Scott LaPierre's Blog: Scott LaPierre | Living God's Way | Pastor, Author, and Speaker, page 42

Does the Gospel make God an abomination?

People mean well when they say all sins are the same, but the problem is they’re not! One way they’re different is certain sins are identified as an abomination. Two such examples are recorded in Proverbs 17:5:

He who justifies the wicked, and he who condemns the just, both of them alike are an abomination to the Lord.

Two groups are an abomination to the Lord:

Those who justify the wicked.
Those who condemn the just.

The tremendous irony is this is exactly what God does through the Gospel!

God justifies the wicked, which is an abomination

Romans 4:5 says God, “justifies the wicked.”

The word justify means, “to declare righteous.” The Lord takes evil, wretched people and justifies them through faith in Jesus Christ.

Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.

God justifies the wicked every time He declares sinful people to be righteous.

God condemned the just, which is an abomination

We say things like:

“The Jews murdered their Messiah.”
“The Romans crucified Jesus.”
“Our sins put Jesus on the cross.”

While these statements are true in one sense, it’s even truer to say the One Person responsible with crucifying God the Son was God the Father.

Acts 4:27 For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together 28 to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done.

In verse 27 it sounds like Christ’s sacrifice is attributed to those individuals, but verse 28 makes it clear they were simply doing the will of God the Father.

Consider these other verses:

Acts 2:23 [Jesus was] delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God.
Luke 22:22 Truly the Son of Man goes [to be crucified] as it had been determined [by God].
John 19:11 Jesus told Pontius Pilate, “You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above.”

The Gospels go to great lengths throughout Jesus’ trials and crucifixion to record His innocence:

Matthew 27:19 Pilate’s wife said, “Have nothing to do with that just Man.”
Matthew 27:24 Pilate said, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person.”
Luke 23:41 One of the criminals on a cross next to Jesus said, “ This Man has done nothing wrong.”
Luke 23:47 The centurion said, “Certainly this was a righteous Man!”

When God the Father sacrificed God the Son, He “condemned the just.” He punished an innocent, righteous man for the wicked.

So is God an abomination to Himself?

Contrast these verses:

Ezekiel 18:23 & 33:11 God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked.
Isaiah 53:10a God took pleasure in the death of His Son.

Amazingly God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but He took pleasure in the death of His perfect, innocent Son. He took pleasure in condemning the just, His Son, because it allowed Him to justify the wicked: each of us.

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Marriage God’s Way: release party, trailer, and interview

Marriage God’s Way was published on August 4, 2016, and since then a number of exciting things have happened…

Book Release Party for Marriage God’s Way
Signing copies of Marriage God’s Way. I tried to write a personal message to each person.

Took place this past Sunday the 21st after service. I arrived a little late, because I was rushing over from teaching on marriage at another church’s Family Camp. When I arrived, I was touched by the number of people who attended. I know people are busy (and they seem to be busiest during summer), but they took time to come out and support me and Marriage God’s Way.

 

Someone wrote on Facebook…

“Look at all the support from your family/church family Scott LaPierre! That’s gotta feel so cool. Awesome!!!”

Katie and I sharing about the journey publishing Marriage God’s Way.

This summarizes exactly how I felt, but there was more than just friends from WCC. A number of families from other churches also came to celebrate with us. One particularly special guest was Mike Pritchard. I acquired his website services through an auction last year, and we’ve become friends as he helped me prepare for the publication of Marriage God’s Way. Living over three hours away, I never expected him to come. But he did and it meant a lot to me.

We most often think of our good friends as those who are with us when we suffer, and that’s true, but we can also recognize great friends by those who celebrate with us when we celebrate. One of the greatest blessings in my life is the number of wonderful friends God has given me.

Trailer for Marriage God’s Way

We started the party by showing the trailer for the first time…

Marriage God’s Way is dedicated to my father, John LaPierre. He’s a man of few words and he doesn’t like speaking in front of people. But he still summoned the courage to make a speech that was loving and heartfelt. One of the women in attendance quickly grabbed her phone, recorded the moment, and sent it to me which I really appreciated…

Marriage God’s Way Radio Interview

1330 AM KKPZ interviewed me about Marriage God’s Way. Here’s the interview…

https://scottlapierre.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Marriage-Gods-Way-by-Scott-LaPierre-KKPZ-interview.mp3

My prayer for Marriage God’s Way from the beginning has been that it will strengthen marriages and exalt Christ. I feel like God is answering that prayer, and I am so thankful.

