February 9, 2025 • 26 mins
In this episode, from an online chapel service held four years ago on 25 August 2021 during the second Sydney COVID lockdown, Roger Burgess, Senior Pastor of Maitland Evangelical Church, unpacks Job chapter 28 and asks where true wisdom can be found.
He reminds us of the futility of human know-how, warns us of the danger of confusing know-how with wisdom, and points us to Jesus, the one true wise man.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:09):
Welcome to Moore in the Word, a podcast of Moore Theological College in Sydney, Australia that seeks
to glorify God through biblically sound, thought-provoking and challenging talks and interviews.
In this episode, from an online chapel service held four years ago on the 25th of August 2021 during the second Sydney COVID
(00:29):
lockdown, Roger Burgess, Senior Pastor of Maitland Evangelical Church, unpacks Job chapter 28 and asks where true wisdom can be found.
He reminds us of the futility of human know-how,
warns us of the danger of confusing know how with wisdom, and points us to Jesus, the one true wise man.
(00:51):
We hope you find the episode helpful.
Please note, Simon Gillham, Vice Principal of Moore Theological College, begins this episode with the Bible reading before handing things over to Roger.
Look, it's a real pleasure to have you with us, um, this morning.
(01:12):
You're going to be preaching to us from Job 28 and I'm going to read that passage out for us now.
Uh, Job 28.
There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.
Iron is taken from the earth and copper is smelted from ore.
Mortals put an end to the darkness.
They search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.
(01:36):
Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft.
In places untouched by human feet.
Far from other people they dangle and sway.
The earth from which food comes is transformed below as by fire.
Lapis lazuli comes from its rocks and its dust contains nuggets of gold.
No bird of prey knows that hidden path.
(01:58):
No falcon's eye has seen it.
Proud beast to not set foot on it.
No lion prowls there.
People assault the flinty rock with their hands and lay bare the roots of the mountain.
They tunnel through the rock.
Their eyes see all its treasures.
They search the sources of the rivers and bring the hidden things to light.
(02:20):
But where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding dwell?
No mortal can comprehend its worth.
It cannot be found in the land of the living.
The deep says it's not in me.
The sea says it's not with me.
It cannot be bought with the finest gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver.
Can it be bought with the gold of Ophir with precious onyx and lapis lazuli?
(02:43):
Neither gold nor crystals can compare with it.
Nor can it be had for jewels of gold.
Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention.
The price of wisdom is beyond rubies.
The topaz of Cush cannot compare with it.
It cannot be bought with pure gold.
Where then does wisdom come from?
(03:06):
Where does understanding dwell?
It's hidden from the eyes of every living thing.
Concealed even from the birds in the sky.
Destruction and death say only a rumor of it has reached our ears.
God understands the way to it, and He alone knows where it dwells.
(03:28):
For He views the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heaven.
When He established the force of the wind and measured out the waters, when He made a decree
for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm, then He looked at wisdom and appraised it.
He confirmed it and tested it, and he said to the human race that fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.
(04:01):
Thanks very much, Simon, and thanks again for your welcome here today, brothers.
I don't know what you think the book of Job is about, but in my opinion, it's not primarily a book about suffering, rather about God's glory.
The key to the book is in the front door, chapter 1, verse 9.
Sight and ask God.
(04:22):
Does Job fear God for nothing?
In other words, God, he only gives you glory because you give him the goodies down here.
So then the goodies are removed on those two calamitous days.
But God's glory is upheld even through dreadful suffering.
I think of the book like this.
(04:44):
The artwork of God's glory sits in the frame of job's, suffering the artwork of his glory in the frame of job's suffering.
Now you go deep into the frame from chapter three through 27, and then in 28 here we refocus on the artwork.
It's a calm, peaceful chapter in the midst of chaos, symbolizing the calm and peace of God.
(05:11):
There's no complaints, there's no accusations.
The NIV calls it.
An interlude.
It's oranges at halftime.
The eye of the storm, if you like.
As Job, or maybe the narrator, asks a profound question.
You can see it there on the screen.
Verse 12, Where shall wisdom be found?
(05:32):
And then repeated, verse 20, Where does wisdom come from?
You see, it's one thing to suffer terribly, It's another thing altogether to have no idea why.
Job's friends think they know.
You've sinned, Job.
That's why you're suffering.
So he ordered wisdom there.
This plus this equals that.
(05:53):
And, and Job says, no, I haven't.
Protest wisdom, you see.
He's not saying he's perfect.
