Handle With Care: How to Come to Church

Lead Vocalist (Kelly)

Welcome & Announcements (Mike K)

Good morning family!

If you received a connect card, please fill it out and put in offering plate

Announcements:

1) Discover Class

2) __________________________________________

3) __________________________________________

4) __________________________________________

Now please take a moment of silence to prepare your heart for worship.

Call to Worship (Hebrews 12:28–29)

Prayer of Praise (Lynne Jones)

We Believe (Apostle's Creed)

Anchor of Hope

Prayer of Confession (Chris Berlin), Careless worship

Assurance of Pardon (Psalm 130:3–4)

Steadfast Love

The First Hymn

Scripture Reading (Eccl. 5:1-7)—page 659 in the black Bibles

Pastoral Prayer (Mike K)

Prayer for PBC—Help us to cultivate a genuine fear of the Lord

Prayer for kingdom partner—Waite, Mark (Regions in Need)

Prayer for US—U.S. Senate

Prayer for the world—Barbados

Pray for the sermon

SERMON

START TIMER!!!

Imagine a church called Comfort Community Church.

From the moment you pull into the parking lot, you know you’re in for a treat. Friendly parking attendants promise to vacuum and wash your car during the service.

As you walk in, you’re greeted with the smell of fresh-roasted coffee from the in-house café. They’ve got every drink imaginable—from cold brews to gourmet teas.

The auditorium is a thing of beauty. Each seat is a leather recliner with cupholders, USB phone chargers, heated cushions, and a “quiet massage” setting. They even have personal blankets and seat warmers in case you get chilly.

The lights are dim, the haze from the fog machine is just enough to make your selfies look amazing, and the temperature is perfect. The band kicks off with songs you’ve heard on Christian radio all week, loud enough that you don’t have to hear anyone around you.

When it’s time for the sermon, the perfectly fit pastor appears wearing designer sneakers and an uplifting message filled with funny stories and just enough Bible to sound spiritual without making you uncomfortable. And he finishes in 20 minutes.

Services run all weekend — Saturday brunch service, Sunday afternoon “worship & waffles,” and even a late-night “Pajama Praise” where you can just roll out of bed and stream it on your phone.

And don’t worry about the kids. You’ll never be distracted by another kid in worship again, because everybody ages 18 and under are having their own “Extreme Bible Adventure” in a wing equipped with a three-story slide, laser tag, and a snack bar.

Everything at Comfort Community Church is designed for one thing — your personal comfort.

Now — let me be clear — I’m not here to pick on good coffee, padded chairs, or a safe place for your kids. Those are all blessings. But here’s the danger: if we begin to think worship exists to make us comfortable, we’ve forgotten who we’re here to worship.

Because when the Bible talks about approaching God in worship, the emphasis is never on our comfort — the emphasis is on caution.

That emphasis is clearly visible in today’s text, Ecclesiastes 5:1-7.

Our passage begins with a warning to “Guard your steps when you go to the house of God”.

In Solomon’s day, going to the house of God would be going to the temple to worship God with His people. So this isn’t a passage about your private worship time with God, it’s a passage about public worship.

For Christians on this side of the cross, it’s a passage that informs how we go to church.

And the emphasis isn’t on comfort, but caution. The Preacher urges us to “guard our steps.” And he concludes with this reason: “God is the one you must fear.”

The God we worship is holy, majestic, and awesome in power. He is not casual. He is not to be trifled with. If we truly fear Him, we will approach Him carefully — with reverence and awe. That’s what the Preacher is showing us in this passage.

Here’s the Big Idea I hope to communicate with God’s help this morning: If we fear God we will approach Him with care.

Now, before we begin to study this passage together, let’s pause and address three categories of people listening to this sermon.

I’m convinced every one of us is in one of these groups.

First, some people don’t fear God at all.

You might believe God exists, or you might not. Either way, He’s not a factor in your daily decisions.

You live life as if you are accountable to no one but yourself. Maybe you think of Him as a distant deity who doesn’t really care what you do, or maybe you’ve pushed Him out of your mind altogether.

If that’s you, I hope today you’ll see that the God of the Bible is not someone to ignore. He is holy, and one day you will stand before Him.

Second, some of you are afraid of God.

You know He’s holy, you know He’s powerful, but all you feel toward Him is dread.

