You
All right brethren find your seats grab your hymnals we're about to begin
Find your seats and grab your hymnals great to see everyone here this morning. I
Hope you're ready to sing some praises to the Lord lift up your voices lift up your hearts your mouths and
If you can please take your hymnals and turn to him number
143
143 please 1 4 3 will begin by singing blessed assurance 1 4 3 and if you can please stand please do
1 4 3 blessed assurance
Oh
Is that
Oh
Excellent singing let's go to a word of prayer having file Lord
We do
Come before you this Sunday Lord to praise you to worship you Lord to give you thanks for this week that you've given us
And Lord we need your help for this coming week as well
So Lord I just pray you'd be with us
Use this opportunity that we're in church Lord to teach us great things from your truth from your word
Well that we could go out this week Lord and just serve you faithfully all the days of our life and God
I just pray that your Holy Spirit will touch our hearts touch our minds and
Help us Lord to give you the worship and praise that you deserve. We pray all things in Jesus name. Amen
You may be seated
Okay our next hymn is hymn number 216
216
2 1 6
And we'll sing surely goodness and mercy surely goodness and mercy
2 1 6
Oh
On the second
Oh
Me
Oh
And the scene sounds awesome one more him before the Bible reading let's go to
363 363
And I've got the wrong him bear with me brethren
Bear
With me
Him number
Three two three three hundred and twenty three
323 more about Jesus three two three
I
Think I have to explain this one a little bit
So as we sing the stanzas you get to the last one where he goes more more about Jesus more more about Jesus
Now notice when it says DS
Alfini
Alright, then we have to go back to the middle stanza
Alright, and then we we end with that one more of his saving full messy more of his love who died for me
But every stanza is going to be different so if you're up to the fourth one
Then you're gonna be singing more of his kingdom sure increase more of his coming Prince of Peace
Does that make sense I?
Think you'll follow along just fine. You'll be just fine alright 323 more about Jesus three two three
Oh
All right, let me try again brother
We'll get better at this we'll get better at it. I know we haven't sung it that often all right
Let's try again. You can you know the tune a little bit better now. Okay, so let's start all over again
Three two three all right more about Jesus
Oh
More about Jesus let me learn more of his
Spirit of God my teacher me
Showing the things of Christ
Jesus
My teacher me showing the things of Christ
Or about Jesus
His word
Make it
I
About Jesus on his throne
Riches in glory all his own
Kingdom sure increase more of his coming Prince
Oh
We got it great singing, please take your bibles now and turn to
Ecclesiastes, please the book of Ecclesiastes and chapter number two Ecclesiastes chapter number two and
Brother Hayden will be reading it for us
Be good to go
I
Said in my heart go to now
I'll prove thee with mirth therefore enjoy pleasure and behold this also is vanity I
Said of laughter it is mad and of mirth what do with it?
I saw it in my heart to give myself unto wine yet
Acquainting my heart with wisdom and to lay hold on folly till I might see what was that good for the sons of men
Which they should do under the heaven all the days of their life
Maybe great works. I builded me houses. I planted me vineyards
I made me guns and orchards and I planted trees in them of all kind of fruits I
Made me pools of water to water there with the wood that bringeth forth trees
I got me servants and maidens and had servants born in my house
Also, I had great possessions of great and small cattle above all that were in Jerusalem before me. I
Gathered me also silver and gold and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces
I get men singers and woman singers and the delights of the sons of men as musical instruments and that of all sorts
So I was bright and increased more than all they were before me in Jerusalem
Also, my wisdom remained with me remained with me and whatsoever mine eyes desired
I kept not from them withheld not my heart from any joy
My heart rejoiced in all my labor and this was my portion of all my labor
then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought and on the labor that I had labored to do and behold all was
Vanity and vexation of spirit and there was no profit under the Sun
And I turned myself to behold wisdom and madness and folly for what can men do that cometh after the king
Even that which hath been done already
Other than that which hath been done already done
Then I saw that wisdom excel a folly as far as light exceedeth excel of the darkness
The wise men's eyes are in his head, but the full walketh in darkness and I will and I myself perceived
Also that one event happened to them all
Then I said then said I in my heart as it happeneth to the full so it happeneth even to me and why was I
Then more wise then I said in my heart that this also is vanity
For there is no remembrance of the wise more than of the full forever
Seeing that which now is in the days to come shall be forgotten and how diet the wise man as the fool
Therefore I hated life because the work that is wrought under the Sun is grievous unto me for all is vanity and vexation of spirit
Yeah, I hated all my labor
Which I had taken under the Sun because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me and who knoweth whether he
Shall be a wise man or a fool
Yes, shall you have rule over all my labor
Wherein I have labored and wherein I have showed myself wise under the Sun. This is also vanity
Therefore I went about to cause my heart to despair of all the labor which I took unto the Sun
So there is a man whose labor is in wisdom and in knowledge and in equity
Yet to a man that hath not labored therein shall he leave it for his portion
This also is vanity and a great evil
For what hath man of all his labor and of the vexation of his heart wherein he hath labored under the Sun
For all his days are sorrows and his travail grief. Yeah, his heart taketh not rest in the night. This is also vanity
There is nothing better for a man and that he should eat and drink and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his
Labor this also I saw that was from the hand of God
But who can eat or who else can hasten here unto more than I?
For God giveth to a man that is good in his sight wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he giveth travail
Together and to heap up that he may give to him that is good for God. This also is vanity and vexation of spirit
Let's pray
Heavenly Father Lord. Thanks so much that we can meet here all again today Lord
Thank you so much that we have a preacher to preach for us. Thanks so much for the book of Ecclesiastes Lord
It's um, it's a really great book Lord and I'm sorry that we should all review
But um, please help us all to learn something in Jesus name. Amen. Amen
Thank you brother
So good to have brother Cameron back
It's been a while brother it's a good to have you in church and I was under the impression that pastor Stevenson and
Was going to be here this morning, but maybe he's had a change of plans and that's okay as well
But we are up to Ecclesiastes chapter 2 we are going chapter by chapter through this book
And if we just look at verse number 17 in Ecclesiastes chapter 2 verse number 17 King Solomon says therefore I
Hated life. So the title of the sermon this morning Brevin is I hated life
I mean what point do you have to get to to be able to say these words? I just hate life
I mean, you know, I'm living I wake up in the morning. I just hate you know, every morning
I wake I just hate the fact that I have to live today
You know, what could possibly drive a man to say such words now as I you know
As I said and I think I might have to say this on a regular basis
But as I said in the chapter number one last week, you know
We need to remember the book of Ecclesiastes is a journey the journey of King Solomon
And so as he's going for this journey and it begins this journey without the Lord
Okay, he's backslidden. He's trying to find meaning and purpose in life without the Lord God and it comes to that realization that
You know at the end of the book of Ecclesiastes
He realizes know that God was the most important thing that serving God is what gave him purpose
And so he's on this journey and needs to remember that what he says is true
Okay, but for that particular time of his journey and for example, you know
I have children right and I tell my children. Hey enjoy being a child
I have no problem my children playing games and and having fun and having a laugh
You know, there's a time to be a child isn't there but I'm not going to tell my 40 year old child
Okay, who's married with a whole bunch of kids?
