THE MOST IMPORTANT EVENTS IN HUMAN HISTORY

IMPORTANCE OF THE CRUCIFIXION

1) THE CRUCIFIXION SHOWS THE SEVERITY OF SIN AND THE NEED FOR REPENTANCE
Anyone who believes that God does not take sin seriously has not examined what Scripture teaches about the cross. Isaiah affirms, “(Jesus) was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). Christ endured physical death and the wrath of God in our place. F.F Bruce affirms, “God’s only son experienced wrath on our behalf” (1322).

Many, when reading or hearing about the crucifixion, often become overwhelmed with sadness. Other emotions that should be felt, however, are anger toward and remorse for the sin in our lives and in our world. According to Bruce, “The people of God are to hate what God Himself hates with an absolute hatred—sin(Deut. 12:31; Is. 61:8; Heb. 1:9)” (544). He also asserts, “True repentance is a ‘godly sorrow’ for sin (and) is God’s will and pleasure (Luke 15:7-10; 2 Pet. 3:9), as well as His command (Mark 6:12; Acts 17:30)” (1078).

2) THE CRUCIFIXION DEMONSTRATES THE GREAT LOVE OF GOD
Paul makes this point by affirming, “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). The Scriptures clearly teach that in spite of our rebellion, God sent Christ to die for us. Isaiah 53:6 says, "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all."


3) THE CRUCIFIXION BRINGS HOPE TO A SEEMINGLY TRAGIC STORY
Because all have sinned against God, the only way to settle matters with him is by spending eternity in Hell. Paul, however, shows that it is God who can settle matters between himself and mankind in a way that prevents condemnation. Paul affirms, “God put forward (Christ) as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith” (Romans 3:25). The key word in this verse is “propitiation,” which simply means Jesus’ death satisfied God’s wrath enabling everyone who trusts in him to be saved.

IMPORTANCE OF THE RESURRECTION

Many have said that even if Jesus did not rise from the dead, it would not make a difference. The Apostle Paul, however, says otherwise in 1 Corinthians 15:12-20.

He says,

12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.

Notice what the implications would be if there was no resurrection.

If Christ is not raised from the dead…

1) THE GOSPEL MESSAGE IS USELESS
The Corinthians may not have realized what they were denying when they denied the resurrection. Paul helps to remind them that denying Christ’s resurrection meant denying the Gospel. The Gospel means good news, but without the resurrection the opposite is true.

2) THE BELIEVERS FAITH IS USELESS (14)
What brings us hope as believers is the fact that Jesus has been raised. Because He has been raised, we too can have eternal life. According to R.C. Sproul, “Paul…show(ed) them that the resurrection of Jesus cannot be separated from the resurrection of those who are His (vv. 20-23).”

3) THOSE WHO PREACH THE GOSPEL ARE DECEIVERS(15)
Paul has already said that if there is no Resurrection than the Gospel message is useless. Now he takes it one step further and says without the Resurrection, the Gospel message is deceptive. When Christ called his disciples to be witnesses, he wanted them to testify of truth. If Christ has not been raised, then our testimony is untruthful.

4) THE BELIEVER IS STILL DEAD IN SIN (17)
Once again Paul indicates that if the resurrection had not occurred, then our faith is useless and we are still separated from God and dead in sin.

5) THOSE WHO HAVE DIED BELIEVING IN CHRIST HAVE PERISHED (18)
This is a continuation of point number 4.

6) THE CHRISTIAN IS TO BE PITIED(19)
When explaining this verse, Sproul says, “Our hope of salvation is so glorious that if we were still in our sins and lost (vv. 17, 18), we would have experienced the greatest and cruelest of all deceptions (vv. 31, 32).”

Bruce, F.F. New Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers. 1995.

Sproul, R.C. 1 Corinthians. The Reformation Study Bible. Orlando: Ligonier Ministries. 2005.

"Quote" of the Week

"If Christ is not raised then it is clear that the preaching of the early church is an exercise in futility. The preaching becomes empty words and the faith that follows is worthless." -R.C. Sproul

SERMON NOTES FOR APRIL 17, 2011

MAKING SENSE OF WORSHIP
Ecclesiastes 5:1-7

I was recently rereading one of my favorite books written by Donald Whitney entitled, “The Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life.” In it Whitney describes a painful childhood memory at his birthday party when he was 10 years old.