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Marriage God’s Way – presentation of first copy to my dad

I’ve been working with Amazon on Marriage God’s Way and they send a complimentary copy to authors when their book is published. We opened the first copy as a family, which was a special moment for us. My wife, Katie, and our children have sacrificed a lot for me to be able to write this book. They have been without me many early mornings and late evenings while I was working.

Opening the first copy of Marriage God’s Way as a family

My dad has Alzheimer’s disease and Marriage God’s Way is dedicated to him. One of my prayers was answered in being able to finish the book in a timely manner. On August 7, 2016 during the morning worship at Woodland Christian Church I was able to present my dad with the first copy that we opened together as a family. I read the Dedication, gave him the book, and felt thankful to share the moment with my church family.

Here’s the Dedication from the book:

Dedication

Marriage God’s Way is dedicated to my father, John LaPierre.

Dear Dad,

Thank you for showing me what it looks like to be a loving, dedicated husband and a strong spiritual leader. Thank you for your love and commitment to Katie, our children, and me. Thank you for the way you have courageously handled the trials you’ve faced.

My father, John LaPierre, with the first copy of Marriage God’s Way that I gave him during the service.

After I became a Christian, my greatest desire was for you and Mom to come to know Christ as well. That I would be privileged enough to baptize the two of you and have you serve as a deacon at the church I pastor has shown me that God indeed “is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20).

To see how the Gospel transformed you has strengthened my faith and been one of the greatest joys of my life. You are a humble, gentle servant, and I would feel blessed to be more like you.

I love you so much.

Your son,

Scott

Additionally, the Acknowledgments begin with an address to the congregation because of the part they played in Marriage God’s Way. Their hunger for God’s Word helped give me the enthusiasm each week to diligently prepare the sermons that ended up in the book. I was able to read that portion of the Acknowledgments to the church:

Acknowledgments

First, I want to thank the wonderful congregation at Woodland Christian Church. Your hunger for Scripture encourages me in my study each week. There are few blessings greater for a pastor than knowing he can stand behind the pulpit and boldly proclaim God’s Word to saints who love the truth.

Giving the first copy of Marriage God’s Way to my dad, John LaPierre

VBS took place the week before and you can see the set hadn’t yet been taken down :).

Thank you for reading! A few things:

If you haven’t already, please subscribe to my Marriage God’s Way YouTube Channel. I’ll have more videos coming out in the near future.
If you’d like to purchase a copy of Marriage God’s Way:

It’s available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle.
If you’re interested in a signed copy please e-mail me your address (scott@scottlapierre.org) and here’s the PayPal link:

$17.99 – the extra $3.00 covers shipping.
$14.99 – if you don’t need it shipped.

Thank you for reading and helping me get out the message of Marriage God’s Way! I’d love to hear from you if you have any questions or thoughts.

Your friend,

Scott

 

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The mistake we make (that we think we don’t)

There’s a mistake most Christians make, and ironically it’s a mistake we tend to think we don’t make. The mistake is that we tend to think everything we believe is grounded in Scripture. To be clear, I know for most of our beliefs this is the case, but we also have some beliefs that are shaped more by our backgrounds:

The way we were raised
The churches we’ve attended
The friends we’ve had
The books we’ve read

Essentially anything that has influenced our lives is going to influence our beliefs. If your background is Baptist, Catholic, Calvary Chapel, Nazarene, home church, Reformed, charismatic, etc. you’re going to have some beliefs that are affected by those experiences. This leads to convictions, preferences, and practices that are different from those with different backgrounds. And generally when people have had strong beliefs for some period of time, they can become more resistant to having those beliefs challenged or changed.

A refreshing conversation

Some time back I noticed a friend had some strong beliefs about something that I didn’t think was unbiblical, but I couldn’t think of any verses in support. I suspected the person might have acquired these convictions from someone the person often quoted. I asked, “Do you think you would feel this way if you never listened to this teacher?” 

Most people quickly respond with something along the lines of, “Of course! I have these beliefs because this is what the Bible teaches!” But in a pleasantly honest reply the person said, “I don’t know if I could tell you what I would believe if I never listened to that teacher. I’m not sure what my convictions would look like if not for what I’ve learned from him.”

