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The Truth About Money
Ecclesiastes 5:8-20
July 11, 2021

This morning we approach another subject the Bible loves to talk about.

Last week we saw the TONGUE, which is certainly popular
And this morning we talk about MONEY.

The Bible talks about money a lot!
And for good reason:
Matthew 6:21 “for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Jesus was clear there.
Your treasure doesn’t follow your heart, your heart follows your treasure.

So it stands to reason that if God can get control of your treasure
Then He can get control of your heart.

And while money may not be our only treasure,
It’s safe to say that for most people it likely ranks in the top 2 or 3.

And so Scripture talks a lot about money.

And we are thankful that it does.

The simple fact is that money is a necessary part of the world.
• We live in a physical world
• We live in physical bodies
• And those bodies need physical things to live.
• The system requires the purchase of the things we need to survive.

MONEY IS NECESSARY.

But certainly you are also aware that
Money has proven to be a terrible temptation,
Even an idol for so many people.

And thus we are grateful when the Bible speaks to us
The truth about something like this.

Well that is where we are now here in Ecclesiastes.
The Preacher is going to talk to us a little about money.

Probably more specifically he is going to talk about
THE PURSUIT OF MONEY.

You may remember that he knows a thing or two about pursuing money.
Ecclesiastes 2:8 “Also, I collected for myself silver and gold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I provided for myself male and female singers and the pleasures of men—many concubines.”

One of the MISTAKES the preacher made as a younger man
Was that he went in an all out pursuit of money
And the things money could buy.

He’s certainly not alone.

WE HAVE TALKED OFTEN ABOUT THE ADVICE
That is routinely given to the young man by the world
As he is about to go out and make his mark.

Typically speaking, in one way or another,
Most of that advice centers around making money.

Go to college – get wisdom
Get a good job – make money

Because money is supposed to RELIEVE US OF WORRY.
• After all a man with plenty of money isn’t supposed to have to worry about
simple things like the car payment or the light bill.

Money is supposed to provide the OPPORTUNITY FOR PLEASURE.
• Everything fun costs money and so if you’re going to have fun in this life you’ll
need money.

Money is supposed to provide a SENSE OF SECURITY.
• If you make enough money and save enough money then when you get old
you’ll have something to live one and won’t be a burden to others.

So from the world’s perspective:
• If you want to relieve stress…
• If you want enjoyment or pleasure…
• If you want security…
THEN YOU NEED MONEY

That’s true isn’t it?
That’s the message of the world.

Well, it will come as no surprise to you that
The Bible disagrees with all 3 of those beliefs.

In fact the Bible declares those statements to be IDOLATROUS.

WHY?
• Because money is not what eliminates worry, God is.
• And money is not the means to enjoyment, God is.
• And money is not the reason for our security, God is.

But when you live in a material world like we do it is so easy to forget that

Well, in steps the preacher.
In his candid and almost painful way
HE NOW LAYS OUT THE TRUTH ABOUT MONEY.

This is good for the young man, but this is good for the old man too.

It shows us the truth about money
And helps us to redirect our focus and our ambitions
To make sure that we pursue the right things.

And NOT JUST so that we DON’T WASTE OUR LIFE,
BUT ALSO SO THAT WE DON’T RUIN IT.

Paul spelled it out
1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”

Money is not evil, but “the love of money” is.
And when you long for it or pursue
It has two very dangerous and detrimental consequences.

• One is that it causes men to wander “away from the faith.”
• The other is that it causes men to pierce “themselves with many griefs”

We think of men like Gehazi who was the servant of Elisha.
• Elisha healed Naaman the leper by having him dip in the Jordan river 7 times,
• Naaman tried to pay him but Elisha refused.
• Gehazi however saw an opportunity.

2 Kings 5:20 “But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, thought, “Behold, my master has spared this Naaman the Aramean, by not receiving from his hands what he brought. As the LORD lives, I will run after him and take something from him.”

• So Gehazi chased him down and took from him two talents of silver and two
changes of clothes and he hid it.

• Elisha however knew what happened and he said:
2 Kings 5:26-27 “Then he said to him, “Did not my heart go with you, when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? Is it a time to receive money and to receive clothes and olive groves and vineyards and sheep and oxen and male and female servants? “Therefore, the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and to your descendants forever.” So he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.”

It was the love of money that led Gehazi
To at least momentarily deny the faith
And to certainly pierce himself with many griefs.

Everyone’s experience may not be as extreme as that of Gehazi
But rest assured the promise of money
Never pays off like it promises.

And the preacher here desires to make sure you know that.

I WANT TO START THIS MORNING with another statement of Solomon.
Proverbs 15:16 “Better is a little with the fear of the LORD Than great treasure and turmoil with it.”
That is a great opening verse for this entire passage.
This morning I hope you see the difference.

So let’s look at our text this morning and learn the truth about money.
#1 WHEN WEALTH IS PURSUED.
Ecclesiastes 5:8-17

Now what you get here from the preacher are
6 GRIEFS OR EVILS that accompany a life that loves money.

• If you love money…
• If you pursue money…
• Even if you obtain money…

These are the inevitable evils or griefs that come with it.

And incidentally, there’s NOT ANYTHING OBSCURE here.
As he lists them you’ll see them easily and obviously.

These are the griefs of pursuing wealth.

1) CORRUPTION (8-9)

The preacher starts off here with
What is an all too familiar sight in our world, and that is again “oppression of the poor and denial of justice and righteousness in the province”

No one is surprised by this.
It is all over our world.

Much of the local HEADLINES even in our day
• Have to do with social injustice
• Or racial injustice
• Or some other form of injustice both real and perceived.

We are well-aware that life is not fair.
And the preacher knows it too.

But here he tells you “do not be shocked at the sight;”

When you see injustice and oppression you shouldn’t be surprised at it.

The question implied here is: WHY?
“for one official watches over another official, and there are higher officials over them.”

WHAT DOES HE MEAN?

Well clearly he is talking about “officials”
• Which would be those who are in charge in some form or fashion.

AND he reminds that there is an evident CHAIN OF COMMAND where “one official watches over another”

BUT, THEY ARE ALL OFFICIALS.

It’s NOT LIKE the officials answer to the poor people
Which would balance out responsibility.

No, instead the officials have insulated themselves
By making sure that the only people they ever answer to
Is each other.

We call it CORRUPTION.

I certainly don’t want to get into some sort of political rant here
But even a sweeping view of the way governments work will tell you about this.
• Very rarely do politicians ever answer to the people.
• They are actually known for their ability to NOT ANSWER any questions.
• We don’t VOTE ON THEIR RAISES, they vote on their raises.
• We DON’T GET TO QUESTION THEM AT THEIR HEARINGS they question each other at their hearings.

And the point here is that it leads to corruption.
When they seemingly answer to no one but themselves
It opens the door for wicked men to freely do wickedness.

And then the preacher says:
(9) “After all, a king who cultivates the field is an advantage to the land.”

I’m not going to lie, that statement makes NO SENSE TO ME.
I prefer rather to go with the KJV or the NIV translation.

• The KJV says, “Moreover, the profit of the earth is for all: the king himself
is served by the field.”

• The NIV says, “The increase from the land is taken by all; the king himself
profits from the fields.”

I think both of those statements lend a better explanation of what is being said.

Kings don’t work the fields…
Politicians don’t help you at your job…
But both are there to make sure and take a cut of your pay.

The king profits from fields he does not work.
All the officials profit from jobs they did not do.

Now the Bible DOESN’T FORBID governments from requiring taxes,
In fact Paul says that taxes are their due.

So this ISN’T some anti-taxation point.

Rather, the preacher is simply making the point that
One of the problems with money is that the rich and powerful
Who are in control always seem to have a way of taking some of it.

It’s true isn’t it?
• The more money you earn, the more they will take.
• And we are well-aware that much of the time what they do with it is corrupt to the core.

Well that is one of the evils or griefs that comes with pursuing money.

My guess is that you have felt that sting before.
• I still remember the first time I ever received a paycheck for a job
• It was for about a dollar an hour less than what I thought I was getting paid.
• And then my employer talked to me about taxes.

It is one of the griefs of pursuing money.
There will always be the corrupt who will take it.

We remember the story of Joseph and Pharaoh.
• Pharaoh had the dream about the 7 year famine.
• Pharaoh used it to literally buy the land and the people.

We read about how Pharisees foreclosed on widow’s houses.

It’s just corruption and it will add grief to your wealth.

2) DISSATISFACTION (10)

“He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income. This too is vanity.”

It’s very rare that you find a man who says that
He finally has enough money.

Instead, those who have money
Are almost always looking for ways to make more of it.

The Bible says it’s because money does not satisfy,
It only causes you to want more money.

And we remember
• The farmer who had more grain than he knew what to do with so he decided to tear down his barns and build bigger barns.

You can chase money your whole life and never have enough.

3) FRUSTRATION (11)

“When good things increase, those who consume them increase. So what is the advantage to their owners except to look on?”

Perhaps you have experienced this one in your life.
But you start making more money
And you can bet someone will show up who needs it.

• It is always the joke about WINNING THE LOTTERY and how quickly your list of friends will grow.

People who never asked you for money before will now be beating down your door.
• Can you help with this foundation?
• Can you give to this charity?
• Would you fund this business venture?

Proverbs 19:4 “Wealth adds many friends, But a poor man is separated from his friend.”

Such is one of the realities of wealth.
When people know you have it, they will approach you for it.

Corruption, Dissatisfaction, Frustration
4) WORRY (12)

“The sleep of the working man is pleasant, whether he eats a little or much; but the full stomach of the rich man does not allow him to sleep.”

The point here is NOT ABOUT how much a person gets to eat,
• For the preacher mentions that the working man be eat “a little or much”.

Rather the point is that
Even when a rich man’s money suffices to meet his every need,
Even then he still cannot rest.

• He has finished the day…
• He has eaten a good meal…
• But still he can’t sleep at night.

WHY?
Because money brings with it worry.
It has a way of consuming the mind.

In Matthew 6 Jesus warned us against worrying about what we will eat or what we will wear.