At this party his parents allowed him to invite 8 friends from school over to the house for games, cake and ice cream. So the eight boys came over after school—they played football and basketball together until dark and then his dad and mom grilled hot dogs and burgers and then they had cake, ice cream and presents. Up to this point, he mentions that this was turning out to be one of his best and most memorable birthdays ever. After they finished with presents, his mom and dad loaded up the boys into the station wagon and took them to the high school gym for a basketball game.

Whitney said shortly after entering the game, his great birthday soon became one of his worst because those eight boys that were with him all went their own way to sit with other friends leaving him all alone to sit in the stands by himself for the rest of the night. There was not a thank you for the food, or for the ticket to the game, not even a happy birthday. They just told him, “We are going to sit somewhere else” and without a word of gratitude—they left without looking back.

Now Whitney tells this story not to gain sympathy from his readers, but to make the point that this is the way we often treat God as we gather together on Sunday Mornings. He says, “(This is) the way we often treat God in worship. Though we come to an event where He is the Guest of Honor, it is possible to give Him a routine gift, sing a few customary songs to Him, and then totally neglect Him…Like my ten-year-old friends; we may leave without any twinge of conscience, without any awareness of our insensitivity, convinced we have fulfilled an obligation.”

Isn’t that true? I mean many of us do this week in and week out Sunday after Sunday. We gather together for an event where God is supposed to be the Guest of Honor and though we might give him some lip service in prayer, sing a few songs about Him and even give Him a monetary gift, other than that He is often the furthest thing from our minds. But we don’t realize that. Each Sunday we leave without looking back thinking we have held up our end of the bargain—thinking we have fulfilled an obligation.

In Ecclesiastes 5:1-7, Solomon helps us make sense of worship. Here is the first principle…

TO WORSHIP GOD EFFECTIVLY…WE MUST APPROACH HIM PROPERLY
5:1 Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil. 2 Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. 3 For a dream comes with much business, and a fool’s voice with many words.

In the first few verses, Solomon tells us how to prepare for and participate in worship.

First…
WITH CAREFUL STEPS

Solomon says, “Guard your steps when you go to the house of God.” In other words, “Don’t come to God on your terms—don’t come to Him flippantly and carelessly in whatever way you see fit. Approach Him on His terms and as one under His authority.”

God’s message to His people throughout the Bible is this, “When you come into my presence, you better come in the proper way as one under my authority. You are to direct your focus toward me, worship me, revere me, and stand in awe of me.”

When we gather together here on Sunday mornings, our meetings are to be all about Him. Like I said at the beginning, “God is the guest of honor here.” He should not be far removed from our minds, but instead should be at the forefront of our minds.

This should not only be your attitude here but everywhere. Not only is worship a corporate thing, but it’s a private practice as well. Worship is not just a Sunday thing; it’s a Monday-Saturday thing. Guarding your steps, is not just something you do when you walk through those doors, but is something you should be doing throughout the week.

God never intended for us to go at life on our own, but wants us to live as children under His authority—guided and directed by Him. That’s what it means to guard your steps. So that’s how to prepare for worship. In the second part of v. 1 through v. 3, Solomon tells us how to participate in worship.

He says we are to participate…

WITH OPEN HEARTS AND CLOSED MOUTHS
v.1 To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil. 2 Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few. 3 For a dream comes with much business, and a fool’s voice with many words.

In vv. 1-3, Solomon says something here that is counter to the way many think when it comes to worship. He says the key to worship is attentiveness—being attentive. Now some of you are thinking, “I thought worship was all about me singing and shouting praises to God—I thought worship was all about what I say about Him and to Him. Solomon says here, “True god-honoring worship takes place when our hearts are open and our mouths are closed.”

Solomon goes on to say that those who are not approaching God properly with open hearts and closed mouths are offering what he calls “the sacrifice of fools.” Let me explain what this is.

Many in our churches today are offering “the sacrifice of fools” week in and week out because though they get up and go to church every Sunday and participate in the service by giving an offering, singing some songs and bowing for prayer, when it comes time to draw near to God and hear from His word—these people’s hearts are closed. And you know what? They leave church week in and week out unchanged. This happens here and everywhere every Sunday.

