Bible Teaching

Calvary Temple Teaching Library

Proven By Fire Pt.4

Hallelujah. Let's turn to the book of James and take a little bit of time to continue our study on the establishing of patience in our life. Every one of us, Hebrews 10 says, has need of it, and it's in the process in so many areas of our lives.

One thing, just to share with you real quickly as the announcement came forth, we're in no way wanting to cut back on our time of fellowship and all of that family time that we have. You might want to meet in the foyer up here or in the gymnasium or wherever else. We know that when all the children gather and they've been in service, we know how they get pumped during some of those things, so we're wanting to continue to have that fellowship. Over the years we've probably de-emphasized to a fault many of the visible things. We de-emphasize, of course, holy days because we know that every day is the same in the Lord, and we've de-emphasized a lot of the aspects of traditional "churchianity." But at the same time, in that de-emphasis so that we don't get caught in religion, we have to realize that there are those things that are set apart, sanctified for God, and this is one of them. It's something that needs to be taught to your children during the day, and it's something the teachers need to reemphasis when a child comes down, they're headed from the school down to the offices down here, they don't need to be running and chasing through this part of the building. They don't need to be dribbling balls through here. That's not what the house of God's about. My house is to be a house of what? Prayer. That's why we build a gymnasium. So it's very important to allow your children to see that and have that respect and that honor, and I think it will bring us some real dividends.

Let's turn to James chapter 1. As we're talking again about this growth process in our lives through the trials of life, and we've been seeing that it's the crucible of trials and the testings that are revealing to us the conditions of our hearts. We understand that these experiences in our life that are of the magnitude to become life-transforming hurt; there's no way around it. So when James talks about counting it all joy, it's not saying enjoy it. It's saying rejoice in the midst of it. Trials, tests, these afflictions hurt. They're grievous for the moment, the Scripture says, but it works in us the peaceable fruit of righteousness. So we need to see that distinction so that when these trials and tribulations come, you don't say what's wrong with me? Man, I just don't seem to be enjoying this! You're not to enjoy it, but you're to rejoice in the hope of what's it working in you, amen? To be able to boast in the goodness of God that He's found you worthy to experience these trials. So James says it this way, verse 2 of the 1st chapter. "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience." The trying of your faith works patience.

In review, we saw Wednesday night, remember we said the thing to rejoice in is this: that if there's trials in your life, then you can rejoice in that fact that you have faith because what's being tried? Your faith—not your character—your faith. The trying of your faith will establish some character in you, and the character that's in you will be combined with the amount of faith that's in you and determine whether or not you learn, whether or not you stand. So it's important for us to see everything that's taking place at this particular time in our lives. But our faith is being tried so we can rejoice that we've been counted worthy as one that has faith. We saw Wednesday night that we're to not get all fearful in the midst of this that it's going to destroy us or our loved ones, whether it's a spouse or a child or whoever it is because the Scripture speaks and makes it very clear that we will not be tempted past that that we're able, say it with me, to stand. Thank God. The trials won't kill you; they'll make you better. They'll purify you. It's a learning process and, of course, in the midst of it we'll think we're going to die. There's many times when in the midst of some of these life-transforming trials we'll wish we were dead. But at the same time, we have to understand that we're not going to be tempted past that that we're able to stand. When I say die, I'm not talking physically; I'm talking spiritually. It's not going to be an incident that will remove you from God. They will always conform you more to his image.

So let patience, the Scripture says in verse 4, then have it's final work or it's perfect work, complete work, that you may be made perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Now the process is that God is wanting us to grow up. I'm going to talk a little bit about maturing this morning, and that's what you're going to see is one of the greatest marks of a mature believer and that's patience. It's not calling fire out of heaven; it's not raising the dead. You're going to find out that there are certain marks of a mature believer. So we're going to make a little bit of judgment upon our own lives this morning. How mature am I? How many of you realize that one of the greatest signs of adolescence or childishness is what? Impatience. Got to have it now. Not able to allow the character aspects that are lacking in our lives, such as sobriety and many of these others, to begin to manifest because everything has to be now.

