Week 9- Ecclesiastes 6-7:1-14 | Living With Eternity in View

Good morning, welcome. Glad that you're here. This morning. Lots of folks, still out getting another cup of coffee, which is totally fine here, but this is just a fantastic time of year. We've got summer weather, I just asked, you days was just beautiful a little cooler. Sunny I was sunrise. This morning was just spectacular on the drive to church. Just a beautiful, beautiful reminder of God's creation and his provision for us. Fall asleep, yet approaching, which is kind of cool things. Many of us really enjoy some of the activities in the in the fall football, Major League Baseball still going on. Just lots, a lots of things to be encouraged by and Some of you are aware of who I am. My name is West. I'm one of the staff pastors hear Crossroads our lead Pastor, Levi, and his wonderful wife. Rachel are in a minivan headed home from upper Michigan with for little children. So I should have included them in the prayer there. They're wonderful children. But they're for kids, cooped up in a minivan. So we will look forward to it to him getting back, but it gives me the opportunity to jump back into our Ecclesiastes teaching series. And not by coincidence, I believe this section that we're going to look at this morning contains a couple of verses that have really been instructive in my life and I have been excited to share them with you. And I am praying that they will be highly instructive and positive in your life as well. So let me hurt you. If you haven't already, turn to akeley. He asked each chapter 6, we're going to be in week number nine in our life Under the Sun teaching series, which is covering literally the entire Book of Ecclesiastes. And if you've missed any of the previous ones and you would be interested in hearing them, they're all on our website. So you can do that if you like the author of Ecclesiastes, a man by the name of King Solomon, discovered both through personal experience and divine revelation, the futility of The Emptiness of trying to fill the human heart, with the things that are here on Earth, the things that are under the sun. The primary message that we have been looking at through this book of Ecclesiastes. Is this a relationship with God? Is the only thing that can bring lasting meaning purpose and joy to living no amount of anything else here on Earth will ever meet. Your deepest needs, earning tons of money, for yourself climbing, the ladder of success accumulating all kinds of material stuff even marrying the right person. Raising successful children taking the next vacation and on and on apart from a relationship with God. All of it will leave you empty on the inside. And while there's nothing at all wrong with enjoying, many of the good gifts that God has for us to enjoy, even here on Earth. Levi, 20 that out last week from Ecclesiastes 5 19th. There's nothing at all wrong with enjoying, the gifts of God, but we must remember that at the deepest part of our soul, we have a god-shaped hole that only a relationship with Jesus will fill For those of you who have been with us through this teaching series, even a little bit, you have heard what I just said, time and time again, this week looked at the Book of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon repeats, that truth time and time again because we are tempted by our culture and by our sin nature, to believe the lie, that meaning, and purpose and identity in fulfillment can be found without a relationship with God, many people in our society, and our culture, believe that they can have their deepest needs met and yet not have anything to do with God and Solomon. In the pages of Ecclesiastes is shouting ahead in history. Saying no, you can't, that's a lie. So again it's the overarching theme in truth in Ecclesiastes and really the entire Bible Center your life on Jesus. What a tragedy what a complete tragedy it would be to live our lives pursuing false idols and cheap imitations. Did Mark 8:36 Jesus. Put it this way. For what does it profit? A man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and yet forfeit his soul. Number of years ago. I saw an interview that I'll never forget on 60 Minutes. It was an interview done with Tom, Brady, Tom Brady has an NFL quarterback, he's retired. Now many of you are aware that in his NFL career he himself played in 10 super bowls and he won 7 Super Bowl. He heard over 330 $3000000 playing, that 23 seasons in the NFL. He's heard countless money, millions and millions hundreds of millions of dollars in endorsements. He, he recently signed a 375 Million Dollar Tan year broadcasting contract for Fox Sports. And at the time of this interview, he had only won three of his Super Bowls. But but this is what he said during that interview He said, why do I have three Super Bowl rings and still think there's something greater out there for me? I mean, maybe a lot of people would say, hey man, this is what it is. I reached my goal, my dream, my life me. I think it's got to be more than this. I mean, this isn't this can't be what it's all cracked up to be and then the interview were kind of leaned in a little bit more and said, what's asking what the answer might be in town. Brady, kind of shrugged, your shoulders and replied. I wish I knew, I wish I knew You ever seen that interview. It's it's really a confession from one of the most accomplished athletes of all time who is achieved, Mathis amounts of wealth and fame and fortune. And he Echoes the voice of Solomon in Ecclesiastes, it says life's blessings without God often feel hollow, how tragic it is for Tom Brady and others like him to have so much and at the same time have so very little Church as we continue in the series. In Ecclesiastes, I want to encourage you to really think about the opportunity. We have the gift that God is offering each one of us to honestly reflect on our own bikes. Are you? And I personally hearing Solomon's warning Are we paying attention to his hard-earned? Wisdom? Solomon is pleading with us, not to waste our lives, chasing things that simply won't last the things that feel urgent in the moment, but in the end, leave us empty in the end. So I want to challenge you this morning and enduring the remainder of our Ecclesiastes series each week to step back and ask some of these kinds of questions. What am I personally pursuing? What am I personally? Building my life on. How do I spend my time? How do I personally spend and invest the resources financially that have been entrusted to me. Even what? Occupies my thought life. Don't miss the chance to let God re-center our priorities in our hearts on what truly matters in life. So this morning I have actually been charged according to the sheet that Levi printed out months ago to cover Ecclesiastes chapter 6 and then half of Ecclesiastes chapter 7 and I I never professed to be a math person but to me that sounds like a whole lot of versus. So here's what we're going to do. Instead I am going to give you a two sentence summary of Ecclesiastes, chapter 6. And the reason I'm going to do that is because the summary is going to restate. What we've been hearing through these many weeks in Ecclesiastes, give you a $0.02 and summary and that I want to encourage you. Go ahead and read Ecclesiastes 6 sometime this week and see if I was on with what I what I suggest. And then after that I am going to read that. The first 14 verses and chapter 7 of Ecclesiastes. And and even though we're going to read all four, I'm going to read all fourteen of those verses were really A hone in on about three of those to see a truth. That King Solomon wants us to see that has, in fact, been in fly during this journey through Ecclesiastes, but it is not been expressly stated, and I want to make sure we don't miss it. So, here we go. The big idea of Ecclesiastes chapter 6 in two sentences, human effort, well, and long life. Cannot guarantee Joy apart from God. Life blessings, feel hollow. Now, there's way more in Ecclesiastes chapter 6 than what I just said it, but, but you take a look at it and see if I can summarize it pretty well. Not, some of you need to send Levi an email this week and suggested, West covered an entire chapter in two sentences. So he ought to be able to get through a message in less than 45. You do that. If you want, you have my permission to open your Bibles. Follow along chapter 7 verses 1 through 14. You don't have a Bible or a phone open. You can look at your neighbors or whatever you got to do Solomon writes. This a good name is better than fine perfume and the day of death better than the day of birth. It is better to go to a house of mourning, then to a house of feasting for death is the destiny of everyone. The living to take this to Heart. Frustration is better than laughter because a sad face is good for the heart. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure. It is better taking the rebuke of a wise person, been to listen to the song of fools. Like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of fuels. This too is meaningless extortion. Turns a wise person into a pool and a bribe, corrupts the heart. Perseids says, the end of a matter is better than its beginning. And patience is better than Pride, do not be quickly. Provoked, in your spirit for anger, resides in the lap of fools. Do not say, why were the old days better than these for it is not wise to ask such questions wisdom. Like it inheritance is a good thing and benefits. Those who see the sun wisdom is a shelter as money is a shelter, but the advantage of knowledge is this wisdom preserves those who have it. Consider what God has done. Who can straighten what he has made crooked when times are good, be happy. But when times are bad, consider this God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore no one can discover anything about their future.