Many think that simply taking time to come, giving a check and singing some songs is going to cut it. Solomon says if you are not drawing near to God with an open heart—if you are not listening, if you are not being attentive, if you are not open and ready to receive God’s word and apply it, then God is not pleased with any of your activities. You are just offering “the sacrifice of fools.”

This is challenging for us isn’t it because too often we don’t draw near to Him with open hearts, but with open mouths. Solomon says in v. 3 “A fool is known by his many words.” In other words, the foolish are those who always enter into the presence of God with their gums flapping. They are those who fill all of that time with their own opinions and insights.

Notice Solomon’s humbling statement at the end of v. 2. He basically calls for us to remember who we are and who God is. He says, “For God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.”

This is a good reality check for us isn’t it? At times, we need to be reminded that God is infinitely greater than any thought of us and we also need to be reminded that we don’t know as much as we think we know so we just need to be quiet before God.

You want your worship to be honoring and glorifying to God? Get quiet before Him. Open His word with this attitude. “God I am coming to your word to hear what you want to say. If there is anything in my thinking—anything in my life that is opposed to you, show me in your word and change me.” And then get quiet and study the Scriptures. If you will draw near to God in this way your life will be forever changed in a good way—in a godhonoring way.

Some of the most spiritually mature people that I have met are the ones who openly admit they don’t know certain things, who are always asking questions and who know how to get quiet before God to receive instruction from Him.

So to worship God effectively, we must approach Him properly with careful steps, open hearts and closed mouths.

TO WORSHIP GOD EFFECTIVLY…WE MUST TAKE HIM SERIOUSLY

First…
BY KEEPING OUR PROMISES TO HIM
4 When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow.

In this verse, Solomon is talking about our response after our time of meeting with God. How many times have we told God after a time of worship, “Lord, I promise to pursue you with all I have and am going to commit myself to grow in my knowledge of you through your word?” How many times have we said to God, “God I am going to be a man or woman of purity—a man and woman of integrity.” How many times have you and I made these kinds of promises to God and how often have we failed to keep these commitments?

I wish I could make you happy by saying, “It’s not a big deal—don’t worry about it?” But I can’t. It’s a big deal. God says, “Worry about it because you have made these promises to me.” Though there is nothing we can do about the past commitments that have been broken before God other than seek forgiveness, Solomon does tell us what our actions should be going forward. In vv. 5-6 he says,

5 It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. 6 Let not your mouth lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake.

Now know that Solomon is not saying here that we should not commit ourselves to God in any way, shape or form. His point is that we should choose our words carefully and make sure that we keep the commitments we make because if not, he says it would have been better had we not made them at all. God wants us to avoid making rash decisions without considering the commitment and wants us to “pay what we vow.”

So God takes the commitments you make before Him and to Him seriously and He holds you and me accountable in a big way. Look at what Solomon says at the end of v. 6. He says that if we do not keep our promises, God will destroy the works of our hands.

Now commentators are uncertain of what the actual form of punishment is that Solomon mentions here, but it seems as if he is saying, in light of the book of Ecclesiastes, that if you have committed yourself to God and in turn pursue happiness and lasting satisfaction “under the sun” in things like pleasure, work, wealth and success, God will not let you have rest or fulfillment in that.

We know this to be the case don’t we? God is not going to let us enjoy our life without Him, instead he is going to make a mess of the work of our hands. So we need to keep our promises to Him.

BY STANDING IN AWE OF HIM
7 For when dreams increase and words grow many, there is vanity; but God is the one you must fear.

Basically, Solomon is saying here that instead of offering empty promises, which are foolish, we should have a profound respect for God. I believe one of the main reasons we have problems keeping our commitments to God is because we don’t think rightly about Him—our view of God is way too low.

This is why the study of Theology is so important. Theology is necessary because right thinking about God and the Christian faith necessarily leads to right living. If we have a low view of God, we are not going to take the commitments we make to Him seriously. In fact, we are not going to do any of the things we have discussed. We are not going to “guard our steps,” draw near to Him with open hearts and closed mouths and view Him as infinitely greater than any thought of us and in response get quiet before Him.

Solomon says instead of offering empty worship and promises to a small god, stand in awe of, be astounded by, be amazed at, be captivated by, have a profound respect for the one true God of the Bible. This view of God will lead to god-honoring worship.