But he is saying he's done nothing to deserve this calamity.
He's searching for understanding, for wisdom.
He wants to know how the world works.
It's architecture.
If you like, how does it all fit together to produce a confusing outcome like he's living in?
(06:21):
Well, he makes three points around those two questions.
You can see it there on the screen.
Futile human know how, then the question.
Futile human wealth, then the question.
Then the question repeated, and God alone has wisdom.
It's beautiful, isn't it, friends?
It's not too hard to read the Bible.
We can all read it for ourselves from youngest to oldest and grow in understanding.
(06:45):
Let's look at the first point there.
Futile human know how.
This is the horrific Hunter Valley part of the Bible.
It's all about mining.
Now, these are some of the earliest descriptions of mining ever written down.
You see, a mine is a deep and dark and mysterious place, a little bit like Job's world and like our world sometimes.
(07:09):
I got this text during the week from one of the Afghan boys who we've, uh, cared
for and prayed for here in Maitland over the last seven years, the church community.
Listen to what he says.
It just breaks my heart to see what's happening in Afghanistan.
My family, relatives, and friends are still living there in such a horrible situation.
(07:30):
I'm terrified, scared, worried.
I can't do anything for them.
It's hopeless.
So sad, friends.
Why this suffering?
Why any unjust?
Can we find an answer?
Well, we can mine, can't we?
We've got the know how for that.
(07:50):
Have a look there in verse 3 of the poem there in chapter 28.
Mortals put an end to the darkness.
They search out the farthest recesses.
Then verse four, far from human dwellings, they cut a shaft in places untouched by human feet.
Far from other people, they dangle and sway.
Brothers, aren't you glad you're training to be a pastor and not a miner in Job's day?
(08:16):
But the technology was there.
Ropes and harnesses and pickaxes.
It's, it's not, it's not animal know how.
They don't have it.
Verse seven and eight there.
It's, it's human know how.
Look, verse 9.
People assault the flinty rock with their hands and lay bare the roots of the mountains.
(08:38):
We can find treasures in mines, but can we find answers to the big questions?
Apparently not.
Look at verse 12.
But where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding?
Now, we love human know how, don't we, brothers?
Every time I drive up, drive over this bridge, At Maitland Park in the centre of Maitland.
(09:00):
I, I, I just thank God for human know how.
It's a very clever bridge this one.
I'm sure you got them down there in Sydney.
Um, but as you go up over the roundabout, you turn twice actually in a nice S's sort of motion.
Very clever bridge.
I mean, I just don't know why they didn't put one going the other way.
It's only a northbound, a southbound bridge, and the northbound road is still blocked and chogged up.
(09:28):
But I guess you can't have too much know how in one place at a time in Maitland.
But know how is not wisdom friend, but how easily we can mix the two.
I've been listening to the podcast, The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill.
The Seattle megachurch that grew from naught to 15, 000 in a few years and then collapsed overnight.
(09:50):
They had a lot of know how over there.
At one point they had 60 people on their media team alone.
Wow.
I had two unpaid volunteers on Sunday helping me get this message across to the church.
That's great know how.
(10:11):
Where's wisdom?
We could ask the same of our church here at MEC.
know how in some areas, but where's wisdom?
And you can probably ask it at more college from time to time.
I'm sure you've got know how there, but do you have wisdom?
Worth asking the question, where can it be found?
(10:32):
Maybe we can buy it folks.
Look at verse 13.
This is our second question.
Futile human wealth or second point.
Here it goes.
Verse 13.
No mortals comprehend its worth.
Well, that was quick, wasn't it?
We can't buy it because we can't even put a price on it.
Verse 15.
He goes on.
It cannot be bought with the finest gold.
Verse 16.
It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir.
(10:54):
Verse 19, the second part, it can't be bought with pure gold.
It can't be bought.
It can't be bought.
It can't be bought.
The price of wisdom we are told in verse 18 is beyond rubies.
You want answers to the big questions?
Don't think you can buy them.
Gold, silver, onyx, lapis lazuli, crystal, jewels, coral, jasper, rubies, topaz, pure gold even.
(11:21):
Store them all up, do the deal, walk out the door, and what have you got?
Not wisdom.
Verse 20 there.
Where then does wisdom come from?
Where does understanding?
Now friends, our stories of wisdom in the West are so tied to money.
(11:41):
We can barely discern the difference.
Oh, look at that.
Look at those folks over there.
They bought that house at just the right time and it's worth a fortune now.
How wise they are.
