foreign<\/p>\n
we'll be picking up in our series on<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes<\/p>\n
um<\/p>\n
so if you if you have your Bibles you<\/p>\n
can turn to the Book of Ecclesiastes<\/p>\n
the children are dismissed to children's<\/p>\n
church so you can go with<\/p>\n
I think Mr Dave is here so<\/p>\n
you can head to the Sunday scroll room<\/p>\n
but before we get started let me let me<\/p>\n
pray for us dear Lord we pray that as we<\/p>\n
continue to worship you this afternoon<\/p>\n
through the preaching and the teaching<\/p>\n
of your word our desire is to make much<\/p>\n
of you and to be spiritually nourished<\/p>\n
by you<\/p>\n
may Jesus be magnified and may he be<\/p>\n
exalted through the preaching of your<\/p>\n
word<\/p>\n
at the teaching of your word<\/p>\n
we ask for Grace to help us to<\/p>\n
understand your word rightly<\/p>\n
and we pray that your holy spirit will<\/p>\n
apply your words to our hearts<\/p>\n
we pray that you will be with the the<\/p>\n
children as they go and learn too we<\/p>\n
pray that you will bless Mr Davis he<\/p>\n
teaches speak through him do the same<\/p>\n
for them as we ask for ourselves<\/p>\n
we ask all this in Jesus name amen<\/p>\n
so we're getting started back in our<\/p>\n
series on Ecclesiastes and so I want to<\/p>\n
give an overview since we've taken a<\/p>\n
little break from it so what is going on<\/p>\n
in the book we're given a clue in the<\/p>\n
conclusion of Ecclesiastes so if you<\/p>\n
have your Bibles you can turn with me<\/p>\n
there to Ecclesiastes 12 verses 11<\/p>\n
through 14.<\/p>\n
and we'll read those<\/p>\n
the words of the wise are like goads and<\/p>\n
like nails firmly fixed are the<\/p>\n
collected sayings they are given by one<\/p>\n
Shepherd<\/p>\n
and my son beware of anything beyond<\/p>\n
these of making many books there is no<\/p>\n
end and much study is a weariness of the<\/p>\n
flesh the end of the matter all has been<\/p>\n
heard fear God and keep his Commandments<\/p>\n
for this is the whole duty of man for<\/p>\n
God will bring every deed into judgment<\/p>\n
with every secret thing whether good or<\/p>\n
evil<\/p>\n
in January of 2021 our family was<\/p>\n
getting ready to come over to Thailand<\/p>\n
covered was still going on and so there<\/p>\n
were a lot of um<\/p>\n
flying policies or restrictions and<\/p>\n
there was a risk that if one of us got<\/p>\n
coveted then that person who got it<\/p>\n
would have to be separated whenever we<\/p>\n
got here<\/p>\n
and so Carly was six months pregnant<\/p>\n
with Madison we had a four-year-old Macy<\/p>\n
and so I knew that quarantine was not a<\/p>\n
good idea it just would not go well for<\/p>\n
our family and so what I did was I went<\/p>\n
on the internet and found the scariest<\/p>\n
pictures that I could of children who<\/p>\n
were in the hospital these children<\/p>\n
didn't have covid but I used these<\/p>\n
pictures and I showed them to Macy I<\/p>\n
said this could happen to you if you get<\/p>\n
coveted<\/p>\n
and so what I was trying to do with<\/p>\n
these pictures was to use them as<\/p>\n
examples to show her what could happen<\/p>\n
to her if she got covered and I did this<\/p>\n
with the hopes that it would produce a<\/p>\n
fear in her to keep her from putting her<\/p>\n
hands into her mouth and to keep our<\/p>\n
family from having to be split apart<\/p>\n
during quarantine<\/p>\n
in chapter 12 verse 12 the writer of<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes addressed the person he is<\/p>\n
writing to as my son<\/p>\n
this is a father who is instructing his<\/p>\n
son how to pursue true wisdom how to<\/p>\n
pursue true meaning how to pursue true<\/p>\n
knowledge<\/p>\n
he gives his son both a negative and a<\/p>\n
positive instruction he first gives him<\/p>\n
a negative instruction in that he warns<\/p>\n
his son against pursuing wisdom from a<\/p>\n
speculative or worldly worldview that is<\/p>\n
detached from the reverent fear of God<\/p>\n
and Trust in his word<\/p>\n
so how how does he do this<\/p>\n
he does the same thing that I did with<\/p>\n
Macy he gives him an example of someone<\/p>\n
who tried this and shows him the result<\/p>\n
of the way of pursuing wisdom through a<\/p>\n
worldly worldview<\/p>\n
and so the Book of Ecclesiastes caused<\/p>\n
this person the preacher<\/p>\n
we learn about the preacher and his<\/p>\n
search for wisdom in chapter 1 verses 12<\/p>\n
through 14. Ecclesiastes 1 12-14 we read<\/p>\n
I the preacher have been King over<\/p>\n
Israel in Jerusalem and I applied my<\/p>\n
heart to seek and to search out by<\/p>\n
wisdom all that is done under Heaven it<\/p>\n
is an unhappy business that God has<\/p>\n
given to the children of man to be busy<\/p>\n
