Job Chapter 36:ALL

Welcome to Cross the Bridge to study the Scriptures along with us. Before we get started with today's teaching, Pastor David wants to remind you of Hebrews 6-10, which says, Job had a lot of troubles. He's had his children killed, his crops ruined, his livestock killed, buildings destroyed, his wealth just evaporated. And he was a good man, and he knew the Lord. And all this happened.

And there's three people that are supposed to be friends, but they're not really. And they judge him, and they condemn him, and they slam him. They ought to make themselves feel better. Be very careful of anyone in your life that's constantly slamming somebody just so they can feel better. In Acts chapter 10, God says, Don't call unclean what I've called clean. And every time we talk about the sins of another believer, or sins we think they might have, let's remember that.

These three guys, for the first 20-some chapters, some of the things they say are true, but just not the right time, not the right place. And then they say some very judgmental and harsh things, and Job is affected by them. Because when you hear things, you're affected by them. That's why when somebody starts dogging somebody else out, a friend of yours or a leader hears, you've got to shut it down.

Because once you hear it, it's in there, isn't it? Sometimes when I'm coaching or counseling somebody, you know, I don't want to hear all the details, because I want to be able to minister. So Elihu comes, and Elihu is a man of God, from the get-go. The first thing he does, though, is not really give compassion to Job, because Job is, well, he's begun to be deceived, honestly. You can see it. And Elihu has to deal with that first, before he can pour the compassion and the love out.

He's got to deal with this self-deception. As believers, we're directed by the Word of God, not by our feelings, emotions, or what we just read on the Internet, but by the Word of God. You know what? Let's jump in. Let's jump in. Let's read the chapter through, then we'll come back and comment. Chapter 36 of Job, verse 1, Elihu also proceeded and said, Bear with me a little, and I will show you that there are yet words to speak on God's behalf. I will fetch my knowledge from afar.

I will ascribe righteousness to my Maker. So he's like, I got more to share. I got more to share. It's interesting, I was talking to the brothers at the marriage conference. Kind of an interesting thing happened. We had these times ascribed to each person that was sharing, and every person went long. It really personally, that really abolished me when somebody doesn't.

I'm kidding. Why did they do that? Because they have such a heart to communicate the Word of God. Thursday nights during the week, I have to remind myself. Because sometimes I get up here and I have such a passion and desire to give it. It's like, oh man, but the time, you know.

Some of you got kids and you need to get them home. And then on Sunday we got the second service. Plus, you know, you get to a point where you're kind of full. And some can receive more than others. But it's interesting, I mean, it was one of the troubling things that's going on is services are going long because there's a passion to communicate the Word of God.

Worse things could be happening. Amen. Look at verse 3. I will fetch my knowledge from afar. I will ascribe righteousness to my Maker.

For truly my words are not false. One who is perfect in knowledge is with you. The whole God is mighty, but despises no one. He is mighty in strength of understanding. Verse 6. He does not preserve the life of the wicked, but gives justice to the oppressed. He does not withdraw His eyes from the righteous, but they are on the throne with kings.

For He has seated them forever, and they are exalted. And if they are bound in fetters, held in the cords of affliction, then He tells them their work and their transgressions, that they have acted defiantly. He also opens their ear to instruction and commands that they turn from inequity. If they obey and serve Him, they shall spend their days in prosperity and their years in pleasures. But if they do not obey, they shall perish by the sword, for they shall not die without knowledge. But the hypocrites in heart store a breath. They do not cry for help when He finds them.

They die in youth, and their life ends among the perverted persons. He delivers the poor in their affliction and opens their ears in oppression. Indeed, He would have brought you out of dire distress into a broad place where there is no restraint. What you set on your table would be full of richness.

I will give you another translation there in a few minutes. But you are filled with the judgment due the wicked. Judgment and justice take hold of you, because there is wrath.

But where lest He take you away with one blow? For a large ransom would not help you avoid it. All your money won't get you out of it. Verse 19. Will your riches or all the mighty forces keep you from distress? Do not desire the night when people are cut off in their place. Take heed. Do not turn to inequity, for you have chosen this rather than affliction.

