so<\/p>\n
can everyone hear the translation okay<\/p>\n
okay<\/p>\n
all right so hello everybody hope your<\/p>\n
weeks have been well<\/p>\n
as you may be able to tell from standing<\/p>\n
outside<\/p>\n
it's been extremely hot out except for<\/p>\n
today<\/p>\n
today it rained pretty hard<\/p>\n
but the past few months it's been really<\/p>\n
hot<\/p>\n
and I know for me walking from home to<\/p>\n
church feels like I'm gonna melt<\/p>\n
and although it feels that way<\/p>\n
it doesn't surprise us because we all<\/p>\n
know that April and May are the hottest<\/p>\n
months of the year<\/p>\n
so that's something we know we know that<\/p>\n
at the beginning of the year most of us<\/p>\n
knew what to expect that in April and<\/p>\n
May it's going to be really hot the heat<\/p>\n
will be unpleasant<\/p>\n
but it's unpleasant and predictable<\/p>\n
we knew that it was going to happen<\/p>\n
however as we will see today<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes tells us that life is<\/p>\n
actually very unpredictable<\/p>\n
and things don't usually go according to<\/p>\n
plan<\/p>\n
like today it rained really hard today<\/p>\n
um so we're looking at chapter 9<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes chapter 9<\/p>\n
and I'll read the text to us in English<\/p>\n
next slide please<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes chapter 9. so I reflected<\/p>\n
on all this and concluded that the<\/p>\n
righteous and the wise and what they do<\/p>\n
are in God's hands but no one knows<\/p>\n
whether love or hate awaits them all<\/p>\n
share a common Destiny the righteous and<\/p>\n
the Wicked the good and the bad the<\/p>\n
clean and the unclean those who offer<\/p>\n
sacrifices and those who do not as it is<\/p>\n
with the good so with the sinful as it<\/p>\n
is with those who take Oaths so with<\/p>\n
those who are afraid to take them this<\/p>\n
is the evil and everything that happens<\/p>\n
Under the Sun the same Destiny overtakes<\/p>\n
all<\/p>\n
the hearts of people moreover are full<\/p>\n
of evil there is madness in their hearts<\/p>\n
while they live and afterwards they join<\/p>\n
the dead anyone who is among the living<\/p>\n
has hope even a live dog is better off<\/p>\n
than a deadline<\/p>\n
for the living know that they will die<\/p>\n
but the dead know nothing they have no<\/p>\n
further reward and even their name is<\/p>\n
forgotten<\/p>\n
their love their hate and their jealousy<\/p>\n
have long since vanished never again<\/p>\n
will they have a part in anything that<\/p>\n
happens under the sun go eat your food<\/p>\n
with gladness and drink your wine with a<\/p>\n
joyful heart for God has already<\/p>\n
approved what you do<\/p>\n
always be clothed in white always anoint<\/p>\n
in your head with oil<\/p>\n
enjoy life with your wife whom you love<\/p>\n
all the days<\/p>\n
of this meaningless life that God has<\/p>\n
given you under the sun all your<\/p>\n
meaningless days<\/p>\n
for this is your lot in life<\/p>\n
and in your toilsome labor under the sun<\/p>\n
whatever your hand finds to do do it<\/p>\n
with all your might for in the realm of<\/p>\n
the Dead where you are going there is<\/p>\n
neither working nor planning nor<\/p>\n
knowledge nor wisdom I have seen<\/p>\n
something else Under the Sun the race is<\/p>\n
not to the Swift or the battle to the<\/p>\n
strong nor does food come to the wise or<\/p>\n
wealth to the brilliant or favor to the<\/p>\n
Learned but time and chance happen to<\/p>\n
them all<\/p>\n
moreover no one knows when their hour<\/p>\n
will come as fish are caught in a cruel<\/p>\n
net or birds are taken in a snare so<\/p>\n
people are trapped by evil times that<\/p>\n
fall unexpectedly upon them<\/p>\n
I also saw Under the Sun this example of<\/p>\n
wisdom that greatly impressed me there<\/p>\n
