Sunday 14 August 2016

Three things we can learn from Job

An edited version of today's sermon.


 Job is about the suffering of a good man, but it never solves the great problem of why suffering occurs. However, I believe it is a book that we can still learn from. I believe that from the way Job responds to his suffering, and the things he learns in the process there are valuable lessons that may help us live our own lives, and to cope with suffering.


  1. Do not blame anyone else for your suffering. Job does not.
    We live in a culture where blame seems to be part of the furniture. We seek out someone to blame, we are encouraged to try to get compensation for any accidents that befall us (most of us have received phone calls or texts asking if we have been in an accident – because it is never our fault!). If we are always seeking someone to blame we can fall into unforgiveness and bitterness, and sometimes we never face the fact that some things are our fault.
    Not only does Job refuse to blame people, he also refuses to blame God. For many people the stumbling block with faith is suffering 'why did God not stop this happening?' 'What sort of God allows these sort of things to happen?' The result is that either they blame God, and hate the very idea of him, or they refuse to believe he can exist at all in view of our sinful world. Like Job and his friends we may struggle with understanding why good people suffer, and if the book of Job tells us anything it is how futile attempting to work that one out is, unless we take the cross into account. Jesus suffered for us on the cross, but through that suffering came redemption for all who believe.
  2. Secondly, we can learn from Job how to be honest about our feelings. For example in the depths of despair he curses the day. We need to be honest with God too. We Brits are not good at admitting how we feel. 'How are you?' 'Fine – fine – the cat just got run over, someone has stolen my purse and a passing stranger just told me how fat I am, but I'm fine!'. Job is honest about how he feels when he is going through the most appalling grief. Being honest about his feelings helps him move through the grieving process to hope and a positive outlook on the future. His honesty has paved the way to recovery and healing. We need to be honest with God to allow him to heal us.
  3. Thirdly, Job is prepared to learn, and what he has to learn is that he is not the centre of the universe. When God speaks he shows Job an awesome universe that is not human centred, which cannot be controlled by people and with which they hardly interact. It goes without saying that God is the centre of the universe. When we think it is focused on us, or when we act as though it is, by breaking the rules, that is often when accidents happen, suffering occurs and we fall into sin. We cannot go through life believing it is all about us. If we do not acknowledge the sovereignty of God, and if we do not show real love for others, I believe we are falling short of what God wants us to be.