What Can Happen When Ignorance Talks?
I want to continue with a practical example of what can, and often times, does happen when we let our ignorance do the talking. I realize for many this illustration may be painful, still, please don’t spiritually disconnect.
I would like to do a Scriptural investigation of the life of Job. We’ve heard so much opinion and theological debate concerning him, but I believe it’s time for us to really see what the Bible has to say about Job’s trials. Tradition has made Job appear to be the model of Christianity, but was Job really the portrait of how a believer should act during a trial?
(Job 1:8-12 NKJV) “Then the Lord said to Satan, ‘Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?’ So Satan answered the Lord and said, ‘Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side…But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!’ And the Lord said to Satan, ‘Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person…’”
Let’s examine what we have just read. God makes a statement to Satan about Job, “Have you considered my servant job?” The Spirit Filled Life Bible uses a side note that says, “Lit. set your heart on.”1 Thus God literally said, “Have you set your heart on My servant Job?” Here God is showing us that Satan had already set his heart on destroying Job, thus destruction was the will of Satan for Jobs life. Satan; therefore, was attempting to deceive God into giving him what he wanted (Jobs life) and God exposed Satan’s motive before he was even able to open his mouth. Satan goes as far as trying to get God to stretch out His hand against Job to destroy him, fulfilling Satan’s will and purpose for Job’s life.
However, what was God’s response to Satan’s attempt? He replied, “Behold, all that he has is in your power….” To some this is proof of God giving His “stamp” of approval upon Satan’s deceptive plan to destroy the life of Job. Unfortunately, some sincere believers see this as God partnering up with Satan to make Job (and us) miserable. This couldn’t be further from the truth. God and Satan aren’t allies. He doesn’t dance with the devil! He doesn’t bring evil, through Satan, into our lives to teach us. God uses His Word and the Holy Spirit to instruct His people—not evil!
God told Satan “Behold,” but what does behold mean, and why would God use this sort of wording? According to the concordance, the word behold means, “lo, see.”2 Despite this definition, I was still kind of out in the dark as to how lo and see were being used in this passage. Researching further, I determined how the words lo and see were used in other portions of the book of Job.
The word Lo, is defined as “lo! behold.”3 Similarly, the word see means “advise self, behold, consider, discern; gaze, take heed; lo, look; perceive, regard; cause to or let see, look, think, view.”4 God told Satan to see (perceive, understand) that something had happened to the hedge that He had built around Job already, and Satan didn’t perceive it.
I finally realized what God said to Satan that day: “And the Lord said to Satan, “Behold (lo, see, advise yourself, consider, discern, gaze; take heed, perceive, think) all that he has is within your power….” God did not take heed to Satan’s challenge of lowering His hedge of protection, no, no, no! God was literally saying to Satan, “Behold, see, look; perceive, understand, all he has is already within your ability to attack, but do not harm his life.” God didn’t lower His hedge around Job so that Satan could torment him. God Himself called Job righteous, (because of His covenant). Then why would our loving Father bring torment on a righteous servant? Such reasoning is foolishness and religious ignorance of the true character of God Almighty.
Think about this for a moment from an earthly parents position. How many decent, godly parents would take their child and voluntarily put that baby out in the open where wild animals could come in and destroy that child? I can say this with 100% confidence that there isn’t a decent, godly parent in this world who would commit such a foolish act. Therefore why in the Name of Jesus, would the Church try and make our heavenly Father appear to be so cruel and insensitive? Why would He do something so appalling that even decent human parents would never do? Truth is He would never even think of destroying one of His servants. Especially, one who is totally devoted to Him and His will.
Pruning Away Traditional “Hedge” Work
(Job 1:10 KJV) Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
(Ecclesiastes 10:8 KJV) He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso breaketh an hedge, a serpent shall bite him.
(Ezekiel 13:4,5 KJV) O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts. Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel….”
(Ezekiel 22:30,31 KJV) “And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none. Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them….”
In every verse of Scripture cited here, the hedge that is being referred to was a spiritual hedge of protection. In addition, (Eccl. 10:8) refers to our own willfulness in breaking the hedge of protection; thus allowing our own destruction. Please notice closely (Ezek. 13:4,5 & Ezek. 22:30,31). Both passages of Scripture overtly state that God desired that someone would stand in the gap, and make up the hedge. What gap was God talking about? I believe He was referring to gaps that the people had made in their spiritual hedge of protection, thus causing the hedge to be lowered and to acquire holes of vulnerability to the enemy’s attack, where a serpent could bite them.
Who Lowered Job’s Hedge?
Having just read all of the Scriptural evidence concerning God’s will on the subject of hedgework, if God didn’t do it, then who did? To answer this question we need to look at the words of Job himself.
(Job 3:25 KJV) For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me.
(Job 1:20-22 KJV) Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.
