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Thinking About Satisfaction
Psalms 119:57-64
November 14, 2021

Tonight we are going to be “Thinking About Satisfaction”

Satisfaction has actually been a frequent topic of our discussions of late.

As we have studied Ecclesiastes on Sunday mornings
We have many times discussed that there are things that don’t satisfy.

• The preacher there continually uses phrases like “striving after wind” or “vanity”
• We called him the critic because he is weighing on all the allurements of life that simply do not satisfy.

Ecclesiastes 2:1-11 “I said to myself, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure. So enjoy yourself.” And behold, it too was futility. I said of laughter, “It is madness,” and of pleasure, “What does it accomplish?” I explored with my mind how to stimulate my body with wine while my mind was guiding me wisely, and how to take hold of folly, until I could see what good there is for the sons of men to do under heaven the few years of their lives. I enlarged my works: I built houses for myself, I planted vineyards for myself; I made gardens and parks for myself and I planted in them all kinds of fruit trees; I made ponds of water for myself from which to irrigate a forest of growing trees. I bought male and female slaves and I had homeborn slaves. Also I possessed flocks and herds larger than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. 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. Then I became great and increased more than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also stood by me. All that my eyes desired I did not refuse them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was pleased because of all my labor and this was my reward for all my labor. Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun.”

That pretty much sums it up.
In the words of Mic Jagger, “I just can’t get no satisfaction.”

Sooner or later that becomes the review
Of every single person who pursues the world.

• They either find that rather quickly in life due to the initial bitter taste of the world

• Or they find that later in life after they are left empty, like the preacher in Ecclesiastes.

• Or they find that in judgment when everything obtained in the world passes away and they are left with only judgment. Like that rich man in Hades who enjoyed good things in life but was left only with judgment.

But sooner or later every person who tastes the world
Learns that there is nothing in this world that satisfies.

The true blessing comes when you find what really does satisfy,
And that is Christ.

C.S. Lewis spoke of that “God-shaped hole” in the heart of every man that only God can fill.

There is true satisfaction in no one else.
Only in Christ do you find what is true and real and sufficient
And all-satisfying.

THE LAST TIME we studied this stanza we called it “When God is Your Portion” and honestly there is no reason to depart from that.

TONIGHT we just want to talk more about that same idea.

Tonight we think about it a little more, and I want to make this point.

Satisfaction in God should be
The defining difference between the world and the church.

This is where the main difference should be most readily observed.
• While the world is constantly pursuing the things of this world to be satisfied,
• It should be obvious that the church has found satisfaction in Christ.

We say that Jesus is “the life”.
We say that “in Him was life, and the life was the light of men”
We say that those who believe in Him will have “the light of life”
We say that if He is “the bread from heaven”
And by believing in Him we “never hunger or never thirst”
We say that from Him “flow rivers of living water”
We say that those who believe in Him “will live even if he dies”
We say that His followers have “life abundant”
We say that in Him we have “eternal life”

If there is then one thing that should distinguish us from the world
It should be that we have found total satisfaction in Christ.

SO LET ME SAY IT AGAIN:
Satisfaction in God should be the defining difference
Between the world and the church.

And there are A COUPLE OF PASSAGES I want to go to before we walk through this stanza again just to show you that this is the expectation.

Let’s start in the Old Testament.
• 1 Passage has sort of risen to the top throughout history as sort of the pinnacle passage on satisfaction in God.

Psalms 23 “The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows. Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”

That is a song of a satisfied sheep.
He says, “I shall not want”
In my Shepherd I have everything I need and want.
• I have provision
• I have restoration of soul
• I have righteousness
• I have protection
• I have comfort
• I have victory
• I have anointing
• I have hope

I need for nothing.

And if we go to the New Testament and look at the redeemed people of God we see this reality so clearly.

Acts 4:42-47 “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

The very passions and desires of the early church
Speak to their ultimate satisfaction with Christ.

They saw no need to deviate.
There was no other allurement.
They had no need of worldly wealth.

You don’t see them finding a million and one other things
They could do instead of going to church.

Nothing else was going to bring them satisfaction
Like the worship of God among the saints.

And this greatly distinguished them from the world in which they live.

This SHOULD BE THE DISTINGUISHING MARK of God’s people.

We hear Asaph:
Psalms 73:25 “Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.”

We listen to Paul:
Philippians 3:7-8 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,”

We read of Abraham:
Hebrews 11:9-10 “By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”

We read of Moses:
Hebrews 11:24-26 “By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward.”

This is the distinguishing mark of the redeemed.
• They have forsaken this world…
• They have gained Christ…
• AND THEY ARE MORE THAN SATISFIED WITH THEIR DECISION!

We think of Peter, as he watched the multitude turn away from Christ
After Christ refused to give them more bread.

John 6:66-69 “As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore. So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also, do you?” Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. “We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.”

I hope you see what I’m talking about.
The church are those who are satisfied with Christ.

Well TONIGHT I want to give you another picture of a satisfied customer.

He actually starts by saying:
(57) “The LORD is my portion;”

This could reference a number of things:
• Maybe he is referencing how the first born son received a double portion.
• Maybe he is referencing how the Levites received no land because the Lord was their portion.
• Maybe he is simply referring to how he is a stranger in the world.

Whatever he means at the very least he understands
That HIS TOTAL INHERITANCE and all that he is receiving is “the LORD”

SO LET’S IMAGINE THE SCENE FOR A MOMENT.
Perhaps your parents are rich; totally loaded

And one day they pass away and it’s time to go for the opening of the will.
• One person gets the land…
• Someone else gets the house…
• Someone gets the cars…
• Someone gets the vacation homes…

Finally it comes to you and the executer of the will says, “You receive no earthly possessions, all that has been left to you is “The LORD”

You have not received anything in this life.
But you get a relationship with God.

That is what this Psalmist has just announced.

THE QUESTION IS, “Are you disappointed?”
• As your brother drives away in the car.
• As your sister moves into the house.
• As your cousins go to the vacation home.
• As your aunts and uncles take the money.

You walk away with nothing but God.
Are you satisfied?

That’s what we are looking at here in regard to this Psalmist.

Now, we also find that the LORD being his “portion”

COMES WITH AN EXPECTATION.
“I have promised to keep Your words”

In that sense it is much like the priestly tribe who received no land,
But who were allowed to dwell closer to God than any other tribe
And carried the added responsibility of owning God’s Law.

That is where our Psalmist is.
He doesn’t have anything but God.

But BEFORE WE SEE how satisfied he is with this,
We first need to backtrack a little and
LOOK AT HOW THIS ARRANGEMENT CAME TO PASS.

See, the reading of this will WASN’T A SURPRISE to him.
He already knew that this is what he was getting.

IN FACT, THERE WAS A TIME IN THE PAST
WHERE THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT HE ASKED FOR.

If you read verses 58-60
• You notice that all the verbs are past tense.
• He is going to tell you about a time in the past
• Where he made the decision to forsake it all that he might gain Christ.

(58-60) “I sought Your favor with all my heart; Be gracious to me according to Your word. I considered my ways And turned my feet to Your testimonies. I hastened and did not delay To keep Your commandments.”

He is talking about a time when he made the decision
That all he really wanted was the favor of God.

He just wanted the nearness of God.

He says, “I sought Your favor with all my heart”

THIS DECISION IS THE ESSENCE OF SALVATION
(this is what happens when you get saved)

I want you to think of all the hymns and songs
Which have been inspired by this very sentiment.

Martin Luther:
“Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also, the body they may kill, God’s truth abideth still, His kingdom is forever.”

Isaac Watts:
“Forbid it Lord that I should boast, save in the death of Christ my God; all the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood…Where the whole realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small. Love so amazing; so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.”

Fanny Crosby
“Take the world, but give me Jesus, All its joys are but a name, But His love abides forever, Through eternal years the same. Take the world, but give me Jesus, Sweetest comfort of my soul, With my Savior watching o’er me, I can sing though billows roll. Take the world, but give me Jesus, In His cross my trust shall be, Till with clearer, brighter vision, Face to face my Lord I see”

George Beverly Shea
I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold, I’d rather be His than have riches untold, I’d rather have Jesus than houses or land, I’d rather be led by His nail-pierced hand. I’d rather have Jesus than men’s applause, I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause, I’d rather have Jesus than worldwide fame, Yes, I’d rather be true to His holy name. Than to be the king of a vast domain And be held in sin’s dread sway, I’d rather have Jesus than anything, This world affords today.

Jordan Kauflin
“Hallelujah! All I have is Christ! Hallelujah! Jesus is my life!”

It is a constant of Christianity throughout the ages
To do exactly what this Psalmist did.

To let go of worldly pursuits and treasures
And to seek God’s favor with all our heart.

• It is what Peter and Andrew were doing when they left their nets.
• It is what James and John were doing when they left their father.
• It is what Matthew was doing when he left his tax booth.
• It is what Zacchaeus did when he returned the money.

The Psalmist pursued God.
HE CAME TO THE REALIZATION THAT GOD WAS ALL HE NEEDED.
And he was committed to seek God even to the loss of everything else.

He also understood that
He would only achieve this favor by God’s grace.

“Be gracious to me according to Your word.”

He knew he didn’t deserve the favor of God,
But he pleaded that by grace he might have it.

He says, “I considered my ways and turned my feet to Your testimonies.”

