 And so, okay, here we go. We're in chapter 13. Let's begin reading here in Job chapter 13 at verse 1. Now read verses 1 and 2. I'm going to give you a review. Just remind you of a few things that we've looked at and then move into the 13th chapter. And so beginning at verse 1, Job chapter 13, reading to verse 2. Behold, my eye has seen all this. My ear has heard and understood it. What you know, I also know. I'm not inferior to you. And so, remember with me that Job has a friend. His name is Zophar. And he's been rebuking Job. He's been rebuking Job because Job, he says, has been complaining. And Job admits to that. He said, I want to make my complaint to the Lord. And so, Job began to respond to what he had said. And he did so, as I mentioned with you, mentioned to you, he did so with stinging sarcasm. Chapter 12, verse 2, he says, no doubt you are the people and wisdom will die with you. So that was sarcasm. He was speaking to them. He was irritated by how they have been speaking to him. And it's not just Zophar. It's also the other two, Aliphaz and Bildad, who have been basically rebuking him and all. And so he's irritated by what they've said. They're convinced that Job is deserving of punishment. And they're convinced that he has done something wrong, that he has sinned. Well, Job is saying that God is behind all events, whether they're good or whether they're evil. And so he's irritated with the way that they're speaking to him. And because they're convinced he is deserving of punishment, he began to tell his friends that they were acting as if they were superior to him. He told them that all wisdom exists in them. And when they die, all wisdom will die with them because they know everything. And so, as we saw after telling them this, he made it clear that he already knew what it is that they're saying. He wasn't boasting. He was simply making it clear that he already knew the things that they were saying because they were giving him information concerning who God is. And they were sharing with him the attributes of God. So Job had responded and he had said, anyone who believes in God knows that he has wisdom, knows that he has power, and knows that he is just. You see, they had accused him of mocking. But his response is, the simple fact is, it's you who are mocking and you're mocking me. When Zophar had said that God's ways are unsearchable, Job said, well, you don't need to go to heaven or hell. You can observe this on earth. And he began to speak concerning the beasts and the birds and the fish and the earth. And he was speaking of the witness of creation. And he was saying that wisdom is something that you gain over time. He had said, wisdom is with aged men and with length of days understanding. And so he's speaking concerning the accumulation of wisdom and the acquisition of it. And he was saying the natural way for men to gain wisdom is just a process of many years, living for a long time. And he was saying, it's not until you've grown older that you can qualify for being those who are wise. I mentioned to you last time, it depends on what a person's life has been built on that determines whether they have true wisdom. Because some grow older, but never grow wiser. In Job 32, verse nine, it says, great men are not always wise, nor do the aged always understand justice. And so as he is sharing these things with them and all, in verses 13 through 25, he concluded with a list of attributes of God. And that was a way of letting them know that he had an understanding of who God is. And that's where we're picking up right now in chapter 13. And that's what he is saying. We're picking up on the statement that they are not his instructors. And verse one again, he said, behold, my eye has seen all this, my ear has heard and understood it. What you know, I also know. And they went on to say, I'm not inferior to you. He's saying, I have gained this understanding and I'm not receiving it as a new revelation from you. I gained this understanding through life. And I've had this revealed to me over my lifetime. So you haven't given me any new revelation. And you have no special right to instruct me. But he goes on to say in verse three, but I would speak to the Almighty. No notice, he says, and I desire to reason with God. Why should I listen to you? You're speaking to me with a natural wisdom, but you're not speaking to me out of a spiritual wisdom. As I said, what you know, I also already know. So I don't wish to argue with you. But to be honest with you, I need to speak to God and I want to speak to him about my pain. You see, through the years, God has answered my prayers. And I need to speak to him about this. I need to share with him. I need to talk to him. Now, I've already said, I need a mediator. He had said in chapter nine, verse 33, he said, nor is there any mediator between us who may lay his hand on us both. He was saying, I need an advocate. I need someone to plead my case before God. I want to speak to God, but I wish I had help. I wish I had somebody that could be my go-between to help me to be able to reason, to be able to present my case, to be able to share with the Lord what I'm feeling and ask him the questions I need to ask. I need someone to help me. Now, that's something that we as believers now are able to do. We have an advocate. We are able to take our case before the Lord. We're able to speak to him and plead with him and all. And we do that through Jesus Christ. In 1 John chapter two, verse one, John said, my little children, these things I write to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father. Jesus Christ is righteous. I'm giving you the Word of God because if you take the Word of God and the commandments of God and you're obedient to those things, then that's going to keep you from sin. But the bottom line is, is we are all still encompassed with