Referring to Job chapter three verse 25, Job openly states that the very thing he feared the most (losing everything) has come upon him. Job said that he received what he believed for. That may sound strange but it is the truth. Fear is faith in reverse. It’s perverted (twisted) faith. Job had more “faith” (fear) in the reality of losing everything than he did in God’s ability to protect him and all that he had. Job had “faith” in his ability to lose all. Faith in a thing’s ability to harm oneself is called fear; hence twisted faith. He wasn’t trusting God’s ability to protect him, but rather in a foreboding feeling that he would lose all, and he got it too!
Here is the key to how Job lowered his hedge of protection. He was living in great fear of losing everything, and without a doubt he was verbalizing his fear where everyone, including the devil, could hear him. How can I be so certain that Job was verbalizing his fear of destruction?
First, I’ve never met anyone who did not talk about what they feared as well as enjoyed the most. This is just part of unregenerated human nature. We all tend to talk about those things that are strongest on our hearts. Since unregenerate man has always been subject to fear and bondage, I believe it is precise to say that Job talked a great deal about his fears prior to his loss. Jesus also made this fundamental truth clear in Matthew twelve.
(Matthew 12:34,37 KJV) “O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh…For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.”
Job’s confession of fear, instead of faith in God’s protection, gave Satan an opening to walk in and take everything he had. Job spoke (fearfully) until holes in his hedge came into existence, thus leaving himself open to Satan’s attack.
Did Job Sin With His Mouth?
“In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.”
This verse of Scripture says that Job did not charge God foolishly. I agree that Job did not knowingly shout off his mouth against God and sin by cursing God. That is what God meant when He said Job sinned not. Hence, I don’t believe that he did anything like that during his entire grueling ordeal. However, I do believe (as I said earlier) that Job spoke out words of fear in ignorance. For example, in (1:21) Job says, “the Lord gave and the Lord has taken away….” We who can read the verses prior to and after (v:21) can see that the Lord wasn’t the One Who took away. Satan was the one who took away Job’s possessions. Job’s words were false, and were spoken in his ignorance of the situation, rather than in foolish disobedience. Job spoke without full knowledge of the situation, for he couldn’t see his enemy really was. He was blind to what was taking place in the realm of the Spirit, and Satan took advantage of that weakness in his character.
In order to answer the question, “Did Job sin with his mouth?” I want to pose another question, What is Sin? Is living and walking in fear sin? Is speaking falsely in ignorance sin? Again I ask, “What is Sin?” There is a very explicit explanation of Sin given to us in the Word of God.
(Romans 14:23 KJV) And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.
Anything we do that is not done in faith (confidence, trust) in God and His Word is sin. Thus, from the words of Job’s own mouth we can see that he did indeed sin with his mouth. Recall God spoke of him as being perfect, but He did not speak of him as being some sinless icon of perfection as the traditional Church has portrayed him. Moreover, God also sees the redeemed of the Lamb (us) as perfect, but our perfection is through the blood of Jesus. We must never forget that Job was not spiritually reborn. God in His mercy saw Job as a man who loved Him, but due to ignorance he experienced a temporary setback. It is sad but true that we all experience spiritual & physical setbacks from time to time. Still, God is not the cause of or an accomplice to, these setbacks. We’re the ones assisting the enemy. It’s time we take the responsibility for our own weaknesses and stop blaming God! Grow up!
What NOT To Do In Trials!
(Job 7:11/9:20-22) “Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit, I will complain in the bitterness of my soul [O Lord]…Though I am innocent and in the right, my own mouth would condemn me; though I am blameless, He would prove me perverse. Though I am blameless, I regard not myself; I despise my life. It is all one; therefore I say, God [does not discriminate, but] destroys the blameless and the wicked.”
In ignorance Job says some pretty strong things against the Lord. He attempts to justify himself and make God seem to be the One in error. Job was not only living in fear he was also living under the influence of a self-righteous spirit. Job was unwilling to believe that he could have done anything to bring this trial upon himself. This reminds me of many well meaning “believers” who insist on thinking they have done everything “right” and God has not honored His Word. Listen carefully! God does not fail. We humans are the ones that fall short. We must hear the wake up call: We are most times the makers of our own demise! Until we humble ourselves and get off our self-righteous high horse, God cannot intervene on our behalf. Yes, I meant what I said, God can not help us if we live in fear and self-righteousness. Why? Because, God will respect our right to do our own will! He will not rescue one who doesn’t want to saved.
God finally intervened, but Job had to take action first.
(Job 38:1-3; 40:1,2,8) THEN THE Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said, Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Gird up now your loins like a man, and I will demand of you, and you will declare to Me…MORE OVER, THE Lord said to Job, Shall he who would find fault with the Almighty contend with Him? He who disputes with God, let him answer it...Will you also annul (set aside and render void) My judgments? Will you condemn Me [your God], that you may [appear] righteous and justified.
