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Guest (Male): Addressing the problem of a fair-weather friend, here's pastor Tom Keller.

Pastor Thom Keller: Don't be a fair-weather friend. The definition there is a person who stops being a friend in times of difficulty. Now, we understand that on a human level. You have a friend and he says he's your friend and in tough times come and he bails, he runs. He's nowhere to be found. But the same applies to God. Don't be a fair-weather friend to God. You know, people come to me and say I'm mad at God because this or that happens to me. That's a fair-weather friend.

Guest (Male): Augustine once quipped if two friends ask you to judge a dispute, don't accept because you'll lose a friend. But on the other hand, if two strangers come with the same request, accept because you'll gain a friend. Wise words and it underscores the fragility of some friendships. Glad you're with us today on Study the Word with pastor Tom Keller. As we continue the story of Job, we'll hear about his friendship with God. It endures the storm. Pastor Tom.

Pastor Thom Keller: Job 2 verse 1. It says one day the angels came again to present themselves before the Lord and Satan the accuser came with them. Where have you come from? The Lord asked Satan. And Satan answered the Lord, I have been going back and forth across the earth watching everything that's going on. Then the Lord asked Satan, Have you noticed my servant Job? He's the finest man in all the earth, a man of complete integrity. He fears God and will have nothing to do with evil. And he has maintained his integrity even though you persuaded me to harm him without cause.

Satan replied to the Lord, skin for skin. He blesses you only because you bless him. A man will give up everything he has to save his life, but take away his health and he will surely curse you to your face. All right, do with him as you please, the Lord said to Satan, but spare his life. So Satan left the Lord's presence and he struck Job with a terrible case of boils from head to foot. You know, the question why did God let this happen to me? Have you ever asked that question? God, why have you let this happen to me?

You know, maybe the answer back from God to you back then would have been there's no cause there's no cause in you for it. Sometimes we know what the reason is, right? We're in prison because we did something we shouldn't have done or something we deny we did but we did. And there we are. But there are sometimes like Job where you didn't do anything. You really did not do a single thing. And that's what happened here because in verse 3 it says you caused me to harm Job without cause. So Job was allowed to be injured without any cause.

And I've said this before but when you go through difficulties in life, trials in life, there are two questions you need to ask. The first question is this, Do I have any responsibility for this? Did I do something that implicates me in why I'm going through this? So I I got smart with the boss. I said something to the boss and he sent me home or he fired me. And I'm mad at him. But I pray that prayer and I say yeah, you know what? I got in this face. I am responsible for this. That's the first question.

But the second one is really important one. The second one is if the answer is no to that, if you did not do anything that implicates you in this, then the question is then the only thing God looks to you for is then what is my response to be before God? What's my response to be? Cuz I I don't have to fix anything. I didn't break it. I don't have to go and do something. I didn't do it. But God is allowing it like here without cause. So then the question begins. So God, how should I respond to this?

Now, instead of going out and being aggressive in repairing, now you internalize, you stay inside and you pray God, how can I respond in a Christ-like way to what happened? Cuz I'm not I'm not the reason that this happened like Job. He said, Satan, you convinced me to harm Job without cause. So when this happens, I think when you haven't created it, what God is saying to you is I'm not spanking you. I'm not punishing you. But the truth is I know that through this it'll bring you closer to me, closer to me. Do we like that answer?

No, I I can get closer another way, right? I don't need this to get close. You know, just say Tom get close, I'll get close, take this pain away. But you know the reality is and some someone mentioned this last week but this is true. If a shepherd has a little lamb and the lamb wanders, do you know what they do to the lamb? The shepherd breaks the leg so that he then carries it on his shoulders cuz it can't walk on its own. And that lamb becomes dependent on the shepherd and never loses that dependency again.

And that kind of what he does with us sometimes he he lets us break our legs so we cry out, so we lean on him, so we we rest on him, so we throw our arms over his shoulders and let him pull us along. And it makes us dependent on him. Yeah. So that's the first point. And then Job gets these boils. It says verse 7, so Satan left the presence of the Lord and he struck Job with a terrible case of boils from head to foot. Then Job scraped his skin with a piece of broken pottery as he sat among the ashes.