That's telling about what's happened to Job. You have chosen this, inequity, your righteousness, blaming God rather than affliction. Behold, God is exalted by His power. Who teaches like Him? Who has assigned Him His way?

Or who has said you have done wrong? Remember to magnify His work, of which men have sung. Everyone has seen it. Man looks on it from afar. Behold, God is great, and we do not know Him, nor can the number of His years be discovered. For He draws up drops of water which distill His rain from the midst, which the clouds drop down and pour abundantly on man. Indeed, can anyone understand the spreading of clouds, the thunder from His canopy? Look, He scatters His light upon it and covers the depths of the sea.

For by these He judges the peoples. He gives food in abundance. He covers His hands with lightning and commands it to strike. His thunder declares it, the cattle also, concerning the rising storm.

What an interesting way to end the chapter. Concerning the rising storm. There's a storm rising out there, no doubt. Some of it is scary stuff. We see the Bible being fulfilled. We read in the book of Revelation about people getting beheaded, but somehow we thought that that was going to be an analogy for something, you know.

We didn't dream it was actual beheadings. But there's two tracks of people in the book of Revelation. There's what's interesting called those who dwell on the earth in the King James, New King James. Those are the ones who are on earth during the seven-year tribulation. But all the while what you see is another group is in heaven.

For how long? Seven years. And what group is it? It's people who've been born again. It's a whole lot of them. Is it all of them?

Probably almost. There's some people who will be saved during the tribulation, but I believe the rest are up and out. I don't know how bad it will get before that happens.

The rising storm. You know, one of the things they'll probably look for is Isis or Al-Qaeda or somebody like that to attack Rome. They're probably number one on the list, not us, honestly.

You probably won't hear that because that doesn't help buy defensive stuff. But if you think about it, who was the one person who was responsible for the Crusades to the Middle East? It's the Pope.

What's one of the softest targets out there? The mineclave there with St. Peter's Church, they're a country. It's a country within a country, but where the Vatican is, that's a country unto itself. And they have a hundred swift guards, but they don't have like a standing army. That's another reason. The third reason is that they have the largest collection of pages from Bibles and all sorts of biblical archaeology stored there.

They have stuff they don't even show people. And it would all be blown up with a nuclear device. I'm not sure we'll be there for that. I'm not sure we'll be here for that.

Because after that happens, you see the ten nations submitting to the beast within an hour or so that something nuclear is going on. I gotta get back here. The rising storm. We went off on those three words in a sec. We have to do course corrections in your life.

You're living a life, I'm living a life of course corrections. Because, well, before we didn't know God. We were at war with God. We were deceived about God, who he was, what he wanted.

We didn't think he loved us and died for us and wanted to forgive us. We were deceived about the Bible. We were deceived about what the church is about. We were deceived about what pastors are about.

You know, they were all in it for the money. When you become a Christian, you have to tear down those deceptions and let them die. There's some deceptions you can have that you spiritually can survive.

You'll be okay. You can be deceived about some things and they'll not really affect you that much at all. Like if you were deceived in the sink in the, I don't know, like the Denver Broncos were the best football team. You know, I mean that deception wouldn't hurt you that much, you know.

Because even though we all know Carolina Panthers is the best football team in the land. Here's the thing. In our lives, so we have to pick a point and go towards it. And everybody has to decide what that point is. Now that point can't be moving.

It's got to be a fixed point. It reminds me, when my dad was alive, we would, before his strokes, we would sail. And it was quiet and good to talk. And you had to pick a point and move towards it.

And dad grew up teaching me how to sail and I can only imagine as a teenager, I remember, you know, because he'd pick a point. Okay, David, where are we going? Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Just like the Heavenly Father does, huh? Hey, hey, hey, we're going somewhere. Remember? Look at the point. Look at your destination. You're going to heaven.

