Well, I actually timed myself this afternoon. I'm only doing 14 verses, sorry. Took me 50 minutes just to do those, so I figured, of course, being here, it might be completely dripping. Maybe I'll be done in 10 minutes, who knows, I don't know. We'll find out. Ecclesiastes 7. Now my Bible just opens there. Let's have a word of prayer, and then we'll get going. Father, we do thank you for this day. We thank you for this opportunity. And I pray that your Holy Spirit will work in each of our hearts and through me and in me, and that your name would be glorified for what's said today. And I pray that if there's somebody here who doesn't know you or I'm lying, that a seed would be planted. In Jesus' name, amen. Okay, Ecclesiastes 7, I'm doing 1 through 14. Solomon returns to the themes from which he had commenced his spiritual journey. In chapter one, we saw verses two and three, which said, Vanity of vanities, says the preacher. Vanity of vanities, all is vanity. What advantage does man have in all his work which he does under the sun? And of course, we've seen through the first six chapters, all these things that our author has investigated and discussed is apart from God and completely taken on their own worth. Solomon now is at the end of his life, I believe. End of his life under the sun, if you will. And it leads to this question at the end of the first half of the book in chapter six. Actually, it's the last verse in chapter six. He says, for who knows what is good for a man during his lifetime? During the few years of his futile life, he will spend them like a shadow. For who can tell a man what will be after him under the sun? And if you look at that verse, there's several phrases. For who knows what is good for a man during his lifetime? During the few years of his futile life, he will spend them like a shadow. And who can tell a man what will be after him under the sun? It seems like the end of chapter six, Solomon is pointing to the end of our life. Well, which of course is death, which is depicted like the reigning king. In a way, it probably would be good if we could think of it not like a reigning king, of course, but keep the end of our life in mind as we will see as we go through this chapter today. A few months ago, my wife bought me a t-shirt I wore it to a deacon's meeting the other day. My official position is treasurer, though we all know that I just report to the deacons, that's all I do. But my unofficial position is I'm the deacon comedian. They don't know that, but sometimes they laugh, sometimes they don't. But my wife gave me this t-shirt. It says on it, it's so weird be in the same age as old people. And I want to tell you this, that is a true statement. I'm 64 now, and I can't believe I'm 64. And that means I'm really, my time on Earth is coming to a close. I mean, really, when you think about it. It's a sobering thought. I've begun the final cycle of years on this planet, where my body seems to begin, has begun deteriorating. I mean, now I have arthritis in both my knees. My left knee needs to be replaced. I have two bad elbows, a bad right shoulder. And when I drop something on the floor, it takes me five minutes to pick it up. And if the Lord permits it, I might eventually get to the point in my life where I long for the relief that will come with death. My dad did that when he got pancreatic cancer. He decided, you know, I think I'll just let it go and let the Lord take me home. Only the omniscient and sovereign God of the universe knows such things and makes such judgment. The power of death is in his hands. Well, Solomon moves on in chapter 7 to examine this topic of death and the short-lived life more diversely and deeply, and how we can gain wisdom from it. Michael A. Eaton, in his commentary on Ecclesiastes, notes that Ecclesiastes 7, 1 through 14 appears to follow up on, quote, the theme of Ecclesiastes as a whole with the question. Will the life of faith survive hard and tremble sometimes when the good old days have gone and the days of calamity come? I think we'll see that. So with these thoughts in mind, what is good for a person in life? The first thing we see is that death is good. The author has never deviated from his conviction that some ways of being are better than others, like Ecclesiastes 2.13 says, wisdom is better than folly. But now he says, the day of death is better than the day of birth. And that seems sort of weird. Most of us might, off the top of our head, disagree with that. But he's not talking about our deaths. He's talking about deaths of people we love. He's talking about our moms and dads, our grandparents, our sisters and brothers, our children. our friends, colleagues, and neighbors, not about us. So is the preacher really saying that the day we weep over a loved one's death is better than the day we laugh for joy for a loved one's newborn baby? You know, like at a baby shower? He is. So what does death have to say? Let's start by looking at verses one through four. Let's read those together. A good name is better than