This is a man who is serious in his pursuit.

I started looking at the things in my life that might disappoint you
And I repented.

I turned my feet away from them.
I “turned my feet to Your testimonies.”

I WANTED YOUR FAVOR.

Again, this is the very reality of salvation.
We repent of our sin.
We leave this life.

Those who want Christ
Are happy to leave behind whatever must be left if they can have him.

Those who want Christ
Have found a treasure in a field and though it costs them everything they must have that field.

Those who want Christ
Have found a pearl of great value, and though it cost them everything they must have that pearl.

• They’ll leave houses and lands
• They’ll leave father and mother
• They’ll leave brother and sister
• They’ll leave business and pleasure
• They’ll leave their reputation

They just want Christ no matter the cost.
(That is true Christianity)

THAT WAS THE PSALMIST.

And notice his URGENCY.
“I hastened and did not delay to keep Your commandments.”
• There was no hesitation…
• There was no debate…
• There was eagerness!

For the last 150 years the “altar call” or public invitation
Has sort of been the norm in the Baptist Church.
I’m not a huge fan, though we do it here.

We’ve all seen those long drawn out manipulative and gimmicky type invitations where preachers beg and plead with sinners to walk the aisle.

I just don’t do that.

If you have just heard about a Savior
• Who will forgive your sin and clothe you in His righteousness and satisfy your
debt before holy God…
• Who will freely justify you and redeem you if you will simply trust in Him and
confess Him before men…

Then I shouldn’t have to beg and plead with you to give your life to Christ
As though I were trying to get you to come
And get a root canal or something.

When the opportunity is available you shouldn’t have to be coerced.
You ought to fly out of your seat at the first opportunity.

Like the hemorrhaging woman you ought to fight through the crowd to get to Jesus…

THAT WAS THIS PSALMIST.
• He learned of a Savior!
• He learned of a Redeemer!

AND HE WANTED HIM BAD!
• He repented of his sin
• He ran to Christ
• He sought whatever he might do to gain Him

“Take this world, but give me Jesus!” He cried.

That we see.
THAT HAPPENED IN HIS LIFE IN THE PAST.

What we are examining now is: WAS IT WORTH IT?
Now that He gained Christ, but lost the world, is he satisfied?

He got what he wanted.
“The LORD is my portion”

Is he happy with his decision?

AND NOTICE THAT plenty of people have tried to offer him a way out.

There have been plenty that have said, “For crying out loud, let go of your grip on Christ and here, have a piece of the world!”

(61) “The cords of the wicked have encircled me”

That is what we call temptation.
• “Turn these stones into bread…”
• “Throw yourself off the temple…”
• “Bow down and worship me and all these kingdoms will be Yours…”

The world throws them at us too.
• Come away with me and have a little fun.
• Surely Jesus can’t be all satisfying.
• Our world is filled with such temptations.

And the grievous thing is how successful their cords have been!

LOOK AT WORSHIP SERVICES TODAY.
1. First there is the issue of dropping attendance (many even cancel Sunday
nights)
2. Look at how churches have had to shift to entertainment to keep people
interested

It pops up on my memories from time to time, but I love the quote from Vanessa Baxter on the TV Show “Last Man Standing” when here husband was bothered because church was so boring.

She said, “I’m sorry the reverend wasn’t entertaining enough for you today. Maybe he should juggle while he’s trying to save your soul from the fiery pits of hell.”

We’ve seen just that.
People are bored, they don’t want to go,
They’ve got other things to do on Sunday night.

How far a cry is it from the passion of the early church?
Acts 2:46 “Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart,”

WHAT ABOUT DAILY PRIVATE DEVOTION?
Is there a desire to daily study God’s word?
• But in the morning emails and social media and weather reports are calling
• And in the evening there are all sorts of other distractions and entertainments.

I’m not saying a Christian can’t look at social media or watch a television program, but do those things take priority over God’s word?

The question is: WHERE IS YOUR SATISFACTION?

Well the Psalmist was tempted and look at what he said:
(61) “The cords of wickedness have encircled me, But I have not forgotten Your law.”

I’m not buying what they’re selling!

He would echo the response of the Savior:
“Man shall not live by bread alone, but on every word which proceeds from the mouth of God.”

He doesn’t need the world anymore.
He is satisfied with Christ.

And then look at this!
(62) “At midnight I shall rise to give thanks to You Because of Our righteous ordinances.”

• When our world really wants to talk about having a good time, it is characterized as “Night Life”
• Young people want to be in a city where there is a good “Night Life”
• Where the bars and hangouts and dance clubs don’t even really start hopping good until MIDNIGHT.

At night, under the cover of darkness is when the world really wants to let loose.
• That is when they party!
• That is when they gratify those sinful impulses!
• That is when they go seeking satisfaction.

But the Psalmist is totally disinterested.

If I’m up at midnight, it’s not to party with the world:
“At midnight I shall rise to give thanks to You Because of Your righteous ordinances.”

This isn’t some frustrated commitment.
This isn’t some woeful duty.
This is what he’d rather do!

There is no lasting satisfaction to be found at the club,
But the satisfaction of communing with God in His word
Is totally fulfilling.

AND SO
• When he is alone, he loves God’s word.

And when he arises and enters the world,
• He doesn’t need to rub shoulders with the rich and famous.
• He doesn’t need to hang out with the popular.

(63) “I am a companion of all those who fear You, And of those who keep Your precepts.”

I don’t need to run in the cool circle,
I just want to be around those who love You.

Look at this!
He can’t imagine going anywhere better than going to church.

Isn’t that something!
• What celebrity concert?
• What sporting event?
• What worldly gathering?

In his mind none of those things could ever offer as much satisfaction as time spent among those who fear and love God?

He just wants to be with those who love God.
That is his satisfaction.

So let’s pause right there and ask the question:
DOES HE REGRET IT?

When the inheritance was divvied out, he got nothing but God.
Was he disappointed?

NOT IN THE LEAST!
That’s all he wanted.

And then look at his FINAL STATEMENT of ultimate satisfaction.

(64) “The earth is full of Your lovingkindness, O LORD; Teach me Your statutes.”

• Does that sound like the statement of a dissatisfied man?
• Does that sound like the appraisal who has received the short end of the stick?

Not at all.

That is a satisfied man.
• God’s goodness is everywhere!
• God’s loyalty is everywhere!

It is the wording of David in the 23rd Psalm:
• “I shall not want”
• “I laying down in green pastures”
• “I walking beside quiet waters”
• “My head is anointed with oil”
• “My cup runneth over”
• “Goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life”

HE IS NOT DISSATISFIED.

He has God and God is more than enough,
So much so that he has no desire whatsoever
To run back to the futile promises of the world.

We read in Ecclesiastes about how all the promises of the world
Are “Vanity” and “Striving after wind”

But you NEVER FIND THOSE PHRASES USED
To describe the promises or blessings of God.

Those who follow God are satisfied.

John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

Romans 10:11 “For the Scripture says, “WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”

Ephesians 1:18-19a “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.”

And we don’t even have to walk all the way through Ephesians 1
And look at all those blessings which are found “in Him”

But think about what we receive from God that the world can never offer.

What does the Bible say about the GRACE we receive from God?
2 Corinthians 12:9 “And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you…”

What does the Bible say about the MERCY we receive from God?
Lamentations 3:22-23 “The LORD’S mercies indeed never cease, For His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.”

What does the Bible say about the LOVE OF GOD?
1 Corinthians 13:8 “Love never fails…”

What does the Bible say about the JOY OF GOD?
John 15:11 “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.”

What does the Bible say about the PEACE OF GOD?
Philippians 4:7 “And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension…”

What does the Bible say about the HOPE OF GOD?
Romans 5:5 “and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”

Sufficient, New, Unfailing, Complete,
Surpassing Comprehension, Doesn’t disappoint

• Name me anything in the world that is sufficient
• Name me anything the world that is new every morning
• Name me anything in the world that is unfailing
• Name me anything in the world that complete
• Name me anything in the world that surpasses comprehension
• Name me anything in the world that never disappoints

Do you see the satisfaction that is found in God?

And I’ll return to it one more time.

Satisfaction in God should be the defining difference
Between the world and the church.

Now, I COULD ask you:
ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH JESUS?

But that would be a cop-out for certainly everyone in church would answer yes.

INSTEAD what we will do is look one more time
At what the life of a truly satisfied person looks like
And you can answer for yourself if that is you or not.

The Psalmist here gives 5 characteristics
Of a person who is truly satisfied with Christ.

I’ll just list them for you and you can use them to evaluate your life.
1) THEY RESIST TEMPTATION

(61) “The cords of the wicked have encircled me, But I have not forgotten Your law.”

John Piper once said, “Sin is what we do when we are not satisfied with God.”

That’s true, those who are satisfied with God
Don’t need the empty offers of the world to be satisfied.

2) THEY PREFER WORSHIP TO WORLDLINESS

(62) “At midnight I shall rise to give thanks to You Because of Your righteous ordinances.”

While the world would rise to enjoy the nightlife
The one who is satisfied with God
Finds all the joy he needs in fellowship with God.

3) THEY DELIGHT IN FELLOWSHIP WITH BELIEVERS

(63) “I am a companion of all those who fear You, And of those who keep Your precepts.”

Communing with the saints is not a burden, it is a delight.
He doesn’t need the recognition of the world,
Only the fellowship of fellow believers.

