1 00:00:01,280 --> 00:00:05,120 Amen. Turn with me tonight in your 2 00:00:05,120 --> 00:00:19,760 Bible to the book of Job, Job chapter 38, Job 38, and we're 3 00:00:19,760 --> 00:00:23,000 going to read the first 11 verses of the chapter. 4 00:00:24,120 --> 00:00:29,360 Let's hear the Word of God, reading of course from the King 5 00:00:29,360 --> 00:00:39,160 James Bible, Job 38 verse one. Let's hear God's word. 6 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:50,480 Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said, Who 7 00:00:50,520 --> 00:00:55,200 is this that darkeneth? Counselled by words, without 8 00:00:55,200 --> 00:01:00,520 knowledge, geared up now thy loins like a man. 9 00:01:01,720 --> 00:01:06,280 For I will demand of thee, and answer thy me. 10 00:01:08,520 --> 00:01:11,920 Where was thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? 11 00:01:12,880 --> 00:01:18,680 Declare, if thou hast understanding who have led the 12 00:01:18,680 --> 00:01:25,200 measures thereof, if thou knowest, or who have stretched 13 00:01:25,600 --> 00:01:31,160 the line upon it, Whereupon are the foundations thereof facet? 14 00:01:33,000 --> 00:01:37,680 Or who laid the cornerstone thereof, when the morning stars 15 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:42,640 sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? 16 00:01:44,600 --> 00:01:51,400 Or who have shut up the sea with doors, when it break forth as if 17 00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:57,760 it had issued out of the womb, when I made the cloud the 18 00:01:57,760 --> 00:02:03,320 garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddling band for 19 00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:11,320 it, and break up for it my decreed place, and set bars and 20 00:02:11,320 --> 00:02:19,040 doors, and said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further. 21 00:02:20,600 --> 00:02:25,760 And here shall thy proud waves be stayed. 22 00:02:26,480 --> 00:02:28,280 Amen. We know that God will stamp with 23 00:02:28,280 --> 00:02:31,760 His own approval and blessing this reading of His own precious 24 00:02:32,040 --> 00:02:40,080 and infallible word. Now my text this evening is from 25 00:02:40,080 --> 00:02:45,080 Job chapter 38, verses 8 through to 11. 26 00:02:45,080 --> 00:02:51,760 And my theme tonight I've entitled Shutting the Doors of 27 00:02:51,760 --> 00:03:00,360 the Sea thus far and no further. The book of Job is one of the 28 00:03:00,360 --> 00:03:04,280 most profound books in all of the Bible. 29 00:03:05,400 --> 00:03:10,160 It's a story of a righteous man who suffered deeply, who 30 00:03:10,160 --> 00:03:15,440 questioned painfully and searched desperately for answers 31 00:03:15,880 --> 00:03:19,360 as to why. Remember, Job suffered the loss 32 00:03:19,360 --> 00:03:25,200 of 10 children in one day. He lost all of his wealth, his 33 00:03:25,200 --> 00:03:31,560 thousands of camels, his lovely sheep and his welfare oxen. 34 00:03:32,520 --> 00:03:36,160 Then he lost all his servants. They were brutally murdered. 35 00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:39,640 He also lost his health. Did you know? 36 00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:42,920 He even lost the respect of his wife and I'm sure that was 37 00:03:42,920 --> 00:03:45,880 painful and troublesome. Remember, his wife told him, 38 00:03:47,760 --> 00:03:51,960 curse God and die. I believe he almost lost his 39 00:03:51,960 --> 00:03:56,360 sanity under the crushing pressure of his sufferings. 40 00:03:57,240 --> 00:04:00,360 Then his three friends came. They were added by a fourth 41 00:04:00,360 --> 00:04:02,320 friend. They came to comfort him. 42 00:04:02,320 --> 00:04:04,920 They're known as Job's comforters, but I want to tell 43 00:04:04,920 --> 00:04:08,880 you they were very, very poor specimens of comforts. 44 00:04:09,680 --> 00:04:14,400 Chapter after chapter they reasoned, they set forth their 45 00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:18,839 arguments. Job, you must have sinned 46 00:04:18,839 --> 00:04:22,400 secretly before God. All of these evils wouldn't have 47 00:04:22,400 --> 00:04:24,720 come upon you if you hadn't sinned. 48 00:04:25,320 --> 00:04:28,920 Job listened to his friends, so-called. 49 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:33,400 He heard their arguments. He endured their worldly 50 00:04:33,400 --> 00:04:37,240 philosophy and human logic. He he listened to their 51 00:04:37,320 --> 00:04:42,240 so-called wisdom and he countered and he protested his 52 00:04:42,240 --> 00:04:46,920 innocence. And then we come to chapter 38 53 00:04:48,040 --> 00:04:52,480 and everything changes. Look at verse 38, chapter 38, 54 00:04:52,480 --> 00:04:56,440 verse one. Then the Lord answered Job out 55 00:04:56,440 --> 00:04:58,560 of the world wind and said the word. 56 00:04:58,560 --> 00:05:02,640 Then this whole town in the Hebrew, and it means at that 57 00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:08,360 time, and it's interesting in this chapter, the Lord doesn't 58 00:05:08,360 --> 00:05:16,520 begin to explain to Job about his suffering. 59 00:05:20,600 --> 00:05:24,480 He doesn't begin to answer the mysteries of life that have 60 00:05:24,480 --> 00:05:28,880 befallen Job. Instead, he reveals himself. 61 00:05:30,720 --> 00:05:33,640 He reveals the greatness of his power. 