with<\/p>\n
I have seen everything that is done<\/p>\n
under the sun and behold all his vanity<\/p>\n
and a striving after wind<\/p>\n
and so in the Book of Ecclesiastes we<\/p>\n
have<\/p>\n
Ecclesiastes 1 12 through 12 7 and we're<\/p>\n
given an account of the preacher seeking<\/p>\n
after wisdom<\/p>\n
Dr Miles Van Pelt calls what takes place<\/p>\n
in this section of Ecclesiastes a wisdom<\/p>\n
experiment<\/p>\n
and so the Book of Ecclesiastes uses<\/p>\n
this phrase Under the Sun or under<\/p>\n
heaven to describe the preacher's<\/p>\n
and this phrase is used 29 times in the<\/p>\n
book so if the author of the book wants<\/p>\n
us to know one thing it's this it's that<\/p>\n
the preacher the main figure in<\/p>\n
his worldview is one that is under the<\/p>\n
sun<\/p>\n
and then Under the Sun worldview is one<\/p>\n
that leaves the the correct<\/p>\n
understanding of God and from God out of<\/p>\n
everything<\/p>\n
and so I think Miles label of wisdom<\/p>\n
experiment kind of helps us to<\/p>\n
understand the preacher's approach and<\/p>\n
his method to finding wisdom<\/p>\n
when I think of an experiment I think of<\/p>\n
a scientist in a white coat in a lab who<\/p>\n
has glass beakers he's putting things in<\/p>\n
to the beakers and he's looking to see<\/p>\n
what the result is he's looking to find<\/p>\n
meaning in all of these experiments<\/p>\n
and so the preacher in a similar way is<\/p>\n
saying everything from an Earthly<\/p>\n
perspective and he seeks to pursue his<\/p>\n
wisdom from his own observations from<\/p>\n
his own understanding of the Earthly<\/p>\n
realm and so he goes out into the world<\/p>\n
he experiences things observes things<\/p>\n
and uses his own heart his own<\/p>\n
rationale his own faculties what he<\/p>\n
calls his own wisdom to make sense of<\/p>\n
life<\/p>\n
and we learn about his approach to<\/p>\n
finding wisdom in chapter 1 verses 16<\/p>\n
through 17 and chapter 2 verses 1-3<\/p>\n
and 1 16-17 it says I said in my heart I<\/p>\n
have acquired great wisdom surpassing<\/p>\n
all who were over Jerusalem before me<\/p>\n
and my heart has had great experience of<\/p>\n
wisdom and knowledge and I applied my<\/p>\n
heart to no wisdom and to know Madness<\/p>\n
and Folly I perceive that this also is<\/p>\n
but striving after the wind<\/p>\n
and in chapter 1 verses 1 through 3 he<\/p>\n
says I said in my heart come now I will<\/p>\n
test you with pleasure enjoy yourself<\/p>\n
but behold this also was vanity I said<\/p>\n
of laughter it is mad and of pleasure<\/p>\n
what use is it I search with my heart<\/p>\n
how to cheer my body with wine my heart<\/p>\n
still guiding me with wisdom and how to<\/p>\n
lay hold on Folly till I might see what<\/p>\n
was good for the children of man to do<\/p>\n
under Heaven during the few days of<\/p>\n
their life<\/p>\n
and so the preacher is using his heart<\/p>\n
to test all these different areas in<\/p>\n
life he's examining things using his own<\/p>\n
understanding and his own knowledge that<\/p>\n
comes from an Under the Sun perspective<\/p>\n
to interpret his findings<\/p>\n
and so his inclusion from the experiment<\/p>\n
is found in chapter 1 2 and 12 8.<\/p>\n
he says vanity of vanity says a preacher<\/p>\n
all is Vanity<\/p>\n
and so this phrase it sandwiches this<\/p>\n
wisdom experiment that Miles van pellet<\/p>\n
likes to call it and so it comes right<\/p>\n
before it to give the readers<\/p>\n
expectation of what's going to happen as<\/p>\n
the preacher searches for wisdom and it<\/p>\n
gives a conclusion to let you know what<\/p>\n
he found out<\/p>\n
and so Ecclesiastes it's meant to bring<\/p>\n
you to a point where you feel the same<\/p>\n
despair that the preacher fell in his<\/p>\n
results<\/p>\n
it's designed to make you feel like the<\/p>\n
the mad scientist who's pulled out all<\/p>\n
of his hair because he's not able to<\/p>\n
draw satisfying conclusions from his<\/p>\n
and it's designed to discourage you from<\/p>\n
seeking wisdom from a worldly worldview<\/p>\n
and using your own faculties your own<\/p>\n
heart to interpret the meaning of life<\/p>\n
the father who's writing this book is<\/p>\n
telling his son don't look to your own<\/p>\n
reasoning capabilities to guide you in<\/p>\n
wisdom do not speculate about what<\/p>\n
wisdom is if you do then you could end<\/p>\n
up like the preacher who is despondent<\/p>\n
and very far from wisdom<\/p>\n
the father gives up a positive<\/p>\n
instruction after giving the negative<\/p>\n
instruction after showing us what has<\/p>\n
happened to the preacher<\/p>\n
in 12 13 he tells us<\/p>\n
fear God and keep his Commandments for<\/p>\n
this is the whole duty of man<\/p>\n
and so the father encourages his son to<\/p>\n
