0614 – God Is Just 神是公正的

James 5:11,15 (NKJV) Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful….And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.

When we go through a crisis, our theological convictions will dictate how we react and pray. There are many different views on why we go through a crisis and the cause of it. In the Book of Job, we see how the Lord was displeased with the way Job’s friends have misrepresented Him before Job during his days of suffering. As such, we should make sure that we represent the Lord well and pray ourselves out of a crisis with perseverance.

First, we shouldn’t compare our lives with Job. Job lived in the Old Testament. Therefore, he didn’t have a mediator or an advocate in heaven to mitigate his case before God. He was also a gentile who had no covenant relationship with God, so he was living in hopelessness in the midst of the sufferings, but one of his greatest strengths was his perseverance in spite of the terrible ordeal. He passed the test of perseverance and refused to curse God.

We, on the other hand, have an advocate and a mediator in Jesus Christ who represents us in heaven before God. We have peace with God because Jesus is the mediator of a better covenant. We are in a better position than Job because of the current ministry of Jesus in heaven.

Second, one of the biggest arguments people usually have with reference to the suffering in the Book of Job is whether God is just. Are we getting what we deserve for the sins we have committed? One of Job’s friends even said that Job wasn’t receiving enough of what was due to him for the wrong he had done. What a torment it is when we think that we are being punished but don’t even know the cause!

God is just, but since God is holy, He has to judge the sin of mankind. However, instead of punishing us based on what we have done, He prepared a body for His son to take our place, so that it was done through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ.

According to the opening Scripture, God’s intention for the entire experience of Job and the Book of Job was reveal to us that He is a merciful and compassionate God. This is the single most important lesson that we can learn from Job’s experience—a revelation of God’s character, and a faith-builder for us in the midst of our own sufferings on earth.

Sermon Series: Job & I (Part 2)


神是公正的

雅各书5:11,15 那先前忍耐的人,我们称他们是有福的。你们听见过约伯的忍耐,也知道主给他的结局,明显主是满心怜悯,大有慈悲。…. 出于信心的祈祷要救那病人,主必叫他起来;他若犯了罪,也必蒙赦免

当我们经历危机时,我们的神学信念将决定我们如何反应和祷告。对于我们为何要经历危机以及背后的原因,有很多不同的看法。在约伯记一书中,我们看到主不喜悦约伯的朋友面对约伯在受苦的日子里曲解了神的意图。因此,我们应该确保我们正确无误地明白主,并恒切祷告,走出危机。

首先,我们不应把自己的生活与约伯相比。约伯生活在旧约时代。因此他没有一位中保或天上的辩护者在神面前替他减轻案情。他也是一位外邦人,与神没有盟约关系,所以他在苦难当中活着没有指望,但他最大的优点是尽管经历了可怕的磨难,仍旧忍耐下去。他拒绝诅咒神,也通过了忍耐的考验。

另一方面,我们在耶稣基督里有一位代表我们的辩护者和中保,在天上神的面前代表我们。我们与神和好,因为耶稣是更美约的中保。因为耶稣在天上的事工,我们比约伯的地位更好。

其次,关于约伯记中的苦难,人们通常有一个最大的争论,那就是神是否公正。因我们所犯的罪我们应该得到报应吗?约伯的一个朋友甚至说,约伯没有从他所做的错事中得到足够的报应。当我们认为自己受到了惩罚,却连原因都不知道时,那是何等痛苦啊!

神是公正的。但既然神是圣洁的,祂就必须审判人的罪。然而,祂并没有按照我们所行的惩罚我们,而是为祂的儿子预备了一个身体来代替我们,藉着耶稣基督救赎的工作成就了这一切。

根据一开始的经文,神的意图是要通过约伯的整个经历和约伯记向我们揭示祂是一位仁慈和怜悯的神。这是我们可以从约伯的经历中学到的最重要的一课—神的品格的启示,是我们在世上受苦时的信心建立者。

讲章系列:约伯与我 (第二部分)