For, He said, that such worry made us like the world.
Matthew 6:32 “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

It is just one of the griefs or evils regarding money
That even when you have had enough to get you through the day
You are prone still to worry about tomorrow.

THIS IS NOT HOW GOD WOULD HAVE YOU LIVE.
• Remember when the children of Israel were in the wilderness and God gave them manna to eat. He specifically warned them not to save enough for tomorrow, but to trust God.
• In the model prayer Jesus taught us to pray “give us this day our daily bread”.

There was a mandate to only concern yourself with today,
But pursuing money has a way of stealing such peace.
IT BRINGS WITH IT WORRY.

5) UNCERTAINTY (13-14)

“This 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 fathered a son, there was nothing to support him.”

There are actually a couple of evils mentioned here.

The first is the temptation to hoard riches even to your own hurt.
• It speaks of a person with an inability to see the true value of money.
• He obviously puts a higher premium on wealth than he should.
• He thinks it is worth more than it actually is.
• We see men like the Rich Young Ruler here who had a choice between Jesus and money and he chose money.
• It is like a man who failed to understand Jesus’ question, “What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?”

The first reality here is a man who values money too much.
He hoards it even “to his hurt”.

There is no telling what sacrifices he made to obtain wealth.
• Friends he potentially lost
• Perhaps even salvation he lost
• All because he valued money.

And that is sad to say the least.

BUT EVEN WORSE
Is that this man (who put such a premium on wealth) “lost” it all “through a bad investment”

IT WAS SO VALUABLE AND YET IT WAS STILL SO UNCERTAIN.

AND TO MAKE MATTERS EVEN WORSE
The preacher mentions that “he had fathered a son, then there was nothing to support him.”

Even this man, whose one objective was to secure wealth,
Was incapable of protecting it.

AND YOU HAVE TO KNOW THAT ABOUT MONEY.
IT IS NOT SECURE.

I’ll never forget in 2005 flying back from Zimbabwe,
• I sat on an airplane next to a Zimbabwean woman who was totally distraught.
• Through hyper-inflation her money was gone.
• She said, “we are the poorest millionaires in the world.”
• In that case her money was lost through a bad investment and it wasn’t even her investment.
• The government made a series of bad decisions until it caused her dollar to be worth nothing.

IT’S JUST NOT CERTAIN.

When Paul spoke of riches he said:
1 Timothy 6:17a “Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches…”

One more grief or evil regarding the wealth of the world.
6) LOSS (15-17)

“As he had come naked from his mother’s womb, so will he return as he came. He will take nothing from the fruit of his labor that he can carry in his hand. This also is a grievous evil – exactly as a man is born, thus will he die. So what advantage to him who toils for the wind?”

And there it is again.
The ultimate grief that he has already addressed a couple of times.

THAT EVEN IF
• You are somehow able to secure wealth and keep it away from the greedy politicians…
• And you get enough money that you are at least close to being satisfied…
• And you are able to avoid the friends who always want what you’ve earned…
• And you manage to live with a limited amount of worry…
• And you live this whole life without ever losing your fortune…

Even if you achieve all of those goals
And escape all of those grievous evils,
No man escapes the last one.

• Some day you will lose every penny you have on this earth.
• Some day you will lose every toy you have bought.
• Some day you will lose every investment you have made.

1 Timothy 6:7 “For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.”

This is the ultimate truth about pursuing the wealth of this world.
EVERY MAN LOSES.

Someone once noted that you never see a hurst pulling a U-haul trailer.
One way or another it always fails.

Remember the sermon of Jesus on being a good steward of earthly wealth?

Luke 16:9 “And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by means of the wealth of unrighteousness, so that when it fails, they will receive you into the eternal dwellings.”

Regarding wealth, it’s not if it fails, but when it fails.
You can’t keep it.

We remember the story of that rich man an Lazarus.
The rich man dining in splendor, Lazarus begging in squaller.

Luke 16:22-23 “Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. “In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom.”

IT’S JUST SO OBVIOUS.

These are the evils or frustrations of pursuing worldly wealth.
You must learn this young man before you go out into the world.

A life devoted to worldly wealth is a life devoted to frustration.
• You are going to deal with corrupt politicians who want to take it.
• You are going to deal with the nagging reality that you never have enough.
• You are going to deal with the frustration of people who constantly want you to give it to them.
• You are going to deal with the worry that even though today is fine, tomorrow might not be.
• You are going to deal with the uncertainty that a bad investment might cause you to lose it all.
• You are going to deal with the fact that some day you will die and leave it all.

That is the truth about a life spent pursuing worldly wealth.

And even if you don’t believe me young man,
Before you leave today go ask one of the old men here
If the preacher in Ecclesiastes is telling the truth or not.

The world will tell you that
The acquisition of money will bring peace, happiness, and security,
BUT THE PREACHER SAYS, “WRONG!”

All money brings is grief, dissatisfaction, frustration,
Anxiety, risk, and loss.

If those are the types of things you want in your life
Then just devote yourself to pursuing the wealth of the world.

HOWEVER, THERE IS ANOTHER OPTION.

The first 10 verses talk about the grief of pursuing worldly wealth.
But what if you devote yourself to pursuing something else?

#2 WHEN GOD IS PURSUED
Ecclesiastes 5:18-19

Now the preacher gives you a different option, a better option.
INSTEAD OF PURSUING WEALTH, PURSUE GOD.

And he bases this on an important premise and it is this:
GOD IS GENEROUS

Proverbs 10:22 “It is the blessing of the LORD that makes rich, And He adds no sorrow to it.”

Psalms 84:11 “For the LORD God is a sun and shield; The LORD gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.”

Psalms 37:25 “I have been young and now I am old, Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken Or his descendants begging bread.”

Philippians 4:19 “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

1 Timothy 6:17-18 “Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share”

LET ME ASK YOU A QUESTION.

As we said at the beginning.
• We live in physical bodies, in a physical world, that requires physical things in order to survive.
• We understand that money is a necessity.

BUT HERE’S THE QUESTION:
What if God promised to take care of all your physical needs?

• Wouldn’t that be great!
• Wouldn’t it be awesome if God said, “You don’t have to worry about money anymore”?
• What if the God of the universe, who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, actually said to His children, “I tell you what, I’ll take care of your physical needs from here on out”?

Would that change your perspective on life?
Would that change your ambition for tomorrow?

What if Jesus actually said:
Matthew 6:31-34 “Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

That would be a great promise wouldn’t it?

WELL HE DID PROMISE THAT,
And this is what the preacher is talking about as well.

Don’t pursue wealth, it leads only to grief.
However, if you pursue God, He will take care of your needs.

And let me show you the REPERCUSSIONS of the life
When God gets to manage your checkbook.

There’s 3
1) ENJOYMENT (18)

“Here is what I have seen to be good and fitting: to eat, to drink and enjoy oneself in all one’s labor in which he toils under the sun during the few years of his life which God has given him; for this is his reward.”

When God is in control of supplying your needs
We find a man who works for an entirely different reason.

• YES work is still important.
• YES a man is still required to do it.
• WORK was instituted before the fall; it has always been part of the plan.

But here a man gets to work and simply enjoy himself in all his labor.

When seeking God is your goal,
And when God is the One who is charged with meeting your needs
THEN YOUR LABOR CAN TAKE ON AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT FEEL.

No longer are you a slave to your job,
But rather you can learn to enjoy what you get to do every day.

• Your job can actually become about “seeking first the kingdom of heaven”
• Your job can actually become a mission field.
• Your job can become the place where you serve and worship God and seek to honor Him in the world.
• Your job can actually become a mission trip!
• Your job can be viewed as a hobby.

When God is sought, and God is trusted to meet your needs,
Then the job is not about the money, it is about enjoyment.

YOUNG MAN,
• Would you rather be a slave to money so that the rest of your life you have to pursue a job you hate in order to get money?
• Or would you rather let God handle the money and you do a job that you love?

This life is short, seek God and find enjoyment in life, not grief.

2) REJOICING (19)

“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.”

Somewhere in OUR TERMINOLOGY
The world has crept in and done a doozy on our thinking.

Today we constantly hear men make the phrase about work,
“Just trying to earn a living.”

Think on that statement for a moment.
• Who gives life? God
• Who sustains life? God
• Have you ever been able to work hard enough to coerce God to give you anything? No

So how do you “Earn a living”?
YOU DON’T.

Your living, regardless of your labor,
Has always been and will always be
Nothing more or nothing less than the grace of God.

You may have deluded yourself into thinking
That you are alive and have things because you worked so hard,
But it is only by the grace of God.

God is generous; God is giving; God is not stingy.
• He even sends rain on unjust men who hate Him.
• He even maintains the heartbeat of the atheist who blasphemes Him.

God is good and He more than cares for us.

And when you know that,
Your paycheck becomes more than something you earned,
It becomes a reason you rejoice and even worship.

When you seek God and trust Him with your wealth or livelihood
Then every day is a gift from God; and every day is a celebration.

SO YOUNG MAN
• Would you rather spend your life frustrated and worried about your wealth and who will take it?
• Or would you rather spend your life rejoicing in all that God has allowed you to have?

One more consequence that comes with seeking God over wealth
3) PEACE (20)

“For he will not often consider the years of his life, because God keeps him occupied with the gladness of his heart.”

Now that sounds like a good way to live doesn’t it?
• Not always worried about tomorrow…
• Not always feeling the need to watch a 401k to see if there’s enough…
• Not always consumed with the toil of labor…

The man who pursues God and trusts God with his provision
Is a man who trades anxiety for peace.

• It is a man who trades fear with assurance.
• It is a man who trades frustration with enjoyment.
• It is a man who trades toil with rejoicing.

Listen again to the promise of Jesus.
Matthew 6:31-33 “Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

You seek God; you seek God’s kingdom.
And God has promised to take care of the rest.

Trade in your grief, dissatisfaction, frustration, anxiety, risk, and loss
In exchange for enjoyment, rejoicing, and peace.

And you don’t have to take it from me, this is what the Bible says.
• Don’t buy what the world is selling.
• Don’t let them cause you to fear tomorrow.
• Don’t play their game of worry and anxiety.

You seek God and God will take care of everything else.