was once a small City with only a few<\/p>\n
people in it and a powerful King came<\/p>\n
against it surrounded it and built huge<\/p>\n
Siege works against it now they lived in<\/p>\n
this city a man poor but wise and he<\/p>\n
saved the City by his wisdom but nobody<\/p>\n
remembered that poor man<\/p>\n
so said wisdom is better than strength<\/p>\n
but the poor man's Wisdom is despised<\/p>\n
and his words are no longer heated the<\/p>\n
quiet words of the wise are more to be<\/p>\n
heated than the shouts of a ruler of<\/p>\n
fools wisdom is better than weapons of<\/p>\n
war but one sinner destroys much good<\/p>\n
this is the word of God<\/p>\n
so as we're pretty familiar with by now<\/p>\n
since we've been going through our<\/p>\n
Series in Ecclesiastes Ecclesiastes is a<\/p>\n
book like none other<\/p>\n
there is no other book in the Bible that<\/p>\n
is quite like Ecclesiastes because<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes is a thought experiment<\/p>\n
it's a way of looking at life that says<\/p>\n
if this life is all there is this is<\/p>\n
what life would be like<\/p>\n
so one common phrase throughout the book<\/p>\n
is Under the Sun and while we may read<\/p>\n
that and think oh Heat<\/p>\n
it's actually a way to talk about life<\/p>\n
without God life under the sun<\/p>\n
so in verse 3<\/p>\n
it says it doesn't say life is<\/p>\n
meaningless it says life Under the Sun<\/p>\n
is meaningless this is the evil that<\/p>\n
happens under the sun<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes is a book that looks at<\/p>\n
life as if this life is all there is<\/p>\n
and the Viewpoint that the author is<\/p>\n
taking is very similar to the Viewpoint<\/p>\n
of the average person living in Bangkok<\/p>\n
that this life is all there is<\/p>\n
that the only way to find fulfillment<\/p>\n
in this life is only in this life<\/p>\n
whether that's through work through<\/p>\n
relationships through money success that<\/p>\n
there is nothing else Beyond this life<\/p>\n
and in this chapter which has been<\/p>\n
called by some the most depressing<\/p>\n
chapter in the whole book of<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes is this the most depressing<\/p>\n
chapter According to some people the<\/p>\n
main question that the author is asking<\/p>\n
is<\/p>\n
if this life is all there is<\/p>\n
how do we live in the world full of<\/p>\n
Injustice and Evil<\/p>\n
many of us have experienced Injustice we<\/p>\n
have either gone through some degree of<\/p>\n
Injustice ourselves or we've seen our<\/p>\n
loved ones go through it we don't have<\/p>\n
to look very far to see the Injustice in<\/p>\n
this world<\/p>\n
anytime we say we see and say the world<\/p>\n
is not a fair place we're talking about<\/p>\n
Injustice<\/p>\n
and the author wants us to confront this<\/p>\n
issue how do we live in the world of<\/p>\n
so in verses 11 and 12<\/p>\n
the author speaks of how the world is<\/p>\n
not fair in a general sense<\/p>\n
he says<\/p>\n
the race is not to the Swift or the<\/p>\n
battle to the strong nor does food come<\/p>\n
to the wise or wealth to the brilliant<\/p>\n
or favor to the Learned but time and<\/p>\n
chance happen to them all moreover no<\/p>\n
one knows when there are will come as<\/p>\n
fish are caught in a cruel net or birds<\/p>\n
are taken in a snare so people are<\/p>\n
trapped by evil times that fall<\/p>\n
unexpectedly upon them what does that<\/p>\n
mean<\/p>\n
just a few months ago in nambolampu an<\/p>\n
ex-policeman murdered over 20 children<\/p>\n
in Cold Blood<\/p>\n
during songkran there was a shooting at<\/p>\n
a pub not too far from here<\/p>\n
just last week 13 people died in India<\/p>\n
because of a heat stroke<\/p>\n
2004 disaster struck the coastal areas<\/p>\n
