JOB 42 LESSONS FROM MEETING THE CREATOR2019 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Job 42 Lessons From Meeting The Creator

Well, as we're here in Job chapter 42 this morning, I'd like to begin by just saying congratulations. Good job. Well done. You made it through the book of Job. And I know that can be really challenging and difficult, but I'm so glad that you made it through the book of Job.

but a blessing at the same time. Job is one of those things that, you know, you do because you know it's good for you. Like you go to the doctor, you go to the dentist, or you eat your vegetables, you know. It's not so much because it's your favorite thing, but man, some important truths to accept and understand, some important questions and doctrines to wrestle with and work through. And God always, you know, uses these things to challenge us and draw us near to Him. And so good job,

But also want to encourage you, you know, if you've not been joining with us in the Bible in three years, you have a great opportunity to jump in with us because we just finished the book of Job. So, you know, you skipped the worst part. Now you can jump into the book of Psalms with us. Starting tomorrow morning, we'll be beginning the book of Psalms and now working our way through the book of Psalms over the next couple of weeks. And so I encourage you to jump in with us. You can see the bulletin for the reading schedule.

Or you can sign up on the website that we have set up for this. It's mybiblereading.com. And you can sign up and get the schedule emailed to you or text messaged to you daily to help encourage you and remind you to join in with us and spend time with God in His Word. And so, good things coming up. But this morning, here we are in Job chapter 42.

And as we wrap up and conclude the book of Job, I've titled the message, Lessons from Meeting the Creator.

Here in Job chapter 42, we see the final conclusion of this whole matter. And it wraps up with God appearing to Job at the end. And so in the previous chapters leading up to chapter 42, God has appeared on the scene. He's been interrogating Job and asking Job some questions and giving him some challenges. And in that, God is able to meet Job's need and minister to him.

The 35 chapters before God shows up, we see that discussion that takes place between Job and his friends. And all of the discussion that went on, not one bit of comfort was really given to Job. Not one bit of comfort was offered. In fact, what Job's friends said throughout the whole book pretty much is nonsense from beginning to end and not helpful at all. But then in chapter 38, God shows up.

And it tells us in Job chapter 38 verse 1 that the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind. And he begins now to speak to Job and address the things that need to be addressed. And for four chapters, God asks Job some questions.

Instead of showing up and giving Job a bunch of answers, which is what we might expect, God shows up and asks a bunch of questions, a series of questions that all highlight the fact that he, God, is the creator of the heavens and the earth.

And so Job here is reminded, and it's quite clear, he has an encounter with the creator, the one who has made all things, the one who has set all things in order, the one who has formed and fashioned Job, now meets with God, or now meets with Job, and Job meets with God. And through that, there's some important things that God does in the heart and mind of Job. But

But as we get into this last chapter, I like what Pastor Warren Wiersbe says about it. He says, this chapter assures us that no matter what happens to us, God always writes the last chapter. Therefore, we don't have to be afraid. We can trust God to do what is right, no matter how painful our situation might be.

A good reminder and a good encouragement. God writes the last chapter. He has the final say. He is the creator. He is sovereign over all things. And so he is able even to make the worst things, the worst part of our life, the worst pains and sufferings, and to make those things into things that, well...

bring about blessing and good and are productive in our lives. And so God, he writes that final chapter. We can trust him. We can rest in him. He is the creator. And like Job, boy, do we need to meet with him.

Well, there's four points that we'll consider as we work our way through Job chapter 42 this morning. Four points about the lessons that we learn from Job's meeting with the Creator and what we can learn from that for our lives. We're going to stay in verses 1 through 6 for point number one, and that is, your questions do not matter in God's presence. This is what Job finds out and he discovers. He discovers.

He spent 35 chapters going back and forth with his friends, asking questions and thinking about what he would ask of God and what he would try to find out if he had an opportunity. But what he comes to learn, as God actually shows up and he is there with God in the presence of God, his questions are not as important as he once thought. In verse 1, it tells us, Then Job answered the Lord and said, I know that you can do everything.

and that no purpose of yours can be withheld from you. You asked, who is this who hides counsel without knowledge? Therefore, I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Here is God shows up in this final chapter of this affliction of Job. He shows up, but not to answer Job's questions.

