WHY DID THIS HAPPEN PART 2 Other Reasons God Brings Calamity After disciplining a specific sin, a second reason God brings calamity is because of human sin generally. In Genesis 3, Adam pulled the keystone out of the arch of creation with his sin, and ever since, bricks have been falling on our heads. When Adam sinned, the whole universe was plunged into futility and enslaved to corruption (Romans 8:20–22). In our bodies that means pain and infections. In our work that means weeds, forms in triplicate, and software that self-destructs during an important sales presentation. In relationships it means parental distraction, teenage disruption, and messy divorces. We can praise God that Jesus Christ has defeated the Curse and has accomplished its ultimate removal through his death on the cross. The book of Revelation describes heaven with these seven powerful words: There will no longer be any curse. (Revelation 22:3) But in the meantime, we can be sure that one reason calamity comes is because of human sinfulness generally. Under Construction A third reason God brings calamity is to mature believers in Jesus Christ (if you have not yet put your faith in Christ for the forgiveness of sin, God is using your trial, not to mature you in Christ, but to move you toward Christ). As a believer in Jesus Christ, you can be sure that, whatever happens, God is causing it to bring his Christ-reflecting and Christ-exalting work in you one step closer to completion. Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2–4) To make a sword requires heating and beating. In the same way, comfort, peace, and ease don’t produce spiritually strong, flexible, sharp Christians. Only the heating and beating of God-given trials manufactures resilient, Christlike character—a blade strong enough and sharp enough to be truly useful in the hand of God. Just as a weight lifter doesn’t become stronger unless he exhausts his muscles moving chunks of iron, so spiritual progress comes only when God the Coach increases the intensity for us through painful trials. When he does so, the result is stronger faith, greater compassion, and enduring patience—firmer spiritual muscles in every way. Faith on Parade A fourth reason God brings calamity into the lives of believers is to prove our faith, both to ourselves and to others. How did God prove that Satan’s accusations against Job were slanderous? God tested Job, and Job’s endurance proved Satan to be wrong. Peter told his readers that they had been embroiled in trials because the proof of their faith was more precious than gold. And when their faith eventually came through the crucible pure and strong, Peter said that their endurance would result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:6–7) We had a woman in our church who had cancer twelve different times before she finally went to be with the Lord. It was hard in every way—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. But as we watched her resilient, God-given cheerfulness, we couldn’t help but be encouraged. The proof of her faith in Christ spurred us to trust the Lord more ourselves. Unanticipated Good A fifth reason God brings calamity into the lives of his people is to bring about unanticipated good. The Bible is full of such surprises. The classic example? Joseph (Genesis 37–50). His brothers kidnapped him and sold him into slavery just as they might have auctioned off a cow or goat to the highest bidder. No doubt as the slave traders’ camel caravan humped its way toward Egypt (and at various awkward points after that) Joseph asked, “Why has God done this?” Answer: unexpected good. Eventually God used Joseph’s kidnapping, slavery, and unjust imprisonment to put him in a position to keep his family from starvation. Decades later, Joseph said to his brothers, As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. (Genesis 50:20) No one could have guessed it at the time, but good was God’s plan for Joseph’s calamities all along. Ruth provides another example. Tragedy doesn’t come much worse than having your father-in-law, brother-in-law, and husband die in rapid succession, leaving you and your mother-in-law impoverished and hopeless. How did God use that heartrending situation? Ruth went to a place she would never otherwise have gone to (Bethlehem), met a man she would never otherwise have met (Boaz), married him, and became the great-grandmother of King David and part of the Messiah’s line. Unexpected good. It’s