of the Indian Ocean the earthquake and<\/p>\n
tsunami killing over 220 000 people in<\/p>\n
14 different countries including<\/p>\n
Thailand<\/p>\n
and last year a record number of over<\/p>\n
100 100 million people were displaced<\/p>\n
becoming refugees forced to leave their<\/p>\n
homes and countries families ripped<\/p>\n
apart because of violence persecution<\/p>\n
and human rights violations<\/p>\n
this is what kohelet the author is<\/p>\n
telling us it doesn't matter who we are<\/p>\n
it doesn't matter if we're good or bad<\/p>\n
terrible things happen to us constantly<\/p>\n
unexpectedly randomly<\/p>\n
the world is unpredictable it can happen<\/p>\n
to anyone suddenly people enjoying a<\/p>\n
vacation at the beach end up running to<\/p>\n
high ground for their lives we can't<\/p>\n
avoid it and we never know when it's<\/p>\n
going to happen<\/p>\n
it's the random unpredictableness<\/p>\n
unfairness Injustice of life<\/p>\n
see it says the race is not to the Swift<\/p>\n
the battle is not to the strong we may<\/p>\n
be fast and still lose we may be strong<\/p>\n
and still get defeated<\/p>\n
food is not to the wise wealth is not to<\/p>\n
the brilliant you may be wise and<\/p>\n
intelligent we may have a degree from<\/p>\n
one of the best schools in the world but<\/p>\n
that does not guarantee success<\/p>\n
we may be brilliant but it doesn't<\/p>\n
matter it doesn't guarantee that we'll<\/p>\n
succeed<\/p>\n
life does not work this way<\/p>\n
oftentimes we may think we're in control<\/p>\n
we may think if I go to this school and<\/p>\n
take this course I'll be set up for<\/p>\n
Success if I just make this deal I'll be<\/p>\n
in a good place to succeed if I exercise<\/p>\n
and take care of my body I won't get<\/p>\n
injured if I do this and this my life<\/p>\n
will go very well<\/p>\n
but Ecclesiastes in this chapter showing<\/p>\n
us that that is not the case we are not<\/p>\n
in control what does it say time and<\/p>\n
chance happen to them all<\/p>\n
conventional wisdom says work hard and<\/p>\n
you'll succeed but Ecclesiastes says<\/p>\n
that's not guaranteed many many many<\/p>\n
things could happen<\/p>\n
it's an incredibly realistic way<\/p>\n
of looking at the world<\/p>\n
now the author goes even further in<\/p>\n
verses two to four author says all share<\/p>\n
a common Destiny the righteous and the<\/p>\n
Wicked the good and the bad the clean<\/p>\n
and the unclean those who offer<\/p>\n
sacrifices and those who not the same<\/p>\n
Destiny overtakes all and then in verse<\/p>\n
5 for the living know that they will die<\/p>\n
forgotten their love their hate their<\/p>\n
jealousy have long since vanished never<\/p>\n
again will they have a part in anything<\/p>\n
that happens under the sun<\/p>\n
what's he saying over here he's saying<\/p>\n
no matter what we do in life whether we<\/p>\n
are good or bad<\/p>\n
whether we live a life of goodness and<\/p>\n
morality or a life of wickedness whether<\/p>\n
we are the murderer or whether we're the<\/p>\n
child everything we do will vanish<\/p>\n
not only that even the memory of what we<\/p>\n
do will disappear forever it will be<\/p>\n
at the end of it there is nothing<\/p>\n
see whatever we do in this life does not<\/p>\n
change the fact that we will die one day<\/p>\n
and when we do it there will be nothing<\/p>\n
after<\/p>\n
that's why he says in verse 10 whatever<\/p>\n
your hand finds to do do it with all<\/p>\n
your might for in the realm of the Dead<\/p>\n
where you are going there is neither<\/p>\n
working nor planning nor knowledge nor<\/p>\n
wisdom<\/p>\n
we're all going to die all of us<\/p>\n
and if this life is all there is nothing<\/p>\n
comes after<\/p>\n
and The Logical conclusion means that if<\/p>\n
one day everything we do will be<\/p>\n
forgotten then everything we do is<\/p>\n