4) THEY RECOGNIZE GOD’S BLESSING EVERYWHERE

(64a) “The earth is full of Your lovingkindness, O LORD;”

Their glass isn’t half-empty.
Following God has not resulted in privation.
Their cup is running over, they see blessing everywhere.

“Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth, Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide, Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow, Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside”

5) THEY HUNGER FOR MORE

(64b) “…Teach me Your statutes.”

“My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me”
“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word which proceeds from the mouth of God”

They simply want more of God.

And there are so many passages and pictures that we could look at to continue making this point.

• But rather it is Old Testament saints like Abraham or Moses or Asaph or this Psalmist…
• Or rather it was New Testament saints like Paul or Peter or the Early Church…
• Or rather it was hymn writers throughout the ages…

Do you see that distinguishing characteristic of the church is that they are satisfied with Christ alone?

We will never convince the world that Jesus is enough
If we are constantly pursuing the same things they pursue.

Our pursuit must be different…
• There must be a priority to our worship.
• There must be a preference to our fellowship.
• There must be an abstaining from the things they call fun.

Otherwise all we are doing is telling them that Jesus is optional.

We would be like that guy at the reading of the will who received only Jesus but then walked away angry because he didn’t also get the car.

Are you satisfied with Jesus?

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One Final Point
Ecclesiastes 12:1-8
November 14, 2021

This morning we come to the end of the sermon of the preacher.

The final 6 verses we’ll see next week are the final word given by the author.

But this morning the preacher’s sermon is wrapped up.

We certainly won’t recover it all, but you should at least be familiar
At this point with what we might call the HIGH POINTS of the sermon.

The book contained 2 main points.

The first 6 chapters deal with THE FUTILE PURSUIT

It is where he spoke to us about “striving after wind”.
• Things like pursuing knowledge
• Things like pursuing pleasure
• Things like pursuing a legacy

• He told us about the dangers of hasty words or of loving money.
• He showed us the futility of seeking treasure.

Those are all pretty common obsessions of the world
And having tried them all the preacher indicated that
They were all “striving after wind”.

They were “vanity” or HEBEL
• They were a mirage.
• There is no satisfaction to be had there.

And so the critic of life gave A SCATHING REVIEW
Of all that the world commonly advertises.

“I bought it, don’t buy it” was his message.

The last 6 chapters outline THE NOBLE PURSUIT
After telling us what not to pursue he then began to tell us what we should pursue.

You could call it wisdom, but perhaps that isn’t the best term.
It seems more like he was seeking to give us some perspective.

What he was really doing was PREPARING US TO PURSUE CHRIST.

The things he told us to pursue were all things
That we would need when it comes time to follow Jesus.

For example:
• He talked about the value of mourning or accepting a rebuke.
• He talked about the importance of pursuing righteousness even when there is not an immediate payoff for it.
• He talked about the value of submission and meekness and humility.
• He talked about the importance of listening to wisdom.
• He talked about the brevity of life and the certainty of death.
• He talked about how we should ignore the futile motivational messages of the world and prepare for a coming judgment.

Sure he wrapped all of those lessons up in practical teaching.
• Things like obeying the king
• Or not cursing a rich man
• Or attending a funeral instead of a party
• Or not staring at the clouds when there is plowing to be done.

His teaching was practical and down to earth,
But it was all for the point of teaching us to pursue the things
That are necessary if we are to enter the kingdom of heaven.

We see A DIRECT CORRELATION with the attitudes he told us to pursue
With the attitudes Christ told us we needed to be saved.

Matthew 5:3-10 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Those are the necessary attitudes for a man to be saved
And we have seen that those are the exact same attitudes
That the preacher has been teaching us to pursue.

Well this morning his sermon comes to an end,
And it comes with ONE FINAL POINT.

DO IT NOW, BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE!

The text this morning is quite unique.
It is almost completely ALLEGORICAL.
• It is a picture with a deeper meaning.
• I’ll show you that in a minute.

But there is ONE COMMAND that the allegory is meant to enforce.

The command is this:
“Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth”

It is most certainly a command AGAINST PROCRASTINATION.

I don’t have the numbers or statistics but anyone who has spent any time in the church can attest that far more people are saved in their early years than in their latter years.

It’s not that you never see an older person surrender their life to Christ,
It’s just that by in large if they don’t come when they are younger,
They typically never do.

JESUS EXPLAINED ONE REASON.

Last week we heard the call of Jesus.
Matthew 16:24-27 “Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? “For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.”

We were reminded that in order to follow Jesus you must lose this life.

And we think of men like Peter or Andrew or James or John or Matthew or Paul who did exactly that.
• They turned their back on their fishing business.
• They left their father.
• Matthew left his tax booth.
• Paul said he suffered the loss of all things.

And in contrast we think about men like the Rich Young Ruler
Who refused to leave his wealth that he might follow Jesus.

And Jesus said:
Matthew 19:23-24 “And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. “Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

One of the reasons it gets harder to follow Jesus the older you get
Is because typically as you get older you amass more treasure in this world
And it becomes harder and harder to forsake it.

I used to love working with college students.
• They seemed the easiest to compel to follow Christ because for them the cost
was seemingly lower.
• All they were leaving was a dorm room and maybe an old couch they found on
a curb somewhere.

But as people move into life and adulthood
And they start to acquire wealth and security and they grow a family
And as they seek to maintain health and comfort
It becomes harder and harder to ask them to follow Christ.

That’s a reason Jesus told us about.

BUT THE PREACHER HAS AN EVEN DIFFERENT REASON
WHY THIS SEEMS TO BE THE CASE.

The preacher has at least 1 reason why this is so.

“Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near when you will say, “I have no delight in them”;”

From the perspective of the preacher the world tends to produce
Bitterness and Cynicism and Hardness of Heart.

As men and women get older
And the days become more evil and life becomes more difficult
It is harder for men to acknowledge their Creator.

The longer you live and the more hardship you see.
Even the more hardship you endure.
And the longer you listen to the world’s complaints.
For many, the bitterness is too much to overcome.

The preacher knew this.

And he concludes his sermon with one last appeal to the young man:
“Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth”

That is the appeal, and we will come back to that in a moment.

But FIRST we’ll work through the text and examine this allegory
Which the preacher preserves for us.

The exterior picture that he presents is one of the sun setting and the light going out in an old and rundown house.

Now, you may not like this, but what he will talk about in rather vivid detail
IS ACTUALLY AN ELDERLY PERSON
Who is now feeling the days of pain and old age
And who will ultimately walk into death.

You know by now that this preacher has no problem talking about the things that are a little uncomfortable, and this text is certainly no different.

BUT HE DOES SO FOR A POINT.

He is telling the young man to open his eyes and look around
And see the elderly around him and to realize that
He really doesn’t have that much time to reconcile with his Creator.

Now you already noticed this morning that ON YOUR BULLETIN
I dug up some old Church Directory pictures and put them on the front.

I would imagine that many of you probably enjoyed looking at the old pictures.

That bulletin is specifically for
The young man and the young woman in the church.

• This morning I want them to look around at the rest of us.
• Because I know to them we all look really old.
• I want them to realize that we were all young once too.

But in a blink…in a flash…this life is gone.
There really isn’t that much time.

So this morning we take a rather vivid look
At the journey toward old age that we are all on.

Incidentally it is the time in life which the preacher refers to as
• “the evil days”
• Or the years “when you will say, “I have no delight in them”;

He’s talking about the coming days that you WON’T enjoy.
He’s talking about the coming days that most men DO NOT delight in.

And the young man should ACT BEFORE those days come.

(2) “before the sun and the light, the moon and the stars are darkened, and clouds return after the rain;”

He’s simply talking about the time when the DAYS GROW SHORT
And HARDSHIP STACKS upon hardship.

Those days are coming for every human in this cursed world.

AND HERE COMES THE ALLEGORY.

For reference sake, are you familiar with the beautiful woman in the book of Song of Solomon?

Song of Solomon 4:1-3 “How beautiful you are, my darling, How beautiful you are! Your eyes are like doves behind your veil; Your hair is like a flock of goats That have descended from Mount Gilead. “Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn ewes Which have come up from their washing, All of which bear twins, And not one among them has lost her young. “Your lips are like a scarlet thread, And your mouth is lovely. Your temples are like a slice of a pomegranate Behind your veil.”

We have all laughed at that, but you understand the allegory there.

“hair like a flock of goats…descended from Mount Gilead” – she has long black flowing hair
“teeth…like a flock of newly shorn ewes…all of which bear twins” – she’s got all of her teeth and a pretty white smile.
“Your lips are like a scarlet threat” – just the beauty of her mouth.

Well what Solomon does there to describe his beautiful bride
He does here to describe the hardship of old age.

(3) “in the day that the watchmen of the house tremble, and mighty men stoop, the grinding stones stand idle because they are few, and those who look through the window grow dim;”

Now perhaps one could make some literal sense of this verse and think it speaks maybe of some sort of invasion or judgment, but when you read the text as a whole you realize he is painting a symbolic picture.

“in the day the watchmen of the house tremble”

“watchmen” there is literally “keepers of the house”
And it is reference to the arms and the hands of this elderly man.

And he’s talking about the day when he gets old
And his muscles aren’t what they used to be
And his hands and his arms shake and tremble.

“and mighty men stoop”
• And this older man now walks hunched over because even the bones in
his back begin to deteriorate.