You're a child of God. Remember that. And so life, you know, we made these little corrections. And as long as you constantly are making these corrections, you're fine. But if you start to think you don't need to make any of those corrections, the problems with the other person, careful, you're going off course. Here's the first life lesson. Remind yourself often of your eternal destination and do course corrections, often to be sure you stay going in the right direction. Remind yourself often of your eternal destination and do course corrections, often to be sure you stay going in the right direction. That's to all of us.

That's to anybody. As a pastor, I need to do this. And if I find or you find yourself, you've made a mistake, ask God to forgive you, and He will. Don't cling to the iniquity. Cling to your Savior. Don't begin ascribing righteousness to Him and not to God.

We saw some of that in the last chapter last week. But I tell you what, when you start coming into the presence of God, you begin to realize you don't have righteousness. Jesus would do something in the New Testament, and then Peter would say, depart from me. I'm a sinful man.

What happened? The anointing is the Holy Spirit came and then Peter was convicted. He looked at what Jesus did and thought, man, I'm too sinful to even watch this. Peter knew he wasn't righteous, and we have to remind our righteousnesses in Christ.

Here's the next life lesson. You cannot come into the presence of God and hold on to yourself righteousness. You cannot come into the presence of God and hold on to yourself righteousness. Start a battle. Start messing with somebody self-righteous. Somebody that is self-righteous, start messing with their self-righteousness. It'll get hairy in a hurry.

Why? Because they're clinging to that. They don't want to put their righteousness in Christ where it's safest. As we read, you know, one of the things we're doing, we're reading the Bible. We're letting the Bible read us. We're reading this, but we're also saying, okay, how does that apply to me?

And again, if you're reading the Bible, thinking about how it applies to somebody else, be careful. Now, you may get a nugget and think, oh, I can't wait to share this with one of my friends. That's awesome. I do that all the time.

You know, I see something about, oh, I can't wait to share it with the guys. But let's remember as we do this, and it may seem over simplistic to you, but let's remember God is right. I'm wrong.

You're wrong. God is right. In what situation? Every situation.

Another one to remember? The Bible is right. I'm wrong. Either it comes to an issue where the Bible takes one stance, and I'm taking another.

I'm wrong. I adjust my stance to the Bible. Pastor David will be back in less than a minute as he continues teaching in Job chapter 36. This week, we reflect on the birth of Christ and how thankful we are for Jesus and all He's done for us. As a ministry, we want to thank each one of you who continue to listen to the radio program, who are praying for others listening at the same time as you, and who have opened your hearts to receive the word of God to make a difference in your life. Please remember to continue to pray daily for Cross the Bridge and Pastor David McGee.

And now back to the teaching. Now, look at verse 8, and they are bound in fetters, held in the cords of affliction. Now, who would have them bound up like that? Sounds like the enemy. Then he tells them, now this is God, tells them they're working their transgressions, that they've acted violently.

Why? So they can be healed. He opens their ears to instructions and commands that they turn from iniquity. Verse 11, if they obey and serve Him, they shall spend their days in prosperity and their years in pleasure. Whoa, what? No, that's not right.

Why does it say that? Spend their days in prosperity? Prosperity's bad. Their years in pleasures? Pleasures are bad.

Everybody knows Christians should have no pleasures. Amen? I'm glad y'all didn't amen that. That's good. Y'all good.

Y'all are sharp. Don't amen that, because when you amen it, you're saying, so be it. As you say it, be it unto me. God will spend their days in prosperity, their years in pleasures.

Praise God. Is that the way you thought before you were a Christian? No, because you would have already been a Christian if you had thought that. No, you thought, well, no, Christians are miserable, because I've seen them be miserable, right?

Frowning, yelling at people, being ugly and mean, and seeing God told them to do it. And everybody knows a Christian's not supposed to have anything, not supposed to own anything. You know, as a believer, it's fine to own things, but don't let things own you. Amen? You know, if you're working and tithing and giving and God wants to splash you, you know, whatever that is to you, that's different.