seek with wisdom from a heart that fears<\/p>\n
the Lord and looks to the Lord to guide<\/p>\n
him by his words<\/p>\n
the majority of the Book of Ecclesiastes<\/p>\n
is the preacher experiencing things<\/p>\n
observing something looking at it from<\/p>\n
an under the world worldview given the<\/p>\n
results of what he's found and then<\/p>\n
giving advice on how to apply it to life<\/p>\n
and so that is what he's doing here in<\/p>\n
chapter 7. and so we'll look at that<\/p>\n
we'll look at how the preacher views<\/p>\n
certain things from and life Under the<\/p>\n
Sun worldview and then we'll look at how<\/p>\n
the father<\/p>\n
we'll use the father's instructions for<\/p>\n
us to fear God and to keep his<\/p>\n
Commandments and look at the same thing<\/p>\n
from above the sun world view<\/p>\n
so let's now look at chapter 7 verses 15<\/p>\n
through 29.<\/p>\n
in my vain life I have seen everything<\/p>\n
there is a righteous man who perishes in<\/p>\n
his righteousness and there is a wicked<\/p>\n
man who prolongs his life in evil doing<\/p>\n
be not overly righteous and do not make<\/p>\n
yourself too wise why should you destroy<\/p>\n
yourself be not overly Wicked neither be<\/p>\n
a fool why should you die before your<\/p>\n
time<\/p>\n
it is good that you should take hold of<\/p>\n
this and from that withhold not your<\/p>\n
hand for the one who fears God shall<\/p>\n
come out from both of them wisdom gives<\/p>\n
strength to the wise man more than 10<\/p>\n
rulers who are in the city surely there<\/p>\n
is not a righteous man on Earth who does<\/p>\n
good and never sins do not take the<\/p>\n
heart all the things that people say at<\/p>\n
least you hear your servant cursing you<\/p>\n
your heart knows that many times you<\/p>\n
yourself have cursed others all this<\/p>\n
I've tested my wisdom I said I will be<\/p>\n
wise but it was far from me<\/p>\n
that which has been as far off and deep<\/p>\n
very deep<\/p>\n
who can find it out<\/p>\n
I turn my hearts and no and to search<\/p>\n
out and to seek wisdom in the scheme of<\/p>\n
things and to know the wickedness of<\/p>\n
folly and the foolishness that is<\/p>\n
madness<\/p>\n
and I'll find something more bitter than<\/p>\n
death the woman whose heart is snares<\/p>\n
and Nets and whose hands are Fetters<\/p>\n
he who pleases God escapes her but the<\/p>\n
sinner is taken by her behold this is<\/p>\n
what I found says the preacher while<\/p>\n
adding one thing to another to find the<\/p>\n
scheme of things<\/p>\n
which my soul has sought repeatedly but<\/p>\n
I have not found<\/p>\n
one man among a thousand I found but a<\/p>\n
woman among all these I have not have<\/p>\n
found<\/p>\n
see this alone I found that God made man<\/p>\n
upright but they have sought out many<\/p>\n
schemes<\/p>\n
and so in verse 15 we see that the<\/p>\n
preacher is telling us<\/p>\n
and so we have to remember that the<\/p>\n
preacher's method of finding wisdom is<\/p>\n
to go and observe things in the world<\/p>\n
it's this wisdom experiment that he's<\/p>\n
talking about he is saying I went out<\/p>\n
and I searched everything under the sun<\/p>\n
to try to find wisdom<\/p>\n
and what does he observe<\/p>\n
he sees that there is a righteous man<\/p>\n
who perishes in his righteousness<\/p>\n
and there is a wicked man who prolongs<\/p>\n
his life in evil doing<\/p>\n
and so the preacher observes this life<\/p>\n
of a righteous man and he Compares it<\/p>\n
with the life of a wicked man and he<\/p>\n
finds some of the righteous have<\/p>\n
perished in their righteousness I'm sure<\/p>\n
we can all bring to mind examples of<\/p>\n
those that we know either from history<\/p>\n
or from the news of righteous people who<\/p>\n
have lost their lives doing what was<\/p>\n
morally right<\/p>\n
an example that many of you may be<\/p>\n
familiar with is William Tyndale<\/p>\n
Tyndall was one of the first Bible<\/p>\n
translators to translate the Bible into<\/p>\n
English<\/p>\n
during this time it was illegal to do so<\/p>\n
if you didn't have the permission of the<\/p>\n
church authorities<\/p>\n
during this time Tyndale was translating<\/p>\n
the Bible into English he was also<\/p>\n
speaking against false doctrines in the<\/p>\n
church and he was claiming doctrines<\/p>\n
like justification by faith alone<\/p>\n
and so what happened is that Tyndale<\/p>\n
went to trial for heresy and eventually<\/p>\n
he was put to death for his beliefs<\/p>\n
Tyndale died for doing what was right<\/p>\n
and good by trying to protect the<\/p>\n
doctrines of the church and to provide<\/p>\n
the people of God with their own copies<\/p>\n
of God's word<\/p>\n
and so the preacher also observed a<\/p>\n
wicked man who prolongs his life and his<\/p>\n