Now, boils in Hebrew some of you are going to like this so I want to cover your ears. Boil in Hebrew means an inflamed spot, inflammation, eruption, ulcer. And it says they covered his entire body, head to foot. So I picture all over his face, the bottom of his feet, on his hands, palms, neck, lips, ears, cheeks, everywhere. Now, what do we know about the boils? Well, from different verses this is what we know. Chapter 30 verse 28 it says it made his skin dark. Chapter 7 verse 5 means if he was constantly erupting with pus.

My wife does not like the word pus and I was anxious to use this all day long today. I don't use that word at home, do I? But I have to hear for Bible study. Okay. Did you get that constantly erupting with 30 30 constantly peeling chapter 30 verse 30 in a fever chapter 7 16 he's in depression 16 16 weeping 7 4 sleeplessness 19 7 he has putrid breath 16 16 he is failing vision and 19 verse 20 he is rotting teeth. This guy is in bad shape. This guy needs the leaves from the tree of the New Jerusalem.

Yeah, let me read something here to you. An English doctor in London by the name of Harvey suggests that Job was actually a victim of psychosomatic dermatitis. Now, there is a good one for you. The word of God says he was covered with boils and this Christian doctor said he had psychosomatic dermatitis. That shows you what becoming a doctor can do for you. Psychosomatic dermatitis is a disease of the skin induced by anxiety. Well, I don't think the explanation of it but the doctor wasn't there to diagnose it personally. So I can contradict him. Dr.

Harvey has written about this in a medical magazine. He goes on to say that in the study that the book points out Job's insomnia, terrifying dreams, general state of anxiety all now generally accepted as psychosomatic dermatitis. Remember that the next time you have to scratch yourself, at least you will know the name of your disease. Dr. Charles Brim, a New York heart specialist, diagnosed Job's illness as pellagra, a vitamin deficiency disease. Now, you can take your choices between these two diagnoses. As a matter of fact, it has even been suggested that he had cancer. I hope you won't mind if I just say he had boils.

Whatever it was, the man was in real trouble. I like the way he ends that. Now, remember as you see this man sitting there and that is a hideous picture and it was worse than that. On top of that, remember as he's sitting there this was the wealthiest man, a man on the top of God's A-list that before getting the boils lost everything. Remember? He lost his children, his property, his cattle, his ox and his camels. He lost everything. And now on top of that he now is stricken with these boils. And Job then scrapes himself, it says.

Then verse 8 then Job scraped his skin with a piece of broken pottery as he sat among the ashes. As he sat among the ashes. So a pot shared is a piece of broken clay pottery. Now, can you picture that? Picture that man with erupting boils everywhere and he takes a a piece of pottery maybe the size of a of a big soup spoon. And pottery shards are not real sharp. I mean it's not like this is going to be knife-like, knife-edge sharp. It's going to be a pretty blunt instrument. And he's just just scraping all this stuff off.

Can you picture that? Erupting boils everywhere, scraping that word that I'm not going to say again off. Don't even think about that word. And the skin. And then in verse 8 it says he sat among the ashes. The commentary said and this is a good picture to get here. The commentary said that he probably was in the garbage dump outside the city which indicates that he was an outcast from society. This is the same place where leopards would go, where leopards would hang out in the garbage dump outside the city. Many times they would throw their garbage over the wall of the city and that's where leopards would hang out.

And so that may have been where Job was outside the wall among the garbage possibly with leopards. Let's go on. Verse 9 it says his wife said to him, Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die. But Job replied, I wonder if there was a pause here. Did he have to think about this or did this just come quickly to his mind or did he have to think about this? Doesn't say. She said, Are you still trying to maintain your integrity? Curse God and die. Remember what remember what she saw? She saw him lose everything, little break.

