All right, let's take our seats. Thank you so much, musicians. Let's pray as we now come to hear from God in his word. Lord God, we need your wisdom for a new year. You have sustained us this previous year, but Lord, how will we make it How will we live this next year? Well, unless you are with us, unless you instruct us, unless you empower us. God, teach us from your word today. Help me to be able to declare it well, accurately, clearly. Transform us. In Jesus name, we pray. Amen. Well, some of you may know that I studied English literature in college. History, too, but English literature was one of my majors. And one famous poem that has always stuck with me from my college days is called The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot. Now, don't be confused by the title. The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock is no mushy, gushy celebration of love. It's actually an instructive tragedy. This poem is written in what's called a stream of consciousness style, as if we, the readers, are hearing a certain middle-aged man named Prufrock as he talks to and even argues with himself in his mind as he nervously sets out to attend a tea party with the lady that he admires. At this tea party, Prufrock intends to tell this educated and elegant woman something important. Perhaps he intends to confess his feelings for her and ask her whether she has feelings for him. Or instead, maybe he wants to share with her some profound realization he's made about life, maybe to impress her, maybe to help her. The climactic moment, though, in the poem comes about three quarters of the way through with the following lines. I'll read them to you. Should I, after tea and cakes and ices, have the strength to force the moment to its crisis? But though I have wept and fasted, wept and prayed, though I've seen my head, grown slightly bald, brought in upon a platter, I am no prophet, and here's no great matter. I've seen the moment of my greatness flicker, and I've seen the eternal footman hold my coat and snicker, and in short, I was afraid. In the poem, Prufrock arrives at the moment of decision, and his fears, they confront him as if a vision from the future. And what does he decide to do? Well, despite all his efforts to prepare and ask his lady the overwhelming question, he ultimately decides not even to attend the party. He's just too afraid of her reaction and of the embarrassment of potentially misunderstanding her. He decides he doesn't have the strength or the smarts to see his task through, so he just goes home. Yet the final stanzas of the poem reveal that Prufrock does not feel happiness or relief at his abandoned resolution, but instead despair. He describes himself as if he were shrinking, aging, wasting away. He says, I grow old. I grow old. I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled." The poem basically ends with the speaker resigning himself to a weakness-filled life without any real joy. And you might ask, well, what's the point of such a depressing poem? Well, some say the poem is a lament over modern masculinity, or the lack thereof. But more straightforwardly, The poem is a cautionary tale about the fearful path of inaction. Though you might sympathize with poor Prufrock, hearing about what happens to him, you surely do not want to end up like him, figuratively old and dead, even while you might be young and certainly alive, full of regret about not taking the chances for good that were presented to you in life. You don't want that. Instead, you want to be courageous, taking action, speaking up, because who knows how a situation might end up if you just try. I mentioned this poem to you this morning because I think we Christians can fall into a similar kind of trap as T.S. Eliot's fictional character. Have you ever face a nervous argument in your own mind when it comes to doing something for the Lord? Maybe telling someone else about Jesus? Or confronting sin or error that is bringing somebody down? Have you ever had an opportunity to serve the Lord in a certain needed way, special way, but then you thought about the risks? What am I cost you? Risk to your reputation? your relationships, your finances, resources, your time, maybe your health? Have you ever been paralyzed by inaction because you feared failure? I think we all have, whether man or woman, child or adult. As we look back over this past year and look forward to the next year, I think now is a great time to assess whether we are really making the most of our quickly passing days. In the flesh, there's always going to be a temptation to take the easier, lazier, seemingly risk-free path. Don't try to do anything that's actually meaningful, anything that's going to take hard work, anything that's even slightly dangerous. Don't say anything controversial, anything that'll make people uncomfortable or offended. Just keep it nice, keep it polite, keep it shallow. Or better yet, don't talk to people at all. Just stay home, isolate. Don't spend time with believers and don't spend time with unbelievers. Just watch TV, play video games, pursue your little hobbies, skulk on social media, and just watch while others do things with their lives. Does that sound like a state that you would want to end up in? I'm guessing not. Well, if not, then we need to prepare to persevere against the flesh, persevere against our corrupt world system, persevere against the evil one. If we want to be real Christians, if we really want to honor the Lord and enjoy life as God meant us to do. And by God's spirit, you must act, serve, and speak in ways that really matter. Ways that will require persevering through hard work and enduring risk. Ways that will also