Job 38 - Get Ready - God's Got Questions

Daily Bible Study for Wednesday June 22, 2016

By: Hanny Lynn Stearns

Fish – N – Loaves Ministries

"Multiplying God’s Word Around the Globe"

Chapter Reading for Today: Please read in your Bible before proceeding. Note that most translations are considered paraphrases. The Young’s Literal Translation provides a more accurate translation since he is the one who authored a concordance. Others are helpful for seeing a different perspective, but we cannot always depend on their wording. I hope this is helpful to you. If you are studying in another version, that is fine. I am studying from the KJV, but for the purpose of this study, I will keep it with the New King James Version. One final note: I will put the scripture in italics to differentiate from my own writing. I am adding red to the letters when it is Jesus talking – just like the Bible. Thank you.

Bible Gateway Verse of the Day

Psalm 121:7-8

The Lord shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in
from this time forth, and even forevermore.

Get Ready – God’s Got Questions…

Yesterday we got ready to see the end of people talking and the one true God would be stepping in to speak. So here it is. God’s got questions – big ones! But who could possibly answer them? The answer is simple – no one! Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father;

Thank You for the continued perspective of Your greatness as we look to Your infallible word and mighty power and wisdom. Father, apart from You we could understand nothing. It was You who formed us and gave us a mind and a heart, and it is You who sustains us. Father, as You to speak to me and through me today to teach us all what You want us to see in this amazing and awesome chapter. may Your purpose and Your word go forth through my mind, heart and hands unhindered and unchecked by any outside force or my flesh. Thank You in advance Sir for teaching us and growing us up in our faith in who You are and all that You have done in Jesus name. Amen.

When we look at all these questions from God it has to make anyone stop and wonder why we would ever doubt the Lord’s ability to help us and fight for us, doesn’t it? It’s like the scene in a play. Job had his part, and his friends had theirs. Next came the prophet Elihu to get Job ready for God’s grand appearance. Now the stage has been set. Only this was no stage play – this was real life and it really happened. That fact alone puts us in a state of awe and wonder, doesn’t it? Today the Lord God Almighty, great and awesome in power and wisdom is here to talk! Hallelujah – glory to God forever! It is breath taking for certain.

The chapter opens with God speaking to Job out of the whirlwind. That’s a powerful force in itself, isn’t it? When God shows up - its powerful! When I think of a whirlwind I think of a tornado. That is a strong force in nature and when it comes, everybody pays attention. So it would be with Job and his friends. The Lord starts off with the question…

Job 38:2

“Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge?

Can you just sense Job’s heart melting like butter at the sound of that question? I can’t imagine the terrible fear that must have engulfed him at that moment. Reverential fear of God is good – not scary fear. God is never about that kind of fear – that only comes from the devil. Godly fear is the beginning of wisdom. According to the Lord’s opening question it doesn’t look like He thought Job had spoken out of any true understanding, does it?

In looking at the Message version for the first three verses, I like the way it puts it into a perspective that we can grasp a little better for this particular lesson. Some versions make the meaning something it is not meant to be. Remember that most of the translations are simply paraphrases from the original Greek and Hebrew. We can rely quite well on the King James and the YLT, but others change the meaning by their wording so we have to be careful. Look at this…

Job 38:2-3 MSG

“Why do you confuse the issue? Why do you talk without knowing what you’re talking about?
Pull yourself together, Job! Up on your feet! Stand tall! I have some questions for you, and I want some straight answers.

It sounds like a father who just came home from a two week business trip and found out that his son had been into all kinds of trouble while he was gone. Now the father was on the scene and he was going to have a few questions for his young ‘whipper-snapper’ and demand that he stand up like a man and give his dad some straight answers. We can’t even begin to imagine what that must have been like for Job – or can we?

All of us who have called on Jesus to be our Savior have had to be dealt with by our Father in heaven about some misconceptions in the way we perceived things, haven’t we? We started off believing in Jesus and were all fired up. The first things we learned we ran around town spouting off to anyone who would give us an ear – even if we didn’t know the half of what we were talking about – can I get a witness?