62 00:05:34,800 --> 00:05:38,440 He speaks of his absolute sovereignty, his majestic 63 00:05:38,440 --> 00:05:41,120 wisdom. And in our text, if you look at 64 00:05:41,120 --> 00:05:47,480 verse 8 or who shut up the sea with doors when it breaks forth 65 00:05:47,480 --> 00:05:55,080 as if it had issued out of the whim, he points Job to the 66 00:05:55,080 --> 00:05:59,120 raging, roaring sea. And God says to Job, in essence, 67 00:05:59,320 --> 00:06:03,240 Job, I'm the one who controls the sea. 68 00:06:03,760 --> 00:06:07,520 Of course, the oceans look uncontrollable to man. 69 00:06:08,440 --> 00:06:12,800 It's waves crush against the coast with terrifying force. 70 00:06:13,320 --> 00:06:17,680 The sea looks and is very powerful, almost intimidating. 71 00:06:17,680 --> 00:06:23,560 And you know, of course, storms can rise suddenly entire ships 72 00:06:23,560 --> 00:06:25,880 have disappeared beneath its waves. 73 00:06:26,920 --> 00:06:30,920 Tsunamis have risen up and come and devastated coastlines. 74 00:06:31,720 --> 00:06:39,000 And yet God tells Job the sea only goes for he's allows it to 75 00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:42,520 go. The sea has a boundary because 76 00:06:42,520 --> 00:06:47,040 God drew the boundary line. When we were in Port Rush a few 77 00:06:47,040 --> 00:06:52,760 days ago, we stood and looked. Of course it was very windy, but 78 00:06:52,760 --> 00:06:57,800 I was thinking about the sea coming in, in the tide and going 79 00:06:57,800 --> 00:07:03,000 out, the sea splashing at Raymore Head up against the 80 00:07:03,000 --> 00:07:07,760 rocks, and I was thinking of that boundary line that God had 81 00:07:07,760 --> 00:07:09,920 set. I said to Rosemary, I'm going to 82 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:12,240 preach a message sometime on the sea. 83 00:07:12,520 --> 00:07:18,920 I was thinking about God who says to the sea thus far and no 84 00:07:18,920 --> 00:07:21,800 further. You see, this awesome God who 85 00:07:21,800 --> 00:07:28,120 speak to Job was telling Job that he controls the sea. 86 00:07:29,720 --> 00:07:34,440 And this God who controls the sea is the same God whom every 87 00:07:34,440 --> 00:07:38,280 Sinner one day is going to stand before and give an account. 88 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:43,320 And this God who restrains the sea is the very same God who 89 00:07:43,320 --> 00:07:47,480 restrains judgement coming upon our lives. 90 00:07:48,120 --> 00:07:52,160 See, God says to the sea thus far and no further. 91 00:07:52,800 --> 00:07:57,800 And God is the one who set a boundary line for our lives and 92 00:07:57,800 --> 00:08:02,840 says to us on the journey thus far and no further. 93 00:08:04,040 --> 00:08:06,240 So I want you to think of that with me tonight. 94 00:08:06,560 --> 00:08:11,280 I want you to think first of all, the sea reveals the 95 00:08:11,280 --> 00:08:13,480 creative power of God. Look at verse 8. 96 00:08:14,680 --> 00:08:18,360 Who has shut up the sea with doors when it breaks forth as if 97 00:08:18,360 --> 00:08:24,360 it issued out of the womb? You see, the sea didn't create 98 00:08:24,360 --> 00:08:28,440 itself. The sea didn't evolve. 99 00:08:29,280 --> 00:08:31,280 It's not the result of a Big Bang. 100 00:08:32,679 --> 00:08:37,320 It's not self originating. You take the great oceans of the 101 00:08:37,320 --> 00:08:41,640 world, the Pacific, the Indian, the Atlantic. 102 00:08:42,200 --> 00:08:44,960 Well, they didn't originate by themselves. 103 00:08:45,640 --> 00:08:48,920 Who made them? Well, the simple answer the 104 00:08:48,920 --> 00:08:51,920 child could answer, God made them. 105 00:08:52,080 --> 00:08:54,920 How do we know? Well listen to the word of God. 106 00:08:55,360 --> 00:08:59,320 It says in Genesis 1 and 9 he hears the beginning right back 107 00:08:59,320 --> 00:09:03,600 to foundational things. And God said, let the water 108 00:09:03,600 --> 00:09:08,240 under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let 109 00:09:08,240 --> 00:09:11,080 the dry land appear. And it was so. 110 00:09:11,840 --> 00:09:15,440 And God called the dry land earth, and the gathering 111 00:09:15,440 --> 00:09:19,720 together of the waters called he sees. 112 00:09:20,560 --> 00:09:25,520 And God saw that it was good. You see, before there was a 113 00:09:25,520 --> 00:09:31,040 scientist to study the sea, or a sailor to navigate upon the 114 00:09:31,120 --> 00:09:38,200 oceans, or even a scholar to speculate about its width or its 115 00:09:38,200 --> 00:09:46,320 death, there was God. The sea came forth because God 116 00:09:46,320 --> 00:09:52,120 spake and commanded it to come. Now the sea, as I've said, is 117 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:57,440 very powerful and intimidating. Men of cross deserts, they've 118 00:09:57,440 --> 00:10:00,280 climbed mountains, even the Himalayas, the highest mountain 119 00:10:00,280 --> 00:10:02,800 in the world. They've conquered empires. 120 00:10:03,320 --> 00:10:05,720 And of course we could talk about the Babylonians and the 121 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:08,880 Medes and the Persians and the Grecians and the Romans and the 122 00:10:08,880 --> 00:10:10,760 British Empire, and they're all gone. 123 00:10:12,120 --> 00:10:14,680 Yet the sea has been unconquered. 124 00:10:15,200 --> 00:10:18,040 The sea has been untamed by human strength. 