"What strength do I have, that I should still hope?”
Job 6:11-13
July 29, 2007
Don’t you wonder what it is that some people have that can keep them
going in the midst of adversity? Where do they get the strength? How do
they hang on to their faith?
Perhaps you've heard the story of Job? It seems that there was this man
- Job. A very faithful… very spiritual… very morally good man. By his
own admission not sinless… but he sure was a nice kind of guy. Now
Job did all of the right kinds of things that his religion required of him: he
said his prayers throughout the day… fasted at the appropriate times…
sacrificed a burnt offering when he should and even lifted up offerings for
his children - just in case their mess-ups would spill over on to him… you
know how kids are.
Job was just the kind of guy to look up to in the area of religion. In fact,
as the story goes, God was pretty darn proud of Job. "One day the
angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also
came with them. The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?"
Satan answered the Lord, "From roaming through the earth and going
back and forth in it." (The implication being that Satan was on the prowl
for those he could persuade to turn from God’s presence.)
Then the Lord said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job?
There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man
who fears God and shuns evil."
"Well, of course he does," replied Satan, "It is easy when you make
everything go right for him. You have blessed the work of his hands, so
that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. I dare you to
stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and then see how he
reacts."
So God said, "Alright, everything he has is in your hands, but you can't
touch Job."
And so it began. Satan had a heyday making Job’s life rotten. In fact,
Job lost everything.
Perhaps you can relate to Job at this point. Perhaps there has been a
moment in your life when it has felt as if everything has been taken away
from you and it feels like God is engaged in some great cosmic game
with Satan aimed at making your life miserable.
Job lost everything but he didn’t blame God… God thought that was
pretty good.
The next time Satan came around God again said, “What do you think
about my man Job? He still maintains his integrity, even though you
ticked me off and caused me to ruin him for no reason.”
Satan responded, “Of course he has kept his integrity. You haven’t let
me mess with his body.”
You know, Satan had a point. Have you noticed how important our
bodies are to us? Read the ads. A little tuck here, a little suction there,
an injection… some hair dye… no carbs… and viola we have an
airbrushed body that will cheat the aging process. Satan was right. “Of
course Job has kept his integrity. You haven’t let me mess with his body.”
So God said, “Alright, you just can’t kill him.”
It got so bad, and Job looked so bad, that three of his friends decided to
be there with him in his pain. So… they all tore their clothes and
sprinkled dust on their heads and sat around in ashes. Mourning the fact
that Job was for all purposes dead. They sat there for seven days and
nights with no one saying a word. On the morning of the eighth day, Job
comes as close as he will ever come to cursing God by cursing the day
he was born and raising the question we all may have raised or might
raise some day: "Why is this happening?"
Now, you need to understand some of my theology at this point. I think
this is a story that points us to a higher truth, which means you shouldn’t
take it literally. I don’t believe God sits around in some competition with
Satan trying to figure out ways to make our lives tough… We do a pretty
good job ourselves of making our lives tough without God or Satan’s
help, thank you very much.
The reality is, however, there are life moments that cause us to want to
hang it all up... to ask the question “Why?” Moments when it feels as if
someone is squashing us with their thumb. There are those struggles
with our self-esteem… frustrations at work… unwanted battles with our
children… breakdowns in our relationships… unexpected financial
burdens… health issues… time crunches that never seem to ease up...
There have been those times... times that make us feel an awful lot like a
Job... when each of us has lamented, with different intensities, “What
strength do I have, that I should still hope?”
Let me share with you some of the responses to those dark moments
that the Bible has. Let me share with you where you can read it for
yourselves and, let me share with you who it is that some have found the
strength to continue to hope. You might want to write these passages of
scripture down to refer back too the next time it feels as if there is some
cosmic competition to see how much grief you can handle.
The author of Exodus 15 writes: “The LORD is my strength and my song;
he has become my salvation... In your unfailing love you will lead the
people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your
holy dwelling.”
In Psalm 18, one response suggests that... “It is God who arms me with
strength and makes my way perfect.”
Isaiah writes: “Those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.”
The prophet Habakkuk sings out in prayer: “The Sovereign LORD is my
strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go
on the heights”
Paul writes to the church at Phillipi: “I can do everything through him who
gives me strength.” Paul sends Timothy a note to let him know “that his
strength comes from the Lord.”