evil doing and so it's not only that the<\/p>\n
wicked have a long life it's that they<\/p>\n
prolonged their life through their<\/p>\n
wickedness<\/p>\n
so what wisdom and advice does the<\/p>\n
preacher give to understand the<\/p>\n
preacher's advice I think it's important<\/p>\n
to understand how he views life and<\/p>\n
death from an Under the Sun perspective<\/p>\n
and so we see that in Ecclesiastes 9 3-6<\/p>\n
it says this is an evil in all that is<\/p>\n
done under the sun that the same event<\/p>\n
happens to all also the hearts of the<\/p>\n
children of man are full of evil and<\/p>\n
madnesses in their hearts while they<\/p>\n
live and after that they go to the dead<\/p>\n
but he who is joined with all the living<\/p>\n
has hope for a living dog is better than<\/p>\n
a dead lion<\/p>\n
for the living know that they will die<\/p>\n
but the dead know nothing and they have<\/p>\n
no more reward<\/p>\n
for the memory of them is forgotten<\/p>\n
their love and their hate and their Envy<\/p>\n
have already perished<\/p>\n
and forever they have no more share in<\/p>\n
all that is done under the sun<\/p>\n
and so for the preacher life is<\/p>\n
meaningless we've already seen that by<\/p>\n
the bookends of his experiments vanity<\/p>\n
of vanities everything is Vanity but<\/p>\n
when you look at life as a whole life is<\/p>\n
still a better option than an<\/p>\n
alternative which is death<\/p>\n
so once you leave this life you have no<\/p>\n
more reward or no more hope of reward<\/p>\n
for this life because you're not here<\/p>\n
anymore<\/p>\n
and so if you look at the way the the<\/p>\n
preacher describes the the afterlife in<\/p>\n
the Book of Ecclesiastes it's very vague<\/p>\n
and it's very pessimistic<\/p>\n
he thinks your focus should be on this<\/p>\n
life since you once you lose your life<\/p>\n
in this life you have no reward and you<\/p>\n
really can't know what the next life<\/p>\n
holds for you and so if your dad you<\/p>\n
don't have the opportunity to enjoy the<\/p>\n
pleasures of God that God sometimes<\/p>\n
gives you while on Earth<\/p>\n
and so the wicked Behavior has provided<\/p>\n
a gain in term of Life the righteous<\/p>\n
man's behavior has provided a loss in<\/p>\n
terms of life and so gain is another<\/p>\n
theme that is talked about in The Book<\/p>\n
of Ecclesiastes the preacher is<\/p>\n
constantly trying to seek gain because<\/p>\n
he thinks that gain leads to wisdom and<\/p>\n
so you see the preacher he is weighing<\/p>\n
things out he weighs wisdom and Folly he<\/p>\n
weighs hope versus despair Rich versus<\/p>\n
poor the preacher often acts like a<\/p>\n
merchant who is always looking for what<\/p>\n
will give him gain in this life and so<\/p>\n
he's found a little gain in extending<\/p>\n
his life<\/p>\n
what advice does he give from the Under<\/p>\n
the Sun perspective<\/p>\n
7 16 we read do not be overly righteous<\/p>\n
and do not make yourself too wise why<\/p>\n
should you destroy yourself<\/p>\n
and this is one of those passages where<\/p>\n
you sit back and you say what is going<\/p>\n
on here he says do not be overly<\/p>\n
righteous how can he say that this<\/p>\n
doesn't fit with the rest of scripture<\/p>\n
you have to remember that he is speaking<\/p>\n
from an Under the Sun perspective on<\/p>\n
life and he understands what he<\/p>\n
understands is what he observes what he<\/p>\n
experiences and understands from an<\/p>\n
Under the Sun perspective and as we saw<\/p>\n
in 9 3-5 from an Under the Sun<\/p>\n
perspective a person's life is utmost<\/p>\n
important if you lose your life there is<\/p>\n
no more opportunity for reward<\/p>\n
so you don't want to be overly righteous<\/p>\n
because that gets you into trouble<\/p>\n
the preacher would have told William<\/p>\n
Tyndale<\/p>\n
let's just hold off on Translating that<\/p>\n
Bible into English let's just hold off<\/p>\n
on you speaking against these false<\/p>\n
doctrines in the church let's just put<\/p>\n
everything in a book into Memoirs and<\/p>\n
whenever you pass away we'll just send<\/p>\n
it to the Press then<\/p>\n
you're 30 years old you don't want your<\/p>\n
righteous actions to cut your life short<\/p>\n
the preacher then looks at Other Extreme<\/p>\n
which is wickedness and gives advice<\/p>\n
about it in 717 he says be not overly<\/p>\n
Wicked neither be a fool why should you<\/p>\n
die before your time<\/p>\n
the wicked prolonged their life through<\/p>\n
their wickedness and so if you're<\/p>\n
looking to preserve your life then it's<\/p>\n
okay to be Wicked but at the same time<\/p>\n
he recognizes that being overly Wicked<\/p>\n
can get you into trouble and also<\/p>\n
endanger your life and so if you're<\/p>\n
going to be Wicked be wise about being<\/p>\n
