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord.“ For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”  God is an equal opportunity educator for those who want to learn.  Open your hearts to him today. Jesus will teach you the wisdom that we can trust for “Jesus is the Way and the Truth and the Life.” (John 14:6)

In verses 6-7, Elihu outlined God’s dealings with the righteous. They read, “6 He does not keep the wicked alive but gives the afflicted their rights. 7 He does not take his eyes off the righteous; he enthrones them with kings and exalts them forever.”  It is indeed a blessing to be declared righteous by God. God enthrones them with kings and exalts them forever. But the question is, what does it mean to be considered a righteous person by God? It has nothing to do with our own good works, or in other words, our how human efforts to be righteous. It is all because God himself declares us righteous, but his grace of forgiveness. Jesus is our righteousness.

In Job 36 we can learn something about the need for confession and repentance. Elihu talks about what could be part of the reason that the righteous, like Job, are afflicted?  Look at Job 36: 8-12, “But if people are bound in chains, held fast by cords of affliction, 9 he (GOD) tells them what they have done— that they have sinned arrogantly. 10 He makes them listen to correction and commands them to repent of their evil. 11 If they obey and serve him, they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity and their years in contentment. 12 But if they do not listen, they will perish by the sword and die without knowledge.”  People are bound by the power of sin. The are subject to the Fall, that is, they have been born into and live in a fallen world. It feels like their souls are bound in chains, with cords of affliction. What do they do? Where can they go for help? They can come to the one who knows, God Almighty. His name is Jesus. Jesus, like an excellent Physician can properly diagnose our condition and give us the proper words and direction. Part of our redemption comes with confession and repentance. Look at verses 9-10 again, “9 he tells them what they have done— that they have sinned arrogantly. 10 He makes them listen to correction and commands them to repent of their evil.”  Repentance is important. God helps us to recognize our need to confess and repent through his Word and his Spirit. Concerning the Holy Spirit Jesus says, “…Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8 When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 about sin, because people do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; 11 and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.” (John16:7b-11)

So often we don’t want to repent. We may concede that we have done wrong and try to change. We may also try to stay true to a new path without actually confessing and repenting. When we do this we are avoiding the painful truth about our sin and the need for repentance. We are trying to “save face”. But this is robbing God of his glory and trying to keep our own glory. Maybe we think that if we confess our sins and repent too publically then people around us will be discouraged or no longer listen to us. But to the contrary, they will be encouraged and inspired and may even follow our example and do the same and cry out to Jesus to be saved. If there is honest confession and repentance then blessings ensue. Look at verse 11, “If they obey and serve him, they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity and their years in contentment.” We will live in the grace of God’s love and forgiveness. We will live in spiritual prosperity and taste the peace of God that transcends all human understanding.(Php 4:7) But if we refuse to confess and repent, there are consequences. (12) Confessing and repentance actually bring times of refreshing from the Lord. Acts 3:19 reads, “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord,” It is time to experience a clean slate and begin again by the grace of God. Confession and repentance is a necessary part of life.

From Elihu’s observation of life, we can see the difference between the righteous and the godless in their reaction to affliction. Do they harbor resentment or not? Is the harbored resentment directed towards people or God or both? Look at verses  Job 36:13-14, “The godless in heart harbor resentment; even when he fetters them, they do not cry for help. 14 They die in their youth, among male prostitutes of the shrines.”  (NIV) There is a big difference on how people of faith react to suffering and affliction and those who have no faith. To harbor resentment means that one keeps resentment and preserves resentment in their hearts. They don’t forgive. They keep ill feelings. They hold grudges, even for decades. When our singing group was called to sing a man’s 90^th birthday celebration, the man made it clear that a certain someone was not to be invited. When one senior lady was talking about another 90 year old, she made it clear that the argument about who was owed money for a tractor sale 60 years ago was still on the table. I am sure that there will be people who hold ill feelings towards me for events in the past. (To those I say, “I am sorry.”) My sinful nature wants to harbor resentment to others for decades also. It is Jesus and my Christian faith that challenges me to forgive and extend the hand of grace to others.

The only way not to harbor resentment to others, is to forgive as the Lord has forgiven us. We may harbor resentment because we have been wronged. Maybe we have been legitimately wronged or maybe we feel wronged when nothing was even intended. It is just a feeling that we can’t let go of. But we must forgive. In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus teaches us to pray, “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (Matt 6:12) There is also a warning in the same chapter,  “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matt 6:14-15)  Forgiveness is serious business in a Christian’s life. We need to take the plank out of our own eyes when we try to take the speck out our brother’s eye. Forgiveness will come easier when we know how Jesus has…and is…forgiving our own sins. The same grace extended to us, by the Lord, must be extended to others. When this happens, Jesus and his Gospel will be glorified. People will be attracted to Jesus by your active forgiving and refusal to harbor resentment.