Look at that business over there, growing at 10 percent a year.
How wise they are.
Look at that economy.
They haven't had a recession for 30 years.
How wise they are.
(12:03):
Not necessarily.
Now, let's be clear.
Wealth is one measure of ordered wisdom.
Proverbs 10 verse 4.
Lazy hands make poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.
But ordered wisdom is never the whole story.
Wealth alone is no sign of wisdom.
(12:24):
There are plenty of wealthy fools in this city.
And I'm guessing there'd be some in yours as well.
Houses of wisdom.
Bank accounts full, but hearts empty.
Money, but no meaning.
Assets, but no answers to the big questions of life.
(12:46):
Friends, wisdom is too deep to find with human know how.
It's too priceless to buy with human wealth.
So where do we turn?
Well, that brings us to the final point.
God alone has wisdom.
But before we get there, the poet whets our appetite.
One last time.
Have a look in verse 21 there with me, if you would.
(13:09):
Wisdom is hidden from the eyes of every living thing.
You can't see this wisdom on earth.
And then look, it's concealed even from the birds in the sky.
It's not up high.
And it's not down below either.
Verse 22.
(13:29):
Look at it there.
Destruction and death say, only a rumor of it has reached our ears.
It's like the poet is standing over the treasure chest of wisdom asking, Are you sure you need to open this?
Yes!
Quick!
Our lives are meaningless and empty if you don't.
And so the lid is lifted.
(13:52):
Verse 23.
Look at it there.
God understands the way to it and He alone knows where it goes.
Do you remember the key question?
Where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding dwell?
Well, there's the answer.
God alone knows.
Now, how do we know that he knows?
(14:13):
Well, he knows how the weather works.
That wild, unpredictable, uncontrollable, and seemingly random force.
Whenever I mention the weather here in Maitland, we think of the April 2015 superstorm.
Where we were blown to pieces.
We had a hundred thousand dollars damage on our house here alone.
And we also remember the 2007, June long weekend when the Pasha Bolka ship was washed up onto Nobby's beach, like a cork,
(14:42):
such force in the weather and look at verse 25, God established the force of the wind, God
measured out the water, God made a decree for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm.
Wow.
And as he did that.
Like a master jeweler.
(15:03):
Look at it there in verse 27.
He saw wisdom and then he put his special glasses on and appraised it.
He confirmed it and he tested it.
And he placed wisdom at the centerpiece of heaven's crown jewels, priced beyond rubies.
(15:26):
God alone knows the place.
So maybe he'll take us there, eh?
What do you think?
No, actually he won't, but he does something better.
He takes us to himself.
Look at verse 28.
Now these are the first words spoken by God to humans in the book of Job.
Now God's had a yarn to Satan back in chapter one and two, but here he speaks to humans.
(15:51):
Look at it there.
He said to the human race, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.
You see, friends, the path of why leads to the gate of who, and the Lord invites us into relationship with him.
(16:11):
It's not know how, not even know why, it's know who that matters.
We can't know the architecture of the universe, but we can know the architect.
We don't have all the answers, but we know the one who does.
During the week, a friend gave me a beautiful picture.
(16:32):
He said, the universe is like a peanut that God carries around in his pocket.
Isn't that lovely?
If the universe is a peanut, what are we, friend?
Weak, foolish, stupid.
Wayward children of God, with knees bowed, hearts yielded, wills bent towards him, or in the language of the poet, fearing the Lord, shunning evil.
(17:01):
Well, there it is, friends, the poem explained.
I want to make three brief points to close in the few minutes we've got left.
Job 28.
It does three things.
It vindicates Job.
Do you remember what God said of Job in chapter 1 verse 8?
He said, Have you seen my servant Job?
(17:23):
A man who fears God and shuns evil.
And here, what is he telling us wisdom is?
To fear the Lord and shun.
Job is the wise man.
In this story, his life has fallen apart catastrophically.
(17:43):
He's broken, sad, frustrated, crushed, angry.
He's got no answers, but he knows God.
And here in the middle of the book, a shaft of light breaks into his darkness.
And God says, keep going, Job.
You're on the right track, even though you don't know, and you can't see.
(18:04):
Brother, if your life feels like it's falling apart, to die.
I trust you can see the shaft of God's light in the darkness.
You don't need to know the architecture if you know the architect.
What a relief, eh?
What a relief.
(18:24):
Steve Curtis Chapman, the American gospel artist, lost his five year old daughter in a tragic accident outside his own home.