I just play games and just play video games for the rest of your life who cares about your wife and kids
Obviously there's a time to grow there's a time to develop
Alright, and so something that is true to one point in time may not be true later in your journey
All right, and I've used the example before I don't want my little kids in the kitchen
They might pull out a knife. They may burn themselves on the stove
They're not allowed to be in the kitchen
In fact, that's a rule that they can't touch the stove or they you know
They can't make you know, they can't boil water because little kids say they couldn't hurt themselves or hurt other people
But you know by the time my kids are teenagers, I'm there. Hey, can you make me bacon and eggs?
Can you can you can you make me a cup of coffee?
Okay, it's not that you know one was wrong and one was right
It's just that late some time in their journey that has changed
Okay
And so this is what you need to remember as King Solomon is trying to find meaning and purpose about God the things that he
Says are true, but as he gets through the journey, he realizes actually it's not quite true
You know as he gets through that for that journey
So you need to understand the context the journey that King Solomon is going through and again, you know, Klesias is a book
That's best understood from start to finish. All right, so let's start there in verse number one
Okay, it's a continuation of chapter number one
We're trying to find meaning and purpose is doing a whole bunch of things in his life
And he finds that when he does things without the Lord God in mind, it's all meaningless. It's all worthless
Okay, so let's start there in verse number one. He says I said in mine heart go to now I
will prove thee with mirth now that word mirth is
The same kind of like what we use like amusements fun fun and games laughter. Okay, he goes, you know what?
I'm gonna just enjoy life. I'm gonna find all the joys. I'm gonna laugh it up. I'm gonna go party in
I'm gonna I'm gonna go to you know, Aussie world
I'm gonna go down to the Gold Coast and and I'm going to experience all the great things all the fun that we can have
In life, maybe that's the meaning of life just to have fun and enjoy and and be amused for the rest of my life
Maybe that's the meaning he goes therefore enjoy pleasure and then he goes and behold this also is vanity
All right, it's also his vanity he says I said of laughter he's just joking around having fun
You know getting the comedians in to make their jokes and and laugh because I said of laughter it is mad and of mirth
What doeth it?
So there's a period of life. He's just having the fun. He's laughing it up having joy, right?
And then like and that, you know, most people are seeking that aren't they, you know when it comes to life
You know you work hard and then when it comes to the holidays
You just want to go and enjoy yourself and have a good time
Is there anything wrong with those things in of themselves?
Of course not there are many things that King Solomon goes through that are not wrong in of themselves
But if you're trying to find meaning in life in just those things brethren what doeth it? What's the point of it all?
Okay, that's what he's saying. Right? What's the point of it all again? He's trying to find meaning and purpose without the Lord God
Then we get to verse verse number three now
He says to himself I saw it in my heart to give myself unto wine
So it goes, you know what maybe drinking alcohol is the answer, you know, he looks at other people at the pub
He looks at people drinking up the alcohol and the wine and the beer and you know getting drunk and off the face
He goes it looks like these guys are having fun. Looks like these guys are enjoying life. So let's try wine
Let's try that. Let's try the alcohol. He goes yet a quite a quaint in my heart with wisdom and to lay hold on folly
Till I might see what was that good for the sons of men
Which they should do under heaven all the days of their life. So it looks at other men
All right other sons of men. He sees them all drink drinking alcohol and he goes, you know, I'm going to apply wisdom and folly here
I'm gonna see if drinking alcohol gives me satisfaction gives me answer get answers to life
Do I enjoy drinking alcohol or is it foolish? That's what he wants to work out. Is it wise is it foolish?
Let's work out as he drinks the alcohol
Okay, and so he goes well this lifestyle seems to be good for some
You know, I see people working and and at the end on a Friday after they worked hard on a Friday
They go to the pub and drink it up with their friends and they're laughing. They're carrying on
They seem like they're having a great time. Maybe that's the meaning of life
Okay, and I want to talk to the children here. All right the children. Praise God. You've got a good church
Praise God, there's a lot of young people in our church and you know
One thing that you want to avoid in your life for children is the alcohol
Okay, and again, you might look at people going out there and you're becoming your teenagers. They're becoming adults
You're going to see people of your age group drinking it up
And if you've got certain friends that are non-believers, they may even encourage you. Hey, just come and have a drink, you know
Hey, you know, this is going to give you joy
It's going to kill some brain cells and you'll be able to let down your hair and have fun
And you might think that you may be pressured you may be tempted to think that way
Okay. Now again, why is the book of Ecclesiastes here?
It's to say hey if this is the meaning of life, this is going to give me joy
Let's see what King Solomon went through. He did the same thing
You know, do I need to learn from bad experiences or can I just learn from King Solomon?
And so brethren, children, you know, and look, you know
I have no doubt that some of your parents tried this as well
They tried the substances not just alcohol
But maybe other types of drugs the marijuana's and the cocaine's are out there children
These things are dangerous for you and it's not going to give you purpose. It's not going to give you meaning. All right
Look, he doesn't he tried King King Solomon's trying at all
Whatever there is whatever it may look like according to the sons of men that gives satisfaction and joy. He's trying at all
What else does he try? Verse number four. He says I've made me great works. I've builded me houses. I planted me vineyards
He goes, oh, you know what? I'm gonna be a home. I'm gonna invest in property. Okay in houses
I'm gonna invest in vineyards in land. All right
Construction properties investments because maybe this is the meaning of life
Trying to acquire as much property and land as I possibly can so he tries that as well
And again, this is something a lot of Australians are trying to do they think if I just have the house
If I just have the properties, it's going to give me what I want in life
What else does he try verse number five?
He says I made me gardens and orchids and I planted trees in them of all kind of fruits
So he tries gardening because there's some people that enjoy gardening and planting trees. There's all kind of fruit trees. Let's try that
Let's see if that gives me meaning and purpose
All right again out some of these things wrong in on themselves
Wanted to purchase a house wanted to have some investment wanting to get into gardening. There's nothing wrong with these things in of themselves
Okay
Obviously, we've got to take the whole Bible into account here and just that reminder
He's trying to find meaning in these things without the Lord God verse number six. I made me pools of water
So he's got the swimming pool
That's not really a swimming pool because the purpose of this pool is to water there with the wood that bringeth forth trees
So he says, you know instead of going out of my out of my you know
Getting out of the city to fetch water at a world. We'll just create some pools
So, you know, there's always water on the land so it's easier to access and to plant the trees
And so, you know, obviously his garden would have looked very lush
There was always water even if there's a time of a lack of rain
He had his reserves of water to make sure that his garden and his trees look as beautiful as they can
You know, he tries that as well. What else does he try verse number seven?
