"Making Sense of Living and Dying"

Intro: Optical illusion. I saw a picture the other day that showed a ship that appeared to be floating at least 50 feet above the water. I was thinking, well, it is 2021. Who knows. But as I saw it, my mind was thinking, that can’t be true. I know that physics doesn’t allow for that. I apparently a phenomenon when cold air rests above the water and the warm air is above it. Inverse illusion. It can make even things behind the horizon visible. Though I knew that this couldn’t be true, there was a disconnect, something causing my sight to not match up with the truth that I knew.

The Preacher is showing us the life under the sun, reality sometimes doesn’t match up with what we believe to be true. God is about justice, but what about when it doesn’t look like it, when the world doesn’t match that? God is supposed to be in control, but why does everything seem to falling apart around me?

How do we make sense of life and death in a world where it doesn’t seem fair and just?

CTS: Live by faith that God will make all things right through Jesus.

I. Fear God Above All Else (8:10-13)

What it looks like under the sun...

A. The Wicked Don’t Pay the Piper (10)

The idea here in the Hebrew is the injustice of the wicked. Some, like the ESV here translate “praised in the city.” Other translate it “forgotten in the city.” The second seems to fit better. The Preacher is communicating that the wicked would walk in and out of the holy place (temple? synagogue?) and yet when the time came, they were buried like any other righteous person and their wickedness was forgotten. We do this at funerals sometimes. We strive to find some nice words to say about some wicked people, maybe when their life didn’t warrant it.

This is vanity, meaningless, up in smoke.

B. Lack of Judgment Increases Depravity(11-12a)

And not only this, but the lack of swift judgment for wickedness, like this person who seemingly walked through life without any sense of judgement incurred, seems to encourage wicked living. Mankind sees this lack of swift judgment and says, well, I will do the same thing to. Judgement doesn’t come.

The heart of man is fully set to do evil. Jeremiah 17:9 tells us this:

Jeremiah 17:9 ESV

9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

Verse 12 begins to continue this idea, and many presume the lack of judgment and take advantage of the patience and forbearance of God. Where God is giving abundant grace for repentance and faith, many take advantage of. Romans 2:4-5 makes this clear:

Romans 2:4–5 ESV

4 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? 5 But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.

REALITY: There is more life than this. (12b-13)

But ultimately, the Preacher points us to the greater truth, and one that should help us to make sense of this: Despite the wicked escaping judgement and at justice doesn’t seem to come quickly in this life under the sun, the Preacher points us to fearing God as the answer. He knows this to be true, even in the midst of his questioning and suffering.

The truth is, those that truly fear the Lord (double emphasis) understand the temporal nature of this life and that judgement does eventually come. Sure, we would like to see it now, but we also understand that if judgement is as swift as we would like, we would also meet justice and not experience the grace of God like we have. That is the FEAR OF THE LORD, understanding our sin and our state before God and acknowledging that I deserve this judgement. Without this repentance, this fear of the Lord, we will not prolong out days. This prolonging doesn’t ultimately mean this life, but actually eternal life.

II. Know Your Place (8:14-17)

A. Acknowledge that Justice Seems Upside-Down (14)

Jeremiah 12:1 ESV

1 Righteous are you, O Lord, when I complain to you; yet I would plead my case before you. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all who are treacherous thrive?

The Preacher echoes what the prophets like Jeremiah and Habakkuk did. Why do the wicked prosper? It’s a reality. Even knowing the right answer, that doesn’t always mean it’s easy to swallow. The Psalmist also says in Psalm 73:3 this:

Psalm 73:3 ESV

3 For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

There is a gap between what we see and what we know. That gap is answered. That requires us to know our place and to rely on a thing called faith: Trusting we are not in charge, that our ways are not God’s ways, and believe He is doing the right thing. Faith is trusting in God’s sovereign hand, His providence in this world. Part of that is acknowledging that sin has wrecked this world, that justice seems upside down right now, but that one day it won’t always be.

So in light of this acknowledgment...

B. Live Life as God Gives (15-17)

The Preacher may be doing one of two thing here, or it could be a combination of both. Just enjoy your life as it is. This all doesn’t matter in the first place. The pessimist in me likes this view, but acknowledges its flawed nature. Maybe the Preacher does that on purpose. But he may be also onto something.