CONCLUSION
Let me end with this. In the first several chapters of this book, Solomon talks about the fact that the things of this world that we cherish “under the sun” are hevel—the Hebrew word meaning useless, pointless, aimless, futile, fleeting. And the reason why is because they all end.

And yet we spend the majority of our time and energy thinking about and participating in these temporal, earthly, short-lived activities. They consume our time, flood our thoughts and as a result we neglect to prioritize those things that matter most—that matter for eternity.

The reason it is important to study what worship is and how to worship God properly is because worship is what we were made for. It’s what you and I were created to do and is the one thing that we will be doing forever.

My prayer for you is that you would make worship a priority and that your worship would be honoring and glorifying to God. I pray that you would learn to approach God properly with careful steps, open hearts and closed mouths, and that you would take Him seriously by standing in awe of and keeping your word to Him.

“The public and private worship of God should be based upon and include so much of the Bible. The Bible reveals God to us so that we may worship Him. Bible reading and preaching are central in public worship because they are the clearest, most direct, most extensive presentation of God in the meeting.” -Donald Whitney

SERMON NOTES FOR APRIL 10, 2011

MAKING SENSE OF THE 9 TO 5
Ecclesiastes 4:4-16

Have you ever heard someone say, “You are working yourself to death?” Well, the Japanese take this phrase seriously. They call it Karoshi which literally means, “Death by work” and is a problem in Japan.

The government first recognized this issue in 1987, when the health ministry in Japan started tracking cases of healthy men and women, some in their 20s, who dropped dead from heart attacks and strokes apparently brought on by excessive work.

Some when hearing this probably think, “Working someone that much is crazy.” But let’s be honest, though our work conditions may not be this extreme, how many health problems do we have in our country that come as a result of being over worked? Quite a few right?

We are so driven—bending over backwards—putting our bodies through the ringer day in and day out just to make forward progress in our work. We are working long hours and as hard as we can just to get ahead in our jobs.

In Ecclesiastes 4:4-16, Solomon gives us some great advice for the way we need to approach our work. First he tells us we need to…

FIND A BALANCE BETWEEN WORK AND REST

4 Then I saw that all toil and all skill in work come from a man’s envy of his neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.5 The fool folds his hands and eats his own flesh. 6 Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of toil and a striving after wind.

In these verses, Solomon explains to us that people are basically in one of three categories when it comes to work. You are either a “workaholic,” a “lazy bum” or a “balanced man.” Solomon makes the point in this passage that the first two extremes they are to be avoided.

First he talks about workaholics. In v. 4 Solomon says,

4 Then I saw that all toil and all skill in work come from a man’s envy of his neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

Now don’t misunderstand Solomon. He doesn’t have a problem with hard work. He was as hard a worker as anyone. He is taking issue with those who are addicted to work. Those who are driven to work hard because of jealous rivalry and envy.

Solomon’s point here is that there are many in the work place who are “working themselves to death” and are doing it because of rivalry and envy—this desire to beat the next guy—a fierce determination to win at all cost—doing whatever it takes to get to the top.

Solomon says, “Being a workaholic and being driven by jealous rivalry and envy is vanity—it’s aimless, it’s striving after wind.” And the reason why is because, no matter how many hours you put in, the effort you put forth and the people you step on or over to get to where you want to be, there is always someone who is more successful—someone who makes has a better title and who makes more money.

Solomon not only has a word for those who are “all work and no play.” In v. 5 he also has something for the lazy person as well. He says,

5 The fool folds his hands and eats his own flesh.

Here Solomon describes another unhealthy extreme as one labors under the sun. In v.5 he says that the “lazy bum” is every bit as out of control and unbalanced as the workaholic. He says, “The fool folds his hands.” The folding of hands is a sign of inactivity. In other words, the person who has his hands folded is the one not doing anything.

He also says the lazy person “eats his own flesh.” Solomon is being very sarcastic when talking about the lazy man. He says, “The lazy man, the one who has hands folded, is not going to be able to reap any of the benefits that come from fruitful labor, therefore he has nothing left to eat but his own flesh.”

So Solomon point in this verse is that both extremes are wrong. In v. 6, Solomon helps us find the balance between the two. He says,

6 Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of toil and a striving after wind.

Basically what Solomon is saying is this, “We need to live a two-handed life.” On the one hand we need work and on the other rest—work and rest. Both of these should be present in our lives.