He goes I got me servants and maidens and had servants born in my house
Also, I had great possessions of great and small cattle above all that were in Jerusalem before me
So why would you need servants and maidens?
Obviously, they're going to work for you, right?
You're sending them to labor to serve you, you know
You're profiteering from their hands and also the cattle, you know
They're going out there and they're plowing the ground and they're bringing forth
You know, meats and milk and whatever it is that they were enjoying with the cattle
Basically, Solomon says maybe being an employer, maybe owning a business
And having employees under me and being able to be productive
Maybe that's the point of life
Maybe that's going to give me meaning and purpose
To start my own business and having my own employees under me
Obviously, as a king, he already had these things in the service for the kingdom
But he's trying something different
Maybe just being productive with my servants and my cattle, that's going to give me joy
You know, being an employer, instead of being an employee, being an employer, starting my own business
That's going to give me purpose and meaning in life, surely
So you can see he's trying so many different things
Again, is there anything wrong with starting your own business? Of course not
Okay, there's so many things, he's just trying everything that he possibly can try
That he can find under the sun
Verse number 8
He goes I gathered me also silver and gold
Maybe just trying to get as much wealth as I can for myself
Alright
And the peculiar treasure of kings and of provinces
So he looks at other kingdoms, he looks at other kings
He says what do these other kings have?
I want that as well
You know, other provinces, I want that for me
You know, he just looks at other people
I want everything that everyone has
He goes I get me men singers and women singers
So, you know, he's got obviously this is a different time
But, you know, he gets the celebrities I suppose, the singers
He goes they'll entertain me, they can sing
We'll have music in the palace and, you know, we can sing and dance
This kind of music, maybe that's the meaning
Filling my mind with all the songs, you know, that come
He goes and the delights of the sons of men as musical instruments
And that of all sorts
Now what I want you to do is keep your finger there
And please go to 1 Kings chapter 10
1 Kings chapter 10
And good to have Pastor Stevenson here as well
Welcome brother, I was expecting you
But 1 Kings chapter 10 please and verse number 21
I just want to show you some other things
Like within the context of what he's saying
Because remember he's looking for peculiar treasures of kings
And of provinces
So I just want to give you some further detail as to what he tried to find satisfaction in
Here in 1 Kings chapter 10 verse number 21
1 Kings chapter 10 verse number 21
Remember he saw it with silver and the gold
It says here in 1 Kings chapter 10 verse 21
And all King Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold
So anything he drank from had to be gold
If someone came with even a silver cup
Or a plastic cup, here you go King Solomon
He goes no, it's got to be of gold
I mean this guy is very wealthy
He says and all the vessels
We probably couldn't even own
Like even with the wealth that you've got
You probably couldn't even own a single cup of gold
That he could drink from
He's got several of these things
And he goes and all the vessels
Of the house of the forest of Lebanon
Were of pure gold
So we knew that he was building houses
Well he had some
I guess some country house
Out there in the forest of Lebanon
Because even in my country house
All the vessels are of gold
Even in the house that he barely frequents
Just sometimes goes there
It's all gold, he's so wealthy
He says none were of silver
Silver wasn't even good enough
He went for the best
It was nothing accounted in the days of Solomon
Now look at verse number 22
For the king had at sea
A navy of Tarshish
With the navy of Hiram
Once in three years came the navy
Of Tarshish
Bring in gold and silver
So we know that already
Ivory and apes
And peacocks
So when we think about Israel
We think of it as a place with apes and peacocks
Right?
He goes look I've looked at the other kingdoms
I've looked at the other kings
I've looked at all their weird animals
Maybe just get in these animals
And bring it into my kingdom
So I can set my eyes upon this
You know if you knew about Australia
He would have definitely brought in the kangaroos
And the koalas
All the weird creatures out there
Because maybe this is going to give me joy
Having my own little zoo
So King Solomon exceeded
All the kings of the earth
For riches and for wisdom
So keep your finger there
In 1 Kings chapter 10
And let's go back to Ecclesiastes chapter 2
And verse number 9
Ecclesiastes chapter 2 and verse number 9
So then he says this in verse number 9
He goes so I was great
And increased more
Than all that were before me
In Jerusalem
My wisdom remained with me
So as he's going through this journey of discovery
Trying to seek meaning for life
His wisdom remained
God did not take away the wisdom
And that's important because
If he didn't have the wisdom
Then his life would become a misery
As I said to you
The title of the sermon was I Hated Life
He gets to that point where he says I hate life
Thank God his wisdom remained
Because he gets to the end of his journey
And he realises no, life has meaning
As long as you're serving the Lord Jesus Christ
As long as you're serving the Lord God
And you put him first in your life
Then everything has meaning
Everything has purpose if you do that
So he's got that wisdom to get to that point in his life
But I want to show you when he talked about his wisdom
Was still remaining with him
If you go back to 1 Kings chapter 10
Verse number 23
So just continuing on from there
In verse number 23
So King Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth
For riches and wisdom
All the earth sought to Solomon
To hear his wisdom
Which God had put in his heart
So what else have we learned about Solomon?
That everyone knows, all the kings
You know everyone in the earth
Man, Solomon's so wise
And they all travel from all over the earth
To hear the wisdom of Solomon
So Solomon becomes a celebrity as it were
Not just in his own kingdom
But across the entire world
He becomes known as the man of wisdom
Everyone comes to seek and listen to what he has to say
Listen to what he has to say
You know sometimes I hear of someone
You know certain people that are life coaches
Or they have certain types of wisdom
You know they come and instead of selling out
A stadium of people that listen to music
People come to just listen to someone's wisdom
You know what has someone learnt in life
You know and they become a celebrity
You know themselves for what they've learnt
Or what they can teach
Right, there are several people like this
That even frequent today
Like going from city to city
To city to city teaching what they've learnt
That was King Solomon
Instead of him travelling to people
They would travel to him
Man, he's reached celebrity status
Hasn't he?
Not for foolishness
Not for Hollywood movies or something
He's reached celebrity status for his wisdom
He's the smartest man on the earth at this point in time
I mean you think man Solomon
You've got it all
What more could you possibly want?
And he still says I hated life
Doesn't he?
