You Sins Speak

Read Job 15-17
 
Job 15:5-6, 15 “Your sins are telling your mouth what to say. Your words are based on clever deception. 6 Your own mouth condemns you, not I. Your own lips testify against you…15 Look, God does not even trust the angels. Even the heavens are not absolutely pure in his sight.”
 
JOB’s friend, Eliphaz, spoke a second time to Job. Remember, Eliphaz, Zophar and Bildad are counseling – or to be more accurate, they are rebuking Job. They assumed Job’s intense suffering is God’s judgment on Job’s deep sins. They did not stop to consider Job’s suffering is God’s test to prove to Satan that Job was blameless—a man of complete integrity. He feared God and stayed away from evil. (Job 1:1)
   Still, as Eliphaz accused Job, he was responding to Job’s words in Job 14. Job did sin with his lips. He was angry about the human destiny of death when even a tree’s stump regenerated life and water evaporated to rain back to earth. Job was not happy with God! His words rejected God’s creation design. Sin was telling Job’s mouth what to say.
   Eliphaz knew that Job was a good man. And he also knew all people can sin. He reminded Job God had to keep watch on his angels in heaven to guard against sin. We know Satan was an angel in heaven. And his demons were angels once. Angels are also messengers – prophets. God rebuked his prophets, too. If heaven’s exalted angels and God’s chosen prophets sinned, certainly Job would sin. There was no reason to believe Job is innocent. To some degree, you can’t blame Eliphaz for his counsel. He only saw suffering as sin’s penalty.
    But in his rebuke, Eliphaz also revealed his sin. Wasn’t it sin telling (Eliphaz’s) mouth what to say? Eliphaz was certain of Job’s guilt and God’s reasons to inflict disease and destruction on the man. But Eliphaz didn’t know. He assumed, and then he spoke as if his assumptions were true. His false accusations were a sin before God and against Job.
   Have you ever been in an argument when the other person accused you of something you did not do? Regardless of what you said, you could not convince your antagonist you were innocent of the charge against you. Their absolute belief in your wrong created a chasm you could not cross. There was no solution. This is how it was with Job and his friends. This is how it can be in our family, our church and our friends if we are too quick to judge and rebuke. We must never assume a wrong is done before we speak to another about it. Do not let your sin cause your lips to speak. Instead, listen to God: Colossians 3:12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the LORD forgave you, so you must forgive others.