He shows up and instead he asks Job a series of questions. And the way that this whole thing goes down is very different than what Job had anticipated. It's very different than what Job had imagined earlier on in his time of suffering. And the way that Job responds to God is very different than he had expected of himself. Very different than what he would have imagined.

He thought if he had opportunity, he would be laying down all kinds of questions before the Lord and getting all kinds of insights about those things and about all the details about why is this happening and what's going on here and why is God allowing this? And he thought all of those things would be resolved in answers that he would get as he asked God some questions.

We see that reflected in his words a few times throughout the book, but one example of that is in Job chapter 23. There in Job 23, Job says in verse 3, Oh, that I knew where I might find him, that I might come to his seat. I would present my case before him and fill my mouth with arguments. I would know the words which he would answer me and understand what he would say to me.

Job, in the midst of his suffering, in the midst of his affliction, he's imagining an encounter with God. He's imagining, oh man, if I only knew, you know, the hill atop that God sat, you know, and I would climb up that hill and here's how it would go down. I would present my case before him. I would stand before God and I would present my case and I would say, God, here's my life.

Here's what's happened in my life. Here's what's taken place. And then here's all of the affliction that has come upon me. He says, I would fill my mouth with arguments. As Job imagined this scene, as he imagined this encounter, he thought he would come to it with a mouthful of arguments, with all kinds of questions, with all kinds of, maybe you could consider them demands. God, you need to answer me.

How is this just? How is this right? What you've allowed in my life and what you've done. How is that okay? And he thought he would come up with a mouthful of arguments. He thought he would show up and that God would answer all of the questions that he would ask. And he said, oh, I would know the words that he would answer me.

I can't wait to understand what he would say to me. And in telling me and answering all of my questions and telling me why these things took place, I want to understand. I want to know what it is that God is doing through the midst of this. As Job imagined this scene, he thought he would approach it that way. But then when God shows up and God asks him a series of questions,

Job does not respond the way that he thought. Instead, in verse 2, he says, I know you can do everything. God, I know that you can do everything. No purpose can be withheld from you. You are the creator. You are sovereign over all things. There's nothing that can be said or done against you. You will accomplish your purposes. And you've asked, who is this who's been saying all these things and asking all these questions and hides counsel without knowledge? And

Job says, all I can say is, I have uttered things that I didn't understand. I've talked about things too wonderful for me, things that I didn't know. He goes on in verse 4 to say, please listen and let me speak. You said, I will question you and you shall answer me. He says in verse 5, I have heard you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you. Therefore, I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes.

Instead of having a mouthful of questions, an onslaught of, I need this information, when he comes face to face with God, when he encounters God, all of those questions fade away. They were not as important as he once thought.

They didn't require the attention that he thought they required. No, when he's face to face with God, all of those pressing things upon him, those questions in his mind, in his heart, his search for understanding, all of those things faded into the background. And he was instead captivated with the reality of the presence of God and then his own sinfulness in the presence of God.

of God's glory and holiness. He says, I repent in dust and ashes. I abhor myself. Now, what did Job have to repent of? What had he done that required repentance? Well, going back to the beginning, we know that Job was a righteous man. Chapter 1 and 2, God makes that clear.

Job was a righteous man and all of the suffering that he experienced was not because of sin in his life. It wasn't God dealing with him, even though that's what the friends tried to communicate to Job through the whole time. So what sin did Job have to repent of? Well, even though Job is an example of a righteous man, he was still a man and still sinful.

And one of the things that he specifically says he had to repent of was, you know, I talked about things that I didn't understand. Job, as he went through the pain and suffering, and as he cried out, and we saw that there was some of the things that Job said that, well, would kind of challenge us and go, whoa, I don't know if you should say that, Job. But Job is expressing his emotions. He's expressing his heart. He is going through these things and crying out in pain. And he's realizing after the fact that,

yeah, I shouldn't have said all the things that I said. He's repenting for his state of sinfulness, the condition of his heart. But not that God was rebuking him in that way. In fact, we'll see as he compares Job to his friends in just a few moments, God says, Job spoke of me what was right. And yet at the same time, he's not perfect. And so there's room in areas of his heart that

Well, he needs to come to repentance in his attitude towards God, his understanding of God, the things that he said. And so instead of having a mouthful of questions, he imagined standing before God and getting all kinds of answers. Instead, he stood before God and recognized, I am a sinful man. My questions are not so important anymore. Instead, I stand before you and I repent in dust and ashes. God came...

