Amen. Thank you, Pastor Blaze. Thank you to our instrumentalists as well. You do such a good job every week. I really appreciate the song leaders that we have here at HBC. What they do seems easy, but it's not. They just make it look easy. And so I really appreciate them. When I was in South Carolina, sometimes I would be called by the local funeral home to do funerals for those who didn't have a pastor, those who didn't have a church family. And I remember arriving at one of them and they did not have any preparation done for the funeral. And so I had to very hastily craft an order of service. And they came to me and they said, we want some songs to be sung. And I said, oh, OK, well, who's going to do the music? And she just looked at me for a second, and she said, well, we were thinking that you could lead the songs. And these were people who were basically unchurched, and so many of them did not know the words. And so it was basically me doing a solo the whole time. And I'm not going to tell you how it went, But that was not the only time. There have actually been several times like that. So I am so thankful for people who actually know what they're doing. And who can do that so, so well. You would turn with me tonight to the book of Ecclesiastes chapter nine. And I'm gonna be in verses seven through 10. And for those who think that Ecclesiastes is a pessimistic book, this passage will set us at ease. Tonight, I wanna talk about living joyfully under God's providence. In Ecclesiastes chapter nine, I'm gonna start with verse seven. In verses one through six, we have more instruction about how death comes to all. And this is a common theme in Ecclesiastes, and we have covered this theme previously. Right on the heels of this, the Bible tells us to enjoy the time that we have on this earth and to use it to serve the Lord. So in Ecclesiastes 9 in verse 7, the Bible says, in light of the fact that time on this earth is short, go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart. For God now accepteth thy works. Let thy garments always be white, and let thy head lack no ointment. Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity. In other words, the life that you have is as a breath. It's not going to be forever. For that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labor which thou takest under the sun. Verse 10, whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might. For there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave whither thou goest. Let's pray. Father, thank you for this instruction from your word. We thank you that you give us wisdom to know how to live. Lord, we need the power of your Holy Spirit to know these things and then also to put them into practice. So we pray that your Holy Spirit would illuminate us to these truths tonight and help us to be obedient to them. In Jesus' name, amen. We do have examples in this world people who live their lives to the fullest to the glory of God. There was one just recently that my wife told me about. It's a man named Butch Wilmore. You remember the two astronauts who were stranded in space over a period of nine months? If you've ever been stranded at the airport, just imagine being stranded on the space station. Human beings were not meant to live in outer space. And so, what happens is, is that the radiation takes a toll on your body, and we're also not meant to live in zero gravity. And, of course, over time, they really feel the effects of this, but there was nothing that they could do till Elon Musk rode to the rescue in his rocket. And so they spent nine grueling months in space. Butch Wilmore was one of those astronauts and he was rescued and taken back to the earth. And he was interviewed and he said that his faith in Jesus was key to his enduring the experience. And he gave testimony to his Lord. His return has captured public attention. His statements have had a significant impact He shared that his journey was filled with challenges, but that his trust in God gave him the strength he needed. He said, my feeling about all of this goes back to my faith. It's tied to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is working out his plan and purposes for his glory through all of humanity. How that plays out in our lives is meaningful and important. Wilmore explained that although the mission had a scientific purpose, it was also a journey of spiritual growth for him. He said, I was never alone. God was there even in the darkest moments. Wilmore's return marks the end of a mission that pushed him beyond his human and spiritual limits. NASA has emphasized the importance of the mission and the astronauts' courage, while his statements have reinforced the impact of faith in extreme situations. Wilmore is an elder at Providence Baptist Church in Pasadena, Texas. He has been a member of his local church for the past 17 years and has made a point of staying active even during his time in space. What a great testimony, isn't it? Here is a man who is living the life that he has been given to the glory of God. And we should do the same. Whatever God has given us, whatever occupation, wherever he has placed us, our time on this earth is short. and we need to live it to his glory. Solomon reminds us to live life in these verses with joy and purpose. He encourages us to enjoy the blessings of God, our food, our relationships, our work, while we have the opportunity. We don't have to go through life paralyzed by life's uncertainties. And some people live that way. They live from one anxiety to the next. And the good news is is that we don't have to live like that when we live life to the glory of God, when we know that He is in control of all things. We are called to embrace each day as a gift from God. Is that how you see your life? Every moment is a gift. Sometimes when you're in a situation like this astronaut was, you're a lot more thankful for the life that you have. If we only knew what was ahead of us, maybe some of us would treasure life even more because we're not guaranteed tomorrow. We're not guaranteed that we will live what we would consider a full life. Our time on this earth may be even shorter than we think. So Ecclesiastes gives us some good advice on how we should approach life. We do so with gratitude and with diligence for the glory of God. That's what I want to emphasize tonight. We live with gratitude and diligence for the glory of God. Number one, receive God's gifts with joy. Ecclesiastes chapter nine, verses seven through 10. Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy. It's okay to enjoy the food that God has given you. Good news, right? Now we don't want to succumb to gluttony. And we know that it is wrong to overeat. But at the same time, it's not wrong to enjoy God's good gifts. He goes on in this verse here, in verse seven, and he says, drink thy wine with a merry heart. Now this is not a license for drunkenness. The Bible condemns drunkenness. But again, what it says here is that we can enjoy the good gifts that God has given us. God has accepted thy works. In other words, he is the one who has given us these things to enjoy. And so we can look at life and we can enjoy the things that come our way. And some people have a tough time doing that. But go ahead and enjoy those cream eggs, okay? It's that time of year. Don't overeat the cream eggs. And now I'm preaching to myself, okay? But it is okay to enjoy God's good gifts. Not everyone in history has seen things this way in church history. I was reading about certain men early in church history who were ascetics. And some people still pursue the ascetic lifestyle. Now, God has taught us to deny ourselves. But then there is extreme self-denial, which we call asceticism. It's this idea that any kind of enjoyment of God's gifts is wrong. And there are also very, very strange views of what holiness is. And so there were men who would go months and even years without a bath because they thought that bathing was a mark of luxury. Now, they're not getting this from the Bible. They looked at the culture of their time and what they saw was excess. And by the way, the Roman baths were not for cleanliness anyway. you would not want to bathe in the waters of most of the Roman baths. But anyway, the fact is is that they saw the excess around them, and what did they do? They went to the opposite extreme, and that is something that we do all the time as God's people. And just to give you other examples, some people, some Christians, focus on politics in an unhealthy manner. As if politics is the end all and be all. And so what do other Christians do? Well, they see the excess and how do they react? Well, they go to the opposite extreme and they don't participate at all. They avoid any kind of social or moral issues. And that's wrong. Because there are things that we have to speak out against. But that's just an example of how we go to extremes. And in the same way, there are people who do this with grooming and cleaning themselves and enjoying food. Paul warns about this in 1 Timothy, in 2 Timothy rather, if you'll turn there with me, or I'm sorry, 1 Timothy chapter four, 1 Timothy chapter four. And he actually gives this in a context of false teaching. And in 1 Timothy chapter 4, he gives this warning to the church. 1 Timothy 4.1, now the Spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils. So God is speaking clearly to us about the deception that will take place. Verse 2, speaking lies and hypocrisy. having their conscience seared with a hot iron. So they're not doing this for God's glory or because of true righteousness. Verse 3, forbidding to what? To marry. Forbidding to get married and commanding to abstain from meats or from various kinds of food. Do you know religions that do that? Now there were Old Testament dietary laws, but those were set aside. They were never for Gentiles anyway. But if you're doing that, you're not doing it according to the Bible. Now it's one thing for you to eat healthy, and I'm all for that, but to craft some sort of religious Rituals or regulations for the purpose of becoming holy and abstaining from food is just not biblical. And Paul goes on to say, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. For every creature creation of God is good and nothing to be refused if it be received with thanksgiving. where it is sanctified by the word of God in prayer. What Paul is saying is that we can enjoy these things. In fact, we give gratitude to God for them. So here he is warning us against twisted views of holiness and devotion. Letter A, we see gratitude. God is the giver of all good gifts. James 1.17. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above. What that means is that every good and generous action and every good and generous gift is from God. It's from God above. Aren't you glad we serve a good God? And especially in this country, we are so blessed. And we need to pause often, not just during the month of November, or not just on Thanksgiving day. Gratitude must come daily in our lives. If we're going to have a growing relationship with God, gratitude is so key here. They come from God who does not change, James says. James calls him the father of lights. with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. During the day, shadows grow and then they diminish. Of course, because of the movement of the sun. And what James is saying is that God isn't like that. He doesn't change. He's not like the shifting shadows. But He is someone that we can rely on. God is always good. and he gives good gifts. He works all things for our good. All things that he brings into our lives have a purpose and they have come by his permission. And ultimately he wants to make us better. And we need to be grateful to him for these things. Letter B, here's the second thing we can learn from this and that is contentment. Be content with the things that you have. Going back to Ecclesiastes, there are good gifts