involve at times awkward conversations. and maybe strained relationships, but ways that will, in the end, be truly satisfying to us and pleasing to our Lord. My brothers and sisters, I tell you for your own sake, for your own soul's sake, this upcoming year, you cannot afford to play it safe. Rather, you and I must resolve to risk well for Christ. And we don't have to rely on T.S. Eliot for this exhortation or instruction. We can actually find this wisdom in a surer and much more authoritative source, the Lord's own Word. So if you would please take your Bibles, open up to the book of Ecclesiastes. Ecclesiastes chapter 11, verses 1 to 6. Title of today's message is, Resolve to Risk Well. resolve to risk well. Ecclesiastes 11, 1 to 6. If you're using the Pew Bible, you can find that on page 677. And if you know that we went to the Book of Ecclesiastes together a little over a year ago, this is one of my favorite passages from the Book of Ecclesiastes, and I thought it would be profitable to return here this New Year's Day. Remember that the book of Ecclesiastes, this great wisdom book written by an aged and repentant King Solomon, it's all about how to live life well in a world that is fundamentally vaporous, where due to the curse of sin that has overcome the world, everything is fleeting, mysterious, unsatisfying. Anyone looking for ultimate profit, ultimate gain, ultimate happiness and security in the things and experiences of the world, well, they're just going to end up frustrated, grasping at vapor, as it were, because that's the way the world is. In contrast, those who, in humble fear of God, accept life for what it is and thankfully embrace the portion that God gives to him or her in this life, Well, they can not only enjoy this life, but live it well before him. That's what we've been called to do. The key though, as Solomon emphasizes to us again and again in this book, is acting with wisdom. Act with wisdom in the fear of God. Wisdom, while it cannot guarantee that everything will go well for you in life, you'll never get sick, you'll never get in trouble, wisdom can't do that. But wisdom is nevertheless the best equipment and protection you can have for facing life. It can rescue you in situations that seemingly have no way to move forward. Now, this part of Ecclesiastes, where we're in today, actually spanning from chapters 9 to 12, is all about embracing a certain basic but critical piece of wise counsel. And what's that counsel? Namely this. Stop waiting around, but use your life well while you can. Use your life to the full while you can. As we say today, with a certain phrase, carpe diem. Seize the day. Or you could translate that more literally, pluck the ripe day. Solomon tells us, life is short. The future is uncertain. But death and God's assessment after death are certain. So if there is true good before the Lord that you can accomplish and experience right now, what are you waiting for? This is Solomon's prodding counsel to us in the book of Ecclesiastes in this section. And to be more specific about these six verses we're looking at today, Ecclesiastes 11, 1 to 6, Solomon takes this carpe diem concept and he considers how those walking in wisdom in the fear of God should think about risk. How should those who want to make the most of life while they can respond to risk? Well, let's now hear Solomon explain, speaking by the Spirit of God in our passage. Ecclesiastes 11, 1 to 6. Cast your bread on the surface of the waters, for you will find it after many days. Divide your portion to seven or even to eight, for you do not know what misfortune may occur on the earth. If the clouds are full, they pour out rain upon the earth, and whether a tree falls toward the south or toward the north, wherever the tree falls, there it lies. He who watches the wind will not sow, and he who looks at the clouds will not reap. Just as you do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of the pregnant woman, So you do not know the activity of God, who makes all things. Sow your seed in the morning, and do not be idle in the evening. If you do not know whether morning or evening sowing will succeed, or whether both of them alike will be good. In the face of the uncertain, vapor-like nature of life, each of us could easily be drawn like poor proof rock into a scared kind of stupor. Become so afraid of making the wrong move that we decide to make no moves at all. Or we become so pessimistic about experiencing good or accomplishing something for God that we don't even bother to try. But these are the exact opposite of the wisdom of Solomon and the wisdom of God, right from our passage. You've got to make moves in your life because your life is moving. whether you like it or not. And you might be surprised at how often you will find success, find good, if you simply try with wisdom. Solomon shows us today that it ought to be our resolution not to completely avoid risk in life, but to risk well, to take wise risks for the Lord's sake and for your own. What does that look like? Well, Solomon's gonna show us three main ways, and considering that it is New Year's Day, I thought I would frame these as three resolutions for you to adopt. In Ecclesiastes 11, one to six, Solomon exhorts you to three resolutions in order to risk well for Christ. Three resolutions in order to risk well for Christ. And we'll go through each of these as we work our way through the passage. The first resolution comes from verses one to two. I'll give this to you in first person form. Resolution one. I will not hoard my treasures, but invest them boldly and generously. Resolution one for you to adopt. I will not hoard my treasures, but invest them boldly and