When we get to verse 17
And brethren you know what
If you seek
Whatever pleasures you can on this earth
You know and look
Solomon's reached the heights
You can't get more than Solomon got
And you're seeking these things in life
I want meaning and purpose
Maybe it's the alcohol
Maybe it's partying out there
Maybe it's just having fun for the rest of my life
Maybe it's getting into investment properties
Maybe it's about the animals
And just spending time gardening
And looking at animals
Whatever it is brethren
Maybe it's just getting as much wisdom as I can
So I can be the smartest man
I can be the best of the best
You're still going to hate life if you try to do that
Without the Lord Jesus Christ
It's not going to give you satisfaction
It's not going to give you joy
What else?
We learn from Solomon
Let's go to verse 10
Whatsoever mine eyes desired
I kept not from them
You know
He saw the Ferrari
He said I'm buying that Ferrari
The Lamborghini
That's what he went for
The Tesla, the electric car
He didn't have those things
But we learn something about King Solomon
That his chariot
Was layered with gold
He had the Lamborghini of the day
He had it
You learn about that in
Which book actually?
I'm trying to remember
Song of Solomon
You learn about his chariot
It was a sight to be seen
He would use it in parades
He'd be travelling it
Whatever he laid his eyes on
He received
I withheld not my heart from any joy
For my heart rejoiced in all my labour
And this was my portion
Of all my labour
Shopping spree
So I don't know ladies
I don't know
Maybe it's too general
Men we like shopping as well
We like to get things that we want
Even if it's just bunnings
But I know ladies
I talk to men
Even Christian men
I'm not even talking about this church
I'm talking about churches that I've grown up in
And they're like I've got to withhold that credit card
From my wife
I mean there are several men like this
I just trusted my wife with a credit card
Man I really had to limit that
I had to create a separate account
And say honey this is your portion
For this week you can only spend this much
You know
But here's the thing
Solomon tried that
Solomon said you know what I'm going to the Westfields
I'm going to the mall
I'm just going to shop
And buy whatever I see
Whatever I see I think is going to give me joy
Whatever I think is going to give me happiness
He's just going to buy it all
Even the shopping spree
An unlimited credit card is basically what he had
You know what and that still just doesn't give him life
He tries to enjoy what he has
And then we get to verse 11
Look at verse 11
He comes to this realization
After everything that we've just seen
This is kind of the conclusion in this part of the chapter
About everything that we just had a look at
Everything that he's done
The fun, the games, the gardening
The gold and the silver
And the houses
He gets to verse 11 and he says
Then I looked on all the works
That my hands had wrought
And on the labour
That I had labour to do
And behold all
Was vanity
And vexation of spirit
And there was no profit under the sun
He goes I got to the point
When I had it all
And I realized it's just vanity
It's worthless
Everything that he can chase for under the sun
Anything he can profit from
He gets to the point because it's just worthless
It's meaningless
It doesn't give me what I'm looking for
Not only is it worthless
It goes and vexation of spirit
It vexed him
It annoyed him, it frustrated him
It's just more things to deal with
I mean I'm kind of experiencing this again
You know having the tenants
In my house in Sydney
Pass it must be nice having two houses
Yeah but then there are bills you've got to pay
I mean it's really
A headache to have to pay your council
Rates here on the Sunshine Coast
And then having to pay the council rates down in Sydney
Where you're not even living
You know what, it becomes a vexation
I'm just having more and more
It's more problems
More things to deal with
Now I've got to look after the trees that we planted
Now the peacocks and the apes
They get taken care of
And all the servants that I've got
They need a place to stay
You know what, I've got it all
But now it all needs to be maintained
Because everything tends toward disorder
And then it requires labour
Okay it's great you've got it all but now you've got to look after it
Or it's just going to fall apart
Man it's a vexation of spirit
The more I have the more problems it creates
That's true
The more you have the more problems you create for your life
He gets to that point
It's all worthless
It all requires maintenance
It's vexation, frustration
I wish I could just purchase something and it just lasts forever
You guys know you buy a new car
Wonderful, yeah nice car
But then you've got to take it for a service
Okay and then you've got to put fuel in that thing
And fuel's gone up double then when you last remember
It all starts to become vexation
It all becomes an issue
Then your turbo breaks down
Then your transmission breaks down brother
Whatever it is, vexation of spirit
You know you try to find meaning in these things
Brethren it's not going to give you joy
It's not going to give you satisfaction
It's not going to give you anything
You know you'd rather invest in something
That's going to give you purpose
And what is that?
It's your walk with the Lord
That's going to give you satisfaction
God gives you so many great things
He gives you joy, he answers your prayers
He helps you in the times of trouble
He gives you wisdom and understanding
So you can enjoy and experience life
Life to the fullest
God is the only one
God is the only thing
That will give you purpose in life
It's true
It's true again children
Talk to your parents
I'm sure your parents have stories
Where they've sought things in life
Thinking it's going to give them meaning and purpose
You know
And it's like you know what
It doesn't satisfy
The only thing that could satisfy
The only thing I could satisfy
Was my walk with the Lord Jesus Christ
That's why we're in church this morning
To be with the Lord
Otherwise you turn around and say
Well this is just vexation
This is all vanity
You know what we make the effort to wake up early on a Sunday
Be in God's house
Because this is the place
God's word is truly what gives us satisfaction
Truly
It's true
You know what children
Because I wish it doesn't happen
I hope it doesn't happen
But with the amount of kids that we have
I'm sure
Even my own kids
Some of them are going to grow up and say
Dad I'm looking for joy somewhere else
I'm going to start looking for satisfaction somewhere else
Dad I'm not going to be in church this morning
Dad I'm not going to be in church next week
It's going to happen
It happens
And I'm telling you now
Because kids I don't want you to make this mistake
I want you to find joy
It's not going to satisfy
And again you're going to come back and say
Pastor you were right
Pastor the Bible was right
It did not satisfy me
Instead of learning the lessons
In such a bad and horrible way
Just learn it now
God's given us his word to learn things now
He's given us his wisdom
So we don't have to experience this
For ourselves and hurt ourselves
I want to show you that
In my notes
I'm up to verse number 12
It clears the answer to verse number 12
He goes
And I turn myself to behold wisdom
So we know
He sought more learning, more wisdom
But don't forget from chapter number 1
Not only did he learn this
He also says and madness and folly
Because I even try to find joy
And meaning in stupidity
Okay
The stupid things that people do
What is fun
You know
Maybe that's what's going to give me joy right
He goes look at this
For what can the man do
That cometh after the king
Even that which have already been done
He goes
What possible man can come