Though this sounds easy, few of us are doing it. Some of you are burned out because your life is filled with all work and no rest. You are tired, weary and your health is declining because of it. There are others of you whose life consists of all rest and no work—in other words you are lazy. This too leads to misery.

Though God wants us to work hard, he also wants us to take a day off to enjoy what He has provided. He even exampled this for us in creation. We are told for 6 days He created and on the 7th He rested. Since we are to be imitators of God, we also need to have balance.

CHOOSE RELATIONSHIPS OVER RICHES

In vv. 7-8, Solomon is going to share with us a parable and it is powerful. You are going to see how this parable clearly relates to our culture. He says in vv. 7-8,

7 Again, I saw vanity under the sun: 8 one person who has no other, either son or brother, yet there is no end to all his toil, and his eyes are never satisfied with riches, so that he never asks, “For whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure?” This also is vanity and an unhappy business.

In these verses, Solomon puts his finger on a very common problem that many of us have with work. He is writing about a person who devotes all his time to work and has no time for people—no time for relationships.

Solomon says though this person is praised in our culture he/she has failed by neglecting what matters most—people. Solomon says, “Choosing riches and success over relationships is ‘vanity…(it is) an unhappy business.” Why? Because our eyes are never satisfied with riches.

One of my favorite stories to read each year around Christmas is the Christmas Carol. This story clearly illustrates Solomon’s point. The main character, Ebenezer Scrooge is the type of person Solomon has in mind in this text. In the story, Charles Dickens refers to him as a “miserable old sinner.” Why? Because he pursues riches over relationships. Though his bank account is full, His house is empty.

What makes this story so enjoyable is that Scrooge is given a second chance and makes the most of it, but many will not. Those of you familiar with the story remember that Scrooge had a partner named Jacob Marley who was not given a second chance. Early in the story when confronted with Marley’s ghost Scrooge said, “You were always a good man of business Jacob!” In other words, “You were a success by the world’s standards!” To which Marley replied, “Business? Mankind was my business.”

Unfortunately many in our society are going to find out the hard way that while they were so busy chasing after the might dollar, life passed them by. When this happens trust me when I say, they will wish more than anything that they had prioritized people over profession.

In vv. 9-12, Solomon mentions some great principles about friendship.

1st he shows us that…

• Friends make you a better worker

A lot of people disagree thinking that they are better off by themselves, but look at what Solomon says in v. 9.

9 Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil.

Solomon in this verse warns against lonely success. He talks about the importance of working together and how this is a much better option because there is what he says “good reward” with this type of work. Not only can we get twice as much accomplished, but working together also helps build community and enables us to build lasting friendships and relationships as we labor together.

2nd he shows that…

• Friends are needed in times of trouble

Solomon says,

10 For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! 11 Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? 12 And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

In these three verses Solomon gives three different scenarios that all make the same point. And his point is, “In times of trouble, friends give us strength.” There are going to be times in life when you stumble and fall, that’s inevitable. There are going to be times when you feel all alone in this world—when you feel pulled apart because of the difficult circumstances in life.

Solomon says that when this happens you are going to need a friend. You are going to need someone to reach down and help you stand again and to take you in and comfort you and stand strong with you through the difficulties of life.

PUT LITTLE VALUE ON POPULARITY

Some will say, “Well if competition is not where it’s at and money is not what it’s all about—What about fame? What about popularity? Solomon talks about popularity in in these four verses and does it by telling a parable. He writes,

13 Better was a poor and wise youth than an old and foolish king who no longer knew how to take advice. 14 For he went from prison to the throne, though in his own kingdom he had been born poor. 15 I saw all the living who move about under the sun, along with that youth who was to stand in the king’s place. 16 There was no end of all the people, all of whom he led. Yet those who come later will not rejoice in him. Surely this also is vanity and a striving after wind.

Solomon’s point here is that though we value popularity, it is fleeting and he makes this point by telling a story about a king who is surpassed by a poor young man who at one time was even a prisoner. Solomon explains that young man rises out of the gutter to the pinnacle—to surpass this king and people follow him. But after a period of time this young man’s popularity fades.

