The Power of Pain

Introduction

Good morning. If you will open in your Old Testament with me to the book of Job. The book of Job, chapter one. As you’re turning there, I’m thoughtful turning to Job of the phrase, There’s always somebody who has it worse than you. We say that a lot to comfort ourselves, and we always, when we’re sick or when we’re going through a rough time or tough time, we say, Somebody has to have it worse. It doesn’t feel like it right now, but somebody has to have it worse. We have to be very careful of doing what I’m about to do, which is ascribing motive to God. But I have to believe that part of the reason the book of Job is there for us to read from, to learn from, and to kind of live through the lens of his life some, is so that we can know for certain there is, there was, and forever will be somebody who had it worse than us.

In Job chapter one, though, the story doesn’t begin that way. It actually begins incredibly happy. In Job chapter 1 and verse 1, there was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job. And that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. They were born to him seven sons and three daughters. He possessed seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred donkeys, and very many servants, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east. His sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one on his day, and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. And when the days of the feast had run their course, Job would send and consecrate them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all.

For Job said, It may be that my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts. Thus Job did continually. There’s a couple strong points about Job here that we see. First of all, at the end of verse three, he was the greatest of all the people in the East. We see his great wealth. We see his wonderful family. And most importantly, in verse 1, what were there’s four descriptions that he was blameless, that he was upright, that he feared God, and that he turned away from evil. Job truly was a great man. But the sad part of the story is that’s not exactly how we often remember him. We remember him as somebody who went through a great deal of pain. And of course, this week our country, this state, and nearby counties have gone through considerable pain.

But beyond just the pain of losing a loved one, there’s pain that we face in all elements of our life. We get sick, we face true physical pain day in, sometimes day out, sometimes one day, sometimes the next. There’s emotional pain, anguish when we do lose a loved one, when somebody is struggling, when our loved one is the one in physical pain, when we don’t understand what’s happening, why God would allow the world to be as it is, for wicked people to do what they do, we are in pain.

1. Satan Knew Pain Was Powerful

But I want to be realistic this morning and be honest and confront the truth that there is pain in this world, and it is powerful. We have to accept that if we’re going to be ready and able to combat it and understand God’s intent. When we think about Job, we of course remember the part that comes next, beginning in verse six. The fact that Job lost it all. Yes, he was a blameless man, but then, despite all his riches, those were taken away. In verse six, now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. The Lord said to Satan, From where have you come? Satan answered the Lord and said, From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.

And the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered, my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man who fears God and turns away from evil? Then Satan answered the Lord and said, Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face. And the Lord said to Satan, Behold, all that he has is in your hand, only against him do not stretch out your hand. So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

Verse 13 Now there was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, and there came a messenger to Job and said, The oxen were ploughing and the donkeys feeding beside them, and the Sabians fell upon them and took them and struck down the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you. While he was yet speaking, there came another, and said, The fire of God fell from heaven and burned up the sheep and the servants and consumed them, and I alone have escaped to tell you. While he was yet speaking, there came another, and said, The Chaldeans formed three groups and made a raid on the camels, and took them and struck down the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you.

While he was yet speaking in verse 18, there came another and said, Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, and behold, a great wind came across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead. And I alone have escaped to tell you. This is an incredible pain that Job felt, and we’ll capitalize on that thought in just a few minutes. But recognize that as Satan approaches God, he says, Of course, Job is a blameless and upright man. Of course, Job fears you and turns away from evil. You’ve done nothing but protect him. You’ve done nothing but love him. Why would he curse you? He says, But I know what I’ll do.

If you let me touch him. In fact, Satan tries to get God to touch him. He says, If you will strike him, take away what he has, he’ll turn from you. He’ll turn his back on you, he will curse you to your face. It’s important to see if you look carefully in Job chapter 1, Satan wanted God to do that. But what was God’s allowance in this case? He didn’t do it. He allowed Satan to inflict this great severe pain on Job. Without going through the numbers and seeing all that Job lost, suffice to say, Job lost everything from a material standpoint, but also, perhaps most importantly, he lost his children’s lives and the lives of many servants. People died as a result of Satan inflicting pain on Job.