Wicked and don't be too Wicked if you<\/p>\n
steal and get caught you could lose your<\/p>\n
life so be cautious what you steal and<\/p>\n
don't steal too much it's okay to be to<\/p>\n
tell little lie but don't tell a big lie<\/p>\n
because you could go to jail for it and<\/p>\n
you could end up losing your life in<\/p>\n
jail<\/p>\n
and in 718 he tells us it is good that<\/p>\n
you should take hold of this and from<\/p>\n
that withhold not your hand for the one<\/p>\n
who fears God shall come out from both<\/p>\n
of them so the key to preserving your<\/p>\n
life is to take both of these hold both<\/p>\n
a life of righteousness and a life of<\/p>\n
wickedness don't be overly righteous<\/p>\n
don't be overly Wicked kind of take a<\/p>\n
middle of the road approach<\/p>\n
and if you look at the righteous<\/p>\n
perishing and the evil prolonging their<\/p>\n
life from an Under the Sun perspective<\/p>\n
where you don't view morality from the<\/p>\n
way that God views it then you conclude<\/p>\n
that morality is just a tool you can use<\/p>\n
to possibly prolong your life<\/p>\n
let's look now at the above the sum<\/p>\n
perspective that the father tells his<\/p>\n
son to take<\/p>\n
and this is what he says the end of the<\/p>\n
matter all has been heard fear God keep<\/p>\n
his Commandments for this is the whole<\/p>\n
duty of man<\/p>\n
and so the father is saying to his son<\/p>\n
seeking wisdom is pretty simple fear the<\/p>\n
lord and keep his Commandments Revere<\/p>\n
the Lord and Look to Him to guide you in<\/p>\n
wisdom by his word do this and you will<\/p>\n
find wisdom and so this is the opposite<\/p>\n
approach that the preacher who is<\/p>\n
allowing his own wisdom and looking at<\/p>\n
things from a Under the Sun perspective<\/p>\n
has used to guide him in wisdom<\/p>\n
so let's look first at where the value<\/p>\n
of wisdom comes from<\/p>\n
for the preacher looking at things from<\/p>\n
an Under the Sun perspective the value<\/p>\n
of righteousness is found in the Earthly<\/p>\n
benefit it can bring<\/p>\n
which is a prolonged Earthly life<\/p>\n
so where is the value of being righteous<\/p>\n
found for those who haven't above the<\/p>\n
sun perspective<\/p>\n
is found in what God created us to be<\/p>\n
and what God created us to do<\/p>\n
so what did how did he create us<\/p>\n
in Genesis 1 27 it says God created man<\/p>\n
in his own image in the image of God he<\/p>\n
created him male and female he created<\/p>\n
them<\/p>\n
what did God create us to do<\/p>\n
in First Corinthians 10 31 we read so<\/p>\n
whether you eat or drink or whatever you<\/p>\n
do do all to the glory of God<\/p>\n
and so God created us in His image to<\/p>\n
image forth his character in the world<\/p>\n
to bring him glory<\/p>\n
we were created and commanded to show<\/p>\n
the world what God's amazing character<\/p>\n
is like<\/p>\n
God created people righteous to show all<\/p>\n
of creation a glimpse of his great<\/p>\n
righteousness<\/p>\n
so the for the Christian the ultimate<\/p>\n
value of righteousness is not found in<\/p>\n
the Earthly gain that it can bring to a<\/p>\n
person<\/p>\n
but in the glory it can bring to the God<\/p>\n
of all creation<\/p>\n
the preacher has such a small and a<\/p>\n
limited worldview that's focused on man<\/p>\n
but for the child of God who has an<\/p>\n
above the sun perspective his mind is<\/p>\n
set on things above in particular on God<\/p>\n
In His glory<\/p>\n
and when we do what God commands us from<\/p>\n
the heart of reverence and love for God<\/p>\n
we glorify him and in the case of being<\/p>\n
righteous we show to the creation what<\/p>\n
God is like and he gets the glory for it<\/p>\n
so when you are faced with a situation<\/p>\n
of doing what is right that might bring<\/p>\n
you Earthly gain or bring God glory how<\/p>\n
will you wisely respond<\/p>\n
you're not charged an item on your<\/p>\n
receipt at the grocery store what will<\/p>\n
you do<\/p>\n
no one from the store knows or ever will<\/p>\n
know<\/p>\n
it's very hot outside so you don't want<\/p>\n
to walk back into the store<\/p>\n
will you take an Under the Sun<\/p>\n
perspective and allow it to guide you or<\/p>\n
will you take an above the sun<\/p>\n
perspective and allow the fear of God<\/p>\n
and reverence for God and his knowledge<\/p>\n
and the knowledge of his word that<\/p>\n
stealing is wrong to guide you to<\/p>\n
glorify God in your actions<\/p>\n
God doesn't allow for a middle of the<\/p>\n
road approach to righteousness<\/p>\n
life can get pretty exciting when you<\/p>\n
are driving in Thailand<\/p>\n
the hardest part for me about driving<\/p>\n
here is the motorcycles you're driving<\/p>\n
down the road and you turn around or you<\/p>\n
