"Those Jews" our ancestors of faith, by Harley Bye followed by drama moment with Debbie Baxter

Topic : My Favourite Old Testament Story! Why?
Because the Book of Job is fully human!

I-

1. He knew the despair and shame of losing everything, from his home to sons and daughters.
2. He experienced the sting of criticism from  his wife and his friends
3. His faith in God put to the test
4. He lost his mental health which brought him to the edge of suicide.

II-
 What are your Favourite Stories?

1. Moses and Pharoah's
2. Noah and the arch
3. Daniel in the Lion's den
4. Ruth and Boaz
5. Queen Esther
6. David and Goliath
7. Samson and Delilah

III-
 Stories passed from generation to generation and written 100's years later. That's oral Tradition, even the New Testament, and prone to error of memory and exagerations of human imagination.


IV-
 One of my choice stories is the Book of Job.
We read The Book of Job, to explore the most difficult questions of life to explore the most difficult questions of life...questions most people ask at some time or other :

• Why is there evil in the world?
• Why is there pain, suffering and heart ache?
• Why do the righteous suffer?
• How can a loving God be defended in the pain of suffering, especially the innocent?

The theme is the question of suffering of the innocent = disease, ill health, pain, human conflict, and natural disasters ( the storm, the tsunami, the drought, the flood.)
And after 41 chapters,  the writer wordly illustrated the inadequacy of human logic to explain the problem. Then as now no firm reply, we can only ascribe to mystery. 


Come with me for a very quick review to this Old Testament story we know very well.


The Story Of Job


The setting is Uz, which is now Syria. Job is blameless and upright, as good a person as you will find anywhere.
He was blessed by children = 7 sons and 3 girls. And he was rich in goods as well as character:

• 7,000 sheep, 
• 3,000 camels, 
• 500 cattle, 
• 500 dunkies 
• and all the servants he needed. 

He was the wealthiest man in the Middle East ( and he never knew he was sitting on a vast reserve of oil)

Imagine
The Debate in Heaven : angels doing a conference with God, reporting on their divers activities. Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, and Lucifer. 
God is also reporting and brags on his servant , Job. 

"Yeah" says Lucifer, that's because you protect him and favour him with so much wealth and love.Take it away and you'll find he'll curse you to your face". 

God replies :  "I'll accept your challenge. But spare his life. We'll see what happens. "Testing his soul, not destroying him."

From http://phoenixarizona.hubpages.com/hub/lucifer-and-gods-wrath

In this story, Job looses everything. 

• his livestock,
  
• his wife's confidence, 
• his family, 
  
• even his health.
  

He is pictured covered with small pox and sitting on ashes when the lime burns the bacteria but controls the disease. .

From : http://freddywinter.blogspot.ca/2012/04/integrity-of-job.html

Job' Testimoney in the very pit of despair : " Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart.
The Lord gave and The Lord has taken away; 
May the name of the Lord be praised!


The worst is yet to come!


But the biggest test is yet to come: wife and three of his closest friends come for a visit and try to help the wrong way.

• First was his wife. Her faith in God and love for Job dissipated with the wealth. " Curse God and die", she advised. When his wife through in the towel, Job was really in the pits.  " He prayed and cursed the day he was born. That is suicidal!

• Friend #1, Eliphaz : "you have been too prood for your good. God is teaching you a lesson ! Job replies.. 

From http://www.a-w-i-p.com/index.php/spiritual-matters/2010/01/17/the-book-of-job

• Friend # 2 Bildad, "Your chidren have sinned, and you did not correct them. " Spare the rod and spoil the child. They have been fornicating, smoking pot, drinking alcohol.
• Friend # 3 Zophar, "Job you've got secret sins and the guilt is coming out in disease. You've got to see a psychiatrist and unload your subconscience".. 

For 30 chapters, Job and his friends debate. Finally, Job says " it's time we had a prayer meeting( 42:1-10). Brothers ad sisters gave $ for his recovery.



I like the way Job recovered. Job clls his friends and wife to a prayer conference  (42:1-10) The marines slogan " When the going gets tough, the tough gets going!"From "Hour of Power " with Robert Schuller, Guest Speaker Willie Jolley "A Set-Back is a Set-Up for a Comeback".


They make a recovery plan!


(42 Then Job replied to the Lord:
2 “I know that you can do all things;
    no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
3 You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’
    Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
    things too wonderful for me to know.
4 “You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak;
    I will question you,
    and you shall answer me.’
5 My ears had heard of you
    but now my eyes have seen you.
6 Therefore I despise myself
    and repent in dust and ashes.”
Epilogue7 After the Lord had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has. 8 So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has.” 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite did what the Lord told them; and theLord accepted Job’s prayer.

10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.)


The story of Job ends on a happy note. His friends went to their home. And Job became properous again. Wealth was once again his. "Can't keep a good man down"


-----------------------
God blessed Job more than at first.

• 14,000 sheep,
• 6,000 camels
• 1,000 cattle
• 1,000 dunkies.
• 7 sons
• 3 girls and the girls were more beautiful than ever.

----------------------
The end
Job grew old and died. But his will was ectraordinary.


Girls and boys got equal shares.
Every person got 10%  therefore the boys and the girls got equal number of sheep, camels, cows,donkeys.


What the 3 girls did with all those camels, sheeps, and dunkeys---I'll leave it to your imagination!


Conclusion = Why Job is my favourite story.


 1. He too was afflicted by disease

• asthma, all my life
• common colds
• mumps, chicken pox, ringworm
• physical exhaustion " burn out"

2.  The sting of criticism = discouraged by friends


3 My faith has wavered at time. Is there a God who cares. What is going on?
Key to wavering faith 

1. lack of alternative explanation
   
2. the power that has been with us from our earliest days.

4 One superior benefit to Job = my friends are all supportive, especially our Rockburn neighbours, and our church fellowship.
"On behalf of Carol and myself, we could never have been more blessed."

From http://bibliolore.org/

Drama Moment with Debbie Baxter