generously. Look at verse one. cast your bread on the surface of the waters, for you will find it after many days." This is a very famous saying from the book of Ecclesiastes, and it regards risk and reward. But even though it's famous, at first glance, it makes little logical sense. Why would I throw my bread onto the water? Am I trying to feed ducks? I'm not going to find it after many days if I do that. And even if I did find it, it's going to be all soggy. Why would I still want it? It may be that this saying, cast your bread upon the waters, it was simply an idiom, a phrase, a saying that made good sense to the Hebrews at the time because they had a certain context for it for which we lack. Doesn't make sense to us, probably made sense to them. But whatever way it was supposed to be understood, I think we get what the saying is pointing us towards. Solomon is exhorting us, even commanding us, to take surprising and even risk-laden action because such action will prove profitable in the end. And if there is a way that this phrase would make sense to us now, Solomon could possibly be referring to overseas trade. Because the word translated, cast, here, it literally means to stretch out, to send, or to let go of. And the Hebrew word for bread, it could mean literal bread or it could just refer to food or life necessities in general. So we can understand the exhortation of verse one in this way. Let go of, send out your life provisions on or over the surface of the waters. Now, is that an action that would carry risk? Well, of course. You never know what might happen at sea And the Hebrews were not particularly skilled at seafaring. There were pirates at sea, storms, shipwrecks. And giving away or trading your food? Well, what if you run out back home? It's not like you can just go to the supermarket, at least in those days. Food wasn't as readily available then as it is now. So don't you think it'd just be safer to hang on to, hoard all of our food, not to send it out? Hang on to your earthly goods. By this point in Ecclesiastes, Solomon has already shown us that even hoarded up goods are not truly secure. Listen to Ecclesiastes 5, verses 13 to 14. Ecclesiastes 5, 13 to 14. There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun, riches being hoarded by their owner to his hurt. When those riches were lost through a bad investment, And he had father to son, and there was nothing to support him. Hanging on to, refusing to use, give away, or invest your goods, that's not truly safe, because you could still lose everything you've stored up in a moment. At that time, say you've accumulated a whole bunch of food, well, pests could get in it, ruin it. There could be a natural disaster, a fire burns it all up. War might consume it, take it away. Or if it's a particular item, valuable item, you might misplace it. But whether back then or today, think of the benefit that could come if you use your stuff, even sending it out over the water. You can make a great profit and secure other goods for yourself. like Solomon did when he traded away wheat, barley, oil, and wine to Hiram, king of Tyre, in exchange for timber and a skilled worker. Or Amabi of Tyre, that's 2 Chronicles 2. By sending out your precious goods over the water, you could also supply food to those who desperately need it and secure grateful and loyal friends who can help you also when you come into a time of need. But most importantly, you could even secure praise and glory to God, as well as eternal treasure, even everlasting friends, when you give for the gospel's sake. You even use up what belongs to yourself and your resources, your health, time, resources, to meet the needs of faraway brethren. This is what Paul and early Gentile believers did when they took a collection of money for certain hurting saints in Jerusalem. Solomon is telling us here not to be afraid to let go of our precious things, our treasures, our life, our health. You can and you should take bold risks with the treasures of this world because chances are By doing so, you will accomplish great good for yourself, for others, and for Christ. You will find it after many days, Solomon says. It may take a while. Overseas trade, after all, was not quick back then. Even today, it takes a little bit of time. You may not see the fruit of your investment or your charity or your love for a long time. But eventually, Solomon says, you will. The ships will come back. and you're giving away bread, it will have netted you that much more. Now it's interesting, perhaps you noticed, Solomon is speaking quite assertively here. Not that you might find it after many days, or you could find it, but that you will find it. Now Solomon is not ignorant of life's sudden calamities. He's actually already told us about that in Ecclesiastes. There's no true guarantee that your investments will succeed and come back. You can't be naive. You can't be reckless. But I think Solomon speaks so assuredly here because he wants us to see that the risks of life that cause us so much worry and so much fear, they're not as great as we think. Ships do sink. But most of the time, they don't. They come back. Sometimes you lose your investment, sometimes your charity is wasted, but most of the time, that's not what happens. Typically, you send your bread away, it comes back. So, don't be afraid. Don't be foolish, but don't be scared. Don't be too scared to use, to send out, to invest your precious goods. Verse two continues this idea, while stressing wisdom's part in risk-taking. Look at verse two. Divide your portion to seven or even to eight, for you do not know what misfortune may occur on the earth. Now this is your classic verse for the