JOB 35:6-8: “If you sin, what do you accomplish against Him? Or, if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to Him? If you are righteous, what do you give Him? Or what does He receive from your hand? Your wickedness affects a man such as you, And your righteousness a son of man.” NKJV
OBSERVATION: Have you ever wanted to change something? You may have wanted to change your job, your place of residence, your relationships, or your outlook on life. Yet, you soon learned an important lesson. Change does not come easy. And, there are some things in life you can change and some you cannot.
The one thing you cannot change in life is God. We live in a world that is continually trying to change God. They want to mold Him into their image. They want to create a God who accommodates their opinions, beliefs, and lifestyles. They want to redefine truth to justify their sin and actions. Yet, they are trying to do something that cannot be done. God does not change and He is not affected or changed by our behavior.
In the book of Job, after Job had finished his defense, and after his three friends had finished their responses, a young man named Elihu speaks to Job. At the end of the story of Job, the Lord rebukes the counsel of the three friends but not those of Elihu. Elihu speaks these words to Job as he responds to all that has been said previously by Job and his three friends.
- “If you sin, what do you accomplish against Him? Or, if your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to Him? If you are righteous, what do you give Him? Or what does He receive from your hand? “
The essence of what Elihu is saying is that God does not change. Our sin and rebellion do not change God. Our righteous deeds and actions do not change God. God is holy. He is the Creator of all and He is completely separate from His creation. The wonder is that He chooses to become involved in our lives at all. It is God’s love that compelled Him to pursue us even while we were found in sin and rebellion against Him (Romans 5:8). His love never changes. His mercy is everlasting. He loves, not because of what we do or don’t do. He loves because – He is love – and His love never changes!
- “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” I John 4:10-11 NKJV
In these two verses from I John, we find a complimenting truth to what Elihu spoke to Job. Our actions do not change God. Yet, His love can change us! And, we are called to act in response to God’s love. How we live our life will never change God. Yet – it will always have an impact on the life of others. No one is an island unto themselves. Our actions in life will either affect others for good or for evil! Thus, Elihu continues in his words to Job,
- “Your wickedness affects a man such as you, And your righteousness a son of man.”
Our actions affect the lives of others. Our words hold the power of life and death. We can keep silent and watch as those in our life race toward the cliff of sin and death, or we can speak the truth in love. We can hide our faith and go along with the flow, or we can stand up in faith and let our words and actions be the light and salt of the earth. We can exercise our faith in the safety of the four walls of our churches, or we can proclaim the Gospel to all nations with boldness in the power of the Holy Spirit. Our actions, the way we live our life, will always have an effect on others!
While we cannot change God, we can allow God to change us! Through faith in Jesus Christ, we are given the privilege to become sons and daughters of the Creator of all things! We are transformed by His love and called to a new purpose in life. We are called to be His agents of change in a world that desperately needs to change!
- “But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God’s instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.” 1 Peter 2:9-10 MSG
In a world that is constantly changing, we are called to be God’s instruments to proclaim His love that never changes. As the tide of culture ebbs and flows, we boldly procliam that Jesus Christ is the same Yesterday, Today, and Forever! (Hebrews 13:8). And, as the tide of public opinion changes with each changing wind, we uphold and proclaim that the Word of God, His truth, endures forever!
Lord, transform in the truth of Your unchangeable nature and love. As I draw close to You, change me so that I can be an instrument of change in the life of others. Let Your love, and the light of Your truth, transform my attitudes, my words, and my actions. Let me be a positive agent of change in a world that so desparately needs Your love!
In Jesus Name!
