Spiritual Strength Overcomes Worldly Weakness
An all-creatures Bible Message

Spiritual Strength Overcomes Worldly Weakness
 
A Sermon Delivered to
The Compassion Internet Church
 
7 October 2018
 
Frank L. Hoffman, Pastor

Scripture References

Job 1:1-22
Psalm 26:1-12
Matthew 26:41
Romans 3:23

Spiritual strength overcomes worldly weakness may make some people think of physical strength overcoming physical weakness, which is not what we are talking about; we are referring to spiritual strength that has no physical component, for it is from the heavenly realm.
 
This is what Jesus was referring to in Matthew 26:41, when He was talking about the end times…

41. "Keep watching and praying, that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."
NASB

Flesh is a physical substance; it is not spiritual, and if people consume flesh, they are doing so as a result of death, the death of an animal; thus, we could also say that spiritual strength also overcomes death.
 
The Book of Job is filled with many ungodly things that are not in the heavenly will of God, which we are going to talk about as we look at Job 1:1-22…

1. There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job, and that man was blameless, upright, fearing God, and turning away from evil.

This verse is in direct contradiction to what Paul tells us in Romans 3:23…

23. for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
NASB

Perhaps we might consider Job to be living in the heavenly will of God, as much as he possibly could while still living upon this earth.
 
Thus we believe that this passage was altered by some scribes or it doesn’t fully mean that Job was perfect…
 
However, we need to remember that spiritual strength overcomes worldly weakness, but we also have flesh, and as Jesus said, “the flesh is weak,” which to us means that as long as we live upon this corrupt world, we will be bombarded with temptations, and will succumb to some of them, even if only for a short time.

2. And seven sons and three daughters were born to him.

In the next verse we see how worldly ways are ungodly…

3. His possessions also were 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and very many servants; and that man was the greatest of all the men of the east.

Note that Job’s greatness was in comparison to the other men in the world, and not in the eyes of God.
 
We also need to remember that possessions are also physical, and that considering other living beings (humans and other animals) as possessions is not in the heavenly will of God, which in our opinion shows the imperfections in “righteous” Job.

4. And 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.
 
5. And it came about, when the days of feasting had completed their cycle, that Job would send and consecrate them, rising up early in the morning and offering burnt offerings according to the number of them all; for Job said, "Perhaps my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts." Thus Job did continually.

The offering of burnt offerings (animal sacrifice) seems to have stemmed from Babylonian Empire, and we know from the accounts in the Bible that Abraham also brought that practice with him when God called him out of Or.
 
And since there is no death or suffering in heaven, we know that no form of animal sacrifice is in the heavenly will of God; the Lord wants obedience and not sacrifice.

6. Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them.

These “sons of God” referred to in the allegory seem to be referring to the spiritually created beings of God, such as angels, and not the spirits of human beings in heaven.

7. And the LORD said to Satan, "From where do you come?" Then Satan answered the LORD and said, "From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it."

This is another one of the contradictions in the Bible, because we are told elsewhere in the Bible that God banished Lucifer (Satan) from heaven and sent him to the earth.

8. And the LORD said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil."
 
9. Then Satan answered the LORD, "Does Job fear God for nothing?
 
10. "Hast Thou not made a hedge about him and his house and all that he has, on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.
 
11. "But put forth Thy hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse Thee to Thy face."

To us, this sounds like the comments of a jealous individual who only wants to destroy the relationship between the Lord and Job.

12. Then the LORD said to Satan, "Behold, all that he has is in your power, only do not put forth your hand on him." So Satan departed from the presence of the LORD.

Why the Lord would go along with anything like this is beyond our understanding of the God that Jesus taught us about, and that we should live in His heavenly will here on earth as it is in heaven where there is no pain or death.
 
This verse makes it sound like God is a bloodthirsty and sadistic being who enjoys inflicting pain, suffering, and death upon innocent individuals just to test the faith of someone.
 
Again, this isn’t the God that Jesus taught us to follow and to be perfect as He is perfect.

13. Now it happened on the day when his sons and his daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother's house,
 
14. that a messenger came to Job and said, "The oxen were plowing and the donkeys feeding beside them,
 
15. and the Sabeans attacked and took them. They also slew the servants with the edge of the sword, and I alone have escaped to tell you." 
 
16. While he was still speaking, another also came 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."
 
17. While he was still speaking, another also came and said, "The Chaldeans formed three bands and made a raid on the camels and took them and slew the servants with the edge of the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you."
 
18. While he was still speaking, another also came and said, "Your sons and your daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother's house,
 
19. and behold, a great wind came from across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell on the young people and they died; and I alone have escaped to tell you."

All these acts are the ones we would expect Satan to orchestrate to take people away from God, but it is totally out of context to believe that God would ever authorize such horrible acts.
 
As we talked about last week, “vengeance hardens hearts,” and Job did nothing to deserve this kind of treatment and neither did the other people and the innocent animals, and even though God says that “vengeance is mine,” and we believe that He never could have done such a horrible thing.
 
Nevertheless, according to this story, Job never blames God, nor does he seem to mourn for the loss of his family…

20. Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshiped.
 
21. And he said,
"Naked I came from my mother's womb,
And naked I shall return there.
The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away.
Blessed be the name of the LORD."
 
22. Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God.
NASB

If we consider that Satan did all of these horrible things, and Job recognized that fact, then it becomes easier to understand Job’s reaction, for it is Job who understands that his spiritual strength overcomes worldly weakness.
 
Now let’s take a look at Psalm 26:1-12, a psalm of David…

1. Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have walked in my integrity;
And I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.

To us, this seems to be an egotistical was of praying, for as we pointed out above, we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
 
If these things were true about David, he never would have had an affair with Bathsheba or killed her husband, Uriah to try to cover up the fact that he made Bathsheba pregnant.
 
We need to remember that spiritual strength overcomes worldly weakness, and not the other way around.

2. Examine me, O LORD, and try me;
Test my mind and my heart.

God did this with David, and he failed the test many times, and even though he repented, he nevertheless succumbed to the temptation, just as we often do.

3. For Thy lovingkindness is before my eyes,
And I have walked in Thy truth.
 
4. I do not sit with deceitful men,
Nor will I go with pretenders.
 
5. I hate the assembly of evildoers,
And I will not sit with the wicked.

This may have been the intent of David’s heart, but he still succumbed to temptation, such as happened with Bathsheba, or when in his zeal to bring up the Ark to Jerusalem, it caused the death of Uzzah.

6. I shall wash my hands in innocence,
And I will go about Thine altar, O LORD,
 
7. That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving,
And declare all Thy wonders.

David may have done this many times, but sometimes he didn’t, and created his own ungodly acts.

8. O LORD, I love the habitation of Thy house,
And the place where Thy glory dwells.

In reality, God’s glory dwells all around us in the form of His Holy Spirit, which we all need to listen to more attentively,

9. Do not take my soul away along with sinners,
Nor my life with men of bloodshed,
 
10. In whose hands is a wicked scheme,
And whose right hand is full of bribes.
 
11. But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;
Redeem me, and be gracious to me.

David’s integrity is not the same as God’s integrity, which is always in the best interest of the whole of His creation; ego, which even David was plagued by, prevents us from being in the heavenly will of God.

12. My foot stands on a level place;
In the congregations I shall bless the LORD.
NASB

David claimed to be standing on a level place, but the only way we can stand on a level place in God’s eyes is to be in alignment with His ways.
 
As we can see here, David was sometimes drawn away from God’s heavenly will when he put the physical situations he encountered over the spiritual strengths that the Lord had given him, which is very similar to what Job did.
 
Amen?
 
Amen.

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