wisdom of diversifying your portfolio, right? It's like the English proverb, do not put all your eggs in one basket. That's common sense wisdom. Most of us readily see that. Yet do you notice that there's risk in heeding that wise counsel? Divide your portion, Solomon said. So we could translate it, give your share of treasure. Hey, what are you saying? My portion is precious. As long as it's in front of me, I can check it, I can watch it, I can count it, I can keep it. You want me to give it away? You want me to let go of it? You want me to let it out of my sight? Solomon says, yes. And not just to one or two places, how about seven or eight? Now, those numbers aren't to be interpreted too literally, as if you did it six places, somehow you disobeyed Solomon's counsel. This is just the Hebrew way of representing a lot more than you would expect. Hebrews sometimes like to use the number, or they would have an expression where they give you a number, and then they give you that number plus one. It's a way of expressing super completeness over abundance. There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are abomination to him, for example. That's from Proverbs. Same idea here. Divide your treasure seven ways. That's complete. That's a lot. But you know what's even better? Eight. Eight is even better. But wait a second. Why should you give away your goods so many ways? Why should you divide it up so much? Well, end of verse two. because you do not know what misfortune, literally evil, may occur on the Earth. You can't perfectly foretell the future. You can't forestall all calamity, even if you know the future. So it's actually riskier for you to hoard your good things, or to put all of your hope in just one avenue for them, than for you to send out your portion in multiple directions. Because if you send it out multiple ways, if one or a few fail, the others may still succeed. You should expect that there will be unexpected happenings in life, reversals, betrayals, uncertainties. So, distribute your treasures accordingly. Now, there are many relevant applications of this wisdom principle for our lives. when it comes to just practical issues, but certainly when it comes to living as Christians. Don't just apply to one school or one job. Apply to many. Give yourself options. If you're investing in the stock market, don't just invest in one stock. Invest in multiple stocks or in an index fund. Get news, teaching, counsel from multiple sources. Don't just rely on one. In the church, train up many people to serve and work. Don't just have one indispensable man. Don't just rely on the pastor or one particular person. And in your life, spread the gospel seed wide. Give it to everyone. Don't hoard it. Don't just focus on one person that you really want to see saved. Because you never know when the seed is going to fall on good soil. And you're going to have a heart that repents and believes. Everyone must take risks in life. The question is whether you will risk well. The one who hoards, refuses to let his treasures leave his sight, he takes the worst risks. Because not only can those treasures still be lost in a moment, but that person risks wasting his life. You only get one. It's short. Do you really want to waste it by not taking risks? So your first resolution today ought to be, resolve not to hoard your treasures, but to invest them boldly and generously. Solomon points us to a second resolution for risking well for Christ in verses three to five. Resolution two, I will not analyze endlessly, but use wisdom humbly and sufficiently. I will not analyze endlessly, but use wisdom humbly and sufficiently. Look now, verse three. If the clouds are full, they pour out rain upon the earth. And whether a tree falls toward the south or toward the north, wherever the tree falls, there it lies. Now here's another saying from Solomon that is puzzling at first glance, but not because it's so mysterious and enigmatic, but because it's so plain, it's so obvious. Well, of course, full clouds eventually rain. And of course, a fallen tree remains where it falls. Why are you telling me this, Solomon? Well, I'd say the obviousness is actually the point. Verses three to five, Solomon is drawing our attention to what we can know and what we cannot know in life. There is no point, Solomon is telling us, in constantly studying and dwelling on unknowable matters, ultimately unknowable matters, because you need to act. Consider the clouds here in verse 3. Can any of us know for certain where, when, and how it will rain? We've had some rain recently. We have all this advanced meteorological technology today that helps predict the weather, temperature, precipitation, etc. But how often is the weather report wrong? Weatherman gets it wrong. I'm sure we're going to see this more this winter. They're going to be telling us it's going to snow, and it's not going to snow. Or they're going to be like, it's a blizzard, and it's like one inch. Or they're like, you know, it's just a dusting, and then a whole foot. This happens all the time with predicting rain, or predicting snow, or predicting the weather. In our personal judgment, it's not that much better. It's not like we could say, those weathermen, what do they know? Well, what do you know? You look out, and you say, oh, it's not going to rain today, and it rains. Or you're like, I think the rain's done. You go out, all the rain comes down on you. We're just as bad. Our knowledge about weather, about rain, about clouds, it's real, but it's fundamentally limited, even with all our technology and science today. We know that full clouds mean rain, but when, where, and how, we can't say for sure. Rain is