Heaven Called My Name
For context, this biblical narrative is found in Job, Chapter 1.
...have you ever been at work and overheard your boss talking about you to someone else? or your boss' boss talking about you in passing?
If you’re a part of a big company. it's interesting to know people are talking about you.
You might wonder what they're talking about. and you wish you would’ve heard more of the conversation... but it's funny, just the fact that they Are talking about you, means that they took notice-- maybe for some bad thing you’re doing, or perhaps for some good things you are doing-- but they took notice.
and that’s exactly what happened to Job, who had no idea how drastically his life would change due to this one conversation in heaven.
"...Have you considered my servant Job?"
That’s who this message is all about: the life and story of Job.
This is the story of a righteous man. a family man. a man who was blameless and feared God and shunned evil. He had what seemed to be a good life-
a wife, kids, many servants, a few thousand animals. the bible actually called him the greatest man in all of the east at that time.
but one day he got a report from an out of breath messenger:
“some bandits stole your ox and your donkeys. oh and they killed all of your servants!”
he didn't even finish when the next guy said:
“the fire of God came down from heaven and burned the sheep alive, along w the servants”
this guy wasn't even done when someone else said:
“the Chaldeans came and stole your camels!”
this guy wasn't even done when they said:
“your kids, man. They were feasting at the house, and a mighty wind came and collapsed the whole piece.”
"No--not my kids….”
“they, they didn't make it.”
And what happened next was a defining moment in Job’s character.
It’s the reason why we are still inspired by this scripture, 1000’s of years later. After hearing all of this terrible news back to back to back, Job ripped up his clothes. and fell to the floor in worship.
"naked I came from my mother’s womb, naked I will depart."
***
now I know many that can be alright with losing material things-- many can say the phrase: "the Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised."
But sometimes hearing more than one piece of bad news at a time can break somebody. I can only handle one bombshell moment at a time.
But I can’t deal with them all piled up, all in the same month.
Don’t pile up tragedy upon tragedy, because not everybody can handle that.
But after ripping his clothes, Job fell to the floor in worship.
he fell in worship cuz. what else could he do ?
who else could he turn to ?
this was his best option.
Job chose his best option.
see, while others rush to blame the spouse-
“well why weren't you watchin’ the kids? Where were you??”
Others blame themselves-
“See that’s why I can never have nice things. Jake you did it again...Cuz I always find a way to mess it up…”
(but this was not your fault…)
others blame God himself-
when CLEARLY it was the devil at work here.
We’re lucky that this is one of the few times the behind-the-scenes is revealed.
and can I point out that the messenger said it was the ‘fire of God’ that burned the sheep alive?
be careful of people who are quick to identify the source of the fire. Because in this case it was not God !God wasn't to blame here. and yet sometimes we sit there and blame God, and even Curse God
(well, that’s what his wife would’ve done...)
but Job doesn't do any of that.
its as if he looks up at God, right there from the ground, and, as Devastated as he is,
he gives thanks ? to God…
like he Blesses the name of the Lord. he gives praise; he turns to worship.
“naked I came, naked I’ll go. but I will Bless the Lord.”
with or without the thing, I will Bless the Lord.
with or without family, I will Bless the Lord.
with or without friends. I will Bless the Lord.
with or without a father, I will Bless the Lord.
with or without a wife, I will Bless the Lord.
***
see, some people are all good until the bad thing happens.
the car gets towed. unexpected bills come. the phone cracks. And we let that dictate our mood for the day. We allow it increase anger, our pettiness, our cold-heartedness. they make that the Reason why we Won’t praise ! sheesh.
some people are good until there's traffic on i95.
and they let the bad news dictate their spiritual state and their spirituality. and the curse words come out, the middle finger comes out and all the sudden we’re not spreading the love of Christ like we’re supposed to.
Whatever you do, don’t let the bad news turn you into a bad person. Because in life, you will encounter bad news fairly often! it’s just a reality.
that’s why I love when my old Pastor would say this phrase in Spanish: “no deje que se dañe mi corazon,” which means: Don’t let my heart go bad. don't let my heart get rotten.
but what DO you do when you get bad news?
some people are good as long as there's cash in the bank, but when money gets tight, they become monsters…
don't let the thing you don't have
cause you to be someone that you're not.
Losing something-- Anything-- can be devastating. but losing an item is one thing. losing a car, a house, that’s deep, but what happens when you get news that it's family that you no longer have?
When the doctor has to break the news. When you get that phone call.
it cuts a little deeper, doesn't it?
HOW. DO. YOU. DEAL. WITH. LOSS. ???
who do you run to?
what are your coping mechanisms?
can I suggest that the only proper way to deal with this is to run to Jesus.