I found this response to be so encouraging, because it’s so honest! There’s almost no way we can say what we would believe if not for our backgrounds and experiences. This is why if you take almost any group of Christians and talk to them about their beliefs, you will probably find these two realities:

There’s strong agreement (hopefully) among the essentials or doctrines of the Christian faith.
There are quite a few differences regarding less orthodox issues, or what we might call nonessentials.

The mention of nonessentials introduces one of the largest areas of tension. It’s not that Christians don’t agree on nonessentials (although that’s true), it’s that Christians don’t agree on what constitutes a nonessential. What one Christian considers a nonessential, another Christian might consider an essential. And vice versa.

The solution to the mistake we make

Whenever we read the Bible, we face two choices:

We can shape Scripture to fit our desires and beliefs.
We can allow Scripture to shape us and our thinking.

As Christians, we will undoubtedly say we want the latter, but the difficulty is that we live in a world that is also striving to shape and influence us. This is why the Apostle Paul said, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2).

The Greek word for “conformed” is syschematizo, which means “to conform one’s self—one’s mind and character—to another’s pattern . . . fashion one’s self according to.” It is related to the English word schematic because it is describing the way the world tempts us to follow its patterns. Instead we are to be “transformed,” which is metamorphoo, related to the English word metamorphosis. Picture a caterpillar bursting from its cocoon, transformed into a beautiful butterfly. Similarly, our beliefs can be transformed as surrender ourselves to God’s Word.

Discuss: Can you think of any beliefs you’ve held that were influenced more by your background than Scripture? Were they unbiblical or did they fall more into the area of nonessentials?

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Marriage God’s Way is available to purchase!

Last week our sixth child, Noah Michael, was born. Tomorrow is my 10-year anniversary to my beautiful wife. Today I published Marriage God’s Way.

I’ve never felt so many emotions in such a short period of time. My heart is in this book, and at some point in the future I’ll write a post or share a video (see below) discussing everything that went into reaching this moment. For now, here’s the info…

Ways to purchase Marriage God’s Way

You can purchase Marriage God’s Way on Amazon at this link in paperback or Kindle editions.

If you’d like a signed copy, please follow these two steps:

Click here to make your payment through PayPal:

$17.99 if you need your copy shipped to you (the extra $3.00 covers shipping)
$14.99 if you expect to see me in person in the near future

What generation won’t pass away?

Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near—at the doors!  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.(Matthew 24:32-34; see also Mark 13:28-31; Luke 21:29-33).

I don’t think another word in Scripture has caused as much confusion as “generation” in the above verses. The most famous misunderstanding might be Edgar C. Whisenant’s book 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Be in 1988. 4.5 million copies were sold and another 300,000 were mailed free of charge to church leaders across the nation. Although Whisenant had 88 reasons for his conclusion, the strongest came from the word generation. The logic is:

Israel is the fig tree.
The words, “When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near” refer to Israel becoming a nation in 1948.
A generation is 40 years.
Jesus said the generation that sees Israel become a nation will not pass away.
Therefore, Jesus must return by 1988.

The problem is the Rapture didn’t occur in 1988 or on any of the other dates Whisenhant predicted (1989, 1993, 1994) before his death in 2001. Some pastors still quote this verse saying, “The generation that sees Israel become a nation will not pass away!” They conclude a generation isn’t 40 years. So the generation of people that saw Israel become a nation will not pass away before Jesus’ return.

What does the verse mean?

Jesus said, “when you see all these things, know that it is near—at the doors!” What things? Everything Jesus discussed in the previous verses:

Mark 13:1-2 & Matthew 24:1-2 & Luke 21:5-6 – The destruction of the temple
Mark 13:3-13 & Matthew 24:3-14 & Luke 21:7-19 – The signs of the times and the end of the age
Luke 21:20-24 – The destruction of Jerusalem
Mark 13:14-23 & Matthew 24:15-28 – The Great Tribulation
Mark 13:24-27 & Matthew 24:29-31 & Luke 21:25-28 – Jesus’ Second Coming

What is “it” when Jesus says “it is near“? In the parallel account in Luke 21:31 Jesus said, “So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near.” “It” is the Kingdom of God that Jesus will establish when He returns. In other words, when you see the things Jesus described, the Second Coming is close.