ultimately beyond our control and our understanding. And it's the same with falling trees. We all know that trees can fall down. We even chop down certain trees and direct them to fall in a certain place and direction. But sometimes trees fall down without our help or even our expectation that they will fall. You thought your tree was all great, doing fine, then strong wind comes by and The tree just gets uprooted. And you see that, oh, it's shriveled underneath. This tree's been sick, and I didn't even realize it. Or maybe it is a healthy tree, but it's just a certain powerful storm. You thought nothing would ever knock that tree over, and then something more powerful than you expected came by, and there's that tree falling over. We can do certain things to analyze the health of trees, the power of storms, to predict when and where a tree might fall over. There are so many unknown factors when it comes to trees. We cannot say for sure when, where, or how a tree might fall. Maybe this tree doesn't fall, but then that one does, one that you didn't expect. So there's a lot that we don't know. But we can sufficiently know the basics, the most important things. A tree sometimes falls. And wherever it falls, that's where you'll find it. It ain't going anywhere anytime soon once it falls. What's Solomon's point? Don't get caught up in too much steady in preparation, thinking you can predict perfectly when it's going to rain or which trees are going to fall and where. If you're just steady enough, just get enough wisdom, get enough knowledge, you'll never get enough. You'll never be able to predict perfectly. Take basic precautions against rain, against falling trees, but make sure you actually act. Don't just sit around and speculate. Gather sufficient knowledge and then act. Solomon brings out this exhortation even more forcefully in the next verse. Look at verse four. He who watches the wind will not sow, and he who looks at the clouds will not reach. Now, here we have represented exactly what Solomon does not want to see happen to any of us, and that is paralysis by analysis. The first line here, Solomon pictures a man who keeps checking the wind and signs related to the wind before he goes out to sow seed. Now, why would he do that? He's afraid that if he goes out to scatter seed on his farm, when it's particularly windy, that the seed's going to get blown away from where he wants it to land. It's going to go in the wrong spots. He might have to sow the field all over again. In the second line, Solomon pictures a man constantly looking at the clouds, checking if it will rain. Harvesting, gathering in crops, will become much more difficult in the rain. It's doable, but it's a lot less comfortable. It's going to take longer. He'd like to make sure that before he starts, he's not going to have to endure the extra difficulty of harvesting in the rain. So he's checking the clouds. Now, we might think that such analysis is smart. This is prudent. But notice Solomon's observation about these two hypothetical persons. Neither of them are actually going to act. The first is not actually going to sow a seed. The second is not actually going to reap his crops. Their constant checking and analyzing approach, it's actually foolish and a huge waste. They're only making life harder for themselves and enduring an unnecessary risk, a risk of starvation and destitution. Why won't they act? Because they're afraid, like Prufrock. They're afraid of wasted effort, of disappointment, of difficulty. They're looking for the perfect, sure success, risk-free situation before they act. And Solomon says, you know what? That situation you're looking for? It's never going to come. Your ideal situation, perfect, risk-free situation, only exists in your imagination. you'll never have complete knowledge, complete security, complete surety for action. So, what should you do? Stop waiting around for the ideal situation and act according to the needs and opportunities that you have in front of you. You're going to have to endure some risk in doing this. You check the clouds, you check the wind, you think it's good, but you don't know for sure, You go out there, you might end up sowing in a way where the wind picks up, blows everything all over the place, and you have to do it again. Or you might end up going out there thinking it's not going to rain when you go to harvest, and the rain does unexpectedly come, and you have to harvest in the rain. But you know what? That's okay. These risks, enduring these risks are much better than enduring the risk of never sowing or reaping at all. And, by the way, if you just try to sow, just try to reap, chances are you won't encounter the difficulty that you were fearing. And even if you do, you'll get through it. And you'll gain the outcome that you actually needed to gain, food, or whatever it is that you need in a particular situation. A sure way not to succeed, though, is to never try at all, because you're waiting for perfection. And here again is a teaching with so many valuable applications to life, especially the Christian life. You've got to stop waiting for the perfect job, the perfect church, the perfect spouse. They don't exist. Stop waiting for the perfect time to buy a home, the perfect time to serve the church, the perfect time to have kids, the perfect time to give the gospel to that family member. It's awkward. I don't want to do it yet. I want to wait for a smoother time. Well, just remember, your perfect, risk-free time, it's never going to arrive. Which means, if you're waiting, you're never going to act. While you keep looking for the perfect, you're going to miss out on all the good. So in the end, make preparations, but