all over the Bible—apparently unsalvageable disasters are often the first step in God’s plan for bringing good. All this helps us see that calamity isn’t arbitrary. God uses it for specific purposes: occasionally to discipline specific sin, but more often to make us dissatisfied enough with this sinful world to seek something (or Someone) better, to harden us in the furnace of troubles just as a blacksmith tempers a sword, to prove our faith, and to bring good that no one could have predicted. Up to this point, we have discovered that God is in control and we have identified the biblical reasons why he causes calamity. But how should we respond when God stokes the forge, pumps the bellows, and swings the hammer, relentlessly shaping and sharpening the sword of our faith in Christ? I HOPE YOU RECEIVED FROM AND ENJOYED THIS DEEP STUDY. WOULD YOU LIKE US TO CONTINUE THIS TYPE OF DEEP STUDY? PART 3 COMING SOON. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
WHY DID THIS HAPPEN PART 3 Why Job Stumbled Job started so well. His faith was as invulnerable to Satan’s onslaughts as a turtle snuggled up inside its shell is to the frantic pawings of a dog. Job tucked his head and feet inside his faith in God and said, “The Lord gives, the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” What went wrong? There are at least four reasons Job’s trust in God took a tumble. First, he listened to bad counsel. Avoid Bad Counsel If you are going to handle your calamity in a wise, God-honoring manner, you must ignore well-intentioned but unbiblical counsel. If Job’s counselors had been from the church in our era, they probably would have said, “Job, look at these terrible things that are happening to you. We have to break the generational curses that have power over your life. We have to cast out the demons of skin disease. You need to send 500 dollars to the faith-healer, I. M. Acharlatan, at Better-for-a-Buck Ministries.” People will say all kinds of crazy things to you when calamity strikes (“Don’t worry, God didn’t know this was going to happen.” Really? Now I am worried!). Don’t let their well-intended but unbiblical counsel trip you up spiritually and send you sprawling. To handle calamity, you must ignore unbiblical advice with a gentle smile and a thank you. People speak to you because they care; receive their counsel with a gracious attitude, but don’t let their unbiblical advice throw you into a tailspin like Job did. BE CAREFUL WHO YOU TAKE ADVICE FROM. SEPERATE THE GODLY ADVICE FROM THE UNGODLY ADVICE. Time Keeps On Tickin’ A second reason Job went off the rails was that he let the termite of time gnaw at his faith. According to Job 7:3, Job’s grief and the burning torment of his physical ailments had extended for months by the time his friends arrived. Job’s suffering felt eternal; the sheer duration of it was wearing him down. Like an eager marathon runner, Job bolted off the starting line of faith, but as the race of responding to his calamity stretched out mile after mile and day after day, Job’s faith began to stumble and stagger. Time is a killer in trials. Like Job, we start with strong faith, but as we tick off days on the calendar, turn over the page to a new month, eventually buy a new calendar for next year, and then a new one for the year after that, we can easily despair. Time makes trials hard. How can you keep time from weakening your faith? Daily Reliance Upon Grace Jesus addresses this issue when he says, Do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matthew 6:34) His point is that God gives grace one day at a time—for today, not for tomorrow. Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, the God who is our salvation. (Psalm 68:19) The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22–23) God’s grace is perfectly sufficient to tackle the challenges of the day he gives that grace. But his grace will always prove inadequate if you try to spread it across tomorrow’s problems as well. It’s like buttering bread—the dab of butter that’s more than adequate to cover one slice gets a bit thin if you try to spread it over a whole loaf. In the same way, don’t try to spread God’s strength for today over tomorrow, next month, or next year. Planning ahead is fine; worrying ahead isn’t. Handle today with a joyful, dependent, God-trusting attitude. Tomorrow will have new troubles and new grace. But sometimes even a single day feels too long to face. What do you do then? Do