Maybe you’ve been taught that God is always angry at you, just waiting for you to mess up so He can punish you.

Maybe you’ve sinned badly and can’t imagine God wanting you back. That kind of fear drives you away from God.

I want you to see today that the biblical fear of God actually draws you near to Him, because it’s rooted in His grace and love, not just His holiness and power.

Finally, some of you do fear God, even if you do so imperfectly.

You’ve learned that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and you’re seeking to live in that reality.

But like all of us, you’re tempted to drift — to get casual in worship, to treat prayer lightly, to make promises to God you don’t keep.

Today’s passage is going to strengthen your resolve to approach Him with the care He deserves.

Wherever you find yourself among these three groups, Ecclesiastes 5:1–7 has something you need to hear. And my prayer is that by the end of our time together, every single one of us will walk out of here with a deeper, truer fear of the Lord — and a greater care in how we approach Him.

Because if we fear God we will approach Him with care.

Consider from our text three ways the fear of God will lead us to approach Him carefully:

First, verse 1 cautions us to Be Careful That We LISTEN.

Verses 2-3 caution us to Be Careful How We SPEAK.

And verses 4-7 caution us to Be Careful What We DO.

First, we must…

1) Be Careful That We LISTEN (v. 1)

Ecclesiastes 5:1—Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil.

When you think of Old Testament worshippers arriving to the temple, you probably imagine them arriving with an animal ready to sacrifice.

Certainly those sacrifices were an essential part of Old Covenant worship.

They were so important that there’s an entire book of the Bible—Leviticus—that functions primarily as a priestly manual for sacrifices.

When the sacrifices were offered, they would be offered in silence. And then after the sacrifice, the silence would be broken by a reading from the Scriptures followed by an explanation for the people. [1]

As Solomon watches people pouring into the temple he constructed he notices something.

Many of the people bring their sacrifices into the temple, but they’re not paying attention to the Word of God as it’s taught. It’s like going to the temple is some sort of spiritual checklist. They go to the temple, they bring their sacrifices, but they’re not listening to God’s Word!

Here’s the bottom line: you can go through all the outward motions in public worship but still be a fool guilty of doing evil because you never stop and listen to the Word of God.

Let me ask you, are you guilty of worshipping like a fool?

Are you physically present for worship, but distracted when God’s Word is taught?

If so, here’s a few suggestions—not rules or requirements—suggestions that may help you if you struggle to listen.

Come prepared. Read the sermon text before you arrive for church, pick out your clothes the night before, go to bed early on Saturday night, pray as you’re driving here. Use the restroom before the sermon begins.

Sit strategically. If you’re easily distracted by the people around you, sit closer to the front. If you know you’re going to have to get up, sit near the back. If you struggle staying awake, sit by someone who you’re willing to give permission to elbow you.

Turn off your devices. Turn of notifications on your phone, smartwatch or tablet. Leave them at home if you have to. Bible apps are a wonderful tool, but it is far too easy to get distracted by all the other apps. Consider using a physical Bible and a journal to keep notes rather than digital tools.

Follow along. Don’t turn your brain off during the sermon. Open your Bible, take notes, say amen out loud if something encourages you, pray for God to speak to you as the preacher is preaching. Test what he’s saying by the Scriptures.

If God is speaking to you when His Word is preached—and He is—than it is wise to cultivate habits that help you listen more carefully.

Notice also that some of the people are doing evil without even realizing it.

Perhaps these are men like Nadab and Abihu, who offered strange fire before the Lord and were destroyed.

This is a reminder that we don’t even know how to worship God properly unless we first listen to what He has told us in His Word.

When it comes to worshipping a holy God, it is NOT the thought that counts.

Ignorance is not innocence!

Our worship must be ordered according to God’s Word. And the only way we know how to do that is if we stop and listen first to what He tells us in His Word about how to worship Him.

This is why at PBC we structure our services based on what the Bible tells us to do.

I grew up in a church culture that regularly included things like dramas, skits, special musical performances, altar calls, and testimonial times during the main worship service.

But what would happen if we started by listening to what God’s Word tells us to do when we gather? The New Testament tells us our worship services should include singing, praying, reading Scripture, preaching, celebrating the Lord’s Supper, and baptizing. That’s it. So that’s what we do at PBC.