Here at the end of this tribulation, not to give Job an answer, but God came as the answer. He was the answer. He was the solution. He was the resolution. Pastor Thomas Constable says that Job had asked stopping, he had stopped asking why since he had come to know God. We do not know why if we know God. This is one of the great lessons of this book.

We don't need to know why if we know God. Is there ever anything in your life that you imagine yourself standing before God and asking a lot of questions about? You ever picture yourself, you know, man, I can't wait to find out. I can't wait until God tells me and lists out all of the reasons why. And he justifies, you know, all of the circumstances that I'm experiencing. I can't wait until he

And we all do. We all have those things. And we look around at our own lives or the lives of people around us and we wonder, wow, what is God going to do? And I can't wait to get to heaven so we can ask God those things. And I do believe that God will reveal all of the purposes and plans. I do believe that. But at the same time, I would remind us this morning, that's not the first thing on the agenda when we meet with God.

When you enter into eternity or God meets with you here in this life, when you stand before God, the first thing on the agenda is not going to be God saying, okay, let me have it. What are all the questions that you have? That's not the first thing on the agenda. That's not the most important thing. You knowing and understanding all the reasons and purposes and plans and all the ways that God was working in the midst of things, it's not the most important thing.

And this truth, as we wrestle with these things, it kind of helps us to be put back in our place. It is very easy for us to become self-absorbed and consumed with things in a way that we are convinced we're the center of the universe, that God must answer our questions, and God will meet all of our demands, and that we can have everything that we need or think that we deserve or are worthy of. And we need to be reminded.

He is the creator. He is the one who formed us and fashioned us. He does not answer to us, no matter what happens in our life. God does not answer to us and our demands. No, we are his creation, and we can trust him that he is good. We can trust him that he has a purpose and a plans. And again, I believe that he will show those things, but it's not as important as we think.

Instead, what's more important, what we need most is to know God. What we need most is not answers. What we need most is not, you know, understanding of all the details of all that God is doing in our lives through difficult circumstances. What we need most is to know God. What we need most is the presence of God. What we need most is not even a life without difficulties.

I mean, I would like that, right? I would say that's what I need most is a life without difficulties and affliction and trials and persecution and all of that. But that's not what I need most. What I need most is to know God. And so let this example of Job remind you, remind me, our place. The universe does not revolve around us. The universe is God's creation. My questions do not really matter in God's presence. Not that God doesn't care about us.

but that the importance that I once placed on them, they will fade away. What we need most is to know God. And God's presence means more than all the answers or information you could have. Jesus told us in John chapter 17, as he is in that final prayer, heading up to, leading up to the cross, he gives this incredible prayer in John chapter 17. And as he does in verse 3 of John 17, he says, this is eternal life.

that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. Jesus says, this is what eternal life is. This is what true and valuable and lasting and fulfilling life is, to know God and to know the one he has sent, Jesus Christ. This is what we need the most. And so as we encounter afflictions, as we go through difficulties, as we have questions,

That's fine. We're going to experience those things. We're going to have questions. We're going to want to know, and that's okay, but let it not become the priority that I will only, you know, if I understand, I will only when I know, but instead that I would let those questions, those wrestlings in my heart be a reminder that my greatest need is to know God. And it's not about finding out the answers or God giving an account to me.

But it's about me seeking to encounter God and to know Him more. Well, moving on to verses 7 through 9, it gives us point number two this morning. And that is your answers may deserve God's wrath. Your questions, they don't matter in God's presence. And your answers, they may actually be stirring up the wrath of God upon you. Check out what it says here in verse 7 and 8. It says, And so it was...

After the Lord had spoken these words to Job, that the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, My wrath is aroused against you and your two friends. For you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. Now therefore, take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams,

Here, the Lord now begins to address the friends of Job. And again, it goes a little bit differently than perhaps people had anticipated or expected.

it's a little bit different than they had imagined. God is now going to rebuke the friends of Job. You think about, I don't know about you, but I kind of try to picture, you know, these things as I'm reading through them. And in Job chapter 38, God shows up and he begins to speak. And as God begins to speak, he begins to challenge Job. And here are the friends on the sidelines.

