Introduction

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Last weekend our family was invited to a wedding; Sam Witcombe’s wedding.  It was an all-round lovely time … except that it was in Newcastle … almost 3 hours away.  And given no one wants to be wearing their suit or dress for a 3-hour car ride … it means taking everything with you.  And when you have to take everything with you … you always forget something … right.  Now Deb had taken the younger 2 up the day before … to spend some time with her sister.  So she was able to ring me and TELL me what they’d all forgotten … so I could bring it with me.  When I arrived … I realised I’d left my tie at home.  But it’s times like that, that remind you that failing to plan … is planning to fail.  OK … it’s why I put a check list on my phone a few years ago for when we go camping.  I got sick of getting to the campsite each year … and realising I’d forgotten something important.  If you fail to plan … you might as well plan to fail.

And that’s why our topic for today is so important … because TODAY … we’re looking at how to plan for suffering.   Now by that I don’t mean plan for it to HAPPEN.  Only a masochist would do that.  What I mean is … suffering is one of life’s certainties … alongside death and taxes … and TRUMP it would now seem.  And BECAUSE we’re ALL going to suffer in life … there is great wisdom in getting ourselves prepared to face it WHEN it arrives.  So that’s our goal for today; to prepare ourselves as BEST as we can … to be able to cope with suffering when it comes knocking.

So we’re in the book of Job this term.  And as we’ve been learning … the book of Job is dedicated to looking at just one topic; the topic of suffering.  And the beauty of this book … the reason this book has provided enormous comfort and guidance to millions of sufferers down through the ages … is because the book of Job is not a textbook on suffering … it’s a story book.  It doesn’t give us propositions and dictums.  It’s gives us a heartfelt look at how the man Job handled his suffering.

As we’ve seen … when people are suffering they generally ask 2 questions; the ‘why’ question and the ‘how’ question.  Now MOST of the book of Job is taken up with Job asking the ‘why’ question.  ‘WHY are you letting me suffer God?’  But we also get a few answers along the way to the ‘how’ question … namely ‘HOW can I get through this time of affliction?’  And last week … we looked at the FIRST tool needed to handle suffering … which is comfort.  Do not underestimate the impact that comfort can have on helping a sufferer.

Today we’re looking at 3 more tools that the man Job employed to help him battle ON … through his time of affliction.  And the thing about these 3 tools is … we need to have them packed and ready to go BEFORE suffering arrives.  While the book of Job ministers to us from the wheelchair … from a place of deep suffering … the 3 tools we’re looking at today were given to Job from the armchair.  And if we have not planned ahead … and packed these tools in our emergency ‘Go bag’ BEFORE suffering hits … then it will be much harder to cope with significant suffering.

And the 3 tools we’re looking at today are our three points … as your sermon outline shows.  And they are (i) Presence … the knowledge that God is with us, (ii) Growth … the knowledge that suffering makes us stronger, and (iii) Hope … the knowledge that things WILL get better … if not in this life, then the next.  And if we can have these 3 tools ALREADY packed and ready to go in our metaphorical ‘go bag’ BEFORE disaster hits … then we will be in a much better place to handle suffering with it comes.  So please come with me … as we plan to flourish … rather than fail to plan.

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Presence (Job 13:20-22)

 

And we’re in the middle chapters of the book of Job … where Job’s 3 friends are busy imparting their ‘wisdom’ onto Job.  And that ‘wisdom’ is that people don’t reap trouble unless they’ve sown it themselves.  Now we the reader are privy to information that these 3 friends DON’T have … and that is that Job’s suffering is actually a result of his LACK of sin.  He’s not sinLESS … but he is a believer of impeccable character.  And as Job defends himself against these attacks … he gives us some snippets of wisdom … as to how he remains faithful to God EVEN in the midst of unimaginable suffering.  And the first one we seen is in:

Job 13:20-22 (NIV) “Only grant me these two things, God, and then I will not hide from you: 21 Withdraw your hand far from me, and stop frightening me with your terrors. 22 Then summon me and I will answer, or let me speak, and you reply to me.

So the TWO things Job is asking for here are (i) please ease up a bit on my suffering, and (ii) show me your loving presence.  Don’t hide yourself from ME God … and I won’t hide myself from you.  Summon me into your presence God … and I will come.  I just want to experience your presence.

Now WHY is experiencing God’s presence … considered a helpful thing in times of trouble?  It’s because it’s COMFORTING knowing there is someone there who won’t let it go too far.  Think of it this way.  In a martial arts competition … the goal is to kick or punch your opponent … right?  So if you’ve entered a Taekwondo or Jujitsu or MMA competition … chances are you’re going to get physically hurt.  But do you know the big difference between a competition and a street fight?  There’s no referee in a street fight.  In a boxing ring … there’s a referee there to stop the fight once one guy has had enough … or has thrown the towel in.  There’s no throwing the towel in in a street fight.  A street fight ends when the victor says it ends.  And that’s usually when it’s gone too far.

