Latest / Time with God with John North / Making Choices Under Pressure Pt. 1

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Making Choices Under Pressure Pt. 1 · Time with God with John North

• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Good morning. As we head into this week, just focus
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: your mind for a minute on God Himself, not on
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: the trappings of Christianity or the things about church or
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: what you like or don't like about Christians, you know,
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: just think about God Himself.
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: The one who made everything.
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: The one who is in ultimate control, the one who
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: at the end of all time and at the end
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: of our lives we will stand accountable to for the
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: way we've lived our lives, the one who loves you
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: so much that he paid an incredible price so that
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: you could have a relationship with him. Think about that God.
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: He's right here.
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: He's here with me in the studio. He's right there
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: with you wherever you are in your car, in your home,
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: in your bed, wherever you're listening. He's right there with you.
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: How important.
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: To focus our lives on having a good relationship with
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: God Himself.
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: I want to talk to you this week.
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: On the theme of making choices under pressure.
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: Probably there's no one in the Bible who faced more
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: extreme personal pressure in his life than Job did. Job
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: is a story of a man who probably lived long
• 1:26
  Speaker 1: before Abraham did, probably one of the oldest stories in
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: the Bible given to us. In Job chapter 1, let
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: me read a few verses starting in verse 6.
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: It says now there was a day when the sons
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: of God came to present themselves before the Lord, talking
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: about the angels.
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: And Satan also came among them, and the Lord said
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: to Satan, From where do you come?
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  Speaker 1: Then Satan answered the Lord and said, from roaming about
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: on the earth and walking around on it.
• 2:01
  Speaker 1: And the Lord said to Satan, Have you considered my
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: servant Job?
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: God's bragging about Job.
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: For there is no one like him on the earth,
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: from evil.
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: Then Satan answered the Lord, Well, does Job fear God
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: for nothing? Of course he serves you, Satan said.
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: Have you not made a hedge about him and his
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: house and all that he has on every side? You've
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: increased in the land. But put forth your hand now
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: and touch all that he has.
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: Take away all the blessings in your life, and you'll
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: see how much he really loves you.
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: He will surely curse you to your face.
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: So then the Lord said to Satan, Behold, all that
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: he has is in your power.
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: Only do not put forth your hand on him, Satan.
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: You can take away all these things that I've given him,
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: but you're not allowed to touch Job himself. So Satan
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: departed from the presence of the Lord.
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: I wonder if you feel like you can identify with
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  Speaker 1: Job a little bit in life. You feel like
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: The devil has taken a personal interest in all the
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: issues of your life, and it seems like God has
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: stood back and said, OK, Satan, have at it.
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: You know, our distress about the things of our lives
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: can really overwhelm us.
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: And you think about how Job must have felt also
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: as things started happening in his life. But the encouraging
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: thing about this passage is to remember God was the
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: one in control. He was guarding over Job's life. Satan
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: could not just do what he wanted without God first.
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: Giving him permission.
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: As Vernon Patterson has said, there are always uncertainties ahead.
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: But there is always one certainty.
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: God's will is good.
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: I'm John North.