They're listening to God challenge Job as God asks question after question after question after question. And I don't know about you, but I picture Job's friends going, yes, yes, God, we've been trying to tell him this. Yes, Lord, yes. Finally, hopefully he's going to hear it now from you. But, you know, we've been trying to tell him. It's good you finally showed up, God, because he hasn't been listening to us. And boy, he really needs to hear these things. I imagine Job's friends saying,

just excited about God showing up and asking Job these questions. Where were you, Job? When the foundations of the earth, when the stars were laid into heaven, where were you? And are you the one who set the boundaries of the sea? And can you contend with some of my greatest creations? And question after question as God challenges Job,

The friends are on the sidelines cheering him on like, yeah, we've been telling him, yeah, thank you, God, for backing us up and showing him who's, you know, really in charge here. And they thought that they were on the same team as God. But in verse 7, and so it was, after the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, my wrath is aroused against you and your two friends. You and your friends...

You're about to experience my wrath, God says. My wrath has been stirred up. You deserve judgment for the way that you have handled this situation. Pastor David Guzik says, we can imagine that they were quite surprised by this. They no doubt thought that God was in agreement with them all along. The whole 35 chapters of discussion, as they are trying to

convinced Job that there must be some hidden sin in his life that would result in God's judgment in this way. They thought they were on God's side. They thought they were serving God. They thought they represented God well. They thought they were God's messengers. They were convinced. And so when God shows up and begins to lay all these questions upon Job, they thought, yes, yes, they're cheering from the sidelines. And yet, even though that's their perception and that's what they thought,

It was exactly the opposite that was true. And the reality was God was angry with them because of the way they had spoken to Job about God. This is an important thing to consider because it's very easy for us to find ourselves in a similar situation. We think we're serving God by the things that we say.

And we are convinced God is on our side. And when he shows up, boy, he's going to tell you what I've been telling you. And we can be in a place where we are convinced but absolutely deceived. We can be in a place where we think we are representing God well and being the messenger of God. Meanwhile, God is saying, my wrath is aroused against you. Sometimes we think we have the answers.

And we're not shy about providing those answers. You know, we're quick to give those answers that we are convinced that we have. We're so sure of it. And yet we need to be reminded that it's not about how convinced we are. It's about how accurately we represent God. God calls the friends to repentance. In verse 8, he says, Take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams. Go to my servant Job and offer for yourselves a burnt offering. And my servant Job shall pray for you.

for I will accept him lest I deal with you according to your folly, because you have not spoken of me what is right as my servant Job has. He calls them to repentance. He says, you guys, you've stirred up my wrath and you need to go and offer a sacrifice. But not just go and offer a sacrifice. You need to go to Job and offer a sacrifice. And you need to ask him to pray for you. And I'll accept his prayer.

But I'm not going to listen to you right now because I am angry at your foolishness and how you have misrepresented me. It reminds me of, well, when Moses misrepresented God. Remember in the wilderness as the people were thirsty, they called out for a drink and they were crying out against God and what their hearts toward God wasn't right. But Moses was not right in his representation as he came out angry before the people and struck the rock and

in his anger. And the people were given water through the rock in that way. But God called Moses aside and said, Moses, you've misrepresented me. I was not angry at the people. That's not the way that I would treat the people. That's not the way that it doesn't reflect my heart, my attitude towards the people. It's something for us to consider that God is serious about his representation. And the answers that we give

The way that we talk about God and when we talk on behalf of God or claim to talk on behalf of God, God is serious about the representation that we give, about how well we reflect his character, his nature, his heart on the matter at hand. Your answers may deserve God's wrath. You may be doing your best to try to comfort. You may be doing your best to try to represent God. You may be doing your best and be absolutely convinced and at the same time,

Be there stirring up the wrath of God because you don't know God. That was the issue with Job's friends. They really didn't know God. Their doctrine was bad. They didn't know and understand the way that God works. And so when they spoke on behalf of God, they were far off. We need to be careful that we don't follow their example. Jesus says this in Matthew 12, verse 36. But I say to you,

that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. Jesus says every idle word, every word that's useless, that doesn't really mean anything, every word that doesn't really have the need or the effect that the Lord desires, we're going to give an account of that. Again, when we stand before God, the first thing on the agenda is not, give me all your questions, I'm going to answer them. That's not the first thing on the agenda. The first thing on the agenda is,

is to bow before God in worship in recognition of our position, our standing, and our sinfulness. But second thing on the agenda is us giving an account to God.