The generation Jesus was addressing?

A few years ago at a pastor’s conference I stayed up late talking with two pastors who were convinced Jesus’ Second Coming took place spiritually (as opposed to physically) in 70AD when Rome conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the temple. One of the main reasons they (as well as others) hold this view (known as Preterism) is based on the word “generation.”

Preterists believe the generation is the people Jesus was speaking to that day. They “[would] by no means pass away till all these things take place.” 70AD was approximately 40 years later, so Preterists believe Jesus’ words were fulfilled when Rome conquered Jerusalem in 70AD.

There are numerous reasons this view is wrong, but for simplicity’s sake, let’s only discuss one: in 70AD Jesus didn’t return like He described He would: “Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30).

So what generation?

If Jesus isn’t talking about the “generation” of people living at the time, what “generation” is in view?

The generation of people who see the signs – the final, hard labor pains – described in the previous verses that we know as the Tribulation. That “generation will by no means pass away till all [the things Jesus just discussed] take place.” Everything Jesus prophesied of in the chapter will occur within one generation.

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Avoiding Painful Decisions

2 Samuel 11 is probably one of the most familiar chapters in Scripture, because it recounts David’s sins with Bathsheba and Uriah. Something that really stands out to me is the way David’s decisions changed the trajectory of his entire life.

The last verse of 2 Samuel 10 says, “And when all the kings who were servants to Hadadezer saw that they were defeated by Israel, they made peace with Israel and served them. So the Syrians were afraid to help the people of Ammon anymore.”

This verse is significant not so much because of what it says, but because of what it represents. This is the pinnacle of both David’s reign and life. Everything will change after this. While David’s life was previously characterized by victories and triumphs, now it will be characterized by pain and loss. David spent much of the rest of his life moving from one horrible situation to the next.

Certain decisions change the course of our lives 

Following David’s repentance Nathan told him, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die” (2 Sam 12:13b). This reveals that, yes, we can be forgiven. Yes, God might be gracious. But our lives on this side of heaven might never be the same.

We have a tendency to presume on God’s mercy. We think we can engage in sins without experiencing terrible consequences, but many people would give just about anything to undo decisions they made because of the terrible price they ended up paying. They would give anything to have not hurt themselves, their spouses, their children, their parents, their churches, their friends – and the list goes on – the way they did.

Consider the hurt that can be caused by sinful decisions

How do people end up making decisions that have such terrible consequences?

They didn’t think of the pain their spouse would feel. Whether this should be the case or not, it’s true that some marriages never recover because of selfish decision of a husband or wife.
They didn’t think of the consequences for their children. Nathan told David, “The sword shall never depart from your house” (2 Samuel 12:10a):

David lost the child of adultery with Bathsheba.
David’s son Amnon raped his half-sister (David’s daughter) Tamar.
Tamar’s full-brother Absalom, murdered Amnon.
Absalom stole the throne from David and was executed by Joab.
David’s son Adonijah stole the throne from him, and was executed by Solomon.


They didn’t think of the loss of friendships. David’s sins deeply affected at least two men close to him:

Eliam: Bathsheba’s father and one of David’s Mighty Men.
Ahithophel: Eliam’s father (Bathsheba’s grandfather) and David’s great counselor and close friend (Psalm 41:9).


They didn’t think of the effect on their testimony:

After defeating Goliath, what is the second most common event that comes to mind when thinking of David? Bathsheba and Uriah. His sin overshadows much of the rest of his life. Nathan told David the enemies of God now had a reason to blaspheme Him, because of how bad it looked for the king of His people to behave so wickedly (2 Sam 12:14). People who mock Christians have more fuel for their fires when prominent Christians sin.
When people think of Bathsheba, they should think of Solomon’s mother and a woman in the lineage of the Messiah (Mat 1:6), but it’s overshadowed by her adultery.


They didn’t think of the grief they would cause God. You hear the pain in God’s voice when He talks to David: “I gave you [so much], and if that had been too little, I also would have given you much more!” (2 Samuel 12:8)

God desires we learn from David’s decisions

1 Corinthians 10:11 Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition.

God loved David, but he still recorded his sin with great transparency. He wanted us to avoid the sins and pain David experienced. We want to learn from this record in David’s life so as not to experience the same ourselves.

Discuss: What other examples in Scripture come to mind of individuals who made sinful decisions and paid terribly as a result?