Now some of us have a greater problem with that than others, and it may not be a lack of patience. It may just be prominence of selfishness which is there because of a lack of patience in our lives. I'm one of those people that really battles with that. If I get headed in some direction, I want it done yesterday. It's something that has always been a battle in my life. The Lord, over the last 20 years, has really helped me, believe it or not, and it's an amazing thing. I know how much more patient I am now than I used to be, and it really is scary how much more I need. So as we're looking at these things, we're seeing that patience is this quality that's working in us, and it's one of the things that really does reveal the maturity in our lives. Let me show you just a couple of quick statements on that, then we'll go back to the actual working of this in our lives. Turn over to II Corinthians for just a moment. In II Corinthians chapter 6, the apostle is speaking toward this particular aspect of God's working in their lives and some of the things that reveal the office that God has placed them in, II Corinthians 6. Paul's talking about the offering up of lives and substance into ministry and the commitment to these aspects. He says in verse 4, "But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, [How? What's it say in the next phase?] in much patience, [then he clarifies] in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings; [You getting tired yet?] By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left."

Now, all of these things that Paul said were seen in their lives, he said this is the proof of our ministry. This is the proof that we come to you as the servants of God. So he says this phrase as he opens up this particular aspect of the word to us; he says we were approved, we were approved ministers in much patience. That's interesting. Well, the Scripture says to be followers of those who through faith—and what—patience are inheriting the promises of God. So people are watching lives, and they're saying okay, who is it among us that has their act together? Who is it that's consistent? Because remember, when we talk about patience, we're not just talking about endurance, we're talking about consistency. There's one of the attributes of God that parallels this that I want to speak towards some this morning as we go on, and that's the aspect of immutability. The reason that it's so important in our lives, and not only how we relate to one another, but primarily in how we train our children. If you're going to be a godly parent, you're going to have to have patience, amen? You say dear Lord, the patience of Job. Amen. How do you think your parents felt? Because most of your kids are better than you were. So it's very important to understand what's required in our lives and that if our children are going to be raised up properly, the one thing they're going to have to have is a leader that's consistent, consistent, consistent, consistent. Not do the homework tonight, not tomorrow. Get up this morning, not tomorrow morning. All based upon your own selfishness and whims and perception and whatever's easiest on you. There needs to be a maturing to the place where there will be a consistency in the lives of leadership. So it's very important to realize that's what trials are all about. Much of your children's behavior is taking place, negative behavior, not because of a lack of character in them but because of a lack of character in you. I'm not excusing them, but I'm saying that is one of the things that you're experiencing to reveal what's in your heart. If all you're seeing is what's in their heart and not what's in your heart, then the trials haven't affected you the way God wants them to, and there's not the maturation process. As ministers of God these men have to go through it first. Paul was proven so that he could stand and bring about admonition to those who were going to follow in the faith, and he was consistent.

The 12th chapter of this same epistle, look over there for just a second, where Paul speaks some more about this. He speaks quite a bit on this subject, and it was because he had a lot of experience. Paul was an object of satanic assault. Satan thought he was destroying him, and all he was doing was refining him and bringing hope into the hearts of those who were going to follow. He hasn't figured that out yet, as intelligent as he is. The Scripture says if he'd really been able to grasp this principle, he wouldn't have crucified the Lord of Glory. II Corinthians, chapter 12, verse 12, Paul's speaking toward his apostolic role and he says, "Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds." They were demonstrated among you how? In all patience. Look what leads this list—in all patience and then what's next? Signs and wonders and mighty deeds. How many people today would you think reverse those in their thinking? The signs of an apostle in signs and wonders and mighty deeds. Look what that individual's doing? Praying for the sick and seeing them recover, raising the dead, all of those things. I want you to understand something. Those are signs, and it's important that those who are walking in the spiritual anointing of God experience that in their lives, but signs and wonders don't require any character. Patience does. Patience is what allows you to administer all of these other gifts properly—not for your own glory, not for somebody else's benefit in a respect of persons demonstration or whatever else it might be. The maturity is what allows you to flow in the anointing of God with intelligence, with character. Because of that, people have to go through the crucible of purification, the refining in our lives which come through the trials.

Most of us will never have the trials of the severity that Paul did because none of us have been called to the scope of responsibility that this man was in. I read his life, and I'm thankful that I don't have to go through those things that he went through. But it was necessary for him because of the scope of what God purposed to accomplish in him in the kingdom. Paul was able then to be prepared for this example that you and I could follow as we follow him who follows Christ. Following him who through faith and patience inherits the promises of God.

