Job 40:15-19, 24. 15“Take a look at Behemoth, which I made, just as I made you. It eats grass like an ox. 16See its powerful loins and the muscles of its belly. 17Its tail is as strong as a cedar. The sinews of its thighs are knit tightly together. 18Its bones are tubes of bronze. Its limbs are bars of iron. 19It is a prime example of God’s handiwork and only its Creator can threaten it… 24No one can catch it off guard or put a ring in its nose and lead it away.
Job 41:1-9;20-22. 1“Can you catch Leviathan with a hook or put a noose around its jaw? 5Can you make it a pet like a bird, or give it to your little girls to play with? 8…If you lay a hand on it, you will certainly remember the battle that follows. You won’t try that again! 9No, it is useless to try to capture it. The hunter who attempts it will be knocked down… 20Smoke streams from its nostrils like steam from a pot heated over burning rushes. 21Its breath would kindle coals, for flames shoot from its mouth. 22“The tremendous strength in Leviathan’s neck strikes terror wherever it goes.
The Biblical story of Job begins with Satan asking God for permission to test Job by putting him through great trials. You see, Job was very blessed and very rich. He had it all. But Satan believed that if Job lost everything he had, he would curse God and give up. Even as Satan took everything from him, Job never cursed God and he never gave up. But the hardest thing for Job was not the loss of all that he had, but the confusion as to why these bad things were happening. Job had no idea that God was letting Satan hurt him, so Job questioned God. He didn’t curse God or give up on God, but he did want some answers from God. Why are these terrible things happening to me?
Have you ever asked God that question?
Eventually, God gave Job an answer. But God didn’t tell Job WHY these bad things were happening. Instead, God used examples from nature to show Job that he alone is in control and can do whatever he wants. Two of these examples are the behemoth and the leviathan. What kind of animals do you think these are? Some think that behemoth and leviathan were dinosaurs. Some think God is using exaggerations about giant hippos and fire breathing crocodiles.
However, many people think that behemoth and leviathan are mythological sea creatures that represented the idea of chaos – things being out of control. And that is exactly God’s point – NOTHING IS OUTSIDE OF HIS CONTROL. Not even behemoth or leviathan. No human can control these creatures. But God can. He created them, so he can control them. Even things that we would say are uncontrollable, even things that we would say make no sense and are just chaos, they are not chaotic to God. They are all part of his plan.
And that is what advent is all about. Jesus came into a world full of “chaos” to control the chaos. God being born as a baby (especially in a manger) makes no sense. That baby growing up and dying on a cross makes even less sense. But the birth of Jesus showed that not even all the chaos Satan brings to this world can stop the plan of God to control the behemoth of sin and the leviathan of death. Those are the two things we should fear most – and God has captured them both in Jesus.
Questions: Is there anything hard or bad happening to you that seems to make no sense? How does knowing that Jesus controls all chaos help you to not be afraid of what might happen?
TLICfamily 