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How did forgiveness take place in the Old Testament?

Did forgiveness in the Old Testament take place through sacrifices or human effort? Forgiveness was received in the Old Testament the same way it’s received in the New Testament: by grace through faith.

Psalm 25:14 says, “The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and the Lord will show them His covenant.” The Lord reveals the New Covenant and the grace and mercy of it through David, before Jesus instituted the New Covenant at the Last Supper (Luke 22:20).

According to God’s Law, David committed two sins that should’ve resulted in death: adultery and murder. A few things made David’s terrible sins even worse:

David’s accountability. He knew God’s Law well.
David had been very blessed. God brought him of that shepherd’s field where he was a nobody born to a no-name family. Then God turned him into the rich and powerful king of Israel.
David’s sins were premeditated. He planned out all the details, even writing a letter to Joab that he had Uriah himself carry. It was one of the darkest moments in the Old Testament.

David’s sins should not have received forgiveness

If anyone deserved death it was David, but this is also why David’s situation provides one of the greatest examples of God’s grace and mercy in all of Scripture. Nathan the Prophet confronted David, and he responded, “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Sam 12:13a).

This is how we should respond when we sin. In these few words David provides a number of lessons:

Take ownership: “I have…”
Call it what it is: “sin.”
Acknowledge the sin was “against the Lord”
Avoid excuses and blame shifting.

Then Nathan said, “The Lord also has taken away your sin” (2 Sam 12:13b).

These are some of the most amazing words in the Old Testament. It’s almost hard to capture the greatness of what Nathan said. Despite the enormity and wickedness of what David did, his sin was “taken away.”

Hebrews 10:4 and 11 both state, “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” Sacrifices couldn’t forgive sins, say nothing of take them away.

So how could David be told this? His sins were taken away the same way ours are taken away:

When John the Baptist saw Jesus he said, “The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29).
1 John 3:5 says “[Jesus] was manifested to take away our sins.”

If any Old Testament sacrifices had been able to do what Jesus did, His sacrifice wouldn’t have been necessary. David looked forward in faith to a Savior the way we look backward in faith to our Savior.

A window into New Testament forgiveness in the Old Testament

The grace and mercy David received provide a beautiful glimpse – a wonderful foreshadowing – of the New Covenant under the Old Covenant. What did David do to receive this forgiveness? Psalm 51:16-17 records:

For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it;

You do not delight in burnt offering.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,

A broken and a contrite heart—

These, O God, You will not despise.

David didn’t offer any sacrifices. He said he would’ve provided them if that’s what God wanted, but he knew no animal’s death could atone for what he did. David had a spiritual insight that was tremendous. He knew parts of the New Testament before they were written, and he knew no Old Testament sacrifices could make up for his sins.

But he did know there was a “sacrifice” he could “give” to God. He knew there was an “offering” God “desired”: “a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart.”

So that’s what David offered. That sort of humility and brokenness God would accept. David knew all he could do was humble himself, confess his sin, and it resulted in the taking away of even the horrific sins he committed. This is without personal merit, human effort, or penance. This is New Covenant forgiveness by grace through faith.

Forgiveness that provided life instead of death

David’s sins demanded death, but there’s something else he found: life. Nathan also said, “You shall not die” (2 Sam 12:13c). These words mean David was going to die. The Old Covenant – the Law – demanded what it always demands: death. But David was able to find life.

David recognized the greatness of what took place and wrote about it: “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity” (Psalm 32:1).

Discuss: have you wondered how people were forgiven in the Old Testament? What did you previously think?

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Pokemon Go: One of the Big Problems

Why don’t I like Pokemon Go?

We live in a parsonage next to the church. My kids often bring lunch to my office. To reach me they walk through the parking lot. Assuming time permits, while eating I talk with my kids. Here is a conversation that just took place:

My kids: “There are two people in the parking lot.”

Me: “What are they doing?”

My kids: “We don’t know. Just sitting in a truck. We said, ‘hi’ to them, but they didn’t say anything.”

When my kids leave my office, I often stand at the door to watch them walk home. If it’s late, or like the other day when a murderer was on the loose, I walk them home. Since I didn’t know who the individuals are in the truck, I walked out with my kids. Here’s how the conversation went with the two people, although I’m leaving out some details so they remain anonymous:

Me: “How are you doing?”