Job had gone on and on and made assumptions about God and His ways that had been way off course. By now it had gone too far and the Lord was ready to sit him down and have a good ‘talking to’ with him and He expected some answers. Have you been there saints? When it is time to get corrected what should we do when God is speaking to us? I can tell you from experience that crying and moaning and making excuses will not cut it. When God starts to talk it is time to ‘zip it’ and do some serious listening. The One who knows everything about everything wants to talk and we, who know just about the sum total of nothing compared to Him need to prepare our hearts to listen.

I counted 39 questions in this section of 41 verses. We have to bear in mind that this is an ongoing dialog into tomorrow’s chapter and all the way through chapter 41 before Job gets his turn to speak in chapter 42 which is the end of the book. So brace yourselves saints. God is here. He is speaking and He wants to set us straight on Who He is and what He knows and does compared to our tiny intellect. Perhaps like me when you read these questions you were in awe of the sum of them.

These were hard questions that no human could ever answer. Even an atheist or scientist on their best day couldn’t begin to wrap their mind around these questions, let alone provide the Almighty with an intelligent answer. Knowledge and wisdom are His…

Romans 11:33-36

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

“For who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has become His counselor?”
“Or who has first given to Him and it shall be repaid to him?”

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.

As I thought about this and listened to what the Lord was bringing to me, I was reminded of the time period after I first surrendered my life to the Lord back in October of 2005. From that time on I got real quiet and started doing a whole lot of listening. And here is what the Bible says about that saints…

Jeremiah 33:1-3

Moreover the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still shut up in the court of the prison, saying, “Thus says the Lord who made it, the Lord who formed it to establish it (the Lord is His name): ‘Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’

I’ve discussed this some already but today it definitely bears repeating as it resembles this situation so closely. I had been going through my terrible trial for 2 ½ years at that point. From October all the way until I arrived in Florida, (and even after that of course!) I started spending a lot of alone time with God. After all, I had 50+ years of messes and sins that needed to be dealt with. Until then I had been doing life on my own terms and blowing it big time. But now, in the quiet prison of my own apartment, I was held captive to the words of the Almighty. He wanted to ask me some questions just like He had Job that day. He wanted to see if I understood how many people I had hurt along the way in my life.

Did I realize how I had misjudged others and criticized people? Did I see my own stubborn pride? Did I know my rebellion that was buried deep in the hidden chambers of my heart? Did I really think I could do anything perfectly without God? Did I really think I had the answers to life’s problems for others when my own life was such a mess? How could I provide for myself really? Who did I think I was after all? Did I think my own brilliance had helped me climb the insurance profession’s ladder to success?

Did I think I was responsible for any of the successes I had experienced in the past? Was I my brother’s keeper? Who was I to consider what another person felt or had been through in their lives? And what did I know about the details of life anyway? Did I understand the ways of righteousness though I had barely studied the Bible with any depth in my entire life? And how could I possibly determine what was to be the future for my children above that which God had already assigned for them? And what about my future? Did I think I alone was in charge of assigning its steps?

Did I understand the reason I was hurting so much on the inside? Why was I so bound up in addictive and compulsive behaviors? What was causing me to live at such an out of control pace? Why couldn’t I seem to ‘get a grip’ on anything anymore? Why did I think it was my husband’s responsibility to meet all my needs while I never really considered his? Could I have answered any of these questions in my life? And the answer is – no!

Over the months and years following October 2005, I spent countless hours alone with God in my bedroom. With the Bible and other material about Him, I was held captive in the audience of the Holy Spirit as He began to unveil many of the questions I had had in my life yet was too busy to stop and ask and listen for the answers.

As I got quiet and rested in His presence, the Lord began to unravel so many things about my past life. He showed me the ways I had sinned and hurt people. He showed me how my attitude had been wrong where He was concerned and others who were important in my life. I cried and cried as I saw the error of my thinking and ways. And yet in the midst of all that, the Lord was gentle and kind – He never gave me more than I could bear in any one day. Just like Jesus said…

John 16:12

“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.

The Lord had so many things to straighten out in me but He only gave me what I could handle at the time. And of course, I could not take more correction until I corrected the things which He had already shown me. I believe He is asking us many of these same questions today. But how many of us are willing to get in His presence and get quiet to listen? How many of us are still trying to blaze our own trails through this life, never stopping to see what God had to say about it? 