weaknesses of the flesh. And even if we desire to do the right thing, we don't always do that, which is right. The desire is with us, but the ability to perform that which we desire sometimes is lacking. And so we are not perfect. We are being instructed so that we wouldn't know what the ways of God are. We've been instructed, although the Word of God in the New Testament, we know that God has given to us His Word and His Spirit. We know that God, by His powerful Holy Spirit, when He indwells us, gives to us an ability to have a new life. And we also know that He gifts us and that God provides power for us. We know that because Jesus promised to do that. See, so as a believer, I know that I have the capacity to follow Him. I know that because He has made it possible for me to do that. But I also know, so do you, that I don't always follow Him completely. I don't always follow Him in the most perfect way. That I do fail. I do sin. I do make those mental errors and all of that. And so that's why John said, these things are right to you so that you may not sin. But he went on to say, if anyone sins, we have an advocate. We have a defense attorney, someone to plead our case. And that advocate that we have with the Father is Jesus Christ, the one who is righteous. And so Job is asking for something we have. Job is asking for a mediator, an advocate. He wants to plead His case to the Lord. He wants to convince God that He's not guilty. But He's saying, I can't do that. I need help. But we have Christ in the New Testament. Ephesians 3.12 says, in Him and through faith in Him, we may approach God with freedom and confidence. And so He's saying, I need to present my case. I would speak to the Almighty. I desire to reason with God. But He goes on and speaks to them in verse 4 and He says, but you forgers of lies, you are all worthless physicians. And so Job is a very kind man, as you can see. He's pretty upset with them. He is saying, you are worthless physicians. You're unable to heal. You believe that I have brought all of these calamities upon myself because you believe that I have lived an evil life. But the simple fact is, you haven't given me any example of a sin that I've committed. Remember in Job 6 verse 24, where He said, teach me and I will hold my tongue, cause me to understand wherein I have erred. You haven't given any example of a sin that I've committed. And then He goes on in verse 5 to say, oh that you would be silent and it would be your wisdom. That's a polite way of saying, I wish you'd shut your mouth. I wish you would just be quiet. Your best evidence of having wisdom would be for you to simply close your mouth. In Proverbs 17, 28, even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace. When he shuts his lips, he's considered perceptive. And so he's simply saying, I wish that you would resist the temptation to bring all of these corrections. You're speaking to me as if you're wise, but if you wanted to show true wisdom, you would close your mouth. He says in verse 6, now hear my reasonings and heed the pleadings of my lips. You've had your opportunity with me. Now it's my turn to speak. And as I do so, I ask that you show me respect and consider what I have to say seriously. He says in verse 7, will you speak wickedly for God and talk deceitfully for Him? And so will you misrepresent God to me under the pretext of speaking on His behalf? Will you verse 8, show partiality for Him? Will you contend for God? Will you show partiality? Will you judge me in the way a corrupt judge does, showing preference for the person? You've already counted me guilty. You're all supposing that you and God agree on this. But will you judge me guilty on His behalf using arguments against me with partiality? Will you, through trying to speak for Him, actually be speaking your own mind? They're already convinced, in other words, that Job has sinned. And what he's simply saying is you're trying to convince yourself that you're on God's side. But you haven't shown me any evidence that what you're saying about me is true. He says in verse 9, will it be well when He searches you out? Or can you mock Him as one mocks a man? You're covering up your lack of love with a veneer of righteous statements. Do you really think that God doesn't see through this and see your self-righteousness? There are times that you probably have experienced this, where somebody has brought a word of correction to you. If it hasn't happened yet, you must be young in the faith. It will, I promise you. People want to come and bring a correction to you, and sometimes they do it with a sense of arrogance and no humility. If you want to bring an exhortation to somebody, you know, the best thing to do before you speak to them is cry. Cry not to them, but cry over them. The best way if you want to be an actual help to somebody is care about them, really care about them. Because it isn't easy to really bring correction. A lot of people don't put up with it. A lot of people resist it and all. And I've been one who has received correction from people, even as the pastor of this church. I've had people, it comes to mind right now, it was on a Wednesday night. And I had taught an evening Bible study and a member of my church had come to me and had spoken to me. And it said to me that a couple of guys had come to his door and had spoken to him and had told him that the church that he's attending is a cult, which is this church here. They said that we're a cult and that he needed to flee that cult and go with them. Well, he came to me and said they say that you're a cult leader. So I put handcuffs on him and tied him up in the back and said, you will leave never. Give me your house. No, I spoke to him and I said to him, well, bring him on down and we'll talk to him. You know, I'd like to hear what they have to say. So they came. They came on a Wednesday