And he wrote a song, I, uh, My Redeemer is faithful and true.
He says this, in every situation, he's proved his love to me.
When I lack the understanding, he gives more grace to me.
(18:47):
My Redeemer.
Job 28 vindicates Job.
Secondly, it points to Jesus.
Colossians chapter 2, verse 3 says in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Job, the small W wise man, foreshadows Jesus, the capital W wise man.
(19:11):
Jesus is the only one who truly feared the Lord all his life in every area of his life.
The only one who always shunned evil.
The treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in him.
And through his life giving death and resurrection, he opens the door for us all into relationship with the architect.
I'm reading a book at the moment called The Creaking on the Stairs by Mez McConnell.
(19:36):
Rosaria Butterfield says of it, It's the most disturbing book I've ever read.
I cannot recommend it highly enough.
Mez is a Scottish pastor who suffered abuse, terrible abuse as a child, which broke him.
And in his early twenties, he met Jesus, who's putting him back together.
Listen to what he says, as I write these words 24 years after turning to Christ.
(19:58):
I'd like to share with you the deep meaning and answers that I've found in my pain and suffering.
I've read the Bible cover to cover countless times.
I've prayed, I've cried, I've sought God for understanding and insight.
And all these things have left me with this answer when it comes to the
question of why the Lord permitted me to suffer through those childhood agonies.
(20:20):
Are you ready for it?
Here it is.
I just don't know.
But he knows Jesus.
And for the rest of the book, Mez talks about Jesus humiliation, Jesus pain, Jesus rejection, Jesus compassion, Jesus justice, Jesus beauty.
(20:41):
Jesus is the centerpiece diamond of heaven's crown jewels.
Now, I presume you know Jesus here today.
I'll have a yarn assignment later if you don't.
But here's the question.
Are you looking to him every day?
Is your sense of need for him growing?
(21:03):
Is your trust in your know how and wealth and every other rickety platform diminishing?
You know, we can be so tempted to think in the West that we're smart enough, strong enough, even good enough to make it on our own.
We're not.
I love those words from Isaac Newton, the great English scientist from the 1600s.
(21:26):
He discovered gravity or something like that.
Who at the end of his life said he felt like a little boy standing on the
seashore, picking up pebbles while an ocean of truth lay undiscovered before him.
What do we know down here, brothers?
Look to Jesus, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom.
(21:48):
Job 28 vindicates Job, it points to Jesus, and finally it humbles us.
You know, James is the only New Testament book to mention Job.
And in chapter 3, verse 13, he writes, Who is wise and understanding among you?
Let him show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
(22:10):
Do you hear that?
The evidence of wisdom, according to James, is humility.
Expressing itself in good deeds.
Wisdom is the soil, humility is the tree, and good deeds are the fruit.
You know, one humble good deed for us all right now is to listen to the governing authorities who are put there
(22:32):
by God for our, they built that bridge over Maitland roundabout, And they're building a bridge over COVID river.
It's humbly submit to them right now.
And as we do that friends, let's care for the widows and orphans.
James 1.
27 Let's keep a tight rein on our tongue.
(22:52):
James 1.
26 Especially important in times of stress and anxiety like now.
Let's be peacemakers, not troublemakers.
James 3.
18 The peacemaker who sows in peace.
Reaps a harvest of righteousness.
Wisdom is the soil.
Humility is the tree.
(23:13):
Good deeds are the fruit and God gets all the glory.
Let's pray.
Lord, we thank you for this poem from Job 28.
Thank you for showing us Lord, the truth.
of how our human know how is futile, our wealth is futile, and every other rickety platform we stand on is futile.
(23:37):
Lord, we pray that we may turn to you, to the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
And Lord, we pray that the tree of humility would grow strong in him.
And on that tree would be good deeds for your glory.
We pray it in Jesus name.
(23:58):
Amen.
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Until next time.
Welcome to Moore in the Word, a podcast of Moore Theological College in Sydney, Australia that seeks
to glorify God through biblically sound, thought-provoking and challenging talks and interviews.
In this episode, from an online chapel service held four years ago on the 25th of August 2021 during the second Sydney COVID
(00:29):
lockdown, Roger Burgess, Senior Pastor of Maitland Evangelical Church, unpacks Job chapter 28 and asks where true wisdom can be found.
He reminds us of the futility of human know-how,
warns us of the danger of confusing know how with wisdom, and points us to Jesus, the one true wise man.
(00:51):
We hope you find the episode helpful.