Them: “Good.”

Me: “What are you doing? Can I help you with something?”

Them: “No, we’re just playing Pokemon Go.”

Me: “It brought you to our parking lot?”

Them (laughing): “Yes!”

Me: “My brother-and-sister-in-law live next door. Our associate pastor lives a few houses away. Between their kids and our kids there are lots of children playing, running, and riding around. Next week we’re going to have a lot of kids here for VBS. There are lots of activities throughout the week that have kids here too. This is why we try to limit traffic in our parking lot.”

Them: “Oh yeah, that makes sense. We totally understand.”

While talking to them, another car pulled up and two kids (I’d guess 7 or 8) got out staring at their devices. I thought, “An adult is driving them around for this?” Back to the conversation with the individuals in the truck:

Me: “Are they here for Pokemon too?”

Them (laughing again): “I’m sure.”

Me: “Are there going to be a lot of people coming here?”

Them: “Probably, but you don’t have to worry, because they’ll drive through without stopping. They just need to have visited.”

Let me present these words more accurately: “People are going to be driving around staring at their phones instead of looking at what’s in front of their vehicles.”

Then another car pulled into the parking lot driven by a grown man. There were no kids in the car. In other words, a 50ish-year-old-man was playing. While his car was rolling forward, he was staring at his phone. Three vehicles within 5-10 minutes of each other.

Pokemon Go will make the statistics worse

The number of people getting in accidents because they are texting, looking at their phones, etc is already very high. Pokemon Go will increase these numbers. Here’s my advice:

Be safe out there!
Watch the road when you’re driving.
Take care of your kids.
Look out for other drivers who aren’t looking out for you.

Discuss: What do you think about Pokemon Go? Have you seen it cause any problems?

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If Job wasn’t righteous enough…

Consider the ways Job is described:

“There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil” (1:1).
God said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?” (1:8).
After Satan took Job’s animals, servants – and worst of all – his children, God said the same thing to Satan and added, “And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause” (2:3).

These verses present a fantastic description. As far as earthly righteousness goes, nobody could do better than Job. But this is what God says:

There is none who does good, no, not one (Psa 14:2-3, 53:2-3, quoted in Rom 3:10)
There is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin (Ecc 7:20, also 1 Kin 8:46 and 2 Chr 6:36).
In My sight no one living is righteous (Psa 143:2).

Job was arguably the greatest man in the Old Testament. In our eyes he might be one of the most righteous men in history. But he wasn’t righteous enough in God’s eyes.

“What can we learn from Job?”

Most people would answer, “We can learn about suffering!” That’s true, but just as importantly we learn there’s no righteousness man can attain that’s “good enough.” In the Gospels the religious leaders were the picture of humanly attained righteousness. But Jesus said, “Unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5:20).

Job said, “How can a man be righteous before God?” (9:2).

This is the most important question anyone can ask, because it’s the question that determines where we people spend eternity. Later in the same chapter we read:

33 Nor is there any mediator between us,

Who may lay his hand on us both.

34  Let [the Mediator] take [God’s] rod away from me,

And do not let dread of Him terrify me.

35  Then I would speak and not fear [God],

But it is not so with me.

A rod is used for administering punishment, and Job wanted it removed from him. But if God took it from him, He would have to administer the punishment to Someone else. Sins can’t go unpunished or God wouldn’t be just. Job expected his Mediator to receive his punishment.

After this happened, Job would no longer “fear God.” But the words “it is not so with me” mean he knew it wasn’t within his power to do any of this. In his best effort, this isn’t something he could accomplish.

Job looked forward to his Mediator by faith

Job couldn’t see his Mediator. He didn’t know who he was, but he could look forward to Him in faith. This is Old Testament salvation, and it’s just like New Testament salvation: justification by faith:

Job isn’t supposed to teach us that a man can be righteous before God.
Job teaches us that a man can’t be righteous before God.

When we read about Job, we should think, “If he couldn’t attain a righteousness that’s acceptable to God, what hope is there for me?” Our hope comes from the righteousness that’s freely available by grace through faith in Christ. Romans 3:21-22 says:

The righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe.

This suffering man looked for a righteousness that was outside himself. We should too.

Discuss: Have you been trusting in your own righteousness? Do you recognize the only way to be truly righteous before God is by looking to Jesus in faith?

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