night. And I did the Wednesday night Bible study and they were waiting and I had them come to my office afterwards and they were sitting in the office and I introduced myself to them and had a conversation with them. And as I was speaking to them, I'll never forget, there were two of them and it was me and one of the, one of the assistants here meeting with these two. And I'll never forget as I was standing there sitting there rather speaking to these two guys and they were really arguing up a storm about their position and all. They were really the ones who were part of a cult and as they were speaking to me, one of them looks at me. I'll never forget this as he, and we're sitting, you know, not too far apart. We're social distance, about six feet. And as he began to speak to me, he changed his tone. He changed the way that he was looking and he starts to give me his version of the gospel. And after he finished speaking his part, he stuck his hand out. I'll never forget. And he said, this hand is the hand of God and the hand of God is reaching for you to take it. And so I cut it off with a sword. No, as you know, so I've had that experience. Many of you have to where somebody wants to bring a correction and they do with an arrogance and with error. And that's what's taking place here. It's not that they're cult leaders, by the way, it's their approach to Job. And it's, and it's real offensive. And that's why he's taken this, this path with them. That's why he's speaking in the way that he is. He's saying, listen, you know, you're, you're judging me as guilty on behalf of God. And you're using arguments against me. But you're making this judgment out of a partiality. So are you trying to speak for God? Or are you really speaking your own mind? He said in verse nine, again, will it be well when he searches you out? Or can you mock him as one mocks a man? Are you so pure that you can stand before God when he judges you? Do you believe that all that you have said is true and just? When he says in verse nine, can you mock him as one mocks a man? He's simply saying you're covering up your lack of love with a veneer of righteous statements. Do you really think that God does not see through this? And do you really think he doesn't see your self-righteousness? You can deceive man, he's saying, but you cannot deceive God. In Psalm 4421, shall not God search this out? For he knows the secrets of the heart. In Romans 2 16, Paul speaks of the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. Do you really think you can hide from God? Do you really think you can deceive him? Do you really think that you can fool God with your veneer of self-righteousness? In verse 11, he continues, and he says, will not his excellence make you afraid and the dread of him fall upon you? And so as he speaks, he's saying, listen, when you stand before God, you're going to be afraid because your words are empty. One of the scriptures you might want to mark is Hebrews 12 29. In Hebrews 12 29, it simply says, our God is a consuming fire. In Matthew 10 verse 28, it says, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in hell. So when you stand before him, you will have fear because the things that you're saying to me are empty. He says in verse 12, your platitudes are proverbs of ashes. Your defenses are defenses of clay. A platitude. When's the last time you used that word today? You know, the word platitude, I looked it up. I actually looked it up. I wanted to make sure I gave you the accurate word. The word platitude speaks of wise sayings, something that is worth remembering. So your platitudes, your wise sayings, words that should be remembered, he's saying are as worthless as ashes, as worthless as the dust. Your useless words may impress you, but to me, he's saying, they are contemptible. And so verse 13, hold your peace with me. Let me speak. Then let come on me what may. So he tells his friends, be quiet. Let me speak. I need to share with you what is on my heart. I've had opportunities and so have some of you to discover that there are some that I've had conversations with who seem to be simply waiting until my mouth is closed so that they can fill the silence with their own voice. There are some people that are threatened by silence. So the greatest thrill that they have is filling that silence with the things that they're saying. And sometimes the things that are being said are not worth saying. And so Job is saying, listen, it would be wise for you just to hold your peace. It would be wise for you if you really believe, if you really believe that you've got something to help me, if you really believe that you're speaking on behalf of God to instruct me so that I can deal with the pain I'm going through. If you really believe that then give me an opportunity to share my heart with you. Give me an opportunity to present to you what's on my heart, the things that I feel, the things that are going on inside me. They may not be right, but they're real and they're what I'm dealing with. And that will give you greater opportunity to be able to really know how to share and what to say. But when you're giving me the medicine before you even know the illness, it's not going to work. So I need to speak honestly. I'm open. I'm even willing to pay the price for doing so. And if it causes you to continue rebuking me, or if God adds to my pain, then let it be. But I need to share. I need to open up. I need to say what's on my heart. Verse 14, why do I take my flesh in my teeth and put my life in my hands? That's an interesting thing. When he says, why do I take my flesh in my teeth? It's another way of saying, why am I tormenting myself? And when he says, put my life in my hands, why am I trying to save myself? Why am I doing this? And then he makes this powerful statement in verse 15, though he slay me, yet will I trust