And of course by now you know that
This isn’t just a message for the young man, it’s for the old man too.
1 Timothy 6:17-19 “Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.”

Life indeed…
That sounds pretty good doesn’t it?

Proverbs 15:16 “Better is a little with the fear of the LORD Than great treasure and turmoil with it.”

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The Beginning of Wisdom
Psalms 111
July 4, 2021

Tonight we come to the first in a pair of Psalms.
Psalms 111 and 112 are a match set.

• Psalms 111 focuses on the great works of God.
• Psalms 112 focuses on the man who fears God.
• And they clearly work together.

Tonight’s Psalm shows us why God deserves to be feared,
And next week’s Psalm highlights the man
Who demonstrates his wisdom by fearing God.

It is in Psalms 111 that we are confronted with that oft quoted truth.
(10) “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;”

THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT POINT
For those who seek to be wise in this world.

Wisdom begins with “fear of the LORD”
“fear of the LORD” is the foundation upon which wisdom rests.

If you gain knowledge but have no “fear of the LORD” then you have no wisdom.
If you gain experience but have no “fear of the LORD” then you have no wisdom.
If you gain old age but have no “fear of the LORD” then you have no wisdom.

You cannot have wisdom without “fear of the LORD”
That is where wisdom begins.

And David is certainly not the only person to understand that.

Job said:
Job 28:28 “And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom; And to depart from evil is understanding.’”

Solomon said:
Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”

Proverbs 15:33 “The fear of the LORD is the instruction for wisdom, And before honor comes humility.”

In addition we learn about the “fear of the LORD”

Proverbs 8:13 “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverted mouth, I hate.”

Proverbs 10:27 “The fear of the LORD prolongs life, But the years of the wicked will be shortened.”

Proverbs 14:26-27 “In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, And his children will have refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, That one may avoid the snares of death.”

Proverbs 15:16 “Better is a little with the fear of the LORD Than great treasure and turmoil with it.”

Proverbs 19:23 “The fear of the LORD leads to life, So that one may sleep satisfied, untouched by evil.”

Even in the New Testament we read:
Acts 10:34-35 “Opening his mouth, Peter said: “I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him.”

BUT YOU GET THE POINT.
If you don’t have “fear of the LORD” you aren’t going to have anything
And as Psalms 111 points out, you certainly won’t have “wisdom”.

And so the point of Psalms 111
Is to teach you the “fear of the LORD”

It is to motivate you to the type of reverential awe that you need.
It is to motivate you to hallow the name of God.

And THE WAY DAVID MOTIVATES YOU to do that
Is by getting you to FOCUS ON THE WORKS of God.

• Stop for a moment and consider what God has done.
• Consider what He is doing.
• Consider what He will do.

And when you take in the magnitude of His omnipotence and faithfulness
It is enough to cause to you fear God.

SOMETHING ELSE THAT IS UNIQUE
To these next two Psalms is that they are WRITTEN IN AN ACROSTIC.

• They each hold 22 stanzas, each of which begins with the consecutive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.

• That means David’s thoughts are NOT here arranged in some sort of outline form, but rather his thoughts are linear.

• In one sense each line stands alone, and yet they all also work together to make 1 overarching point.

• Poems like this were also written in acrostic form to make them easier to memorize.

• It made it an easy truth to teach your children.

And since “fear of the LORD” comes first,
It would have been a great Psalm to start them out on.

David begins the Psalm with the goal for all men.
He is setting the example of his expectation for all of Israel.

(1) “Praise the LORD! I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart, In the company of the upright and the in the assembly.”

• That is the goal.
• The objective is corporate praise.
• The objective is public thanksgiving.

David is seeking to transform the bashful silent servant
Into a zealous voice of praise.

And the only way this happens
Is if there is amazement at the greatness of God.

So David’s plan for leading the silent worshiper into boldness
Is to push him to recognize the greatness of the works of God.

So we begin to work our way through this acrostic Psalm of David.

(2) “Great are the works of the LORD; They are studied by all who delight in them.”

What God has done is and should be the chief focus of all creation.
Every intricate detail should captivate our attention.

This begins with studying HIS CREATIVE WORK
• We are captivated by the mysteriousness of the ocean,
• Or breathless by the grandeur of the mountains.
• I love the visit the national parks and glorious places of creation, though sinful men only speak of the mysteries of science of all that man has discovered the real majesty is always in the intricacy of all that God has done.

In this way even atheists and scientists
Have unwittingly devoted themselves to the glory of God.

Though they seek diligently to ascribe glory elsewhere
Their detailed study of the earth and all its workings
Ultimately accomplish nothing but to bring glory to God.

They can deny the Creator but they are captivated by His creation
And thus they cannot help but study all His works.

Do you understand that?
Often times Science and Christianity are portrayed are opposites.

But what else is science but the study of the works of God?
PICK A FIELD:
• Geology
• Astronomy
• Biology

All they can possibly study is that what God has done.

They may seek to deny the God who did all those works,
• But every discovery they make,
• Every detail the find,
• Is actually nothing more than that which makes God even that more impressive.

The call of David here is that we go the necessary next step
AND GIVE GOD THE GLORY FOR ALL THAT HE HAS DONE.

Are we not amazed at the great details of creation?

Did you know that the reason a rooster cocks his head back when he crows is because doing so covers his ear canals to work like ear plugs which keeps him from growing death due to his own loud crowing?
https://factanimal.com/animal-facts/

Did you know that the human brain has 86 billion nerve cells joined by 100 trillion connections? This is more than the stars in the Milky Way.
https://www.factretriever.com/body-facts

The tongue of a giraffe is 20” long to allow it to grab leaves and they contain melanin which keeps their tongues from getting sunburned.
https://www.liveabout.com/science-facts-you-didnt-know-3023200

Every time you dig into science all you inevitably do is
Give God’s creative power a tremendous pat on the back.

We study God’s great creation and what He has done.

We also study what He is doing or HIS PROVIDENTIAL WORK.

Though creation was finished in 6 days,
Providence has continued since the beginning.
• The sending of rain, the timing of wind,
• The workings of the heat and the cold,
• The frost and the dew.
• God feeding all His creation and sustaining life upon this earth.

He is ever at work doing that which only He can do.

Have you ever heard John Piper talk about the great work of God which is rain?

Job said, “God does great and unsearchable things, wonders without number.” He gives rain on the earth.” In Job’s mind, rain really is one of the great, unsearchable wonders that God does. So when I read this a few weeks ago, I resolved not to treat it as meaningless pop musical lyrics. I decided to have a conversation with myself (= meditation).
Is rain a great and unsearchable wonder wrought by God? Picture yourself as a farmer in the Near East, far from any lake or stream. A few wells keep the family and animals supplied with water. But if the crops are to grow and the family is to be fed from month to month, water has to come on the fields from another source. From where?
Well, the sky. The sky? Water will come out of the clear blue sky? Well, not exactly. Water will have to be carried in the sky from the Mediterranean Sea, over several hundred miles and then be poured out from the sky onto the fields. Carried? How much does it weigh? Well, if one inch of rain falls on one square mile of farmland during the night, that would be 27,878,400 cubic feet of water, which is 206,300,160 gallons, which is 1,650,501,280 pounds of water.
That’s heavy. So how does it get up in the sky and stay up there if it’s so heavy? Well, it gets up there by evaporation. Really? That’s a nice word. What’s it mean? It means that the water sort of stops being water for a while so it can go up and not down. I see. Then how does it get down? Well, condensation happens. What’s that? The water starts becoming water again by gathering around little dust particles between .00001 and .0001 centimeters wide. That’s small.
What about the salt? Salt? Yes, the Mediterranean Sea is salt water. That would kill the crops. What about the salt? Well, the salt has to be taken out. Oh. So the sky picks up a billion pounds of water from the sea and takes out the salt and then carries it for three hundred miles and then dumps it on the farm?
Well it doesn’t dump it. If it dumped a billion pounds of water on the farm, the wheat would be crushed. So the sky dribbles the billion pounds water down in little drops. And they have to be big enough to fall for one mile or so without evaporating, and small enough to keep from crushing the wheat stalks.
How do all these microscopic specks of water that weigh a billion pounds get heavy enough to fall (if that’s the way to ask the question)? Well, it’s called coalescence. What’s that? It means the specks of water start bumping into each other and join up and get bigger. And when they are big enough, they fall. Just like that? Well, not exactly, because they would just bounce off each other instead of joining up, if there were no electric field present. What? Never mind. Take my word for it.
I think, instead, I will just take Job’s word for it. I still don’t see why drops ever get to the ground, because if they start falling as soon as they are heavier than air, they would be too small not to evaporate on the way down, but if they wait to come down, what holds them up till they are big enough not to evaporate? Yes, I am sure there is a name for that too. But I am satisfied now that, by any name, this is a great and unsearchable thing that God has done. I think I should be thankful – lots more thankful than I am.
https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/the-great-work-of-god-rain

God’s sustaining work is remarkable.

We study what He has done – Creative Work
We study what He is doing – Providential Work
But we also study HIS SPIRITUAL WORK

Each and every moment He is doing what we studied last week.
• He is bringing Christ’s enemies into subjection under His feet;
• God is saving those whom He has chosen to save.

He is regenerating, convicting, drawing, saving, sanctifying, sealing, and glorifying His elect. It is ongoing every moment.

And this is also studied by all who delight in them.

We marvel at the glories of salvation
And the theology behind His sovereign work.

• We focus on the righteous works of Christ and the righteousness He earned.
• We read testimonies of the vilest sinners in Scripture who were plucked from their sin by the redeeming hand of God
• We share testimony of God’s spiritual work in our own lives.

Indeed we study what God has done and what God is doing.

And though we study it only through prophesy and anticipation
We have a keen eye and desire for God will yet do.

We study HIS PROMISED WORK

It furnishes our hope and provides us with confidence and optimism
That God has promised that all His work will be for our good.
• He has promised us good plans,
• He has promised us a future,
• He has promised us a hope,
• He has promised us a land where righteousness dwells and we study that too.

Like the prophets of old, we make careful inquiries and searches
Through the Scriptures to learn and grasp all that we may know
About what God has prepared for those who love Him.