look in your rearview mirror to see<\/p>\n
what's behind you and there's nothing<\/p>\n
back there<\/p>\n
you turn around again and then turn back<\/p>\n
around in a few seconds and there are<\/p>\n
two motorcycles behind you you look<\/p>\n
again to the front there are five there<\/p>\n
are two on your left on your right<\/p>\n
you're going up a bridge it's very<\/p>\n
narrow<\/p>\n
so motorcycles are very difficult to<\/p>\n
know how to drive with in Thailand and<\/p>\n
motorcyclists they love to drive down<\/p>\n
the the center lane<\/p>\n
and so what they do is they'll drive<\/p>\n
down the center of Lane and so whenever<\/p>\n
they see one car they'll weave over to<\/p>\n
the the next Lane and they'll keep<\/p>\n
working back weaving back and forth<\/p>\n
dodging cars and so this is the approach<\/p>\n
that the the preacher is is telling<\/p>\n
people to take but when it comes to<\/p>\n
righteousness and wickedness try to stay<\/p>\n
on the center line between righteousness<\/p>\n
and wickedness don't go too far to one<\/p>\n
side only go as far as needed to stay<\/p>\n
alive<\/p>\n
but God's word it plainly tells us that<\/p>\n
as Christians we shouldn't try to live<\/p>\n
in both the road of righteousness and<\/p>\n
the road of wickedness you can't travel<\/p>\n
down the center lane alternating between<\/p>\n
these two God's word tells us that he is<\/p>\n
light and in him no darkness is found<\/p>\n
to be in God's image to be his image<\/p>\n
Bearer it means that we are called to<\/p>\n
represent God's character to God's world<\/p>\n
we are called to be like him<\/p>\n
to try to alternate between the way of<\/p>\n
the righteous and the way the wicked is<\/p>\n
called trying to be lukewarm<\/p>\n
and what does the Lord say about those<\/p>\n
who try this he says I will spit you out<\/p>\n
of my mouth<\/p>\n
Psalm 1 makes it clear that there are<\/p>\n
two ways to live The Way of the Wicked<\/p>\n
and the way of the righteous you must<\/p>\n
choose one or the other God tells us to<\/p>\n
choose the way of the righteous<\/p>\n
we've looked at the value of<\/p>\n
righteousness and compared the Under the<\/p>\n
Sun perspective with the above the sun<\/p>\n
perspective let's look now at the<\/p>\n
difference in how these two perspectives<\/p>\n
view life and death<\/p>\n
so when we look at chapter 9 verses<\/p>\n
three through five the Under the Sun<\/p>\n
perspective life is meaningless but you<\/p>\n
have a little value because only the<\/p>\n
living are able to enjoy the reward of<\/p>\n
which is things in life that are capable<\/p>\n
of bringing Joy like eating and drinking<\/p>\n
and working so the physical life of a<\/p>\n
person is seen as ultimate in a way<\/p>\n
if you're not living you can't<\/p>\n
experience the things of this life and<\/p>\n
so life is to be seen as better than<\/p>\n
death<\/p>\n
and I think this really is the the<\/p>\n
dominant worldview and our culture today<\/p>\n
so for most people life is about<\/p>\n
consuming and enjoying the things of<\/p>\n
this world<\/p>\n
um as long as they can and so the the<\/p>\n
thought goes something like this I want<\/p>\n
to stay in this world as long as I can<\/p>\n
to seek Joy from the things of this<\/p>\n
world I want to experience all this<\/p>\n
world has to offer and find fulfillment<\/p>\n
in the things of the world<\/p>\n
and there have been billions of dollars<\/p>\n
spent on prolonging life through<\/p>\n
supplements and life-extending<\/p>\n
procedures<\/p>\n
and so death is not welcomed from an<\/p>\n
Under the Sun perspective and encourages<\/p>\n
those who are wise to put it off as long<\/p>\n
as possible<\/p>\n
what is the above the sun perspective on<\/p>\n
life the value of life doesn't come from<\/p>\n
us being able to consume things and to<\/p>\n
enjoy things of this world the value of<\/p>\n
Life comes from who made us and whose we<\/p>\n
are<\/p>\n
life is valuable and precious because we<\/p>\n
are God's creation<\/p>\n
we are gods and because we belong to him<\/p>\n
we are valuable<\/p>\n
God cares about life because he created<\/p>\n
everything and it is his and so there's<\/p>\n
this this intrinsic worth that is found<\/p>\n
in all living things because of this<\/p>\n
as we have already talked about creation<\/p>\n
reflects God's glory it shows how<\/p>\n
wonderful he is he's an amazing creator<\/p>\n
we should have the same view of life and<\/p>\n
place the same value on life that God<\/p>\n
does<\/p>\n
life is not vain it's not meaningless or<\/p>\n
empty as the preacher tries to portray<\/p>\n
it<\/p>\n
are above the sun perspective should<\/p>\n
influence how we think and live in a<\/p>\n
world that causes or um encourages the<\/p>\n
the valuing of life<\/p>\n
