"Suffering and Friends" Celebration

Sermon Notes: 10.18.20
Scripture
Job 2:11-13

Job’s three friends come to comfort him

11 When Job’s three friends heard about all this disaster that had happened to him, they came, each one from his home—Eliphaz from Teman, Bildad from Shuah, and Zophar from Naamah. They agreed to come so they could console and comfort him. 12 When they looked up from a distance and didn’t recognize him, they wept loudly. Each one tore his garment and scattered dust above his head toward the sky. 13 They sat with Job on the ground seven days and seven nights, not speaking a word to him, for they saw that he was in excruciating pain.
Job 16:2
2 “I have heard many things like these;

you are miserable comforters, all of you!

Job 42: 7-9

7 After the LORD had spoken these words to Job, he said to Eliphaz from Teman, “I’m angry at you and your two friends because you haven’t spoken about me correctly as did my servant Job.

We see Job's friends coming and bringing comfort to their friend in Job 2:11-13. They are present and remain silent, just being quiet and still with a friend who is grieving. The friends go downhill for the rest of the book of Job. They take turns giving speeches about how Job must have committed terrible sins for all of this to happen to him. They talk about God as one who is just out to harm people each time they make a mistake. Job has lost his children, his servants, his cattle, crops, and now he has sores from head to toe. His friends now tell him how terrible he must have sinned and how God is punishing him. The friends have bad theology and lack of compassion.

What kind of comfort do we bring for friends? Let’s talk about these passages this Sunday. I’m reminded of how Jesus sees Mary and Martha after the death of Lazarus. Jesus cries with them. Jesus brings comfort to those who morn. Let’s strive to bring comfort to those who are grieving, instead of judgement and bad theology like Job's friends.