him? Even so, I will defend my own ways before him. He also shall be my salvation, for a hypocrite could not come before him, though he slay me, yet will I trust him? I'm innocent. I'm innocent. And I'm going to cling to God, no matter what. He's going through a lot of pain. We don't have any way of really measuring that. We don't have a way of really understanding that. We've only had pictures of it. Skin that is cracked, skin that has worms, skin that is filled with pus. The picture of his humiliation as he is seated there on a pile of ashes, scraping his body in such pain and such agony. His children have died. He's lost his wealth. He's lost his dignity. He's lost his reputation. His wife has said, curse God and die. He has, he has friends who've come and traveled the distance to see him. They sat with him for several days. That was the best thing they did when they sat there quietly. And then they began to tell him what's wrong with him. It's hard for us to imagine something like that. I most certainly can't. But in the midst of all of this, when other people would have turned away from God, other people would have blamed God, other people would have said, God, why are you doing this to me? You're unfair. He has questions, but I think the questions are real and they need to be asked. But all through this, he didn't sin against the Lord. His trust is remaining firm in God. It reminds me of the psalmist in Psalm 23, verse 4, even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, you're rotting, your staff, they comfort me. You know, we've been going as a nation for the last several months through a valley. We all know that. A lot of people, a lot of people are going through so much pain. I believe, and I'm just going to say this, I hope it doesn't come off wrong, because I didn't plan these words. And these are the dangerous times. This plague that we're going through right now and have been for several months, it's hit a lot of people. It's hit people in our church. We have one young lady that I can mention who, in the early days of this pandemic, as they call it, she was a young woman, she lost her life. We conducted her memorial service to this disease. I believe that my sister, one of my sisters and her husband had it. They were very sick for the exact duration that people are being told that this disease is going to last. And now the one who, my other sister, one sister, Madeline, the other sister, Rebecca, my other sister, Rebecca, has told me she's not feeling well. She and her husband, it's possible that they've had it. We've had a few people in our church. Yes, we have protected our church. And the ones who have gotten COVID have not gotten it from any member of this church, I can tell you that. They've gone to family things, or they've been someplace else, took a trip and came back. And we have practiced the isolation for you, for all of us, but for you, to make sure that you're taking care of. And you need to know that. We're well aware. We're also well aware of the low amount of people who are succumbing, who are dying. We're aware of that too. And the thing that I've seen about this is there needs to be wisdom, but there also needs to be not a posture of prideful, rebellious attitudes towards authority and all. I'm saying we're not going to get it, because my sister, one of my sisters, my Madeline, I believe that she did have it. But when I saw her the last time I was speaking to her, she had a real strong opinion concerning COVID. And she discovered that her opinions probably were not as correct as she thought. So I'm one of these people who don't, I'm just, you know, I'm not going to, I don't tempt the Lord. I'm not going to test him. I believe there's wisdom in how we're doing things. I really do. And as a result of that, I feel good about that. But I also believe that this is something that has been used to cause the church to be afraid. And that bothers me an awful lot as a Christian. What's the worst thing that can happen if I die of COVID? What's the worst thing? I go to heaven. Is that bad? I mean, my whole life, since I was 20 years old, I've been preparing for that one thing to go to heaven. And now what? I'm afraid to go. I don't think so. I'm not afraid to go. I want to go, but I'm not going to go out and kiss somebody in the mouth who has it either, because that's presumption. That's not wise, right? So I believe that we need to just live wisely and to practice the things that are keeping us safe. There's nothing wrong with that. It's not a lack of faith. It's just basic wisdom. It's just not tempting the Lord by God, you know, and all of that. But we have people who will sometimes, they want to bring a word of rebuke or a word of correction because they don't have a sense of what's really taking place and all of that. And I learned a long time ago that when the psalmist said, I walked through the valley of the shadow of death, that is something that we all do. That is part of life itself. But the thing is, is I will not fear for you are with me, you're riding your staff, they comfort me. So I never walked through the valley alone. I walk with him. And should he be walking me to heaven? That's where I've been designed to go anyway. That's where I want to go. And so I want to be one of those people who, even when we go through hard times, live, well, I don't want to be giving up on the Lord. This man has been going through so much trauma, so much pain, so much sorrow. He's gone through things guys that none of us alive would even understand because none of us are like Job, none of us. He went through things I don't understand. I don't know what it means to be the most righteous man on the face of the earth. Well, yes I do. No, I don't know what that means. I don't know what that feels like. I don't know what it's like to have people rise when I walk into the room and