a good ointment, and the day of one's death is better than the day of one's birth. It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, because that is the end of every man, and the living takes it to heart. Sorrow is better than laughter, for when a face is sad, a heart may be happy. The mind of the wise is in the house of mourning, while the mind of fools is in the house of pleasure. He's clarifying his point that death speaks to us in ways that birth does not, contrasting the two significant days of human experience. That is the day we're born, we get our name, and the day that our name is in the obituary column in the newspaper. What it says is never heard in a baby shower. What it says is, well, you too are going to die. Perhaps sooner than you think. Even the mourners that pay respects to others who have passed on to eternity, their days are coming. My dad's funeral was 14 years ago, I think this November. I can't believe it's been that long. But there are people that were at his funeral that are now in heaven. Wisdom's way in teaching us is at times, well, not logical. When we read through wisdom literature of the Bible, we see this strange theme. We gain wisdom by paying careful attention to and learning to embrace things we would rather avoid. I mean, embrace things we'd rather avoid. Let's look at some examples. What are some things we would rather avoid? We would rather avoid the significant discomfort that discipline requires. Yet we see that whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, Proverbs 12.1. We would rather avoid the unpleasant, humbling experience of being corrected. None of us like that. Yet we see that whoever neglects discipline or ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains understanding. Proverbs 15, 32. We would rather avoid the more painful correction of being rebuked, yet hear a wise man say, let the righteous strike me in kindness and reprove me. It is oil upon my head. Do not let my head refuse it. Psalm 140, 1-5. And we would really rather avoid afflictions of any kind. Yet we hear another wise man say, it is good for me that I was afflicted, that I may learn your statutes. Learning the word of God, Psalm 119, 71. We gain wisdom by paying careful attention to and learning from things that we would rather avoid. I mean, let's be honest. If it was easy like, OK, here's a pamphlet, or not a pamphlet, like a little book like, whoops. A little book, about 15, 20 pages. In it is how to become wise. To get wisdom, just learn this information, memorize it, and apply it, and you'll be able to handle life. Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. I mean, how many of us have told our child not to touch the burner? How do they learn that? Well, usually it's if you have a child like I was, you have to touch it first before you figure that out. Unfortunately, we don't learn that way. Because we learn to love instruction, no. We must learn to love instruction from teachers we intuitively fear because they have lessons we cannot live without. That's why when it comes to baby showers and funerals, the preacher says, in verse four, the heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure. See, fools would rather be in the house of feasting. They'd rather be in the house of pleasure or mirth. A fool's heart states laughter is better than mourning. A fool doesn't wanna grow or learn. It wants to be in the moment. But listen, it doesn't mean we're fools if we celebrate a baby shower or a baby. My wife and I just had our, well, no, we didn't have our, my oldest daughter just had our 11th grandchild. Felicity is her name. She's doing really well. She's just over a month old. Janine's eighth. And Solomon, says in Ecclesiastes 3, verses one and two, it says this is an appointed time, there is an appointed time for everything, and there is a time for every event under heaven, a time to be, I can't read my writing, a time to give birth and a time to die. God has everything, made everything beautiful in his time, verse 11. There is a time to enjoy the beauty of a new life. Solomon, the preacher, is making this point. We are fools if we fear death. No, we are fools because if we fear death, we avoid listening to its depressing instruction by keeping ourselves distracted and entertained in the houses of mirth. For the wise discover the essential springs of life Never mind, I can't read that. For the wise discover the essential springs of life. I can't forget it. Let's move on. The second thing we see is the superiority of wisdom. I even struggled with that when I practiced. Okay, we see the next two verses, verses five and six. It says, it's better to listen to the rebuke of a wise man than for one to listen to the song of fools. For as the crackling of thorn bushes under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool, and this too is futility. This is like continuing to contrast the day of birth and day of death. A person who's taken to heart those lessons learned from their life and other lives, like funerals, will also