ultimately meaningless it has no lasting<\/p>\n
impact<\/p>\n
it's easy to understand why this is<\/p>\n
called the most depressing book chapter<\/p>\n
in the book<\/p>\n
there have been a couple of Articles<\/p>\n
outlining what would happen if Humanity<\/p>\n
disappeared or went extinct<\/p>\n
here's what one of them says<\/p>\n
in just a few hours<\/p>\n
lights across the world will shut down<\/p>\n
within 10 days billions of pets and farm<\/p>\n
animals would die due to starvation and<\/p>\n
dehydration<\/p>\n
a month later cooling water at nuclear<\/p>\n
plants will evaporate turning large<\/p>\n
areas of the world into nuclear<\/p>\n
wastelands<\/p>\n
after a year satellites and other<\/p>\n
various objects we've put in the Earth's<\/p>\n
orbit will come Crashing Down<\/p>\n
25 years later 75 of the earth city<\/p>\n
streets and sidewalks will be covered in<\/p>\n
vegetation and plants cities like Las<\/p>\n
Vegas and Dubai will be smothered in<\/p>\n
sand<\/p>\n
after 300 years metal constructions like<\/p>\n
the Eiffel Tower and steel Bridges<\/p>\n
without maintenance will end up<\/p>\n
crumbling to the ground swamps will<\/p>\n
reappear<\/p>\n
the air becomes cleaner no more PM 2.5<\/p>\n
visibility increases<\/p>\n
a few million years later<\/p>\n
even the pyramids and the Great Wall of<\/p>\n
China will erode<\/p>\n
and after around 50 million years there<\/p>\n
will be no more evidence that humans<\/p>\n
ever existed<\/p>\n
and eventually in a few billion years<\/p>\n
the sun will die the Earth will be<\/p>\n
burned up<\/p>\n
and that will be that<\/p>\n
see if you build the pyramids you'll be<\/p>\n
remembered for a while longer than most<\/p>\n
people<\/p>\n
but in the end if this life is all there<\/p>\n
is everything will be forgotten it<\/p>\n
doesn't matter who you are it doesn't<\/p>\n
matter what you've done the same Destiny<\/p>\n
overtakes all<\/p>\n
if this life is all there is death is<\/p>\n
the end of it and this means everything<\/p>\n
is pointless<\/p>\n
and now someone may say okay stop being<\/p>\n
so gloomy<\/p>\n
if life is pointless we might as well<\/p>\n
enjoy it now there is luxury there's<\/p>\n
clothing there's wonderful restaurants<\/p>\n
and food and cafes there is amazing<\/p>\n
homes there's sex there's pleasure<\/p>\n
there's family let's enjoy all these<\/p>\n
things now<\/p>\n
but because everything is ultimately<\/p>\n
ultimately pointless<\/p>\n
go eat your food with gladness enjoy<\/p>\n
life with your wife all the days of this<\/p>\n
meaningless life all your meaningless<\/p>\n
days see the author he's heard this<\/p>\n
before he's heard people be like yeah<\/p>\n
just enjoy it now so you're saying go<\/p>\n
ahead and do that but your days are<\/p>\n
meaningless<\/p>\n
now<\/p>\n
if we tune this out if we ignore the<\/p>\n
fact that if this life is all there is<\/p>\n
death is the end if we tune it out all<\/p>\n
we're doing is we're just deceiving<\/p>\n
ourselves<\/p>\n
it's like being on a sinking ship and<\/p>\n
throwing a large extravagant party<\/p>\n
ignoring the fact that the water is<\/p>\n
rising and the ship is going down<\/p>\n
if we tune it out we'll only tune it out<\/p>\n
for some time but one day we'll have to<\/p>\n
confront it and this is what the author<\/p>\n
wants us to see he wants us to confront<\/p>\n
it he wants us to see that we can't<\/p>\n
ignore it it's a real problem if this<\/p>\n
life is all there is everything we do is<\/p>\n
ultimately meaningless because we all<\/p>\n
will die and we all will be forgotten<\/p>\n
one day so it doesn't matter what we do<\/p>\n
now or how we live under the sun<\/p>\n
the question then still is how do we<\/p>\n
live in the world of Injustice and<\/p>\n
suffering and death<\/p>\n
because the Injustice and suffering that<\/p>\n