“the grinding stones stand idle because they are few”
• These are his teeth and he’s lost most of them.

“and those who look through the window grow dim”
• And that of course speaks of his darkening and failing eyesight.

This man who was once young and full of strength and vigor
Has now felt the crippling effects of old age and his body is wearing out.

(4) “and the doors on the street are shut as the sound of the grinding mill is low”

The “grinding stones” were his TEETH, the “grinding mill” is his MOUTH
And “the doors on the street” are his LIPS.

It pictures the old man without teeth
Whose lips even begin to sort of sink back into his mouth.

He doesn’t eat much because he doesn’t have the teeth to chew it.

“and one will arise at the sound of the bird”

COMMENTATORS DEBATE rather this is a reference to his voice getting higher pitched or if it speaks to his inability to sleep anymore and so he rises up early.

Either is fitting.

“and all the daughters of song will sing softly”

The NIV translates that “but all their songs grow faint”

Meaning he rises up early at the sound of the bird
But he can’t hear it anymore.

(5) “Furthermore, men are afraid of a high place and of terrors on the road”

He’s no longer sure footed
So climbing a mountain or walking on unlevel ground
Only presents danger of greater injury and he dares not go there.

“the almond tree blossoms” – his hair turns gray

“the grasshopper drags himself along” – he shuffles his feet and walks slow

“and the caperberry is ineffective”
LITERALLY this is “and the caper berry bursts”

It speaks of the caper berry which has become too ripe,
And it swells and it bursts and it falls off the tree.
THE OLD MAN IN THE PICTURE HAS DIED.

“For man goes to his eternal home while mourners go about in the street.”

• This man who was once full of strength and vigor.
• This man who once wrangled livestock
• This man who once pounded the hammer
• This man who once fought wars and battles
• This man who worked night and day

He was once a young man too.

We just celebrated Veteran’s Day this past Thursday.
We don’t see them anymore because nearly all have died now,

But it has always struck me throughout my life
When I’d see those men who were WWII veterans.

In my lifetime they were old and gray and walked slow
And where much like the description that the preacher gave here.

They were physically weak and were not sure footed.
• And yet these were the men who charged beaches under machine gun fire of
the Nazi’s and Imperial Japanese.
• These were men who lugged mortar shells up high ridges and who fought in
unspeakable conditions.

They were almost superhuman in their prime
And we saw what old age did to all of them.

Indeed it does it to everyone.
Many of us have watched it happen to a parent or grandparent.

AND THE POINT OF THE PREACHER IS:
IT WILL HAPPEN TO YOU TOO YOUNG MAN

As young people you get stuck in the hall behind an older man who doesn’t move as fast as you’d like to
• And what you don’t realize is that 60 years ago he would’ve knocked your head off in football.
• He would’ve schooled you on a basketball court and I promise you didn’t want in the boxing ring with him.

• He could hoe in the field for hours on end.
• He could pick cotton with nothing but a sack.
• He could dig ditches and milk cows and stack hay
• Cross country wasn’t a competition for him that was how he got to school.

The point to all of this?
YOUNG MAN IT WILL HAPPEN TO YOU TOO!
• You only have a window here.
• Time is short.

Life is going to do things to you that you aren’t going to like.
And I promise you it is much easier for you
To seek out your Creator now than it will be then.

SO HERE WE SEE THAT THE OLD MAN HAS DIED.

So the preacher returns to his MAIN POINT.
(6-8) “Remember Him before the silver cord is broken and the golden bowl is crushed, the pitcher by the well is shattered and the wheel at the cistern is crushed; then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it. “Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher, “all is vanity!”

Those three pictures are all symbolic and they all mean the same thing.
• First you have a golden lamp bowl full of oil and it is hanging by a silver cord.
• But in time the cord breaks and bowl falls and the light goes out.
• There is a pitcher which sits by the well for drawing water, but in time it falls and it shattered and the wheel at the cistern is crushed and water will never be drawn again.

They are pictures of death.

Which is why the preacher says, “then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.”

The body goes back to the ground
And the spirit returns to stand before God.

And the preacher ends his sermon the way he began it
“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher, “all is vanity!”

Your life is but a short vapor.

AND YOUNG MAN THIS MESSAGE IS FOR YOU.

When you are young it is often true that
You are focused on all the sparkly and attractive things
That this world has to offer.

And the deception of the world is that
• Those things are fleeting and so you’ve got get them now.
• You can do the God-thing later, you’ve got time.
• Use your youth to go and obtain the world.

THE PREACHER SAYS JUST THE OPPOSITE.
Go back to verse 1

(1) Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near when you will say, “I have no delight in them”

Don’t waste your youth seeking the vanities of this world.
Seek God in the days of your youth.

Hard and uncomfortable days are coming.
And it is rare in this world to find someone turn to God then.

Those who trust God at that point
Are typically those who started trusting him at an early age.
They see those trials in a different light than the lost world.

The lost world gets angry and bitter at hardship
And often times even blames it on God.

And so his call is don’t wait, reconcile with your Creator now.
You might not be willing tomorrow when life gets harder.

So let’s take a moment and look at this command.

I just want to point out some words to you here
And make sure you understand them.

He says, “Remember also your Creator”

Let’s start with that word “Creator”

You are the product of a Creator.
You are not a Big Bang accident.

There is PURPOSE, INTENT, and EXPECTATION attached to your being.
There is a Creator who made you on purpose.

And I would remind you that He is meticulous.
Psalms 139:13-15 “For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;”

There is nothing hasty or negligent about your existence.
You were created exactly as He intended.

Remember Jeremiah?
Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Remember Isaiah?
Isaiah 49:1 “Listen to Me, O islands, And pay attention, you peoples from afar. The LORD called Me from the womb; From the body of My mother He named Me.”

Remember John the Baptist?
Luke 1:12-17 “Zacharias was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear gripped him. But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John. “You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. “For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother’s womb. “And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God. “It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE FATHERS BACK TO THE CHILDREN, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

And it is true for you as well.
Perhaps not as a prophet a forerunner
But CREATED FOR A SPECIFIC PURPOSE.

Even the things that you may think are MISTAKES are not mistakes.
John 9:1-3 “As He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.”

Everything about you was meticulously designed for a purpose.
You have been created by the Creator.

Now that brings about another important point then.

The Preacher said, “Remember also your Creator”

In short, you need to understand where you fit in the divine order.
• You are not the Creator.
• You are the creation.

• You don’t define God, He defines you.
• You don’t direct God, He directs you.
• You don’t use God, He uses you.
• God doesn’t answer to you, you answer to God.

We’ve read it so many times but surely you have this passage ingrained on your heart by now.

Acts 17:24-31 “The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His children.’ “Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

God made you for a purpose and one day you will answer to Him
As to how you used this life He gave you.

Young man you need to “Remember your Creator”
• You need to ponder what He expects from you.
• You need to learn what He demands.
• You will one day give an account to Him
• It is important that you understand His expectations.

Those of you who came to Disciple Now learned about this.
• Adam was created “in the image of God”
• Adam was God’s image-bearer.
• Adam was God’s representative to creation as to who God was and what God was like.

But Adam fell into sin and the image was marred.
• We lost what it meant to be human.
• We lost our understanding of who God is.
• Adam still bore God’s image but it was a distorted image.

That is where humanity now lives.
Humanity has a distorted view of what it even means to be human.

• That is why they love evil and hate good.
• That is why they lie and steal and commit adultery and do all manner of evil.
• That is why they are filled with sensuality and corruption and anger and malice.
• That is why they are jealous and envious and hateful and hate one another.

They have lost their understanding of who God is
And so they have lost their understanding
Of what it means to bear His image.

SIN WRECKED IT ALL.
BUT CHRIST RESTORES IT.
John 1:14-18 “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John testified about Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’ ” For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.”

• Jesus came and bore the image of God.
• Jesus was the first real human we saw since the garden.
• Jesus was the first actual image bearer of God.

And that is why in that passage from Acts that we read a moment ago
JESUS will be used as THE STANDARD by which God judges all men.

Let me read that verse to you again.
Acts 17:30-31 “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

Jesus is the picture of what God demands from humanity.

That is also why the Bible says that God is at work to conform you to the image of Christ.
Romans 8:28-29 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;”

NOW YOUNG MAN DO YOU HEAR WHAT I AM SAYING?

You need to “Remember also your Creator”

What does He want?
What does He demand?
When you stand before Him what will He expect?

He expects you to be what He created you to be.
• Perfect
• Flawless
• Holy
• The accurate image bearer of God
• Just like Jesus

That is what He created you to be.
That is what He expects.
That is the standard of judgment.

And the only way you will ever achieve that
Is if you run to Christ to be clothed in His righteousness.

PICTURE IT LIKE THIS.
• You were created to be the image bearer of God.
• So PICTURE YOUR LIFE AS A PAINTING.
• Your life is meant to show the world who God is.

And then one day you die and you stand before God,
And GOD ASKS YOU TO SEE THE PAINTING YOU DREW.

“Show me Rory, show Me this painting of Me that you have created.”

Could you imagine how angry God would be if I showed Him a picture of myself?
• Me in all my sin and corruption.
• Me in all my distortion.

There is a picture in my office that Zek painted of me when he was little.
In that picture my ears are huge. They are almost as big as my head.

I PROMISE YOU THIS.
That picture is a closer likeness to what I actually look like
Than I am to what Go actually looks like.

