Sunday, January 7, 2018

 Job 41:11 says, Who hath prevented me, that I should repay him? whatsoever is under the whole heaven is mine.  God asked Job who could stop Him from carrying out His will.  Everything under the heavens belongs to God.  As I have said before, sometimes even as followers of Christ, we want to divide the world into the sacred and the secular, but God does not do so.  Everything that we have, or ever hope to have, already belongs to God, and if we are His followers, then we must use it all for His glory.  Verse twelve says, I will not conceal his parts, nor his power, nor his comely proportion.  God said that He not only saw the outside of the leviathan but that He even saw the internal parts.  Likewise, God does not just see the way that we act in the world, but He even knows the reasons that we act as we do.  Verse thirteen asks, Who can discover the face of his garment? or who can come to him with his double bridle?  The question was if Job thought he could tame the leviathan as he did a horse.  If we cannot even tame all the creatures of the earth, then why should we think that we should be able to control God, Who created it all.  Verse fourteen asks, Who can open the doors of his face? his teeth are terrible round about.  When looking at the power of the leviathan, God asked Job who would be brave enough to open its mouth.  I believe that the implication is if people were afraid to face the leviathon one on one, then why would they feel that they could face God and expect to overpower Him.  If we have more respect, or even fear, of the things of this world than we do of God, then something is wrong.  The next three verses speak of the lack of a place to attack the leviathan.  Verse fifteen says, His scales are his pride, shut up together as with a close seal. Then verse sixteen states, One is so near to another, that no air can come between them.   Finally, verse seventeen adds, They are joined one to another, they stick together, that they cannot be sundered.  I understand that we do not know of a giant sea creature that has scales, but whatever this creature was had no weak points that a person could attack.  I believe that God was telling Job that God likewise had no weaknesses that Job could attack.  We are powerless in a battle with God, so we would be much better off just surrendering to His will.  Verse eighteen states, By his neesings a light doth shine, and his eyes are like the eyelids of the morning.  I believe that this most likely means an ability to see in the darkness of the depths of the sea.  God is not limited to what we may see in the light, but He can see into the depths of the dark places in a person's life.  We cannot hide anything from God.  Verse nineteen says, Out of his mouth go burning lamps, and sparks of fire leap out. Then verse twenty states, Out of his nostrils goeth smoke, as out of a seething pot or caldron.  Then verse twenty-one continues, His breath kindleth coals, and a flame goeth out of his mouth.  Matthew Henry says these three verses refer to the power of God's word.  We know that God's word has the power to burn away lies and to create and destroy.  Fortunately for us, God's purpose is not to destroy, but to redeem.


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