He tells this story to make the point that those who work so hard to be known and to be looked to and idolized are striving after wind because popularity is fleeting. I recently heard a pastor say that fame and popularity have the shelf life of cottage cheese. And we have seen this first hand haven’t we? We have seen achievements rot, wealth rot, and popularity sour just like cottage cheese.

That’s why God goes to great lengths to tell us in His word, “I created you for much, much more—for more than short-lived achievements, temporal riches and popularity that is fleeting.” God created us for more. He created you and me to find our fulfillment, joy, and meaning in Him.

This is why Christ came. He left riches and became poor for our sake so that we could be restored to a right relationship with God. He came so we could experience fulfillment and joy in God—so that we could have an abundant life in Him.

"Quote" of the Week

"The industrious man thinks that money will bring him peace, but he has no time to enjoy it. The idle man thinks that doing nothing will bring him peace, but his life-style only destroys him. The integrated man enjoys both his labor and the fruit of his labor and balances toil with rest." Warren Wiersbe

SERMON NOTES FOR APRIL 3, 2011

MAKING SENSE OF LIFE’S DIFFICULTIES
Ecclesiastes 3:16-4:3

We are continuing our study through the book of Ecclesiastes and today we are going to discuss how to make sense of life’s difficulties.

Here’s the first principle…

THOUGH THERE IS INJUSTICE EVERYWHERE…GOD HAS THE FINAL WORD

16 Moreover, I saw under the sun that in the place of justice, even there was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was wickedness.

As a student of life, and a good one at that, one of the observations Solomon makes when looking at life “under the sun” is that there doesn’t seem to be much in the way of justice in this life. Though we have written laws, elected officials, law enforcement, and prisons—these things are only as good as those in charge.

Though our system is one of the best in the world, it’s not perfect. The system doesn’t work perfectly because sinners can’t bring ultimate and perfect justice upon other sinners because we are imperfect—because we are flawed. We have mixed motives and selfish intentions, which is why at times we see the innocent dealt discipline and the guilty let off.

Solomon gives further proof that injustice is everywhere by showing that in the two places where there should be goodness and fairness we find wickedness. He says, “I have seen under the sun that in the place of justice there is wickedness.” This is a reference to the courts of law. Solomon’s point is that of all places there should be justice in our courts, but what we often find instead is injustice and wickedness. Though there are many judges, lawyers and others in that line of work who are concerned with justice, most of us would agree that there are also many who are not.

Solomon continues by saying, “In the place of righteousness there is wickedness.” Many of us have witnessed this first hand in our churches. We have seen those in positions of spiritual leadership abuse their power and have witnessed scandal within the church. So the question we need to ask is, “How do we make sense of and deal with this?

Look at v. 17
17 I said in my heart, God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for there is a time for every matter and for every work.

Solomon is comforted by the fact that even though there is no perfect justice in this life, a time is coming when perfect justice will take place because it will be carried out by God. He basically says, “Though there is injustice in this life, a time for judgment is coming and that judgment is going to be carried out by God.”

This truth should move us to respond in a couple ways. First it should set our minds at ease a bit when we witness acts of injustice in our life and world. We should remember that though one might get off scot free in our courts, nothing gets by God—though “Double Jeopardy” is in play in our courts, it does not apply to God. That person will be tried again by the God who knows all, who judges perfectly and who deals out appropriate punishment.

Second, this truth should move us to be merciful toward others. Paul says,

Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Romans 12:17-21).

You and I were once in the same boat and though we have been saved by grace alone through faith in Christ alone, we at times can be some of the most judgmental and ungracious people. At times we act as if we have never experienced the grace and mercy of God because we fail to grant it to others even though it’s been freely granted to us.

THOUGH DEATH COMES TO US ALL…LIFE CAN BE ENJOY

18 I said in my heart with regard to the children of man that God is testing them that they may see that they themselves are but beasts. 19 For what happens to the children of man and what happens to the beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts, for all is vanity. 20 All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return.

In this passage of Scripture, Solomon is simply making one single solitary observation between man and beast. He wants his readers to see that both man and animal are alike in that they both die and go to the ground. Once again Solomon’s perspective is horizontal—“under the sun” with God removed.

Listen to these similarities between man and beast…
• WE BOTH DIE- We are born, we grow and eventually stop breathing. Have you ever seen an animal take its final breath? Looks similar to us doesn’t it?