God’s works are great and they are studied by all who delight in them.

(3) “Splendid and majestic is His work, And His righteousness endures forever.”

“Splendid” translates HODE
And it means “glorious” or an “imposing form or appearance.”

“majestic” translates HAWDAWR
And it speaks of “ornaments” and “beauty and majesty.”

God’s work is
A jaw-dropping demonstration of breathtaking beauty.
It is perfect and flawless, created in righteousness
And it endures forever.

There is an order and a structure and a command of perfection that sits over creation.

Though we see plenty of evidence of the curse,
Sin could not totally obscure the glory and perfection
Of what God has done.

• God ordered the sunrise and sunset and they never fail.
• God ordered the seasons and they never fail.
• God ordered the wind and the rain and it never fails.
• God ordered even the lifespan of man and animals and they never fail.

Even the preacher in Ecclesiastes could clearly see that
There is a definite cycle of life that goes round and round and round.

God has ordained all His works in perfect order
And it endures forever so long as He wishes for it to endure.

(4) “He has made His wonders to be remembered;”

How true this has been.
Throughout the Old Testament the children of Israel
Were commanded to remember God’s great providential works.

“The LORD is gracious and compassionate.” And Israel was to remember.

• Take the Passover yearly and remember how God delivered you from Egypt.

• Live in booths during the feast of booths and remember how God cared for the children of Israel in the wilderness.

• Put a jar of manna and Aaron’s staff that budded and the Ten Commandments in the Ark of the Covenant and have them as a perpetual reminder of God’s deliverance in Egypt.

• Pile up 12 stones from the bottom of the Jordan and leave them here as a reminder that we crossed this river on dry ground.

• Even we take the Lord’s Supper in remembrance of Christ’s work on our behalf.

God has been gracious and God has been compassionate and even though sinful man rebels against Him His works are never forgotten.

Included here is the Bible
(what other ancient text has such a focus?)

It is preserved for us to remember the accounts of God’s goodness and compassion.
• We read of His mighty creation
• We read of His wrath at the fall
• We read of His sovereign election of Abraham
• We read of His redemption through Moses
• We read of His conquest through Joshua
• We read how He toppled the giant before David
• Or how He closed the lion’s mouths for Daniel
• And we even have preserved for us the story of how God sent His Son into the world, born of a virgin, and the miraculous power He had over creation, sickness, sin, and death.
• We read of His death on a cross and His glorious victory over the grave.

All of this has been preserved for us because
God “has made His wonders to be remembered.”

It was never intended that any of the things He has done be forgotten
And God has preserved them for us.

(5) “He has given food to those who fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever.”

And David focuses first on the mighty PROVIDENCE OF GOD.
• Even in a desert God sent bread from heaven and water from a rock.

• Jesus promised that God is well-aware of our need of food and care and that He is faithful to provide all that we need.

• We even learn that God’s providence spills over in common grace as He sends rain on the just and the unjust, even offering a taste of His goodness to His enemies.

But ultimately the joy of David is that
God’s providence rests upon those “who fear Him.”

God has made a covenant with them, and “He will remember His covenant forever.”
• God is never one to break a promise.
• God never goes back on His word.
• God never makes a vow to us and then breaks it.

God has promised to care for His own and He never fails to do it.
It is His generous and providential faithfulness on display.

(6) “He has made known to His people the power of His works, In giving them the heritage of the nations.”

It is the miracle of the conquest.
God would take a rabble of people who knew nothing but slavery.

No soldiers, no nobles, no might men of war.
Just brick layers

God marched these people around in the desert for 40 years as nomads
And then took this untrained rabble
And led them into a land of giants with fortified walls.

And one by one God would overthrow their enemies before them.

The mismatch should have been obvious.
• Every time Israel went to battle, but worldly standards they were the underdogs.
• Every battle was David vs Goliath.

All Israel ever had on their side was God,
And He was more than enough.

He showed Israel over and over His mighty power.
• First in the 10 plagues over Egypt where He raised up Pharaoh that His power might be displayed
• And then in the parting of the Red Sea where with one mighty blow He annihilated the entire Egyptian army.
• And finally in the conquest when nation after nation fell before Him.

God put His power on display.
“He has made known to His people the power of His works”

He has made it clear to us that He is able to do whatever He wants.
He is able to accomplish whatever He promises.

I love the incident that led to Sarai’s faith in God.
Genesis 18:9-14 “Then they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “There, in the tent.” He said, “I will surely return to you at this time next year; and behold, Sarah your wife will have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door, which was behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; Sarah was past childbearing. Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?” And the LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, when I am so old?’ “Is anything too difficult for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”

• That’s a good question: “Is anything too difficult for the LORD?”
• She had to answer “no” and indeed God gave life to her dead womb.

We saw it with Jesus.
• The lame walking,
• The lepers cleansed,
• The sea calmed,
• The dead raised,
• And the vilest of sinners turned into saints.

God shows His people His mighty power.
And though the world has made a hobby out of suppressing it in unbelief
WE HAVE SEEN IT.

• We see it in creation as Paul taught us.
• We see it in providence
• We see it in redemption as God has subdued our hearts.

His power is known.

(7) “The works of His hands are truth and justice; All His precepts are sure.”

It is a statement with a consequence.

David says that “All His precepts are sure.”

Which is to remind us that
• Everything God commands is the right command.
• Everything God says is true.
• Everything command God gives is the best way to do it.

We know this because “The works of His hands are truth and justice;”

Which reminds us that
• God knows nothing of deception
• God knows nothing of error
• God knows nothing of corruption

And because God does none of those things,
His commands can always be trusted.

• He will never lead you astray
• He will never command you to do what is wrong
• He never says “oops” I messed up.

He cannot do evil, He cannot fail, He cannot be wrong.
And so we trust all that He says to do.
We trust all His commands.

(8) “They are upheld forever and ever; They are performed in truth and uprightness.”

“They” there speaks still of the WORKS OF GOD.

God’s works are “upheld forever and ever”

• How is it that the oceans never go dry?
• How is it that the rivers continue to flow?
• How is it that the stars continue to shine, or that the sun has yet to burn out?
• How is it that oxygen is still in the air?
• How is it that life continues?

It is because God upholds His works.
He is both Creator and Sustainer of all things.
He upholds all things by the word of His power.

But not only that,
But also because His works “are performed in truth and uprightness.”

HE DID THEM RIGHT.
• There is never a shortcut found in what God has done.
• There is never corruption or rot found that requires it to be redone.
• Never has man had to “rebuild” the earth because God miscalculated on something.

Scientists speak of resources ending by such and such year.
One group even has a doomsday clock
Which is set currently at 100 seconds until midnight.

I actually love some of their explanation:
“What midnight represents is the end of the world. So when the clock ends up losing 100 seconds, metaphorically speaking, the world is moving closer to total annihilation. This is the closest the clock has ever been to midnight.
“It is 100 seconds to midnight. We are now expressing how close the world is to catastrophe in seconds — not hours, or even minutes,” the Bulletin’s President Rachel Bronson said in a statement. “We now face a true emergency — an absolutely unacceptable state of world affairs that has eliminated any margin for error or further delay.”
https://popculture.com/trending/news/doomsday-clock-100-seconds-midnight-what-it-means/

And of course they have absolutely no clue about that.
It’s all metaphorically speaking.

All of God’s works are “upheld forever and ever; They are performed in truth and uprightness.”

And if that is true of His physical work
It is certainly true of His spiritual work.
Not only does He save, but He saves forever.

John 10:28 “I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”

Isaiah 43:13 “Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”

Philippians 1:6 “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”

(9) “He has sent redemption to His people; He has ordained His covenant forever; Holy and awesome is His name.”

David speaks of the ultimate objective of all of God’s work:
REDEMPTION

As Spurgeon pointed out,
He didn’t just send a Redeemer, He sent redemption.

Christ didn’t come and say, “Well, I tried, but they didn’t want Me.”
He said, “It is finished!”

HE REDEEMED.

We love to talk about what is called the ACTUAL ATONEMENT
Or as some call it “Limited Atonement”

• It is the reminder that what Christ did on the cross was not potential.
• He didn’t just make salvation available for all who were smart enough and
strong enough to activate it.

CHRIST DID IT ALL.
• He actually and totally and perfectly and sufficiently paid for all the sin of all the
elect for all time.

He didn’t just make redemption available for me,
He redeemed me on the cross.

He bought me there.
He paid for me there.
He purchased me from my sin.
He brought redemption.

And the covenant agreement He made with me is for forever.
AND THAT IS A GOOD THING.

I sometimes wonder about those who hold that salvation can be lost.

I want to ask them does salvation ever become secure?
• Is there ever a moment when they can breathe easy and say, “Whew! There
now it’s finally secure.”

I would imagine that most all of them would say that
“When you are in heaven then salvation is finally secure.”
• But the devil was in heaven and he fell from there.
• And so did 1/3 of the angels with him when he left.
• They were in heaven but they weren’t secure.

God’s redemption is forever
Because He has ordained His covenant forever.

He will never stop being faithful to the promises He has made to me.
He will never stop being faithful to His plan of redemption.
What He has done for me is permanent and eternal.

It is no wonder David says, “Holy and awesome is His name.”

How better could you describe it?
God has done amazing things.
• He has great works in creation.
• He has great works of providence.
• He has great works of redemption and grace.

None of them are flawed, none of them are lacking,
None of them are temporary, none of them are corrupt,
None of them are deceptive.

Everything God does He does perfectly.
Everything God does He does permanently.

His works are great and it is only right that His people study them
And remember them worship Him because of it.

And that leads to the final point of the Psalm.

(10) “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;”

After you focus on God’s great works.
• His work of creation
• His work of providence
• His work of grace

Then you should certainly come to a place of reverential awe.
You should certainly be amazed at who God is.

Anyone who can see all that God has done and not be amazed
Is described by Paul as a suppressor of truth
And a fool with a depraved mind.

Romans 1:18-23 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.”

Considering the works of God should most certainly lead you to “fear”.
• And that is the beginning.
• That is where it starts.

But then David moves from WISDOM OBTAINED to WISDOM APPLIED.
• True wisdom is not just being in awe of God.
• True wisdom is not just knowing facts about God.
• True wisdom is being so in awe of God that you trust Him and do what He
says.

