“The Enormous Weight of Grief”

February 14, 2021 /

Job 2:11-13; 3:1-26

  1. Grief is Heavy

Job was not alone in his grief along the pages of Scripture (Psalms of Lament: Psalm 6,  Psalm 10, Psalm 38, Psalm 42, & Psalm 43).

The waters of affliction and blessing.

Affliction: Isaiah 43:2, Psalm 42:7, Psalm 69:1-2, Psalm 88:7, Psalm 124:2, Jonah 2:5

Blessings: John 4:10, Jeremiah 17:13, Isaiah 55:1

The water of God’s goodness can both penetrate with power and satisfy with grace.

Grief is heavy, but not bad; Christ Himself expressed heavy emotions (John 11:35, Matthew 21:13, Matthew 9:36, Matthew 23:37, Matthew 27:46).

The glory of grief is growth (Job 23:10).

  1. The heaviness of grief becomes a burden.

We do not naturally seek out burdens of emotional and spiritual weight.

There is not godly success without burden:

David had Goliath and Saul.

Elijah had Jezebel and Ahab.

Joshua had Jericho.

Moses had Pharaoh and thousands of complaining Israelites.

Joseph had Potiphar’s wife.

Paul had stonings, shipwrecks, and John Mark.

Peter had imprisonment and the consequences of his foolish actions.

Christ had His hard-headed disciples and the cross.

The blessing of a burden is the invitation from our High Priest (Hebrews 4:15-16).

  1. The burdens can cause weariness of life.

Weariness can come from…

Lack of fruit (Galatians 6:9). God promises fruit to the faithful.

Wickedness of the day (I Kings 19:4). God will reign one day (Psalm 46:10).

Unmet expectations

Jonah (Jonah 4:8)

Job

The battle lies in digging deep to find hope in the midst of utter weakness (Psalm 36:15, 22; Psalm 10:16, Psalm 42:11, Job 13:15, Job 23:10).

When you find yourself weary of life:

  • Evaluate your expectations.
    1. What desire/need of mine has ceased to be met?
    2. Was that desire in a healthy place? Was it God-given?
    3. If so, did I put hope and dependency on it?
    4. Did I have unrealistic or unnatural expectations?
    5. Have my expectations caused me weariness of life?
  • Count your blessings
    1. The biggest blessings of life are not material, but spiritual.
  • Examine God’s will
    1. Has God gifted me with a burden?
    2. How am I like Christ in my suffering?
    3. How can my suffering draw me closer to God?
  • Examine the waters
    1. Are the waters of God’s goodness penetrating my hard heart?
    2. Are the waters of God’s goodness filling my empty soul?

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