Those other elements may be helpful at other times or in other places, but our main worship gathering is going to include what the Bible tells us to include.

If we fear God we will approach Him with care.

We won’t try to worship God in the way that feels best to us. We’ll listen to how He tells us to worship Him, then do what His Word says.

And we’ll be careful to listen when His Word is read and taught in our gatherings.

If we fear God we will be careful that we listen.

But also we will…

2) Be Careful How We SPEAK (vv. 2–3)

When God’s people gathered in the temple, the sacrifice would be offered, the Word of God would be read and taught, and then God’s people would respond to God’s Word by speaking to God. [2]

This is the part of public worship that Solomon is addressing in…

Ecclesiastes 5:2–3—Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. For a dream comes with much business, and a fool’s voice with many words.

I believe the focus here is not so much on what we say to God—although that is important—but on how we speak to Him.

Notice in verse 2 he says not to be “rash” or “hasty.” Don’t approach God thoughtlessly.

In the TV show The Office, Michael Scott said “Sometimes I’ll start a sentence, and I don’t even know where it’s going. I just hope I find it along the way. Like an improv conversation.” [3]

The Preacher is warning us NOT to have that approach to prayer. Don’t be rash. Don’t be hasty. Don’t think that by talking a lot you can make up for a thoughtless approach to God.

Many scholars believe Jesus was commenting on this passage in Ecclesiastes when He said this in…

Matthew 6:7–8—“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.”

We know Jesus isn’t against long prayers, because the Bible tells us at times He spent the entire night praying.

And we know Jesus isn’t against repetitive prayers because in the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus prayed the same thing three times.

The problem in Matthew 6 and in Ecclesiastes 5 isn’t long prayers or repetitive prayers, but mindless prayers.

Dan Doriani calls it a tongue that wags while the mind sleeps. [4]

And when the mind sleeps, we often dream. But our dreams are confusing and full of meaningless activity. Just like a fool praying without thinking about what he’s saying. [5]

Let me ask you again, are you guilty of worshipping like a fool?

When you pray, is your tongue wagging while your mind sleeps? When others pray in corporate worship, are you paying attention or are you distracted?

If so, here’s a few suggestions—again these aren’t rules or requirements—but suggestions that may help you if you struggle to engage your mind in prayer.

Engage your body. Close your eyes. Bow your head. If it helps, raise your hands in prayer. Or get on your knees.

Say amen out loud. When the prayer is finished, voice your agreement.

Personalize the prayer. When someone confesses a sin, think of the ways you’ve sinned in that way and tell God you’re sorry. When someone prays for our country, you can silently bring your prayers for America to the Lord as well.

Remember who it is we’re talking to when we pray. God is not our cosmic butler. And He’s not our peer. He is in heaven and we are on earth. He is holy and we are not.

Now, before we move on, I do want to address one possible way we might be tempted to overcorrect to the Preacher’s point here.

Remember, these verses are talking about public worship in the temple.

These are not instructions for private prayer, but public prayer.

I do think it’s wise for us to be careful and deliberate when we lead God’s people in public prayer.

It’s not uncommon for the public prayers at PBC to be prepared in advance. It’s one way we apply these verses and make sure we are approaching God carefully.

But I don’t think it’s healthy for you to overly censor your private prayer life. God already knows your heart, so tell Him. But don’t forget, He is God and you are not.

If we fear God we will approach Him with care.

We will speak to Him with humility and reverence. We will engage our minds in prayer, not just wag our tongues.

If we fear God we will be careful how we speak.

But finally we will…

3) Be Careful What We DO (vv. 4–6)

Temple worship services began with the sacrifice, followed by teaching from the Scriptures, and then God’s people would speak to God in prayer.

Sometimes, after praying, God’s people would make personal vows to the Lord before the service concluded. [6]

In our final verses Solomon talks about what happens after the vow is made.

It’s not enough to be careful what you say to God, you also need to be careful to do what you say.

Ecclesiastes 5:4–7—When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. Let not your mouth lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice and destroy the work of your hands? For when dreams increase and words grow many, there is vanity; but God is the one you must fear.

Only a fool makes rash vows to the Lord. Like Jephthah in Judges 11.

And only a fool makes a vow that he doesn’t intend to keep. Like Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5.