listen and learn from the rebuke of a wise man. Receiving rebuke with humility, patience, and a willingness to change is the mark of the wise. Whereas, as we saw in the next verse, the praise of fools is compared to the burning thorns like in a campfire. They crackle pleasantly in the fire, but they only last a moment. And then there's no heat, and it's gone. These pages are sticking together. I shouldn't do that. The point of these first verse is that more is learned from adversity than from pleasure. True wisdom is developed in the middle of life's trials. We actually know that, but the problem is we don't really wanna go through it. Though it looks like the preacher wishes that wasn't the case because he finishes that verse with this too is futility. Verse seven. The oppression makes a wise man mad, and a bribe corrupts the heart. In the NIV, that first part of the verse, for oppression makes a wise man mad, says this, extortion turns a wise man into a fool. And the New Revised Standard Version says, surely oppression makes the wise foolish. Of course, that's contrary to the faith they believe. The text refers to a person, whether it's through persecution, extortion, oppression, somehow he's being pressured by a person who possesses the power to do the pressure or to give the pressure, their position. They're pressuring the wise into speaking or acting as fools. Then the second half of the verse continues the effects of corruption in the realm of influence and power. Bribery can do to the upright in heart what oppression can do to the wise in heart. Verse 20 of chapter seven says, indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins. I wonder if... Paul had seen this before he wrote Romans, because Romans 3.10 sounds a little bit like it. As it is written, there is an unrighteous, not even one. So even the wise, of course, are sinners. You need to realize that. It's the pursuit of God, rather than the pursuit of laughter and wealth, that in turn reintegrates laughter and wealth into the good life and makes them wholesome. I am so glad for laughter, I don't know about you. What would life be without laughter? Pretty serious, probably. Verses eight and nine. The end of a matter is better than its beginning. Patience of spirit is better than haughtiness of spirit. Do not be eager in your heart to be angry, for anger resides in the bosom of fools. Okay, like the first section of this chapter, remember we looked at the day of death is better than the day of birth in that first four verses. Like this first section, we see here the first part of verse eight says, the end of a matter is better than its beginning. The author widens his focus. It's not just about death now, it includes endings in general. He says this because every significant ending in our lives carries the echo of death. of death's message, which we saw, but also because the end of a thing reveals what its beginning conceals. Whereas a beginning makes us hopeful by promising a better future, we discover only in the end whether that promise was truly worthy of the hope we had. I think the way to make this point even better is looking at the negative. We know that All we have to do is look at the word for failed examples of this. And actually, Solomon, in his searching, discovered, tried some. Pleasure and possessions in chapter 2. And even in chapter 2, end of chapter 2, he tried labor. And he said this, all of my labor for which I have labored by acting wisely under the sun, what happened to it? He left it to someone else. Who knows what that person's going to do with it? In chapter five, we discussed riches, how that failed. In the world today, we see men and women who are very successful in business and build great companies. We see athletes reaching great heights, doing spectacular, becoming very popular in their sport. We see men in the entertainment industry becoming great and very popular with the public. And in demand, everybody wants them in their movies or TV shows, as the case may be. And all these amass great wealth. But when we see this successful business person being booted out of his own company because of his health, he could no longer do his job, or his sons, being a family business, were taking over. And we see athletes' careers end maturely, maybe injury or because of their age. And we see people in the entertainment industry lose their popularity, and nobody wants them anymore. What is the result? Well, I'm sure you can think of a few people whose result was suicide, if you think. But after their American dream ends, they become depressed, angry, bitter people. Their beginnings were great, and their futures showed promise. But when it ended, the remaining prosperity and prestige were hollow, having been emptied of a future and a hope. So it showed that their beginnings were foolish. They were choosing things that were apart from God. Then the second half of verse eight says, patience of spirit is better than haughtiness of spirit. Patience of spirit refers to patient endurance being slow to