125 00:10:19,920 --> 00:10:24,560 The sea didn't come about as the result of human wisdom. 126 00:10:25,160 --> 00:10:33,400 The sea came from the mouth and the hand of our God, he speak 127 00:10:34,160 --> 00:10:36,520 and it came to pass. Spurgeon said this. 128 00:10:37,160 --> 00:10:40,200 There's not a drop of water in the ocean that is outside the 129 00:10:40,200 --> 00:10:44,360 degrees of God. You see, the atheist, he sees 130 00:10:44,360 --> 00:10:47,920 nothing in creation. He could stand at Port Rush and 131 00:10:47,920 --> 00:10:50,920 he could look at the sea or down in Newcastle and he could 132 00:10:50,920 --> 00:10:54,840 scratch his head and he'd say, what do you want me to see? 133 00:10:57,080 --> 00:11:03,360 Yet the true believer, when he looks at the sea, sees the 134 00:11:03,360 --> 00:11:06,960 craftsmanship of God. The atheist of course, might 135 00:11:06,960 --> 00:11:12,040 speak of random emergence, but the believer will speak of God's 136 00:11:12,040 --> 00:11:16,560 divine plan. You see, the sea is not a rival 137 00:11:16,560 --> 00:11:19,360 to God. Did you know that the sea is 138 00:11:19,360 --> 00:11:24,600 actually God's servant? Even it's fury fulfils his will. 139 00:11:25,720 --> 00:11:29,720 The sea, one that can be calm the next minute it be can be 140 00:11:29,720 --> 00:11:32,240 catastrophic. But whether it's calm or 141 00:11:32,240 --> 00:11:34,480 catastrophic, it's all in his plan. 142 00:11:35,000 --> 00:11:37,360 And I know the sea looks wild and it is. 143 00:11:37,440 --> 00:11:41,360 I wouldn't like to be out in the ocean and a big ship or a wee 144 00:11:41,360 --> 00:11:43,000 ship. I'd be terrified. 145 00:11:44,120 --> 00:11:46,960 But it's not sovereign. It looks free. 146 00:11:47,960 --> 00:11:50,240 You stand at Portrush in Newcastle but you know it's not 147 00:11:50,240 --> 00:11:52,880 free. The sea is fenced. 148 00:11:56,600 --> 00:12:02,520 The oceans roar, but only roar because that's the way God 149 00:12:02,520 --> 00:12:05,080 designed them. And it's wonderful. 150 00:12:05,080 --> 00:12:10,800 When I read Job 38, it's not merely about meteorology, it's 151 00:12:10,800 --> 00:12:17,920 about true theology. It's a revelation of the awesome 152 00:12:17,920 --> 00:12:21,960 power of God. God is decreeing and declaring 153 00:12:21,960 --> 00:12:25,960 and revealing His awesome absolute sovereign power over 154 00:12:25,960 --> 00:12:32,480 creation objects like the sea, over evil, over the devil, over 155 00:12:32,480 --> 00:12:35,400 human suffering, over the lives of all people. 156 00:12:36,160 --> 00:12:39,320 Job suffered. Maybe you've suffered. 157 00:12:40,520 --> 00:12:43,640 Job had questions, and you have questions. 158 00:12:44,680 --> 00:12:48,160 Job wrestle with divine Providence in his life, and 159 00:12:48,160 --> 00:12:51,560 you're wrestling with divine Providence in your life at this 160 00:12:51,560 --> 00:12:56,840 time. But the Lord answered Job not 161 00:12:56,840 --> 00:13:02,120 with explanations, but with revelations of himself. 162 00:13:03,760 --> 00:13:09,160 See, I was thinking about this. The great question is not why do 163 00:13:09,160 --> 00:13:13,880 the righteous suffer? We ask that, but that's not the 164 00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:17,960 great question. The greater question is this 165 00:13:19,280 --> 00:13:21,360 Listen to me carefully. In the midst of trials and 166 00:13:21,360 --> 00:13:29,760 troubles, can I know? Can I trust in my God when I 167 00:13:29,760 --> 00:13:34,040 don't understand His ways and works in my life? 168 00:13:35,280 --> 00:13:37,200 That's what Job should have been asking. 169 00:13:39,280 --> 00:13:43,920 God answers Job. He doesn't give an explanation. 170 00:13:44,840 --> 00:13:51,880 He points Job to the creation of the sea, and he's saying the 171 00:13:51,880 --> 00:13:58,360 same God who governs the ocean governs your life, Job governs 172 00:13:58,360 --> 00:14:04,400 your affliction. The same God who made the sea 173 00:14:04,520 --> 00:14:09,400 restrains the tide and he's able to restrain your trials. 174 00:14:09,920 --> 00:14:14,120 And the same God has set limits to the sea, sets a limit for the 175 00:14:14,120 --> 00:14:18,680 souls of men, a limit to every Sinner, even a limit to Satan. 176 00:14:20,040 --> 00:14:23,880 The sea reveals the creative power of God very quickly. 177 00:14:25,320 --> 00:14:27,600 The sea reveals the controlling power of God. 178 00:14:28,640 --> 00:14:34,760 Look again at verse 10. It says and break up for it. 179 00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:40,520 My decree, please. And set bars and doors. 180 00:14:41,840 --> 00:14:46,840 We get asked the question beyond who made the sea, who controls 181 00:14:46,840 --> 00:14:50,640 the sea? And of course the simple answer 182 00:14:50,640 --> 00:14:55,560 is the God who made it. Not man, not kings, not 183 00:14:55,560 --> 00:14:59,040 governments, not scientists, but God alone. 184 00:14:59,200 --> 00:15:03,440 The God who created the sea controls the sea. 185 00:15:05,040 --> 00:15:11,240 You see, the sea is powerful, but it's not omnipotent. 186 00:15:11,800 --> 00:15:18,480 It's not all powerful. It's light, but it's not Lord. 187 00:15:19,840 --> 00:15:23,440 It is fierce. If you were right there and 30 188 00:15:23,440 --> 00:15:27,080 foot waves was hitting the boat, it would be fierce. 