I wonder if your first response to these verses was to internally breathe a sigh of relief and comfort yourself because we don’t make vows to the Lord today. Not so fast.

If you’ve ever been married, you made a vow before the Lord.

Even if you say, “Well, I wasn’t really promising anything to God!” But Jesus says marriage is something that “God has joined together,” so it counts.

Many of the songs we sing include lines where we are vowing things to the Lord.

“Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee”

“I surrender all, all to Thee my blessed Savior”

If you’ve ever agreed to serve at this or any other local church, you’ve made commitments that are a vow before the Lord.

And if you’re a PBC member, you’ve quite literally made a vow before the Lord through our membership covenant.

So let’s ask the question we’ve asked several times already: are you guilty of worshipping like a fool?

Have you made vows before the Lord that you haven’t kept?

PBC Members, let’s just consider the promises we’ve made before the Lord in our Membership Covenant. Here’s a few excerpts...

We are worshippers. By God’s grace, we will not neglect gathering for worship, but will faithfully uphold the ordinances, discipline, and doctrines of this church.

Are you keeping this promise? Have you neglected this gathering when you could’ve been present? Are you sufficiently engaged in the life of the church to faithfully uphold our ordinances, discipline, and doctrines?

We are disciples. By God’s grace, we will grow in obedience to Christ and His Word, laboring to put our sin to death, and to help one another pursue holiness as we follow Jesus together.

Are you keeping this promise? Are you growing in obedience to Jesus? Are you fighting your sin? Are you helping other people follow Jesus?

We are family. By God’s grace, we will walk together in love and unity, being quick to listen, slow to speak, quick to forgive, and slow to take offense.

Are you keeping this promise? Are you quick to listen? Slow to speak? Quick to forgive? Slow to get offended?

We are servants. By God’s grace, we will cheerfully and regularly give of our time, talents, and treasure to serve and support one another, this church, and our community.

Are you keeping this promise? Do you cheerfully and regularly give your time to serve this church? How about your treasure?

We are missionaries. By God’s grace, we will labor to make disciples by proclaiming the gospel locally and sending and supporting those who go to the nations.

Are you keeping this promise? Are you striving to proclaim the gospel to people in your spheres of influence? Are you holding the rope for those who go down into the dark places to proclaim the gospel around the world?

If, like me, you are failing in one or more of these areas, stop and measure yourself honestly against what the Preacher is saying here. What do you deserve, based on these verses?

Verse 4 says you’re a fool who doesn’t deserve the pleasure of God.

Verse 6 says you’re a sinner who deserves God’s anger.

If you’re honest with yourself, you haven’t always been careful to listen to God’s Word, you haven’t always been careful how you speak to God, and you certainly haven’t always been faithful to do what God requires of you.

What you and I deserve is the wrath of God poured out on us, destroying the work of our hands.

Aren’t you glad the Bible doesn’t end in Ecclesiastes 5.

I’ve mentioned this several times already, but remember the way worship was ordered in the temple.

This is seen repeatedly in the Old Testament. First, came the sacrifice. Then the people responded to the sacrifice by hearing God’s Word, speaking His praises, and responding in worshipful obedience.

The problem with the Old Covenant sacrificial system was that the sacrifices had to be offered over and over and over again.

Until Jesus.

Two thousand years ago, Jesus—the eternal Son of God—was born of a virgin in Bethlehem.

He was the first and only man to never sin in how He listened, how He spoke, and what He did.

Even though He deserved God’s pleasure, Jesus gladly endured God’s wrath and died as our substitute.

Before His death, Jesus said “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.”

And just as He promised, on the third day Jesus rose from death as the true and better temple.

Have you turned from your sins and trusted in this Jesus?

Comfort Community Church promised comfort in padded chairs, perfect coffee, and a service built around your preferences. But the comfort we need most doesn’t come from temperature settings or leather recliners.

The only true comfort is knowing that when you come into the presence of a holy God, you are covered—not by a blanket in your seat, but by the righteousness of Jesus.

That’s why we listen carefully, speak thoughtfully, and keep our vows faithfully—not to earn His favor, but because Christ has already secured it.

So guard your steps, for God is the one you must fear—and in Christ, He is the one you can draw near to with joy.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Only A Holy God

Benediction (Rev. 5:12b)