WHEN YOU ARE WAITING FOR AN APOLOGY by Dr. Shah, Clearview Church, Henderson, NC

Introduction: There are many courtroom dramas on TV. The old ones are “Perry Mason,” “Matlock,” and “Diagnosis Murder.” The newer ones include “Better Call Saul,” “Murder One,” “The Practice,” and even “L.A. Law.” The goal of each show is to charge someone or to acquit someone. Today’s message in our series through Job is about the cry for justice by Job. He has gone through severe traumas through no fault of his own, and he’s calling on God to acquit him. Many times, those who have been wounded or gone through some traumas are waiting for an acquittal. We would even say that they are waiting for an apology. In some situations, apology is not needed, but, in many situations, it is. Unfortunately, people, even Christians, mishandle this. In today’s message, we’re going to learn what to do when we or someone we know is waiting for an apology.

Job 31 (page #814) 5 “If I have walked with falsehood, Or if my foot has hastened to deceit, 6 Let me be weighed on honest scales, That God may know my integrity. 7 If my step has turned from the way, Or my heart walked after my eyes, Or if any spot adheres to my hands, 8 Then let me sow, and another eat; Yes, let my harvest be rooted out. 9 If my heart has been enticed by a woman, Or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door, 10 Then let my wife grind for another, And let others bow down over her. 11 For that would be wickedness; Yes, it would be iniquity deserving of judgment.”

Context: Last weekend, we learned that after the third dialogue cycle broke down, Job spoke from Job 26 to Job 31. In between, in chapter 28, he had a good day when he talked about wisdom, but then he went back to having a bad day in chapter 29. From Job 29-31, Job made one “final attempt to clear himself” (Hartley). It culminated in Job 31 where Job took an oath of innocence. It is also called Job’s request for a legal hearing. What is going on here? Michelle Keener points out that “Scholars have noted the prevalence of forensic terminology, courtroom metaphors, and lawsuit language” in the book of Job:

• Job 9        1 Then Job answered and said: 2 “Truly I know it is so, But how can a man be righteous before God? 3 If one wished to contend with Him, He could not answer Him one time out of a thousand…” The Hebrew word for contend “lariv” has a legal implication.
• Job 9       14 “How then can I answer Him, and choose my words to reason with Him? 15 For though I were righteous, I could not answer Him; I would beg mercy of my Judge. The Hebrew word is “shafat” for Judge. 16 If I called and He answered me, I would not believe that He was listening to my voice. 17 For He crushes me with a tempest, And multiplies my wounds without cause. 18 He will not allow me to catch my breath, But fills me with bitterness. 19 If it is a matter of strength, indeed He is strong; And if of justice, who will appoint my day in court? 20 Though I were righteous, my own mouth would condemn me; Though I were blameless, it would prove me perverse.”
• Job 13      17 “Listen carefully to my speech, And to my declaration with your ears. 18 See now, I have prepared my case, I know that I shall be vindicated…23 How many are my iniquities and sins? Make me know my transgression and my sin.”
• Job 16:8 “You have shriveled me up, and it is a witness against me…19 Surely even now my witness is in heaven, and my evidence is on high.” The word for “hed” is witness. We’ll return to that later.
• Not only did Job bring up these legal metaphors in his defense, but his friends also did to accuse him. Listen to Eliphaz in Job 22        4 “Is it because of your fear of Him that He corrects you, And enters into judgment with you? 5 Is not your wickedness great, And your iniquity without end? 6 For you have taken pledges from your brother for no reason, And stripped the naked of their clothing. 7 You have not given the weary water to drink, And you have withheld bread from the hungry. 8 But the mighty man possessed the land, And the honorable man dwelt in it. 9 You have sent widows away empty, And the strength of the fatherless was crushed. 10Therefore snares are all around you, And sudden fear troubles you, 11 Or darkness so that you cannot see; And an abundance of water covers you.”
• Finally, in Job 31        5 “If I have walked with falsehood, Or if my foot has hastened to deceit, 6Let me be weighed on honest scales, That God may know my integrity.” Justice is often portrayed as holding a scale. 35 Oh, that I had one to hear me! Here is my mark. Oh, that the Almighty would answer me, That my Prosecutor had written a book!” Can be translated as “That my Prosecutor had written my indictment.”

What is going on here? Why all this legal imagery and language? God is a God of justice. God’s justice is connected to his righteousness and vice versa. Wayne Grudem in his systematic theology defines God’s righteousness as that “God always acts in accordance with what is right and is himself the final standard of what is right.” Deuteronomy 32:4 “He is the Rock, His work is perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He.” Genesis 18:25“Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” Isaiah 45:19“I have not spoken in secret, In a dark place of the earth; I did not say to the seed of Jacob, “Seek Me in vain’; I, the LORD, speak righteousness, I declare things that are right.” Because God is God of justice, he has designed us with a sense of justice. In other words, when something wrong happens, we cry out foul! This is how we have been designed. That’s why when trauma victims cry out foul, they are doing what God has designed us to do.

Because Job knows all this, he is crying out to God and saying – “Vindicate me,” “Administer justice in my case,” “Set the record straight on my behalf,” and “hold the guilty responsible.” What was his friend’s response? Michelle Keener calls them “passive bystanders.” They not only fail to deal with what is really happening to him, but they also blame him for what is happening to him. They were saying – “Be quiet Job! Just take the guilt and move on. Stop trying to set the record straight. You are messing with the cosmic order.” Job even thought that God was a passive bystander, which was definitely not the case. We’ll come to that in a moment.

Application: This happens all too often when the trauma victim is surrounded by “passive bystanders” who don’t help. They rather not get involved. If they do get involved, they tell the victim to be quiet. They say – “Just take the guilt and move on. Stop trying to set the record straight. You are messing with the order of our society or culture or family or even church.”

In discussing this issue, Michelle Keener points out that sometimes there is even victim shaming that can happen, especially among Christians. This can happen in the form of quoting Romans 8:28 and Ephesians 4:31-32:

• Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”
• Ephesians 4       31 “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. 32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.”

Although, both these verses are true and very important in healing, when they need to be given is very important. You have to pray that the Holy Spirit will give you the discernment to know his time. There is a time of forgiveness, but there is also a time for the stages of grief.

 Sometimes, the trauma victim may even talk about revenge, which is not right, but it is similar to Job asking for an audience with God to question him about why this is happening to him. Although, Job is not seeking revenge, he does want to be declared innocent of all the charges against him.

What happens when there is no apology? You will have rest on the grace of God. Some people will never admit, and you have to trust God for his grace. Michelle Keener remarked, “Some people would rather lose you than face the pain they caused.”

Ultimately, we have to remember that we have wronged God. We deserve to be punished, but God sent his Son to doe of our behalf.

Romans 3      23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, 26 to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

Are you saved? Are you resting on his grace? Only God can truly heal. Look to him.