189 00:15:28,720 --> 00:15:33,080 But it's fenced. See, God has placed bars and 190 00:15:33,080 --> 00:15:36,800 doors upon it. And that language is remarkable. 191 00:15:37,520 --> 00:15:40,640 That language is revelatory to us. 192 00:15:40,640 --> 00:15:46,400 To me, when I look at the sea, it appears unrestricted, yet God 193 00:15:46,400 --> 00:15:50,280 says it is locked behind an unseen boundary. 194 00:15:51,160 --> 00:15:54,080 Locked behind an unseen boundary, like a prisoner behind 195 00:15:54,080 --> 00:15:59,480 a door in a cell. The sea symbolises chaos, 196 00:15:59,800 --> 00:16:05,000 danger, unrest, changeableness, days of calm, human pride. 197 00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:10,200 And yet God has shut it in with doors. 198 00:16:10,640 --> 00:16:14,040 He wraps it in a cloud like a garment. 199 00:16:14,800 --> 00:16:17,920 He establishes boundaries. What's He doing? 200 00:16:19,120 --> 00:16:25,360 The Lord is declaring His absolute sovereignty and control 201 00:16:25,360 --> 00:16:27,720 of the sea. Did you know that? 202 00:16:27,720 --> 00:16:32,560 Every wave a basin. I was amazed as I began to think 203 00:16:32,560 --> 00:16:35,160 about the sea. Psalm 89. 204 00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:42,400 We talked about it that evening out for a walk says in verse 9 205 00:16:42,400 --> 00:16:46,080 of Psalm 89. Thou rulest the raging of the 206 00:16:46,080 --> 00:16:50,280 sea. When the waves thereof arise, 207 00:16:51,000 --> 00:16:57,200 thou stillest them. God's sovereign control of the 208 00:16:57,200 --> 00:17:00,400 sea is not partial. It's not a partnership. 209 00:17:01,640 --> 00:17:03,560 You do your bit, God and I do my bit. 210 00:17:03,720 --> 00:17:08,160 No, it's not partial. It's not a partnership, it is 211 00:17:08,160 --> 00:17:12,319 real and it's absolute. Again, as you think of the 212 00:17:12,319 --> 00:17:17,119 ocean, it seems wild to us. It seems free, yet it's 213 00:17:17,160 --> 00:17:22,480 perfectly obedient to God. Every way of answers to God, 214 00:17:23,480 --> 00:17:28,680 every tide obeys His command. Every storm stops when he says 215 00:17:28,760 --> 00:17:34,320 stop thus far and no further. Let me apply that tonight to 216 00:17:34,320 --> 00:17:43,120 those out of Christ. This is the God many sinners are 217 00:17:43,120 --> 00:17:47,520 ignoring. This is the God whom they mocked 218 00:17:47,520 --> 00:17:50,560 and blasphemed and reject and oppose. 219 00:17:50,960 --> 00:17:55,360 You see men and women today in carried off and beyond live and 220 00:17:55,360 --> 00:17:59,440 act as if God is weak and God is irrelevant to them. 221 00:17:59,840 --> 00:18:02,920 And it's as if they never have to answer to him. 222 00:18:04,280 --> 00:18:09,960 But the Bible teaches, and the God of the Bible is revealed not 223 00:18:09,960 --> 00:18:12,800 as a a powerless religious person. 224 00:18:12,920 --> 00:18:16,840 No, He's revealed as Creator, Maker, the true and the living 225 00:18:16,840 --> 00:18:21,360 God, the great Creator who governs the universe, including 226 00:18:21,360 --> 00:18:23,800 the sea, with absolute authority. 227 00:18:23,880 --> 00:18:26,560 Do you know tonight your very breath is in his hand? 228 00:18:26,560 --> 00:18:31,880 Do you know that you wouldn't be alive unless he gifted you that 229 00:18:31,880 --> 00:18:33,920 breath? Do you know that your very 230 00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:37,680 heartbeat as sustained by him? How do I know that? 231 00:18:38,000 --> 00:18:40,680 Well, listen to what it says in the book of Acts. 232 00:18:40,840 --> 00:18:44,600 In Acts chapter 17, it says in verse 26. 233 00:18:45,160 --> 00:18:49,080 And hath made of one blood all nations of men, for to dwell on 234 00:18:49,080 --> 00:18:52,920 all the face of the earth. And hath determined the times 235 00:18:52,920 --> 00:18:57,480 before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation, that they 236 00:18:57,480 --> 00:19:02,360 should seek the Lord, if happily they may feel after Him and find 237 00:19:02,360 --> 00:19:04,080 Him. That we be not far from every 238 00:19:04,080 --> 00:19:10,040 one of us. For in Him we live and move and 239 00:19:10,040 --> 00:19:18,040 have our being. You're not an independent 240 00:19:18,400 --> 00:19:22,240 person. You're not living independently 241 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:26,520 of God, even though you don't know Him and even though you're 242 00:19:26,680 --> 00:19:32,480 in rebellion to Him, You're upheld by God every second of 243 00:19:32,480 --> 00:19:35,440 your life, breath and heartbeat included. 244 00:19:36,200 --> 00:19:39,800 And therefore, in light of that, I urge you, I call upon you to 245 00:19:39,800 --> 00:19:42,400 repent. I call upon you to believe the 246 00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:46,640 gospel. I, I, I urge you to have faith 247 00:19:47,000 --> 00:19:51,160 in the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour and Redeemer. 248 00:19:51,160 --> 00:19:56,280 The Bible says believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shall 249 00:19:56,280 --> 00:20:00,640 be saved. Let me apply that to the Saints 250 00:20:00,640 --> 00:20:03,560 tonight. Maybe you're here listening to 251 00:20:03,560 --> 00:20:05,280 me and you're in trial and trouble. 252 00:20:05,960 --> 00:20:08,120 Your life's full of heartache and hardship. 253 00:20:09,080 --> 00:20:11,840 You're struggling, you've many unanswered questions. 