Look over at I Timothy 6 for just a second, and Paul's speaking again toward this aspect in I Timothy 6 as he's admonishing Timothy. This 6th chapter of I Timothy has so many important truths in such a small space. He deals with the perversions of the lust of the flesh and talks about those who were seeking preeminence as teachers in the midst of the people—their just wanting a reputation, a title, their wanting the prestige that goes along with the ministry gifts in the body of Christ. He talks about the impurity of their hearts. He talks about the perverseness of the teaching that gain is godliness, and that you're to withdraw yourself from this immature behavior. He talks about, verse 6, that godliness with content is the greatest treasure that we can have. He talks about the need in verse 8 of contentment in our lives: "having food and raiment let us be therewith content." He talks about the lack of contentment bringing destruction to us or thinking that we have to acquire more things, and that if we could have a little more money or we could have a little more prestige or whatever it is, that we would then be satisfied. And he said it will just fill you with hurtful lusts and destroy you in perdition. Don't you understand that the love of money is the root of evil—all evils that have been spoken of? Then he says, "But thou, O man of God, [that's the false teachers, but thou, o man of God] flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses." So he makes a distinction for Timothy here, and he says as a man of God I want you to flee all of that immature behavior, all of that self-indulgence, and follow after righteousness, right standing with God, godliness, that manifestation—godliness is that God-likeness which is the fruit of righteousness being affected in our lives. Faith, without which it's impossible to please the Lord. Love, by which faith properly operates, for faith worketh by love and patience with meekness. What a mouthful. This meek spirit that's so important to manifest in the midst of these trials. Because he's talking about fighting the good fight of faith.

Now what's being tried? The trying of your what? Faith. What are trials for? It's trying our what? Faith. The good fight of faith. What we're doing is we're allowing the word of God to build this trust, reliance, assurance—that's what faith is: trust, reliance, assurance—in the promises of God so that in all of these afflictions we can be looking not to relieve ourselves but to be able to see what's lacking in our lives, and God to finish it so that He could be glorified. So here we are in the midst of a trial. James says when you come into a trial like this, pray and ask God. Seek wisdom. Why am I here? What am I supposed to learn? How is God going to be glorified through this? Is that one of the first things that you do when you're in a trial, or do you just start whining? I don't understand, God, why is this happening to me, instead of counting it all joy? Lord, I don't understand, but I just thank you that you're working in my life, Lord, and that you're revealing this stuff. I didn't know that was in me, Lord. I thought I had that taken care of. God begins to reveal our hearts to us in the midst of these trials and tribulations, and it's not a pretty sight. So we get to rejoice that once again God's purifying our hearts and conforming us into his image and that we're receiving the chastisement, why? Because we're sons. Because we're sons. It's very important for us to realize that this is the underlying motive always for why these things are being experienced in our lives.

Turn over the II Peter for just a second. Let me show you another aspect of this. II Peter. We all know the maturing process that Peter went through. Peter, of course, not the great example of meekness that we just read about. Peter, as we read his life, a man that many of us can identify with, was not known for his patience but in fact he was impetuous. I wish I could say I was more like Paul, but if I had to choose between the two, there's no question in my mind that I'm more like Peter. But he finished okay. One of the reasons is because of this second epistle being birthed in his life. It's not by chance that Peter was chosen to write this revelation to us and not another apostle. You've got to understand that all that we're reading here is God-breathed. God chose these vessels, and he worked these truths in them that Paul learned through his sufferings and afflictions, that Peter learned through all of his tests and trials. They're able to then, by experience, stand and say follow me as I follow Christ. This stuff works; you've seen it in my life. Peter writing, by the Holy Ghost, addresses those who have obtained like precious faith through the righteousness of God. He speaks to them the salutation of grace and peace that comes, look. I trust that you spend a lot of time—some of the greatest truths in all of the epistles are found in the greetings. Spend some time in these and let the Lord speak to you. Look what he says, "Grace and peace be multiplied unto you [How?] through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord." Through the knowledge of God. Grace and peace through the knowledge of God. We're going to see then, that knowledge of God isn't just reading about Him, it's enduring with Him. How many of us, as we shared last Wednesday, how many of us are looking for that great testimony of the resurrection power to know Him in the power of his resurrection, the fellowship of his sufferings? Well, you've got to be made conformable to his death. If you're going to be raised with Him, you have to be buried with Him. You have to die, Romans 6 says. A lot of us want resurrection power, we just don't want the death to our own self-will. There's only one way to know it—it's experiencing the same Gethsemane. It's reckoning ourselves dead, crucified with Him through our daily decisions as our own will comes up against the word of God and the wisdom of God.