And do more than what the king has already done
He goes
I've done everything that can be done
He's trying to find
Is there anything else
That will give me joy and meaning and purpose
And then he starts thinking about it
There is no man on the earth
That can even do what I've ever accomplished
He's done it all
And he still finds no meaning and no purpose
Okay
Verse number 13
Now we get to another learning here
Something else that he's discovered in this journey
Even though earlier we saw that
Wisdom is a vexation of spirit and vanity
And so is folly
But he realises something in this journey anyway
He goes in verse number 13
Then I saw that wisdom exceleth folly
As far as light exceleth darkness
Okay
So he's tried it all
He says it's all vanity
But he says even though it's all vanity and emptiness
Without the Lord God
I still discover that wisdom exceeds folly
Being intelligent
Gaining understanding
Learning, getting an education
Is more important
It's much higher than acting like an idiot
Than being completely stupid
Being an ignoramus
That's something he's discovered
That means more
And again
We ought to be people
That seek wisdom and learning and education
God's given us a brain
God wants us to reason
To learn not just the word of God
But learn the truths of this world
We ought to use the mind
That God has given us
To learn some great things
As different as the light is from darkness
So is gaining wisdom versus being a complete fool
And some people
I remember
Most of you kids are homeschooled anyway
But going to school
There was always that class clown
There was always that kid
That would mess up
That would interrupt classes
The teachers would get frustrated at him
And sometimes it was me
Sometimes it wasn't me
It just depends on how mature I was
In my life
But when it was me
And I was the interruption
I was called the interruptions
I was a little bit smart about it
I didn't get in trouble a lot
I kind of got away with a lot of things
But then I discovered
When I'm just wasting my time
As I'm supposed to be learning
I'm falling behind in my studies
Then everyone else in my class
Is gaining wisdom and knowledge
And I'm falling behind
And I'm there looking at that
Yeah it was a whiteboard
I'm looking at that whiteboard
I'm looking at those mathematical equations
And I'm like what am I even doing here
I don't get it
And everyone's like yep
Doing just fine
When you muck around
And you be silly and you waste your life
I start to fall behind
I'm behind everyone else
Because there truly is
Wisdom is something that we also attain
Even though again
In the journey of Solomon
As he's trying to find meaning in wisdom
Without God
It's all vanity
But don't forget
King Solomon also wrote the Proverbs
Which is all about wisdom
It's all about learning
He's just not there in his journey just yet
To really appreciate what wisdom gives him
But let's keep going there
It says
Verse number 14
So this is what he's learnt
Why does wisdom excel folly
Because in verse number 14 he goes
The wise man's eyes
Are in his head
Everyone's eyes are in their head
What he's saying is
Obviously with eyes
You can see
You can see clearly
If you have wisdom
You can see more clearly
Because then it says this
But the fool walketh in darkness
Because this is why
Wisdom is better than folly
Because when you're foolish
You don't get wisdom, you don't get learning
It's like you're trying to live life in the darkness
You can trip, you can injure yourself
You can hurt yourself
You can cause all kinds of damages to yourself
Because it's like you're walking blind
At least when you have wisdom
Your eyes are open
You can watch for dangers
You can make educated
Responses to certain situations
This is why wisdom is better
Because if you have wisdom
You're less likely to destroy yourself
Than act in the fool
Act in the fool is like walking blind
And cause all kinds of damages to your life
So wisdom does excel folly
That's the conclusion that it comes to this
Then it says this
So the second half of verse number 14
And I myself perceived also
That one event
Happeneth to them all
So it goes
If you decide to be wise or you decide to be
A fool
One event is the same for everybody
What event could that be?
Well let's keep going there
It says there, verse number 15
Then said I in my heart
As it happeneth to the fool
So it happeneth even to me
We know that Solomon considers himself to be wise
He goes what the foolish experience
Is going to happen to me as well
Okay
And why was I then more wise
So what advantage was there to be more wise
If we're going to experience the same thing here
Then I said also in my heart
That this also is vanity
So basically being wise
Is also vanity
Because the same thing that's going to happen to the fool
Is going to happen to the person who is wise
What does it mean by this? Let's keep going there
Verse number 16
For there is no remembrance of the wise
More than the fool forever
Seeing that which
Now it is in the days to come
Shall all be forgotten
And how dieth the wise man
As the fool
So what is the same thing that happens to all?
Death
We're all going to die
The fool is going to die in the same way
The man who is wise
Is going to die
He goes look
Gaining wisdom is an advantage
When you live on this earth
But then we're all going to die
And everything we achieved on this earth
Is all going to be forgotten anyway
I'm sure there are many wise men
Many famous men that lived in the past
And they're just forgotten
The names are completely forgotten in history
And so his end is the same
As the fool
Now again you need to remember
He's not thinking about the afterlife
At this point in time
He's just thinking about the carnal
The earthly, the things here and now
Obviously in death
There's an afterlife
Obviously there's more
Than just what we experience on this earth
But while Solomon
Is trying to find meaning on this earth
He realises we're all going to die
Wise or fool
And we're all going to be forgotten anyway
So it's all fancy, it's all worthless
Okay, you know
Now, let's keep going there
Verse number 17
He goes, so when he realises this
That I'm going to
I'm going to experience the same as the fool
Okay, my life is going to be the same
As the fool after we pass away
He goes, therefore I hated life
You know what, and
I don't know who the
I mean, I think of Elon Musk
As one of the richest men on the earth
Like think about just the celebrities
You know, the Hollywood celebrities
Think about, you know
The kings and the queens
That live on this earth
Think about the people of the highest positions
With the greatest riches
Where you look at their life and they just seem to have it all
Okay brethren, they have it all
And they gain more
And they earn millions of dollars
And you know, some actor
Acts in some movie and they
Pocket 20 million dollars or whatever it is
100 million dollars for their
You know, you think, man, what a life
Look at what they've got
Look at their success
Look how much they've got
Now brethren, you know what's
Going through their mind
They're going, you know what, one day I'm going to die
One day, you know
I've worked up, I've got this position
I've got this status in life
I've got all this wealth
I've got all these possessions
But then one day I'm just going to die like the guy who's the poorest on the earth
These people that have so much
They're going to come
Or they've already come
To this same realisation of Solomon
Therefore I hated life
Why does so many of them commit suicide?
Why does so many
You know, music artists
And so many Hollywood stars
Seemingly at the top of the world
Seemingly having everything
They end up committing suicide
Ending their life early, why?
Because they realise it was all worthless
I hated life
I hate life
So if I hate life, why should I live tomorrow?
