Becoming 1 In 1000

I was raised a heathen and for the first 27 years of my life I lived as one. God saved me at that point through the personal witness of a couple of people that He had brought into my life at the right time for the circumstances that He had allowed to come to pass which prepared me for that moment.

Early in my Christian life I began to share my faith, as I had been taught, give them the Gospel and have them pray to receive Christ.

My first year as a Christian I “lead 13 people to Christ” or so I thought.

As far as I know there is only one who remains faithful today.

I was disillusioned by this and in the course of time as I began to teach I made a serious study of the Gospel and I learned that the Law must precede Grace so that people see their need for the forgiveness of God that is offered in the Gospel.

God gave me the opportunity teach a class at my first church on evangelism.

Then to train three sets of people to share their faith on short term missions to Mexico.

From this was born my Internet ministry which is called 1in1000.org.

You may say as my unsaved brother has said, a little cocky, aren’t you?

The name comes from Job 33:23 and this is the text that I want to preach this morning.

This will help you to see where I am coming from as a preacher and pastor.

I am reasonably sure that you are familiar with the story of Job.

Job 1:1 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.

We see at the beginning that Job was a good man.

Job 1:6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. 7 And the Lord said to Satan, “From where do you come?” So Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it.” 8 Then 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, one who fears God and shuns evil?”

You probably remember that from here he loses all of his children and his wealth in one day.

That did not do the trick though, Job 1:22 In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.

So in chapter 2, God allows Satan to afflict Job’s body and again, Job 2:10b In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Then Job’s three friends show up and everything changes.

Job 19 :6 God has wronged me

Job 23:3 Oh, that I knew where I might find Him, That I might come to His seat! 4 I would present my case before Him, And fill my mouth with arguments.

From Chapter 3-31 we have a great debate going on as to whether Job is a wicked sinner who has hidden his sin and is now being judged by God as his friends suppose or whether he is perfectly righteous as he maintains.

Job certainly is a righteous man! We see this in Ezekiel 14:14 Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver only themselves by their righteousness,” says the Lord God.

Job was a good man! As judgment came upon Judah in its final days and was very certain, God makes the declaration that only these three men are righteous enough to deliver themselves from His fury.

That is saying something!

I don’t think any of us can claim to be in God’s top three like he is here.

His friends were wrong to accuse him of sin because he was going through a trial.

I think this is really representative of humanity’s view of God.

Job’s view, I’m good and God has no excuse to mess up my life.

His friends view, If you were good God would not be messing with you.

People tend to judge God by themselves rather than the other way around.

God afflicts him for a reason. Why?

I am going to say it is because it is not by trusting in our own goodness that we are saved, Job had to know God better than he did.

He had some inkling of the truth as we see in Job 19:25 For I know that my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth; 26 And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God.