So he says you're going to grow through knowledge, experiential knowledge, or as we're going to see in just a moment, by reason of use, by experience. There's nothing better than hands-on experience. Book learning is fine but it has to work in the field. It doesn't matter whether it's a computer class or whether it's military combat. You can read about it all you want, but until you've experienced it, you're not seasoned. So this is what God's doing in our lives and wanting us to be conformed into the image of Jesus. If we're going to be conformed into his image, we're going to have to walk in his steps. We're going to have to follow the same course that He took. I'm not talking about earning salvation. I'm talking about being conformed into the image of Jesus so that we can bring glory to his name in our daily walk.

Verse 3. As you come to the knowledge of Him, and the process is going to be this, verse 3. Look. In correlation to or "According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue." Can I show you a truth that's something that so many people miss? He's given us all things that pertain to life and godliness. This is not an unconditional gift that's been given to us so that we just have by faith in Jesus, now we have all of this knowledge of God, and everything that pertains to life and godliness is working readily in our lives. Not so. It's coming through the knowledge of Him through experiencing daily this death, and the knowledge of maturation that the Scriptures require of us. In the midst of that, everything that's needed to stand, you won't be tempted past that you're able to stand. Everything that's needed to reveal to you as you pray in faith, nothing wavering, for a double minded man is unstable in all of his ways. Pray and say, God, what's lacking in my life? How many of us pray that according to James but not in faith? We really don't want to hear, and if we do hear something we don't want to hear, we're not going to do it anyway. I don't care what God—we don't say this stuff—but I don't care what God reveals to me, I'm not changing.

James says that if the trial's going to do you any good, you've got to pray in faith to understand what's working in your life and then do something about it. Repentance. If not, then what we've shared, whatever session it was, that God's going to keep putting more and more pressure on you, and you will either bow your knee or He'll break your neck. It's only one of those two things is going to happen. The Scripture says that stiff-necked man, He says he's broken suddenly and without remedy. Don't get yourself in that place. Don't let the trials come to that place in your life. God loves you enough to take you there.

So he says that we've received all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him, epignosis, a full experiential knowledge. "Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." So we have all of these promises. I don't think we're going to be able to get into this this morning, but this is really one of the places in this teaching that is the core of understanding what trials are all about. They're to get the promises working in your life. The promises don't just come because God made the promise. They're not unconditional. The Scripture says that after you have done the will of God, you might what? Inherit the promise. You have need of patience. It's the patience, it's the working in your life, and once patience begins to work in your life, the character of patience, that is what allows you to inherit these exceeding great and precious promises that will make you partakers of what? The divine nature. So you mean the divine nature only manifests as a consequence of patience being developed in our life? That's what he's saying. It's available to all of us. It's a promise made that if we'll stand up under the trials that God's going to bring, if we will be a seeker of all of these attributes in our lives that are lacking so that God would make that the treasure of our heart, we will embrace the divine nature. So he says that divine nature will manifest as we have escaped the corruption that's in the world through lust.

Oh, you mean there's an escaping unto the divine nature? Yes. To flee all of this ungodliness and unrighteousness. To turn our hearts toward the eternal, the invisible, that city which has it's foundations whose builder and maker is God. Trials are not for the purpose of making us hard, embittered people. Trials are for the purpose of changing our perspective into the eternal realm. Trials don't make you a better earthling; they make you a pilgrim, a pursuer of the eternal, an observer of the invisible. If the trials are affecting us properly, we will say like Job, I'd heard with the hearing of the ear but now my eyes have seen Him. Talk about a guy that had a lot of knowledge. Now we're not talking about a novice in Job, a "Jobice." We're talking about a guy that was perfect in his generation. Wise guy of the east, and he still had some more growing to experience. He says I'd heard of Him. He wasn't without knowledge of God. When those trials came and Satan came up into the presence of God and the Lord spoke to him and said what have you been doing? He said I've been walking to and fro over all the face of the earth surveying my kingdom. He said what do you think about my servant Job? He's a perfect man. And then one of the great revelations into the spirit realm comes out there. Don't you love this? This is one of my favorite parts of the whole book of Job. Yeah, but you've built a hedge around him, and I can't touch him. How many of you are thankful for the hedge this morning? Aren't you thankful that there's nothing the devil can do, man, that God doesn't allow? The devil can't touch you without the permission of God.