254 00:20:11,840 --> 00:20:16,800 You're you're maybe asking why, and you're suffering peeing and 255 00:20:16,800 --> 00:20:21,200 woe and sorrow. Martyn Lloyd Jones said this. 256 00:20:21,880 --> 00:20:25,160 The greatest comfort of the Christian life is the doctrine 257 00:20:25,960 --> 00:20:31,600 of God's sovereignty, he said. The ultimate cause of all our 258 00:20:31,600 --> 00:20:40,240 troubles is that we feel to realise God is who he is, we 259 00:20:40,240 --> 00:20:44,520 need to let God be God and Job needed to discover this. 260 00:20:45,600 --> 00:20:50,880 God was revealing himself to Job and Job said I know that my 261 00:20:50,880 --> 00:20:54,960 Redeemer never but but Job really didn't know and realise 262 00:20:54,960 --> 00:21:00,640 God is who he is. He needed this reminder and God 263 00:21:00,640 --> 00:21:03,760 was giving him the reminder and so do we. 264 00:21:04,240 --> 00:21:06,280 Do you know tonight even the devil has limits? 265 00:21:07,320 --> 00:21:09,960 Do you know that tonight the devil is under God's control? 266 00:21:14,680 --> 00:21:24,320 The devil could not touch Job until God permitted him to touch 267 00:21:24,320 --> 00:21:27,600 Job. The devil couldn't go beyond 268 00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:35,360 God's decree in relation to Job. You see, Satan's power is only 269 00:21:35,360 --> 00:21:40,120 delegated power. The devil is under God's 270 00:21:40,120 --> 00:21:43,960 authority. The devil is not equal with God. 271 00:21:44,400 --> 00:21:46,640 Powerful, yes, but he's not omnipotent. 272 00:21:46,760 --> 00:21:50,240 He's not all powerful. He is not sovereign and he is 273 00:21:50,240 --> 00:21:55,400 not independent either. Martin Luther, do you know what 274 00:21:55,400 --> 00:21:59,400 he said about the devil? Even the devil's God's devil. 275 00:22:00,960 --> 00:22:05,080 You see, Satan could only do and go as far as God allowed him. 276 00:22:05,080 --> 00:22:08,240 And God said thus far and no further. 277 00:22:09,920 --> 00:22:13,560 That's what the devil couldn't transgress that boundary. 278 00:22:13,560 --> 00:22:17,880 And what's true about the devil being having limits set is true 279 00:22:17,880 --> 00:22:21,720 of every one of our trials. It's true of every temptation, 280 00:22:21,960 --> 00:22:25,280 it's true of every enmity, true of every affliction, true of 281 00:22:25,280 --> 00:22:29,000 every sorrow. The sea reveals the creative 282 00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:31,200 power of God. The sea reveals the controlling 283 00:22:31,200 --> 00:22:32,800 power of God. But I'll tell you something 284 00:22:32,800 --> 00:22:35,720 else. The sea reveals the containing 285 00:22:35,720 --> 00:22:38,840 power of God. Look at verse 11. 286 00:22:39,520 --> 00:22:44,880 It says there in Job 38 and verse 11 and said this is God 287 00:22:44,880 --> 00:22:48,320 speaking to the sea. Hitherto shalt thou come, but no 288 00:22:48,320 --> 00:22:52,760 further. And here shall thy proud waves 289 00:22:53,320 --> 00:22:57,120 be stayed. Now here's the containing power 290 00:22:57,120 --> 00:23:01,080 of God. Hitherto shalt thy come, but no 291 00:23:01,080 --> 00:23:04,080 further. What an astonishing statement 292 00:23:05,480 --> 00:23:08,680 God speaks to the sea as if He is dealing with a rebellious 293 00:23:08,680 --> 00:23:15,960 child or a rebellious servant. Thus far and no further waves 294 00:23:16,080 --> 00:23:23,480 crash into the coastline. The sea roars, but they cannot 295 00:23:23,480 --> 00:23:25,640 cross the line that God has drawn. 296 00:23:25,720 --> 00:23:30,920 And what does that teach us? Surely it teaches us this, that 297 00:23:30,920 --> 00:23:34,520 God restrains things. God restrains the storm. 298 00:23:35,000 --> 00:23:37,720 He restrains kings and nations. He restrains Satan. 299 00:23:37,840 --> 00:23:40,160 He restrains evil, He restrains the Sinner. 300 00:23:40,360 --> 00:23:43,800 God even restrains his judgement from dropping on the earth. 301 00:23:46,640 --> 00:23:51,080 You see, if God gave us what we deserve, every one of us outside 302 00:23:51,080 --> 00:23:53,400 of Christ would just immediately drop into hell. 303 00:23:55,200 --> 00:23:59,720 The shocking thing is that people are not dropping and 304 00:23:59,720 --> 00:24:04,880 perishing into hell immediately. John 3 and 18 makes this 305 00:24:05,120 --> 00:24:10,920 astonishing statement. John 3 and 18 And it was the 306 00:24:10,920 --> 00:24:14,760 Lord Jesus in conversation that Nicodemus said he that believeth 307 00:24:14,760 --> 00:24:18,480 on him is not condemned, but he that believeth not has condemned 308 00:24:18,480 --> 00:24:22,400 but ratty, because he has not believed in the name of the only 309 00:24:22,400 --> 00:24:27,400 begotten Son of God. See, God allows the rebellious 310 00:24:27,400 --> 00:24:28,600 to live. Isn't that amazing? 311 00:24:31,920 --> 00:24:34,800 And he allows him to live another day and another day and 312 00:24:34,800 --> 00:24:38,280 another day. So every moment of their lives 313 00:24:38,400 --> 00:24:42,040 is really a mercy. Every sunrise that they see, 314 00:24:42,280 --> 00:24:46,200 every light of a new day, every gospel invitation that they 315 00:24:46,200 --> 00:24:51,520 hear, every sermon, every step, every heartbeat, it's all 316 00:24:51,520 --> 00:24:56,760 connected to the mercy of God. You see, they think they're 317 00:24:56,760 --> 00:25:00,200 getting away with their sin, their drunkenness, their 318 00:25:00,200 --> 00:25:02,920 immorality, their idolatry, their parties. 