anger. Some familiar verses, Proverbs 14, 29. He who is slow to anger has great understanding. But he who is quick-tempered exalts folly. Proverbs 16.32, another one that we all know. Actually, all these we know. He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules the spirit than he who captures a city. Then haughtiness of spirit, we all know, Proverbs 16.18, pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before stumbling. So Solomon indicates that patience and humility enable a person to wait for the outcome of a matter and actually witness the truth, the end is better than the beginning. Excuse me. A wise person will not react to circumstances. Some of us, well, never mind. This person will wait to see the full measure of a matter before deciding how to respond. And then verse eight, really, I mean, verse nine follows logically on the heels of verse eight because anger finds its fuel for its fire in impatience and pride. So we see the fool's mind and heart, or mind or heart, likes feasting. It seeks pleasure. It has a song that lacks wisdom. It's only for a moment. And here in verse 9, the fool harbors anger. Kidner describes the fool as obstinate, with no patience to seek wisdom, and possessing no reverence for truth. Verse 10 I have entitled as The Good Old Days. It says, do not say, why is it that the former days were better than these? For it is not from wisdom that you ask about this. When life is difficult and we are impatient for change, it's easy to long for the good old days. Because when we think of the good old days, things were always better, right? At least we think that, or they seem to be better. When I used to think of the good old days, I used to think of the 30s or something. When I was teaching school in Fort Wayne, Indiana, now mind you, I was 28 years old. teaching, my wife and I had just moved down there. I was teaching a ninth and 10th grade class, physical science. Never taught it since, probably a good thing. And I was waxing eloquent on, I think it was levers and pulleys and things like that. And I had a young lady raise her hand in the back of the class and I asked her, you know, all right, cool, a question, so. I don't remember who she was or her name was, but I asked her. And what her question was, and she said, what was it like to ride in a horse and buggy to school every day? Right in the middle of a science class. Now, I didn't get much done the rest of that class period, because to be honest, it was hilarious. I laughed my head off, and so did the class. But she obviously had a view of olden days for me, the good old days. Now, it's been said that the good old days are a combination of bad memory and good imagination, and there's probably a lot of truth in that. But maybe this is one specific example of the impatient and anger described in verses eight and nine. It expresses dissatisfaction with the present and suggests a questioner unwilling to take a patient, long-term view of life. So, the foolish person is making an assessment. They're looking at their present condition or event or circumstance or whatever is going on in their life. And then they look back and they think that was a lot better than what I'm going through now. And so their conclusion is the opposite of the end of a matter is better. The lack of wisdom on the part of fools promotes an unhealthy and irrational nostalgia for the past. We need to understand that the attitude is very foolish, and as the word of God says, it is not from wisdom that you ask about this. Now, my wife and I were discussing this when I first began preparing for the message. I was just reading through the chapter a lot. And when I got to this verse, the first time or two or both, it just struck me. It reminded me of the nation of Israel. Because we know that 1 Corinthians 10, 11 tells us that these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction. But when you look at Exodus 14, 15, 16, and 17, that's all I did. I mean, you could probably keep going and find many more, if I remember correctly. But Exodus 14, they've just been God is through miracles, released them from Egyptians. All they had to do was ask for stuff, and the Egyptians gave it to them. It's like they plundered the Egyptians before they left. They left wealthy, basically. And then in that section, we have the 12, 15 verses or whatever it is of praise that they're singing. And then after that, they get to the Red Sea. And they turn around, they see Egypt after them, and what do they do? They complain and say, no, it wasn't like that back in Egypt. And it happens every time. Chapter 15, with the bitter waters. Chapter 16, when God provides manna. Chapter 17, when Moses struck the rocks, excuse me, to get water. And I'm sure there's many more. But what's wrong with remembering the good old days? Well, nothing, if you do it in God's perspective. But if you don't, really, it's sin. It shows an unthankful heart. It shows a lack of faith in the sovereignty of God in his decreed will. Verses 11 and 12, we see some advantages of