then do what you need to do. Even if the circumstances are not completely ideal, you'll receive the benefit, and the Lord will be honored. especially when you persevere through difficulty. Now, this counsel from Solomon is humbling, but that's part of the point. Look at verse 5. Now, your Bible translation may differ slightly here. There's some question in the original Hebrew text as to whether Solomon is giving one comparison here or two. The word for wind in Hebrew could also be translated spirit. Same word. So it's possible to translate this verse as the ESV has it, as you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child. So is he talking about women and pregnancy, or wind and pregnancy, or just pregnancy? I think the New American Standard 95 reading, the one we're using, is more likely. But either way, the overall message is the same. Solomon's reminding us here once again of our limitations in knowledge, which means we have a need to rely on God. We can know certain facts about the wind, about pregnancy. We can also see the beautiful or tragic outcomes of wind and pregnancy in the world. But there are still fundamental mysteries to these realities. Even for us modern Christians don't know everything there is to know about the wind or about how babies are formed. Solomon's drawing our attention to these areas of lack of knowledge remind us once again of the differences between us and God. God knows all things and is actively working all things according to his good but mysterious will. If we try to become like God and obtain God-like understanding of situations before we act, well, we're doomed to fail because we are not God. and cannot be him. We are clay in the hands of the potter. Cannot understand all that he does. So though it is good for us to gain basic knowledge, wisdom, counsel, Proverbs says a lot about that, you wanna act wisely, get counsel, do that before you act, but remember, you're not gonna have complete knowledge. There will always be some risk. There's always going to be some need to rely on God amid danger and uncertainty. But that is God's design. That's the way God wants it to be. Ecclesiastes 3.14 says, God does things in the way that's inscrutable to you so that you will fear Him. You will revere Him. You will depend on Him. And what does Proverbs say? You are to trust the Lord and all things and not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path. That's the beginning. That's basic wisdom. We must not run away from this reality but embrace it. Now sometimes we get into such a Nervous state, because we want to see how it all is going to work out from the beginning. I can't see how this is going to turn out well. God says, you're not supposed to right now, but you're supposed to trust me. Take a risk by remaining faithful and obedient, even when you don't see the outcome, and watch how I provide. We need to leave the secret things to God and focus on what He's given us to know and to do. Let us resolve, then, not to analyze endlessly, but use the wisdom that God gives us, that basic but important wisdom, to act humbly and sufficiently. You always give us enough. We don't have to be afraid. Well, our third and final resolution for today comes from verse six. Resolution three. I will not despair over the future. but work diligently and hopefully. I will not despair over the future, this is what you need to resolve this morning, but work diligently and hopefully. Look at verse six. Sow your seed in the morning, and do not be idle in the evening, for you do not know whether morning or evening sowing will succeed, or whether both of them alike will be good. And notice here, Solomon again turns us to a farming metaphor. And this, of course, would have been very familiar to the agricultural Hebrews. Though Solomon's words do have a direct application to farming, they really apply to all kinds of endeavors that we might undertake in life, especially for Christ. Solomon says, sow seed in the morning and in the evening. Do not be idle, he says. Or more literally, do not cause your hand to rest. Work hard. Try out multiple avenues of work, multiple possibilities of success. Why? Because of life's uncertainty. And this sounds a lot like verses 1 to 2, right? Which you've already looked at. Diversify your options as you seek good. You don't know whether it's morning sowing that will be successful or the evening sowing, or maybe even both. You never know which investment is going to turn out big, which business is going to hire you, which ministry is going to have a great impact, which counselee will have a breakthrough, which verse finally gets that person to believe, which person you share the gospel with is going to repent. So, what should you do? Give a shot to everything you can. Don't stop working. Don't stop trying. You never know what good God might accomplish through your work, through your persevering work, and through your words. Now, notice how optimistically Solomon gives us this third exhortation. Solomon does not say, work hard, try everything, because you don't know what might fail. Rather, he says, you don't know which will succeed or whether both of them will be good. Why the rosy outlook? Well, again, I don't think it's because Solomon has suddenly become ignorant about the possibility of total and unexpected ruin. This is an aspect of life. He lived in a world that is frequently devastated by droughts and famines. We've mitigated many of those things in modern technology, but it's not a problem that has ceased to be. Especially in ancient times, if you were going through a drought or a famine, if you sowed in the morning or sowed in the evening, well, neither of them is