Even pastors and ministers who are called to do a fine work get themselves into trouble by not allowing the Holy Spirit to guide their every step. They get started in their calling, and then they take off running like wild bulls out of the gate at a rodeo! They are off to the races and think they know quite well how to make all the ministry decisions and handle all the people and employee issues, financial decisions, etc. And then they hit the wall – like Job did, and like me. Hitting the wall is way more painful than I ever thought it would be.

At what point do we really come to the end of ourselves and decide that following God’s lead in everything we do is the absolute only and best way to live this life and do the work He has called us to do? How long will we run like wild stallions, refusing to stop and listen? And then there are those who, when they do take the time to go before the Lord, are so loaded up with sin and heartache that they cry a pity party before Him and then proceed to sit there and beat themselves up as if they were trying to spare the rod in God’s own hand? That’s not at all interesting to the Lord.

God told Job to stand up and take it like a man – as if He was saying, “Listen up Job. You need to be a grown up and take this in. No whining or crying and no more self-pity and ‘whoa is me’ junk either boy! You think you know so much, well I have a few questions for you now. Tell me what you know about this…” And there he would have to humbly stand and listen as the One who created him began to shed light on his ignorance about pretty much everything.

David is a great example of a man who sought the Lord before he barreled into the situations he was faced with. He asked the right One the right questions and he of course received the right answers…

1 Samuel 23:1-13

Then they told David, saying, “Look, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah, and they are robbing the threshing floors.”

² Therefore David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go and attack these Philistines?”

And the Lord said to David, “Go and attack the Philistines, and save Keilah.”

³ But David’s men said to him, “Look, we are afraid here in Judah. How much more then if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?” ⁴ Then David inquired of the Lord once again.

And the Lord answered him and said, “Arise, go down to Keilah. For I will deliver the Philistines into your hand.”⁵ And David and his men went to Keilah and fought with the Philistines, struck them with a mighty blow, and took away their livestock. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.

⁶ Now it happened, when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled to David at Keilah, that he went down with an ephod in his hand.

⁷ And Saul was told that David had gone to Keilah. So Saul said, “God has delivered him into my hand, for he has shut himself in by entering a town that has gates and bars.” ⁸ Then Saul called all the people together for war, to go down to Keilah to besiege David and his men.

⁹ When David knew that Saul plotted evil against him, he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod here.”

¹⁰ Then David said, “O Lord God of Israel, Your servant has certainly heard that Saul seeks to come to Keilah to destroy the city for my sake. ¹¹ Will the men of Keilah deliver me into his hand? Will Saul come down, as Your servant has heard? O Lord God of Israel, I pray, tell Your servant.”

And the Lord said, “He will come down.”

¹² Then David said, “Will the men of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul?”

And the Lord said, “They will deliver you.”

¹³ So David and his men, about six hundred, arose and departed from Keilah and went wherever they could go. Then it was told Saul that David had escaped from Keilah; so he halted the expedition.

1 Samuel 30:1-10

Now it happened, when David and his men came to Ziklag, on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the South and Ziklag, attacked Ziklag and burned it with fire, ² and had taken captive the women and those who were there, from small to great; they did not kill anyone, but carried them away and went their way. ³ So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. ⁴ Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep. 

⁵ And David’s two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had been taken captive. ⁶ Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

⁷ Then David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, “Please bring the ephod here to me.” And Abiathar brought the ephod to David. ⁸ So David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?”

And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”

⁹ So David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and came to the Brook Besor, where those stayed who were left behind. ¹⁰ But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so weary that they could not cross the Brook Besor.

2 Samuel 2:1

It happened after this that David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up to any of the cities of Judah?” And the Lord said to him, “Go up.” David said, “Where shall I go up?” And He said, “To Hebron.”

2 Samuel 5:19

So David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will You deliver them into my hand?” And the Lord said to David, “Go up, for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into your hand.”

2 Samuel 5:23

Therefore David inquired of the Lord, and He said, “You shall not go up; circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees.

2 Samuel 21:1

Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David inquired of the Lord. And the Lord answered, “It is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house, because he killed the Gibeonites.”

