Job 12:16

16 With him is strength [`oz] and wisdom [tuwshiyah]: the deceived [shagag] and the deceiver [shagah] are his. KJV-Interlinear

16 'With Him are strength and sound wisdom, The misled and the misleader belong to Him. NASB

Jesus Christ controls history. Jesus Christ is God, and as such, He possesses all of the powers of deity.

God not only controls the weather, and all natural events in this world as well as in the entire universe, but he controls humanity as well.

God manages and administers history by means of three broad functions. The first is by means of His direct control.

God created the angels. God created the universe. God creates each person at the moment of their birth.

Likewise, God can take everything away. God has the ultimate power over death. Death is a separation or transition, from one phase of life, into another phase.

Second, God controls history by means His indirect control through the Laws of Divine Establishment. The Laws of Establishment run parallel to the Laws of the Jungle. Satan desires to promote chaos in the jungle while God offsets this chaos with order through establishment principles.

The jungle laws (coercion, slavery, homosexuality, communism, internationalism, crime, high taxation, etc.), attack every aspect of society and try to destroy society.

Establishment principles (volition, marriage, family, nationalism, free enterprise, freedom, liberty, legal due process, etc.), are designed to protect society.

God deals with every individual based on their own thoughts, decisions, and actions. So the third method of Gods control deals with mans free will to choose and function as he pleases in this world.

There are those who deceive. They know the truth, but ignore it because it does not serve their lust for whatever it is they want. They may pursue wealth, or power, or position, or recognition, or sensual satisfaction, and so forth. Whatever they desire in life, which is contrary to truth, eventually results in a pattern of deception sooner or later.

All deceivers deceive themselves first. They think that they can do as they please, or that they can fool most of the people most of the time. Deceivers have no regard for others. They intend to deceive others in order to get what they want. So they use others.

Those who are deceived, are so deceived because they choose to be deceived.

Anyone who has Bible doctrine in their soul, cannot easily be deceived. But when a person rejects doctrine, when a person is indifferent toward God and their spiritual life, then they have made a conscious choice to place themselves at the mercy of the jungle practices in this world.

Lacking standards of truth with which to discern, those who are deceived are just as bad as those who deceive.

The deceivers pursue their lusts. 'Vote for me, and I will tax the rich.'

Those deceived reject their responsibilities in life, or look for some easier path through life. 'Oh boy, he is going to tax the rich and give it to us.'

Regardless of which you might be, God controls both categories. Neither work outside of the realm of Gods domain and sovereignty.

Through the actions of human volition, God allows humanity to advance through life, but with boundaries.

The ultimate boundaries are birth and death. Other boundaries are natural catastrophes, or even dispensations.

As people are born into this world and grow up being bad, God foresaw their badness and placed into history other persons who would be born into this world and serve as an offset for the sake of good.

In extreme cases, some are born in order to go to war, serve their purpose in Gods will, and then perhaps they will die in battle. Patton, for example, grew up and served in World War Two, and then died in a car accident at the end of the war. His purpose, which God intended, had been served.

How do we know it was his purpose? Because it is now a part of recorded history, which none of us can change. God controls life, and God controls death. No one can alter, change, or oppose that which God wills and does.

Another example of control might be the attacked we suffered on 9-11, several years ago. Those folks died in order to ignite a war against terrorism. A fight, which has been long ignored. And by the way, which many are still trying to avoid.

Today we have the Iranian leader, Amed-adid-da-voodoo-da-dad, or what ever his name is. They seem to be impressed with their long names. Anyway, they have taken several British sailors captive, and are making a big international spectacle, taunting and teasing with their rhetoric, probably hoping that someone will do something against them.

Like a bully, they will keep prodding until they get the fight they want, or think they want, or they will make the international community cower before their intimidation tactics.

The Iranians are the deceivers in his case. They promote in their arrogance, the opinion that they are the victims. All criminals do that.

Those who don't want to provoke them are the deceived. They don't want to make them mad.

'We don't understand them. They are proud Persians. We need to have a dialogue with them and find out what they really want.' These are some of the impotent comments that cowards or a defeated people make.

God has full control over both the deceiver and the deceived. He will either raise up people who will make the necessary decisions to take the fight to the bully, or

God will allow the bully to push the weak and the deceived around until they suffer miserably.

In either case, all parties get their due, sooner or later.

Bible doctrine in the soul creates understanding and wisdom, or as Job uses the word, 'tuwshiyah,' for wisdom. Here it stands for reason. God is able to reason, which is able to take wisdom and apply it to decisions and actions, in a rational and consistent manner compatible with truth.

And so, too, people who possess truth, are able to reason and advance in life accordingly. With the security of Gods power in them, nothing can cause fear of failure in the hearts of those who are advancing in their spiritual lives.

Job is stepping through an explanation of the power and might of the one who controls all things. Align yourself with God and you cannot fail, no matter what your circumstances in life might be.

Now is the time to post a prayer.