Everytime. every. single. time.
so turn up the praise music
get on your knees
do what you gotta do and look up
Do what you gotta do and look up!!
especially when you’re on the floor
cuz when you look up you'll see that extended hand
you'll notice the glory coming from above
you'll see that there Is help
you'll be comforted by the comforter
you'll realize that it's going to be ok.
Have you ever experienced that? If you haven’t, you should--
His presence will saturate you with gratitude
His presence will fill you with thankfulness, and thanksgiving.
He’ll remind you that there IS a God
that there IS hope
that no matter what they took from you, you still have Something left.
Tell somebody “i still got something.”
I said you still have something left!!
***
And you know who this process is especially hard for?
the people who strongly value Control and love being in Control.
For them, it's superrr devastating-
But whether you had a LOT and lost it all,
or if you had a LITTLE and lost just one thing,
please
know the devil only made a mess
all the way up to the boundary that God had set.
(you didn't get it)
I said, please know that
the devil only made a mess
all the way up to the boundary that God had set.
Do you know what that means ??
it means that God is Still in control!!!
that He always Has been in control!!!
and He always Will be in control!!!
we may not be in control, but our God is !!
God had told the devil “everything Job has is in your power,
But on the man himself do not lay a finger.” (who’s in control?)
Then later the devil comes back,
God says “you can touch his body, but you must spare his life” (who’s in control?)
And the devil came and he had a whole party on trying to make Job’s life a living hell.
He said “what?! Say no more.” He said everything he has is in my power?! That I can touch his body…?
I know what I’mma do I’mma give him sores/boils all over his body from head to toe. He’s gonna experience pain like he never felt it.
And on top of Job losing EVERYTHING: livestock, money, kids… the devil goes after his health!
God gave the devil access to reach all of these areas of Job’s life, but do you know what he couldn’t touch ??????
He couldn't touch his relationship with God!!!
See, the devil has no power over your commitment to God!
The devil has no power over your worship!
The devil has no power over your faith in Him! …his faith did not waver.
his identity stood firm because it was founded on the rock that is Jesus !
they couldn't touch his relationship with God !!
that's the ultimate flex as a Christian.
to tell the devil, "try me, I'm Still gonna serve God! you can try to hit me where it hurts but it won't ever stop me from going where I need to go!
say like the three Hebrew boys "even if he doesn't take me out of this, I STILL won't bow; I STILL won't bend;
I STILL chose to remain faithful to Him who called me."
but all this happened because heaven called his name and got him into this mess.
heaven took note and mentioned Job by name.
“...have u considered my servant Job?”
God pointed at Job and said, “HE is able to withstand your darts.
HE will stand firm no matter what life throws at him.
HE is a mighty soldier of valor who will take the hit without flinching.”
“HE will not curse me the way others would.
He is an upright man who shuns evil…”
so Job gets an honorable mention in heaven.
…heaven called his name!
heaven deemed him tough enough to take on the attack of the enemy. And heaven called his name because of the way he stood out among the people.
See, there's something noteworthy about the walk of a Christian that is making the devil trying to prove God wrong. He’s trying so hard to get you to quit and give up, and to be overwhelmed and to feel under-appreciated.
his goal is for you to curse God!!!!!
he said of course Job is chillin’. It’s because you’re protecting him.
as soon as you stop, watch how he curses you to your face.
the devil is trying to get us angry with our creator. He's trying to get us angry at each other. he's trying to divide the kingdom because he knows a kingdom divided cannot stand.
but the devil's a liar, and I refuse to curse God!
not now, not ever.
Not now, not ever!
I'd rather be like Job and use my mouth to praise him instead.
how about I'll bless the Lord instead.
how about I stomp on the enemy instead,
and show him that This faith cannot be shaken,
This commitment is not temporary, it is eternal!!!
what I have on the inside, can't no devil in hell takeaway.
my relationship with God is not up for grabs!!!!!!
***
I’m gonna close with something I watched recently on the news and I remember being in shock…
I’d heard about the devastation that has happened in Germany and Belgium with the floods [summer 2021]
they had the biggest rainfall in a century; over 50 ppl dead, hundreds gone missing. countless homes were destroyed due to this massive flood!
one person who was interviewed on the news said that it's a shame, that he knew the ppl that lived there. some ppl lost everything except what they had on them.
so the story of Job lives on. in us.
whenever we lose something.
whenever what we have is stripped from us, leaving us feeling powerless.
we know this truth, that "life happens."
you're gonna go through it, no doubt.
but how will you respond?
who will you turn to?
and will heaven rejoice in your reaction?