wisdom. It says, wisdom along with an inheritance is good. and an advantage to those who see the sun. For wisdom is protection just as money is protection. But the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the lives of lives, excuse me, of its possessors. This value of wisdom is like an inheritance passed down through generations that those who now receive it may live well. Now we know what inheritance is. What does inheritance bring? Well, it should bring benefits, right? Hopefully it brings shelter or protection for the harshness of life. Hopefully it's something that can be set aside, or only in emergencies, or maybe even it can be passed on to the next generation. Yet wisdom has this advantage over money. It brings continuing life to the one who possesses it. Proverbs 3, 13 through 18 puts it this way. How blessed is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding, for her profit is better than the profit of silver, and her gain better than fine gold. She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire compares with her. Long life is in her right hand, and in her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, and happy are all who hold her fast. Money is something of a shelter against the winds of misfortune that blow through life. I thought that, when I was reading it this afternoon, I thought that was a neat play on words, since we just had a windstorm and ice. Yet it can't match the sort of comprehensive protection provided by wisdom. This must be the reason that the father in Proverbs 4 so urged his son to get wisdom. Verses five through seven, the father states, get wisdom, get understanding. Do not forget my words or swerve from them. Do not forsake wisdom and she will protect you. Love her and she will watch over you. Wisdom is supreme, therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. Death is good, superiority of wisdom. Now we're gonna look at the third thing, which is our sovereign God is in control, verses 13 and 14. In closing this section, Solomon calls upon his readers to think about their present conditions in the light of eternity. Something we should probably be doing all the time. Literally, verse 13. Let's read it first. Consider the work of God for who was able to straighten what he has bent in the day of prosperity be happy, but in the day of adversity, consider God has made the one as well as the other, so that man will not discover anything that will be after him. Consider the work of God. What he's actually saying there, the author's imperative reads, see the work of God. The Living Bible paraphrases it like this. See the way God does things and fall into line. Sort of like that. God is sovereign, decreeing and controlling everything under the sun. Remember verse 15 in chapter one? What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted. We obviously fully don't understand all the works of God. Look what Ecclesiastes 11.5 says. Just as you do not know the path of the wind and how bones are formed in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you do not know the activity of God who makes all things. I am actually, when you think about it, if we could, understanding God well, he'd probably be a false god. The Serenity Prayer, which you probably are familiar with, written in 1934 by, forgot to ask my wife how to pronounce this last name, Reinhold Niebuhr. I don't know, I'm probably making that, saying that horribly. But it fits the lesson Solomon's teaching in verse 13. You'll recognize this. Oh God, give us serenity to accept what cannot be changed, courage to change what should be changed, and wisdom to distinguish the one from the other. Then in verse 14, he looks at prosperity and adversity. In the first phrase, Solomon encourages readers to take advantage of the enjoyment of the days of good prosperity, health, and happiness. Look at the first phrase. It says, in a day of prosperity, be happy. I don't know why you have to tell people that. You'd think that would be easy to do, wouldn't you? Chapter 5 of Ecclesiastes 18, 19 says this. Here's what I have seen to be good and fitting, to eat, to drink, and enjoy oneself in all one's labors, in which he toils under the sun during the few years of his life which God has given him, for this is his reward. Furthermore, as for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, he has also empowered him to eat from them and to receive his reward and rejoice in his labor. This is the gift of God. The English idiom, be in the moment, approximates the meeting Solomon intends. Don't miss the enjoyment of what God has brought into your life. I mean, I'm sure we can all take a moment and think of all the blessings and things God has given us, starting with the families God's given us. In the second part of 14, it says, but in the day of adversity, consider, God has made the one as well as the other. We cannot predict the next year, month, week, day. We can't even predict what's gonna happen on the way home. No, really. Sometimes we do say, you know, the Lord