Please note, Simon Gillham, Vice Principal of Moore Theological College, begins this episode with the Bible reading before handing things over to Roger.
Look, it's a real pleasure to have you with us, um, this morning.
(01:12):
You're going to be preaching to us from Job 28 and I'm going to read that passage out for us now.
Uh, Job 28.
There is a mine for silver and a place where gold is refined.
Iron is taken from the earth and copper is smelted from ore.
Mortals put an end to the darkness.
They search out the farthest recesses for ore in the blackest darkness.
(01:36):
Far from human dwellings they cut a shaft.
In places untouched by human feet.
Far from other people they dangle and sway.
The earth from which food comes is transformed below as by fire.
Lapis lazuli comes from its rocks and its dust contains nuggets of gold.
No bird of prey knows that hidden path.
(01:58):
No falcon's eye has seen it.
Proud beast to not set foot on it.
No lion prowls there.
People assault the flinty rock with their hands and lay bare the roots of the mountain.
They tunnel through the rock.
Their eyes see all its treasures.
They search the sources of the rivers and bring the hidden things to light.
(02:20):
But where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding dwell?
No mortal can comprehend its worth.
It cannot be found in the land of the living.
The deep says it's not in me.
The sea says it's not with me.
It cannot be bought with the finest gold, nor can its price be weighed out in silver.
Can it be bought with the gold of Ophir with precious onyx and lapis lazuli?
(02:43):
Neither gold nor crystals can compare with it.
Nor can it be had for jewels of gold.
Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention.
The price of wisdom is beyond rubies.
The topaz of Cush cannot compare with it.
It cannot be bought with pure gold.
Where then does wisdom come from?
(03:06):
Where does understanding dwell?
It's hidden from the eyes of every living thing.
Concealed even from the birds in the sky.
Destruction and death say only a rumor of it has reached our ears.
God understands the way to it, and He alone knows where it dwells.
(03:28):
For He views the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heaven.
When He established the force of the wind and measured out the waters, when He made a decree
for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm, then He looked at wisdom and appraised it.
He confirmed it and tested it, and he said to the human race that fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.
(04:01):
Thanks very much, Simon, and thanks again for your welcome here today, brothers.
I don't know what you think the book of Job is about, but in my opinion, it's not primarily a book about suffering, rather about God's glory.
The key to the book is in the front door, chapter 1, verse 9.
Sight and ask God.
(04:22):
Does Job fear God for nothing?
In other words, God, he only gives you glory because you give him the goodies down here.
So then the goodies are removed on those two calamitous days.
But God's glory is upheld even through dreadful suffering.
I think of the book like this.
(04:44):
The artwork of God's glory sits in the frame of job's, suffering the artwork of his glory in the frame of job's suffering.
Now you go deep into the frame from chapter three through 27, and then in 28 here we refocus on the artwork.
It's a calm, peaceful chapter in the midst of chaos, symbolizing the calm and peace of God.
(05:11):
There's no complaints, there's no accusations.
The NIV calls it.
An interlude.
It's oranges at halftime.
The eye of the storm, if you like.
As Job, or maybe the narrator, asks a profound question.
You can see it there on the screen.
Verse 12, Where shall wisdom be found?
(05:32):
And then repeated, verse 20, Where does wisdom come from?
You see, it's one thing to suffer terribly, It's another thing altogether to have no idea why.
Job's friends think they know.
You've sinned, Job.
That's why you're suffering.
So he ordered wisdom there.
This plus this equals that.
(05:53):
And, and Job says, no, I haven't.
Protest wisdom, you see.
He's not saying he's perfect.
But he is saying he's done nothing to deserve this calamity.
He's searching for understanding, for wisdom.
He wants to know how the world works.
It's architecture.
If you like, how does it all fit together to produce a confusing outcome like he's living in?
(06:21):
Well, he makes three points around those two questions.
You can see it there on the screen.
Futile human know how, then the question.
Futile human wealth, then the question.
Then the question repeated, and God alone has wisdom.
It's beautiful, isn't it, friends?
It's not too hard to read the Bible.
We can all read it for ourselves from youngest to oldest and grow in understanding.
(06:45):
Let's look at the first point there.
Futile human know how.
This is the horrific Hunter Valley part of the Bible.
It's all about mining.
Now, these are some of the earliest descriptions of mining ever written down.
You see, a mine is a deep and dark and mysterious place, a little bit like Job's world and like our world sometimes.
(07:09):
I got this text during the week from one of the Afghan boys who we've, uh, cared
for and prayed for here in Maitland over the last seven years, the church community.
