Job 1:1 “There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.” This sermon from American Pastor J.D. Montieth highlights the most foundational and important lessons in life from the oldest book in the Bible, the Book of Job. This sermon, the first in the series on the Book of Job, Job Chapter One, touches on God’s dealing’s with man, angels, the devil, and all of our trials and circumstances in life: “Job was not perfect in that he had no flaws, but rather is defined as one whose inward heart was sincere in his reverence for God, and his distaste for evil. Observe also that those whom God first delivers and then teaches greater truth about Himself, are those who fear Him, and seek to live their lives as perfectly before the Lord, as their weak flesh permits. See, God works with no man, who does not possess an inward desire to be both upright and blameless before Him.
For the true Christian then, not even one sin will be deemed as a small and allowable thing. And though the righteous will sin, and far more than they would ever desire, in their souls no sin will be deemed as permissible. Job was such a man as this. Where God is concerned, if men make casual allowances for their sin, they shall neither be reckoned as of God’s company, nor used for His service. There is no evil greater than sin, and if men do not flee it, and highly esteem what an affront it is to God, then it will prove impossible for them to have any true and lasting relationship with God. God is righteous, and so for any to be numbered among His people, it is His own righteous integrity that they must pursue. “Practically speaking, men should not assume that anything they have in this world can prevent unforeseen calamity. Human affluence, whether it be our status in the community, the number of friends we have, or the wealth we have accumulated, will do nothing to protect us if there are gaps in our spiritual armor. Regardless of whatever material things men possess, they should never be misled into believing that these carnal possessions will keep them impervious to spiritual attack.
This teaches us that for all true believers, who are, in fact, strangers, pilgrims, and spiritual sojourners in this earth, this world is always a dangerous place. Thus, absent a God to both protect and deliver His people, all men would be nothing but helpless prey. Because man lives in an evil and corrupt world, he cannot survive without a holy and benevolent God to assist him. Job is described as the greatest of all the men of the east, but even this could not protect him from what was to come. Remember that every man’s true help comes from the Lord and only He can protect men against attacks, which are often invisible to the human eye and proceed from spiritual wickedness from on high. To trust in anything less than the Lord, especially in times of trial, will bring heartbreaking disappointment.” This sermon was preached in the In the Mouth of Two or Three Witnesses series. Other sections of Scriptures highlighted in this sermon: Job 1:1-22, 2 Peter 1:5-8.
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