I’ve told you before, but “Wisdom is not what you know,
Rather it is what you do with what you know.”

It is that parable of the two men building houses.
• Jesus said the wise man heard My words AND acted on them;
• Whereas the foolish man heard My words and did not act on them.

So wisdom begins with a fear of the LORD,
But wisdom then must evidence itself through obedience.

David says, “A good understanding have all those who do His commandments;”

It is the constant contrast of Scripture.
You have wise men and you have fools.

• Wise men do what God says (even if they don’t understand);
• Fools don’t do what God says, and this is what makes them a fool.

If you want to show yourself a fool
Then just try to live life opposite of the way God says to live it.

“A good understanding have all those who do His commandments;”

And then David closes with:
“His praise endures forever.”

That is to say that this scenario will never change.
You had better get used to fearing God and obeying Him now
Because the roles will never be reversed.

• God will always be God and you will always be part of creation.
• You will always be the worshiper and God will always be the recipient of worship.
• God will always be Lord and you will always be servant.

The wise man grasps that now instead of later.
That is the beginning of wisdom.

SO FEAR GOD

And don’t you love it when you study two different books of the Bible and find out that different authors years apart all said the same thing?

It’s sort of like God wrote this book isn’t it!

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil.”

Same point…

Download Here:

The Sacrifice of Fools
Ecclesiastes 5:1-7
July 4, 2021

Throughout Scripture we are confronted with the reality of
People who bring UNACCEPTABLE SACRIFICES to God.

• At times God would actually command His people to stop bringing the blood of goats and bulls.
• He would tell His people that He had not interest in their songs.
• He would tell them that He would not listen to their prayers.

All of these sacrifices were unacceptable to Him
Because they were not offered with devoted hearts.

They were offered by men who came to God with a wicked heart
And therefore God was not the least bit interested in their sacrifice.

Isaiah 1:13-15 “Bring your worthless offerings no longer, Incense is an abomination to Me. New moon and sabbath, the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly. “I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts, They have become a burden to Me; I am weary of bearing them. “So when you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood.”

Hosea 6:6 “For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”

Amos 5:21-23 “I hate, I reject your festivals, Nor do I delight in your solemn assemblies. “Even though you offer up to Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them; And I will not even look at the peace offerings of your fatlings. “Take away from Me the noise of your songs; I will not even listen to the sound of your harps.”

So we learned repeatedly in the Old Testament
TO BE CAREFUL HOW WE APPROACH GOD,

For even our sacrifices are not acceptable to Him
If they are offered with the wrong kind of heart.

Well, the preacher here has something to say about that reality as well.

Here we learn about what he calls “the sacrifice of fools”

Only in his case he ISN’T TALKING ABOUT a goat or a bull or an ephah of grain.
The preacher here is talking about FOOLISH WORDS.

He is warning the young man about his words
When he comes to approach God.

And this is such an important study on so many levels.
The Bible has so much to say about our words.

• We get constant warnings against things like gossip or slander or grumbling.
• Those are sins that routinely bring with them the wrath of God.

We certainly understand the warning of Jesus regarding the sin of the lips:
Matthew 12:36-37 “But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. “For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Jesus was very clear that we must be careful what we say
For there is a judgment coming, and all our words will be remembered.

We get warnings from James:
James 3:8 “But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison.”

There are so many warnings in Scripture regarding the tongue.
Especially when our tongue is used for slander or gossip
Instead of for the glory of God.

And while such studies are plentiful and needed, those are NOT the issues that the preacher has in mind here in the book of Ecclesiastes.

Instead, the preacher is referencing
How we use our tongue when we approach God.

(1) “Guard your steps as you go to the house of God and draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools; for they do not know they are doing evil.”

Let’s discuss where this fits in the overall theme of the preacher here.

It is easy to discern from reading Ecclesiastes that
One of the preacher’s main concerns is that the young man
Will be enamored by the world and will make it his ambition to obtain it.

• That might be wisdom (philosophy)
• That might be pleasure
• That might be a legacy
• That might just be temporal comfort

And his warning is continually that
Instead of chasing the world, you should seek, trust, fear, and enjoy God.

Ecclesiastes 2:24-26 “There is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and tell himself that his labor is good. This also I have seen that it is from the hand of God. For who can eat and who can have enjoyment without Him? For to a person who is good in His sight He has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, while to the sinner He has given the task of gathering and collecting so that he may give to one who is good in God’s sight. This too is vanity and striving after wind.”

Ecclesiastes 3:12-14 “I know that there is nothing better for them than to rejoice and to do good in one’s lifetime; moreover, that every man who eats and drinks sees good in all his labor—it is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will remain forever; there is nothing to add to it and there is nothing to take from it, for God has so worked that men should fear Him.”

Ecclesiastes 3:22 “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?”

He has repeatedly returned to the point that all the allurements of this world are nothing but vapor, smoke, HEBEL.

AND THAT TRUE SATISFACTION IS FOUND ONLY IN GOD.
That has been the point.

BUT WE KNOW MEN DON’T WE.

Too many people have heard such a message and sought to sort of cheat the system.

So what do they do?
They seek God in hopes that God will give them the world.

CLEVER HUH?
• And God becomes nothing more than a powerful genie in a bottle.
• He becomes the cosmic Sugar Daddy that we run to for temporal satisfaction.
• And at worst He becomes a spiritual butler who is obligated to grant our demands.

We see and we have seen it often.
Modern Christianity has been more than infiltrated with
What is known as the “Word Faith” movement.

• It is a movement that has it’s roots in the metaphysical cults.
• It is theology that comes from New Age philosophy and Christian Science.
• Oprah Winfrey promotes it as “The Secret”
• Joyce Meyer has a book called “Change Your Words, Change Your Life, Understanding the Power of Every Word You Speak”
• She also has a book called “Power Words: What You Say Can Change Your Life”

Charismatic circles have sort of repackaged this New Age thinking
In sort of a Christian wrapper, but it is pagan to the core.

You are likely most familiar with it as “Name it and Claim it”
• In it’s pagan sense, it is the belief that our words have the power to attract things into our lives and even to create scenarios for our lives.
• And when you mix it with Christianity it is the belief that because of our relationship with God our words have the same power as His and He is somehow obligated to honor what we say.

It is actually a form of blasphemy since only God can create with words,
But this is what many actually claim even under the heading of Christianity.

But the belief is that your words have power.
• You speak things into existence.
• Your words even have the power to direct the power of God.

I’ll give you sort of an outrageous example of this.
In 2004 Joel Olsteen was on TBN

• He was discussing how after the angel revealed to Zacharias that his wife
Martha was going to conceive a child (John the Baptist)
• And that God then struck Zacharias with muteness.

Scripture says that God did that because Zacharias asked for a sign out of unbelief
So God granted that he would not be able to speak until the child was born.

But here is Joel Olsteen’s commentary on the story.
“Why did God take away his speech? It’s because God knew that Zachariah’s negative words would cancel out His plan…See, God knows the power of our words. He knows that we prophesy our future. And He knew Zachariah’s own negative words would stop His plan.”
-Joel Olsteen, Discover The Champion In You, TBN, May 3, 2004.
https://youtu.be/kOTrMSOrYew (23:01)

Wow, the entire plan of redemption hung in the balance until God,
In a last ditch effort to save redemption caused Zachariah to go mute.

That is some of the nonsense I’m talking about.
But it’s the belief that our words have such power
That God is somehow obligated to yield to what we say.

• And so we hear people who are sick say things like, “I won’t confess that sickness in my life”
• Or like Gloria Copeland who says she and Kenneth control the weather by rebuking storms, etc.
• Or you hear people say things like, “I declare…” or “I pronounce you…” or “I speak this”
• https://youtu.be/kOTrMSOrYew

There is a belief and even a growing practice
About using our words to bring about from God
The things we desire in life.

But friend there are no new heresies, just repackaged ones.
The folly of such foolishness seen today
Was addressed by the Preacher around 3,000 years ago.

He called it “The Sacrifice of Fools”.

THIS MORNING let’s listen as the preacher gives further instruction to the young man about not offering such a foolish sacrifice.

• We’re going to break the text down into 2 points.
• What we see here are 2 examples;
• 2 types of people who wrongly approach God with their words.

We can learn from both of them.
#1 THE BOASTER
Ecclesiastes 5:1-3

So here we see that INITIAL WARNING to the young man.
“Guard your steps as you go to the house of God”

• It is a warning to be careful how you walk.
• It’s not literal in the sense of actually tripping over something.
• It’s an analogy meant to tell you to give special attention to how you act.

And here specifically it has to do with
HOW YOU TALK WHEN YOU APPROACH GOD.

“draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools; for they do not know they are doing evil.”

• There is a man referenced here who has entered either the temple or the synagogue in order that he might worship.
• However, the worship he offers to God is actually called “evil” and yet the man doesn’t even know it.

That alone should raise your antenna this morning.

To read here that you can ignorantly bring something to God
That God considers evil.

That should cause each of us to ask:
• What is this foolish sacrifice?
• What is this ignorant and evil offering?

(2) “Do not be hasty in word or impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God.”

We are talking here about a man who approaches God
In order to give instruction or advice or a “gameplan” to God.

This is very much so that man who brings his demands or declarations to God.

And to the preacher this is the epitome of foolish evil.

(2b) “For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your words be few.”

To bring your demands or declarations to God
As though God is here to take orders from you
Is the most obnoxious case of arrogance that can be imagined.

The Creator does not take orders from the dirt.

Do you remember when Job sort of outgrew his britches?
Job 38:1-2 “Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind and said, “Who is this that darkens counsel By words without knowledge?”

Do you remember when Paul addressed those who question God’s sovereignty?
Romans 9:20 “On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it?”

Do you remember when Peter set out to correct the misguided plans of Jesus?
Matthew 16:22-23 “Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”

What kind of fool would approach God and then do all the talking?

According to the preacher all you do when you give your plans to God like that is PROVE YOURSELF A FOOL.

(3) “For the dream comes through much effort and the voice of a fool through many words.”