Not the judgment seat in the sense of damnation that is for unbelievers, but even as believers, when we stand before God, there is what's described as the bima seat, the judgment seat that is not a judgment of wrath, but a judgment of reward. And we will receive reward or we will not receive reward based on how well we did with what God has given to us.

And there will be a day that we stand before God and that we will give an account even for the idle words that we speak. We need to be careful of our words, of our answers, especially when we claim to speak on behalf of God, especially when we claim to be a representation of God. When we say, this is what God says, this is what God wants, this is what God desires. God cares, serious about his representation.

In verse 9, it tells us, And so God calls Job's friends to repentance. And then the commendable thing that we see in verse 9 is they repent. They respond appropriately. And they model for us what repentance is. It's to turn around and do the opposite. Instead of standing there, pretending to speak on behalf of God and condemning Job...

Here they come acknowledging the wrongdoing that they've done in humility and asking Job for forgiveness and prayer. This is real repentance. They've turned around and done the opposite. Not, Job, let me tell you, this is what's wrong with your life and you need to give an account and, you know, coming against Job and in that way. But now they come in a place of humility saying, what we did was wrong. What I said was wrong. Will you forgive me? Will you pray for me that God would forgive me?

They model for us. It's one of the two highlights of Job's friends in the whole book. The first one is in chapter 2 when they see Job and they just go and sit with him for seven days without saying anything. That's the highlight. That's the best comfort they provided through the whole book. And then for 35 chapters, they speak a lot of nonsense. They misrepresent God. They stir up the wrath of God. But at the end, they still provide us a good example. Here's how to repent. Here's how to go back and acknowledge and say, I was wrong. Please forgive me.

to humble themselves before the Lord and before Job. Your answers may deserve God's wrath. Do you have any answers that you need to repent from? Any idle words that you need to turn back from and acknowledge and humble yourself before the Lord and before others? Have you been a miserable comforter? The Lord would call us to repent just as he called Job's friends to do so.

Well, continuing on here in Job chapter 42, we look now at verse 10 and 11 for point number three, and that is your relationships are worth restoring. So your questions, they don't really matter in God's presence. Your answers, they might deserve God's wrath, depending on how well you represent God. Thirdly, your relationships. Those connections that you have with the people around you,

They're worth restoring and maintaining. Verse 10, the Lord restored Job's losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed, the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before. Now, as we see the Lord wrapping these things up and bringing this trial to a conclusion, and now he's gonna give Job a life of blessing, but there is a interesting verse here in verse 10 in that it seems to connect the restoration of Job with,

with the forgiveness of his friends. Notice again in verse 10, it says, and the Lord restored Job's losses when he prayed for his friends. God set this up. He orchestrated this. He designed this so that in order for them to move forward, they would have to be a reconciliation. There would have to be forgiveness.

from Job to his friends. There would have to be humility and repentance on behalf of the friends and that they would have to come together and reconcile and restore their relationship in order, well, for both of them, for all of them to go forward and progress and receive what God had in store for them. How hard would it be for you to pray for these guys? We don't know exactly how long this trial of Job lasted,

But it seems to indicate that it was a few months that this took place in Job's life. Seems to indicate that for some time now, the friends have been there with Job and piling on more pain and hurt, misrepresenting God, doing Job harm. How hard would it be for you to turn around and pray that God would forgive and restore and bless those who had hurt you in that kind of fashion? And yet,

There is this bond, this connection. Job's restoration seems to be connected. The implication being he would not receive the restoration and blessings that would follow if he would not pray for his friends as they came to him in repentance. It was a necessary thing. God designed it this way so that they would have to restore and reconcile. Relationships are important.

People are important. And God cares about how we relate to one another. God is not done with the influence and impact that he wants to have on Job's friends through the life of Job. And God is not done with the impact and influence that Job's friends need to have on Job. God's not done with these relationships. And so he sets this up. He requires, notice he tells the friends to

make a sacrifice to give an offering, right? But he doesn't just say, you know, go to me and offer a sacrifice and then, you know, it's just me and you and I'll forgive you. But he says, no, you go to Job. Job, you pray for your friends. He sets it up so that this is required because God says your relationships are worth restoring. Even when there's been harm, even when there's been hurt, even when there's been sin and things deserving the wrath of God, your relationships are worth restoring.