God fills us with the strength to survive so that we can hope. I don’t know
how to say it any simpler, any plainer, or any stronger. GOD FILLS US
WITH THE STRENGTH TO SURVIVE SO THAT WE CAN HOPE.
Not bad. Not bad at all. But do you want to hear the really good news this
morning?
Not only does God fill us with the strength to survive so that we can hope
- through the presence of Jesus Christ... in the power of the Holy
Spirit…God also fills us with the strength to do more than just hope.
That’s right. Not only does God give us the strength to hope, we can be
restored beyond hope. We are moved beyond hope. Our perceived
weaknesses become God’s strength. Our misgivings become God’s
givings. So that we can say, as does Paul, the author of Phillipians, “I
can do everything through Christ Jesus who gives me strength.”
I’ve got a story for you: An apprentice for the great chemist Michael
Faraday accidentally knocked an expensive, ornate silver cup into a
solution of acid. It was promptly dissolved, eaten by the acid. The
apprentice was rather upset thinking that the silver was gone forever and
his job in jeopardy. It seemed that which had worth had suddenly
becoming worthless. Faraday came into the room; put a chemical into
the jar and soon all the silver had precipitated to the bottom. The
shapeless mass was lifted out, sent to a silversmith, and the cup
restored to its original shape.
Here is the larger truth that I think this story points to: If Faraday could
restore a cup to its original design because of his knowledge of
science, imagine how you can be restored because you have
knowledge of God! Restoration beyond the original… beyond hope… It
is God who gives us the strength.
God is in the process of restoring each of us. We see it in the fact that
more than two thousand years ago Jesus came to restore us to the
strength in which God created us. Jesus is also here today to let us
know how much God loves and values us. We see it in the presence of
the Holy Spirit who is here to remind us of the strength we really have to
hope and to be transformed. To affirm that we are wonderfully made. To
help us recognize that God created us with both strength and with gifts.
As you acknowledge those strengths and gifts and build upon them... as
you affirm the strengths and gifts in others... as you see yourself through
the eyes of Jesus... you will discover the joy that God originally intended
for each of us. You will find the strength to do more than hope. You will
find the strength to live. That’s good news. AMEN
Job 6:11-13
July 29, 2007
Don’t you wonder what it is that some people have that can keep them
going in the midst of adversity? Where do they get the strength? How do
they hang on to their faith?
Perhaps you've heard the story of Job? It seems that there was this man
- Job. A very faithful… very spiritual… very morally good man. By his
own admission not sinless… but he sure was a nice kind of guy. Now
Job did all of the right kinds of things that his religion required of him: he
said his prayers throughout the day… fasted at the appropriate times…
sacrificed a burnt offering when he should and even lifted up offerings for
his children - just in case their mess-ups would spill over on to him… you
know how kids are.
Job was just the kind of guy to look up to in the area of religion. In fact,
as the story goes, God was pretty darn proud of Job. "One day the
angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also
came with them. The Lord said to Satan, "Where have you come from?"
Satan answered the Lord, "From roaming through the earth and going
back and forth in it." (The implication being that Satan was on the prowl
for those he could persuade to turn from God’s presence.)
Then the Lord said to Satan, "Have you considered my servant Job?
There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man
who fears God and shuns evil."
"Well, of course he does," replied Satan, "It is easy when you make
everything go right for him. You have blessed the work of his hands, so
that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. I dare you to
stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and then see how he
reacts."
So God said, "Alright, everything he has is in your hands, but you can't
touch Job."
And so it began. Satan had a heyday making Job’s life rotten. In fact,
Job lost everything.
Perhaps you can relate to Job at this point. Perhaps there has been a
moment in your life when it has felt as if everything has been taken away
from you and it feels like God is engaged in some great cosmic game
with Satan aimed at making your life miserable.
Job lost everything but he didn’t blame God… God thought that was
pretty good.
The next time Satan came around God again said, “What do you think
about my man Job? He still maintains his integrity, even though you
ticked me off and caused me to ruin him for no reason.”
Satan responded, “Of course he has kept his integrity. You haven’t let
me mess with his body.”
You know, Satan had a point. Have you noticed how important our
bodies are to us? Read the ads. A little tuck here, a little suction there,
an injection… some hair dye… no carbs… and viola we have an
airbrushed body that will cheat the aging process. Satan was right. “Of
course Job has kept his integrity. You haven’t let me mess with his body.”