Of course, the challenge was that Job would curse God, and we see in the next two verses, that’s not what happened. In verse 20, then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped, and he said, Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. And verse 22 stands as a hallmark of Job. In all this, Job did not sin or charge God with wrong. And we say, Wow, Job, that was a fantastic way of standing up against this pain. He lost everything. He lost his children, he lost his servants. And yet he charged God with no wrong, and most importantly, most epicably, Job did not sin.

Of course, Satan wasn’t done. And of course, when we think that we’ve reached the point where Satan can’t get us, when those temptations no longer work, we need to know from the story also, not just that Job endured pain, that God was there and how God responded to Job’s response to pain. But also, what does the devil do? When we figured out one temptation when it doesn’t work, does he kind of go away? Well, not exactly. He goes away and then he comes back stronger in chapter 2 notice with me in verse 1. Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them to present himself before the Lord. And the Lord said to Satan, From where have you come?

Satan answered the Lord and said, From going to and fro on the earth and from walking up and down on it. And the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered my servant Job? That there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man who fears God and turns away from evil. He still holds fast his integrity, although you incited me against him to destroy him without reason. Then Satan answered the Lord and said, skin for skin, all that a man has he will give for his life. But stretch out your hand and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse you to your face. And the Lord said to Satan, Behold, he is in your hand, only spare his life. So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and struck Job with loathsome, loathsome sores from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head.

He took a piece of broken pottery with which to scrape himself while he sat in the ashes. Of course, we see in the rest of chapter 2, Job did not curse God. He did not tell him to curse God and die. He didn’t just want to go and take the what the advice of his wife. But when you think about Job’s story, he was a blameless and upright man. He feared God. He turned away from evil. Note first and foremost the power of pain. Pain comes to everybody. If there is anybody who was insulated from it, it was Job. Why? He was a believer. We tend to think that if we do what God says, no harm will come to us. Not only did that happen to Job, think about the New Testament.

Who was the most persecuted of us all? Jesus. Who else? His apostles. What about the Old Testament? Who was most often persecuted in the Bible story? The prophets. The people of God were constantly persecuted. But Job wasn’t just protected by being a believer in God. We’d also recognize what? That he was the greatest man in the East. He was wealthy. He had family. He had servants. And all of that was gone. The pain was immense. The pain was emotional. It was physical. It was in every conceivable portion of his life that Job truly lost it all. The truth about pain is, and a truth that we have to accept, even though it’s difficult and we don’t like to talk about this part of it, is that even Satan knew pain was powerful.

We have to confront and truly embrace that idea. Pain changes this. Pain impacts us. Look back at verse 1. What was the description of Job? He was a blameless and upright man who feared God and turned away from evil, and Satan said, You know this great man, I know how to get him, God. If you will take away his stuff and let me kill off his family, he will curse you. If I can take away his things and I can put him in intense pain, I can make him curse you. Of course, he was wrong. But then he comes back in chapter 2, and then what does he say? He says, okay, well, it was just the stuff, it was just the family. But if I make him hurt, if I make him have loathsome sores, if I make his every waking moment miserable, then God, I will have him.

2. Pain Came for Those Around Him

And of course, the rest of Job goes on to explain how Job dealt with these trials, this severe and intense pain. But a lesson that I think we have to learn reading between the lines of this text is that Satan knows that pain is powerful, and its power can pull even the best of us away from our loving and merciful God. Satan came for Job, and he came through pain. We see that pain causes many different problems. You see, the first of them, aside from the fact that it hurts, aside from the problems that we know and experience, and the struggles and the sadness and the fear and the anger. Note what it does even to the people around those in pain. Job chapter 2 and verse 9.

