Advantage of Wisdom pt 1
Ecclesiastes • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 13 viewsWhile there are tensions in this life under the sun, there are advantages to living a life in the fear of the Lord. We can enjoy what the Lord has provided even in hard times. We can be blessed with contentment in our lives, in our families, in our work. Wisdom is better than foolishness.
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Ecclesiastes
Ecclesiastes
PRAY
- Reflecting on Lessons Learned
- Reflecting on Lessons Learned
1 For I have taken all this to my heart and explain it that righteous men, wise men, and their deeds are in the hand of God. Man does not know whether it will be love or hatred; anything awaits him.
Observations
‘I’ - Solomon, son of David, king of Israel. Attempting to do what all men do - figure out the eternity that is in his heart - the meaning of life.
‘taken all this to my heart’ - all this
I can’t figure out life on my own - I can’t fix the problems.
ambition
wickedness
oppression
rivalry
loneliness
LIFE WITHOUT GOD is futile. Vain. Striving after the wind.
While God is sovereign, life under the sun in a fallen world, with a finite mind can be confusing.
I want to have all the knowledge and then make my own decisions. That’s not how faith works.
The problems of life still exist. Why? Opportunities for faith.
‘righteous men, wise men, and their deeds are in the hand of God’
Who is righteous and wise?
There is no one righteous on his own - no one who seeks God. We are all born into slavery of sin and are rebellious and hostile toward God.
BUT GOD - while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
The righteous are only righteous by Christ’s blood.
The wise are only wise by faith in Christ.
‘Man does not know whether it will be love or hatred, anything awaits him.’
Even the Christian who is a faithfully devoted follower of Jesus Christ does not receive a ‘pass’ on having to deal with the fallen world.
- The Rule
- The Rule
2 It is the same for all. There is one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and for the unclean; for the man who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good man is, so is the sinner; as the swearer is, so is the one who is afraid to swear.
3 This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is one fate for all men. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead.
4 For whoever is joined with all the living, there is hope; surely a live dog is better than a dead lion.
5 For the living know they will die; but the dead do not know anything, nor have they any longer a reward, for their memory is forgotten.
6 Indeed their love, their hate and their zeal have already perished, and they will no longer have a share in all that is done under the sun.
vs 2-3 - There is one fate for all - DEATH.
27 And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,
the righteous, good, clean, one who offers a sacrifice, good man, swearer
the wicked, unclean, one who does not sacrifice, sinner, afraid to swear
an ‘evil’ under the sun - hearts of man are full of evil and insanity
9 “The heart is more deceitful than all else
And is desperately sick;
Who can understand it?
The ‘evil’ is that man try to fix life on our own.
Computer Science class, day 1 Senior Year. CRASH of the keyboard...
Doesn’t work - and end up dead.
vs 4-5a - Where there is life, there’s hope.
A live dog is better than a dead lion
Dog - unclean, low status ,
17 I can count all my bones.
They look, they stare at me;
Lion - Lions are mentioned in the Bible for their strength (Jgs 14:18), boldness (), ferocity (), and stealth (; ).
The living know they will die
Better to go to a house of mourning...the living will take it to heart. -
vs 5b-6 - Death is the end of life under the sun.
The dead do not know anything
No longer any reward (from God in this life), their memory is forgotten
Love, hate, and zeal are gone - no longer a share in life under the sun.
- Sheol. Once you die, there is nothing left to do for the Lord that brings Him glory on earth.
A Song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. For the choir director; according to Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite.
1 O Lord, the God of my salvation,
I have cried out by day and in the night before You.
2 Let my prayer come before You;
Incline Your ear to my cry!
3 For my soul has had enough troubles,
And my life has drawn near to Sheol.
4 I am reckoned among those who go down to the pit;
I have become like a man without strength,
5 Forsaken among the dead,
Like the slain who lie in the grave,
Whom You remember no more,
And they are cut off from Your hand.
6 You have put me in the lowest pit,
In dark places, in the depths.
7 Your wrath has rested upon me,
And You have afflicted me with all Your waves.
Selah.
8 You have removed my acquaintances far from me;
You have made me an object of loathing to them;
I am shut up and cannot go out.
9 My eye has wasted away because of affliction;
I have called upon You every day, O Lord;
I have spread out my hands to You.
10 Will You perform wonders for the dead?
Will the departed spirits rise and praise You?
Selah.
11 Will Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave,
Your faithfulness in Abaddon?
12 Will Your wonders be made known in the darkness?
And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But I, O Lord, have cried out to You for help,
And in the morning my prayer comes before You.
14 O Lord, why do You reject my soul?
Why do You hide Your face from me?
15 I was afflicted and about to die from my youth on;
I suffer Your terrors; I am overcome.
16 Your burning anger has passed over me;
Your terrors have destroyed me.
17 They have surrounded me like water all day long;
They have encompassed me altogether.
18 You have removed lover and friend far from me;
My acquaintances are in darkness.
LGIT Class - teaching LGs to operate using a sense of urgency.
- So WHAT THEN?
- So WHAT THEN?
7 Go then, eat your bread in happiness and drink your wine with a cheerful heart; for God has already approved your works.
8 Let your clothes be white all the time, and let not oil be lacking on your head.
9 Enjoy life with the woman whom you love all the days of your fleeting life which He has given to you under the sun; for this is your reward in life and in your toil in which you have labored under the sun.
10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.
vs 7-8 - Enjoy life!
Eat your bread in happiness, drink your w/ a cheerful heart. Why? For God has already approved your works.
Let your clothes be white, let not oil be lacking from your head - Don’t be an Eeyore all day every day.
Festive, fun - sign of happiness (opposite - )
Right before God -
Oil - makes life better, and sign of divine approval
1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.
3 For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh,
4 so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
5 For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.
6 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,
7 because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,
8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
vs 9 - Enjoy your family!
Yesterday - Soccer closing day, Emily and Liz at goat jackpot. In line at Whataburger watching my kids.
Enjoy life with the woman whom you love
,
10 An excellent wife, who can find?
For her worth is far above jewels.
4 An excellent wife is the crown of her husband,
But she who shames him is like rottenness in his bones.
4 An excellent wife is the crown of her husband,
But she who shames him is like rottenness in his bones.
10 An excellent wife, who can find?
For her worth is far above jewels.
All the days of your fleeting life - under the sun. Time is ticking
This is your reward - that He has given you life and freed you to enjoy it.
10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
Vs 10 - Enjoy your work!
Throwing hay with Richard and Wes.
Whatever your hands find to do, do it well - do it for the Lord.
,
17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.
23 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men,
24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.
23 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men,
24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.
17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.
There is no activity or planning or work in Sheol!
When it’s over it’s over.
When it’s over it’s over.
As long as it is called Today.
- Call to believe!
Psalm 95
Application:
Take inventory of your life - be thankful! Enjoy what you have. Don’t be stressed about what you don’t have.
Spend time with your family! Be thankful for them! Life is fleeting - you cannot reclaim time.
Do all things to the glory of God. Work is GOOD.
When it’s over, it’s over. So, enjoy it while you can. This is an advantage of wisdom. To fear God is to know that you are a sinner who requires His grace and mercy to live. Trust in His love, His goodness, His compassion. Trust in His Word. Trust in Jesus Christ. He is the one who came so that you might believe in His name and by believing, you may have an abundant and eternal life.
How are you living?
How are you living?