I have a Christian friend who's in the<\/p>\n
states and every Saturday you can find<\/p>\n
him at an abortion clinic in Augusta<\/p>\n
Georgia he goes to<\/p>\n
talk and to reason with women who are<\/p>\n
there to have an abortion<\/p>\n
and he shares with them that life that<\/p>\n
they carry in them is worth<\/p>\n
something because it's God's creation<\/p>\n
It's Made In God's image and belongs to<\/p>\n
him<\/p>\n
and so<\/p>\n
from an above the sound perspective<\/p>\n
life is precious<\/p>\n
but it's not ultimate<\/p>\n
like is is in the under to some<\/p>\n
perspective<\/p>\n
in fact in a way death is welcomed by<\/p>\n
the Christian<\/p>\n
Paul tells us in Philippians 1 21 for to<\/p>\n
me to live as Christ and to die is gain<\/p>\n
and so life is precious and we should<\/p>\n
seek to promote our life and the life of<\/p>\n
others while on Earth<\/p>\n
but at the same time death is not to be<\/p>\n
feared it's not to be dreaded by the<\/p>\n
Christian<\/p>\n
as we were reminded last week Jesus has<\/p>\n
conquered death as we just sang Jesus<\/p>\n
has conquered death and so the goal in<\/p>\n
life is not to prolong life so that we<\/p>\n
can enjoy the things of the world is to<\/p>\n
glorify God<\/p>\n
and when it comes to living a righteous<\/p>\n
life we pursue righteousness no matter<\/p>\n
what the cost because we want to bring<\/p>\n
glory to God by being like him and we<\/p>\n
know that a better life awaits us<\/p>\n
the joy that we will experience in the<\/p>\n
presence of Jesus will be so much better<\/p>\n
than anything that we can experience on<\/p>\n
this Earth<\/p>\n
the reason the preacher didn't set out<\/p>\n
the the two Pathways of righteousness<\/p>\n
and wickedness and say choose one is<\/p>\n
because<\/p>\n
he viewed life and he saw righteousness<\/p>\n
and everything else from an Under the<\/p>\n
Sun perspective perspective and so from<\/p>\n
an Under the Sun perspective he<\/p>\n
speculates about what might be going on<\/p>\n
in life and he gives advice from this<\/p>\n
speculation<\/p>\n
what he found to understand because of<\/p>\n
his Under the Sun perspective is that<\/p>\n
the life that the books of Psalms and<\/p>\n
Proverbs talk about that speak of life<\/p>\n
is a ultimately a spiritual life found<\/p>\n
from being in a relationship with God<\/p>\n
the righteousness the righteous in life<\/p>\n
in this life and then the next who have<\/p>\n
life in Christ will experience life in<\/p>\n
Jesus we experience it now we have peace<\/p>\n
and joy and loving God that nothing not<\/p>\n
even death can take away<\/p>\n
the wicked are cut off from experiencing<\/p>\n
these things and thus do not have True<\/p>\n
Life As We Understand from the above the<\/p>\n
the preacher goes on to talk about what<\/p>\n
he has found and not found on his quest<\/p>\n
for wisdom<\/p>\n
he says all this I have tested my wisdom<\/p>\n
I said I will be wise<\/p>\n
but it is far from me<\/p>\n
very deep who can find it out<\/p>\n
in verses 27-28<\/p>\n
he says behold this is what I found says<\/p>\n
the preacher while adding one thing to<\/p>\n
another to find the scheme of things<\/p>\n
which my soul salt repeatedly but I have<\/p>\n
not found<\/p>\n
the preacher has sought wisdom and in<\/p>\n
particular to understand things and why<\/p>\n
life is as it is commits his inability<\/p>\n
to find these two<\/p>\n
the preacher by taking an under some<\/p>\n
perspective and look into himself to<\/p>\n
find what is wise has prevented himself<\/p>\n
from finding true wisdom<\/p>\n
and this is what the father has warning<\/p>\n
his son about and is warning us about<\/p>\n
a person's Only Hope for finding true<\/p>\n
wisdom is to listen and live out the<\/p>\n
father's positive instruction to his son<\/p>\n
which is to fear the lord and Trust in<\/p>\n
his word<\/p>\n
the preacher's inability to find wisdom<\/p>\n
should be a caution to us trying to find<\/p>\n
wisdom any other way than fearing the<\/p>\n
Lord and allowing his commands to guide<\/p>\n
us<\/p>\n
God has given us his word as a guide to<\/p>\n
help us understand life and how to<\/p>\n
navigate through it<\/p>\n
Psalm 119 105 tells us your word is a<\/p>\n
lamp to my feet and a light to my path<\/p>\n
the fear of the Lord it puts us in a<\/p>\n
posture to receive God's wisdom and<\/p>\n
God's word guides us to it without these<\/p>\n
two we will be wandering in the dark<\/p>\n
grasping for wisdom grasping for meaning<\/p>\n
of life only to find that we can't Truly<\/p>\n
find it<\/p>\n
don't try to find meaning in life and<\/p>\n
wisdom on your own like the preacher did<\/p>\n
examining life without any Revelation<\/p>\n
from the Lord is like trying to find a<\/p>\n
needle in the haystack in the dark<\/p>\n