319 00:25:04,440 --> 00:25:06,760 Do you know they're only living under restrained judgement? 320 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:11,160 They're condemned the ratty. It's just that the execution 321 00:25:11,160 --> 00:25:16,120 hasn't taken place because it's under the containment of God. 322 00:25:18,840 --> 00:25:22,960 You think tonight of the sea, it's pounds away at the coast, 323 00:25:25,200 --> 00:25:30,000 builds up as the tide comes in, and you think of the ungodly, 324 00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:34,520 how their sins are piling up before a holy God, and they pile 325 00:25:34,520 --> 00:25:38,360 up and they pile up. Listen to what Romans 24 says Or 326 00:25:38,360 --> 00:25:41,680 despises thou, the riches of his goodness and forbearance and 327 00:25:41,680 --> 00:25:45,120 long-suffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee 328 00:25:45,120 --> 00:25:48,720 to repentance, but after thy hardness and penitent heart 329 00:25:49,200 --> 00:25:53,160 treasures up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and 330 00:25:53,160 --> 00:25:57,080 revelation of the righteous judgement of God. 331 00:25:57,720 --> 00:26:02,440 Just as a dam will not hold forever, one day the barrier, 332 00:26:02,440 --> 00:26:05,880 that's the boundary lane that keeps us on earth and keeps us 333 00:26:05,880 --> 00:26:08,640 out from eternity. One day that barrier will be 334 00:26:08,640 --> 00:26:12,560 removed, and in that day we'll discover all's we've done in 335 00:26:12,560 --> 00:26:15,120 life's journey, as you have treasured up wrath against the 336 00:26:15,120 --> 00:26:18,240 day of wrath, because we've got a hard impenitent heart. 337 00:26:18,640 --> 00:26:22,320 You see, there's a lane. God has set the lane. 338 00:26:23,480 --> 00:26:27,480 And how many times have sinners crossed the lanes of immorality 339 00:26:28,360 --> 00:26:32,240 and crossed the lanes of conscience and the lanes of 340 00:26:32,240 --> 00:26:37,480 purity and the lanes of truth, and rejected and refused the the 341 00:26:37,480 --> 00:26:41,280 call of the gospel, the lane of conviction. 342 00:26:42,280 --> 00:26:43,920 One day they'll cross the final lane. 343 00:26:44,840 --> 00:26:47,280 Jesus said if you die in your sins, where I am, there you 344 00:26:47,280 --> 00:26:49,280 cannot be. Rosemary told us on Friday 345 00:26:49,280 --> 00:26:52,280 night, very rightly at the end of her testimony, that time is 346 00:26:52,280 --> 00:26:54,280 short. She used a leg timer. 347 00:26:54,920 --> 00:26:57,240 You think of the time that it takes for the little grains of 348 00:26:57,240 --> 00:27:02,960 sand to go down, the egg timer from one end to the other. 349 00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:08,600 Then all of a sudden the last little grain comes down. 350 00:27:10,040 --> 00:27:13,280 Sometimes you think it's unlimited time, but it's not. 351 00:27:13,720 --> 00:27:16,320 It's a set time and God will call the time. 352 00:27:16,320 --> 00:27:20,040 And how many on life's journey say, well, I'd love to get 353 00:27:20,040 --> 00:27:23,800 saved, but I'll get saved later at some other time tomorrow or 354 00:27:23,800 --> 00:27:27,680 maybe the next day expect another opportunity, but there's 355 00:27:27,680 --> 00:27:30,600 no guarantee because the Bible says boast not thyself of 356 00:27:30,600 --> 00:27:32,640 tomorrow. For knoweth no man knows what 357 00:27:32,640 --> 00:27:35,080 the day may bring forth. And what do they know before the 358 00:27:35,080 --> 00:27:38,360 end of 24 hours is out and before death could come and take 359 00:27:38,360 --> 00:27:40,800 them away. And then after death is the 360 00:27:40,800 --> 00:27:43,840 judgement. We're not promised tomorrow. 361 00:27:44,280 --> 00:27:46,600 We're not promised another sermon. 362 00:27:47,040 --> 00:27:50,240 God was teaching Job not just about His creative power and His 363 00:27:50,240 --> 00:27:52,800 controlling power, but about His containing power. 364 00:27:53,600 --> 00:27:55,320 Job. I'm the one that sets the line 365 00:27:55,320 --> 00:27:58,160 and says to the sea thus far and no further. 366 00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:03,280 Very quickly the sea reveals the counsel of God. 367 00:28:04,160 --> 00:28:08,840 Notice these words in verse 11. And here shall the proud waves 368 00:28:08,880 --> 00:28:12,240 be stayed. When I was in Portrush, I was 369 00:28:12,240 --> 00:28:15,040 thinking about the waves. I was thinking about this 370 00:28:15,040 --> 00:28:18,640 reference of Scripture, the proud waves. 371 00:28:19,600 --> 00:28:22,080 Why does God call them the proud waves? 372 00:28:22,160 --> 00:28:24,520 Well, I believe God calls them the proud waves because they 373 00:28:24,520 --> 00:28:29,080 rise up violently, as if they can overthrow all restraint. 374 00:28:30,200 --> 00:28:33,360 They pound the coast. They do it relentlessly. 375 00:28:33,920 --> 00:28:39,480 It appears unstoppable. But God the Rock humbles the 376 00:28:39,480 --> 00:28:51,040 proud wave. God the rock gives counsel and 377 00:28:51,040 --> 00:28:55,880 says, here shall thy proud waves be stayed. 