Dr. Tony Evans answers the profound question of why we face suffering and adversity. Join him as he highlights the concept of God’s sovereignty in allowing trials and tests in one’s life and the importance of maintaining faith through challenges. SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/drtonyev… If you would like to download two encouraging, FREE full-length MP3s of Tony’s popular sermons: “The Sovereignty of God” and “How to Handle a Crisis,” you can do so by clicking on this link: https://share.hsforms.com/1atT9MJvXQN…
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Dr. Tony Evans is the founder and senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, founder and president of The Urban Alternative and author of over 100 books, booklets and Bible studies. The first African American to earn a doctorate of theology from Dallas Theological Seminary, he has been named one of the 12 Most Effective Preachers in the English-Speaking World by Baylor University. Dr. Evans holds the honor of writing and publishing the first full-Bible commentary and study Bible by an African American. His radio broadcast, The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, can be heard on over 1,400 radio outlets daily and in more than 130 countries. Dr. Evans’ sermons are also streamed and downloaded over 20,000,000 times annually.
God will use trouble for you to get a
bigger view of him it’s a difference
hearing about God and seeing him it’s a
different knowing the truth and seeing
the truth work even when you lose you
don’t lose because God will take
eternity match it with history so he
still fulfills his word even in a unique
way
[Music]
thank you
one of the most
challenging questions that all of us
have faced
many of us have verbalized it most of us
have fought it
is to ask God why
throughout the scriptures there are
numbers of people
great people people that we admire
respect and hold and high biblical
esteem
who asked God why
but the biggest why as far as humans are
concerned probably the biggest biggest
why is Jesus on the cross my God my God
why
hath Thou forsaken me but in terms of
our own human trouble
the biggest why is job
job is
the idyllic man
he is
you might call him a man for all seasons
he’s
everything in his life recorded in the
first five verses of Job 1 is what we
would love all of our Lives to be
we’re told in verse one he was a man
full of Faith he feared God and he
turned away from evil
he was not only a man of strong faith he
was a man with a solid family
he talked about verse two his seven sons
and his three daughters
and this is the one most of us would
like it was a man of great Fortune
but now in verse 6 there is a turn
as successful as he was
something begins to happen that
collapses his world
but now he’s going to become a man of
suffering
so just because you have faith
just because you come from a silent
family
and you got a little change in your
doesn’t mean that you have brought
yourself out of problems
so to understand what job is going
through and what you may very well might
be or will or have been going through
we have to go back to understand
something verse 6.
now there was a day when the sons of God
came to present themselves before the
Lord and Satan also came among them
and the Lord said to Satan
from where do you come
then Satan answered the Lord
and said from roaming about on the earth
walking around on it
you have God calling a meeting of the
Angelic host
called the sons of God
so angels and demons have gathered
Satan is part of the Gathering
Daniel chapter 7 verse 10. puts it in
these words
let me read verse 9. I kept looking
until the Thrones were set up and the
Ancient of Days took his seat God his
vesture was like white snow and the hair
of his head was like pure wool his
throne was Ablaze with flames its Wheels
were a burning fire a river a fire was
flowing and coming out from before him
thousands upon thousands were attending
him and myriads upon mirrors were
standing before him the court sat
and the books were open
so the Gathering in job
is the court scene that is described
when the thousands and thousands of
angels who were called sons of God in
job are gathered
because court is called in session
we have explained to you and me that
your relationship with God on Earth is a
spiritual one but it is also a
legislative one it is a legal Gathering
if you do not grasp the legality of your
life
on Earth by what’s happening based on
what’s happening in heaven then you will
not formally realize what is happening
to you
Satan and the angels are called to court
because that’s the reason for the
Gathering there is a grand jury in
session
and God asked Satan
where you been boy what’s the caseload
today
now I’m going back you remember
Revelation 12
7-11
he is an accuser of the brethren
the Greek word accused means to bring
legal lawsuit
so Satan wants to bring legal lawsuit
against you
and he wants to do it for one overriding
purpose Daniel 7 verse 10 says the books
were opened
Psalm 139 verse 16
says that when God made you he put you
in a book
the book is the substance Psalm 139 16
says of your life
it’s your story
as God has desired it and designed it to
be
so you have a book
Satan’s goal is for you to not realize
what’s written in your book
in other words he wants to deny you your
destiny
he wants to deny you God’s plan goal for
your life
Satan’s goal is to keep that book from
being realized to keep your destiny and
he does that by accusing you that is
bringing up a case against you
when what have you been doing devil
he says I’ve been walking to and fro
I have been walking around the trading
floor of Earth
to and fro the Earth verse 7 of job one
says walking around it
and then God
does something that we don’t like
he helps the devil out
verse 8.