The worst thing is to harbor resentment to God, thinking that he has done us wrong for certain trying events in our lives. There are times when God allows many trials. Elihu acknowledges this. Look at verses 13b-14, “…even when he fetters them, they do not cry for help. 14 They die in their youth, among male prostitutes of the shrines.”  Elihu says that God fetters people. The definition of fetters is, “Anything that restricts or restrains.” (http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fetter) Elihu was implying that Job was fettered by God to lead him to repentance and freedom from suffering. I don’t know about that. But I do know that trials are allowed to come upon a believer. And these trials serve as a refining fire if we are in Jesus. They are never meant to make us harbor resentment to God and others. They should draw us closer to the Lord, if we embrace them with faith and grace.

The bottom line is that God is love. “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.” (1 John 4:16). He is the incarnation of love. It is not possible that God can ever not love. In the midst of our suffering, if we think that God can not love us. Maybe he has forgotten about us. Maybe he has turn away from us? We harbor resentment towards God. “If God loves me, how can he allow me and my loved ones to suffer so much?” We can not know all the answers about human suffering. I know that one day in heaven, we will know, “why”. Maybe we will have answers in this life. But one thing I know, is that we must never doubt the love of God. There is the story of one man who harbored resentment towards God. He prayed that his father be healed. When his father was not healed and died, the son rejected Jesus for two years. After two years he realized that God did in fact heal his father in heaven, but God didn’t plan to allow his dad to spend the rest of his days on earth wit his son. He took him to heaven. The son accepted this. He accepted the love that God always had for him and his family. The son got his answer. He no longer harbored resentment. God is love.

Jesus, never doubted the love of his Father in heaven, even when he was suffering and dying on the cross. Near his death, Jesus cried out, “Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last.” (Luke 23:46)  It is never easy when we are suffering, but we must never doubt the love of God. We must never harbor resentment towards God or others.

How should Christians respond to the trials of life? In Job 36, Job was suffering immensely. Elihu was telling him that he needed to not become resentful and that he needs to respond with repentance. Then Job will be restored and blessed by God. Look at Job 36:13-15, “13 “The godless in heart harbor resentment; even when he fetters them, they do not cry for help. 14 They die in their youth, among male prostitutes of the shrines. 15 But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering; he speaks to them in their affliction.” Elihu’s assumptions about Job was not right. Job was not suffering because of his sin. Still, we can learn something from Elihu’s statement. It is a much better path than becoming resentful to God and to people. Look at the following verses: Matthew 6:31-34; 1 Peter 3:8-9; James 1:2-4.

Matthew 6:31-34; “31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

1 Peter 3:8-9; “Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.”

James 1:2-4, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

First, seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness. (Matt 6:33) When we are subjected to trials how easy it is to seek revenge, or sympathy, or sink deep into despair and depression. But this in not the inevitable default. There is another, “God glorifying” alternative. It is to respond by seeking first God’s kingdom and is righteousness. God’s righteousness is Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:30) In regards to suffering this means that instead of harboring resentment, we praise and thank God. We seek understanding in the Lord. We seek to forgive others whom we perceive as wronging us. We seek to be reconciled to others and to God. We replace resentment with grace and thanksgiving. When we seek God’s kingdom and his righteousness, (Jesus), as top priority, then we can experience deliverance.

Second, be proactive. Don’t just be a victim. Make a decision to glorify the Lord in your situation. Seek to do the opposite of harboring resentment. 1 Peter 3:8-9; “Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. 9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.” Resist resentment and pride. Respond to Jesus’ intervention. When we do, we will inherit the blessing.

Third, see your suffering from God’s point of view. There is a reason in God for what we are going through. We may not know all the answers, but in God there are answers to be had. One reason can be read in James 1:2-4, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” God is developing spiritual perseverance in our hearts. He wants us to grow mature and complete, not lacking anything in our Christian lives. There is a secular saying, “If it doesn’t kill me it only makes me stronger.” In Jesus, even if it does kill you God is still making you stronger because there is the resurrection and our spiritual growth goes on all the way into eternity into the Kingdom of God.

By remaining in Jesus and responding in godly ways, in the midst of hardships, there is a blessing to be had. Verse 15 reads, “But those who suffer he delivers in their suffering; he speaks to them in their affliction.”  We can know that Christ will deliver us. He will speak words of love, grace and hope into our hearts. He will encourage us as he matures us in our faith.