And now he's stricken like this. But Job replied, You talk like a godless woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad? So in all this Job did nothing wrong. Now, here we are introduced to Job's wife. First time she shows up. And many there are many derogatory comments have been made about Job's wife. Comments like this. If you ever wondered why Satan didn't take Job's wife at the same time it took his children, it's because Satan knew that she would team up with him against her husband. And there's some truth to that.

She did not offer solace. But Beth Mirenus who was here the one night she's not here tonight but she made this comment several weeks back about this and it's a great comment. I never thought of this before. She said this, Listen, Job's wife lost everything too. She lost everything. She lost the children that she bore. She lost all the possessions, all the security. She lost all of her possessions. And remember Job's wife did not know why God would have allowed this. But if you think back to the timing of these losses, how it happened, it was definitely supernatural.

This never could have happened just in the natural. God, from their vantage point, we know Satan did it. They didn't know the the beginning part. From her vantage point, God did this to us. Now, think something through. At that point before the boils, she could have said, God did this to you and me. Now, when he struck with boils, it kind of looks like he's a culprit. You get it? Her logical thought would have been not being privy to the Satan, the God and the Satan chess game thing. This happened because of something my husband did because again there's no way you could ever say that that the losses happen in a natural way.

Now, although it's nowhere stated that as that it is very probable, this idea is carried on throughout the Bible. Again we said Job is probably the earliest book in the Bible back to close to the time of Abraham. And it carried on this idea that problems, difficulties happen in your life because of sin in your life was prevalent in this day as we're going to see with his friends all the way up until Jesus's day, all the way up until today. If you look at John, the Gospel of John chapter 9 John 9 verse 1 this makes a a perfect case for this.

John 9 verse 1 it says as Jesus was walking along he saw a man who had been blind from birth. Teacher, his disciples asked him, Why was that man born blind? Was it a result of his own sins or those of his parents? Now, don't miss what happened here. There was no third option. They didn't say Jesus was it because of this or this or was it for another reason? There was no third reason. They said was it his sin or the sins of his parents? They knew this man was born blind because the man sinned or because his parents sinned.

Now, how could you be born blind and it be your fault from birth? You can't sin until you're born. He was born blind. Interesting premise. But back in Jesus's day, just remember this, the natural thinking was that if you were sick or poor, it was God's curse upon you because of your sin. And if you were wealthy, it was an evidence that God you found God's favor because he blessed you with money. That was the understanding of the Pharisees. That was a general understanding of the Jewish population. It's the same back here with him in Job's Job's the understanding of Job's friends which you've seen in a moment.

God would never let this happen to someone who pleased him. So he says to his wife in response to that he says you talk like a godless woman. I looked up 14 different translations on that and it says either foolish woman or godless woman. You talk like a foolish woman. And so her conclusion could have been anticipated based on what people believe about illness and why you get ill. But what a solution she offers her husband? Think about this. She says, Curse God and die. Curse God and die. Imagine that. Imagine your wife saying to you, Curse God and die.

I can't imagine. Now, of interest, she obviously completely lost her faith because she doesn't see any possibility in the reversal of his health or his fortune's lost. We know all that does come back. We know that does happen. She has no faith to believe that's possible. So she says, Job, your only way out of this is to die. She sees death as the only thing good that can can come to Job. One thing interesting about her motives Anderson says this about what she said. It must be admitted that we cannot tell just what she is proposing and even less what her motive was.

If this distraught woman can no longer endure the sight of her husband, her tormented husband and for love's sake would rather see him die and end his misery then her desperate remedy could be pardoned. The simple sequence, Curse God and die could mean Curse God before you die. That is while there's still time. She wants God cursed more than she wants even her husband's death. That's pretty wicked. Let's read that again. Or Curse God and die could mean Curse God before you die. That is while there's still time. She knows Job's going to die so she says, Curse him before you die so you don't lose your opportunity of cursing.

That's pretty harsh, could be. But even in Job's response he reflects his unwavering integrity. He does not curse her. He does not call her godless or wicked. He tones it down and calls her merely foolish. In Hebrew it's foolish, senseless. And yet and Job's words are so wise. The second party says, Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad? So in all of this Job said nothing wrong. You know, Jay Vernon McGee said this. He said, Remember God's character was assassinated by Satan before all the angels in heaven.