he's showing us is ultimately that we're<\/p>\n
going to die and that everything is<\/p>\n
now the author gives us an answer here<\/p>\n
he doesn't tell us directly what it is<\/p>\n
but he gives us Clues he gives us<\/p>\n
questions he wants us to arrive at the<\/p>\n
answer<\/p>\n
so one of the things that we're told is<\/p>\n
in verse 4.<\/p>\n
he says it's good to be alive even a<\/p>\n
life dog is better than the deadline<\/p>\n
so dogs back then even now<\/p>\n
reviewed as the lowest of the low you<\/p>\n
see a stray dog on the street in<\/p>\n
they have a pretty low place<\/p>\n
the author he's saying that it's better<\/p>\n
to be alive as a dog than to be dead as<\/p>\n
a lion<\/p>\n
it's better to be the lowest of the low<\/p>\n
and alive<\/p>\n
it's better to be a murderer a scavenger<\/p>\n
living in terrible conditions than it is<\/p>\n
to be a good and righteous person who's<\/p>\n
dead it's better to be a live dog than a<\/p>\n
deadline<\/p>\n
he's saying it doesn't matter our<\/p>\n
morality doesn't matter it's better to<\/p>\n
be a liar a traitor as long as we're<\/p>\n
alive than it is to be a good person and<\/p>\n
dead<\/p>\n
and I see in a life where there is no<\/p>\n
God morals don't matter morality doesn't<\/p>\n
matter how do we know that in verse 5 he<\/p>\n
says For Love or hate or jealousy<\/p>\n
has long vanished it's forgotten<\/p>\n
because what we do will ultimately be<\/p>\n
forgotten and is meaningless it does not<\/p>\n
matter how we live<\/p>\n
it's survival of the fittest it's better<\/p>\n
to be the lowest of the low and be alive<\/p>\n
than it is to be good and Noble and<\/p>\n
right but to be dead<\/p>\n
what does it mean to be good what does<\/p>\n
it mean to be bad there's no such thing<\/p>\n
if this life is all there is it's really<\/p>\n
just survival of the fittest isn't it do<\/p>\n
your best to stay alive look out for<\/p>\n
yourself only there's no such thing as<\/p>\n
good and bad<\/p>\n
however in verse 3 this is a conundrum<\/p>\n
it's confusing he says the hearts of<\/p>\n
people are full of evil<\/p>\n
this is interesting because if we<\/p>\n
believe let's say we believe that this<\/p>\n
life is all there is<\/p>\n
logically there should be no such thing<\/p>\n
as Injustice<\/p>\n
but deep inside we know there is<\/p>\n
we often feel it when we look at the<\/p>\n
world when we look at ourselves and on<\/p>\n
this point uh Tim Keller points out the<\/p>\n
contradiction<\/p>\n
he says oftentimes someone may say I<\/p>\n
don't or I can't believe in God because<\/p>\n
of all the Injustice in the world<\/p>\n
but if there is no God there is no such<\/p>\n
thing as Injustice there is no basis for<\/p>\n
Injustice there's no basis for Morality<\/p>\n
so the fact that we feel Injustice<\/p>\n
means must mean that there is a God<\/p>\n
put differently<\/p>\n
if there is a God then evil and<\/p>\n
Injustice is a big problem<\/p>\n
and we may say and we oftentimes do<\/p>\n
God has his reasons for allowing<\/p>\n
Injustice and we just have to trust him<\/p>\n
trust God he knows why He's letting you<\/p>\n
go through all this evil he has his<\/p>\n
reasons you'll never know so just trust<\/p>\n
him<\/p>\n
and this this argument makes sense but<\/p>\n
it's not very comforting<\/p>\n
especially if we're suffering right now<\/p>\n
it's not comforting at all<\/p>\n
so so far we've seen that one life is<\/p>\n
unfair it's unjust it doesn't go<\/p>\n
according to plan there is suffering<\/p>\n
and two that there is a God because if<\/p>\n
there wasn't there would be no such<\/p>\n
thing as evil or Justice<\/p>\n
but the fact that we feel that there are<\/p>\n
things that are unjust must mean that<\/p>\n
there is a God who has ordered the world<\/p>\n
a certain way<\/p>\n
and this is what plenty of religions<\/p>\n