stand up and show respect. They did that for Job. Job would walk in the room and the first thing the elders would do is they would stand in respect of this man. He had it all and later on we're going to see where he says, I have become the song of children. They're deriding me. They're mocking me. The children who he said, when the elders used to stand and now the children mock me, I don't understand that. I don't understand what it would feel like to have all of my health gone in an instant. But I do understand what it is to begin to say, God, I want to talk to you about this. I just want to hear your voice about this. I need some clarity about this. Please help me to understand and then to have friends say, shut up. You're getting less than you deserve. And that's why Job is saying, you know, you'd be wise if you remain silent because I want to make my complaint known to God. I wish I had a mediator. I wish I had an advocate. I wish I had somebody who could take my side, explain my cause to the righteous judge, somebody who could stand up for me. But you, you need to be quiet. You need to leave me alone in verse 17. Listen carefully to my speech and to my declaration with your ears. See now, I have prepared my case. I know that I shall be vindicated. Who is he who will contend with me? If now I hold my tongue, I perish. Listen carefully. I need to speak or I'm going to perish. Listen carefully. Hear me out. I've carefully thought out what I'm saying. I know I will be vindicated. I'll be declared innocent. And when he says in verse 19, who is he who will contend with me? If now I hold my tongue, I perish. If anyone wants to argue with me, I'm prepared to present my case. I need to present my case. And I would stake my life on my innocence. In verse 20, only two things do not do to me. And then I will not hide myself from you. Withdraw your hand far from me and let not the dread of you make me afraid. Only two things do not do to me. So Job is kind of laying out terms to God and he's making two requests. The first request is he doesn't want God to withdraw his hand from him. He wants God's mercy. I should put it that way. And in your mercy, put an end to my suffering. In Job 7, verse 5, remember how we said, my flesh is caked with worms and dust. My skin is cracked and breaks out afresh. So put an end to my suffering. But second, he's saying, let not the dread of you make me afraid. Now that's an interesting thing because earlier we saw that he had been suffering with nightmares. In chapter 7, verses 13 and 14, he said, when I say my bed will comfort me, I mean, I want to go to bed and try and rest, my couch will ease my complaint. Then you scare me with dreams and terrify me with visions. Put an end to my mental suffering. God, put an end to my constant nightmares. I'm asking you to please help me. Verse 22, then call and I will answer or let me speak. Then you respond to me. When I'm free from the suffering, I can answer your charges. But let me ask you questions because I need to hear why this happened. Explain your reasons to me. And as he's saying that, it's just revealing sorrow and torment. Now I need to say this. I understand as a man, when you go through pain, I understand that kind of questioning and all. But though he is in pain, he really has no right to say this to God. In Romans chapter 9, verse 20, we read, who are you, oh man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to him who formed it? Why did you make me like this? Who are you to question God? It's an interesting question to be asked. He says in verse 23, how many are my iniquities and sins? Make me know my transgression and my sin. Job thinks that there is a sin that needs to be repented of, but he just doesn't know which one. He had said in chapter 7, verse 20, have I sinned? What have I done to you, O watcher of men? Why have you set me as your target so that I am a burden to myself? Please reveal to me what I've done wrong. If you could reveal it to me, then I'll do my best to explain myself to you. And then he says in verse 24, why do you hide your face and regard me as your enemy? This is something he says in different ways in other places. In chapter 19, verse 11, it says he has also kindled his wrath against me. He counts me as one of his enemies. In chapter 33, verse 10, he finds occasions against me. He counts me as his enemy. So the question really is, why have you turned your face from me? What have I done to offend you? In what way have I? The psalmist said it like this in Psalm 10, verse 1. Why do you stand afar awful, Lord? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? Why is it that I'm going through this agony and it seems that there's no place of rest? Why, when I call to you, does it seem that you're not listening to me? One of the things that I've learned through those times, and I think every believer goes through them. I do. I'm sure that everybody else does. One of the things that I've learned over time has been the most important spiritual lesson I've ever learned. And I've said this to you before, but I'll share it with you again right now. Some of you perhaps haven't heard this before. But I have been asked by people in the past, in the recent past even, you know, because I've been a Christian for a long time, they've said to me, what is the, I wish I could explain this better than I'm going to, but what is, what is the greatest lesson you've learned as a Christian? What is the greatest lesson you have learned as a Christian? I was 20 years old when I gave my heart to Christ. As I mentioned to you on the 27th of this month, that will be my 50th anniversary. So 50 years of walking with the Lord, 50 years, 20 years of walking without Him, 50 years of walking with Him. Over 50 years, out of those 50 years, 47 of those years have been in ministry. I began ministry when I was 23. I started