Look at how many times David went to God about the battles and challenges he was faced with. And how many times had God answered him? Every single time. Did you hear that saints? Every time. What would happen if we applied this process to our own lives in every battle and challenge that we are faced with? We can tell what would happen from the examples given in God’s word – we would get the precise answers we need for the situation every single time.

Did you notice how when David had a similar situation happen he didn’t assume he should just handle it the way God had told him to previously? He went to God to inquire again how he should handle it. God told him different ways to handle similar situations. We must not ‘box God in’ by assuming He will want us to deal with situations of a similar nature in the same way each time. Davis asked the right questions before he proceeded and he got the wisdom and direction he needed to proceed.

Just last night in my dreams the enemy brought a potentially tempting situation to me. As I woke this morning fighting with it, the Lord showed me the way out. I had silently asked the Lord about it and He made the way for me before satan could get it into my mind and thinking, hoping to get me to think about it enough to want to carry it out. That’s how the devil works. He brings negative thoughts and temptations to us and then keeps reminding us of it, trying to get us to entertain the thought long enough to finally act on it. But the great thing is this. The temptation is not a sin. It is when we carry out the temptation or give in to it that it becomes sin.

All of this had happened to Job. You remember he started out praising God…

Job 1:20-22

Then Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head; and he fell to the ground and worshiped. 

And he said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there.
The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”

In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.

At that point Job was still in a worshipful frame of mind. After all, he had been a man of God for a long time and worshipping the Lord had just become natural for him. (That should be the state of every Christian – amen!) But over time the enemy played on his mind again and again as the pain intensified and continued, and slowly, a little at a time Job gave his thoughts over to the temptations to accuse God. As he did this, he stepped out of the great place he had been into the realm of sin. Instead of asking God for help and waiting quietly to hear God’s directions for this battle, he had caved in to satan’s ploys and landed himself in a long drawn out trial that could have long since been over.

Even in my own trial I can look back and see how the Lord was speaking to me not only in my heart but all around me as if to say, “Hanny, if you will just do this right now I can get you out of this mess and bring you into the blessings I have for you – just listen to me and do it, come on – I will help you!” But I was still walking in a lot of fear at that time. I had to learn at my own pace. Now I can see how I could have been relieved so much sooner. And of course I can look back now over the past 10 ½ years and see how much easier still things would have been if I had sought the Lord before saying or doing something and then waited patiently for His answer. He promises to help us all over the place in His word. He promises to speak to us.

Isaiah 41:13

For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’

He wants to answer our questions. Sure, sometimes the answers will take time to come and still others won’t come while we live in this body and life, but He is faithful. He will help us when we seek Him. He has all the answers we could ever need. But how often do we stop to listen to Him so He can ask us a thing or two? How many times do we really stop and say, “Father, what do You want to say to me today? How should I handle this or that today?” And then get quiet and really listen. When we look at all the questions God was asking Job, one thing we can see for certain – we really know very little about much of anything. As we get older and hopefully wiser we begin to realize how little we really do know and how much we really must depend on our Creator.

 Questions:

What did God say about Job’s words?

How many questions did God ask Job? How many could he or anyone for that matter answer?

When was the last time you got quiet with God to seek Him out for the answers to your questions?

When was the last time you gave Him audience so He could ask you some questions?

Are you willing to seek the Lord like David did in everything you have to deal with? Explain your answer. 

Psalm 27:4

 One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek:

that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,

to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple.                        

There are three main points to consider from today’s study…

When God has questions, we need to be listening

We need to act like a ‘grown up’ when God wants to confront us with something

If we inquire of the Lord we will always have the right solutions to life’s challenge

Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for being so patient with me as I have come along the path of my life. Sir You know all things and all the wisdom and understanding there is can only be found in You. Forgive me for the many times I have not stopped to listen to You or sought You on how to handle my circumstances. Help me to know when You are trying to speak and show me the way I can come aside to listen before proceeding. Thank You in advance for Your help Lord in Jesus name. Amen!

What has God been trying to ask you lately?

And God Said… You fill in the blanks.

1 Corinthians 8:2

And if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know.