Everything that He allows to come into your life is to make you more like Jesus. Well, it doesn't seem to have done that. It just seems to have made me weaker and more bitter and more afraid. It's because you haven't done what James said and sat down and prayed and asked God for wisdom to understand and said as soon as you reveal what's wrong in my life, I'm going to change it! It will make you a new man; it will make you a new woman. It will make you a partaker of the divine nature. It will bring you those exceeding great and precious promises that have been made to us, and then all things that pertain to life and godliness in Christ Jesus will begin to work in you diligence, verse 5, faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, kindness, love. "For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that you ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." But he that lacks these things, he that doesn't endure the trials, he that doesn't learn and grow from them, he that's not humbled and made meek through the midst of these revelations of the lack of character, he that lacks these things is blind and cannot see afar off and has forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

That's what trials are all about. Now, these trials are to work in us diligence. They're to make us more diligent in our pursuit of God. That word diligence talks about an earnest or a zeal. Have you noticed that when you get into these trials, it was good for me to be afflicted the psalmist says? What's it do? It moves us toward God, and it should work in you and I a new zeal. In the midst of this when you draw neigh unto God, what happens? He draws neigh unto you; he begins to reveal his word to you. Faith comes by hearing, hearing by the word of God, and that's what begins to show itself. Faith begins to manifest in the midst of this. The faith is beginning to be matured. It works in you a virtue then, is the next phrase, that's just a moral excellence. Then the knowledge of God that comes, it's the transformation or the full understanding of what God is effecting in our life at this particular time. Then you begin to see that stuff, and there's another quality that begins to manifest—temperance. Temperance is just talking about self-control. That's why most of us are in these problems anyway; we're out of control. Our lives need to be disciplined back under his lordship; we've taken too much control of our lives again. Then patience—the constant endurance.

So this is what's taking place in this process of spiritual maturity. I tell you what, if you do these things, you'll stand. You'll not be overtaken, as the Scripture says to us here, in deception. You won't be blind, unable to see afar off, but you'll understand the eternal purposes of God, and He'll continue to work these things in your life. You have need of patience. So James says, let's go back to James. James says then, understand what God's purpose is. He's wanting you to grow up. He's wanting you to mature in the midst of all of this. We saw from Paul and Peter that patience is the real mark of spiritual maturity. Titus speaks of it; the aged men who are patient. He's talking about those that are mature in our midst. It's a sign of maturity. Impatience, inconsistency, is a sign of self-indulgence, a lack of stability and maturity in our lives. So James says in verse 4, let patience have it's perfect work that you might be made mature. Verse 4, that word perfect—mature, complete. A growing up process is the consequence of the trials in our lives. Entire, wanting or lacking for nothing. It's interesting that as we become mature in this and can pray and really seek God for wisdom in the midst of these things the trials bring us clarity of understanding.

We think many times that we're doing a little better than we are. So He says I want to bring you to that place where you're not lacking, where you can have that inner illumination, where you can see afar off as Peter just said. But for that to happen you can't just suck it up in the midst of this. You need to pray for wisdom, verse 5 says. If you lack wisdom, ask of God. He gives to all men liberally. The whole purpose is for you to have this inner revelation. If you'll pray, it shall be given, verse 5 says. There's no—get this principle—there's no biblical evidence for you to remain in ignorance as to why you're in this trial. The Scripture speaks exactly the opposite. He says it shall be given you; this wisdom of the eternal purposes of God. But ask in faith, nothing wavering. Okay, here we go. It will only be given to you if you're going to do something about it, and God knows that to start with. So if you're praying and saying, I just don't know, I just don't know, there's no clarity of understanding in my mind why this could possibly be taking place, I just don't understand. The self-indictment is this: and if I did, I won't do anything about it. Because the Scripture says that if you ask in faith nothing wavering, in other words intending to do what God says, it's going to be revealed to you. It shall be given him, verse 5. I think there's a lot of people in that position. Something's happening, but I just don't know what God's trying to say. Then I would get before Him and make sure, verse 6, that you're going to ask in faith without anything wavering. That word waver just means the ability to bend or to be influenced in the opposite direction. He said the double minded man is unstable in all of his ways. Don't let him think that he's going to receive anything from the Lord. That word double minded—interesting—it just means two souls. You've got two souls. Now the soul is made up of what? Emotion, intellect, and will. You've got your secular personality and your ecclesiastical personality. You're one person at church, and you're another person on the job. You're one person during worship service, and you're another person on the beltway. It's very important to understand that those of us that are moving in that type of self-deception, hypocrisy, are not going to receive these eternal truths.