believe so far we haven't<\/p>\n
we haven't done anything unique plenty<\/p>\n
of religions believe that life is<\/p>\n
suffering and that there is a God and<\/p>\n
that we just have to trust this God<\/p>\n
but we can't and we don't know this<\/p>\n
God's reasons God is out there not<\/p>\n
personal<\/p>\n
so it's interesting but again if we're<\/p>\n
suffering this isn't comforting at all<\/p>\n
it's just cold<\/p>\n
but Christianity tells us that we can<\/p>\n
know who this God is we can know what<\/p>\n
this God is like<\/p>\n
because the text here gives us one more<\/p>\n
it's here in verses 13 to 18. it's an<\/p>\n
interesting story to be placed in this<\/p>\n
chapter<\/p>\n
it says I saw an example of wisdom that<\/p>\n
greatly impressed me<\/p>\n
so the Hebrew word here for impressed is<\/p>\n
far stronger than how we've translated<\/p>\n
it it<\/p>\n
has similar meanings to great but it has<\/p>\n
a lot more weight than that<\/p>\n
but let's say it's a great example of<\/p>\n
now why is it amazing why is it<\/p>\n
confounding why is this example so great<\/p>\n
well it says there was once a small City<\/p>\n
but only a few people in it and a<\/p>\n
powerful King came against it surrounded<\/p>\n
it and built huge Siege works against it<\/p>\n
now there lived in that city of Man Poor<\/p>\n
but wise<\/p>\n
and he saved the City by his wisdom<\/p>\n
but nobody remembered that poor man<\/p>\n
so I said wisdom is better than strength<\/p>\n
and his words are no longer heated<\/p>\n
now what what's going on here what's<\/p>\n
made this so confounding so we have a<\/p>\n
city<\/p>\n
is completely overwhelmed there's a<\/p>\n
powerful King a powerful King comes<\/p>\n
against this small City with only a few<\/p>\n
people in it the city stands no chance<\/p>\n
whatsoever again it's just like we've<\/p>\n
been saying one day the city is doing<\/p>\n
fine it's prospering the next day evil<\/p>\n
suddenly falls upon the city<\/p>\n
unpredictable Injustice<\/p>\n
just like we've been saying one day<\/p>\n
Injustice strikes and how do we deal<\/p>\n
with Injustice this man and his wisdom<\/p>\n
saved the city<\/p>\n
he saved the people from Death this man<\/p>\n
in his wisdom were extremely powerful<\/p>\n
so that the city was saved<\/p>\n
but no one remembered that poor man<\/p>\n
she was forgotten and it says Not only<\/p>\n
was he forgotten<\/p>\n
but his wisdom was despised<\/p>\n
intentionally hated<\/p>\n
this is what's confounding a small<\/p>\n
helpless city this city couldn't do<\/p>\n
anything against this powerful King but<\/p>\n
a man poor but wise uses his wisdom to<\/p>\n
save the city uses his wisdom to Serve<\/p>\n
the People rescues the people delivers<\/p>\n
the people and he's hated for it<\/p>\n
he is forgotten and despised isn't this<\/p>\n
confusing<\/p>\n
why would anyone hate this man how could<\/p>\n
anyone forget this man<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes then says the quiet words<\/p>\n
of the wise are more to be heated than<\/p>\n
the shouts of a ruler of fools<\/p>\n
wisdom is better than weapons of war but<\/p>\n
one sinner<\/p>\n
destroys much good<\/p>\n
one commentator says that the ruler of<\/p>\n
fools would be the ruler of the city<\/p>\n
where the people forgot this man's<\/p>\n
Wisdom<\/p>\n
and the Sinners are those people who<\/p>\n
have forgotten the man who saved the<\/p>\n
city forgotten the man who saved them<\/p>\n
so in short<\/p>\n
if this life is all there is there is<\/p>\n
even wisdom is useless<\/p>\n
if you save a city you may be remembered<\/p>\n
for your Deeds a little longer than most<\/p>\n
but even then the memory of what you do<\/p>\n
will become hated and eventually it'll<\/p>\n
disappear and vanish never to be<\/p>\n
remembered<\/p>\n
wisdom then<\/p>\n
is useless<\/p>\n