So God said, “Alright, you just can’t kill him.”
It got so bad, and Job looked so bad, that three of his friends decided to
be there with him in his pain. So… they all tore their clothes and
sprinkled dust on their heads and sat around in ashes. Mourning the fact
that Job was for all purposes dead. They sat there for seven days and
nights with no one saying a word. On the morning of the eighth day, Job
comes as close as he will ever come to cursing God by cursing the day
he was born and raising the question we all may have raised or might
raise some day: "Why is this happening?"
Now, you need to understand some of my theology at this point. I think
this is a story that points us to a higher truth, which means you shouldn’t
take it literally. I don’t believe God sits around in some competition with
Satan trying to figure out ways to make our lives tough… We do a pretty
good job ourselves of making our lives tough without God or Satan’s
help, thank you very much.
The reality is, however, there are life moments that cause us to want to
hang it all up... to ask the question “Why?” Moments when it feels as if
someone is squashing us with their thumb. There are those struggles
with our self-esteem… frustrations at work… unwanted battles with our
children… breakdowns in our relationships… unexpected financial
burdens… health issues… time crunches that never seem to ease up...
There have been those times... times that make us feel an awful lot like a
Job... when each of us has lamented, with different intensities, “What
strength do I have, that I should still hope?”
Let me share with you some of the responses to those dark moments
that the Bible has. Let me share with you where you can read it for
yourselves and, let me share with you who it is that some have found the
strength to continue to hope. You might want to write these passages of
scripture down to refer back too the next time it feels as if there is some
cosmic competition to see how much grief you can handle.
The author of Exodus 15 writes: “The LORD is my strength and my song;
he has become my salvation... In your unfailing love you will lead the
people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your
holy dwelling.”
In Psalm 18, one response suggests that... “It is God who arms me with
strength and makes my way perfect.”
Isaiah writes: “Those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.”
The prophet Habakkuk sings out in prayer: “The Sovereign LORD is my
strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go
on the heights”
Paul writes to the church at Phillipi: “I can do everything through him who
gives me strength.” Paul sends Timothy a note to let him know “that his
strength comes from the Lord.”
God fills us with the strength to survive so that we can hope. I don’t know
how to say it any simpler, any plainer, or any stronger. GOD FILLS US
WITH THE STRENGTH TO SURVIVE SO THAT WE CAN HOPE.
Not bad. Not bad at all. But do you want to hear the really good news this
morning?
Not only does God fill us with the strength to survive so that we can hope
- through the presence of Jesus Christ... in the power of the Holy
Spirit…God also fills us with the strength to do more than just hope.
That’s right. Not only does God give us the strength to hope, we can be
restored beyond hope. We are moved beyond hope. Our perceived
weaknesses become God’s strength. Our misgivings become God’s
givings. So that we can say, as does Paul, the author of Phillipians, “I
can do everything through Christ Jesus who gives me strength.”
I’ve got a story for you: An apprentice for the great chemist Michael
Faraday accidentally knocked an expensive, ornate silver cup into a
solution of acid. It was promptly dissolved, eaten by the acid. The
apprentice was rather upset thinking that the silver was gone forever and
his job in jeopardy. It seemed that which had worth had suddenly
becoming worthless. Faraday came into the room; put a chemical into
the jar and soon all the silver had precipitated to the bottom. The
shapeless mass was lifted out, sent to a silversmith, and the cup
restored to its original shape.
Here is the larger truth that I think this story points to: If Faraday could
restore a cup to its original design because of his knowledge of
science, imagine how you can be restored because you have
knowledge of God! Restoration beyond the original… beyond hope… It
is God who gives us the strength.
God is in the process of restoring each of us. We see it in the fact that
more than two thousand years ago Jesus came to restore us to the
strength in which God created us. Jesus is also here today to let us
know how much God loves and values us. We see it in the presence of
the Holy Spirit who is here to remind us of the strength we really have to
hope and to be transformed. To affirm that we are wonderfully made. To
help us recognize that God created us with both strength and with gifts.
As you acknowledge those strengths and gifts and build upon them... as
you affirm the strengths and gifts in others... as you see yourself through
the eyes of Jesus... you will discover the joy that God originally intended
for each of us. You will find the strength to do more than hope. You will
find the strength to live. That’s good news. AMEN
| What Strength? |
DeWitt United Methodist Church
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