He says in verse 12, "Blessed is the man that endureth temptations: [That word endure just means to be able to stand up under or to be strong in the midst of it.] for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he many man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. Do not err, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." So we realize then that there's a distinction being made here between trials, temptations that bring us into sin—that's not of God—and those that bring us into the character of Christ. He makes this distinction and he says those others cannot be counted as character-building trials. You know, that adultery's going to really work some character in me. No, it's not. That murder, I think, is really going to make me a better man. Ah, no. That's not God working character in you; that's lust without temperance. So what we're looking at is: this must be the Lord trying me. No, that's your lust, and you need to do something about it. You need to battle it through prayer and intercession. You need to battle it through yielding your members as instruments to righteousness, to spend your time thinking more of the eternal things, to spend your energy more about helping others instead of indulging yourself—all of these things that will help you through those aspects.

Now, can God take those and turn them for good? Of course He can. But God does not tempt us to do evil. So the temptations, tests, and trials that come from God have to do with these adversities and all of these things such as that which Job experienced. Let's turn back there and then we'll end with Job for this morning. You've heard of the patience of Job. Job's an interesting guy; we've talked quite a bit about him. I don't want to get in depth to his comforters, but I think it's interesting that in the trial of Job—we talked about this the other day—in the trial of Job, it was so severe, we talked about those life-transforming times, that his friends sat down with him. They came to actually comfort him and mourn with him, the Scripture says, the two different aspects of mourning and comforting. For seven days they never even exchanged a word. You know a lot of us, it's interesting to me, in a severe trial or something of the magnitude that Job was experiencing, we want to come up and think we'll say something that will make it all go away. Oh just count it all joy, brother. Ha, shut up. We need to realize that where Job found himself, and we all know the story, I mean if you've ever had a problem, just read the book of Job, and okay, it's not that bad. Here this guy is seeking God, in right standing with Him, doing what he knows to do to bring about oversight to his family. You all remember the story in chapter 1, verse 5, where in the days of the feasts of his children he then, offering up offerings up to God sanctifying them, rose up early in the morning just in case, Job said, it may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts, and this Job did continually. Here's a man that was concerned about the spiritual life of his family—was doing everything he knew to do.

Now who is this guy? We've heard so many different renderings of who Job was, and why he was in the situation he was. Let me tell you who this guy was, verse 1: perfect and upright, one that feared God and eschewed evil. That's who Job is. Well, the Scripture says the thing that he feared came upon him. Of course. If you and I were truthful, we'd say yeah, I fear this, too. I don't know about you, I fear the loss of my well-being, my family. I'm concerned about the spiritual condition of my wife and my children and my grandchildren. I'm aware of the world we're in and that we have no guarantees, and I'm concerned about this. You don't want to have to go through all of the tragedies that life can deal us, and yet people do every day. You see the tragedies that are around us. This man was the greatest of all men of the east, verse 3 says. That's who he was, and we find him making sacrifice for his children continually lest they had cursed God in their hearts. Then Scripture goes on and says there was a day when the sons of God came and presented themselves before the Lord, and Satan was there and the whole discourse. What do you think about Job? He's a perfect and upright man, one that fears God and eschews evil, verse 8, that's who he is. That's who God told the devil Job was.

Satan answered and says, yeah, but does Job fear God for nothing? You've made a hedge about him and about his house and all that he has on every side, and you've blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. What a great testimony, praise God. Thank God for the hedge. Thank God for the hedge, amen? Thank God for the hedge. Thank God for the good times. Thank God for the victories. Thank God that it's not worse. If it wasn't for the hedge, it would be worse. Any of you having a hard time this morning? If it wasn't for the hedge it would be worse. Satan wants to take you out, and God's preserving you. I want you to see something right here: perfect man, fears God, eschews evil. What do you think about yourself this morning, your ability to stand? I want to tell you something. If that hedge is down, Satan will take you on in a minute. At your best you wouldn't last a second in conflict with him without the glory of God, without the presence of God, without the promises of God, without the indwelling Holy Spirit and the blood of Jesus. Oh, thank God for the unspeakable gift, and yet we want to whine about some of the little trials that we're having. Understand how bad it could be if God removed the hedge.