The reason Job wants to know God is with him is because he KNOWS God won’t let it go too far.  OK … Job KNOWS he’s going to get kicked and punched in this life … just like a person who enters a martial arts comp knows they’re in for some pain.  But there’s an enormous comfort from knowing there’s a referee there to stop things from going too far.  So even though Job feels close to death at this point … and is actually ASKING for death at this point … KNOWING God is there with him helps him face this suffering.  Why?  Because Job still believes God is a God of infinite love and infinite power.  And what that means is … even if Satan unleashes his FULL fury upon Job … if God is there with him … he knows God will say ‘THIS far you may go Satan … and no further’.  OK … even though it may not LOOK like it … Job knows God is still in control.

So THIS is the first thing we need to pack into our emergency ‘go bag’ today.  Our first piece of application is this; WHEN suffering comes … remember that God is standing in the ring with you … ensuring your suffering doesn’t go too far.  Now you’re GOING to get hit.  Suffering is inevitable in this life.  But knowing there is a referee of infinite love in the ring with you … who has said to Satan ‘you may go this far and no further’ … strengthens us to get through it.

The beauty for Christians is … if we have this tool packed in our ‘go bag’ for when suffering comes … it gives us even MORE strength and comfort than it did Job.  The reason being … Christians know EXACTLY how much we’re worth to God.  Think of it this way.  Many years ago I started collecting Star Wars Lego Minifigures.  Anyone who’s been in my office will have seen this hobby of mine.  And as I was building my collection … there was this ONE minifigure I really wanted.  It’s a limited-edition Chrome Gold C-3PO.  The problem was … they were going for about $300 at the time.  And there was no way I was spending $300 on a Lego man.  Today … they’re worth around $5,000.  Now WHY are they worth around $5,000?  Because that’s what idiots like me are willing to pay for them.  Now I’m actually THANKFUL I never bought one … because I wouldn’t be able to display it anyway.  I’d have to lock it away in a safe … right?  But my point is … if something is THAT valuable … you look after it … don’t you?

Now do you know how much you’re worth to God?  You are worth the life of his only beloved Son.  In other words … you’re priceless.  Like if I had a choice of giving up every single thing I owned in the world … including my life … versus giving up the life of one of my children … I’ll give up everything else thank you very much.  Yet God gave the life of His Son … to purchase you.  That’s how much you’re worth to Him.  And so if God has purchased you at infinite cost … then he’s not going to turn around and let you be crushed.  So whatever happens to you … and it’s unlikely going to be as bad as what happened to Job … Christians can be confident that God is standing in that ring with us … saying to Satan … or his creation … or to wicked people ‘THIS far you may go … and no further’.  And so the FIRST thing we need in our ‘go bag’ … to get through times of trouble … is to remember God is with us.

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Growth (Job 17:9)

 

The second tool Job gives us for handling suffering he only really touches on … but it is a major theme in both the OT and the NT.  We see it in our second passage in Job 17.  Job 17 starts by talking about the deep suffering Job is continuing to endure.  Then he says this in:

Job 17:9 (NIV) Nevertheless, the righteous will hold to their ways, and those with clean hands will grow stronger.

Now we need to step out of the book of Job to get a fully developed doctrine on this.  Job only touches on it.  But this second principle for dealing with suffering in a nutshell is … ‘that which doesn’t kill us makes us stronger’.  Let me give us a few passages:

Romans 5:3 (NIV) … we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.

James 1:2 (NIV) Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.

1 Peter 5:10 (NIV) And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

The principle is really simple.  When we get THROUGH a period of difficulty … it shows us we can handle it.  And that gives us the strength … the resilience to handle the next thing that comes along.  It’s like Navy Seal training … which I’ve mentioned before.  I used to think Navy Seal training was nothing more than cruel and unusual punishment … aimed at separating the men from the boys.  But what I learnt was … being subjected to 6 months of shear hell … it’s not just 12 weeks of boot camp … it’s 6 months of Hell.  But being subjected to 6 months of Hell means when the Seals are in the heat of battle … with bullets flying past them … they’re generally calm and composed.  Why?  Because they know they can handle it.  If they can handle the 6 months of organised Hell that is Navy Seal training … they can handle almost anything.

And this is the SECOND tool we need to put in our emergency ‘go bag’ BEFORE suffering hits.  OK … it’s pointless telling someone in the wheelchair that their suffering is producing perseverance.  That’s not what they need.  You need COMFORT when you’re in the wheelchair.  You get THIS tool ready while you’re in the armchair.  And the WAY you get it ready is by TWO things:

Number 1: Look back at the things you’ve endured in the past … and remind yourself you got through it.  OK … the strongest most resilient people on the planet are NOT those who have never suffered.  They’re those who have gone through tremendous suffering … and have lived to tell the tale.  So step 1 is … recall all the suffering you’ve endured in the past … and remind yourself that God helped you get through it.  It may have felt terrible at the time.  You may even have been calling out for death at the time.  But the fact that you’re still here means God helped you get through it.  So … with God’s help … you’ll get through this next trial as well.