Things are different. Maybe it's an awesome fishing rod. Maybe it's an awesome motorcycle. Maybe it's an awesome car. Maybe you work on houses.

Buy a nice house and work on it. Praise God. Lord opened the door for me to do that a few years ago.

Stepped right in it. And you know what? When we sell that house, I guarantee you we're going to take whatever we make from it and tie us to the church. But the enemy wants us to believe that that does not describe the life of a believer. 1 John 3, 8, part of the verses. For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil. What works of the devil?

The works of the devil in you and in me. It's not talking about Him going out in the world. It's not talking about Him working on unbelievers. It's talking about Him working on us.

Clearing out the cobwebs. And one of the things He wants to clear out is this lie from the pit of hell that a Christian can't be blessed or have pleasures. You don't want pleasures to own your life. You don't want to just live a life seeking after pleasures. But I tell you what, you put God first. You seek first the kingdom of God.

He will add all these things unto you. Here's a life lesson. It is a lie to think or believe that living as a Christian is worse than living as a non-Christian.

It is a lie to think or believe that living as a Christian is worse than living as a non-Christian. We did a television show today, and I was the host, and so I interviewed different people. And one of the interviews was fascinating. There's a pastor, and he's passed into church, and he loves football. The pastor has to work on Sunday, though, so he doesn't get to watch football games.

He's plowing and sowing the word of God. And his wife wants to bless him and sends him to the playoffs to watch Carolina Panthers. And then they won. And she thought, you know what? Well, what happened, they were pulling him to church one day, and she said, Honey, would you ever want to go to the Super Bowl?

And he said, oh, man, that would be like a dream, but yeah, we can't do it. But yeah, I mean, so she takes her own money and sends him to the playoffs. Panthers win. The church he pastors follows the lead of his wife in blessing him, and that 500 bucks is like seed money, because then the people of the church step forward and give so him and his wife can go to San Francisco. And no, they didn't both go to the Super Bowl, but then he could go to the Super Bowl. Not some nosebleed seats either. They gave him a big fan package.

He was down on the lower level right at the goal post. They said it was about $10,000. We're not doing that. I mean, I'm not leading up to something or anything. I think it's cool that the body desired to bless the pastor. I mean, I do think that was really cool.

And I know if you're sitting there thinking, wow, there's a lot of other things you could have done with that 10 grand. Yeah, I mean, God didn't tell us to go to the Super Bowl, and he didn't tell us to give him the money to go. I'm okay with saying, yeah, God probably told him that.

Amen. And then he gets blessed, and he shares the gospel as he goes, and he comes back refreshed. Wait a minute. He's a pastor. He's supposed to be suffering. Going to the Super Bowl, smiling and laughing. That's just wrong.

You know what? Obviously, that was a big blessing to him. Praise God. Amen. Praise God, man.

Wish I could go to the Super Bowl. I'm kidding. I'm kidding. Here's the next question. If you obey and serve God, and that's an if. If you obey and serve God, God tells you to work in the Bible.

He talks about saving, talks about, you know, even teaches us how to invest in the Bible if you look at it. And if you listen to it and apply it, if you obey and serve, God will bless, protect, and guide you. The Bible says these truths.

Let me say it again. If you obey and serve God, God will bless, protect, and guide you. The Bible says these truths. If you think or believe something else, change it, because this is what the Bible says. Verse 11, read it every day for the next few days, if you need. If you obey and serve Him, they shall spend their days in prosperity and their years in pleasures.

So we have some pleasures in this life. But the big payoff is not here. The big payoff is coming when we go into His presence. And anything that we could have or own or do in this life hails compared to that event of coming into the presence of Jesus and experiencing, I mean face-to-face, His presence.

That's going to be awesome. Yeah, praise God. Now, there's a couple of things. I tell you what, for time's sake, jot these things down. I want to encourage you. And even read them this evening, because they do tie back to this chapter.

