When Having Everything Amounts to Having Nothing at All
When Having everything Amounts to Having Nothing at all
Text: Psalms 127 (Oct. 7, 2007 PM)
There is a saying, “Little is much if God is in it,” but the reverse is also true, “Much is nothing if God is not in it.” And that’s what this Psalm says: unless our activity is ordered and directed by the Lord, it is a waste of time and energy. We may purpose to complete projects of our own, even in Christian service; we can build vast organizational empires; we can amass statistics to show unparalleled results; but if the projects are not vines planted by the Lord, they are worse than worthless. “Man proposes but God disposes.”
· The psalmist chooses four common activities of life to illustrate his point.
They are house construction, civil defense, general employment, and family building.[i]
I. House Construction
· 127:1a – “Except the LORD build the house, they labor in vain that build it…”
A. There are two (2) ways to build a house.
1. To move ahead with plans based on one’s own knowledge, skill and financial resources, then ask God’s blessing on the completed structure.
a. In this case, the project never rises above flesh and blood.
2. The other is to wait until the Lord has given unmistakable guidance, then move ahead in conscious dependence on Him.
· i.e. - Moses waiting upon the Lord for the plans of the tabernacle.
a. There is the thrill of seeing God working:
· Through the marvelous provision of needed supplies; (David desiring to build…God-led)
· Through the miraculous timing and sequence of events;
· Through the converging of circumstances that would never happen according to the laws of chance.
· It makes all the difference in the world to be building with God.
II. Civil Defense
· The second illustration of the futility of human effort without God is in the area of security.
· 127:1b – “…Unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.”
A. Our Security Lies in the Lord
1. Restoration of the Walls of Jerusalem (The Jews’ return from captivity)
2. Sanballat, Tobiah, and others formed plots to prevent the restoration of the walls.
a. Nehemiah, being informed of this, set up proper watches and guards.
b. The enemy, finding this, gathered themselves together, and determined to fall upon them at once, and cut them all off.
c. Nehemiah, having gained intelligence of this also, armed his people, and placed them behind the wall.
d. Sanballat and his company, finding that the Jews were prepared for resistance, abandoned their project.
3. To prevent further surprises of this kind, Nehemiah kept one-half of the people armed, while the other half was employed in the work.
B. The Psalmist’s Allusion
1. Things we should do for ourselves:
· watch constantly
· guard every place
· keep on your armor
· repel every attack
· As in the past God was… pillow of fire… a “Rear Guard”…a stirring in the tops of the mulberry trees…a fog of confusion…Assyrian army destroyed in one night by an angel of the Lord.
- In the FUTURE, Israel…the most elite Air Force in the world…will one day have to trust God to be her security.
· Yet, remember…the success of all depends upon the presence and blessing of God.
III. GENERAL EMPLOYMENT
A. Business in Today’s Society
1. Many are hard at work building their businesses.
a. But with today’s competition, how difficult this is.
- Competitors under quoting the price of what you might be able to perform a job.
- So, you learn the tricks of the trade and forget about how it looks.
b. How many succumb to such temptations; trying to keep one conscience for Sunday and yet another for weekdays!
2. Having no trust in what God’s Word declares: “Except the Lord build…”
- Hag. 1:6 You have sown much, and bring in little; you eat, but do not have enough; you drink, but you are not filled with drink; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he who earns wages, earns wages to put into a bag with holes
a. “Their faith rests in: strenuous work, rising early, sitting up late, eating the bread of toil, trying to win rest and repose for themselves.”
3. But the psalmist declares it is not to be: all his toil is in vain!
4. The Lord gives to His beloved that which they need without all that restlessness and anxiety. Their souls rest in Him.
- Let the Lord be the predominant partner in your business…so shall the house be built.
IV. FAMILY BUILDING
A. Children: A Gift from the Lord (precious…blessed is the man whose quiver is full…)
- Stop that wrestling…look what you just did…you wrecked the end table.
- Quit throwing the ball inside the house….
- “Where is my screwdriver...I keep telling you to put everything back!”
- Children are expensive! The USDA has estimated the cost is $10,210 for the first three years with a total expense of $192,780 through age 18. The breakdown of these expenses are: housing $69,780; food $30,270; travel $27,750; clothing $14,370; health care $10,050; child care and education $16,590; and other $23,970.
1. The psalmist states that children are:
a. The heritage of the Lord
· "property, possession ... that which is shared/assigned." (we are stewards over them)
· Children are the Lord's possessions. And, He assigns them to or shares them with parents.
b. A reward from Him
· Conveys the idea of appreciation, of pleasure, of joy…never one of displeasure…a punishment for sin.
· Their zest, laughter, excitement, unique way of viewing things adds to the fullness of life.
B. Children: Require Training – v.4 (a pic of a warrior with arrows in his hand)
1. He uses them in the day battle…he “directs” them toward the target.
· Children are like arrows. Parents have the job of directing them.
· A child, like an arrow, is incapable of directing himself.
· A group of educators decided to remove the chain-like fences from around the school playgrounds. They believed the fences promoted feelings of confinement and restraint. The curious thing they noticed, however, that as soon as the fences were removed, the children huddled in the center of the playground to play. Conclusion: Children need boundaries; children need direction.
Building a house, city, business…or a family…
“Unless the Lord builds…they labor in vain that build it…” – 127:1a
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[i]Believer's Bible Commentary