and if this is how things ended the<\/p>\n
world would truly be a depressing place<\/p>\n
we'd have no resources to cope with<\/p>\n
suffering or Injustice<\/p>\n
but one commentator points out that this<\/p>\n
story<\/p>\n
reads almost like a prophecy<\/p>\n
it's a shadow of another<\/p>\n
poor and wise man<\/p>\n
here's a question whose name most<\/p>\n
naturally comes to mind when we hear of<\/p>\n
a poor man full of wisdom a savior whose<\/p>\n
life and teachings were rejected and<\/p>\n
despised<\/p>\n
the man<\/p>\n
and his wisdom that the author saw was<\/p>\n
just a reflection of the greater wisdom<\/p>\n
the true poor wise man<\/p>\n
Paul says in First Corinthians we preach<\/p>\n
Christ crucified a stumbling block to<\/p>\n
Jews and foolishness to Gentiles but to<\/p>\n
Those whom God is called both Jews and<\/p>\n
Greeks Christ the power of God and the<\/p>\n
wisdom of God<\/p>\n
and then he says it is because of him<\/p>\n
that you are in Christ Jesus who has<\/p>\n
become for us wisdom from God that is<\/p>\n
our righteousness Holiness and<\/p>\n
Redemption<\/p>\n
the wisdom of the poor wise man is only<\/p>\n
a shadow of what we see in Jesus Christ<\/p>\n
the true poor wise man and this is the<\/p>\n
key right here to be being able to live<\/p>\n
in a world that is unjust and full of<\/p>\n
suffering<\/p>\n
because we don't just have a God who is<\/p>\n
content to sit up there and say I have<\/p>\n
reasons for why you're suffering just<\/p>\n
trust me you'll never know those reasons<\/p>\n
but just believe me no we don't have a<\/p>\n
god like that we're able to know God how<\/p>\n
through Jesus Christ This Is The Gospel<\/p>\n
we are the ones who have forgotten God<\/p>\n
we are the ones who have forgotten the<\/p>\n
true poor wise men how do we forget God<\/p>\n
we forget God when we go our own way<\/p>\n
when we follow the desires of our own<\/p>\n
heart<\/p>\n
when we don't give importance to what<\/p>\n
God has said and how God wants us to<\/p>\n
live<\/p>\n
we've forgotten God<\/p>\n
we forget God when we act as if we are<\/p>\n
our own Gods<\/p>\n
and when we do that when we forget God<\/p>\n
we're actually turning away from the<\/p>\n
only thing the only person that will<\/p>\n
last forever<\/p>\n
and that means that when we turn away<\/p>\n
from the only thing that's permanent we<\/p>\n
turn towards meaninglessness we are<\/p>\n
meaningless that's what we deserve<\/p>\n
because we've turned away from God not<\/p>\n
only that we've despised God<\/p>\n
and so we're headed what we deserve is<\/p>\n
nothing and meaninglessness<\/p>\n
just what the author is saying this life<\/p>\n
is all there is there's his death<\/p>\n
that's what we deserve but God has done<\/p>\n
something about it God came down in<\/p>\n
Jesus Christ the true poor wise man who<\/p>\n
saved us how on the cross<\/p>\n
when Jesus Christ was on the cross<\/p>\n
do you know what happened<\/p>\n
in Matthew 27 verse 46 he cries out my<\/p>\n
God my God why have you forsaken me<\/p>\n
in other words my God my God why have<\/p>\n
you forgotten me why have you turned<\/p>\n
your back on me<\/p>\n
on the cross God turned his back on<\/p>\n
Jesus Christ Jesus was experienced<\/p>\n
experiencing what we all deserve because<\/p>\n
we've turned away from God Jesus was<\/p>\n
experiencing the ultimate nothing the<\/p>\n
ultimate meaninglessness<\/p>\n
he got what was coming to everybody the<\/p>\n
nothingness that makes our lives<\/p>\n
meaningless it went into Jesus Christ<\/p>\n
and here's the question why<\/p>\n
so that we will not be so that we will<\/p>\n
be remembered so that God won't turn us<\/p>\n
back on us so that will be eternally<\/p>\n
that our lives have true and Lasting and<\/p>\n
eternal significance and meaning see if<\/p>\n
this life is all there is our lives are<\/p>\n