likely to turn out well. Solomon's not ignorant of that fact. He's nonetheless optimistic here. Why? I think his optimism comes from two sources. First, simply the way that God made the world. Solomon describes that way in the book of Proverbs. God has so designed the universe, even in the fall, that those who work hard and with wisdom tend to see good results. Proverbs 10.4 Poor is he who works with a negligent hand, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. Proverbs 21.5 The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage, but everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty. Life doesn't always work out this way. It is mysterious, it is vaporous after all. Sometimes you work hard and you don't see success. But that's not generally the case. If you're a hard worker, trying multiple avenues of success, you can work in the hope that your efforts will bring about good. That is generally how God designed this world to work. That's a source of optimism. But that's not the only reason. The other reason for optimism, the second reason, is the goodness of God. Consider, what basic promise does God give his people over and over again in the Bible? If you seek me, if you believe in me, if you obey me, I will take care of you. I will provide for you. You will still see trials. You will still see situations where you will have to trust me. I'm going to grow you. I'm going to test your faith. I'm going to display my glory through you. But you don't need to be afraid. You don't need to worry. You don't need to become obsessed with safety. Work hard. Act in wisdom. But in it all, God says, trust in me. Trust in me to bring you to good, because I will do it. In my own way and time, but I will do it, God says. This is one of the most precious truths of the Bible, and it's one that we're going to have to cling to again and again in our lives, because you're going to encounter situations where it doesn't feel like there's going to be any good that can come out of it. Yet God, because He is a faithful God and because He's proven His character both in the scriptures and in our lives, He has made it quite clear to us that He will bring His people, even you, to good. We don't know how or when. We know certainly it will be there in His kingdom when we are there with Him. But even in this life, We can take courage as we work hard, suffer mysterious reversals, because God has promised he will show us good again. I'll give you just one example of how this is mentioned in the Bible, Psalm 4, Psalm 4, verses 6 to 8. Psalm 4, 6 to 8, the psalmist says, many are saying, who will show us any good? Not seeing good anywhere. He continues, Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, O Lord, that is, O Yahweh. You have put gladness in my heart more than when their grain and new wine abound. In peace, I will both lie down and sleep. For you alone, O Yahweh, make me to dwell in safety. You know, in an earthly sense, Life is never without risk. And safety and good are not guaranteed. But in a fuller sense, in a biblically informed sense, for God's people, life is always safe. And good is always guaranteed. In a way, to take a risk for the Lord in your life is no risk at all. Because we know He loves us. and will care for us. Even if your faithful and wise obedience to Christ results in your death, that is actually no great loss. For Paul says, Philippians 1, verses 21 to 22, Philippians 1, 21 to 22, for to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me. If I die, I go with the Lord. But if I live, I get to do more for him. I'm happy either way. Paul's attitude, really, is to be the attitude of each of us. The life, mark this, my brothers and sisters, the life of risking well for Christ is really just the life of faith. And it's basic to being a Christian. When you first repented and believed in the Lord, when you first came to salvation, you know what you told him? Jesus, I believe in you, I'm going to trust you, and I'm going to take risks for you in my life, because I believe you're going to provide for me. And isn't this what we see of the different godly persons in the Bible, especially those mentioned in the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11? Did they not take great risks and their obedient strivings for the Lord? They did, but they did it out of faith. Some of them, as a result, were mistreated. Some of them came close to death. And some of them died, who were killed. But you know what? They also got to see the Lord work mightily in their lives. They got to put His glory on display before the whole universe. and they got to experience the joy and reward of the Lord in their lives. They didn't just have to wait for it. They got to experience it now. And the same ought to be true of us. Brethren, we are risk takers for the Lord. That's what we've signed up to be. We're not risking recklessly. We're not presuming on the Lord. We ought to risk wisely and well. But when we do, we give the Lord great opportunity to act in a mighty way in our lives. Hudson Taylor, the great missionary to China, once said, Unless there is an element of risk in our exploits for God, there is no need for faith. William Carey, the great missionary to India, he similarly exhorts us, expect great things from God. Attempt great things for God. And Jim Elliott, the great missionary martyred to Ecuador, he adds, he is no fool. He gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose. What might the Lord show us and do through us this year if we will take risks for his sake? Based on this passage then, will you sincerely resolve today to risk well for Christ? Will you refuse to hoard your talents and your treasures but