Now, if you have been with us in Ecclesiastes, and if you have been paying attention, as we've gone through this book, you may have noticed a significant shift in the writing style of King Solomon. The 14 verses in chapter 7 that I just read our written very, very much like a Proverbs where the Book of Proverbs. Look at verse 1, again, it says a good name is better than fine prevent fume. And the day of death is better than the day of birth. Yesterday, if somebody had come up to you and read that verse and then said, I will give you $1,000. If you can tell me what book of the Bible that very first came to most of us would be crying because we probably would have said the Book of Proverbs we would have been wrong as we move through. An ecclesiastical chapter 7, all the way through Ecclesiastes, 10 in the next few weeks. Solomon, stone is going to take on that of the Proverbs Proverbs. As I remind you is simply a short, it's often poetic but it's a statement of truth that contains some wisdom for us to apply. In-wall, nearly all the Book of Proverbs is made up of Proverbs. They're actually five or six other books in the Bible including Ecclesiastes that use Proverbs in the teaching even Jesus used a lot of proverb type why sings He said things like where your treasure is there your heart will be also. So the heading, if you got a Bible open in Ecclesiastes chapter 7, in my Bible, the hunting actually says wisdom and in verses 11 and 12 of chapter 7 Solomon, simply point out the value of wisdom itself. Solomon says, wisdom is in inheritance. Solomon says it's good, it's beneficial wisdom is a shelter and it preserves and protects our lives. And at the start of chapter 7, Solomon's houses that wisdom can be found in an unusual place. This morning, I want to spend the remainder of our time looking at those first few verses and chapter 7 Solomon speaks about something that we in our culture, don't often speak about. He speaks about death. Wise King Solomon says thinking about the reality of Our Own Death leads to wisdom. Thinking about the reality of Our Own Death leads to wisdom. So let's begin with what sounds like an incredibly bizarre statement that sound makes in, ecclesiastical 71 I just read it earlier and let me read it again. He writes a good name is better than fine perfume in the day of death is better than the day of birth. That first part of the proverb makes a lot of sense. Fine, perfume smells pretty good for just a little while and then it fades and it's gone. It, it's what Solomon says. Next, that sounds really really busy. The day of death is better than the day of birth. What in the world is he talking about? Like many Proverbs, you have to really think about what Solomon is saying and what he is not saying, in order to understand Solomon is not saying that someone's birth is not a cause for celebration my wife and I have two daughters. And we've got three grandchildren and one. On the way we celebrated each and every one of their their Brewers, it was just as exciting as as the next to any of you who are parents and grandparents understand that the birth of someone is a very good thing. God creates life, every single human being that we we look at is created in the image of God. Life is a precious precious miracle. All humans have inherent dignity, regardless of their age, regardless of their abilities. As followers of Jesus, we should respect life, we should have highly value life. We should protect life in every way possible beginning in the womb, all the way to to the last stages of life. Solomon's in tank is in no way to downplay the significance of Life. A person's birth represents so much potential.