I think it would be very difficult for any of us to pray for these guys like Job did. But that's why Job is set up by the Lord as a reminder for us, as an example for us. This is what a righteous person looks like. Someone who's willing to forgive those who have hurt and harmed them. Think about that amazing prayer that the Lord taught us. Matthew chapter 6, we have the Lord's Prayer, right?

The prayer that he set for us as the example. And he says, Forgive us our debts. That's our sins, our transgressions, our iniquity. And notice that in this model prayer that Jesus gives to us,

He ties together this idea, this understanding, this concept of receiving forgiveness from God and giving forgiveness to those who have wronged us. We owe God a debt because we have sinned against him. And there are people around us who owe us a debt because, well, they have hurt us and wronged us. But here in this example prayer, Jesus reminds us,

You can't be one who goes to God and says, Lord, please forgive me of all my debts and then turn around and not forgive those who have hurt you. That doesn't work together. That's not the life that God has called us to. That's not where God wants you to be. He is permanently tied together, our forgiveness and the forgiving of others.

Jesus, along these lines, told the parable of the unforgiving servant, right? The servant who owed a great debt, a huge debt that could never be paid back. He owed it to his master and his master calls him to account and says, you need to pay me back right now. And the servant says, oh, please, there's no way I can pay this back, but give me some time. I'll try. I'll do my best to pay it back, please. And the master forgave the servant of the debt. Just wiped it clean. Okay, you used to owe me $4 billion. Now you don't owe me anything.

And then that servant who is forgiven this huge debt goes out and just around the corner, he sees some guy who owes him $5. He rings him around the neck, you know, pay me my money and puts him into prison. You got to pay me my money, my $5. And the master hears about it. He's really upset. He says, you were forgiven this huge debt and you couldn't forgive this fellow servant this $5. This is very important to God. Your relationships are worth restoring. God has forgiven you.

Huge debt. Great iniquity. You now need to turn around and extend that kind of grace and forgiveness to those who have hurt you and wronged you. Your relationships are worth restoring. Even those relationships that, well, brought about some pain, brought about some hurt. Now,

In this case, we see there is repentance on the behalf of Job's friends. And so it is appropriate for there to be this kind of reconciliation. There are certain instances where there is to be a limited reconciliation if there is no repentance.

In the issue of sin that we find Paul addressing in 1 Corinthians 5, he calls the church to put out from their presence the one who is practicing sin without concern or care, without repentance. And they're just flaunting and living a life of sin in this immoral relationship. And he says you need to treat that person as an unbeliever. That doesn't mean you hate them and cast them out and never relate to them at all, but that you change a relationship because...

Well, they need to be reminded that they're in a continual pursuit of sin.

And then later on, when that person repented, in 2 Corinthians, Paul calls them to then, okay, now reaffirm your love. Now restore the relationship fully. And so there is some room for us to seek the Lord on the level of reconciliation that's appropriate for the situation at hand. But the main thing that I would ask us to consider is that the relationship is worth restoring. It's worth working on. It's worth pursuing that kind of restoration. It's what God desires for us.

Going on in verse 11, it says, So not only is Job going to be reconciled with his friends, but now all these other people just show up.

I think it's interesting. It says, all his brothers and all his sisters. Now you read through the rest of Job and you're like, wait, he had brothers and sisters? We know he had sons and daughters. We know he had a wife. We know he had these three friends. Brothers and sisters? Where's the brothers and sisters? Where's his siblings in all of this? I don't know about you, but I kind of put myself in Job's shoes and I think...

Get out of my house, brothers and sisters. Where were you when I needed you for the past few months as I've been suffering greatly and tortured here by these three friends? And where were you? You're my family. When I needed you most, you were not there for me. And I think none of us would give Job a hard time if he just threw them out and said, nope, no, you're out of my life. I just, no, I'm done with you. I never want to see you again.

You were not there when I needed you the most. But relationships are worth restoring. And Job may have felt this way, but he didn't behave this way. He received them back, his brothers, his sisters, and then all the acquaintances. All the people who called Job friend, even though they didn't really know him that well. Suddenly, here they are. Whoa, Job's blessed. There's a good feast going on. There's, you know, money going around or whatever. I don't know. There's feasting and celebration. Hey, I'll show up for that.