will, but that should be a pretty regular part of our conversation, I think. Because the changes or fluctuations of life, sometimes they can be extreme. Matter of fact, much of the time, they might be. There's no pattern, and they come with astonishing speed. Your life just changes like that. In April, I wasn't going to do this, but April of 2009, those of you who know us, Mary Ann was diagnosed with colon cancer. And she had surgery about a week later. And then after she recovered from the surgery, she started chemotherapy and radiation. And I swore it lasted for nine months. I'm not sure how it lasted, but it seemed forever. And then in August of 2009, her dad was diagnosed with a brain tumor. And then in September of 2009, my dad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. My dad died one week before Thanksgiving. Her dad died a week and a half after Thanksgiving. Changes of fluctuations of life sometimes can be extreme. So we have to trust God, because He alone knows the purposes of those changes. You know, I can't imagine the people who do not know God, how do they get through stuff like that? Because knowing God, it's hard. Daniel J. Estes, in his commentary, Handbook on the Wisdom Books and Psalms, gives us a perspective we should consider. What appears on the surface as adversity may in truth be a severe mercy of the sovereign God that leads to a more profound and substantial blessing. Joel says it this way. What? Shall we receive good at the hand of God and shall we not receive trouble? So what does the author mean in the last part of verse 14? So that man will not discover anything that will be after him. I don't think this is speaking of life after death. At least, I think that because that's what the commentators said. Ecclesiastes 3.22 says, I have seen that nothing is better than that man should be happy in his activities, for that is his lot. For who will bring him to see what will occur after him? Same thing, so that man will not discover anything that will be after him, in verse 14. God is the only one that knows the future. Isaiah 46, nine through 11. The whole chapter is awesome, but I picked three verses. Remember the former things long past, for I am God and there is no other. I am God and there is no one like me. Declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, my purpose will be established. I will accomplish all my good pleasure. calling a bird of prey from the east, the man of my purpose from a far country. Truly, I have spoken. Truly, I will bring it to pass. I have planned it. Surely, I will do it. Men have come up with innumerable ways to help man reject God and think they're okay and will be fine when they die. Wisdom is one of them. How can a man or woman with multiple degrees, sometimes in science, think that this amazing world and universe took millions and billions of years to come into existence? I mean, all they have to do is look at Genesis 1.1, right? God created the heavens and the earth. And later on, we see God created us, man, in his image. The world and all its religions and belief systems are confusing. Jesus is the answer to the confusion. Jesus came to this earth, born of a virgin, lived a perfect, sinless life, then was crucified for my sins and yours. Then he arose again to feed death. If you've never accepted Christ as your savior, do it tonight. Confess to God that you are a sinner and repent of your sins, put your faith and trust in Christ, and ask him to come unto your heart and save you. And then, as a new believer, commit the rest of your life to serve him. So, what applications are there for we believers? Psalm 90.12 says, so teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom. Life is short. Serve God while you may. You know, it's not guaranteed that I'll be able to do this in the future. I don't know. How we live our life matters because our lives affect many, many other lives. Think about this. If it's your funeral, would the mourners be talking about your spiritual impact on their lives? Or would they be discussing how well you did business and how you were good with money and you were fun to be around? No, the latter ones are okay. It's okay to do that. But the first one is the one that makes the impact. Are we having a spiritual impact on others? Another application. Embrace the things that we want to avoid so that hope will grow in us. You know, maybe find a brother or sister in Christ and ask them to, when they see something, come and talk to you. Rebuke as good as we saw. Enjoy the life God has given you. thank him for and pursue him even more because of it. God is sovereign and in control. Trust him for what happened in the past and for what's coming. Our attitude towards others should be conditioned by one's own flawed humanity. Boy, I think I missed part of it. I don't remember discussing that. Did I skip part of it? Well, I don't know. Let's pray. Lord, we do thank you for this day and this time. And I pray that despite the giver, that your Holy Spirit worked in our hearts. In Jesus' name, amen.