Reading the above passage, I find it impossible to believe that anyone would argue for Job’s side of this debate. It is obvious that God was somewhat putout with Job’s conduct. In fact God even referred to Job’s words as words without knowledge (ignorant words). The Lord continued by addressing the self-righteous spirit that was influencing Job. God told him, “Who are you to make yourself appear to be righteous, and Me your Creator to be unrighteous?” Basically He said “Who do you think you are condemning Me with all these ignorant confessions of yours?” Finally, the light dawned somewhere within Job’s spirit. Miraculously, he was able to see the evil behind his own words.
(Job 42:1-3;10) “THEN JOB said to the Lord, I know that You can do all things, and that no thought or purpose of Yours can be restrained or thwarted. [You said to me] Who is this that darkens and obscures counsel [by words] without knowledge? Therefore [I now see] I have [rashly] uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know…And the Lord turned the captivity of Job and restored his fortunes, when he prayed for his friends; also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.”
Here we note that Job’s restoration did not come until he did a few things first. What did Job do? First, he repented of self-righteousness and his words without knowledge. Then, he also prayed for his friends. Repentance and prayer were the keys to Job’s breakthrough, just as they are for each of us. Repentance and prayer are two important things that we all should take part in when experiencing tragedy in life.
Job is a perfect example of how one should not speak to or about God when in a crisis. Without a doubt this crisis would have turned to Job’s restoration much sooner had he looked more closely at his own weaknesses. Nonetheless, praise God for His intervention and mercy upon Job’s life. When Job’s temptation by the enemy was completed, God restored double of what he had before his crisis began. Repentance & prayer caused Job’s restoration of double. Without them he would not have seen restoration in his life.
I would like to restate and answer the question that I posed at the beginning of this chapter. What’s in a word? Life & death, spiritually and physically, are in the words that we speak. Therefore what we say is in fact very important. Our words can literally change the very direction of our lives.
For example when I said, “Jesus come into my heart and forgive me all my sins. I want You to be my Lord and Savior,” those words totally changed my very destiny in life. Because of those words I can share this message with you today. Glory to God for His saving grace and mercy!
Thus as a result, there are basically three types of words in use in all realms of authority. First, there are the words that are confident, faith-filled, life producing words. These are the words that are in line with God’s Word/will, plus those words that come directly out of Scripture. Next, we have the fear-filled, death producing words that come to us from the enemy. Finally, there are the empty, inoperative, non-working words. These are the words we say that are not necessarily good or evil, but are in reality foolish, empty (void of healthy productive power) words that come from the unrenewed mind. All of us are speaking one of these types of words, or a combination of any of the three.
Consequently, I could confess something 10,000 times (in faith), but if that confession is knowingly not in line with God’s Word/will, I won’t receive what I have believed because that thing never was the will of God for my life.
Therefore, I must make wise Scriptural confessions. Speak things that agree with God’s Word/will. God won’t support confessions that are knowingly against His Word/will. However, the enemy will oblige us by fulfilling our willful desires, so we must be careful to only believe for those things that are in line with His Word.
I could confess, for example, that I am the Apostle Paul 100,000 times, and even convince myself that I’m him; but still I will never be able to be the Apostle Paul. Why? Because that is an empty, inoperative confession that borders on evil and the occult. Confession is a powerful, serious thing, and we should not try to play foolishly with it. Remember, we are admonished to prayerfully guard the desires of our heart or spirit (Proverbs 4:23, 24).
Therefore, we must confess the Word of God and words that are in line with God’s Word/will in order to receive the definite, godly things that He has told us to believe Him for. Words have a creative ability about them, but if we are running around attempting to create those things which God has not already promised in Scripture or privately spoken into our hearts; then we’re practicing a form of witchcraft. We must be extremely careful about the kinds of confessions that we make, lest we invoke our own will. Furthermore, we do not want to spiritually partner up with the enemy in order to bring to pass our own selfish desire. Rhema (revelation knowledge) from God is the key to godly, Scriptural confessions. All of the promises of God are His will for us—yes and amen (2 Cor. 1:20). So it is Scriptural for God’s people to believe that they have received the promises.
Finally, I’d like to close with a thought provoking verse of Scripture. I pray this verse will remain in our hearts, minds and mouths till Jesus comes…May the Spirit of Almighty God grant us ears to hear (understand) and eyes to see (perceive), the force of good or evil that is released through our tongue—Amen!
A Closing Scripture
(Matthew 12:37) For by your words you will be justified and acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned and sentenced.
[This Article is an exerpt from: When the Holy Spirit Reveals, Gregg N. Huestis] Gregg has also authored 3 other books: Beauty Out of Ashes, Another Side of the Coin & Speak the Word Only all available on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Gregg+Huestis]
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