There's suffering and turmoil and great affliction. I'm busy. I actually have something going on. I had a hair appointment. I don't know if you realized it. But anyway, so hopefully I'll just pray for you. You'll be good. But, oh, you're having a party. Oh, let me rearrange my schedule. And, you know, I'll come. And, oh, man, I can just imagine being in Job's shoes saying, get out of here. I don't want nothing to do with you. But that's not the heart of Job. It's not the heart of a righteous man. Here they are. They come offering. It says they consoled and comforted him.

And again, like, hey, the trial is over now. Like, where were you when I needed you? And yet, he receives them. He hosts them. He has them over. Their relationships are restored. Relationships are worth restoring. With those who have hurt you, with those who have harmed you. With those who have abandoned you, with those who were not around when you needed them most. Relationships are worth restoring. God cares.

About our relationships with one another. In verses 7 through 9, it's interesting. Over and over, God calls Job my servant. And that's the important thing to consider as we think about these relationships. Are you God's servant? Because if you're God's servant, then perhaps God is not done having you serve him in the lives of those people that are around you. Yes, even those who have hurt you. Even those who have abandoned you. Are you God's servant? The relationship is worth restoring.

Because God's not done with your impact and your influence and you representing him to the people around you. Well, we're going to finish up in verses 12 through 17 with point number four, and that is your faithfulness to God will be rewarded. Let's read through those verses. Verse 12 says, Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. For he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys.

He also had seven sons and three daughters. And he called the name of the first Jemima, the name of the second Kezia, and the name of the third Karen Hapuch. In all the land were found no women so beautiful as the daughters of Job. And their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers. After this, Job lived 140 years and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations. So Job died old and full of days.

Here we have the incredible conclusion of this trial of Job. He started out as being the model righteous person for God. Not perfect, not flawless, but he walked with God and was righteous in that way. He went through this crazy time of affliction, but now on the other side of that, it tells us in verse 12, the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning.

In Job chapter 1 verse 3, it lays out some details about his possessions. And then here in verse 12, it lays out the updated details of those possessions. And so you see, as you compare the two, he had 7,000 sheep in Job chapter 1.

But now the Lord gives him 14,000 sheep. Now he has double the sheep that he had before. Probably not overnight, but you know, over the process of time, God restored and then doubled the sheep that Job had. Camels, originally he had 3,000, but now he has 6,000.

Female donkeys, originally he had 500, but now he has 1,000. Oxen, he originally had 500, but now he has 1,000. In each case, doubled, doubled, doubled, doubled. Twice as much as he had before. God blessed the latter days of Job more than the beginning. Not that it's about the earthly possessions, but it's a reflection of the heart of God.

Job is being rewarded for his faithfulness. So he has double of all the livestock. Then in verse 13, it says he also had seven sons and three daughters. Now, if you compare that to Job chapter one, you'll find there in Job chapter one that Job originally had seven sons and three daughters. Those all died in the tragedies that befell Job. And one day they all died together.

But now Job is given seven more sons and three more daughters. Not doubled, right? Seven before, seven now. Three before, three now. And yet, if you factor in eternity to this picture, then you could recognize that Job's children were doubled. Because...

His seven sons and three daughters presumably are in heaven with the Lord. And so in eternity, Job doesn't have seven daughters or seven sons and three daughters. He has 14 sons and six daughters. And for the rest of eternity, he has the benefit of, well, these children. And so in that perspective, in that understanding, even his family, his children were doubled in the same way.

Verse 16, after this, Job lived 140 years and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations. Job lived 140 years after this trial. Now, considering the rest of the things that are taking place, it's possible, it's perhaps likely, that indicates that Job was about 70 years old when the trial began. Because he had 10 full-grown kids, right?

That fits, you know, about the timeline of about 70 years. And then God doubled his possessions. God blessed him abundantly. And so living 140 years after this maybe indicates he was about 70 years old. Plus the 140, he lived to be over 200 years old all in all. It's one of the reasons why the timing of these events seems to be around the time of Abraham.

Job possibly was a contemporary. He lived around the same time that Abraham lived. And it's one of the reasons why many believe that Job is the oldest book in the Bible because it records these events that happened during that time. We don't know all of the details exactly, but however old Job was before the trial began, afterwards he lived 140 years. And there's something important to consider about that because you know what it's like in the middle of a trial.