• WE BOTH RETURN TO THE SAME PLACE- Once again, Solomon here is not talking about heaven or hell, just talking about what happens to the body after death. Both the bodies of man and animal eventually die and go to the ground where they decay.

• WE BOTH LIVE SHORT LIVES- Though our lives are normally longer than the animals, they are still extremely short. This is a continued point of Solomon’s throughout the book. He tells us time and time again that this life is fleeting, transient, short-lived, a vapor of vapors.

Solomon continues with his negative view of life “under the sun” in v. 21 by saying,

21 Who knows whether the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of the beast goes down into the earth?

Basically he is saying here, “Who knows what happens when you die?” Without God it’s anyone’s guess. Solomon is considering this question empirically—just using his senses and his three pound brain.

With just the facts before us, we can’t prove a thing. At best it’s only a guess. Philosophy is a guess, atheism is a guess. Without special revelation, without God breaking into human history, without the prophets and apostles being carried along by the Holy Spirit, without Christ coming in the flesh to show us the Father, how do we know? At best we are left to nothing more than a guess.

Once again, Solomon wants you and me to feel the weight of the hopelessness, harshness and cruelty of life under the sun and as we have said already, that’s what God wants as well. He wants our eyes to be open to the harshness of life, which is the reason why we have the book of Ecclesiastes in our Bible. God wants us to become disillusioned and discouraged by the hopelessness and purposelessness of life so that we would be drawn to Him.

A very important realization that we must come to in Ecclesiastes is the fact that we don’t have the answers therefore we need to seek out the God who does. If your trust is in some sort of man-made explanation of this life and the life to come, my prayer is that you would stop playing the guessing game when it comes to the things of God and seek out the God who knows.

When we come to know God through Christ not only do we get answers to life’s tough questions, but we also get to enjoy life! Look at what Solomon says in v. 22.

22 So I saw that there is nothing better than that a man should rejoice in his work, for that is his lot. Who can bring him to see what will be after him?

When you look at life, it’s painful. People suffer. People die. It seems like a brutal short run and then the end. But for those of us who know God—who have an “above the sun” perspective—we can experience lasting joy and happiness even in a world filled with difficulty.

THOUGH OPPRESSION IS EVERYWHERE…WE HAVE A DIVINE COMFORTER

In Ecclesiastes 4:1-3, Solomon emphasizes oppression. The main point he makes in these verses is that “Oppression is everywhere and it’s severe.” Solomon says,

4:1 Again I saw all the oppressions that are done under the sun. And behold, the tears of the oppressed, and they had no one to comfort them! On the side of their oppressors there was power, and there was no one to comfort them. 2 And I thought the dead who are already dead more fortunate than the living who are still alive. 3 But better than both is he who has not yet been and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun.

In most every area of life there is oppression because in most every area of life there are people in positions of power who abuse their power. Solomon also says that at times oppression can be overwhelming. He makes the point in v. 2 that oppression is so bad that the dead are more fortunate than those living and the unborn more fortunate that those who are born. What is Solomon insinuating here? That abortion and suicide are reasonable options because of the oppression in our world? Of course not. That would go completely counter to 3:22 that says that we are to enjoy life even though injustice and oppression are everywhere.

Solomon is using hyperbole—a deliberate exaggeration. He is simply trying to stress to the reader that oppression is everywhere and at times unbearable. Thinking about the oppression in our world should lead us to respond in one of number of ways.

One it should move us to action. The latin phrase “De Opresso Liber” is a motto of the United States Army Special Forces that means “To free the oppressed.” That should be our motto as believers. This is what Christ came to do for us to free us and is what we should do for others.

Second, oppression should lead us to God—our divine comforter. Though this world is filled with injustice, oppression, sin and death, God did not leave us to ourselves to figure out this life on our own, but instead sent His son who willingly emptied himself and took on flesh and dwelt among us.

Christ entered into this crazy messed up world and was oppressed for us. He underwent judgment that we deserved and died in our place so that we could be delivered from oppression that comes as a result of our sin.

If you are put out with life—If life has become too difficult for you and you don’t feel as if you have anywhere to turn. Let me end by reminding you of Christ’s words in Jn. 16:33. He says “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

If you are beaten down by life, let me invite you to place your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ—the one who has overcome the world.

"Quote" of the Week

In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. John 16:33