the next right thing. That is Jesus’s principle, honed to a needle’s point. Sufficient is the trouble for the minute. Whatever the next right thing is—getting out of bed, cooking a meal, or going to work—do it, trusting God’s grace. The Expectations Trap In chapter 29, Job listed his many accomplishments. For example: • He was a respected civic leader: “When I went out to the gate of the city … the old men arose and stood” (29:7–8). • He was adored by the poor and disadvantaged because of his philanthropy: “I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame” (29:15). • In summary he declared, “My steps were bathed in butter, and the rock poured out for me streams of oil!” (29:6). Because of his success and his great kindness to others, Job had built up some expectations—things he believed God owed him because he had been good. In chapter 30, Job had this flash of insight into his confused and angry heart. When I expected good, then evil came; when I waited for light, then darkness came. I am seething within and cannot relax; days of affliction confront me. (30:26–27) Job had stepped directly into the expectations trap. Job expected good from God because he had been good, and when God didn’t deliver, Job was left seething. It’s an easy trap to fall into when calamity strikes. “All I wanted was a happy family, and now my daughter is divorced … my son is rebelling … my husband has left me. What did I do to deserve this?” The expectation? If I’m a good wife and mother, God owes me a happy family, as I define it. A friend of mine whose child has Down Syndrome once shared with me that expectations are one of the greatest struggles faced by parents of handicapped children: “All I wanted was to watch my boy play sports, see him go to college, get married, and have a successful career. Now I have a son who will never pass grade two.” Expectations can be a real problem when we face calamity. Job’s summary is both pathetic and perfect: “When I expected good, then evil came” (30:26). The expectation that God owes me good if I have been good is dangerous because it leads to feelings of betrayal and anger at God. God, however, never promises endless good if we are a devoted mother, a patient father, a faithful taxpayer, or if we don’t run with the wrong crowd at school. To handle calamity rightly, Christians must avoid Job’s mistake of building up the expectation that “God owes me because I’ve tried to be good.” FOOD FOR THOUGHT Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
LIVE GODLY Deuteronomy 5:33 GW Follow all the directions the Lord your God has given you. Then you will continue to live, life will go well for you, and you will live for a long time in the land that you are going to possess. IF WE WILL LIVE GODLY, WE WILL LIVE A LONG LIFE, AND ALL WILL GO WELL FOR US. THINK ABOUT IT. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
POWER AND STRENGTH COMES FROM THE LORD Exodus 15:2 GW The Lord is my strength and my song. He is my Savior. This is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will honor him. Psalm 68:35 ESV Awesome is God from his sanctuary; the God of Israel—he is the one who gives power and strength to his people. Blessed be God! Philippians 4:13 GW I can do everything through Christ who strengthens me. THANKS TO GOD WE ARE NOT POWERLESS, OR WEAK. OUR POWER AND STRENGTH COMES FROM THE LORD. GOD HAS BLESSED US WITH POWER AND STRENGTH, NOW LET US USE THEM FOR HIS GLORY. WE HAVE THE POWER AND STRENGTH NOT TO BE SLAVES TO CIGARETTES, DRUGS, SEX, HOMOSEXUALITY, FOOD, ANGER, ETC. WE HAVE THE POWER AND STRENGTH TO BREAK OUT OF WHATEVER BONDAGE WE ARE ENTRAPPED IN. SOMEBODY SHOULD BE SAYING THANK YOU GOD!!! HALLELUJAH!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!! LET US GIVE THANKS TO OUR GOD. HE IS WORTHY OF OUR PRAISE. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
