All the arguments between Job and his friends had gotten them nowhere, and so the stage was set for a new moderator to step on the scene. Elihu came on the scene full of anger and full of the Spirit willing to speak up for truth and justice in his day. Over the next few chapters Job and his friends sit silently listening as Elihu attempts to set the record straight. While at times he may not say much that is new, he is preparing the way and their hearts for the moment when God will speak.
"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven
against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men,
who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,
because what may be known of God is manifest in them,
for God has shown it to them."
(Romans 1:18, 19)
As Job presented his "oath of innocence" before the supreme Witness of heaven in his desire to be given a written statement of full pardon in Chapter 31, we find in the Book of John, that the Lord has also provided for us a detailed statement of innocence in the same "IF I" format which declares the path of our own full pardon before the court of heaven that our Advocate has taken upon Himself to fulfill, signed in His own blood, and sealed by the Holy Spirit. Yesterday, we sat with the Lord as He shared with Nicodemus about his need for spiritual birth in order to comprehend the spiritual lessons that He was teaching him, and of the religious leaders unwillingness to receive His teachings because they rejected His Witness. Today we listen in as our great Teacher provides the legal experts with an additional witness: John the Baptist [Feast upon: John 5:31-35] "If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true. There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true" (v. 31, 32). According to Jewish legal practice, a person's testimony about himself was not accepted in court. Jesus knew the religious leaders would not accept His witness of Himself as valid evidence to support His claim to deity, so He called other witnesses to the stand. "Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved" (v. 34). The first was John the Baptist, whom the religious leaders had thoroughly vetted (John 1:19-28). The Lord raised up John the Baptist as His forerunner (Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3:1). "And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways" (Luke 1:76). And John had faithfully declared that Jesus was the Messiah. "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29). John had become a sort of local celebrity whom the people were drawn to because of his growing popularity. The religious leaders were also attracted to his fame, but refused to submit to his authority. Had the Jews believed John, they would have believed Christ and been saved. "For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to receive it, he is the Elijah who is to come. He who ears to hear, let him hear!" (Matthew 11:13-15). The religious leaders weren't looking for a spiritual leader, however, they were looking for a political Messiah who would deliver them out from under Roman oppression, and neither John the Baptist, nor Jesus of Nazareth fit the bill. With all their knowledge, age, and experience, the teachers of the law lacked understanding of the justice of God. They were unaware that they were held captive by a far greater tyrant than Rome, and it was for this reason Jesus, the Messiah, had come, so they would truly be free. "Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed" (John 8:36). John the Baptist was but a candle in the window of the world for one of the most important epoch's in human history. "He was the burning and shining lamp" (John 5:35). He "came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light" (John 1:7, 8). At the present time God's wrath is being revealed against sin and the suppression of the truth (Romans 1:18), but there is a future wrath coming at the day of the Lord - it will be God's wrath on the unbelieving world that has spurned and mocked Christ. As the Lord is preparing and purifying our hearts in this season of prayer and fasting through the book of Job for the upcoming three days of repentance and prayer (October 31, November 1 and 2) utilizing the book of Joel - which focuses on the Day of the Lord - let us offer a prayer of praise and thanksgiving to our Lord Jesus for saving us from the horrible fate of divine judgment through His death on the Cross and His resurrection from the grave. Let us pray for the witness of every believer and of the church to begin to burn even brighter as the days are growing darker, so that multitudes will be saved from the day of God's wrath, and the world will be filled with the light of Christ in preparation for His return when He comes for His Bride. "For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him. Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you are doing" (1 Thessalonians 5:9-11). "Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together" (Psalm 34:3).
"I am not the Christ, but,
I have been sent before Him.
He who has the bride is the bridegroom;
but the friend of the bridegroom,
who stands and hears him,
rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice.
Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled.
He must increase, but I must decrease.
He who comes from above is above all;
he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth.
He who comes from heaven is above all.
And what He has seen and heard, that he testifies;
and no one receives His testimony.
He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.
For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God,
for God does not give the Spirit by measure.
The Father loves the Son,
and has given all things into His hand.
He who believes in the Son has everlasting life;
and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life,
but the wrath of God abides on him."
(John 3:28-36)