Then his wife said to him, Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die. But he said to her, You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God? And shall we not receive evil? And all this Job did not sin with his lips. Now, when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon them, they came each from his own place. But notice verse 12. When they saw him from a distance, they did not recognize him. His friends would weep with him. They would weep with Job in his time of weeping, much like we’re exhorted to do in Romans chapter 12. Yes, to rejoice with those who rejoiced, but also importantly to weep with those who weep.

But note the impact of pain, not just on Job’s psyche, which we’re going to see in chapter 3. But what about the people around him? Pain wouldn’t just come for Job. Pain came for who? Job’s wife. And Job’s friends. What was Job’s wife’s answer to this pain? Why do you hold fast your integrity? By the way, the same integrity that early in chapter 2, God speaks of Job as having. Jesus, don’t hold fast your integrity, curse God and die. Give up. This is God’s fault. Blame him. We can tell that from the last part of the verse. How does Job answer her? Not just calling her a foolish woman. That’s a brave stroke from a husband. But what else does he do? That was funny. We can laugh.

That’s okay. It happened a long time ago. We’re just not funny. Okay. So in Job chapter 2, though, if you notice in verse 11, what is his further response? Not just that she’s a foolish woman, but what? Do you see that last part of the phrase? He wants her to know you don’t just take good from God, you also be ready for the downtimes in life, too. And that last part is so important. In all this, Job did not sin. He did not charge God with wrong. He had the appropriate response to this pain. He understood, was the pain severe? Absolutely. He understood a pain none of us can fathom, none of us could understand, losing everything at once, and then quickly after losing even all sense of wanting to be alive.

Look in chapter 3. This great blameless and upright man, Job, who went through it all, who stood fast, did not sin with his lips, did not charge God with wrong. Even this Job in chapter 3, you see him at his breaking point. Job chapter 3 and verse 3 Let the day perish on which I was born and the night that said a man is conceived. Let that day be darkness. May God above not seek it, nor light shine upon it. Look at verse 11 as he continues Why did I not die at birth come out from the womb and expire? Why did the knees receive me? Or why the breast that I should nurse? For then I would have laid down and been quiet. I would have slept, and I would have been at rest with kings and counselors of the earth who rebuilt ruins for themselves, or princes who had gold or filled their houses with silver.

And even all the way down in verse 26, his fear, his pain is coming to that breaking point. I am not at ease, nor am I quiet. I have no rest. But trouble comes. I think if we’re really honest, we can look at verse 26 and see ourselves there. That moment when maybe we don’t fully go through Job’s thought process in chapter 3 and 11, that we had never been conceived, that we had never been born, although at our worst perhaps we’ve gone there. But in verse 26, this idea of no comfort, no relief, the only relief being a lack of existence, whether in the taking of life or having never existed in the first place. This idea that there is just nothing but pain. You think about what Job was going through.

3. Pain Can Serve a Strong Purpose

Not only was he in such loathsome sores that he thought broken pottery was the way to give some relief. But we sometimes forget about chapter one. He lost his children. He lost his servants. And his wife was the one who was there, who was the one who said, Curse God and die. Job was in immense pain, immense torment because Satan knew it was strong. He knew it would impact those around him. And so we have a dilemma this morning that we have to recognize first and foremost, pain is a part of life. And while not always the reason, pain can, in some cases, serve a strong purpose. In James chapter 1, if you’ll turn there with me, note, how would this be allowed to happen? In James chapter 1, as you turn there into the New Testament in the book of wisdom in the book of James, the question that’s begged in Job 1 and 2 is why did God allow for Satan to do this?

We can’t blame God because he didn’t do it, even though Satan wanted him to. Satan said, Stretch out your hand against him. And God said, No. But you stretch out your hand, save this. You stretch out your hand in chapter 2, save only spare his life. God was in control. But why did God allow this suffering? James chapter 1 and verse 2 is a passage that might help us a little bit. Count at all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds. For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without approach, and it will be given him.