GOD IS OUR PROVIDER Hebrews 13:5 GW Don’t love money. Be happy with what you have because God has said, “I will never abandon you or leave you.” Isaiah 41:10 GW Don’t be afraid, because I am with you. Don’t be intimidated; I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will support you with my victorious right hand. Deuteronomy 2:7 GW The Lord your God has blessed you in everything you have done. He has watched over you as you traveled through this vast desert. For 40 years now the Lord your God has been with you, and you haven’t needed a thing. Matthew 6:31-33 GW “Don’t ever worry and say, ‘What are we going to eat?’ or ‘What are we going to drink?’ or ‘What are we going to wear?’ [32] Everyone is concerned about these things, and your heavenly Father certainly knows you need all of them. [33] But first, be concerned about his kingdom and what has his approval. Then all these things will be provided for you. Psalms 34:8-9 GW Taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the person who takes refuge in him. Fear the Lord, you holy people who belong to him. Those who fear him are never in need. OUR GOD HAS, IS, AND ALWAYS WILL SUPPLY OUR NEEDS. HAS GOD EVER COME UP SHORT IN YOUR LIFE? HAS GOD EVER NOT SUPPLIED YOUR NEEDS? NO!!! THINK ABOUT IT. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me, /donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
Walking In Your Anointing Isaiah 61:1 ESV The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 1 Peter 4:10-11 GW Each of you as a good manager must use the gift that God has given you to serve others. Whoever speaks must speak God’s words. Whoever serves must serve with the strength God supplies so that in every way God receives glory through Jesus Christ. Glory and power belong to Jesus Christ forever and ever! Amen. Acts 2:17 ESV “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 2 Timothy 2:15 ESV Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. TOO MANY PEOPLE ARE WALKING IN THE FLESH, DON’T BE ONE OF THEM. RECOGNIZE YOUR ANOINTING, AND WALK IN YOUR ANOINTING. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
THE BIBLE SPEAKS TO US ABOUT SEEING CHRIST 1. The shepherds saw Him as the Incarnate One—Luke 2:17. 2. Simeon saw Him as the Saving One—Luke 2:30. 3. His earthly parents saw Him as the Working One—Luke 2:49. 4. Peter saw Him as the Provider—Luke 5:8. 5. The leper saw Him as the Cleanser—Luke 5:12. 6. The demoniac saw Him as the Emancipator—Luke 8:28. 7. Peter and John saw Him as the Glorified One—Luke 9:32. 8. Zacchaeus saw Him as the Saviour—Luke 19:5. 9. Herod saw Him as the Silencer—Luke 23:8. 10. The centurion saw Him as the Righteous One—Luke 23:47. 11. The disciples saw Him as the Risen One—Luke 24:39. HOW DO YOU SEE CHRIST? Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
GOD SPEAKS TO US ABOUT FAMILIES IT’S IN THE BIBLE Psalm 128:3–6 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine inside your home. Your children will be like young olive trees around your table. This is how the LORD will bless the person who fears him. May the LORD bless you from Zion so that you may see Jerusalem prospering all the days of your life. May you live to see your children’s children. Let there be peace in Israel! IT’S IN THE BIBLE Deuteronomy 4:9-10 However, be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you don’t forget the things which you have seen with your own eyes. Don’t let them fade from your memory as long as you live. Teach them to your children and grandchildren. Never forget the day you stood in front of the LORD your God at Mount Horeb. The LORD had said to me, “Assemble the people in front of me, and I will let them hear my words. Then they will learn to fear me as long as they live on earth, and they will teach their children the same thing.” IT’S IN THE BIBLE Proverbs 31:10-12 “Who can find a wife with a strong character? She is worth far more than jewels. Her husband trusts her with ⸤all⸥ his heart, and he does not lack anything good. She helps him and never harms him all the days of her life. Proverbs 31:27–29 IT’S IN THE BIBLE She keeps a close eye on the conduct of her family, and she does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children and her husband stand up and bless her. In addition, he sings her praises, by saying, ‘Many women have done noble work, but you have surpassed them all!’ ALLOW THESE VERSES TO BE A GUIDE UNTO YOUR LIFE. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
Truth Conquers Numbers Psalm 86:11 Teach me your way, O LORD, so that I may live in your truth. Focus my heart on fearing you. John 8:32 You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 14:6 Jesus answered him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one goes to the Father except through me. 1 Thessalonians 5:21 Instead, test everything. Hold on to what is good. ALLOW THESE VERSE TO BE A GUIDE UNTO YOUR LIFE. One man with the truth on his side is stronger than a majority in error and will conquer in the end. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