There is no way I want to stand before God like this.
• I want to be clothed in the perfection of Christ.
• I want that extreme makeover that only Christ can give.

YOUNG MAN THERE IS ONLY ONE WAY
For you to be made pleasing to the One who created you
And that is if you repent of your sin and run to Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:21 “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

• If you spend this life thinking about what the world wants…
• If you spend this life thinking about what your girlfriend or boyfriend wants…
• If you spend this life thinking about what your parents want…
• If you spend this life thinking about what you want…

But you never give any thought to what your Creator wants you are a fool!

“Remember also your Creator”

But there is one more point to be made.

The Preacher said, “Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before…”

• He DIDN’T tell you to put it on your calendar sometime later.
• He DIDN’T tell you to just think about it someday.

He said you had better do it now
Before the evil days come and death creeps up on you
And you fail to do it all.

I want to close with one more message from Jesus.
TURN TO: Matthew 25:14-30

That is a story that speaks of wasted resources.
You were created for a purpose.

Do it now while your strength remains.
Do it now while you are young.
Don’t be lazy.

IT WILL NOT GET EASIER TO REPENT AND RETURN LATER

A.W. Pink said:
“What insanity is it that persuades multitudes to defer the effort to repent till their deathbeds? Do they imagine that when they are so weak that they can no longer turn their bodies they will have strength to turn their souls from sin? For sooner could they turn themselves back to perfect health.”
(Arthur Pink – “Practical Christianity”)

Young man, heed the words of the Preacher.
• This is not a game.
• This life is a vapor.
• Old age and death are certain.

Reconcile with the One who created you through His Son Jesus Christ.

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Thinking About The Reward
Psalms 119:49-56
November 7, 2021

Tonight we return to our study of the 119th Psalm.
This is in fact our second time through this wonderful chapter on the word of God.

The first time we looked at this stanza we called it “The Path To Comfort”

And that is easily seen as two verses specifically mention it.
• (50) “This is my comfort in my affliction, That Your word has revived me.”
• (52) “I have remembered Your ordinances from of old, O LORD, And comfort myself.”

And we talked about last time how God’s word
Is the source of our comfort in a variety of situations.

• We saw it as comfort during affliction
• We saw it as comfort during derision
• We saw it as comfort during frustration
• We saw it as the ultimate satisfaction

And certainly we would still hold to all of those truths.

Tonight however, we are going to zoom in a little and focus on
One primary thought in regard to how God’s word comforts us.

Tonight we’re going to think about how God’s word brings comfort
Because God’s word is where we learn
That our faithfulness will be rewarded.

• Christians live in hope that their endurance will be worth it.
• Christians live in hope that the Lord is watching their affliction and will compensate them.
• Christians live in hope that all the pain and hardship here will be totally forgotten when the Lord affirms and rewards their labors.

FOR AN UNBELIEVING WORLD
Messages of a sure and certain judgment are horrifying realities,
But Christians read those verses totally different.

For example, on Sunday mornings we are studying Ecclesiastes.
We will soon come to that culminating passage:

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.”

For an unbeliever that verse should terrify them.
That God is watching and will bring to light every hidden thing.

But that verse is not terrifying to a believer.

In fact, when promising persecution to believers for going on mission Jesus actually uttered this promise:
Matthew 10:26 “Therefore do not fear them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.”

Since we know that a believer is protected from condemnation.
Romans 8:1 “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

And so a believer does not fear a sure and thorough judgment.
• A believer longs for the hidden things to be revealed.
• A believer longs for the secret things to come to light.

Passages like Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 are WELCOMED NEWS to a believer
For it is then that we are rewarded.

Just this morning in our study we talked about Matthew 16
How Jesus warned that every deed will be brought to judgment.

Matthew 16:26-27 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? “For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.”

But for a believer this is not a terrifying reality, but a welcomed one.
For we are those who have sacrificed this life for the next.

• We are told to endure reproach…
• We are told to respond with a blessing…
• We are told not to take our own revenge…

And all of this is done with the promise
That one day our Lord and righteous Judge will both
Render judgment on the wicked and reward those who are his.

And the only place in the whole world where we find this promise
Is in God’s word.

Only the Scripture gives us this reassurance.

The best a lost world can hope for us some sort of mystical belief in what they typically refer to as KARMA.
• It is really a sentimental hope that all things circle back around.
• If you do what is right then good will win and it will work out for you in the end.
• But history teaches repeatedly that this does not always prove true.
• There have been plenty of people who took the high road and suffered greatly in this life.

A Christian doesn’t hold to this sentimental belief of Karma.
• We know that the righteous can suffer…
• We know that the righteous can even die…
• We have a different and better hope!

The comfort we have comes from the promises contained in God’s word
That every deed will be judged before our Holy Heavenly Father
And on that day it will be worth it all.

This is the comfort that the Psalmist references tonight
And one that is good for us to spend a little time thinking on this evening.

So let’s look at this stanza a little tonight.

As always there are 8 verses contained in this stanza.
• As a whole it carries a very encouraging tone.
• 7 of the 8 verses directly reference themes of hope and encouragement.

We read of hope, comfort, faithfulness, singing, and assurance.

THE OVERALL MESSAGE is that in the midst of a frustrating situation
The Psalmist has found tremendous hope and comfort in God’s word
And he has found it to such an extent that he has decided to endure.

Only 1 verse seems to depart from this positive spin
That is Verse 53, where perhaps more than any other
The Psalmist gives insight to his situation.

(53) “Burning indignation has seized me because of the wicked, Who forsake Your law.”

While every other verse finds him in hope or comfort or assurance
This verse finds him in “burning indignation”.

There is an anger welling up inside of him and he is about to explode.

He says this anger has “seized” him.
• There is a consuming aspect here.
• He is total immersed in his rage at the moment.

And he tells us what it is.
It is “because of the wicked”.

In a generic sense we can see that
“the wicked” have set him off.

They have behaved in such a way
That he is literally overcome with extreme anger.

At this point then we realize that his “burning indignation”
Is Righteous Indignation.

He is angry at the same things that anger God.
There is a wickedness and an evil abounding that has infuriated our Psalmist.

And then he lists the behavior of the wicked that has so infuriated him.
“Who forsake Your law.”

Perhaps you’ll notice that “law” here is NOT CAPITALIZED.
That would indicate that this is not a reference to the Mosaic Law.

It is simply a reference to the common law of right and wrong
Which God has placed over all His creation.

• Certainly Israel was a covenant nation who entered into an agreement with God that they would keep all His Law which was revealed by Moses.
• And you are aware how extreme punishment was to be brought upon them if they failed to keep all the words of that Law.

But that is NOT the “law” the Psalmist is referring to.

The “law” here would be the law
Which Paul referred to that governed Gentiles.

Romans 2:14-16 “For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are a law to themselves, in that they show the work of the Law written in their hearts, their conscience bearing witness and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending them, on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the secrets of men through Christ Jesus.”

We are just talking about that universal law of right and wrong
Which God has imprinted on the conscience of every human.

That even a Gentile who did not have the Law of Moses still instinctively knew that
MURDER was wrong and LYING was wrong and STEALING was wrong.

So we understand that what has the Psalmist so upset
Is not that Israel is breaking God’s Law,
But rather it is the world living as though there is no law at all.

It is the world thinking that they can live however they want with no repercussion whatsoever.
Lying, stealing, murdering, adultery, corruption, etc.

It is a carnal world which has seared their conscience and who now live totally oblivious to the expectations of the One who created them.

Paul described them in:
Ephesians 4:18-19 “being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness.”

• They are just totally pagan and sensual people.
• No different than a stray dog they just do whatever feels good at the moment with no thought at all to the God who created them.

Has such godlessness ever filled you with anger?
Well it did the Psalmist too.

“Burning indignation has seized me because of the wicked, Who forsake Your law.”

There is a deep-seeded frustration occurring with our Psalmist here.

And that is NOT THE ONLY PLACE he alludes to the problem.

(51) “The arrogant utterly deride me, Yet I do not turn aside from Your law.”

Here he doesn’t call them “the wicked”,
Here they are referred to as “the arrogant.”
• They are the same group.
• They are the people who have arrogantly become a god to themselves
• And thus fallen into every manner of wickedness.

On one hand the Psalmist is angry because of the way they live,
But his frustration clearly ALSO ENCOMPASSES the fact that,
“the arrogant utterly deride me”

And now the situation is taking shape.
• He lives in a godless and wicked world.
• While he tries to honor the Law of God and live righteous,
• He lives in a world that has totally forsaken the law of God and lives wicked.

This is bad enough, but to make matters worse he suffers derision from the wicked for the way he lives.
• They mock him.
• They make fun of him.
• They “utterly deride” him.

His day is now filled with a mixture of ANGER and HUMILIATION.
His day is filled with a mixture of INDIGNATION and REPROACH.

There is another Old Testament figure who felt this unique struggle.
Jeremiah 20:7-10 “O LORD, You have deceived me and I was deceived; You have overcome me and prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all day long; Everyone mocks me. For each time I speak, I cry aloud; I proclaim violence and destruction, Because for me the word of the LORD has resulted In reproach and derision all day long. But if I say, “I will not remember Him Or speak anymore in His name,” Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire Shut up in my bones; And I am weary of holding it in, And I cannot endure it. For I have heard the whispering of many, “Terror on every side! Denounce him; yes, let us denounce him!” All my trusted friends, Watching for my fall, say: “Perhaps he will be deceived, so that we may prevail against him And take our revenge on him.”