If I'm going to hate tomorrow
And they end their lives early
Suicide
And you know, Solomon is a
Saved man
But as he's trying to live a life without the Lord God
He's going through the same experiences
You know, as Christians, we can hate life
If you
Decide to backslide and say, you know what
I'm done with church
I'm done with God's word
I'm going to just enjoy what I have
And I'm going to try and maximise my fun
And I'm going to try and maximise my possessions
You're going to wake up one morning and go
Man, I hate life
Even Christians commit suicide
Even Christians get to a point where they think
Man, I hate life
You know what, we need to
Be close to the Lord
We need to draw nigh to him
And he will draw nigh to us
The Lord gives us meaning
And waking up this morning
Thinking that I'm going to be in God's house with God's people
It gave me a lot of joy
And excitement to be in God's house with God's people
You know, going through the teachings
Of Ecclesiastes
Seeing what the wisdom of God will teach us
This morning
It gives us purpose
Please keep your finger there and please
Go to Philippians chapter 1
Turn to Philippians chapter 1 and verse number 20
Philippians chapter 1
And verse number 20
Sorry, I didn't finish verse number 17
Anyway, while you're turning to Philippians 120
I'll just quickly finish verse number 17
Solomon says
Therefore I hated life
Because the work that is wrought under the sun
Is grievous unto me
For all is vanity and vexation of spirit
Okay
Now, this is the problem
With Solomon
At this point in life
We're going to compare Solomon
With the Apostle Paul here
What does the Apostle Paul say
In Philippians chapter 1 verse number 20
Philippians chapter 1 verse number 20
The Apostle Paul says
According to my earnest expectation
And my hope
That in nothing I shall be ashamed
But that with all boldness
As always
So now also Christ
Shall be magnified
In my body
Whether it be by life
Or by death
Brevin, you've got a choice
Who are you going to magnify
In your body
Who's going to be magnified this morning
This Sunday morning
Are you going to be like King Solomon
That seeks to magnify himself
Trying to just seek his own will
His own pleasures
What he wants in life
Or are you going to be like the Apostle Paul
That says, you know what, I'm going to magnify God
In my body
I'm going to magnify the Lord God
You've got a choice
Who do you want to magnify in life
Yourself
And we already saw where magnifying yourself leads
I hated life
You hate life
Paul says no, I'm going to magnify the Lord
Let's keep going there
Verse number 21
This is what it means to magnify the Lord
He goes
For to me to live is Christ
And to die is gain
It's the complete opposite to Solomon
At this point in his life
Solomon hates life
You know what
So Paul takes the approach
No, you know what, I'm going to enjoy life
In fact, I'm going to live for Christ
Christ is the meaning of my life
I'm going to seek his will
I'm going to serve the Lord Jesus Christ
And then when I die
It's gain
Not like Solomon thinks we're all going to die
And it's all vanity
It's gain
I'm going to see my Lord Jesus Christ
Face to face
And I'm going to be rewarded by my Lord
For all the things that I did on this earth
Do you see the differences there brethren
Depending on who you magnify
And I know sometimes we live life
I'm sure this morning we're seeking to magnify the Lord
But when you leave church
This afternoon
You're probably going to magnify yourself a little bit
We go through these little ups and downs
In Christian life don't we
Brethren, keep seeking the Lord
Just decide, you know what, every day that I wake up
Every day that God gives me in life
I'm going to magnify the Lord, I'm going to serve the Lord
I'm going to seek what God wants in my life
Because I know
That life then has meaning
I know that even if I were to perish
Like the fool, that it's gain for me
I'm going to see my Lord in heaven
Let's keep going there
Verse number 22
He goes, but if I live in the flesh
This is the fruit of my labour
Yet what I shall choose
I what not
For I am in a strait
Betwixt two
Having a desire to depart
And to be with Christ
Which is far better
Nevertheless to abide in the flesh
Is more needful for you
He goes, you know what, I can't wait
It's not suicidal thoughts
It's not like I hate life, I just want to die
In fact he's enjoying living in the flesh
He goes, what did it say there
But if I live in the flesh
This is the fruit of my labour
He goes, look, I am labouring, I am being fruitful
As I live in this flesh
You know, sometimes I speak to Christians
And they think, well
If to die is gain, then maybe if I just
Lord, take my life
But no, you've got purpose and meaning
Right now in the flesh
As you're walking in this flesh
You can still be fruitful
You can still labour for the Lord Jesus Christ
This is your opportunity on this earth
To maximise your rewards in heaven
This is your opportunity
We don't want it to end early
We want to be able to maximise
See as many souls saved as we can
You know, bring forth those fruits of the Spirit
To serve Jesus Christ in his house
To serve the brethren
Right, even offering a cup of water to a little one
You will not lose your reward
Just serving Christ
In everything that we do, brethren
There's profit, there's meaning
It gives joy
And even you can be excited about death
Man, when I die
I don't really truly die anyway because I have everlasting life
I get to be with my Lord Jesus Christ in heaven forever
So
You know, again, we want to take
The Book of Ecclesiastes as a whole
With the rest of the Bible
Living a life without the Lord, magnifying yourself
Seeking after the pleasure of this earth
Is going to end up with you hating life
I don't want you to hate life
Do you want to hate life?
Do you want to enjoy life?
But you can only enjoy life
You can only be satisfied if you magnify
The Lord in your body
Back to Ecclesiastes chapter 2 verse 18
Ecclesiastes chapter 2 verse 18
He goes
Yea, I hated all my labour
Which I had taken under the sun
Now this is why he hates it
He goes
Because I should leave it unto
The man that shall be after me
And that shall be after me
He goes
Oh man, I've worked so hard for all these things
And I just hate the fact that one day I'm going to
Perish and my inheritance is going to be
Given to another
I mean, look how selfish it has become
Alright
I mean, I don't know about you but
I'm hopeful that, you know
When I pass on, I'm hopeful that I've got
Something to pass down to my children
I'm hopeful that my labour
Is going to help my children
I hope my children are a little bit in their life
You know, I mean, I want my children to work hard
And make sure they provide for themselves
But I hope that, you know, in my work
That I've done something to help them
Live a life that's a little bit better, a little bit more productive
But seeking
Pleasures for yourself
Just makes you selfish
He can't even find joy
That he's going to pass this down to his son
Who's going to be the next king
But this is why, if you keep going
Look at verse number 20
Sorry, verse number 19
He goes, and who knoweth whether
He shall be a wise man or a fool
Because I don't know if my children
Are going to be wise or foolish
Okay
Yet shall he have rule
Over all my labour
Wherein I have laboured
And wherein I have showed myself wise
Under the sun, this is also a vanity
Because I'm concerned that everything that I've built
In life
That I'm going to pass it down to my kids, what if my kids are foolish
What if they destroy everything that I've laboured for
Then it's all going to be worthless
You know, my legacy is not going to continue
Look what he's worried about, brethren
He's worried about the here and the now
And I want to talk to my children right now
If I perish today, if I perish tomorrow
I don't care about my earthly possessions
Because I've got heavenly ones
And I've got a bank account where
No thief can break in and steal
Where moth cannot corrupt
That's what matters, our treasure is in heaven
But again, you focus on here and now
All you focus on are the treasures on the earth
And then, even after death
You're worried about what's going to happen to those things
Man, no worries in heaven
Laying up your treasures in heaven
Seek ye first the kingdom of God
And his righteousness
And all these things shall be added unto you
No, our heart
Where is our heart?