But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. What do we learn about tests and trials? And James might be thinking particularly of temptation, but pain leaves us there. Pain is a problem for even the greatest of us, like Job, who was that blameless and upright man. What can it do for us? What can these tests do? Verse 3. You know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. In verse 4, when steadfastness has its full effect, what comes next? That you may be perfect, that you may be complete, that you will be lacking in nothing.

How? Why? If your faith is strong and your faith is refined in these tests of life, when the life is hard and pain is severe, when you are tested, when you come through, you will have a faith, then ask of God anything, and what will God do? James 2, verses 5 through 7. He will answer those who ask in faith. But who will he not answer to? Who will not receive what they ask? You see very clearly in James chapter 2 and verse 6, the one who doubts. And in verse 7, for that person must not suppose he will receive anything from the Lord. He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. That word is really important here. Somebody lacking in the faith to understand who and where God is.

Of course, the book of Job gets very interesting, beginning in chapter 3, on through the end of the chapter, and we’re going to read a little bit from chapter 42 in just a few moments. But when we think about the story of Job, we often think of this great man who lost everything and held firm. But what we see in chapters 3, even into chapter 42, is you see a man and his friends who have a real struggle in understanding what’s going on and how they’re supposed to be dealing with it. We need to be honest this morning that pain is real, pain is a struggle, but that pain can serve a great purpose. You see, Job was doing great. And Satan said, if you just take away what he has, he won’t recognize you.

In fact, he will curse you. The truth of the matter is, if you look at the Israelites in the Old Testament, and you look at even the apostles in the New Testament, when we are at our most vulnerable, when we are in the most pain, and we don’t understand why, it’s the time that we can see, pray, and trust in God the most. We have to take times of reflection and of pain to realize I can’t do it on my own. I need God. I need a God who not only knows my pain, understands my pain, but even though it’s happening, I won’t blame him like Job did not, but also understand that in the background, like in Job chapter 1 and in Job chapter 2, my God knows me, he cares for me, and guess what?

4. Reach Out to God and to Each Other

He’s in control. God never let it get to a spot that couldn’t be returned from. He kept the devil in check at every turn. Yes, Satan brought the temptation, but God remained in control. And as long as Job’s faith would persevere in God, our relationship, like Job’s, can be there being a child of God ourselves. Persevering through pain means recognizing pain as a purpose and that our God is there for us. But the truth of the matter is if we’re going to be realistic, that we do feel pain physically. We do struggle with pain and struggles mentally. We have to reach out. And that’s a two-way street. Going back to Job in Job chapter 2. Turn back there with me. In Job chapter 2. It’s very important and I think obvious on a Sunday morning to recognize we must reach out to God.

And don’t worry, that’s coming next. But in Job chapter 2, we see somebody else there, and not just the wife. Note how his friends come up in verse 11. We’ll read this again in its completion. Job chapter 2 and verse 11. Now, when Job’s three friends heard of all of this evil that had come upon him, they came each from his own place. Why did they come? They heard of the evil. At the end of verse 11, why did they come? They made an appointment together to come to show him sympathy and comfort him. Job 2.11 is a powerful blueprint for what it means to be a true friend, a true comforter, a true encouragement. Do you see that in verse 11? They heard of the evil, and what did they do?

They came together to show sympathy and give comfort. We all know pain is real, amen. We know that we all face it. Are we looking for others who might be feeling it? What is our reaction? What is our response when we know pain is powerful? Pain is a temptation, even that can pull people not just into discomfort, but away from our loving God. What is our reaction when we hear they’re struggling? Is it that somebody else will do it? Somebody will comfort them. Somebody needs to comfort them. Or is it that we’ll make an appointment to come and to not only sympathize with, weep with those who weep, but to comfort those in need. That is the gospel message. Jesus came to seek and save the lost, and he cared about those who were lost in every conceivable way.