You hear it also in Jeremiah don’t you?

• I try to do what is right…
• I preach God’s word…
• It only results in derision and reproach…
• I would quit, but my heart is filled with burning indignation…
• I can’t stop speaking the truth, but it brings terrible humiliation down on me…

Some of you have felt this very dilemma in your life.
• Some of you know exactly what the Psalmist and Jeremiah are dealing with.

I might go on to say that if you have never felt this
Then I sincerely hope that someday you do,
For that is a tremendous badge of honor on your life.

Matthew 5:10-12 “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

• Jesus said that people who get persecuted and blasphemed and lied about
because of their commitment to righteousness are blessed.
• Jesus said that those people have joined the company of the prophets who
walked before them.
• That is a tremendous accomplishment and it brings a tremendous blessing,

If you have not felt that in your life, I certainly hope at some point you do.

BUT, IT IS NOT EASY.
1 Peter 4:4 “Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties and abominable idolatries. In all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them into the same excesses of dissipation, and they malign you;”

It is a hard place to be, but a Christian is called to be in this place.

Now, BASED ON WHAT WE’VE TALKED ABOUT the last few minutes
You’d think that our Psalmist must be in a real pit of depression.

Based on verse 53, and the first half of verse 51
You’d think that our Psalmist must really be a miserable man.

AND YET, as we also said, this stanza is one of the most positive and upbeat in the whole chapter.
• Despite his indignation…
• Despite his affliction…
• This Psalmist is singing about hope and comfort and assurance.

(49) “Remember the word to Your servant, In which You have made me hope.”

That is the only request of the stanza.
Everything else simply falls into words of praise or gratitude.

The only request he renders is this.
“Remember the word to Your servant, In which You have made me hope.”

God said something to the Psalmist through His word on which the Psalmist is hanging his hate.
• There was a verse somewhere that God said…
• There was a promise somewhere that God had uttered…

That promise has meant everything to the Psalmist.
It has become the basis of his hope.

Despite the indignation…
Despite the affliction…
The Psalmist has hope and it’s all because of something God has said.

And so his only request is that God remember it too!

And he goes on.
(50) “This is my comfort in my affliction, That Your word has revived me.”

God, You have to remember the promise You made.
• It is my only source of hope…
• It is my only source of comfort…

When I walk down the street and I am enraged at their behavior.
When I walk down the street and I am attacked with their derision.
• There is only one thing that soothes the fire of my burning indignation.
• There is only one thing that comforts the sting of their reproach.

It is that promise that You have made.

And it is a promise of such importance to the Psalmist
That he was not only comforted,
But that promise also gave him the strength to faithfully endure.

Look at 51 again:
(51) “The arrogant utterly deride me, Yet I do not turn aside from Your law.”

The arrogant and the wicked have but one goal
And that is to bring the Psalmist down off of his high horse.

THEY DESIRE TO CORRUPT HIM.
They want him to join them in their crude language and their crude behavior.

And indeed the moment would be much easier if he would.
(It would be much easier just to give in and blend in)

But whatever it is that God has promised to the Psalmist,
He has seen it to be so valuable that
Day after day he has chosen to endure their reproach.

(52) “I have remembered Your ordinances from of old, O LORD, And comfort myself.”

• When he walks through the crowd and the point and curse…
• When he walks through the crowd and they mock and abuse…
• Immediately to his mind enters the “ordinances” of God.
• This promise which God has made.

And when the Psalmist again brings that truth to mind he is able to once again comfort himself.
• He is able to ignore what they say.
• He is able to see the folly in their behavior.
• He is able to reassure himself that he is walking the correct path.

Even though he is filled with anger as we saw in verse 53
He is able to stay the course and remain faithful.

IN FACT, he is not only able to control his anger,
But he is actually able to respond with a song!

(54) “Your statutes are my songs In the house of my pilgrimage.”

Oh, I love this one!

A “pilgrimage” is a journey.

Now, you’d expect him to say
“The ROAD of my pilgrimage”

As if to indicate that this path he is walking
Is a temporary journey but he is able to sing while he walks along.

But that isn’t what he calls it.
He calls it “the HOUSE of my pilgrimage”

He isn’t just passing through, at least not today.
HE LIVES HERE.
• He lives here as an alien in a foreign land.
• His citizenship is somewhere else.
• He is a foreigner, he is a misfit, he is an outcast.
• He doesn’t belong.

And the locals have noticed.
• Just as Abram was derided as “the Hebrew” (one who crosses over)
• So this man is also a stranger and an alien in a foreign land.

And the natives mock and deride him as they see him in the streets.

But he is not going anywhere.
• Not today, not tomorrow…
• For the time being, this is his home.
• It is certainly temporary, but his home none the less.

Yet despite the derision and frustration our Psalmist is singing.

He isn’t just barely surviving because he clings to God’s word,
He is rejoicing in God’s word!

With every jab and every attack he clings the harder to God’s word
And he grows to love it even more.

And then, when he GOES HOME AT NIGHT and he is finally alone, but he is forced to remember the awful things he heard and saw.

And when his mind would carry him into despair
Over having to face all the cruelty again tomorrow,
The Psalmist again retreats to his oldest and dearest friend.

(55) “O LORD, I remember Your name in the night, And keep Your law.”

• Even at night when his thoughts might get the better of him.
• Even at night when the hours can be long, he remembers who God is and the
law God has given.

And his confidence is renewed.

And all of this culminates in that final statement.
(56) “This has become mine, That I observe Your precepts.”

He says, “I have one thing that sets me apart, I have one thing on which I hang my hat. I do what God commands.”

And now here, having examined the whole of the stanza
WE FINALLY BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THIS PROMISE IS.

For a while I wondered if it was God’s promise to judge the wicked.
• I sort of wondered if this was perhaps a hidden imprecatory prayer.
• But he doesn’t mention the judgment of the wicked anywhere.
• Furthermore, he doesn’t close the stanza by saying, “But this I know, they have offended You.”

That is not his focus.

HE IS FOCUSING ON THE FACT THAT
Each day, and when he returns home at night
He is able to take comfort and rejoice in the fact
That he has done what God has asked.

WHY IS THAT COMFORTING TO A BELIEVER?

IT ISN’T, UNLESS
You have read in God’s word
That He will one day reward those who obey Him.

AND INDEED HE HAS MADE THAT PROMISE.

I think of Paul as he faced trials and affliction.
Romans 8:16-25 “The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”

There is a certainly a mouthful there, but do you see THE MAIN IDEA.
“the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that is to be revealed to us”
• Creation knew it…
• The Spirit inside of you knows it…

Paul says, “For in hope we have been saved…[and] with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”

Despite the current frustrations and hardships and sufferings
He would cling to the hope and comfort that one day it will all be worth it!

He said the same to the Corinthians:
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

You can easily see our Psalmist there.
• He knew that things today where hard,
• But he continually encouraged his heart with the truth
• That one day it would be worth it.

TURN TO: HEBREWS 10

Hebrews 10:32-39 is a solemn call to hold fast and not shrink back and not be dismayed.
• Yes, you live in a world where you are maligned and mistreated.
• Yes, you live as a stranger in a foreign land.
• But don’t give up, don’t give in.

And do you see at the heart of that passage THE BASIS for the call?

(36-38) “For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. FOR YET IN A VERY LITTLE WHILE, HE WHO IS COMING WILL COME, AND WILL NOT DELAY. BUT MY RIGHTEOUS ONE SHALL LIVE BY FAITH; AND IF HE SHRINKS BACK, MY SOUL HAS NO PLEASURE IN HIM.”

“so that when you have done the will of God,
You may receive what was promised.”

Do you see the same truth the Psalmist was hanging on to there?

And then of course you realize that the writer of Hebrews gives you
An entire chapter of examples of people who did what is asking you to do.

We call it the “Hall of Faith”

Look at how these people lives.

(11:8-10) “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”

• Do you see Abraham living daily as an alien?
• Do you see him on his “pilgrimage”?
• But he did not stop, he did not give in because he was looking for the city which God was building.

There was a reward to be had!

(11:13-16) “All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.”

• Again you see them as “strangers and exiles on the earth”
• But they won’t go back.
• They want “a better country”
• They are looking to the reward!

(11:35-38) “Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection; and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.”

• Here people even willfully endure horrific treatment.
• They keep facing hardship.
• They wouldn’t even accept a release because they wanted “a better resurrection”

It was not about this life, it was all about the coming reward.

But then look at the ultimate example:
(12:1-3) “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

• Jesus went through greater affliction than any of them and He did it “for the joy set before Him”

Are you getting the point?
• As Christians we hang our hat on this.
• As Christians this is the source of our hope and our comfort.

Though the evil of this world causes us “burning indignation”
Though the derision and persecution of this world is a stinging insult.

We do not retreat.
We do not give in.
We faithfully cling to God’s word and to obedience.

WHY?

Because God’s word promises that
• One day His Son will return to judge the living and the dead.
• Every secret thing will be revealed.
• Every secret sin of every unbeliever will be exposed and he will reap the full judgment of God for it.
• And every righteous deed of every saint will also be revealed and he will receive a full reward for it.