378 00:28:58,880 --> 00:29:05,200 Man is a proud creature. He's maybe pride in his face, 379 00:29:06,160 --> 00:29:10,160 pride in race and intellect, pride in his morality and self 380 00:29:10,160 --> 00:29:12,920 righteousness, pride in his religiosity. 381 00:29:13,520 --> 00:29:17,320 May be proud that he's a member of the loyal orders, proud in 382 00:29:17,320 --> 00:29:21,680 his rebellion. See, man thinks like this, but 383 00:29:21,680 --> 00:29:24,840 I'm not as bad as other men are. I don't need a Redeemer. 384 00:29:25,000 --> 00:29:27,200 I don't need a right relationship with God. 385 00:29:27,360 --> 00:29:29,840 I don't need to repent. I can live without God. 386 00:29:29,920 --> 00:29:32,680 I don't need Jesus Christ. I can save myself. 387 00:29:32,880 --> 00:29:37,160 I'm a good enough person. You see all of that, that 388 00:29:37,160 --> 00:29:40,400 thinking, those statements know what they reveal. 389 00:29:40,640 --> 00:29:43,520 They're like the proud waves pounding the coast. 390 00:29:44,640 --> 00:29:48,640 And God the Rock humbles the proud waves constantly, just 391 00:29:48,640 --> 00:29:53,880 like he does sinful humanity. It all speaks and smacks of 392 00:29:53,880 --> 00:29:57,040 pride. And you see this idea of telling 393 00:29:57,040 --> 00:30:01,000 God, I don't need to be saved and I don't need the Saviour 394 00:30:01,600 --> 00:30:08,000 that you've provided. God is the one who stays the 395 00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:11,480 proud waves. See when we come to Calvary, 396 00:30:12,440 --> 00:30:15,480 when you stand at the cross, when you think of the Lord Jesus 397 00:30:15,480 --> 00:30:17,800 dying in your guilty room instead, do you know that the 398 00:30:17,800 --> 00:30:23,920 cross work of Christ and it's blood shedding destroys human 399 00:30:23,920 --> 00:30:26,400 pride? It levels it in the dust. 400 00:30:26,880 --> 00:30:31,120 At Calvary God says men are sinful, men are guilty, men are 401 00:30:31,120 --> 00:30:34,760 ruined, men are not good, men are not spiritually neutral. 402 00:30:35,080 --> 00:30:38,720 Men are are are are not even imperfect. 403 00:30:39,240 --> 00:30:41,200 They're dead in trespasses and sin. 404 00:30:41,400 --> 00:30:43,560 They're diseased in their affections. 405 00:30:43,680 --> 00:30:46,200 They're they're darkened in their understanding. 406 00:30:46,320 --> 00:30:48,480 They've No Fear or thought of me. 407 00:30:50,840 --> 00:30:55,440 Sinners by nature, sinners by choice, broken God's law in love 408 00:30:55,440 --> 00:31:00,640 with sin, live for self, deny and dishonour the God who made 409 00:31:00,640 --> 00:31:02,520 them. You know what they're living 410 00:31:02,520 --> 00:31:04,360 like? I'll tell you, they're living in 411 00:31:04,920 --> 00:31:07,560 proud sinners. They're like those proud waves 412 00:31:07,560 --> 00:31:11,000 bashing up against the rocks. You know what they need to cry. 413 00:31:11,680 --> 00:31:13,560 God be merciful to me, the Sinner. 414 00:31:14,960 --> 00:31:16,280 And Gee, here's an interesting thing. 415 00:31:16,280 --> 00:31:22,920 Very quickly, God restrains the sea to preserve our life. 416 00:31:25,440 --> 00:31:29,680 Could you imagine if the oceans cross their appointed boundaries 417 00:31:29,680 --> 00:31:31,920 on the earth? Suppose we had been down there 418 00:31:31,920 --> 00:31:37,680 in Portrush and those big waves that hit the rocks decided 419 00:31:37,680 --> 00:31:41,240 they're coming over the rock and there's we're sitting in the car 420 00:31:41,520 --> 00:31:44,760 licking an ice cream and the next thing the big wave bases 421 00:31:44,760 --> 00:31:47,960 against the car. Well, I'll tell you the car. 422 00:31:47,960 --> 00:31:50,760 We've been started and we've been away as quickly as we could 423 00:31:51,200 --> 00:31:56,120 because God restrains the sea to preserve life. 424 00:31:57,120 --> 00:32:00,880 That's why he has set boundaries to the earth and coast, because 425 00:32:00,880 --> 00:32:04,000 without those boundaries, the earth and the coast would become 426 00:32:04,240 --> 00:32:07,040 inhabitable. God's boundaries are merciful. 427 00:32:07,040 --> 00:32:11,680 Then they're a real blessing. I know that modern society hates 428 00:32:11,680 --> 00:32:14,760 limits, but you think of a train. 429 00:32:17,080 --> 00:32:20,840 And a train, of course, is free to run and roam the countryside, 430 00:32:21,920 --> 00:32:23,720 but it must remain in the tracks. 431 00:32:24,520 --> 00:32:27,640 Suppose you decided the the train down to Portrush. 432 00:32:28,240 --> 00:32:31,600 Wherever it comes from, Lisburn, there's 3 cold rain. 433 00:32:31,600 --> 00:32:35,680 You're going to decide to take a couple of those tracks off and 434 00:32:35,680 --> 00:32:38,000 remove them. Well, what would happen there 435 00:32:38,000 --> 00:32:41,520 would be a disaster. People's lives would be lost. 436 00:32:42,160 --> 00:32:43,920 That would destruction would follow. 437 00:32:44,640 --> 00:32:47,720 Remove one tract and destruction follows. 438 00:32:48,000 --> 00:32:52,600 Well, well, that's the picture. See, I know society hates 439 00:32:52,600 --> 00:32:55,600 limits, but we have to have limits and God is the one who 440 00:32:55,600 --> 00:32:58,560 sets the limits. The sea reveals the country of 441 00:32:58,560 --> 00:33:01,200 God. And finally and lastly, the sea 442 00:33:01,200 --> 00:33:04,800 reveals the care of God. I've struggled with this. 443 00:33:04,800 --> 00:33:09,280 We verse in verse nine. Look at verse 9, when I made the 444 00:33:09,280 --> 00:33:15,080 cloud, the garment thereof, and thick darkness a swaddling band 445 00:33:15,160 --> 00:33:18,200 for it. It's a reference to the sea. 446 00:33:19,360 --> 00:33:22,120 Here's the tender language. Now. 447 00:33:23,360 --> 00:33:27,320 It's as if God is Speaking of the sea almost as a newborn baby 448 00:33:27,680 --> 00:33:31,240 unwrapping that baby in swaddling clothes. 