But their death. I'll afterlife well live that actually accentuates the significance of a life well-lived the Fulfillment of one's life. Remember Solomon rights from an Under the Sun perspective. He's making the point that a brand new baby as wonderful as they are have yet to have the opportunity to deliver life. In a way to make a name for themselves. They they've yet to have the opportunity to live with Integrity with kindness and with faith. If someone lives life, well, their death marks a completed, life of meaning, I believe Solomon would say that. Yes, a person's birth, he's a very good day and worthy of Celebration. But how much more would a person live seventy or eighty or ninety years after a person has lived a life? Well, they've loved God, they love the other Solomon. We say that is in fact, a better day. Church, the implied question that Solomon's proverb is asking, is this are you and I Are we living Our Lives? Well,

or you and I investing our lives. Well, if we want to get to the end of our time here on Earth and feel good about the way that we've invested the days that God has given us, those are incredibly incredibly helpful questions to think about and to think about frequently, Verse two of chapter, 7 continues with the same theme Solomon, says once again, something that's pretty strange. Take a look at Ecclesiastes, 7 2. It is better to go to a house of mourning, then to a house of feasting for death is the destiny of everyone. The living to take note of this, we should pay attention to this really. It's better to go to a funeral than it is to go to a party in my years here on Earth. I've gone to a lot of both and I'll tell you, a funeral has never been as enjoyable to go to as any party that I've been to a woman or are you serious? Are you kidding. You got to be Loco. And for those of you who are non Spanish speaking, that means you got to be be mixed up in your head. A funeral is better to go to than a party. But wait a second here is where we need to be really careful so that we don't misinterpret what Solomon is actually saying solemn and never once said that a funeral is more enjoyable. Then yeah, then a party. What he did say was that it's better to go to a funeral then to a party it's more beneficial to go to a funeral. Been to a party, you will gain more wisdom at a funeral, then you will at a party and he says it again and it please, he asked E74, he says the heart of the wisest in the house of mourning but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure. Solomon here. Makes an excellent. Excellent point. Whenever in the past I have attended or officiated at a funeral or memorial service every single time it is caused me to think about the reality of my own impending death. It is caused me to think about how very very brief my life here on Earth will be and how fast it goes by several years ago. I became aware that if my life was a roller coaster in the youth was the upward climb. I am very much on the downward spiral of my life. I have lived more life on Earth than I have yet to live in. With that roller, coaster, illustration seen my life, very quickly moving towards. And I always remind myself on a roller coaster. It's the Dow Weird part. That's the most exciting. The friends, we can become so preoccupied with the the thought of our death which we can, we can be obsessed with it in a very unhealthy way and that's not what Solomon is talking about. At the same time, many of us and most of us in society in general live in denial of death and we miss the opportunity to let the reality of Our Own Death. Motivate us to prioritize our life well, to invest our lives in ways that will honor God and in ways to bring purpose and meaning for all eternity,

