Text: Job 31:16-23
Theme: Almsgiving of Job
Illustration:
A preacher asked the congregation. What makes a good sermon?
They said, “A good sermon should have a good beginning and a good ending,
then have the two as closer as possible.”
Introduction to the Book of Job: The book of Job has powerful communication through its 42 chapters about the mystery of innocent suffering. It gives deep insight into the psychology of grief. This is the pilgrimage of faith attested with the integrity of Job. He had self-pity, self-assertive, however his integrity was unquestionable. The book tells us that all our sufferings are not because of our acts and deeds but unknown mysterious reasons but known to God.
But Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar pressed the logic of doctrine of rewards and leading to cause and effect theory. They were biblical in their understanding as per Deuteronomy 28, blessings to the obedient and curses with sufferings to the disobedient (Psalm 1:1,6, Hebrews 11:6). Our universe is a moral world where virtue is rewarded and evil is punished. However, it may not be true always. They defied Job with their logic of theological positions.
God has the freedom to give and take away whatever he wills, He is free to bless us or allow us to suffer. Job was a blessed man to experience that freedom of God.
Introduction:
(Outlines from Matthew Henry): The sins from which Job acquits himself are:
Wantonness and uncleanness of heart (vv.1-4),
Fraud and injustice in commerce (vv. 4-8).
Adultery (vv. 9-12),
Haughtiness and severity towards his servants (vv. 12-15), Unmercifulness to the poor, the widows, and the fatherless (vv.16-23).
Confidence in his worldly wealth (vv.24-25),
Idolatry (vv.26-28),
Revenge (vv.29-31),
Neglect of poor strangers (v.32),
Hypocrisy in concealing his own sins and cowardice in conniving at the sins of others (v.33-34),
Oppression, and the violent invasion of other people's rights (vv.38-40).
And, his appeals to God's judgment concerning his integrity (vv.35-37).
Job acquits himself not only from those gross sins which lie open to the eyes of the world, but from many secret sins. He proves himself that he was not a hypocrite. He was very clean in his approaches and maintained the cleanness in his practices. But went upon good principles, that the reason of his eschewing evil was because he feared God, and his piety was at the bottom of his justice and charity; and this crowns the proof of his sincerity.
Job 31:16-23: We observe in this passage that Job mentions different categories of people who are not in the limelight of the society, they are: poor, widows, fatherless, beggars, they are in need of supply of food, clothes to cover during winter, the homeless, helpless and neglected.
Today, I would like to interpret that an Almsgiving is a good deed, an almsgiving is a godly deed, an almsgiving is a generous deed. These are the signs of righteousness, godliness and generosity. We learned to respond to the human situations and needs of the humanity with deeper sensitivity and responsibility.
1. Almsgiving a Good deed
Job was a man from the land of Uz. A rich folk with one wife, seven sons and three daughters. He was in his middle age. After the suffering episode he had another 10 children. He was blameless and upright, a pious and a moral person. He was a man who had the fear of God and shunned evil (Job 1:18, 2:3). Though he had a sizeable family to take care yet he was a man of good deeds.
Job made a number of conditional “if” clauses in this passage. Because, He was confident of his good deeds rendered to the above mentioned categories. Job starts this “if” section by giving the possibility that he hasn’t given the poor what they desire and has caused the eyes of the widow to fail – or that he’s caused widows to give up hope and caused them to weep.
Job speaks of his care for the orphan and widow from his youth, actually from his mother’s womb! Job is highlighting that caring for the needy has been his continual practice as long as he can remember.
He was a father to the fatherless, took care of orphans, brought them up with him under his own eye, and gave them food, shelter, provisions and protection, along with education.
He had something of tenderness and compassion woven in his nature; he began in his early to do good, ever since he could remember; he had always some poor widow or fatherless child under his care. His parents taught him betimes to pity and relieve the poor, and brought up orphans with him (Matthew Henry). “Most of the good deeds that Job presents as evidence of his righteousness” (Mason) to his friends who were accusing of his good deeds.
Almsgiving is a sign of righteous deed, we become father of the fatherless, brother of the widows, and caretakers of the neglected. Jesus remembered in his judgment, the love and service of his disciples as he mentioned in Matthew 24. All those who were in need are identified with Christ. Jesus identified himself with the innocent convicts, immune naked, helpless sick who were hospitalised and the orphans, widows and downtrodden.