Number 2: Look at God’s promise.  Which promise I hear you ask?  Romans 8:28.  If you’re NOT taking notes … write that verse down.

Romans 8:28 (NIV) And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him

No matter what reason God has for your suffering … and we’re going to be looking at all the ‘why’s of suffering next week … make sure you’re here.  But no matter what the ‘why’ of your suffering might be … God WILL be using that suffering for your good … in a way only God can.  So WHILE suffering is hard … KNOWING that God WILL BE using that suffering to make us grow … make us stronger … make us more resilient … is yet another tool at our disposal to help us get through it.

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Hope (Job 19:25-27)

 

So … we’ve got God’s PRESENCE … tool number 1.  We’ve got spiritual GROWTH … tool number 2.  The third and final tool we need to endure times of hardship is seen in:

Job 19:25-27 (NIV) I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth. 26 And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; 27 I myself will see him with my own eyes—I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!

The third thing that helps Job soldier on through this long period of affliction is the yearning of his heart for 2 things:

First … My redeemer lives.  I heard a story many years ago of a visitor walking into a church.  And they asked ‘how’s Murry doing?’  And the Christian said ‘Murry?’  And the visitor says ‘Yeah … last time I was at this church they said “Murry Deemer lives”.  I was just wondering if he’s still with us’.  My redeemer lives.  Now the Hebrew word for redeemer is go’el.  And a go’el was usually a family member who would come to your rescue if you got into financial trouble … and paid your debts off.  So Job is saying God is going to pay his spiritual debts off.

The SECOND thing he’s saying is this will happen AFTER my skin is destroyed … after I’m dead.

Now what he’s longing for here … is to be vindicated before God.  OK … he doesn’t want his death to be the end of the story.  What he wants … even MORE than health, wealth and prosperity … is to be able to stand before his God justified.  He wants to hear God say ‘well done … good and faithful servant’.

And the fascinating thing about this … is Job has no business talking about it.  The reason being that Job lived around 2000 BC.  He was a contemporary of Abraham, Isaac or Jacob we believe.  The first mention of there even BEING an afterlife in the Bible doesn’t come till Ps 17:15 … which is some 1000 years later.  So this longing to be vindicated before God AFTER his death is anachronistic.  It’s out of place for Job’s time period.  No one else was talking about this till 1000 years AFTER Job lived.

Well as commentators tell us … what Job only longed for … Christians know as a reality.  Some 2000 years after Job lived … his Redeemer DID stand on the earth.  And his Redeemer’s skin was destroyed through crucifixion.  Yet 3 days later God vindicated Jesus by raising him from the dead.  What this shows us … is (i) Jesus really was who he said he was … the Son of God, and (ii) that his sacrifice for our Sin was accepted.  What this means is … the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead gives Christians something Job didn’t have … and nor does any other belief system on the planet.  And that is a certain hope for the future.

Atheists like to pride themselves in saying ‘the existence of suffering PROVES there is no God’.  Now such a claim is completely false … which we’re going to see next week I hope.  But EVEN if that WERE true … it only solves the question of God’s existence.  It doesn’t solve the problem of suffering.  OK … EVERY belief system in the world has to come up with an explanation for the problem of suffering.  Atheism is the WORST belief system to live under when suffering comes … which Dawkins himself admits.  He admits that suffering is good and necessary for natural selection.  Atheism is a heartless belief system when it comes to suffering.

But THEN there’s religious belief systems … all of which teach our only hope for the future is whether we’re a good enough person or not.  Yet in a moment of honesty … no one can claim that.

The beauty of the Christian belief system is it gives us a CERTAIN hope.  And the reason it’s certain is because of 2 things:

FIRSTLY … the resurrection of Jesus can be historically proven beyond reasonable doubt.  I’ve discussed these before … so let me just list them again:

1. The early Christians KNEW which tomb Jesus was buried in. There are no alternate stories.

2. The early Christians KNEW that tomb was empty on Easter Sunday.  No one ever produced a body.

3. The early Christians … including Jesus own siblings … claimed they saw him risen.

4. The early Christians suffered intense persecution telling the world He is risen.

The resurrection is a historically verifiable fact … that points to OUR resurrection.

The SECOND reason the Christian hope is certain is because our vindication before God has nothing to do with us or our actions.  It has to do with Jesus’ actions on the cross.

So the third and final thing we need to pack into our emergency ‘go bag’ today … is the sure and certain hope that awaits us in heaven.

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Conclusion

 

And THAT’S the ‘how’ of suffering.  Alongside comfort … that we saw last week … and wisdom that we’re looking at next … if we have (i) a knowledge of God’s presence, (ii) a knowledge that suffering produces perseverance, and (iii) a knowledge that My Redeemer lives … and I will be vindicated by him in the next life … then we are in the best position possible … to cope when suffering next comes.