KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Sunday, June 05, 2016
Chapters: Job 35-37
Message: Speaking On God’s Behalf
Hello My Friend,
Christians, we must realize the things we do, say, and believe all represent God. While God certainly does not need us to speak on His behalf, we, in fact do by how we live our lives after we are saved. Naturally, if we say we are following Christ and live a life that is far from it our actions are going to prove who we really follow, our flesh. I have to say though, our actions do not always keep us from evil, bad things do happen for no reason all the time. But we have to look beyond our future on this, our eternal future that is, the good we do today will be with us for eternity. “For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.” – I Peter 2:15,16.
“put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:” Now, that is an understatement. Someone made a comment on one of my blogs basically saying that God is a psychopath who is worse than the devil because He created him and evil too. I normally just delete comments like that, but decided to answer this one, nicely. I am sure it will cause him to say something worse because people who have hardened their hearts to God do not like it when they feel convicted by His Word. When Elihu confronted Job, he too saw him as a hypocrite, he felt that every word he spoke was vain and ignorant. “Thinkest thou this to be right, that thou saidst, My righteousness is more than God’s? For thou saidst, What advantage will it be unto thee? and, What profit shall I have, if I be cleansed from my sin? I will answer thee, and thy companions with thee. Surely God will not hear vanity, neither will the Almighty regard it. Although thou sayest thou shalt not see him, yet judgment is before him; therefore trust thou in him. But now, because it is not so, he hath visited in his anger; yet he knoweth it not in great extremity: Therefore doth Job open his mouth in vain; he multiplieth words without knowledge.” – Job 35:2-4,14-16.
“My righteousness is more than God’s?” Job never said that, what he had been trying to tell them all along that whatever he was going through was not because of any wrong that he did, and God knew it too. It is a great advantage that we live a clean life and confess our sins, but God is more than that. Yes, He places judgment on those who are truly evil, and He places judgment on those who are lukewarm (those who are saved and only come to Him when they get themselves in trouble), but He is also places His love, mercy, and grace on all who come to Him. Nothing we do for God is vain unless we never believed to begin with. “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” – I Corinthians 15:51,52,58.
Death, disease, famine, drought, pain, suffering, yes, these are all things that God makes too, He even calls them evil, but it all comes with the territory. Remember, when God told Adam and Eve not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil? They disobeyed that one command and witnessed the evil that comes from the result of sin. Think about how disease starts to begin with, people are filthy, and while being filthy is not a sin, being filthy does lead to lots of things, including bugs that carry diseases, rashes, and sickness that can kill us. Sometimes this kind of evil just happens of no wrong doing at all. Elihu continues his speech, convinced that God has prolonged the affliction because he knew God, but would not humble himself before Him and admit his sin.
“Suffer me a little, and I will shew thee that I have yet to speak on God’s behalf. I will fetch my knowledge from afar, and will ascribe righteousness to my Maker. For truly my words shall not be false: he that is perfect in knowledge is with thee. Behold, God is mighty, and despiseth not any: he is mighty in strength and wisdom. He preserveth not the life of the wicked: but giveth right to the poor. Take heed, regard not iniquity: for this hast thou chosen rather than affliction. Behold, God exalteth by his power: who teacheth like him? Who hath enjoined him his way? or who can say, Thou hast wrought iniquity? Remember that thou magnify his work, which men behold.” – Job 36:3-6,21-24.
“who teacheth like him?” It takes time to grow in God’s Word, and since we all grow at different levels it is not right to assume people are not living right by the affliction in their lives. There is always more to know about God, but the devil will twist the Scriptures mislead many. One more reason why we must study His Word for ourselves because we do speak on God’s behalf with every word we say about Him. “Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers. Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.” – II Timothy 2:14-16.
Elihu continues speaking, this time he actually praises God, calling attention to the weather, forces that only He can control. “God thundereth marvellously with his voice; great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend. For he saith to the snow, Be thou on the earth; likewise to the small rain, and to the great rain of his strength. He sealeth up the hand of every man; that all men may know his work. Then the beasts go into dens, and remain in their places. Out of the south cometh the whirlwind: and cold out of the north. By the breath of God frost is given: and the breadth of the waters is straitened. Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out: he is excellent in power, and in judgment, and in plenty of justice: he will not afflict. Men do therefore fear him: he respecteth not any that are wise of heart.” – Job 37:5-10,23,24.
“he is excellent in power,” We talk about changes of the weather all the time, there are heated debates over things like climate change and global warming, but how seldom do we think and speak of these things with regard to God, who is the Creator of them all! We must notice the glory of God, not only in thunder and lightning, but in the more common changes of the weather, like warm winters. God directs all the forces of the weather, all you have to do is look at the amazing structure and force of a tornado or hurricane and see the amazing power of God. He often uses storms to bring us and others to Him. “O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires. And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones. And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children.” – Isaiah 54:11-13.
Jesus Christ Revealed: Today, Jesus is revealed through God’s voice in the weather. In the midst of every storm, Jesus is the only one who can calm it. “And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!” – Matthew 8:26,27.
Today’s Prayer: God, You want us to live a life that is abundant and prosperous, but we often lose sight of that when we are faced with affliction. We cannot always control the situations You have handed us, but we can control how we handle them by getting in Your Word and living it. Lord, lead us and guide us, give us Your power to endure affliction, and give us the wisdom we need to know how to handle it. Keep us in Your Word so that we can know how to handle those who falsely condemn us and give us the strength to stand by, follow Your Word, and speak on Your behalf by our words and deeds. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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