King Solomon's heart is definitely on the earth
It's so selfish
What are my children going to do with my possessions?
You're going to be dead, Solomon
You're going to be dead
Okay, you're going to be in heaven
But his mind's not on eternity
His mind is on earthly, carnal things
Now the Bible, I'll just quickly read to you
So this is also the writing of Solomon
In the book of Proverbs
In Proverbs 13, 22
It says
A good man leaveth an inheritance
To his children's children
And the wealth of the sinner
Is laid up for the just
So obviously he learnt the lesson eventually
Okay, he goes
No, no, no, it's good to pass an inheritance
You know, it's good to be able to
Leave my children, even my children's children
Something that's going to help them
And benefit in their life
And so, obviously, King Solomon
Did not stay selfish forever
Once he's gotten to the point that the meaning of life
Was all about Christ at the end of the day
Then obviously his perspective on all these things
Change, okay
Anyway, let's keep going there
Verse number
And actually, it is kind of important that problem
That I just read, because the second part of that problem
Says, and the wealth of the sinner
Is laid up for the just
Just keep that in mind as we keep going through
The rest of this chapter, chapter number 2
Okay
Verse number 20, we're up to verse number 20
Therefore
I went about to cause my heart
To despair
All the labour which I took under the sun
So instead of
You know, he got all these possessions
Instead of, like he's thinking it's going to give me joy
But what he found was, once I had all these possessions
It causes me to despair
The complete opposite
To what he was seeking for, right
Left him in despair
So again, the lesson, if you attain everything
It will not satisfy you
Again, it will just leave you in despair
You know, the Bible says in Mark 836
For what shall it profit a man
If he shall gain the whole world
And lose his own soul
Now praise God
You know, you're saved
You know, praise God for those that have believed
In the Lord Jesus Christ
You cannot lose your soul
You've entrusted your soul to the hands of the Lord God forever
You know what
And that's what's more important
Than gaining the whole world
You don't have to be like Solomon
And go, man, I want to get it all
You've got it even better
You're saved
You're going to heaven
You've got everlasting life
And look, even if you lived a miserable life
On this earth
You're going to come back one day with the Lord Jesus Christ
And you're going to rule and reign on this earth
You're going to be here for a thousand years
The best thousand years of life on this earth
That you'll ever experience
It's coming
Okay, that time is coming
So don't try to attain everything you've got
So don't try to attain everything now
You're going to inherit the whole earth
When Christ comes back
To establish his kingdom
Okay
Now, keep going to verse number 21
He says, for there is a man
Whose labor is in wisdom and in knowledge
And in equity
Yet to a man that hath not labored therein
Shall he leave it for his portion
This also
Is vanity and a great evil
Again, he's thinking about everything that I attain
Wisdom, knowledge, all the things
It's going to be given to someone else
So it's all vanity
For what hath man of all his labor
And of the vexation of his heart
Wherein he hath labored under the sun
Like, basically, when we die
We can't take it with us
For all his days are sorrows
And his travail grief
Yea, his heart taketh not rest in the night
This is also vanity
He's got so many possessions
So many worries
He can't even rest in the night
He's tossing and turning when he's meant to be sleeping and resting
He's tossing and turning, thinking about all the things
That he's acquired
You know, and he goes, I can't even take this with me
It's going to be left to another man
Again, this is true for the man
Living without God
Okay, this is true for that person
Filling this way, trying to live a life without God
Anyway, he gets to his next lesson here
Verse number 24
So once he's considered all of this
He gets to the next lesson
So he's done all these works
It's all meaningless, it's all pointless
Okay, but he actually does find meaning
At this point here in verse number 24
He goes, there is nothing
Better for a man
Than that he should eat
And drink
And that he should make his soul enjoy good
In his labor
Because I found something interesting here
You know, when you labor
And you can eat and drink from your labor
And the things that you can enjoy with your labor
There's nothing better than this
But in what sense? Look at this
This also I saw
That it was from the hand
Of God
Reverend, this is
So you can enjoy life
You can enjoy a meal
Okay, you can enjoy some possessions
But this is the lesson
Whatever you enjoy in life
You must come to the realization
That it was from the hand of God
Now it has meaning
Now it has purpose
It wasn't just me
And my labor and my efforts
Whatever you have, Reverend
You must realize it comes from God
It comes from the hand of God
When you realize that, how's that going to change your heart?
Instead of being full of pride
Look what I've achieved
You're going to learn to be thankful to God
You're going to learn to praise Him
You'll wake up this morning
Thank you for life
I woke up this morning, God
Thank you for life this morning
Thank you for life
I'm sure you woke up with a roof over your head
Thank you, Lord, for this roof that you've put over my head
I'm sure many of you had breakfast
Thank you, Lord, for the breakfast
For the meal that I was able to have this morning
Whatever I have
Whatever possessions that I've attained
By the labor and the workings of my hand
Came from the Lord God
So he learns this lesson
This is meaning
This is purpose
And gives you great things
Great things for you to enjoy
James 1, verse 17
Every good gift
And every perfect gift
Is from above
And cometh down from the Father of Lights
With whom is no variableness
Near the shadow of turning
The Father of Lights
Your Heavenly Father has given you
Everything that you possess
That's how you ought to think about life
You wake up, you know, whatever I have
You look at your spouse
Even if you had an argument
Say, thank you, God, for my spouse
Thank you, God, that I can wake up
Next to somebody to share my life with
You look at your children
Say, thank you, God, for my children
Every good and perfect gift
Is from above
So again
Man, it's all worthless
All this work
But then he goes, no, there's nothing better than this
As long as you realize
Give credit where credit's due
The credit is from the Lord God
It's from Him, from His hand
He's looked down upon me
He's looked at my life
And He's blessed me and given me the things that I needed
That's going to give you, again, joy
Again, I don't want you to walk away from Ecclesiastes chapter 2 and think
Then everything is just worthless
Everything I have, no, no
The point is, you look at it and go, wow
Thank you, God
Thank you, God, for everything that I own
Thank you for giving me life
Thank you for giving me my food
Thank you for giving me my family
My friends, my church
Whatever you can think about, Reverend
Give glory and thanks to the Lord God
Look at verse number 25
He goes, for who can eat
Or who else can hasten here unto
More than I
So, he goes, who could possibly have more than me
Okay
Basically, he's going, everything I've got
Must have been from the hand of God
That realization, that learning
Heart, okay
Verse number 26
This is the conclusion of the chapter, he goes
For God giveth to a man
That is good in his sight
Wisdom and knowledge
And joy
Okay, brethren, so, if you want joy
I think a lot of us are seeking joy
To enjoy life
If you want wisdom and knowledge
Then it's God that gives it to you
He goes, for God giveth to a man
That is good in his sight
Those of you that are good
In the sight of God
He will bless
You want to enjoy life more
You want more of your prayers answered
You want your will to be more aligned to God's will
Then you need to do good in his sight
I preached not long ago
I think it was last month, a sermon on
Obtaining favor from the Lord
It's the same idea
Making sure that you live a life
Where you're seeking to please him and to honor him
To do his will, to keep his commandments
You're walking the path of the Lord
And the Lord will look down at the good that you do
And he's going to bless you
He's going to give you the joy
He's going to give you the wisdom, the understanding
That you need to go through life
You know, to maximize life
To enjoy life at the fullest
He goes, but
But, to the sinner
He giveth travail
Yeah, if you don't sin
It hurts you
It hurts your life, it hurts those that you love
He gathers and heaps up, right?