teaching Bible studies as a 23 year old. It's 47 years of teaching. I was ordained as a pastor 41 years ago. So I've been a pastor for 41 years. I've pastored this church 39 years. In July, it'll be 40. I say all of that to brag. No, I say all of that to set the tone. What is the greatest lesson you have learned? Almost 50 years of being a Christian, 47 years of teaching the Bible and many years of pastoral ministry. What is the greatest lesson you have learned? And the greatest lesson I have learned is this. It all works out in the end. That's it. Let's close this Bible study. You can go home with that. That's it. Because when I was young, I thought my pain or my hurt or the answer will never come. Because when I was young, time was different than it is now. Time just kind of crept along very slowly because I was a young man, things got to change and they have to change now. You know, Lord, I want patience. I want patience, oh God, and give it to me now. That was my prayer. Now. Everything was now. Everything had to be done quickly. It had to be done according to my timetable. Everything. I didn't realize that, but it was true. I thought that spiritual maturity was something that you gained overnight. I thought that you went forward, got saved, became a Christian a year later, your Billy Graham. I thought that those things were real. I really did. And then I'm 20, then I'm 21, then I'm 22, then I'm 23, and the years drag through. And you encounter a pain, you encounter sorrow, you encounter a hurt. And the hurt sometimes can be so great. I still remember people calling me at the church when I first started this church. I still remember one person who had been very dear to me, very dear to me, calling me up and saying, I just need to tell you I hate you. And I said, Marie, you can tell me that when I get home. No, you got to do that when I'm Bible studying. No, you know, friends like that. I've had so many, so many over the years. So many. And at first your heart breaks. What have I done? What's wrong with me? Right. And you find out there are quite a few things wrong with you. And you take that to Jesus. And you say, God, I hurt them. I'm sorry. Help me not to do that again. You tell them, please forgive me. I'm sorry. I've learned to do that. You do that. And you grow and you grow. And then sometimes you think, I'll never heal from this pain. This is too great. This betrayal is too much. This hurt is too deep. You think that and the weeks pass by and the months pass by. Then you realize one day, almost a surprise, that that thought of what had happened doesn't make you hurt anymore. And you realize you're healed. You realize that God has taken that the way he said he would. And you do that year in and year out year in and year out five years, 10 years, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50. And you've learned something. What is it? It all works out in the end. All things work together for the good of those who love God to those who are the called according to his purpose. Because some of the ingredients of your life, guys, doesn't make any sense. How can these things combined produce something good? Like when you make sweet and sour sauce and you add something sour, and then later on you add something sweet. And it doesn't sound like the two mixed together would be very good until you have the right blend. And we'd have the right blend. And you taste it. You're amazed at how these two things that are so different can combine to produce something so good. And I discovered that. I discovered that the ingredients of my life, the things that God has mixed into my life. Well, some of those things have been like vinegar. Some of those things have been like salt. They've been, they've stung and they've been tasteless. And it's been nuts. And then, then he had something else. And then, then I realized, and so have you, that my prayers are being answered. Because I said, God, make me like you. I want to be like you. Then you read Isaiah 53. And it speaks of the wounded healer. And then you awaken to the reality of the fact that Jesus, my Savior, suffered pain. Why won't I? And if I say I want to be like him, I'm going to go through things that will make me like him. The question has to be, do you want to be like him? Because there's a cost to it. That's why Jesus said, if you want to be his disciple, pick up your cross daily and follow me. Because that cross is the symbol of death. It's walking to your own execution. Do you want to be like me? Pick up your cross. Do you want to be like me? Die to yourself. Do you want to be like me? Listen to my Father's voice. Obey him, even when it hurts. And Job is going through these things. Lord, I want to talk to you about the pain I'm going through. Lord, I'm not going to forsake you. Though you slay me, yet I will serve you. I just need some help. I want to understand. What am I going through? Help me. Help me. He says again in verse 22, call. I will answer. Let me speak. Respond to me. When I'm free from the suffering, I can answer your charges. But let me ask you questions. Please explain to me. I'm in so much pain. In verse 23, when he says, how many are my iniquities and sins? Make me know my transgression and my sin. There's got to be a sin to repent of. What have I done? What have I done wrong? Why do you hide your face and regard me as your enemy? Well, he said that as I mentioned more than once. In other words, you're treating me like I am an enemy. You're causing me to suffer so intensely. And then he says in verse 25, will you frighten a leaf driven to and fro? Will you pursue dry stubble? A dry leaf, dry stubble are pictures of things that have no weight. They have no value. These things are insubstantial, inconsequential. Why are you treating me like this? I am inconsequential. He says in verse 26, you write bitter things against me