but because Jesus Christ the true poor<\/p>\n
wise man was forgotten<\/p>\n
God can be with us and we can be with<\/p>\n
God forever<\/p>\n
the only true meaning that lasts and<\/p>\n
this is how we're able to live in a<\/p>\n
world that is full of suffering and is<\/p>\n
unjust<\/p>\n
this is how we're able to walk out into<\/p>\n
the world with the full Assurance<\/p>\n
knowing that we're loved by God<\/p>\n
and that we will never be forgotten by<\/p>\n
God that will never be abandoned by God<\/p>\n
this allows us knowing this remembering<\/p>\n
this letting this sink into our hearts<\/p>\n
allows us to walk into the world full of<\/p>\n
confidence able to truly enjoy life<\/p>\n
if there have any any of us here that<\/p>\n
don't know Jesus but would like to know<\/p>\n
that he invites us all to know him<\/p>\n
talk to him he's alive he's here get to<\/p>\n
know Jesus The God Who came into<\/p>\n
suffering took on the Injustice and<\/p>\n
suffering of this world in a deeper way<\/p>\n
than anyone has ever experienced it<\/p>\n
most of us our main problem as<\/p>\n
Christians most most of us<\/p>\n
who are Christians we are guilty of<\/p>\n
forgetting God<\/p>\n
we've forgotten God that's our biggest<\/p>\n
problem<\/p>\n
our biggest problem is that we've<\/p>\n
forgotten God<\/p>\n
in the way that we deal with conflict<\/p>\n
in the ways that we live privately<\/p>\n
in how we use our money<\/p>\n
in how we use our words<\/p>\n
in how we view ourselves and how we view<\/p>\n
other people we've forgotten God<\/p>\n
we've forgotten what God has done for us<\/p>\n
we've forgotten the new life that we<\/p>\n
have in Jesus Christ for example if<\/p>\n
we're here today and someone has<\/p>\n
criticized us this week and we've spent<\/p>\n
all of today and this whole week angry<\/p>\n
and ruminating on it and thinking about<\/p>\n
it playing it over and over we've<\/p>\n
we've forgotten about the one person<\/p>\n
whose opinion truly matters<\/p>\n
the one who truly loves us who will<\/p>\n
never forget us<\/p>\n
if someone has hurt us and we refuse to<\/p>\n
forgive them<\/p>\n
we've forgotten God as well<\/p>\n
because we've forgotten our need for<\/p>\n
forgiveness and how because of Jesus<\/p>\n
Christ God has forgiven us<\/p>\n
don't forget God remember God remember<\/p>\n
the poor wise men<\/p>\n
let's remember Jesus Christ let's fill<\/p>\n
our hearts with the knowledge of what<\/p>\n
Jesus Christ has done for us<\/p>\n
now let us live knowing that we have<\/p>\n
been made alive in Christ<\/p>\n
let's pray<\/p>\n
father we come before you right now and<\/p>\n
we thank you<\/p>\n
Lord that you are here with us Lord we<\/p>\n
thank you that<\/p>\n
you have never forgotten us and that you<\/p>\n
never will we pray that<\/p>\n
Lord that's through your Holy Spirit you<\/p>\n
would help these truths to sink deeper<\/p>\n
and deeper into our hearts that we may<\/p>\n
as our true identity Lord as as your<\/p>\n
children<\/p>\n
now Lord we we need you Lord<\/p>\n
pray that you would meet us in how we<\/p>\n
need to be met by you today in Jesus<\/p>\n
name amen<\/p>","english_search_text":"","":"","original_publish_date":"20230505","video_url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=FvLKQSgAzHQ","video_id":"FvLKQSgAzHQ","video_duration":"29:18","channel_name":"Grace City Bangkok"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=667"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":668,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/667\/revisions\/668"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/666"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=667"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=667"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=667"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}