I think one of the greatest ways we can really view life is to start viewing it more LOCALLY, to deal with it as it comes and what you can affect. Your home (focus on discipling your family), your community, your neighborhood, your church needs to become your focus. That’s not to say that the other parts of the world are unimportant, but when we truly focus locally, it well help us to reach globally!

Localize your view of life: (15)

Don’t lose sleep trying to figure life out: (16) Living and breathing nightly news or cable news will make you go crazy. Rest in the Word, rest in where God has placed you and enact godly change in the spheres of life that you are a part of.

Rest in God’s wisdom, not your own: (17) And when it doesn’t make sense (and it often doesn’t), we rest in knowing that we are not God. We can’t know everything about His plan, and we were not meant to. That’s ok. That’s where FAITH COMES IN. Wisdom is good, but it’s limited in this world. Faith is eternal and trusts in a great God who is not like us, and ultimately, that is A GOOD THING.

III. Live and Die Gracefully (9:1-6)

A. Earthly Outcomes Do Not Determine Eternal Destinations (1)

The reality is reemphasized here, and it contrasts, yet also matches very well with what the rest of Scripture says. It doesn’t matter how much good you do or evil you do, that is not the determining factor of your eternal state. That doesn’t mean sin is not a factor. It is. It’s the root cause. But there is not a balance of your good and bad works that determine if you go to heaven. And if we judge just by our own righteousness and our deeds, we still have no confidence if God loves us or hates us. The Scripture makes it clear though that it is not those things that save us or determine our eternal fate.

B. Everyone Dies (2-3a)

Here is the truth: Everyone dies. No matter how good you are, or how wicked you are. You die. We have said this numerous times already, but it is constantly on the heart of the Preacher because it is such a big deal. Maybe he talks about death a lot because we tend not to. You may be thinking this morning, Pastor Chris, are we really talking about dying, AGAIN? And the answer is, yes, because we need to acknowledge it and live in this truth. Death is coming for us, for our families, our friends, our neighbors, our church family. There is a brevity to this life and once we die, Hebrews 9:27 tells us:

Hebrews 9:27 ESV

27 And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

C. Every Heart is Evil and Needs Redemption (3b-4)

Judgement is coming. The dead finally face the judgement we have incurred because of our sin. We are full of evil. All of us die because of our sin. We need salvation. That salvation is hinted at here for those that live. What does that mean? Life is better than being dead, even if your life was incredible and full of wonderful things. A poor life that realizes the need of salvation will truly live. Hope is found. But what is this life? It’s eternal, and it’s found in Jesus himself.

John 1:4 ESV

4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

John 14:6 ESV

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

D. Life is Found When We Realize We Deserve Death (5-6)

To truly live is to understand our death and our state before God. It’s only then that we truly live. We understand that our lives ultimately perish, our rewards here our fleeting, we become but a memory that eventually fades from all existence. Our love, hate, envy and everything we have done perishes. No more share under the sun. Everyone experiences this. This is what we deserve, yet there is grace...

Romans 6:23 ESV

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

How do we live and die graciously?

We fear the Lord and the consequences of our sin and trust in Jesus to save us. Death no longer will be feared.

2 Peter 3:9 ESV

9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

Revelation 14:13 ESV

13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”

1 Corinthians 2:9 ESV

9 But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”—

Conclusion: We rest in the cross, the redemption of our wicked hearts and the reversal of death. Christ took on our death, suffered and bled for us, and overcame death. So when we die in him, we live by faith that God has made everything right through him. Justice is served at the cross. And justice will be served when Jesus comes again. The righteous and the wicked will stand before God. The righteous are those made righteous by Jesus. The wicked will face the consequences of their sin, and that is eternal death.

It is in Jesus that we are able to truly fear the Lord. Not out of fear of facing the sin debt we deserved, for that is paid for. We fear the Lord in awe, reverence, thankfulness, praise, worship, love, and service to the one who created us, saved us, and will glorify us completely.

In Jesus we are able to truly know our place. We don’t understand often what happens in this world, and to try to make sense of the injustice of the world will cause us to despair and lose sleep. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt, but Jesus knows that hurt and paid for those injustices at the cross and will come again one day. His plan is greater than ours. We rest in that, even when we don’t understand.

It is in Jesus that we truly can live and die gracefully. We can die knowing confidently that it is not the basis of my goodness that I am saved or determined to be good enough, but through Jesus himself.