Listen to what he says.
It just breaks my heart to see what's happening in Afghanistan.
My family, relatives, and friends are still living there in such a horrible situation.
(07:30):
I'm terrified, scared, worried.
I can't do anything for them.
It's hopeless.
So sad, friends.
Why this suffering?
Why any unjust?
Can we find an answer?
Well, we can mine, can't we?
We've got the know how for that.
(07:50):
Have a look there in verse 3 of the poem there in chapter 28.
Mortals put an end to the darkness.
They search out the farthest recesses.
Then verse four, far from human dwellings, they cut a shaft in places untouched by human feet.
Far from other people, they dangle and sway.
Brothers, aren't you glad you're training to be a pastor and not a miner in Job's day?
(08:16):
But the technology was there.
Ropes and harnesses and pickaxes.
It's, it's not, it's not animal know how.
They don't have it.
Verse seven and eight there.
It's, it's human know how.
Look, verse 9.
People assault the flinty rock with their hands and lay bare the roots of the mountains.
(08:38):
We can find treasures in mines, but can we find answers to the big questions?
Apparently not.
Look at verse 12.
But where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding?
Now, we love human know how, don't we, brothers?
Every time I drive up, drive over this bridge, At Maitland Park in the centre of Maitland.
(09:00):
I, I, I just thank God for human know how.
It's a very clever bridge this one.
I'm sure you got them down there in Sydney.
Um, but as you go up over the roundabout, you turn twice actually in a nice S's sort of motion.
Very clever bridge.
I mean, I just don't know why they didn't put one going the other way.
It's only a northbound, a southbound bridge, and the northbound road is still blocked and chogged up.
(09:28):
But I guess you can't have too much know how in one place at a time in Maitland.
But know how is not wisdom friend, but how easily we can mix the two.
I've been listening to the podcast, The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill.
The Seattle megachurch that grew from naught to 15, 000 in a few years and then collapsed overnight.
(09:50):
They had a lot of know how over there.
At one point they had 60 people on their media team alone.
Wow.
I had two unpaid volunteers on Sunday helping me get this message across to the church.
That's great know how.
(10:11):
Where's wisdom?
We could ask the same of our church here at MEC.
know how in some areas, but where's wisdom?
And you can probably ask it at more college from time to time.
I'm sure you've got know how there, but do you have wisdom?
Worth asking the question, where can it be found?
(10:32):
Maybe we can buy it folks.
Look at verse 13.
This is our second question.
Futile human wealth or second point.
Here it goes.
Verse 13.
No mortals comprehend its worth.
Well, that was quick, wasn't it?
We can't buy it because we can't even put a price on it.
Verse 15.
He goes on.
It cannot be bought with the finest gold.
Verse 16.
It cannot be bought with the gold of Ophir.
(10:54):
Verse 19, the second part, it can't be bought with pure gold.
It can't be bought.
It can't be bought.
It can't be bought.
The price of wisdom we are told in verse 18 is beyond rubies.
You want answers to the big questions?
Don't think you can buy them.
Gold, silver, onyx, lapis lazuli, crystal, jewels, coral, jasper, rubies, topaz, pure gold even.
(11:21):
Store them all up, do the deal, walk out the door, and what have you got?
Not wisdom.
Verse 20 there.
Where then does wisdom come from?
Where does understanding?
Now friends, our stories of wisdom in the West are so tied to money.
(11:41):
We can barely discern the difference.
Oh, look at that.
Look at those folks over there.
They bought that house at just the right time and it's worth a fortune now.
How wise they are.
Look at that business over there, growing at 10 percent a year.
How wise they are.
Look at that economy.
They haven't had a recession for 30 years.
How wise they are.
(12:03):
Not necessarily.
Now, let's be clear.
Wealth is one measure of ordered wisdom.
Proverbs 10 verse 4.
Lazy hands make poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.
But ordered wisdom is never the whole story.
Wealth alone is no sign of wisdom.
(12:24):
There are plenty of wealthy fools in this city.
And I'm guessing there'd be some in yours as well.
Houses of wisdom.
Bank accounts full, but hearts empty.
Money, but no meaning.
Assets, but no answers to the big questions of life.
(12:46):
Friends, wisdom is too deep to find with human know how.
It's too priceless to buy with human wealth.
So where do we turn?
Well, that brings us to the final point.
God alone has wisdom.
But before we get there, the poet whets our appetite.
One last time.