• This is a proverb of sort.
• It might actually help you understand it better if you read it like this: “As the
dream comes as a result of much effort likewise the voice of a fool
through many words.”

It’s just a simple point.
“the dream comes through much effort”

• He is NOT talking about prophetic dreams here which God did offer at times
in Bible times.
• He’s NOT even talking about your goals or ambitions as if to say your
dreams are accomplished through hard work.

He is just pointing out the simple truth that
Dreams are the result of a mind that has been running full speed ahead.

• When you work hard and occupy your mind and really push yourself the
consequence of that is commonly that you will have a dream about it when
you sleep.
• Much of the time it doesn’t make sense; it may be a fear or a fantasy about the
situation, but a dream is simply the consequence of a busy life.

A busy life has a consequence of foolish dreams.
A busy mouth before God has a consequence
Of proving yourself a foolish person.

THAT’S HIS POINT.
Only a fool would approach God with the objective of doing all the talking.

Remember the evil fool James talked about?
James 4:13-17 “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil. Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.”

That was a fool who came and sort of declared to God all his plans.
• He didn’t seek the will of God.
• He didn’t take into account the plan of God.
• He just arrogantly came and told God what he was going to do.

James implied foolishness there and he actually called it evil and sin.

That is anyone who thinks they can approach God and tell God
Or declare to God what He is going to do on their behalf.

BOASTING IS STUPID.

Remember how Abraham went before God when he was asking for the salvation of any righteous who lived in Sodom?

Genesis 18:27 “And Abraham replied, “Now behold, I have ventured to speak to the Lord, although I am but dust and ashes.”

That is understanding how to go before God.

James gave other instruction that should certainly be heeded here.
James 1:19-27 “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does. If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless. Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

James spoke of a man who “must be quick to hear”
• That is to hear what God has to say.

James spoke of a man who must be “slow to speak”
• That is reluctant to give his opinion to God or even his excuses to God.

James spoke of a man who must be “slow to anger”
• That is hesitant to get angry when God tells him the truth about him or when God’s plans differ from his own.

Instead he is to put aside his wickedness
And “in humility receive the word implanted”

And then he is to be a doer of the word and not just a hearer.

Only a fool goes to worship and then does all the talking.
Only a fool approaches God and gives the orders?
IT IS SO BACKWARD IT IS ABSOLUTELY UNTHINKABLE.

“For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your words be few.”

Remember Jesus talking about prayer?
Matthew 6:7-13 “And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. “So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. “Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. ‘Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. ‘Give us this day our daily bread. ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’”

This is the warning of the preacher.
YOU ARE NOT GOD STOP ACTING LIKE IT WHEN YOU APPROACH GOD.

Don’t go to air your opinions and your advice, you go to hear His.
Open the Bible, listen to God, and don’t argue with Him, just do it.

• He is not your butler…
• He is not your genie…
• He is not your Sugar Daddy…

He is your God and you are His creation.
He is the Potter, you are the clay.

• So “Guard your steps as you go to the house of God”
• Be reverent, remember who He is and who you are.

To go before God as a boaster who is telling Him what He should do
Is to bring “the sacrifice of fools.”

Well that’s one mistake we make with our lips.
There is another.
#2 THE NEGOTIATOR
Ecclesiastes 5:4-7

Here we have a guy with a different tactic.
• He’s not quite as bold as the first guy.
• He doesn’t come telling God what to do.

He comes instead to negotiate with God a desired response.

His plan is to make a vow to God
In hopes that God will honor his desire.

But there is an INHERENT DANGER in that.
That can be a very foolish decision as well.

So listen as the preacher instructs the young man further.

“When you make a vow to God, do not be late in paying it; for He takes no delight in fools. Pay what you vow!”

There again the fool emerges.
This time it is the fool who makes a promise to God that he doesn’t keep.

Deuteronomy 23:21-23 “When you make a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not delay to pay it, for it would be sin in you, and the LORD your God will surely require it of you. “However, if you refrain from vowing, it would not be sin in you. “You shall be careful to perform what goes out from your lips, just as you have voluntarily vowed to the LORD your God, what you have promised.”

And that is precisely what the preacher says here.
(5) “It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and no pay.”

He is addressing the temptation of man to enter negotiations with God.

• I’ve heard people in hospital beds say, “If God heals me I’ve promised I’m coming to church…”

Be careful soliciting God into some sort of agreement like that.
One thing God knows nothing of is going back on His word
And He does not allow man to do it either.

The Old Testament story of Jephthah comes to mind here.
Remember Jephthah wanted victory over the Ammonites.

Judges 11:30-31 “Jephthah made a vow to the LORD and said, “If You will indeed give the sons of Ammon into my hand, then it shall be that whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the sons of Ammon, it shall be the LORD’S, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.”

Nothing says that such a vow was necessary,
But Jephthah made it anyway.
And God granted the request.

And then we read further:
Judges 11:34-35 “When Jephthah came to his house at Mizpah, behold, his daughter was coming out to meet him with tambourines and with dancing. Now she was his one and only child; besides her he had no son or daughter. When he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low, and you are among those who trouble me; for I have given my word to the LORD, and I cannot take it back.”

Jephthah made a foolish vow,
But he was not foolish enough to go back on what he promised.

THE POINT IS THAT YOU DON’T LIE TO GOD.

Remember this couple?
Acts 5:1-11 “But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and kept back some of the price for himself, with his wife’s full knowledge, and bringing a portion of it, he laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land? “While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” And as he heard these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last; and great fear came over all who heard of it. The young men got up and covered him up, and after carrying him out, they buried him. Now there elapsed an interval of about three hours, and his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. And Peter responded to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for such and such a price?” And she said, “Yes, that was the price.” Then Peter said to her, “Why is it that you have agreed together to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out as well.” And immediately she fell at his feet and breathed her last, and the young men came in and found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. And great fear came over the whole church, and over all who heard of these things.”

• If you say something to God you’d better tell the truth.
• If you make a promise to God you’d better honor it.

(6) “Do not let your speech cause you to sin and do not say in the presence of the messenger of God that it was a mistake. Why should God be angry on account of your voice and destroy the work of your hands?”

He is speaking of a person who makes a promise to God
BUT THEN WANTS TO GET OUT OF IT.

So the person goes to the priest or the prophet
And tries to get released from the vow.

AND THE POINT IS, IT CAN’T HAPPEN.

Look at Samson and the grief he caused himself because he took the vow of a Nazarite and then allowed his hair to be cut.

You don’t make a promise to God and then go back on it.

The preacher actually speaks of God as A SERIOUS CREDITOR.
You, in effect, took out a loan from God.

• You bartered His services with promise of payment.
• If you renege on your promise, don’t expect God to just be ok with it.

In fact the preacher says “Why should God be angry on account of your voice and destroy the work of your hands?”

He speaks of God as A REPO AGENT.
You made a promise, you didn’t keep it, God will make it even.

Very few people think of God in these terms today.

They think it is nothing to make promises to God that they do not keep,
But the preacher tells the young man that this is very foolish.

It is foolish to approach God and do all the talking.
It is foolish to approach God and make promises you don’t keep.

In both cases you are inviting the displeasure and judgment of God.

• Why would you think it is ok to tell God what He must do for you?
• Why would you think it is ok to make a promise to God that you won’t keep?

That is foolish.
That is the sacrifice of fools.

And the preacher continues.
(7) “For in many dreams and in many words there is emptiness. Rather fear God.”

• “emptiness” is that same HEBEL that you are so used to.
• Usually rendered “vanity”; it refers to smoke or a mirage.

And here the preacher makes ANOTHER COMPARISON TO A DREAM.

He says dreams are “emptiness”

For the most part you know that’s right.
• Most of the time they are foolish and nonsense.
• They are the product of an overactive imagination.
• You can’t count on them, they aren’t true.

It’s just a figment, it’s a mirage; the preacher says.
Well, so are your “many words” to God.

That is to say “smooth talking won’t get you out of trouble”
You’re not going to talk your way out of it.

• You may make a promise to a loan shark and not be able to pay.
• He may come to collect and through your smooth speech you might negotiate a few more days out of him.

BUT NOT GOD.
He knows the words of man, because He knows the heart.

Listen to God’s assessment of the children of Israel.
Psalms 78:34-37 “When He killed them, then they sought Him, And returned and searched diligently for God; And they remembered that God was their rock, And the Most High God their Redeemer. But they deceived Him with their mouth And lied to Him with their tongue. For their heart was not steadfast toward Him, Nor were they faithful in His covenant.”

In Hosea God promised judgment
• The people said, “Let us return to the LORD”.
• God heard what they said, but listen to His response.

Hosea 6:4-6 “What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? For your loyalty is like a morning cloud And like the dew which goes away early. Therefore I have hewn them in pieces by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of My mouth; And the judgments on you are like the light that goes forth. For I delight in loyalty rather than sacrifice, And in the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”

Jesus knew it:
Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.”

And again:
Luke 6:46 “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”

Listen to Jesus address the Pharisees:
Matthew 15:7-9 “You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you: ‘THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME. ‘BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.’”

Do you get the point?
• Empty words and empty promises mean nothing to God.
• Only a fool would offer them.

But the preacher has a better solution for the young man, and for all of us.
“Rather, fear God.”

Do you want a proper attitude of worship?
Do you want to know how to approach God?

• YOU DON’T come running off at the mouth making all your declarations and demands of what God must do for you,
• AND YOU SURE DON’T come negotiating and making promises you don’t intend to keep.

Both of those men are fools.

Instead, you come before God in “fear”
You come before God with holy reverence.

Remember how Job responded after God addressed his arrogance?
Job 42:1-6 “Then Job answered the LORD and said, “I know that You can do all things, And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted. ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ “Therefore I have declared that which I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.” ‘Hear, now, and I will speak; I will ask You, and You instruct me.’ “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear; But now my eye sees You; Therefore I retract, And I repent in dust and ashes.”

How do you suppose the church responded to God after He struck Ananias and Saphira dead?

THERE IS A LESSON TO BE LEARNED THERE.

When we deal with God, it is not a joke.
• He is certainly gracious and merciful and full of compassion.
• He is certainly a God who saves sinners.
• He has demonstrated His love by sending His Son to die for sinners.