Matthew 10:40-42 “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. “He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. “And whoever in the name of a disciple gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink, truly I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.”

We cling to that!

As the disciples watched The Rich Young Ruler walk away…
Matthew 19:27-29 “Then Peter said to Him, “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?” And Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name’s sake, will receive many times as much, and will inherit eternal life.”

That was the type of promise that sustained our Psalmist
While living as a persecuted alien in an evil land.

That is the promise that will sustain you as well.

• One day, it will be worth it all.
• One day you will be rewarded.
• One day every secret thing will be revealed
• And you will rejoice that you determined to obey God.

This is our hope.
This is our comfort.
We have a reward!

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Is This Really Life?
Ecclesiastes 11:7-10
November 7, 2021

Many times during our Disciple Now weekends
We like to give the kids IMPROMPTU CHALLENGES.

We like to give them a random title
And they have to either perform a dance that fits the title or a skit that fits the title.

• Two years ago was Kori Swaringen’s famous dance entitled “Mood Swinging
Cheerleader”
• Last year the favorite skit was “Bingo Night at the Nursing Home”

• We’ve had titles like “Field Trip Gone Wrong”
• Or “An Email Sent To The Wrong Address”
• Or “Bringing Home Something Hideous”

We have learned that if you give random titles, especially those that are somewhat contradictory then the result can be quite humorous.

Studying this text this week made it feel to me
Like someone gave the preacher such a challenge.

It sounds to me like someone challenged him to be
“A Pessimistic Motivational Speaker”

That’s exactly what you get when you read these 4 verses.
• No sooner will he drop a positive and uplifting word of encouragement on you
• Than does he instantly pull the rug right out from under you.

In fact, I told Carrie that if you could just delete the last half of verses 8, 9, and 10
Then you’d have all the makings for a perfect Joel Olsteen sermon.

I’ll go ahead and give you all the points at the start and you’ll see what I’m talking about.

1) REJOICE IN EVERY MOMENT

(7-8a) “The light is pleasant, and it is good for the eyes to see the sun. Indeed, if a man should live many years, let him rejoice in them all”

And you can hear the motivational speaker telling you to
Enjoy that sip of coffee, look for the good, and embrace the positive in life

You’ve heard it, I’ve heard it.
Learn to see the good in everything
Embrace your blessings and look for more
It’s textbook motivational talk.

2) REALIZE YOUR DREAMS

(9a) “Rejoice, young man, during your childhood, and let your heart be pleasant during the days of young manhood. And follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes.”

There it is again.
• Rejoice in the moment and realize your dreams!
• Speak positive truth into your future and positive results will come.

I heard one this week, “Whenever you say ‘I am’, whatever you follow it with you are inviting into your life.”
• If you say, “I am rich” you are inviting money.
• If you say, “I am smart” you are inviting knowledge.
• If you say, “I am fat” you are inviting calories

You get it.
• Just go out and seize your dreams, realize you dreams.
• Claim that promotion
• Declare your success
• Move forward and expect the waters to part for you

That’s sure what it sounds like.

3) REMOVE YOUR OBSTACLES

(10a) “So remove grieve and anger from your heart and put away pain from your body”

Anything that grieves you or angers you or causes you pain, CUT IT OUT.
You don’t need negative people circumstances in your life.

• Trim your circle…
• Turn off the negative…
• You need to be surrounded by eagles not Eeyore’s…

I’m telling you if you can cut off the end of those last 3 verses
You’ve got solid gold in the arena of motivational speaking.

You could repackage and restate this stuff in just about every arena.

Want to talk to a group of students?
• Rejoice in every moment…
• Realize your dreams…
• Remove your obstacles…

Want to encourage an athletic team?
• Rejoice in every moment…
• Realize your dreams…
• Remove your obstacles…

OUR WORLD LOVES IT!
It’s the kind of stuff I see circulating on Facebook all the time.

It’s secular wisdom all about making your life
Better, Happier, and More Successful.

SO WHY IS THE PREACHER SAYING IT?
Is that what he thinks? – NOT AT ALL!

THE PREACHER IS NEARING THE END OF HIS SERMON.
HE IS NOW BRINGING THE POINT HE WANTS YOU TO DWELL ON.

And that MAIN POINT comes in to focus at THE END of each verse.

Because just when the audience gets all excited
At him regurgitating the shallow wisdom of the day
The preacher reaches forward and yanks the rug right out.

Rejoice in every moment!
(But it’s futile because death is coming)

Realize your dreams!
(But know God is following what you do and will judge you for it)

Remove your obstacles!
(But you better do it fast because life is fleeting)

And I’ll tell you again:
HE’S PREPARING YOU FOR THE GOSPEL

He is punching hole after hole in the common wisdom of the day
So that he can drive you to the truth.

It’s like he’s sitting right beside you in one of those motivational speeches and he’s pointing out how shallow all the advice really is.

AND HIS SOLE OBJECTIVE IS
To prepare you to be truly amazed when you see Jesus.

And by the time we’re done
I’ll show you how Jesus catapulted right off of this sermon into His invitation to humanity.

So let’s work our way through those 3 points I gave you
And examine the problem with those shallow yet common pieces of advice.

#1 REJOICE IN EVERY MOMENT (A Futile Plan)
Ecclesiastes 11:7-8

There we read that first part again.

“The light is pleasant, and it is good for the eyes to see the sun. Indeed, if a man should live many years, let him rejoice in them all”

Now, in order to be fair let me remind you again that
This is NOT TOTALLY BAD advice.

“The light” here is a reference to life.

• Did you wake up this morning? That’s a good thing, rejoice.
• Did you see the sun? That’s a good thing, rejoice.
• Have you lived a long life? That’s a good thing, rejoice.

There is nothing intrinsically anything wrong with that advice.

Have you ever encountered that guy who didn’t rejoice in those things?
(He’s no fun)

You say, “Good morning” and he says, “What’s good about it?”
Nobody likes that guy.

There IS a certain wisdom in the encouragement
To rejoice in the simple realities of life.

The preacher has even told us that previously in the sermon.

Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 “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.”

Ecclesiastes 5:18 “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.”

The preacher has never suggested that you should hate this life.
He has been more than happy to point out to you
That you ought to enjoy the simple little pleasures.

That is some of the relief that God gives to this cursed world.

• So clearly “The light” (being alive) is a good thing.
• Clearly “it is good for the eyes to see the sun.”
• Clearly “if a man should live many years, let him rejoice in them all”

Yes, that is fine advice.

BUT HERE IS THE PROBLEM
If that is all there is in your life, you are going to be disappointed.

WHY?

Because the preacher also gives a DOSE OF REALITY.
“and let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many.”

“The light” is a reference to life.
“the days of darkness” is a reference to death.

Enjoy life while you have it because death is coming
And you’re going to be dead a long time.

JUST DO THE MATH.

How long did Adam live? (Genesis 5 says 930 years) But how long has he been dead?

How long did Moses live? (Deuteronomy 24 says 120 years) But how long has he been dead?

You get the point.

And that is why the preacher pulls the rug out and says:
“Everything that is to come will be futility.”

• Yes, enjoy life, but it won’t last.
• Yes, enjoy good things, but they won’t last.

God promised it back in the garden didn’t He?

Genesis 3:19 “By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return.”

Hebrews 9:27a “And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once…”

Ecclesiastes 9:2-3 “It is the same for all. There is one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and for the unclean; for the man who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good man is, so is the sinner; as the swearer is, so is the one who is afraid to swear. This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is one fate for all men. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead.”

YOU GET THE POINT.

IT’S NOT THAT there aren’t good things to enjoy in this life or that having life at all is not a reason to rejoice.

IT’S JUST THAT it doesn’t last long.

And so seeking to satisfy your soul with this life is a futile effort.

That is what is so shallow about all the motivational preachers out there
Who keep telling you to love this life.

I certainly don’t think you ought to be some sort of negative grump,
But expecting all your satisfaction out of this life is a futile venture.

“Everything that is to come will be futility.”

• It’s all going to end.
• Everything you own will end up in a land fill.
• And some day your body will return to the dust.

So rejoicing in every moment is a futile plan.

Rejoice in every moment
#2 REALIZE YOUR DREAMS (A Foolish Pursuit)
Ecclesiastes 11:9

Here comes the second piece of advice we commonly hear today.

(9a) “Rejoice, young man, during your childhood, and let your heart be pleasant during the days of young manhood. And follow the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes.”

Now again, to be fair, that’s NOT TOTALLY BAD advice.

In fact, just as before, we’ve heard this already in some cases from the preacher.

Ecclesiastes 8:15 “So I commended pleasure, for there is nothing good for a man under the sun except to eat and to drink and to be merry, and this will stand by him in his toils throughout the days of his life which God has given him under the sun.”

Ecclesiastes 9:7-9 “Go then, eat your bread in happiness and drink your wine with a cheerful heart; for God has already approved your works. Let your clothes be white all the time, and let not oil be lacking on your head. Enjoy life with the woman whom you love all the days of your fleeting life which He has given to you under the sun; for this is your reward in life and in your toil in which you have labored under the sun.”

Again, there is something to be said for pursuing
And realizing the things that bring you enjoyment.

This life is hard. This world is cursed.

And if you can eat your bread and drink your wine and enjoy your spouse
Certainly that takes some of the sting out of the suffering of this life.

BUT THE PROBLEM IS THE SAME.