instead distribute them, invest them boldly and generously? Will you refuse to analyze endlessly, but instead act with the sufficient knowledge, the sufficient wisdom that God provides for you while you depend on Him? Will you refuse to despair over the future, but instead work diligently and hopefully knowing that God cares for you, He will provide for you, and He will reward you? whether you see an immediate earthly outcome or not. I mentioned earlier in the message that the greatest risk you can take in life is to try and play it safe. That's not just because you will miss out on much good in this life. We read from the parable of the talents earlier in the service, Matthew 25, verses 14 to 30. Remember in that parable, there were three slaves, all charged by their master to make the most of resources entrusted by him to them while he goes away. Two of the slaves did so, wisely, even amid risk. They doubled the talents of money given to them by engaging in trade and business. Trade and business, those are not guaranteed ventures. There's always a chance that things will, you'll lose money or the business will fail. Well, they still sought to engage in it for their Lord's sake, trusting that there would be more success than there would be failure. And you know what? That's what they found. And when their Lord assessed their work, he greatly commended them and rewarded them. But the third slave with one talent, he never used it. He played it safe. He fearfully buried it in the ground. I think many of us in our fleshly moments have felt or acted like this slave. We only become concerned about comfort, survival, not obedience or ministry. And we never ask, for what use are we surviving if we're not actually doing anything for the Lord? If this is the pattern of our lives, if this is the pattern of your life, And you must repent. You must change. Because what was the Lord's assessment of the third slave? He condemned him as a wicked and lazy slave. He took away his talent, gave it to another, and he had that worthless slave, he calls him a worthless slave, thrown out into the outer darkness. to the place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. Now that is a sobering reality. A wasted, useless, risk-free life actually risks the everlasting wrath of God. You say, that's too hard, Lord. I don't want to do it. I'm just going to stay comfortable. I'm not going to make any sacrifices or take risks for you. And you know what God will say to you? You don't belong to me. I never knew you. Depart. Yet as the writer of Hebrew says, I am convinced of better things concerning you, brethren, things that accompany salvation. For we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the persevering of the soul. I'm sorry, preserving of the soul. For God has not given us the spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline. So, brethren, let us strive for the Lord this year. Let us pray. Let us give. Let us serve. Let us speak like those who truly believe that this life is short and that we are to make the most of it while we can. We won't always see a great or immediate earthly outcome whenever we risk for the Lord and we risk well for Him. And we won't always act or speak perfectly, but that's okay. We will learn, we will get better, and we can trust that the Lord will see whether there's a great earthly outcome or not, and He will be pleased, and He will reward us. But fundamentally, let us resolve to risk well for Christ for however many days He gives us. however many days he gives you. Amen. Next week, we'll say more about how we can do that specifically when it comes to evangelism. Let's close in prayer. Lord, it is hard for us really to realize and believe that our lives are short. It's so obvious people we love They have already departed this world. We see ourselves getting older. We read the news about somebody who suddenly died or was killed. But somehow, God, we lose that sense of urgency. And we're so tempted, Lord, to just sit back, play it safe, don't do anything meaningful, don't take any risks for you. But Lord, as you have instructed us from your word today, we cannot afford to fall into such a stupor. We have to come back to reality, come back to wisdom, which is life is short, death is certain, your judgment is coming. We want to be found faithful. We cannot do this, Lord, apart from your help, apart from your strength. But you know what, Lord? You've already promised it to us. You've given us the wisdom of your word. You've given us your spirit, those of us who believe, have repented and believe in Jesus Christ, so that we can do this. We can have faith. We can persevere. We can push through the difficulty. We can say no to ungodliness and yes to righteousness. We can tell other people the good news of salvation. And Lord, you will use even us to bring others to salvation. You will put your glory on display through the people of this church. But God, will we actually let you do that by taking risks for your sake? Help us, Lord. You know we are weak, but you are strong. So God, I pray that we would put you to the test in the right way. That by obedience, we would say, Lord, show yourself faithful. And God, that you would indeed do that. Lord, be pleased to use Calvary in a special way this year. We want to see many souls saved. We want to see the people of this church sanctified and growing in you. I pray that you would accomplish it. Lord, build up your church, bring glory to yourself through us, and let us experience the joy and reward of it, God. We want to be useful to you because that's what you made us to be. We trust, God, that you will provide. In Jesus' name, amen. Come on, let's stand together.