ALL OF THAT IS SERIOUS TO HIM.

When God stretches out His hand to call sinners to salvation,
• Only a fool would return with his own set or conditions and seek to tell God
what else he wants.

When God stretches out His offer of mercy to a vilest offender,
• Only a fool would make an agreement with God that he does not keep.

DO YOU SEE THAT?

God is merciful, but He is still God.
God is gracious, but He is still God.
HE IS STILL GOD AND YOU STILL ARE NOT.

And when we deal with Him it is best that we not forget our place.
• Approach Him in humility,
• Approach Him in sincerity.
• Come before Him with fear and trembling.
• Submit yourself to His will.
• Confess Him as Lord.
• And keep your confession.

He is NOT your personal butler
He is NOT your sugar daddy

He is the God of the universe
And He has graciously offered you salvation.

Take His offer, submit to His will,
Keep your mouth closed and your ears opened,
And when you make a commitment to Him keep it.

• Do not take His name in vain.
• Do not say “Lord, Lord” and then not do what He says.

One final passage to close:
Matthew 21:28-32 “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’ “And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. “The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. “Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. “For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.”

See the difference?
• One gave a true sacrifice.
• One gave the sacrifice of fools.

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David’s Hope
Psalms 110
June 27, 2021

If you ASK PEOPLE today what is the most famous Psalm
I think it’s probably a shoe-in that Psalms 23 would win the vote.

For centuries the church has rested in the promises of the Good Shepherd
And His care for His sheep.

If I were to ASK YOU what your favorite Psalm is, the answers might be pretty diverse.
• We love the 22nd and its revelations of the cross.
• We love the 46th and its promise that we will not be moved.
• We love the 73rd with its relevant discussion on wealth.

And the list goes on and on.

But it is apparent to me that if you were to ask the apostles
What their favorite Psalm is then I think I can confidently say
That their answer would have been: Psalms 110.

No Psalm inspired more New Testament writing than Psalms 110.
• Psalms 110 was quoted by Jesus during the last week of His life.
• Psalms 110 was partially preached by Peter at Pentecost.
• Psalms 110 was quoted by Peter in his defense before the Sanhedrin.
• Psalms 110 was the Psalm that inspired the entire book of Hebrews.

IT IS HUGE!

If we were to trace out and discuss in detail
Every time this Psalm is referenced
And fully exposit the texts where it is quoted
I suppose it would take us almost a year to fully deal with them all.

This Psalm has far-reaching application.
And we will certainly at least touch base with those uses
As we study the Psalm tonight.

BUT BEFORE THIS PSALM WAS EVER QUOTED BY JESUS
OR PREACHED BY THE APOSTLES

It was first a song written by David
Which expressed his joy in a coming salvation.

In fact, I have chosen to title this Psalm: “David’s Hope”

That is what it is all about.

In this Psalm David has been granted the privilege of
HEARING AN INNER TRINITARIAN CONVERSATION.

David says right off the bat, “THE LORD SAYS TO MY LORD”

• Certainly that is privileged information that David was given by God.
• In all actuality what David heard would be a POST-ASCENSION conversation between the Father and the Son.

So clearly David was given prophetic preference here
As God chose to reveal to him events that would occur
Following the incarnation, ministry, death and burial of Christ.

Before Christ ever came
• David saw the success of His ministry.
• David heard the promise of His reign.
• David understood His role as a priest.
• David saw His coming in power.

And what David heard here from the LORD
Became the very hope of salvation of David.

But it wasn’t just David’s hope,
• It also became Peter’s hope
• And the writer of Hebrew’s hope
• And it becomes our hope as well.

So tonight we are going to take a look at
Perhaps THE MOST FAR-REACHING PSALM in the entire book.

As I said, we can’t possibly extract every truth it inspired,
But we can certainly celebrate with David
As he examined this promise that gave him such great hope.

We are going to divide this Psalm into 3 points tonight
As each of them outline a specific truth on which David rested his hope.

#1 A PLEASING LORD
Psalms 110:1-3

Let’s just contemplate for a moment what David just heard.

“THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD: “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.”

Even without our New Testament enlightenment
This is still a remarkable verse to behold.

David here makes an important announcement.
• David has a “LORD”
• David has one to whom he has submitted his life.
• David has one in whom he is trusting.
• David has picked a Savior.

BUT YOU AND I KNOW THAT
This selection is only good if God accepts Him as well.

I mean, what good does it do
To select a delegate to stand before God on your behalf
If God does not accept that delegate?

You can pick Muhammad or Buddha or Joseph Smith to be your savior if you want,
But it won’t do you any good if God doesn’t accept them.

That is why David is so elated here.
In verse 1 David learned that God has accepted David’s savior.

“The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”

To sit at God’s right and was a declaration of acceptance.
And so on this day David learned that God has accepted his Lord.

THAT IS GOOD NEWS.

It’s no wonder that the New Testament took this verse and ran with it.

FOR WE UNDERSTAND THAT
If Jesus Christ had not been acceptable to the Father
Then you and I have no Savior.

This was Paul’s main argument in that famous 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians when he argued for the truth of the resurrection.

Paul said:
1 Corinthians 15:17-19 “and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.”

• If God didn’t raise Christ then that means that Christ was not acceptable to God.
• And it doesn’t matter how much you liked Christ,
• If God doesn’t accept Him on your behalf then you are sunk.

How wonderful to know then that God has accepted Him.
Matthew 3:16-17 “After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him, and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”

• And of course God would state that again on the day Christ was transfigured.

This is foundational to our faith and salvation
To know that God has accepted Christ on our behalf.

God’s acceptance of Christ is the BEST NEWS any believer can ever hear
FOR IN HIS ACCEPTANCE WE ARE ACCEPTED.

And as we pointed out the apostles took this verse and ran with it.
Let’s take a quick look at their application of this great verse.

First we would point out that Jesus used this verse.
Matthew 22:41-46 “Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question: “What do you think about the Christ, whose son is He?” They said to Him, “The son of David.” He said to them, “Then how does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying, ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES BENEATH YOUR FEET”’? “If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his son?” No one was able to answer Him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask Him another question.”

Obviously Jesus used this verse
To point out that He was in fact greater than David.

And this is precisely how Peter would use this verse too.
At Pentecost Peter preached:
Acts 2:34 “For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND,”

• David never rose from the dead…
• David never ascended to heaven…
• David was never invited to sit at the right hand of God…

Jesus was greater than David.
The apostles jumped all over that point.

The writer of Hebrews expanded it even further to point out that by reason of this verse Jesus was also greater than the angels.
Hebrews 1:13 “But to which of the angels has He ever said, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET”?

So clearly the apostles loved this verse
Because it highlighted the preeminence of Jesus.

Jesus is the greatest and the highest.
He alone was invited to the right hand of God.

BUT EVEN THAT ISN’T THE MAIN POINT.
• The main point that the New Testament liked is that Jesus not only was exalted to the Father but that He sat down.

“Sit at My right hand…”

The writer of Hebrews especially loved this.
• He loved to point out that sitting reveals rest.
• He loved to point out that sitting reveals being finished.
• He loved to point out that no earthly priest ever did this in God’s presence.

But Jesus has so perfectly finished His work that He sat down.

Saying it first in:
Hebrews 1:3 “And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,”

And then using Psalms 110 to support his statement later:
Hebrews 10:11-14 “Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, waiting from that time onward UNTIL HIS ENEMIES BE MADE A FOOTSTOOL FOR HIS FEET. For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.”

Jesus perfectly finished His work.
There was nothing left to do.

• God created the heavens and the earth in 6 days and because it was “good” or perfect “God rested”.
• Jesus came to earth, fulfilled the righteous requirement of God, and then bore the wrath of God on sin and on the cross He said, “It is finished!”
• And when Jesus ascended He rested; He sat down at the right hand of God.

THE NEW TESTAMENT LOVES THAT TRUTH.

And the apostles also loved the word “until”

Noting that His sitting on heaven’s throne is temporary
UNTIL He comes to sit on earth’s throne.

“Sit at My right hand Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”

Currently, as Christ is seated next to the Father,
The Father is actively working to subdue Christ’s enemies.

One by one God is subduing Christ’s enemies.
One by one God is breaking them down.

If you don’t know where God is doing that, then look around this room.

Romans 5:10 “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.”

WE are those enemies that God has subdued
And brought to the footstool of Christ.

Paul describes what an enemy of Christ looks like:
Philippians 3:18-19 “For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.”

THAT WAS US.
• We were those who were enemies of Christ, but God subdued us.
• He revealed to us our rebellion.
• He called us to repentance.
• He sent His Spirit to regenerate us.
• He gave us faith.
• He atoned for our sin.
• He brought us to Christ.

Titus 3:3-7 “For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

This is why it is a foolish statement to say that
You long for Christ to reign if you are not involved in evangelism.

• Evangelism is the very essence of longing for Christ to reign.
• Evangelism is the very involvement of God’s work to bring Christ’s enemies to His footstool.

And so the apostles loved this verse.
They saw so much of the gospel here and the expounded on it greatly.

But even apart from their explanation,
Just FROM DAVID we learn a great deal about our hope.

WE SEE HIS SEAT
“The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”

• David had hope because his Lord and Savior had been accepted by God.

WE SEE HIS SCEPTOR
(2) “The LORD will stretch forth Your strong scepter from Zion, saying, “Rule in the midst of Your enemies.”

That is again a reference to the kingdom of heaven.
God would be at work to bring the hearts of wicked men into submission to Christ.

I am one of those; you are one of those.
• We are those who have confessed that Jesus Christ is Lord.
• We are those who have bowed the knee to Christ.

David had hope because his Lord had been accepted
And because God had promised that His kingdom would flourish.

WE SEE HIS SERVANTS
(3) “Your people will volunteer freely in the day of Your power; In holy array, from the womb of the dawn, Your youth are to You as the dew.”

One commentary pointed out that nearly every translation of the Bible
Translates this passage differently.

• And that has made for varying interpretations of the passage, but we can still make sense of the point.