Blessed. His house was blessed; the work of his hands was blessed. The devil says but put forth your hand now and touch all that he has, and he'll curse you to your face. Is Job just a pawn here? Here's this celestial conflict, and here's Job the pawn, and God doesn't care anything about Job. He's just going to let the devil whip up on him just to make a point. No, that's not how this is working. We're talking about our loving heavenly Father. The veil's being set back; we're able to look into an eternal realm here and into a spiritual realm and see what God is revealing to us to help us to understand the spiritual warfare that's going on. This very thing is not what's happening in the life of every one of us. This is a specific revelation in the life of Job. We have the curtain pulled back. We can see the conflict that's going on in the eternal realm so that you can know that we're not warring against flesh and blood but principalities and powers, and you need to put on the whole armor of God that you might be able to withstand, and the fact of the matter is the hedge is up, praise God. God said I'll never leave you nor forsake you, and I will not allow you to be tempted past that that you're able to stand and with every temptation I'll make the way of escape. So we have those promises.

The Lord says to Satan, behold, all that he has is in thy power. Oh, man, that's a scary statement there. But on himself don't put your hand. Don't touch Job. So the devil goes and rips up everything that he has. What a day! We won't read through all of it right here, but you start at verse 13—what a bad day. All of his livestock stolen. The Sabeans come and fall upon him and take it all away. All the camels are gone. Windstorm came up, house caved in, all your kids are dead—bad day. Totally bankrupt, children destroyed, verse 20. "Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and [Say it with me, and what?] worshipped." Of course he's heartbroken. The tearing of the mantle, the shaving of the head, broken, devastated, and worshipping God. The Scripture says his response was, "Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly." What kind of a man is Job? But it's not over yet, and the devil knows this, and chapter 2 says there's another visitation. The devil comes up, and God says what do you think about Job? There's none like him in the earth—perfect, upright, one that fears God, and eschews evil, and still he holds fast his integrity although you moved me against him to destroy him without a cause.

What that's talking about is there was no action, there was no act on Job's part that gave access to the devil. It wasn't a sowing and reaping aspect. What we're talking about here is the establishing of character, the revealing of the secret sins of the heart of this man. As God's speaking here concerning Job he says he's holding fast his integrity. "And Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, [Skin for skin; what's that all about?] yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life." You took out his kids, and you took out his business, but you won't let me touch him. You know there's a lot of us who in our lives, man, we can stand up strong when it's everybody else that's going down. We're experiencing the grief of it, and we're watching and looking, but things are still copasetic for me. Lost all your kids; what a tragedy. Yeah. All of your life savings and the business is gone. Yeah, but God's good. Oh Lord, O God, why have you forsaken me—this toothache, O God. Didn't you just lose your kid and your business? Yeah, but man this tooth is killing me, man. What about when it's you, when it's your nerve endings? Whether we like to think so or not, that becomes a real issue, and Jesus makes it very clear in his teachings when He talks about the most important is that we have to lose our lives, and then in addition to that we have to love Him more than mothers, fathers, wives, children, lands. But the first admonition is skin for skin.

So God says well, go ahead and take a shot at him, but you can't kill him. He's yours; he's in your hand. There it is again, scary, but save his life. "So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils from the soul of his foot unto his crown." So he's sitting out there in sackcloth, ashes, scraping himself with all of the residue of these boils. Have you ever had one boil? Soul of your feet to the top of your head—bummer. His wife brings on some great counsel. "Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die. But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips." Now something very interesting is going to happen. Interesting, look, he's not sinning. He's made two of the greatest statements ever made to sustain us in the midst of our trials. The Lord gave; the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. Shall we receive good at the hand of God and not receive evil? Beloved, let me tell you something. Those two truths will sustain you through anything that you'll ever experience. Get them into your heart.

The few trials that we've been through over the years, the thing that's around the corner for us a week from Monday—Janet's going to be going through. There's a concern in those particular areas for us, and the doctor's made it very clear the dangers. In prayer as I was seeking Father on this and contemplating the worst-case scenario. You begin to rejoice in how good God is to you. We fully expect the Lord to sustain her. But even last night in prayer I just said, Lord, as I was thinking along these things praying for her, they said she was going to die in '80. They didn't give her a chance as I carried her into that hospital at 86 pounds. Thank you for the 20 years. In '90 they didn't give her a chance, and I just want to thank you for the ten years. Father, help us to worship and rejoice in the goodness of your presence. Especially, Father, don't let me fail in chapter 4, verse 4. Yeah, Job, your words have upheld others that were falling, and you've strengthened the feeble knees of others but now it's come on you and you faint. It's touched you and you're troubled. The fact that it's you doesn't change the fact that God is good and that we receive good at the hand of the Lord, and we rejoice and keep the integrity when it's evil. Beloved, if those become the foundational truths of your life, then trials will only work in you character and not bitterness and not defeat. As the Scripture makes it clear and we begin to mediate on this principle of patience, it will alleviate the fear and bring the joy because the judge of all the earth surely does right, as Abraham declared it. Then—and then, though you may be afraid, and I use it in the generic sense of life's tragedies, you're not afraid of the trial you're in. Of course we look around and say man, I wouldn't want that to happen; man, I wouldn't want to have to go through that. That's natural, but in the midst of the trial you say, God's working in me for his good pleasure. You don't fear the trials; you count it joy.