Have a look in verse 21 there with me, if you would.
(13:09):
Wisdom is hidden from the eyes of every living thing.
You can't see this wisdom on earth.
And then look, it's concealed even from the birds in the sky.
It's not up high.
And it's not down below either.
Verse 22.
(13:29):
Look at it there.
Destruction and death say, only a rumor of it has reached our ears.
It's like the poet is standing over the treasure chest of wisdom asking, Are you sure you need to open this?
Yes!
Quick!
Our lives are meaningless and empty if you don't.
And so the lid is lifted.
(13:52):
Verse 23.
Look at it there.
God understands the way to it and He alone knows where it goes.
Do you remember the key question?
Where can wisdom be found?
Where does understanding dwell?
Well, there's the answer.
God alone knows.
Now, how do we know that he knows?
(14:13):
Well, he knows how the weather works.
That wild, unpredictable, uncontrollable, and seemingly random force.
Whenever I mention the weather here in Maitland, we think of the April 2015 superstorm.
Where we were blown to pieces.
We had a hundred thousand dollars damage on our house here alone.
And we also remember the 2007, June long weekend when the Pasha Bolka ship was washed up onto Nobby's beach, like a cork,
(14:42):
such force in the weather and look at verse 25, God established the force of the wind, God
measured out the water, God made a decree for the rain and a path for the thunderstorm.
Wow.
And as he did that.
Like a master jeweler.
(15:03):
Look at it there in verse 27.
He saw wisdom and then he put his special glasses on and appraised it.
He confirmed it and he tested it.
And he placed wisdom at the centerpiece of heaven's crown jewels, priced beyond rubies.
(15:26):
God alone knows the place.
So maybe he'll take us there, eh?
What do you think?
No, actually he won't, but he does something better.
He takes us to himself.
Look at verse 28.
Now these are the first words spoken by God to humans in the book of Job.
Now God's had a yarn to Satan back in chapter one and two, but here he speaks to humans.
(15:51):
Look at it there.
He said to the human race, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to shun evil is understanding.
You see, friends, the path of why leads to the gate of who, and the Lord invites us into relationship with him.
(16:11):
It's not know how, not even know why, it's know who that matters.
We can't know the architecture of the universe, but we can know the architect.
We don't have all the answers, but we know the one who does.
During the week, a friend gave me a beautiful picture.
(16:32):
He said, the universe is like a peanut that God carries around in his pocket.
Isn't that lovely?
If the universe is a peanut, what are we, friend?
Weak, foolish, stupid.
Wayward children of God, with knees bowed, hearts yielded, wills bent towards him, or in the language of the poet, fearing the Lord, shunning evil.
(17:01):
Well, there it is, friends, the poem explained.
I want to make three brief points to close in the few minutes we've got left.
Job 28.
It does three things.
It vindicates Job.
Do you remember what God said of Job in chapter 1 verse 8?
He said, Have you seen my servant Job?
(17:23):
A man who fears God and shuns evil.
And here, what is he telling us wisdom is?
To fear the Lord and shun.
Job is the wise man.
In this story, his life has fallen apart catastrophically.
(17:43):
He's broken, sad, frustrated, crushed, angry.
He's got no answers, but he knows God.
And here in the middle of the book, a shaft of light breaks into his darkness.
And God says, keep going, Job.
You're on the right track, even though you don't know, and you can't see.
(18:04):
Brother, if your life feels like it's falling apart, to die.
I trust you can see the shaft of God's light in the darkness.
You don't need to know the architecture if you know the architect.
What a relief, eh?
What a relief.
(18:24):
Steve Curtis Chapman, the American gospel artist, lost his five year old daughter in a tragic accident outside his own home.
And he wrote a song, I, uh, My Redeemer is faithful and true.
He says this, in every situation, he's proved his love to me.
When I lack the understanding, he gives more grace to me.
(18:47):
My Redeemer.
Job 28 vindicates Job.
Secondly, it points to Jesus.
Colossians chapter 2, verse 3 says in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Job, the small W wise man, foreshadows Jesus, the capital W wise man.
(19:11):
Jesus is the only one who truly feared the Lord all his life in every area of his life.
The only one who always shunned evil.
The treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in him.
And through his life giving death and resurrection, he opens the door for us all into relationship with the architect.
I'm reading a book at the moment called The Creaking on the Stairs by Mez McConnell.
(19:36):
Rosaria Butterfield says of it, It's the most disturbing book I've ever read.
I cannot recommend it highly enough.