that God has given us. In verse seven, he gives us our food and we are to receive that with gratitude. In verse eight, let thy garments be always white. In other words, there's nothing wrong with having nice clothes and cleaning your clothes. And again, there were ascetics who would wear the same garment their entire lives. Can you imagine this? Especially if you have not bathed. And by the way, some people wonder why did they have such problems with plague, the bubonic plague, which has never gone away. There was no real cure for it. But one of the things that eradicated it was that people started taking baths. And they also started to install sewage systems in the cities instead of dumping it out in the streets. Boy, can you imagine that? And people did not know all the diseases that were spread by this. It's the good old days, right? But anyway. The Bible says that it's okay to clean yourself. And back in those days, they would put ointment or olive oil on themselves. They would rub it into their skin. And not only would it serve as a moisturizer, but they would also use it as a cleansing agent. And they would do this besides washing with water. So God says, clean yourself up and be well-groomed. It's okay to do that. So all of this speaks against many of the ascetic practices that we find in history. God has given you your physical body and you need to take care of it. That means that you need to have proper grooming. You need to eat well. I would say this, you need to exercise because in our day and time, we don't get a lot of physical exercise like people used to. And so we take care of ourselves because this body has been given to us by God. And I've had to preach this to myself the past few years. And boy, the lessons have been long in coming. And I have not taken to them very well in my life. Only in the past few years have I really gotten serious about this. But for those of you who are younger, you need to start out taking care of yourself. We sometimes live as though we're always gonna be 18. And that's just not the case. And you find this out as you grow older. Take care of the body that God has given you. Get proper rest. Get proper exercise. Have a proper diet. Because life is, sure, take care of the body that God has given you, and then be content with what He has given. Be content with the good gifts. So we're talking about taking care of the physical man, the part that we see, and the spiritual, the part that we don't see. And one commentator said this, true contentment is not simply being resigned to your circumstances. Did you get that? It's not just a passive resignation. Like, oh, well, yeah, I guess I just gotta bear with it. Now, honestly, most of us go through that phase, but we don't have to stay there. God can get us to a place, though, where we can have a true spiritual understanding of what wealth is and how material wealth is not the ultimate measure of security. And that's what contentment really is. It's knowing that my security is in Christ. It's in something that is eternal. It's not in this material life. Not in the physical goods that I have. Turn to Hebrews 13 and verse 5. Hebrews 13 and verse 5. And in the context, the author of Hebrews was exhorting the Hebrew Christians to continue on for Christ. To go on in perfection in Christ. Not to turn away from Christ. They were facing some persecution. And he says, go on in faith. Live the life that Christ has given you. And in Hebrews 13 and verse 5, he says, let your conversation or your behavior be without covetousness or without greed, without envy. It is impossible to be content and to be envious at the same time. You can't do it. There's opposites. And so he goes on and says, and be content with such things as ye have. Why? Well, because our security is not in this life. Notice where it's at. For he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Now, where is the author of Hebrews getting this? Where is he quoting this from? Well, he's quoting it from the Old Testament. And in particular, from Joshua chapter 1 and verse 5. Do you remember when Joshua and the people of Israel were going into the land? They were going to meet significant challenges. But God told them, I want you to go forward in faith. I want you to take the land that God has given you. Enjoy the bounty that God has given you. but rest in what God has provided. He also says this in Deuteronomy 31 verses six through eight, I will not fail you nor forsake you. God says, I will not leave you. But wealth comes and goes. Proverbs 23 five says that riches certainly make themselves wings. They fly away as an eagle toward heaven. It's tax season, right? You can just see those dollars flying out the window. Well, that's how material wealth is. And if it's not taxes, it's something else. We're not going to be able to take anything with us from this life. But one thing that we can be rooted in is God's constant presence. That's the source of our contentment. knowing that God will take care of me. I have a home in heaven. I have everything that I need. And by the way, while I'm on this earth, God will take care of me. He'll give me what I need, but I need to trust Him. Number one, receive God's gifts with joy. Number two, boy, this is not so easy, is it? Rejoice in the people God has placed in your life. Verse nine, that's part of the contentment. Rejoice in the people God has placed in your life. And going back to the book of Ecclesiastes, we find this statement, Ecclesiastes chapter 9, verse 9. Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity. Love your wife faithfully. Love your husband faithfully. Appreciate your spouse. Proverbs 18.22 says, whoso findeth a wife, findeth a good thing. And the idea there is finding a treasure. So men, you can call your wife a treasure. She is a treasure. She is a fortune that you have found. And that's the way that you need to look at things. Now, sometimes we joke and we laugh with one another, but you know, to hear some married couples talk, you would think they were always miserable. That's not the way God wants us to be. And that's not the way his word tells us to be. Now, you can find plenty of examples because the Bible gives us warts and all. I mean, just look at Abraham and Sarah. They did not have a perfect marriage. Boy, let's not even talk about Jacob, because then, you know, who are you talking about there? He had, you know, Leah and Rachel, and then the two concubines on top of that. So, there are, of course, there are examples in the Bible where marriages are not perfect, but God calls us, though, to love our wives, to love our husbands, to appreciate them. and to see them as a treasure, not a ball and chain. The man who finds a wife finds a fortune. He finds a treasure. My wife is a treasure. I don't know how she's put up with me all of these years, but she has. And she is certainly a treasure. Let her be, live joyfully. Philippians 4, go there with me, please. Philippians 4. Here's a context where you have two women who cannot get along with each other. Two Christians could easily be two men. But you have people in the body of Christ who can't get along with each other. It could just as easily be people at work or people in the home. But in Philippians 4.1, Paul says, therefore, my brethren, Dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved. Paul says, I want you to know before I say what I'm going to say, that I love you. Because he's going to say some things that are hard. Boy, can you imagine being these two women? And you're in one of Paul's letters and we're still talking about them today. Verse 2, I beseech you, Odius, and beseech Syntyche, that they, what? Be of the same mind in the Lord. Each of them, I'm sure, were claiming to be right. Both of them were claiming to be in the right. I know human nature, and if you know it, I'm sure both of them were perfect. Only one step removed from glory. And it was the other person who was wrong. And they had this righteous mission, you know, to set that other person straight. Paul says in verse 3, I entreat thee also, true yoke fellow, help those women which labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also and with other of my fellow laborers whose names are in the book of life. Boy, we need to get along as God's people. If you live in anger and bitterness and resentment, you're not gonna be able to live the life God gives you with joy. You're just not gonna do it. If you can't forgive, if you can't put things behind you, you're not gonna be successful in the Christian life. That's why you have to read verse four in context. What's verse four say? Rejoice in the Lord always. And you rejoice when you have things in your heart against your brother or sister? Oh, but I'm right. My cause is righteous. Well, listen, it might be. But still, this is the situation that you've been dealt. And the question is, how are you going to respond to it? Maybe the other person did wrong. But now the question is, how are you going to respond? Are you going to respond with anger? There are wives and husbands who are in this boat. It's my wife, she did wrong. My husband, he did wrong. Okay, how do we respond? Do we respond with love, gentleness, kindness? And verse five is important too because it says, let your moderation be known unto all men. Then he says this, the Lord is at hand. The Lord could come at any time. Would you want to be wrong with your brother or sister? Then the Lord comes, you never had a chance to make things right. That word moderation there is interesting. It means not insisting on every right of letter of law or custom. Did you get that? So here in this context, the Greek word, when we see moderation, we're thinking temperance, but that's not really what it's saying. But it's saying that you are just not really considerate of other people. You're not courteous, you're not gentle, you're not kind. And every little thing you harp on, especially when you don't like someone, you're just ready to seize on every little thing. What Paul is saying here is let your reputation be as one who is considerate towards others. If you don't do that, you're not going to be joyful. If you're not right with God and right with other people, then you can't have the joy of the Lord. Letter C leads spiritually. Ephesians 5 and verse 25. Husbands, love your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it. If we're going to enjoy our families, then we need to live according to God's instruction. That means that husbands love their wives. It means that wives submit to their husbands. We do this because Christ loved the church. Christ is our example. He is the one who is unchanging. Christ gave himself for us. So that's why we can live with each other and love one another and forgive one another. Because Christ has forgiven us. This is what enjoying life means. And what we'll do is next week we'll cover this third point about rendering our best for God. Let's close. Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you that you have given us this life and help us to understand that it is fleeting. It does not last forever. And perhaps there is one here. Maybe they have quarrels within their family. Maybe that have gone back a long time and they have not resolved the matter. Maybe there are quarrels with others in the body of Christ. Or maybe there are some of us, Lord, who are just not trusting in you day by day and we're gripped by anxiety and worry. rather than enjoying you and enjoying the gifts that you've given to us. So Lord, we pray that we would live for your glory and for your honor. We thank you for the Lord Jesus Christ and for the spiritual inheritance that he has given us, that we are seated with him in the heavenlies. Although life is not easy, we know that he has won the victory at Calvary on our behalf. So we can indeed live this life in victory over sin. We can live glorifying Him, glorifying you. So we thank you for your good gifts.