Sometimes in the middle of a trial, it feels like, it seems like, there will never be any goodness or blessing from God ever again. Sometimes it feels like there's never the possibility of a long good life that will come afterwards. In the middle of the trial, all we can see is the trial and affliction, and it feels like it's going to be that way forever. But that's not the reality. We do face trials and afflictions and difficulties and pains. But the years that Job lived after the trial...

were more than the years that he lived before the trial. They were fuller. They were more blessed. They had accomplished for him great reward from God. And sometimes God does reward that way in this life. But always, in every case, without exception, God rewards in eternity for the things that we endure today.

Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 4, our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. In eternity, suffering for righteousness, suffering for walking with the Lord and doing what's right, suffering in the midst of the will of God and the plan of God, in eternity, it is accomplishing for us something far greater than we could know or understand here in this life. And it can feel like

No good will come of this. It could feel like I will never laugh again. It can feel like, you know, nothing will be beyond this pain. But that is not the truth. It's not the reality that God presents. No, in fact, these things are accomplishing greater rewards for you. We can trust God in that. Pastor David Guzik puts it this way. In the beginning of the story, we find Job, a blessed and godly man,

At the end of the book of Job, we find a man more blessed and more godly. In the end, all the attack of Satan served to make Job a more blessed and more godly man. Isn't that incredible? Satan sought to bring Job to a point of cursing God. He sought to destroy Job. But in all of his efforts, the end result was not Job's destruction. The end result was Job's

in the position of being more blessed, having drawn closer to God, receiving the reward for faithfulness to God. Your faithfulness to God will be rewarded. And so here from Job, we learn some really important lessons. One day you and I will stand before the creator, the one who formed us and fashioned us, who also spoke into existence the heavens and the earth. And in that day, our questions...

All the things that we think are so important and the things that we think God owes us answers about, he will answer them. But they're not really going to matter. Those questions, those demands, they're not as important as we think they are. We need to remember our place. He's the creator. We are his creation. And that day, we will give account for our answers. The things that we spoke. How did we represent God? Did we speak the truth?

And you can only do that if you know God. That's one of the reasons why I continue to encourage us to spend time in the Word of God. Read through the Bible with us. Or read through the Bible in some other plan. But spend time with God in His Word. It's the revelation of Himself to us. And when we speak, we need to make sure that it comes from His resources and not ours. His answers, not our own. His thoughts, not our thoughts.

Because if I just speak what I think, and if I'm just quick to share my opinions about everything, I may likely be stirring up the wrath of God. You may think, well, you know, I'm not a pastor, so it doesn't really matter that much. No, no, no. You're a Christian. You've taken on the name of Christ. You represent him. You are his ambassador. You need to be careful that your words match the heart, the character, and nature of God. Your relationships look around you.

Yes, there's people that have hurt you. There's people that have abandoned you. There's people that let you hang in. But they're worth restoring. God's not done with the work that he wants to do in you through them and in them through you. Look for reconciliation. Look for restoration. And remember that your faithfulness to God will be rewarded. I know the end, man, it looks bleak from the midst of the trial and from the midst of pain. It looks like there's never going to be joy or hope or laughter again.

Oh, but there will be reward. Draw near to God. He's the answer. He's what we need. Let's hold fast to him and trust him to be faithful as he promises to be. Let's pray. God, I pray that you would continue to speak to each one of us these lessons that we see from Job meeting you, the creator. And Lord, may we be reminded of who you are and your rightful place and who we are.

in our rightful place. Lord, I'm not the center of the universe, and you don't owe me anything, answers or demands or information or understanding or insight. Lord, you don't owe me anything, and yet, Lord, you love me so much that you promise to meet with me, to work in my life, to reward me as I walk with you and I'm obedient to you. Lord, help me. Help us to be faithful to you, to give back up when we fall and to come back again

to you and relationship with you and seeking a pursuit of you and your glory and your will and your ways. Lord, help us to really be about your business, pursuing your heart. And I pray, God, that as we do, Lord, that you would reveal yourself to us, that we might be able to offer answers and speak on your behalf in a way that honors you and represents you well. Lord, that we might be able to love and forgive the people around us.

Lord, in a way that models and shows and demonstrates your love and your forgiveness of us. Lord, these are not easy things. They're difficult. But Lord, help us to walk in them. Help us to be faithful to you in all of these things. And thank you, God, for the promised rewards. You don't owe us rewards, but you promised them. You want to bless us. You want to do good for us in this life, but more importantly, in the life to come.

So Lord, help us to love you, trust you, and walk with you in faithfulness. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.