He had compassion on his followers. He had compassion on mankind, and we have to show that too. And we can’t do that sitting in our ivory tower. Yes, the gospel message of salvation is most important, but in the brotherhood, in the brotherhood of Christ, in the kingdom of the Lord, we have to look out for one another because Satan is trying to pick us off one by one, and he can, will, and does use pain to do it. We need to reach out to God, but we need to reach out to each other. You see, in verse 12, when they saw him from a distance, they did not recognize him. And they raised their voices and wept, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads towards heaven.

And they sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great. You may be thinking, I don’t know how to comfort those in need. When they’re in such pain and torment that we might not even recognize them in verse 12, how do you help someone then? Verse 13 may have the answer. When you see them, what did they do? For seven days and seven nights, they were just there. Everyone has a story of when something happened that was difficult, and somebody in God’s kingdom was there. Are you that person who was there? Do you remember who was there for you in your time of need? We just need to be there.

5. Our Trust Must Be Cemented in the Lord

In verse 13, what did they see the last part? That his suffering was very great. And what did they do? They sat with him for days. Because his need was great, and their ability to serve him was present. Pain is powerful. Pain can refine us, it can refine our faith, it can shape our trust in God. But we have to be willing to reach out to make our pain known and to reach out and to help and comfort and sympathize with those who are struggling as well. And finally, this morning, of course, our trust must be cemented, firmly standing in the Lord. If you look at Job chapter 42, as you think as you fast forward through it, think about all that Job went through, all the speeches of his friends, all the speeches and the struggles that Job would voice to God, and his faith that remained, and the struggles that went through with the pain he faced as day after day and week after week passed.

And Job 42 and verse 1. Then Job answered the Lord and said, I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. Who is this that hides counsel with all knowledge? Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. Hear and I will speak. I will question you and you make it known to me. I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you. Therefore I despise myself and repent and dust and ashes. What did Job realize as all was said none after he called out to God and God put him in his place? As he called out to God and questioned where he was, why it was being allowed to happen, and God said, I am in control, I am always there for you and for all of my people.

What did Job realize? Not only that he needed to repent, but what in verse 5? I had heard of you, but now I see you. And our dark moments of pain, when we see others come help us and sympathize with us and comfort us, when we understand that pain can serve as a refining process that can build and strengthen our faith.

The God who wants us to seek him, to trust in him, and to find him.

Conclusion

That Job did, not just hearing from God directly, but this understanding that I know who God is. I’ve heard about him, I’ve read about him, I know what’s taught about him on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings, but I know now in this moment of pain that my God is watching out for me, that my God knows, my God cares, and my God will win. We have to see God, we have to trust God. We have to find him. God is the answer. His plan is our everything. We have to recognize this morning that pain is real. That people struggle every day, physically, with the torments of the body and the limitations that it contains. We need to recognize that there is emotional burdens and pains that happen every day, not just when there’s a school shooting, not just when there’s a movie theater shooting, but at all times people are struggling because there are car accidents, there’s murder, there’s theft.

At all times we are tempted in many ways. And if we’re at the top, we need to reach out for those who are at the bottom. If you don’t know how, start by just being there. But all of us together have to know one thing from this lesson that pain is real and it’s powerful, and that our God can conquer our pain. Our God will take control. Our God just wants us to trust in him. If you’re here this morning, recognize that you can trust in God, you can accept him, you can not only just hear of him, but you can now see his presence. You can understand what he has offered and recognizing that Jesus has come. Jesus died on the cross for our sins.

Speaking of pain, we have a high priest who can sympathize with our weaknesses. Jesus was tempted, but without sin, he was the perfect sacrifice. And when he was crucified, when he went through great pain, when he was buried and resurrected, he made it so that he defeated the one with the power of death, and he made it to where we can be forgiven and we can be the children of God. Accept that plea this morning. If we’re here, recognize that you can be baptized having your sins forgiven. Or maybe you’re a Christian who struggled with pain. You struggled with trust. You struggled with obeying. Recognize that part of God’s plan is that we comfort one another, that we sympathize one another, and most pleasingly, we can pray to our God about any of our problems.

If we can help you in any way this morning, come forward now as we stand and sing the invitation song.