Mez is a Scottish pastor who suffered abuse, terrible abuse as a child, which broke him.
And in his early twenties, he met Jesus, who's putting him back together.
Listen to what he says, as I write these words 24 years after turning to Christ.
(19:58):
I'd like to share with you the deep meaning and answers that I've found in my pain and suffering.
I've read the Bible cover to cover countless times.
I've prayed, I've cried, I've sought God for understanding and insight.
And all these things have left me with this answer when it comes to the
question of why the Lord permitted me to suffer through those childhood agonies.
(20:20):
Are you ready for it?
Here it is.
I just don't know.
But he knows Jesus.
And for the rest of the book, Mez talks about Jesus humiliation, Jesus pain, Jesus rejection, Jesus compassion, Jesus justice, Jesus beauty.
(20:41):
Jesus is the centerpiece diamond of heaven's crown jewels.
Now, I presume you know Jesus here today.
I'll have a yarn assignment later if you don't.
But here's the question.
Are you looking to him every day?
Is your sense of need for him growing?
(21:03):
Is your trust in your know how and wealth and every other rickety platform diminishing?
You know, we can be so tempted to think in the West that we're smart enough, strong enough, even good enough to make it on our own.
We're not.
I love those words from Isaac Newton, the great English scientist from the 1600s.
(21:26):
He discovered gravity or something like that.
Who at the end of his life said he felt like a little boy standing on the
seashore, picking up pebbles while an ocean of truth lay undiscovered before him.
What do we know down here, brothers?
Look to Jesus, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom.
(21:48):
Job 28 vindicates Job, it points to Jesus, and finally it humbles us.
You know, James is the only New Testament book to mention Job.
And in chapter 3, verse 13, he writes, Who is wise and understanding among you?
Let him show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
(22:10):
Do you hear that?
The evidence of wisdom, according to James, is humility.
Expressing itself in good deeds.
Wisdom is the soil, humility is the tree, and good deeds are the fruit.
You know, one humble good deed for us all right now is to listen to the governing authorities who are put there
(22:32):
by God for our, they built that bridge over Maitland roundabout, And they're building a bridge over COVID river.
It's humbly submit to them right now.
And as we do that friends, let's care for the widows and orphans.
James 1.
27 Let's keep a tight rein on our tongue.
(22:52):
James 1.
26 Especially important in times of stress and anxiety like now.
Let's be peacemakers, not troublemakers.
James 3.
18 The peacemaker who sows in peace.
Reaps a harvest of righteousness.
Wisdom is the soil.
Humility is the tree.
(23:13):
Good deeds are the fruit and God gets all the glory.
Let's pray.
Lord, we thank you for this poem from Job 28.
Thank you for showing us Lord, the truth.
of how our human know how is futile, our wealth is futile, and every other rickety platform we stand on is futile.
(23:37):
Lord, we pray that we may turn to you, to the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
And Lord, we pray that the tree of humility would grow strong in him.
And on that tree would be good deeds for your glory.
We pray it in Jesus name.
(23:58):
Amen.
Thank you for listening to Moore in the Word, a podcast of Moore Theological College.
Our vision as a College is to see God glorified by men and women living for
and proclaiming Jesus Christ, growing healthy churches, and reaching the lost.
(24:22):
Do you want to deepen your knowledge of God's word or increase in confidence as you teach the Bible to others?
For over 60 years, the PTC Moore College's Preliminary Theological Certificate has been helping believers
discover the riches of God's word and grow their understanding of the foundations of the Christian faith.
The PTC has been fundamental in the transformation of people, churches and communities across the world.
(24:46):
If you are looking for a biblically sound course that is both flexible and affordable,
find out more about the online or correspondence options, and even try a sample lesson.
Visit moore.edu.au/ptc.
That's moore.edu.au/ptc.
(25:12):
You can find out more and register for any of our events by visiting the Moore College website.
That's moore.edu.au.
If you have not already done so, we encourage you to subscribe to our podcast
through your favourite podcast platform so that you'll never miss an episode.
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For past episodes further resources, and to make a tax-deductible donation to support
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moore.edu.au.
If you found this episode helpful, please share it with a friend and leave a review on your platform of choice.
We always benefit from feedback from our listeners,
so if you'd like to get in touch, you can email us at comms@moore.
(26:00):
edu.
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The Moore in the Word podcast was edited and produced by me, Karen Beilharz, and the Communications Team at Moore Theological College.
The music for our podcast was provided by MarkJuly from Pixabay.
Until next time.
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