When Satan implied to God, You're not worthy to be loved. Remember? He said, You have to pay Job to love you and serve you. And Satan said that in front of all of the angels in heaven. And my guess is they gasped when he said that. He Satan attempted to assassinate the character of God by saying the only reason Job served him was because God served Job. Let me read this. This is good. It says, How about it friend? Are we just time servers? Are we paid lovers? God is good and God is merciful to us.

We rejoice in his goodness but when we are under trial that is when it reveals our true character. The fires always burn off the dross, you know and testing reveals what is genuine. We are to be lights in this world. Light is for the darkness and God puts us in the darkness so that our lights will shine. God has not promised us an easy life to any of his children. On the contrary, we are told that we are told that the way will be rough. If we suffer with him, we will reign with him. And so the idea here is what Job said is, Should we accept only good things from the hand of the Lord?

Here's the point. Don't be a fair-weather friend. The definition there is a person who stops being a friend in times of difficulty. Now, we understand that on a human level. You know, you have a friend and he says he's your friend and in tough times come and he bails, he runs. He's nowhere to be found. But the same applies to God. Don't be a fair-weather friend to God. You know, people come to me and say I'm mad at God because this or that happens to me. That's a fair-weather friend. That's a fair-weather friend. It always makes me sad to hear people complain about God in that way.

Really makes me sad because when things are going well in your life, you're happy, you're praising God, you're saying praise God, things are so good right now. Man, I don't know how I could be happier like from watching the Lord do things in my life. And then you have a turn of events and you turn against God. Think how that feels to God. You know, how how you just bail on him. I'm mad at God because this or that happened to me. That's that's a fair-weather friend. You know, when I was 30 I shared this before but when I was 30 I gave my life to Christ.

I was suicidal. I didn't want to live. I was had a tree all picked out down Sinclair Hill in 501 coming back from the dealership of Liddits. And I knew I'd hit it and everybody knew I drew drove too fast anyways so they just think well he lost it one time and that was it. God pulled me out of that in one night one night. It was I went from the pit, the bottom of the pit, under the bottom of the pit to the next day just being filled with joy. It was incredible. Incredible. One night, one night.

I remember the next day seeing colors I I had and remembered seeing since I was a kid. I remember looking at the skies. I drove my car seeing the blue sky thinking I don't remember I don't remember the last time I noticed that the sky is blue. Everything changed. There's my point. I was so grateful for what God brought me out of. That's why my prayer was remember the pit. If you were in the pit guys, ladies, don't ever forget that pit. You remember where he brought you from. You remember that. But as a part of that when I said that I said God, I am so grateful for what you got me out of, what you delivered me from.

I always chase that thought down with this thought and God, I hope and pray that when things get good, if they get good, that I don't then forget about you and what you did for me. I don't want to be a fair-weather friend. I don't want to be one of those people that's that's all lovey-dovey when I need you but when everything's good then I bail and then I don't have time for you because I've got too many things to do. I don't want to be that person. Job wasn't that person. He wasn't a fair-weather friend.

That's what his wife is saying, Look, you be a fair-weather friend. He said, No, no, I'm in this. I'm in this to the end, good or bad. God sends good things, God sends bad things, God allows good things, God allows bad things. Blessed be the name of the Lord. I am not turning away. Be one of those people guys. If there's a lesson you learn from this first two chapters of Job that is practical application in your life, that's it right there. Do not be a fair-weather friend. Do not.

Guest (Male): We'll hear more of Job's gripping story next time on Study the Word. We'll also be introduced to Job's three friends. Pastor Tom Keller is in a study of Job right now. Glad you could take part in it. Would you like to give this a second listen? Either go to our website at ccleb.com or visit our YouTube page. Simply subscribe to our channel at Calvary Chapel Lebanon and you can watch our services live or on demand. For those interested in a CD copy, call us at 717 273 5633. Once again, that's 717 273 5633. It takes a team to bring Study the Word to this station and many others like it.

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