Even the sinners out there have some possessions
But then he says this
That he, the sinner
May give it to him that is good
Before God
This also is vanity
And vexational spirit
So to the sinner who's acquiring all the things
All the possessions on this earth
It's vexation to him
Because everything that he acquires
Is going to be given to those that are doing good
In the eyes of God
And God goes hand in hand with the problems that we learned earlier
God, man, I can't wait
Does that mean, pastor, tomorrow
You know, all the sinners, all the things, all the possessions
All the wealth they've acquired, you know, today
We're going to receive that tomorrow
No, no, no, not yet
Not yet
It will eventually, but not yet
If you can please turn
One more passage
Go to Psalm 37
Go to Psalm 37, verse number 9
Psalm 37, verse number 9
I mentioned the millennial reign of Christ
I mentioned that we're coming back
You know, even if you are one of the poorest
Of the poor
Okay, but you're saved
You're going to be one of the richest
Okay, one of the richest
And it's not magnifying yourself
In that millennium
It's all about magnifying the Lord Jesus Christ
The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords
Every king
Every politician
Everyone on earth is going to serve Jesus Christ
For that thousand years
And Christ is going to use us
In that capacity
Okay, in positions of prominence
Of importance
It says here in Psalm 37, verse number 9
Psalm 37, verse number 9
It says, for evildoers shall be cut off
But those that wait upon the Lord
Look at this
They shall inherit the earth
Brethren, we're going to have more
Than Solomon in the millennium
We're going to have the whole earth
We're going to inherit the earth
For yet a little while
And the wicked shall not be
Okay, it's coming
Okay, yea
Thou shall diligently consider his place
And it shall not be
But the meek shall inherit the earth
Hey, that's what Christ taught
As well, he took this from the Psalms
But the meek shall inherit the earth
And shall delight themselves
In the abundance of peace
So it's true
You know, what the wicked
What the sinners are trying to
Amass for themselves on this earth
It's all going to be given to us
In that millennial reign of Christ
It's all going to be given to the Lord Jesus Christ
And of course he's going to then hand it down to us
We're going to have greater riches
Than King Solomon
Again, but instead of magnifying ourselves
We're going to be magnifying Christ
Okay, it's all going to be about the Lord Jesus Christ
Now I don't know how much is going to be left exactly
We know that before Christ comes to reign
That his wrath is going to pour upon this earth
We know that a lot of it's going to burn
We know that the mountains are going to shake
And the islands are going to be moved
But you know, there'll still be something left on this earth
Okay, and then Christ is going to
Of course, a thousand years, things are going to be rebuilt
You know, it's going to be the greatest
That's ever been on the earth as Christ rules
And we're going to inherit all of that
You know what, if you're saved
Praise God
So what's the point of acquiring wealth right now
When you're going to get it all in the millennium
And it's a real millennium
It's a thousand years
Not the 70, 80, 90 years that you get on this life
You can get a thousand years on this earth
With everything that you could possibly receive on this earth
Okay
And then, after that, even better
The new heavens, the new earth
Okay, no more sin
No more wickedness
Serving the Lord God for all eternity
Even better
Yeah
So, I guess the conclusion of the matter is
We need to make sure that our sight and our hearts
Are on eternity
It's on the heavenly
Not on the earthly, not on the carnal
If your heart is on this earth forever
And you're quite intrigued on this earth
You'll never be satisfied
You'll hate life
And you'll find out it's just a vexational spirit
It's a vexational spirit, it's an annoyance
It's a frustration
But, you can still enjoy your life today
As long as you live for Christ
And to die is gain
Amen, let's pray
Heavenly Father, Lord, I just want to thank you for your word
Lord, thank you for the journey of King Solomon once again
And I pray, Lord, that we will take all of this to heart
Lord, think about the young people especially
Our children, our teenagers, Lord
Because they will be challenged, Lord
I know I was challenged
I know many of the adults were challenged, Lord, in those years
Lord, it's been a million purpose, Lord
In all the fun and games that are out there on this earth, Lord
But, Lord, we know that if we live without you
It's not going to satisfy you
Lord, I pray that our children will remain in church
Lord, even if it's not this church, Lord
That they'll find a good church, a good pastor
That will look after them
That will teach them great things from God's truth
And, Lord, they will seek you all the days of their life
And, Lord, even for us adults that maybe have forgotten
Maybe we've got a bit stale in life
Maybe we're not enjoying it the way that we should
Lord, I just pray that we will do good in your sights
Lord, we seek your favor
Lord, we seek your answered prayers
We seek your movement and your will in our lives
And, Lord, I just pray that we would walk away from church this morning changed
Lord, seek and to serve you and to find meaning in you
And, Lord, thank you once again for everything you've given us
We pray this in Jesus' name
Amen
Alright, brethren, please take your hymnals
And let's turn to hymn number 294
294
We'll end with stepping in the light
Remember being foolish is like being in darkness
Or getting the wisdom of the Lord is like being in the light
So, stepping in the light
294
Stepping in the light
384
Stepping in the light
384
Stepping in the light
384
Stepping in the light
384
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
284
Stepping in the light
How beautiful to walk in the steps
Of the Savior
Let him pass the fight
On the third
Walking in footsteps
Of gentle forbearance
Footsteps of faithfulness
Looking to him
For the grace freely promised
Happy, how happy
Our journey above
How beautiful
To walk in the steps
Of the Savior
Stepping in the light
How beautiful to walk in the steps
Of the Savior
Let him pass the fight
Trying to walk in the steps
Of the Savior
Upward, still upward
We'll follow our guide
We shall see him, the king
In his beauty
Happy, how happy
Our place at his side
How beautiful to walk in the steps
Of the Savior
Stepping in the light
How beautiful to walk in the steps
Of the Savior
Let him pass the fight