and make me inherit the iniquities of my youth. You've written out charges against me and they're severe. You've recorded the iniquities. I've been recorded from the time I was small until now. Now I feel like I'm I'm paying for each one one at a time. We do give an account, by the way, we do give an account to God. In Romans 14 12, Paul said, so then each of us shall give account of himself to God. And this simply is highlighting how precise and accurate God's judgment on sin really is. But the psalmist made it clear that everyone has sinned when he says in Psalm 130 verse 3, if you if you Lord should mark iniquities, oh Lord, who could stand? And again, that reminds me of what the psalmist said in Psalm 25 7 when he said, remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions. According to your mercy, remember, remember me for your goodness sake, oh Lord. Then he says in verse 27, you put my feet in the stocks, watch closely all my paths, you set a limit for the souls of my feet. You've made it impossible for me to escape. There's no way I can get away from your judgments. Well, I'll give you something that probably doesn't matter, but I'll say it anyway. It comes to mind this scripture here when he says you put my feet in the stocks and watch closely all my paths. I feel like I'm locked in. I can't get away. I've experienced that kind of thing in a different in a different way, but I have experienced that I experienced that on several occasions, one of them including the day I went into the military, the day that I was placed on a bus in Los Angeles and driven to Fort Ord in the north by Monterey and Carmel. And I remember going in and taking my oaths, and then they marched us to that bus in LA. And I remember sitting down on the bus and there in the bus. And when they closed the door, I have to tell you, I wanted to get up and run out. I did not want to go where I was going. You ever been in a place you don't want to be here? That was me. And so I travel all the way up north and take several hours to finally get to Fort Ord. And then from the moment you're there, you're treated in a way that you're not used to being treated. Not a lot of respect. And I have to tell you, I felt like I had my feet chained that I was in the stocks unable to move. And one of the lessons I learned from that that I brought into my life now is that there are times that the Lord has placed me in a position where I can't get away so that he can tell me what exactly it is that I need to know. There have been times, and that two years in the military was part of my training for the life I live now. The things I began to learn, taking orders, learning what it means to command, what it means to follow, all of those things that I began to learn, even the small things like making your bed, all those small things that you learn in the military helped me in my life. It taught me discipline. It taught me that there are those who will give you orders in the future that you may be smarter then and you may be more qualified then. But because they hold that position and you don't, you have to listen to them. I actually learned how to take an order, because I was a rebel. I was a hippie before I got saved, and you didn't tell me what to do. I would smile at you, but I wouldn't do what you were telling me to do. I would just find a way to get away with it or appear that I was. But when I was in the military, I began to learn those things. And I began to learn what it's like to feel like you're unable to move, but it's in that place where I learned that I can't get out, that I can't move. We had a guy, I'll give you an example. A friend of mine, his name was Griffith and I, the first week we were in the military, he was my, he sat next to me on the bus. And as we went up to Fort Ord, we became friendly. And so we were there the first week, and we didn't have anything to do because basic training was going to start taking place the following week. So we had five days with nothing to do. And so the sergeant tried to keep us busy, so he sent us to some other barracks. And actually we went to a kitchen and we were supposed to do some, some KP, you know, and, and so the sergeant, the sergeant who's there turns to us and says, well, boys, you know, how do you like the army so far? Well, we were only in it for two days. But my friend said, I hate it. And all that targeting was a lifer. He didn't like it. He got mad at my friend. He said, you don't like it. You don't like this, you know, this man's army. And then he says, he was the cook. And he says to my friend, I've been serving all this time and you ungrateful punk. He was really mad. You ungrateful punk after I've done all this time in the military. And I'm just standing. I'm a new Christian. I'm just like, you know, go for it, bro. I'm just sitting there and the sergeants yelling at him. And my friend says, what do you mean you've been fighting for me? You're a cook. What do you do? Oh, that guy got so mad. He almost hit him with his apron. I mean, he was really angry. So you know what he did? He kicked us out of his kitchen. So we didn't have to pull KP. We just went out. He said, what a good friend you've turned out to be because we didn't have to do anything. But as we're there learning those little things, learning those things, that's when God began to teach me, you have a commitment. You have to fulfill it. You will learn things if you stay here. And that was very important in my growing up, because as a Christian there are things that I have to do sometimes that my flesh doesn't want to do. And there are times that I've said, I want to get out of this so badly. I don't want to do this. And the Lord has said, you need to stay right there because where you are right now is a place that I'm working with you best. There may be some in this room right now going through something