Part 2: God Calls Us To Extol His Greatness To All The World (16-33)

Verses 16-33 read, “He is wooing you from the jaws of distress to a spacious place free from restriction, to the comfort of your table laden with choice food. 17 But now you are laden with the judgment due the wicked; judgment and justice have taken hold of you. 18 Be careful that no one entices you by riches; do not let a large bribe turn you aside. 19 Would your wealth or even all your mighty efforts sustain you so you would not be in distress? 20 Do not long for the night, to drag people away from their homes. 21 Beware of turning to evil, which you seem to prefer to affliction. 22 “God is exalted in his power. Who is a teacher like him? 23 Who has prescribed his ways for him, or said to him, ‘You have done wrong’? 24 Remember to extol his work, which people have praised in song. 25 All humanity has seen it; mortals gaze on it from afar. 26 How great is God—beyond our understanding! The number of his years is past finding out. 27 “He draws up the drops of water, which distill as rain to the streams; 28 the clouds pour down their moisture and abundant showers fall on mankind. 29 Who can understand how he spreads out the clouds, how he thunders from his pavilion? 30 See how he scatters his lightning about him, bathing the depths of the sea. 31 This is the way he governs the nations and provides food in abundance. 32 He fills his hands with lightning and commands it to strike its mark. 33 His thunder announces the coming storm; even the cattle make known its approach.”

Job 36:22 reads, “God is exalted in his power. Who is a teacher like him?” We can see Gods’ greatness in what he has created. Look at what Elihu says in Job 36:27-32, “He (God) draws up the drops of water, which distill as rain to the streams; 28 the clouds pour down their moisture and abundant showers fall on mankind. 29 Who can understand how he spreads out the clouds, how he thunders from his pavilion? 30 See how he scatters his lightning about him, bathing the depths of the sea. 31 This is the way he governs the nations and provides food in abundance. 32 He fills his hands with lightning and commands it to strike its mark. 33 His thunder announces the coming storm; even the cattle make known its approach.”  We need to stop and open our eyes to see God in the natural. Romans 1:20 reads, “20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.” We have become so disconnected from nature. We are held up in our homes, cars and concrete jungles and personal electronics, that we are losing the ability and forfeiting the opportunities to experience God in creation. I saw this on a recent drive to Montreal. From Detroit to Toronto, the road is literally a sea of concrete along the 401 hwy. Toronto has 7 lane highways.  Driving to Niagara Falls, all I saw was development. I thought, “How disconnected we are from nature.” I am sure that things are little more natural when you get off the 401, but the truth remains, we need to get back into nature and behold the greatness of God. The glory of God in his creation will allow God to teach us many things.

Elihu tells Job that God is exalted in his greatness (22,26) and that people of faith should “extol his works.” Look at Job 36:24-26, “24 Remember to extol his work, which people have praised in song. 25 All humanity has seen it; mortals gaze on it from afar. 26 How great is God—beyond our understanding! The number of his years is past finding out.” What does extol mean? It means to, “To praise highly; exalt.” “To glorify, praise, or honor.” And so what does it mean to extol God?

First, Extolling God means to exalt God within our circumstances. This WILL require a change in attitude as we live in the midst of our difficulties.  When we are suffering the last thing we want to do is extol the Lord Jesus and tell the world of God’s greatness. We tend to be totally selfish, seeking some relief. But God wants us to lift our eyes up from our difficult circumstances and fix them on Jesus. Hebrews 12:1-3 reads, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

Second, God wants us to extol him without understanding everything about him first. Here is a definition of faith. Hebrews 11:1-3 reads, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.”

Throughout the Bible there have been people who have extolled God without understanding all of His ways. Think about Abraham. God called him to believe God’s promises in Genesis 12:1-3, “The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. 2 “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”  Mary was a young lady. She was called to a tough mission to be the mother of our Lord Jesus. She didn’t understand the ramifications of the calling. She never fully understood the God who was calling her. But she had faith and she responded to God’s call, “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. ‘May your word to me be fulfilled.’” (Luke 1:38)  Abraham and Mary were both suffering in their own personal circumstances. Mary was poor and powerless. She could have been stoned to death for what God was calling her to do. Abraham was poor and surrounded by idol worshippers and a culture of war. He was told to move someplace he didn’t know. But they were called by a God they never fully understood and yet they obeyed and submitted to him, believing in God’s promises. They set out to live by faith in an awesome God and extol the Lord by faith.

There are multiple examples of those who extolled God in their lives without understanding everything about God. Hebrews 11:32-39 sums it up well, “32 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37 They were put to death by stoning;[e] they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground. 39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, 40 since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.”

I have been called to extol the greatness of Jesus and his life-giving Gospel to the ends to the ends of the earth. I have my own personal difficulties and sufferings. Yet, I must not be focused on my own issues alone. I need to fix my eyes on Jesus and run the race set before me. I pray that God may open the eyes of my heart to see his greatness and his glory all around me. Then I pray that God may show me ways to extol him his glory to world and grant me the strength and inspiration to do so. Where would I been without this direction in my life? My heart longs for God and meaning and hope and eternity. I can’t imagine living on survival mode. It would be a weight too heavy for me to bear. But praise God for the privilege to extol his greatness, even when I am suffering.

Prayer: “Lord, you are the source of all truth. You want to speak your words of truth into my heart. Lord, help me to lift my eyes from myself and place them on you and extol your glory to the ends of the earth.”

One word: Extol the glory of the Lord.