have you considered my servant job
why are you walking around looking for
folks to mess with
why don’t you check job out
maybe you feel like God told the devil
to check you out
why don’t you check Joe please notice
what he calls Joe my servant
so God
tell Satan
to check out somebody
Satan never brought up
God brought him up
have you checked out my servant job
because he is the goat
there is no one like him verse 8 on
Earth blameless upright fearing God
turning from evil
the big question is why
why would God do this
why would he allow the debt why would he
help the devil if God if the devil can’t
find me you don’t help him
you don’t give him my house address you
don’t tell him where I live
um
you don’t you don’t let him email me
Satan said something Joe Joe hmm
I know about Joe
because he’s the greatest man on Earth
so so I know about him does job serve
you for nothing
in order for Satan to accuse he has to
have a basis of accusation yeah
blameless
and all of his actions but God I think I
got something
sometimes job’s motives are wrong
you know that he does all the right
things but he doesn’t always do all the
right things for the right reason
does he serve you for nothing
or if he like a lot of folk you know he
just served you for his Blessing
I’m coming to get my blessing I want God
to you know give me a new car a new
house new clothes you know I’ll I
challenge job based on motivation
I can’t blame him for his actions
because he either doesn’t do wrong or he
sacrifices when he does do wrong so he’s
back in fellowship with me but I want to
get into his mind
because all of us knows what it is to do
the right things with the wrong thoughts
to do the right things with the wrong
motivation
to justify our actions
because of our thinking
he says I know what I can do I can
attack job on the motivational level
but I got a problem God
the devil says I got I do have a problem
with with this because you brought him
off I didn’t bring him up but since you
brought him up brought him up I can deal
with him on the motivational level but I
got a problem have you verse 10 not made
a hedge around him his house and all
that he has on every side you have
blessed the work of his hand and his
possessions have increased in the land
he says I got a problem and that is you
have put a restraining order on me
that’s what a hedge is it’s a restraint
the reason I haven’t been able to get
the job is you have blocked me
you have surrounded him with a
protective shield so that that’s the
only reason I can’t get to him and if
you if you ever take the leash off of me
if you ever if you ever let me loose and
remove the restraining order
then I’ma show you that job’s motivation
is enough to accuse him
now there’s a whole lot of theology
there
because one
Satan knows about the restraining order
to
he can’t do anything until God moves it
yes
so to remind you from one of our other
messages that means that
Satan has to get God’s permission to be
the devil
that he’s got to ask God is it okay to
mess with you
and so he says if you will remove the
Hedge
if you’ll remove this protective shield
then I can show you he ain’t all that in
a bag of chips
because I can get him on the
motivational level put forth your hand
verse 11. and stretch it out
and he will surely curse you and your
face
because
the only reason he’s serving you is
because of stuff
you’ve been giving him a good life take
away the good life he ain’t gonna be all
that Christian
you ain’t gonna be loving the Lord
because he’s only doing this to get his
Blessing
and unfortunately today we live in a
fourth day when folk want to use God
he’s good as long as he giving me my
stuff
the Lord said to Satan
behold all that he has is in your power
only do not put forth your hand on him
Satan God releases
the restraining order
to a point
okay I’m gonna let you touch his stuff
I’ll say something about it in a moment
but I’m not going to let you touch him
so not only does god control
whether the devil does something
he controls how much he allows the devil
to do
but notice how much the devil was
allowed to do was connected to his
relationship with job
job is a blameless man
job’s an honorable man he fears God so
if you don’t fear God if you don’t care
about the Lord what you have just done
is
strengthen and
elongated the leash
of what Satan is allowed to do
he says
okay but don’t touch him
and then he comes into the worst 24
hours of his life
beginning with verse 13.
he loses his kids in a collapse
he loses his business 14 and 15.
fire comes down and consumes everything
16.
band of Raiders come in
and destroy everything 17.