That's a hard truth. But it's why because when we take death, seriously we're forced to ask important questions.

Questions again. Like am I leaving on a day-to-day basis for what really matters? What's the story of my personal life telling? Is it telling people of the goodness of the way Jesus is transformed my life. Or is it telling people that I'm good at accumulating stuff and those sorts of things am I living only for myself or does my life make a personal impact on those that are around me? What will be said of me when I'm gone? Are the questions? That Solomon invites us to consider. Do you? Do I? Do we collectively rarely think about those questions. Speaking of Eternity that brings me to the way that I want to finish this message this morning, King Solomon who was immensely rich in well who was immensely rich in wisdom and yeah you and I in the New Testament Church are blessed on something that I think he would have traded every possession. He had to acquire himself and it's something that we often take for granted you. And I have been given a much clearer perspective in view of what happens after our life here on Earth comes to an end. Solomon himself was limited to the perspective of Life under the sun. Now, I believe that scripture teaches that King Solomon and his father before him King David had an understanding, and a, and a hope, and a belief that when they died, they would spend a life after in the presence of God, in some sort of a way. But I want you to know that at this point in history, that understanding was completely vague if it was not at all. Clear, while there's a whole lot about heaven, that we would wish to Bible pointed out, the Bible in the, in the New Testament, gives us much much more clearly than style. A man ever had on what awaits us when we leave this earth. Solomon's Under the Sun wisdom. On allowing the reality of death to inform us inform the way that we live our lives. His wisdom? Without the Heavenly perspective, is in itself. Super helpful. It's wise because none of us wants to waste our lives. Simply chasing after things. That don't matter. That the older I get chasing a little bit after land is about the only chasing I want to waste my energy on. What church think about this Wise Old Solomon himself had absolutely no idea how true his words from Ecclesiastes chapter 7 were again. Solomon says, the day of death is better than the day of birth in doing so solemn and declares a person's day of birth is being good. He would say life is a gift and it's so precious. None of us should take life for granted. We should live fully, we should fully enjoy the many gifts that God has given us. We should celebrate life and live it to its fullest, take the time to smell the roses. If you're into it, take the time to taste the coffee, slow down and live in the moment live in the present, appreciate the here. And now most of us live Focused on the pastor trying to to predict the future and we can't do any of that. All of that is good and it's solid advice for living. We should do it. However, without knowing it Solomon's words to another, even more significant reality eternity, In heaven, eternal life, in Hell of Heaven. Solomon doesn't know about Jesus. When he wrote this, he didn't know that one day, God himself would actually enter into an experienced death and then defeat it. So that those who believe in him could say, with confidence to die is actually the game. Solomon did not understand that when he said what he said, we don't just look at death to become wise. We look at it through the lens of the gospel and we see a doorway, a doorway to something that is far, far better, a doorway to the presence of God himself a place where every single tear the Bible says, will be wiped away a place where there is no more pain a place where Joy is full and love never ends in heaven. You will no longer struggle with our own sin nature or the effects of other people's sin nature. We will no longer struggle with fear, or with worry. Heaven is a place, all permit, ultimate rest, and at the same time, meaningful Endeavors. They both co-exist. Last week are wise lead. Pastor Levi mentioned his vision of Heaven. It included being on a golf course, with a trout stream. And I think he mentioned something about a, a Woodshop in the back as well. I'm really not sure if he should Envision it with the, the trout stream. Because what I understand is that his golf ball if there's water on the course it, it finds it. But I want invite you seriously, frequently dream about what would make Heaven, the most wonderful place you could ever imagine it, usually Sanctified imagination to think about, who would be there? What would be there and what wouldn't be there? And as you do, no matter how excited you get about, what you can think, about recognize, that heaven is going to be a thousand times better than what you can even. Imagine those of us who have put our faith and our trust. In Jesus Christ, when we leave this earth, we will exist in a realm. But the Bible says our brains. Don't even have a bility to comprehend, its goodness, the Apostle Paul and 1st Corinthians 2:9. Said this about having no eye has seen No, ear has heard that lets us know, they're going to be things to see, and they're going to be things that here and having no mind has conceived. The things that God has prepared, for those who love him. Heaven is going to be better than we can imagine. If there's no golf courses in heaven, leave, I will not miss them at all because it would, they will be replaced with something far better. So yes, the follower of Christ For the follower of Christ, the day of death is better. Not just because it makes us wiser, not just because it helps with prioritize here on Earth, but because it brings us home. The question is, are you and I living with that day in view? Let the reality of your death in the even greater reality of eternal life in Jesus shape, how you and I live today.