But just so that we can get out of here before it gets too late. Proverbs chapter 3 speaks about, you know, Son, remember my commandments. And if you do that, you'll be blessed. He says, let not mercy and truth forsake you. Love the way the New Living Translation puts that. Let kindness and loyalty always be with you in the New Living Translation. And so it says, look, if you do these, God's going to bless you. If you acknowledge Him in all your ways and even says, honor the Lord with your possessions, with the first provance, be sure you're given, be sure you're tithing. Because when you do that, God opens the windows of heaven in Malachi, He says, and protects you from the devourer, which is really important. And then with that, also, I've encouraged you tonight, or maybe in the morning, read Psalm 1.

It's six verses, it's not long, but it talks about how we need to stay in the Word and not be pulled into the world. Stay in the Word. We see in chapter 36, Job is still, he hasn't responded yet. He's listening. Along this way, think about this.

Job's there, these three friends go to him. He probably shouldn't have listened to him at all, but he did. It made things worse. And he was lost. He was confused. And I think it's interesting that when he was lost and confused, God said, I got no use for you.

No. When he was lost and confused, God sent Elohim to him. Do you realize when you're struggling, God will send somebody to you?

Somebody with a Bible of earth. If you wander off, God will follow you. He'll even chase you if you start to run. Some of us that have tried to run in the past from God have figured that out.

And another thing, you know what? When you run, you get tired. God doesn't get tired in chasing you. At some point, you will wear out and God will be right there. God is not a fair-weather friend.

And when you or I or any of us mess up, all we need to do is come to Him. Stop the behavior. Ask God for strength to do that.

If it doesn't happen, get somebody else involved. Become accountable. Remember this. Jesus came to seek and save the lost. And you and I were lost at one time. And if you wander off now, Jesus will seek you to bring you back. And we may come looking for you too. See, enemies like all these believers and anything, they got to make.

They have this protection and God is blessing them. He hates that. So then, you know, He wants you to walk in deception. Oh, that's wrong. A Christian enjoying life, that's wrong. They shouldn't enjoy life. Who would want you to believe a statement like, Christians don't enjoy life? You think God would want you to believe a statement like, no. Goodness. Now again, this life does not compare to the next life.

The next life in heaven is going to be just flat awesome. And we get blessed in this life. Again, LSU was ministering to Job to deal with some of his misconceptions. God was dealing with Job over his deceptions.

Hey, we can use that word. We know the enemy is involved. And we know Job started thinking his righteousness was more than God's. So that's self-righteousness. Enemy loves to get in on that. Remember the verse where envy and self-seeking are?

All evil things exist. When you engage in self-seeking, wanting everything to be just right for you, forget everybody else. That's self-seeking.

When you know it will hurt somebody to say something, you say it anyway. That's self-seeking. If you tear down people, especially Christian leaders, that's self-seeking. And where self-seeking and envy are, every evil thing exists. That means all this bad spiritual stuff and all these fallen angels just love to get involved in stuff like that. And that's why God warns us.

Hey, be careful of these things. Again, there are certain things that you can be fuzzy about or even deceived, and spiritually you'll be okay. You may miss out on some. People that don't think God heals anymore.

That's sad to me. But they'll still go to heaven. They'll miss out on some healings.

They'll probably miss out on healing some people. You've been listening to Pastor David McGee on Cross the Bridge. If you're not able to make it to your home church Sunday, join us for our livestream at 10 a.m. Eastern Time. Just visit crossthebridge.com and click on our livestream link. Visit crossthebridge.com to discover more resources provided at no charge to help you learn more about the Bible and to request our prayer team to pray for your loved ones who need to know Jesus as their Savior. Click on the donate button and support this program with your regular gifts. Help us share God's Word with others as we close out this year. Please take a few moments and pray and ask God if God would have you give a special year-end gift to Cross the Bridge to help us finish strong to continue to teach the Word of God on this outlet and hundreds of others throughout the coming year. We completely depend on your faithful prayers and generous financial support to keep this broadcast going, so do visit crossthebridge.com and make your most generous year-end gift today and tune in to Cross the Bridge on this outlet on crossthebridge.com