“Your people will volunteer freely in the day of Your power;”

Perhaps the more accurate picture is that of “freewill offerings”
• That Christ’s people will present themselves as a freewill offering in the day of His power.

Like Paul said:
Romans 12:1 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”

OR
Philippians 2:17 “But even if I am being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all.”

David saw Christ’s people willingly pouring out their lives for Him.

He saw them “In holy array”; clothed in the righteousness of Christ,
But also working for the sanctification that He desires.

David saying, “Your youth are to You as the dew.”

Some translated this verse about Christ saying,
“You have the dew of Your youth”.

It’s difficult to know which, but the implication seems to be that
• Christ’s enemies have been made His servants.
• They serve Him now willingly and gladly.
• They wrap themselves in the holiness He desires.
• And they are a special blessing a delight to Him.

David saw all this coming.
• He saw a Savior, who perfectly finished His work and sat down at the right hand of God.
• He saw a God who began to turn sinners into saints and enemies into sons.
• He saw former rebels now serving Christ in holy array.
• He saw Christ delighted in their service.

And David settled his hope there.
He would smile at the future
Because His Savior would be a successful savior.

THAT IS OUR HOPE AS WELL.
That our Savior is a successful savior.

He is accepted by God and He does in fact subdue the hearts of men.
5

“Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord; He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored; He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword; His truth is marching on.

He has sounded fort the trumpet that shall never sound retreat; He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat; O be swift, my soul, to answer Him; be jubilant, my feet! Our God is marching on.

He is coming like the glory of the morning on the wave; He is wisdom to the mighty, He is honor to the brave; So the world shall be His foot-stool and the soul of wrong His slave. Our God is marching on.”

That was the hope of David as well.
He could look forward with prophetic eyes and sing
“Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord”

We sing that same hope.

A Pleasing Lord
#2 A PERMANENT PRIEST
Psalms 110:4

This verse is widely considered the heart of the Psalm.
Indeed it is the verse that stopped the writer of Hebrews in his tracks.
• He read this verse and he could not go any further.
• He stopped in dedicated meditation.

• What is this oath that is written here?
• Who is this king that is now called priest?
• How is it that He is a priest forever?
• And who is this Melchizedek and how does he relate to Christ?

And by the time he finished seeking out this verse
He had written the entire book of Hebrews.

Some would even say that the book of Hebrews is nothing more than
An exposition of Psalms 110:1 and Psalms 110:4

And we certainly don’t have time to unpack all that the writer of Hebrews said about this verse as his commentary covered multiple chapters.

But we can read a little to bring it to our minds.

Hebrews 7:1-3 “For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth part of all the spoils, was first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace. Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually.”

You have to go back and read Genesis 14 if you want the whole story,
But the point was simple.

After delivering Abraham from his kidnappers and capturing the spoil Abraham tithed a tenth of the spoil to this priest named Melchizedek.

• He was unique because he was both a priest and a king.
• He was also unique because we don’t have any record of his birth or death.
• In one sense he doesn’t have a beginning or an end.
• And he is unique because he is not a Levite.

And the writer of Hebrews applied all of that to Christ
Saying that Melchizedek was a picture of Christ.

• Christ also was greater than Abraham
• Christ also has no end of days
• Christ also was not a Levite
• Christ also was priest and King.

The writer of Hebrews would also say:
Hebrews 7:11-12 “Now if perfection was through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the people received the Law), what further need was there for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be designated according to the order of Aaron? For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change of law also.”

The writer of Hebrews simply pointed out that
If the Levitical priesthood had been perfect and sufficient
Then David would have never written Psalms 110:4.

That is to say there would have never been any talk about a new priest from a new line if those old priests had been good enough.

BUT THEY WEREN’T GOOD ENOUGH.
They didn’t make anyone perfect.

So God ordained a new priest,
And then the writer of Hebrews point out that when you get a new priest
You have to get a new covenant too.

(Because the old covenant explicitly stated that all priests had to be Levites)

So clearly in Psalms 110,
God was pointing out that there was coming a day
When we’d get a new priest and a new covenant.

And the writer of Hebrews seized upon that.
Hebrews 7:17-22 “For it is attested of Him, “YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER ACCORDING TO THE ORDER OF MELCHIZEDEK.” For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness (for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God. And inasmuch as it was not without an oath (for they indeed became priests without an oath, but He with an oath through the One who said to Him, “THE LORD HAS SWORN AND WILL NOT CHANGE HIS MIND, ‘YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER’”); so much the more also Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant.”

• The writer of Hebrews seized upon Psalms 110:4.
• He saw a new priest coming and this new priest was Jesus.
• And he saw this new priest coming with an oath from God.

IN VERSE 1 WE GOT AN ORACLE OF GOD.
And if there is anything stronger than an oracle of God
It is an oath from God. -Derek Kidner

God promised that someday David would get a new priest.
• Not a priest in weakness that could make nothing perfect.
• Not a temporary priest who would one day leave office or die.
• But David would get a powerful priest and One who would be a priest forever.

And if you want to know why this new priest
And His new covenant are better, just keep reading.

Hebrews 7:23-25 “The former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers because they were prevented by death from continuing, but Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently. Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

• Christ is a perfect priest
• Christ is a permanent priest
• And so Christ permanently save those who come to Him.

“He is able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

Now that is a “tip of the ice burg” explanation,
But that is still the point that David is so happy about.

• David never had a perfect priest before…
• David never had one who was capable of atoning for his sin and then setting
down because it was finished…
• David never had one who could make him perfect…

But God told him about a priest who one day would make him perfect.
AND THIS WAS DAVID’S HOPE.

AND THIS IS OUR HOPE.
• We are sinful men.
• We have no reason to expect that we could ever please God
• Or even stay pleasing if somehow we were to appease Him.

But here David heard of a Savior who was acceptable to God
And this same One would then perform as an eternal priest
To keep saved all those who come to God through Him.

That is salvation and that is security
And that was David’s hope and it is certainly OUR HOPE AS WELL.

Hebrews 6:16-20 “For men swear by one greater than themselves, and with them an oath given as confirmation is an end of every dispute. In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”

• Jesus satisfied God.
• Jesus sits at His right hand.
• Jesus intercedes for us.

“My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus name.” “When darkness seems to hide His face, I rest on His unchanging grace; through every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil.”

That was David’s hope too.

A Pleasing Lord, A Permanent Priest
#3 A PROMISED REIGN
Psalms 110:5-7

One commentator pointed out that at this point David leaves the book of Hebrews
And approaches the book of Revelation.

For David also had a hope that
One day the heavenly kingdom would become and earthly one.

• David also had a hope that one day it would not just be men who were saved from their sin, but one day all evil would be vanquished.

• David had a hope that one day every knee would bow and every tongue would confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

And that is the day David saw here.
(5-7) “The Lord is at Your right hand; He will shatter kings in the day of His wrath. He will judge among the nations, He will fill them with corpses, He will shatter the chief men over a broad country. He will drink from the brook by the wayside; Therefore He will lift up His head.”

• Notice all the “He will” statements.
• It is promised, it is prophesied, Christ will come and will destroy His enemies.

We saw the same promise back in chapter 2
When those foolish kings were conspiring against God’s anointed
To throw His fetters off.

Psalms 2:7-9 “I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession. ‘You shall break them with a rod of iron, You shall shatter them like earthenware.’”

THERE IS COMING A DAY
When all those who resisted Christ and refused His saving offer
Will have their knees broken and they will bow before Him.

• “He will shatter kings in the day of His wrath”
• “He will judge among the nations,”
• “He will fill them with corpses,”
• “He will shatter the chief men over a broad country.”

And the closing verse of the Psalm pictures
His relentless pursuit of the wicked until He finds none.

David said, (7) “He will drink from the brook by the wayside; Therefore He will lift up His head.”

The picture is that of a general in pursuit of his enemies.
• He doesn’t just sit in his tent eating fine food,
• The general who wants to catch his foe pursue him, even drinking water from the brook on the way.

It pictures a relentless pursuit of the wicked.
And David says a king who is so passionate in his pursuit
WILL MOST CERTAINLY BE VICTORIOUS.

“He will lift up His head.”

He will pursue the wicked and He will not stop
Until every grape is trampled and every sinner destroyed.

THIS WAS DAVID’S HOPE.
• A Savior who was acceptable to God.
• A Priest who could keep him saved.
• A kingdom where the wicked would be destroyed forever.

Though the writer of Hebrews did not quote from the end of this Psalm, it is clear that he read it.

Hebrews 12:25-29 “See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven. And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN.” This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.”

IT IS OUR HOPE THAT
There is coming a day when our God
Will shake the heavens and the earth.

He will come and judge the wicked
And set up a kingdom which cannot be shaken
And a land where righteousness dwells.

We hope for the day when the curse is reversed and sin is gone forever.

“Joy to the earth! The Savior reigns; let me their songs employ; While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains repeat the sounding joy. No more let sins and sorrows grow, nor thorns infest the ground. He comes to make His blessings flow far as the curse is found.”

Now you see why the apostles seized upon Psalms 110.

• David spoke of his hope in a Savior whom God would accept on His behalf and this was Jesus.

• David spoke of a priest who would forever atone for his sin and keep him saved and this was Jesus.

• David spoke of at king who would crush His enemies and set up a holy earthly kingdom, and this was Jesus.

JESUS WAS DAVID’S HOPE IN ALL THINGS.

• Even though David was a king he knew he was not acceptable to God on his own.
• Even though David was a king he was not even allowed to be a priest.
• Even though David was a king he never fully rid the world of his enemies.

David’s hope was in a better king, his Lord,
Who would accomplish all of those things.

That is the same Lord we celebrate.
That is the same Lord we worship.
That is the same in Lord in whom we place our hope.

And tonight, just to remember this great hope
We are going to partake in the Lord’s Supper.

• As we do we see His body in which He earned the righteousness that was
imputed to us.
• A righteous life that was offered to the Father on our behalf.
• And in the juice we see His blood which was shed to pay the penalty for our
sin.

And it all hinges upon the fact that
THIS OFFERING WAS ACCEPTED BY THE FATHER FOR US.

HE IS OUR ONLY HOPE.