I read this quote this week and I'm getting ready to finish here. But I read this quote this week that I found just really incredible says, sometimes here on Earth. We think that we are living in the Land of the Dead. We see people that have either died or are dying. We think we are living in the Land of the Dead. Waiting to go or excuse me, we think we are living in the land of living waiting to go to the Land of the Dead. And yet, the exact opposite is true. If you know Jesus Christ, we are living in the Land of the Dead, those who are are dying and those who have died, and we are headed for the land of the living. Heaven Church. And focusing on having changes the way we live our lives. There re-organize is our priorities. When we know life here on Earth is short and Eternity. Last forever, it helps us. Let go of things that simply won't last it motivates us to stop chasing stuff that superficial stop chasing around success and start pursuing. What really really matters which is loving God and loving others A focus on Heaven, strengthens Our Hope. And I know there are those of you here this morning that that need this, the promise of Heaven allows us to endure the suffering that we suffer here without despair because we know that it won't have the last word and finally a focus on having invites us to live with joy. Eternal life with Jesus is not a future location, it's actually a present. Hope that you and I can live day-to-day with it. Even allows us to live with joy in the midst of Brokenness because we know the best is yet to come.

Church of Heaven is real and it is, then it changes. It must change the way we live today. It means we don't have to cling to things that don't last weekend, endure suffering with her. We can live with her and we can live sacrificially. We can live generously, we can stay focused on being faithful, even when no one else sees or recognizes that we can find Joy. Now, because we know the best is still ahead. So let me ask you yet again. if you really believe what I just said, That the day of death is better than the day of our birth that the day of death is actually the beginning, a doorway to the presence of God and the reality of what happened, how would that truth shape the way you live this coming week?

What would change? What would matter the most? Worship team can come forward, they're going to lead us in a closing song that I think many of you are familiar with the song is called bless the. Lord is also called ten thousand Reasons. We've done this a number of times here at Crossroads Napoleon, but we haven't done it for a while, and before they, they lead us. I simply want to read a couple of the verses so that you can be prepared and think about these words as we sing them together. At one point, it says, the sun comes up. It's a New Day. Dawning, it's time to sing your song again, whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me. Let me be singing when the evening comes church. That's a song that reflects an attitude of an eternal perspective that no matter what happens here on in this life Heaven, awaits, I want to be singing and praising The God Who makes it possible. Another verse towards the end of the song, says this and on that day, when my strength is failing, the end draws near. And my time has come still, my soul will sing your praise on ending ten thousand years and then for Evermore for Evermore, the speaks of a life-ending here on Earth with hopeful expectations of what God has in store in heaven. The reality of having gives us the confidence Even in our final days here on Earth. What is Stan? And I want to pray for us quickly and then we'll will worship as we conclude.

Lord, your word tells us that outwardly. We are, will have a great week this week and I will see you next Sunday, going to be the church.