We read in Proverbs 19:17 “Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward them for what they have done.”
Daily we meet one or a few beggars, people in need of different kinds, let us try to help in whatever way we can.
2. Almsgiving a Godly deed
According to David Atkinson: the statements Job made in this passage are legal oath formulae. “If I have…then” in terms of purity(31:1), truth(31:5), honour(31:13-14), justice(vv.16-17), moral priorities (31:24-28), neighbouring love(31:29-30)- Job says that I have done it right! This is my signature: let the almighty answer me! What a courageous person to challenge his friends and above all his creator God.
Job “feared God.” He knew God’s desire regarding the poor and needy. And he knew that if he didn’t carry out God’s merciful desires for the poor that he himself would be in trouble. Job regarded God’s demands with sobriety and a desire to do them in his life.
He expresses his judicial power in the city gate. He didn’t syndicate with the wicked to do any injustice to any vulnerable people. Job would have had support to vote against the powerless for his own gain. Because He had support among those in power. Whereas by contrast orphans wouldn’t have had any such power. There’s not a thing that the orphans could do to stop Job, if Job wanted to be that kind of person. So, it’s the arm that would have been raised in a vote against the orphan. And so he assigned punishment accordingly as being his own arm falling off.
Job had his friends visiting him, sat with him for seven days and nights without uttering a word. This the genuine friendship and deep ministry. It was a suffering presence, suffering friendship. This is a service of vulnerability. Suffering presence is the powerful ministry of silent compassion. Job had done all this in his life. He had extended help to the fatherless, widows, poor, needy and vulnerable (David Atkinson).
Psalms 112:9 “They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor, their righteousness endures forever; their horn will be lifted high in honor.” God is specifically commanding the Israelites to consider the poor among them, (Leviticus 19:9-10, Deuteronomy 15:7-8.).
3. Almsgiving a Generous Deed
Illustration:
A pastor was preaching on a Sunday service, during the sermon, a man suddenly stood up and walked out of the church.
After the church service, his wife told the pastor:
“pastor please don’t take it serious or be hurt of my husband’s behaviour.”
“He has the problem of walking during the sleep.”
Our modern society revolves around trade and business, profit and loss. So, generosity can become a calculative and overcomplicated event. But do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased (Hebrews 13:16).
The word generosity mostly remembered with finance but not exactly. Sharing is the simplest way of generosity. Sharing of the time, talent, words and feeds. This concept was known as tzedakah among the Hebrews, its origins is in the Torah. This Hebrew word literally means righteousness, but Jews use it in reference to giving and charity. The Jewish community takes the responsibility of giving with great pride.
Of course, there is no one more generous than God. As we are becoming more like Him, we will find we are becoming more generous as well. The generosity is the posture and condition of our heart. Generosity is a state of the heart, not of one’s wallet. Jack Hayford, a chancellor of kings university, describes “learning to be a giver is rooted in clarifying who we perceive as our ultimate source in life – ourselves or God.”
Paul says, “If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.” (1 Corinthians 13:3).
Even the apostle John says in his first epistle (1 John 3:17) that “If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?” Generosity without love is vain exercise.
So no one have to be rich to be generous. It’s not all about the amount we give it’s all about the willingness to give as much as we can.
Giving our time, resources, talents or even a listening ear or a kind word, can be expressions of generosity to people in need.
So, in 1 Timothy 6:18 we read “Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.” Giving generously is an opportunity for us to trust in God’s provision. Giving to others helps us tangibly practise trusting in God rather than our riches or belongings.
Proverbs 21:13, 22:9 both are talking about the sharing of food, caring of the needy is an outcome of generosity.
Proverbs 28:27 refers not taking care of them is a curse.
Psalm 37:26 says the righteous are always generous and lend freely.
Psalms 112:5 affirms that “Good will come to those who are generous and lend freely, who conduct their affairs with justice.” Proverbs 11:25 “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.”
2 Corinthians 9:11 “You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.”
It is also true that being generous causes us to become prosperous, enriched, and refreshed. Be generous in appreciation, be generous in encouraging, be generous in smiling, be generous in kindness. Be generous in soft replies.
Closing:
A pastor at the end of his sermon said: Bishop has transferred me to another Jesus church.
The congregation stood and sang: “What a friend we have in Jesus.”