Father, we thank you for the word of God this morning, and we just ask that word, that great and exceedingly great and precious promises would work faith in our hearts and cause us to rejoice in the greatness of our God. Now how do you reconcile all of this with the known trials that you're in? Whether it be a situation that you're facing such as that that Janet is involved in at this time or whether it's an ongoing situation that E. G. has to deal with on a daily basis—some that have just been added to the prayer list—and be sure to check that there's some new names and some specific needs that we need to believe God for. The working of patience and the necessity of standing in the midst of these trials in no way supercedes but in fact works in perfect cooperation with the declaration of faith and the expectation of the miraculous to where you pray in faith and believe for the healing power of God to manifest and the miraculous recreative power to manifest in lives like Janet and E. G. and some of the others. But while we're waiting for the promise, we don't faint. While we're waiting for the promise, we declare the victory. While we're waiting for the promise, the peaceable fruit of righteousness is manifesting itself in our hearts. While we're waiting like the husbandman in the prophetic statement of patience, in due season we will reap if we don't faint. Father, make it real in Jesus name. Amen. Let's stand before the Lord this morning.

Over the years that 4th chapter in Job back in 1980, back in 1990, are things that I always look to and understand there is no strength in myself naturally. Lord, I'm just asking for grace. That's what James is all about when it's talking about praying for wisdom and not being double minded and not being deceived by thinking of yourself more highly than you ought to think. That ability to stand in dependence upon God alone. There's absolutely no question in my mind that it's that very principle that caused the faith to rise ten years ago and understand God's sustaining power. You're never in a safer place than when God allows you to be in a position beyond your ability because now we look to Him, the author and the finisher of our faith, and He gets all the glory.

Let's just praise Him this morning. Just thank Him for the hedge that's up around you, praise God. Just rejoice in the exceeding great and precious promises of God this morning that declare us victorious; the decree of the fact that if God's for us, nobody can be against us, praise God. Oh, we delight in you Lord. We delight in you, Lord. As you begin to pray for those that are among us that are in need, Leonel is in great need in his body, and we need to believe God. There's some symptoms that could be very devastating. We need a miracle in that body, and as always as we pray for E. G., as we're lifting up Janet's hands, as we believing for a quick work to be finished in Sidney's body. Thank God that the hedge is up this morning, praise God. Oh, we rejoice in you, Father. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. We're at war. We're at war, and you have need of patience. You have need to consistently put on the whole armor of God. Don't walk out into the presence of the enemy presumptuously just assuming, well, it will all be okay. God says put it on. Concentrate on the warfare at hand. Mature enough to be careful. Carefulness is not fearfulness. Check it twice. Check your heart twice. Check your motives twice. Check that decision twice. Then when you find yourself in that situation, you can know that it's not presumption, it's not foolishness, it's God working something in you, and you can rejoice. What is it, Father? What is it, Father? Help me to understand. Ask in faith. Let's sing it together and rejoice in Him this morning. Thank you, Jesus.

Job was able to through the initial shock make some great statements that are the anchor of our soul, yet as he and his comforters sat in silence nothing being said, it's obvious what the comforters were thinking. Their theology said if something bad has happened to you, it's because you've done something bad. Job didn't say anything because he knew if he opened his mouth, he'd justify himself. But then as the initial shock wears off both parties begin to reveal their hearts, and the comforters make their statements in defending God and saying God would never allow this to happen to an innocent person—you had to have done something wrong, and Job's saying I haven't done anything wrong. Who can stand before God if He chooses to do this? I'm innocent; He's done this for no reason. Then as the smoke clears in the end of the book, both parties having a fuller understanding of the majesty of God and his unsearchable ways and his sovereignty and his love and his mercy, put their hands over their mouths and let God be God and worship Him because He does all things right. Father, cause it to be real in our hearts, and we will glorify you, in Jesus' name. Amen. Before you go, turn to somebody next to you and say, He always does right. Go in peace, God's love go with you.

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