everything collapses and this is one
thing to have one bad thing today
it’s another thing to have
everything happening on the same day
this is a massive collapse Allowed by
God please understand me here
the most important doctrine that you can
learn as a Christian
is the gospel the good news of Jesus
Christ faith alone in Christ alone for
the Forgiveness of sins and the gift of
eternal life to accept Christ as your
personal substitute is the greatest
truth you can learn but the second
greatest truth you can learn is the
sovereignty of God
this is very important
because if you don’t believe God is
Sovereign you live your life by luck
chance happenstance fate
when life crushes in on you if you don’t
have a handle on the sovereignty of God
you will collapse at the work of the
devil
[Applause]
when his whole world falls apart
verse 20. then Joe Rose
tore his robe shaved his head
fell on the ground and worshiped oh no
he didn’t
women
but worshiping when your world has
fallen apart
worshiping when
your world has collapsed on you
now don’t get me wrong this is not this
is not you know play worship because
he’s still grieving
he’s still shaving his head he’s still
tearing his robe he’s still falling to
the ground he’s still in emotional
despair while worshiping do you know you
can worship God in pain
[Applause]
what I’m trying to say is when God
allows the devil to do whatever he
allows to do in your life that is the
time to draw to him not run from him
he says he worshiped naked I came from
my mother’s womb naked I shall return
there the Lord gives the Lord takes away
blessed be the name of the Lord
through watch this through all this job
did not sin verse 22 nor did he blame
God
so when it falls apart you worship
when you falls apart you say God I don’t
understand
[Applause]
in Chapter 2 job loses his health
boils break out on his skin
his wife tells him to curse God and die
he says in verse 9 do you still hold on
to your integrity Curse God and die
I’ve been wanting to get rid of you a
long time anyway Curse God and die
says you speak as one verse 10 of the
foolish women
shall I indeed accept good from God and
not accept adversity
his friends are trying to figure it out
he says in verse three oh that
I knew where I might find him
God
that I might come to his seat
he says I’m going through all this pain
and God has nowhere to be found
verse 10 but I know the way I take
when he has tried me
I shall come forth as God
he says
I can’t find him
but I know what I’m going to do
I’m gonna keep going
I’m not gonna throw in the towel I’m not
gonna quit
and when he has tried me
I will come forth as pures go he says
the Reason God is silent
is I’m on trial
because he said earlier I want to take
my seat
that’s that’s that’s a courtroom analogy
he says when God is silent I’m on trial
okay watch this now
when you don’t hear from God
and you need heaven and heaven doesn’t
answer your request
it is because you are now in The
Crucible
of preparation
for recovery
you’re now when he goes silent on you
and you are suffering but you know the
way you take you’re going to keep going
you’re going to keep the faith you’re
going to keep trusting even though you
don’t see him he is putting you on trial
so that he says when you come forth you
will come pures go
after everybody else is talk God speaks
God said let me let me explain something
Joe
let me let you know who you dealing with
let me let you know here here is the
first thing you’re going to get in your
trouble
if you will hold on in your worship to
the sovereignty of God in spite of the
Pains of life you will get a bigger view
of God
this little tiny God you’ve been coming
to church singing to is now going to
expand in your understanding
God will use trouble for you to get a
bigger view of him God will use
difficulty for you to stop being
churchified and become a recognized
person of how great and glorious you
know what heaven’s Gonna Be Heaven if I
can Define heaven for you it will simply
be the uninterrupted knowledge of God
so he comes to the last chapter
42.
job has been listening
and God has been blowing his mind
then job answered the Lord after the
Lord blows his mind was how awesome he
is but nowhere does he give him the
explanation
I know that you can do all things
you the goat
and that no purpose of yours can be
forewarted I have discovered you are in
charge
who is this that hides Kent’s counsel
without knowledge who does man think he
is that he can outsmart God
therefore I have declared that which I
did not understand
my view of God has changed
and the thing that changed it was my
trouble brought on by the devil that God
okayed
now I have seen you with my own eyes
therefore I retract
37 chapters
I’ve been talking to me and my my Posse
for 37 chapters and we are we talking
smack
we talking stuff we don’t even know what
we talking about
me talking noise I retract and I Repent
in dust and Ashes
one of job’s problems was he thought he
knew more than he knew
and he had to have his knowledge base of
God expanded and God let the devil set
it up for it to happen
God has a purpose
for your life and in everybody’s purpose
Destiny your book while it’s distinct
and how that works out in your life
everybody has one thing in everybody’s
book that is the same the greater
knowledge of God
then we come to the conclusion
he repents and by the way
um in Scripture
the um Isaiah 43 Verse 25-28
says State your case to God
uses legal terminology State your case
repent of your sins and remove their
Devil’s legal right to attack you
then the Lord verse 10 restored the
fortunes of job
okay watch this now when he prayed for
his friends
um
job needed help for him
his world is falling apart his world had
collapsed
but not until he prayed for his friends
did the fortune change
so I want to say it and say it again
minister
while you suffer very interesting the
Lord increased all that job had twofold
everything doubled
so in closing look
you got a book I got a book we got a
book that book is your destiny Satan
wants to steal your destiny
by distracting you from God and trading
making money your god making power your
god making popularity your god making
notoriety your God he wants to trade
with you because he’s going to make
something in this world looks more
important and more potent and more
profitable and better than God and
following him he wants to do the trade
but the one-third of angels that traded
with him will be in Hell forever
when you trade with the devil you pay
interest payments for eternity or maybe
all of history but God has allowed an
appeal process
that if you go to God in Repentance and
appeal your case before him
he can reverse the decision and you can
pick up the next chapter in your book
get your book out ask God to show you
where you are in it and then fulfill
your destiny so that when you stand
before the Lord you hear well done my
good and faithful servant
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
thank you
[Music]
foreign
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