449 00:33:31,640 --> 00:33:35,120 And of course, reminds us that God is merciful and God is 450 00:33:35,120 --> 00:33:38,720 compassionate. God has clothed the sea with 451 00:33:38,720 --> 00:33:42,560 clouds. God provides the darkness, the 452 00:33:42,560 --> 00:33:47,760 thick darkness of the night, a swaddling band for the sea. 453 00:33:49,120 --> 00:33:52,960 Over there in the book of Matthew, in Matthew chapter 6 454 00:33:53,160 --> 00:33:57,040 and in the verse 26, we read, Behold the fowls of the air. 455 00:33:57,040 --> 00:33:59,880 For they sow not, neither do they reap nor gather into barns, 456 00:34:00,000 --> 00:34:01,800 yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. 457 00:34:02,040 --> 00:34:04,240 Are ye not much better than they? 458 00:34:04,640 --> 00:34:08,800 Peter said, casting all your care upon him, for he careth for 459 00:34:08,800 --> 00:34:11,159 you. As I finish tonight, do you know 460 00:34:11,159 --> 00:34:18,639 that God cares for the oceans? God has provided the oceans with 461 00:34:18,639 --> 00:34:22,560 fish, and fish are good for you. Eat plenty of fish. 462 00:34:23,800 --> 00:34:27,080 Don't listen to the gainsayers who tell you don't be eating 463 00:34:27,080 --> 00:34:29,600 fish. Plenty of fish in the sea. 464 00:34:30,920 --> 00:34:34,639 God feeds the sparrows. God clothes the lilies. 465 00:34:36,280 --> 00:34:39,199 And if God does that, what is the Lord Jesus saying? 466 00:34:39,199 --> 00:34:42,440 His Sermon on the Mount, speaking again of the little 467 00:34:42,440 --> 00:34:44,480 sparrows. Listen to the words. 468 00:34:45,679 --> 00:34:47,440 Yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. 469 00:34:47,960 --> 00:34:50,840 Are ye not much better than they? 470 00:34:53,520 --> 00:34:59,280 God also cares for us. Life is not random. 471 00:35:00,520 --> 00:35:05,000 Life is not meaningless. Your tears are measured. 472 00:35:07,080 --> 00:35:11,840 They're stored up in His bottle. Yes, your days are numbered. 473 00:35:12,320 --> 00:35:17,560 Yes, your nights are governed, but even your affliction is also 474 00:35:17,560 --> 00:35:21,640 under His control. Everything that befalls us, I 475 00:35:21,640 --> 00:35:25,680 believe, is by divine appointment and the greatest 476 00:35:25,680 --> 00:35:28,440 care of all if we want to bring it home. 477 00:35:29,400 --> 00:35:32,920 This points us to Christ, the Christ of Calvary. 478 00:35:33,160 --> 00:35:36,440 Remember one day in the Sea of Galilee Was it one night? 479 00:35:36,920 --> 00:35:39,720 And the storm came and he stood up on the boat. 480 00:35:40,680 --> 00:35:45,720 There's wind and there's waves. And he cried out, Peace be 481 00:35:45,720 --> 00:35:50,160 still. And then the one on the boat, I 482 00:35:50,160 --> 00:35:53,160 believe, is the one who's addressing Job. 483 00:35:54,680 --> 00:35:57,200 He is the living and the true God. 484 00:35:58,360 --> 00:36:02,040 The wind and the waves obey him. This God who by his creative 485 00:36:02,040 --> 00:36:07,560 power, who controls the sea and contains it by a boundary and 486 00:36:07,560 --> 00:36:10,480 counsels the sea, the proud waves are to be stayed. 487 00:36:11,200 --> 00:36:16,080 He cares for us because he provided in his mercy these 488 00:36:16,080 --> 00:36:20,720 boundaries. And of course, when we come to 489 00:36:20,720 --> 00:36:25,680 the cross, we realise how much we're cared for because we read 490 00:36:25,680 --> 00:36:31,080 this Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and 491 00:36:31,080 --> 00:36:34,880 that he was buried. And the third day he rose again 492 00:36:35,040 --> 00:36:39,440 according to the scriptures. And what befell Christ in the 493 00:36:39,440 --> 00:36:46,040 cross was God's holy judgement, and his justice was satisfied, 494 00:36:46,480 --> 00:36:51,680 His law was fulfilled, the debt was paid, and then a full free 495 00:36:51,680 --> 00:36:56,720 salvation is offered now to the whosoever will. 496 00:36:56,960 --> 00:37:00,000 And he calls out, Come unto me, all ye that labour, and they're 497 00:37:00,000 --> 00:37:02,640 heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 498 00:37:02,920 --> 00:37:09,520 Is your life weary, your life feel out of control and you're 499 00:37:09,520 --> 00:37:14,560 overburdened tonight with many things, with guilt and sin? 500 00:37:15,640 --> 00:37:19,600 I point you tonight to Christ, Go to him by faith, kneel at his 501 00:37:19,600 --> 00:37:24,240 feet and cry out. Lord, Remember Me. 502 00:37:24,920 --> 00:37:29,440 Lord, be merciful to me. Lord, I come to you tonight. 503 00:37:30,920 --> 00:37:36,600 The doors of the sea, the shutting of the doors thus far 504 00:37:36,760 --> 00:37:39,080 and no further. What does it reveal to us? 505 00:37:39,480 --> 00:37:45,240 It reveals this, the creative, the controlling, the containing, 506 00:37:45,680 --> 00:37:50,880 the counsel and the care of God. May the Lord take this message 507 00:37:51,160 --> 00:37:53,680 and bless it to your heart this evening.