that you're begging God to get you out of. And God is saying, I will when you learn your lesson. I will when you learn what I'm teaching you. And if you don't want to learn it this time and you find a way to get yourself out of the stocks, you're going to be finding yourself back in them. Because I will not let you go to lesson two till you learn lesson one. And if you get that early in your walk, you're going to be used by the Lord. But if you're that one who has to be told over and over and over and over again, the same thing, you're going to learn the same thing over and over. You don't go to step two till you learn step one. And you can have this feeling like my feet are in the stocks. I feel like you've locked me in. You've set a limit for the soles of my feet. In other words, I'm a captive. I don't know what to do. You've made it impossible for me to escape. And then he goes on and finally says in verse 28, man decays like a rotten thing, like a garment that is moth eaten. That was a sweet thing to close with, right? Man from the moment of conception is slowly dying. We end up worn out and we end up decaying. Again, forgive me for repeating something some of you have already heard possibly more than once. I don't know. Just before I got saved, I was in my late teens. Life was not turning out the way that I had hoped it would. And I started finding my enjoyment in life by taking drugs. I especially liked smoking pot and all of that. That was my drug of choice, if you will. I enjoyed it a lot. And I can still remember two friends and I were driving and I was in the back seat and we were loaded. And it was quiet for a moment. And I still remember saying to them, you know what? We're not living. We're dying. I said, from the moment we were born to this moment now, we have been in the slow process of death. And my friend in the front seat turns and says, shut up, man. You're such a bummer, man. You're bumming me out, man. But I was already thinking of that. I was already thinking of that. You know? I was 18. I was 18. 18 years old. And I was already seeing that. 18 years old. And I already had a friend named Ray Casada who was shot in the head and killed it right across the street from my house. A kid that I'd known since I was five years old got shot and killed. I'd already seen that. I used to deliver flowers for a florist in Whittier and I took a wreath to place on a casket. I was 18 to place on a casket. And I remember taking this wreath and placing it on the casket and I had read the card and it was a name that seemed familiar to me. So I put the wreath on the casket and looked into the face of a dead boy who was 18 years old. A boy, a young man that I had been partying with three weeks before who had died of drug overdose and I didn't know he had died. There I am dropping a wreath off looking into the face of a friend of mine that had died just a couple of weeks ago. I had a friend named Dave Smith. Dave Smith had a motorcycle. He dropped acid in some reds and drank, got on his motorcycle, went driving in Whittier, went speeding down the street, was so loaded he couldn't control his bike and he went face first into the corrugated bumper of a parked pickup truck who was 18 years of age. And I started seeing this more and more and more and more. And I began to think there's no guarantee that I'm going to live beyond 18. There's no guarantee that I'll ever turn 19. I started thinking very seriously about that. See, 18 year old, 17 year olds, we're invulnerable. We'll never die. We'll never be hurt. We're going to survive. But I'm starting to see friends, close friends, close friends, Billy Coger, you know, a friend of mine, he's had a tasty freeze in Santa Fe Springs down the street from Santa Fe High School. He'd been stabbed once before. Now he's at this place and survived. Now he's at the tasty freeze and he gets in a fight and the guy stabs him again and his last words are, oh no, not again. And he dies at the age of 17, 18 years old. I started seeing that. I started seeing that. I was with a friend of mine. We went to a party. Some guys started some trouble. My friend was a brawler. There were too many people. We went down the street. We got seven carloads of people who were part of the majestic car club at that time. Seven carloads of guys. We came back to the party and my friend, I was with him when he stabbed this guy who had caused the problem with us. I come home with blood on my shirt and my brother Frank says to me, where were you? I said, man, you should have, man, this is crazy. This stuff that's going on in my life now is crazy. And my brother, who was not a believer, says to me, you got to get out of that life because you're going to end up like Ray, you've got to get out of that. And I said, oh, whatever. But I started thinking. I started thinking there's something better than this. I'm not living. I am dying. It's what he's saying. Man decays like a rotten thing, like a garment that is moth eaten. I learned that. I learned that. Then I learned that through Christ, I'll live forever, that my sins are forgiven, that I'm a new creation, that life has a purpose and that God loves me. And those are the things that Job is really crying for. He just doesn't understand it yet. God, I want to speak to you. God's got some words to say to him later on. And that's what happens. You can go through these things sometimes and you say, Lord, I want to speak to you. I feel like I'm trapped. I feel like I'm a prisoner. I can't get away. You're pursuing me. What's going on? The Lord has an answer. Sometimes he keeps us in a certain place until we're finally prepared to hear what he has to say. So don't be kicking against the prods. Learn what God wants you to learn while you're there. And when you learn that, you become more like him. And that's the bottom line, isn't it? To be more like him.