Job 8: The Creator
Notes
Transcript
Handout
THEME:
God is the creator, He is in control. He has absolute authority, and we can trust His authority and that of the Bible, God’s Written Word.
God answers Job with 77 rhetorical questions, over the course of 4 chapters
God is the Creator, and His words carry the ultimate authority
God is the Creator, and His words carry the ultimate authority
Job 38:1
Job 38:1
Job 38:4
Job 38:4
v.1:
“whirlwind”, God’s words are strong, they carry the ultimate authority.
v.2:
Elihu is an idiot, he doesn’t know what he is talking about.
v.3:
Get Ready! When God speaks, we had better sit up and take notice.
Job couldn’t answer the questions. These were all designed to reveal Job’s minuteness, and God’s greatness.
vv.4-6:
God affirms His role as creator.
This alone should convince us of how important this issue is. In fact, this is the entire focus of what God talks about, He never addresses suffering.
v.4:
Although many try, we cannot explain the origins by present day processes (uniformitarianism).
We can only hypothesize by using the evidence that exists today.
The Bible is the only authoritative account of creation, for God is the creator and the only eyewitness.
v.7:
Exactly when the angels were created has been the source of many questions and debates, but one need not look any farther than Scripture itself, to find the answer.
The angels were created during the six day creation period.
Everything in existence was created during the six-day creation period
Everything in existence was created during the six-day creation period
Genesis 1:1
Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Exodus 20:11
Exodus 20:11
For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.
Exodus 31:17
Exodus 31:17
It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.’ ”
Their creation would have to have been at the very beginning, with heaven. There is absolutely nothing in the scripture that would teach otherwise.
Since day one lists both the heavens and the earth as being created (in that order), we would expect that the occupants of heaven were created at the same time (nothing tells us otherwise).
This would put the angels into existence in time to witness the laying of the "foundations of the earth."
God reminds Job of His greatness
God reminds Job of His greatness
Job 38:8-18
Job 38:8-18
vv.8-18:
This is to remind Job to trust God, that God is in control of far greater things than what is going on in Job’s life.
Such is the case with us. Since God is in control of far greater things than our little lives, what should we have to worry about?
vv.8-11:
God, here, is reminding Job of the flood.
It has been proven time and again that man can not control the sea or hold back the waters, despite our best efforts.
Not only can God control nature with no effort at all, He is reminding Job that He has the power, authority, and the right to judge.
God revealed knowledge that man did not yet possess
God revealed knowledge that man did not yet possess
Job 38:16: There are springs in the ocean
Job 38:16: There are springs in the ocean
Job 38:19-20: Light has motion
Job 38:19-20: Light has motion
Job 38:24: Light affects the global wind patterns
Job 38:24: Light affects the global wind patterns
Job 38:31: Some stars are bound together by gravity and some are not
Job 38:31: Some stars are bound together by gravity and some are not
Job 36:27-28: The hydrologic cycle
Job 36:27-28: The hydrologic cycle
Job 26:7; Isaiah 40:22: The Earth is round
Job 26:7; Isaiah 40:22: The Earth is round
Leviticus 17:11: There is life in the blood
Leviticus 17:11: There is life in the blood
v.16:
It wasn’t until 1960's that man discovered that there were springs in the ocean, and 1973 before they were directly observed.
This is evidence that God is who He says He is, and that the Bible really is the Word of God.
God gave Job knowledge that man did not yet possess at the time this was written.
Furthermore, man didn't have the technological ability to verify this statement by God.
Therefore, there is no way that this writing could have been invented by man.
Without God, man wouldn't have been able to know any such thing until the 1960's, yet this was written over 4000 years ago.
Have you ever stopped to consider how much faster our knowledge would have increased (and still would), if the bible were our basis for study?
That is, if we assumed the Bible to be true, and began our study from that foundation. Notice a couple of foundational truths from the book of Proverbs.
The Word of God must be the foundation for all other knowledge
The Word of God must be the foundation for all other knowledge
Proverbs 9:10
Proverbs 9:10
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
Proverbs 2:6
Proverbs 2:6
For the Lord gives wisdom;
From His mouth come knowledge and understanding;
The Bible makes it clear that we will never be able to truly understand the things of this world if we don't first understand God. The Lord is the basis of knowledge, wisdom and understanding. In fact, the Bible revealed many scientific truths, long before man ever figured them out on his own. Here are a few:
There is life in the blood
(I'm aware that this refers to the blood that Jesus would shed, but there is a literal truth here as well.)
For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.’
It was as recently as a couple hundred years ago that doctors would bleed patients (sometimes to death) to try to cure diseases. Yet. . . God revealed this in the time of Moses!
The earth is round, and the universe is expanding
It is He who sits above the circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers,
Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.
He stretches out the north over empty space;
He hangs the earth on nothing.
Over 3000 years ago God made these revelations to use, when did man finally figure them out?
The hydrologic cycle
For He draws up drops of water,
Which distill as rain from the mist,
Which the clouds drop down
And pour abundantly on man.
Over 3000 years ago, God described the hydrologic cycle. . . long before man knew anything of it.
These are just a few of the things that were revealed by God, long before we had the ability to discover them on our own.
The knowledge and wisdom of God should be the basis of our education system. Instead we have a system that is filled with lies, because it is based on man's wisdom (which is foolishness to God).
In any field of study, the presumption of atheism or any other religion, always leads to false conclusions that will eventually be disproved.
The Bible tells us to beware of false science (1 Timothy 6:20-21). If you want understanding, start with the presumption that the Bible is true, and then build on that. You should use the Word of God as your foundation.
vv.19-20:
Light has motion, another recent discovery. Man wouldn't have been able to conceive any such idea.
v.21:
God was around at the beginning, He is an eyewitness.
We should take His word on these issues.
v.24:
Light affects the global wind patterns. When did we figure this out?
vv.25-30:
God alone is in control of the weather.
Though man has made many attempts to control it, we have always failed.
vv.29-30:
This probably refers to the ice age (immediately following the flood).
God gives the picture of a sheet of ice slowly coming forth, as if emerging from a womb.
v.31:
God talks about the constellations.
Our modern telescopes tell us that the cluster of stars in the Pleiades constellation are bound together by gravitation.
The stars of Orion are not. (bind, loose)
vv.33-35:
God is the creator of and in control of the laws of nature.
vv.36-38:
Wisdom comes only from God
vv.39-41:
Only God can adequately provide for the vast needs of the animal kingdom.
God is the creator and the sustainer.
God can adequately and abundantly provide the needs of the entire universe. Why should we worry?
God can adequately and abundantly provide the needs of the entire universe. Why should we worry?