the preacher tells us that while he<\/p>\n
didn't find wisdom on his on his quest<\/p>\n
he did find something else<\/p>\n
in 7 26-29 we read and I find something<\/p>\n
more bitter than death the woman whose<\/p>\n
heart is snares and Nets and whose hands<\/p>\n
are Fetters he who pleases God escapes<\/p>\n
her but the sinner is taken by her<\/p>\n
behold this is what I found says the<\/p>\n
preacher while adding one thing to<\/p>\n
I have not found one man among a<\/p>\n
thousand I found but a woman among these<\/p>\n
I have not found see this I found that<\/p>\n
God made man upright but they have<\/p>\n
sought out many schemes<\/p>\n
and so the preacher found out through<\/p>\n
his observation of mankind that mankind<\/p>\n
is sinful that life is messed up that we<\/p>\n
are not good we are wicked the preacher<\/p>\n
doesn't really offer any hope though for<\/p>\n
mankind here because he's looking at<\/p>\n
things from an Under the Sun perspective<\/p>\n
but when we apply the father's positive<\/p>\n
instruction to fear the lord and to<\/p>\n
trust his word to guide us and we look<\/p>\n
at the son the Son of God the wisdom we<\/p>\n
find in him completely changes our<\/p>\n
perspective on everything<\/p>\n
when we look at the world as broken as<\/p>\n
sinful as messed up as it may be<\/p>\n
with an Under the Sun perspective<\/p>\n
s-o-n we find meaning we find purpose<\/p>\n
and we find Hope<\/p>\n
I'm nearsighted so I have a problem<\/p>\n
seeing things far away<\/p>\n
but I can see things very close up and<\/p>\n
when I look at things at a certain<\/p>\n
distance everything becomes blurry I<\/p>\n
can't make out the shape of objects<\/p>\n
everything looks like it's in a haze or<\/p>\n
in a fog and when I put on the<\/p>\n
prescription glasses that a qualified<\/p>\n
medical doctor has prescribed for me<\/p>\n
everything suddenly becomes clear<\/p>\n
I can make out objects and distinguish<\/p>\n
colors at a far distance<\/p>\n
things suddenly make sense<\/p>\n
the Lord has told us and shown Us in the<\/p>\n
Book of Ecclesiastes that wisdom comes<\/p>\n
from him we are not going to be able to<\/p>\n
figure things out on our own and those<\/p>\n
who look at the world from a worldly<\/p>\n
perspective and try to use their own<\/p>\n
ability to speculate and try to figure<\/p>\n
out things will end up confused and<\/p>\n
they'll end up despondent like the<\/p>\n
preacher<\/p>\n
God has given us his word that is like a<\/p>\n
pair of prescription glasses and so we<\/p>\n
must filter the world through the lens<\/p>\n
of scripture<\/p>\n
if we want to understand things<\/p>\n
correctly if you want to make sense of<\/p>\n
this broken world that you live in and<\/p>\n
know how to live in it wisely then take<\/p>\n
the heart the simple instruction that<\/p>\n
the father gives to his son fear God and<\/p>\n
obey his commands<\/p>\n
brothers and sisters let us look to the<\/p>\n
Lord and his word to guide us<\/p>\n
wisdom comes from the Lord<\/p>\n
let's pray<\/p>\n
dear heavenly father we thank you so<\/p>\n
much for the Book of Ecclesiastes we<\/p>\n
thank you that you have given up to us<\/p>\n
to teach us about how to pursue wisdom<\/p>\n
we thank you for all that you teach us<\/p>\n
in it we pray that you will be with us<\/p>\n
as we search out how to live a wise life<\/p>\n
is tempting to look at the world around<\/p>\n
us and try to figure things out on our<\/p>\n
own<\/p>\n
to want to test all the world has to<\/p>\n
offer to see if we can find some meaning<\/p>\n
or wisdom outside of you<\/p>\n
we have seen where this worldview leads<\/p>\n
as we saw in our text this morning the<\/p>\n
preacher never found the meaning in<\/p>\n
understanding he saw<\/p>\n
his result is despondency and<\/p>\n
meaningless<\/p>\n
help us to look to you your commands<\/p>\n
your words to be a lamp into our feet<\/p>\n
and a light into our path to guide us in<\/p>\n
wisdom we ask all this in Jesus name<\/p>\n
amen<\/p>","english_search_text":"","":"","original_publish_date":"20230419","video_url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ipsyOzd95Mc","video_id":"ipsyOzd95Mc","video_duration":"37:17","channel_name":"Grace City Bangkok"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/679","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=679"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/679\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":680,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/679\/revisions\/680"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=679"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=679"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=679"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}