• If you make it your sole ambition just to find rejoicing and pleasantness
• And if you “follow the impulses of your heart” and “the desires of your eyes”
• You may very well end up in sin.

1 John 2:15-16 “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.”

Jeremiah is very clear:
Jeremiah 17:9 “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?”

Clearly if you follow your heart or your eyes
You are very likely to end up where you should not be.

SO IS THE PREACHER GIVING US BAD ADVICE?
No, rather he’s exposing bad advice.

For look at what he says next.
“Yet know that God will bring you to judgment for all these things.”

Herein lies the danger with pursuing all that you want.

YOU AREN’T THE FINAL SAY IN YOUR LIFE.

Just because your heart thinks it is good
Does not mean God thinks it is good.

And one day you will answer to Him for all that you do.

If we might finish the verse we quoted a moment ago:
Hebrews 9:27 “And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,”

We could go on:
2 Corinthians 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”

Revelation 20:12 “And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.”

Even the end of this book states:
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.”

I know in our culture we celebrate people
Who work hard and who overcome the odds
And who never give up and who realize their dreams.

Hollywood makes movies about people who won’t give up and who achieve their goals.

And so it is has ALMOST BECOME UNIVERSAL ADVICE
That it’s always good to pursue your dreams
and to accomplish them at all cost.

But Hollywood doesn’t give you the whole story.

Some people accomplish their dreams
Through great CORRUPTION and even SINFULNESS.

• The Bible warns us about how people who want to get rich fall into deadly traps.
• Our world is filled with ATHLETES who have been scandalized because they used performance enhancing drugs to achieve their dreams.
• We all know the stories of POLITICIANS who finally ascended to power but they did so through corrupt means.

There’s nothing wrong with dreams or pursuing those dreams
But if you think obtaining your dream is the end all to happiness
Be very careful.

Remember God will judge everything about this life.

Realizing your dreams can be a foolish pursuit.

There is a third point.
#3 REMOVE YOUR OBSTACLES (A Fleeting Purpose)
Ecclesiastes 11:10

“So remove grief and anger from your heart and put away pain from your body,”

This is NOT SAYING – “Don’t grieve or Don’t get angry.”

Any more than if the preacher looked at a man with a broken leg and said, “Don’t hurt”

What he IS SAYING is
“Remove the things that cause you grief or anger or pain.”

And that is also a common mindset in our world.

And again, it’s NOT totally wrong.
After all, who pursues what they know will hurt?

It’s probably the most common prayer that is prayed every day.

“Lord, bless us, watch over us, protect us, comfort us, heal us, give us a good day, etc.”

The overwhelming majority of prayer requests on a daily basis
Deal with these very issues.

I certainly can’t rebuke anyone for desiring those things.

But the point again of the preacher is that
If this is your understanding of how to live your best life
Then we have a problem.

WHY?
“because childhood and the prime of life are fleeting.”

• You can seek to remove everything that grieves you…
• You can seek to remove everything that angers you…
• You can seek to remove everything that causes pain…

BUT IT WON’T WORK

• Sooner or later something is going to grieve you.
• Sooner or later something is going to anger you.
• Sooner or later something is going to hurt.

Life if full of grief and frustration and pain.
There is no satisfaction there.

So again what you have here is
Not necessarily bad advice but rather it is UNREALISTIC advice.

It is shallow advice.

• You won’t be young forever.
• You won’t be in your prime forever.
• Your youth will pass away and because life is “fleeting”

James 4:14 “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.”

SO DO YOU HEAR THE PREACHER?

He regurgitates for you the common wisdom that
The world loves to spew at you as to how to live the good life.

The world says if you want the good life:
REJOICE IN EVERY MOMENT

The preacher says that is fine, but it will be short-lived.

The world says if you want the good life:
REALIZE YOUR DREAMS

The preacher says that is fine, but remember you’ll be judged for it.

The world says if you want the good life:
REMOVE YOUR OBSTACLES

The preacher says that is fine, but you better do it fast because life is a vapor.

THE POINT?
THIS IS NOT THE GOOD LIFE.

FURTHERMORE, You don’t get to keep this life.
• It is on loan.
• You are only here a short time.
• It will soon pass away.
• And you will be judged for how you lived it.

Trying to squeeze satisfaction out of this life is a futile endeavor.

And so what you have here is the preacher
Simply blowing holes in all the common messages of the world.

And his goal,
as we have said from the beginning,
IS TO PREPARE YOU FOR CHRIST.

NOW LET ME SHOW YOU FIRST
How Christ is the real answer you’ve been looking for.

It is interesting that in verse 7 when the preacher wanted to talk about life
HE DIDN’T CALL IT LIFE.

What did he call it? “light”

John 1:4 “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.”

John 1:9 “There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.”

John 8:12 “Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.”

2 Timothy 1:10 “…Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,”

When the preacher explains to you that
There is nothing in this life which can completely satisfy you
He is preparing you for the True Light.

Jesus comes to give life that the world knows nothing of.

THE PREACHER SAID: the problem with this life is that it ends in death.

But what does Jesus say?
John 11:25-26 “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”

JESUS OFFERS TRUE LIFE.

THAT MEANS the advice to “Rejoice in every Moment” is a bit misleading.

If you want something to rejoice in,
Rejoice in the fact that Jesus gives true life that death cannot destroy.

NEXT the preacher talked about pursuing that which is pleasant and following the impulses of your heart and the desires of your eyes.

THE PROBLEM WAS that pursuing those things
Has a very real possibility of ending you up in JUDGMENT.

But what if you pursue satisfaction in Jesus?

John 5:24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”

The life Jesus brings is a true life that DOES NOT END IN JUDGMENT.

If you follow the impulses of your heart
You may one day greatly regret it,
But no one will ever regret following Jesus.

There is no regret in Jesus.

John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”

If you want something to pursue or realize,
Pursue Christ where there is no condemnation.

Finally the preacher talked about REMOVING those things from your life which cause you grief or anger or pain.

THE PROBLEM WAS that even if you achieve it,
It will be short-lived because this life is fleeting.

But in Jesus life is anything but fleeting.

John 6:40 “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

John 6:47 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life.”

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

So what you learn initially is that
WHAT THE WORLD IS PURSUING IS IN FACT A NOBLE PURSUIT,
It’s just that they are pursuing it in a place they will never find it.

• This life is futile
• This life is followed (judgment)
• This life is fleeting

Only in Christ do you get life which is FULFILLING
Only in Christ do you get life which is FREE
Only in Christ do you get life which is FOREVER

And once you realize that the motivational speeches of this world are selling you snake oil the sooner you’ll be ready to run to Christ.

Now that is the INITIAL APPLICATION.

But you still need to see ONE MORE THING.

YOU’VE ACTUALLY HEARD THIS SERMON BEFORE.

You heard Jesus preach this very thing.

TURN TO: MATTHEW 16:24-27

“Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? “For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.”

The world tells you to love this life and rejoice in it and find satisfaction here.

The preacher said that is futility because this life ends in death.

What did Jesus say?
“For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

Jesus said this life won’t satisfy so give it up
And take hold of that which really is life.

The world tells you to pursue your dreams and follow your heart.

The preacher said that is foolish because God will judge you.

What did Jesus say?
Don’t follow your heart, “follow Me”

And He asked:
“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.”

If you pursue the desires of your eyes you’ll end up in judgment.
If you follow Me you step out of judgment into life.

The world tells you to remove anything that discomforts you.
The world tells you to reject grief and frustration and pain.

The preacher said that is fleeting.

What did Jesus say?
“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross…”

Jesus DIDN’T tell you to spend your life
Seeking to avoid grief or frustration or pain.

• Jesus actually taught us that mourners are blessed.
• Jesus taught us that those who are persecuted are blessed.

Because these receive a kingdom that can never be shaken.

IF YOU FOLLOW THE ADVICE OF THIS WORLD
They will have you seeking a Life you can’t keep,
Pleasure that will bring judgment,
And Comfort that won’t last.

If you listen to the preacher you’ll seek Jesus.
• And if instead of gratifying yourself you will deny yourself.
• And if instead of seeking this world you will forsake this world.
• And if instead of keeping this life you will lose this life.

And in Jesus you will find true life
And in Jesus you will find no condemnation.
And in Jesus you will find eternal life.

That is the whole point to this book of Ecclesiastes.

This world is a sinking ship and it does not supply what it promises.
QUIT SEEKING IT!

Those MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKERS are selling you SNAKE OIL.
It’s not that everything they offer is bad
It’s just that they don’t offer anything that lasts.

That has been the consistent message of the preacher.
He has exposed the empty promises the world is offering.

He is preparing you for the day Jesus walks by and says follow Me.

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

And so again this is what I declare to you.

YOUNG MAN,
• You may feel invincible, YOU AREN’T.
• You may have a ton of dreams to pursue, BUT YOU’LL BE JUDGED.
• You may just want what feels good, IT WON’T LAST.

Take it from the old preacher.
Jesus is the One you seek.

Download Here:

Thinking About Confidence
Psalms 119:41-48
October 31, 2021

The last time we covered this passage the sermon was entitled,
“How To Answer Wisely”

That was taken primarily from the dilemma which was revealed in verse 42. “So I will have an answer for him who reproaches me…”

The Psalmist was clearly dealing with the issue
Of being able to answer those who persecuted him.

Even in the last stanza of Psalm 119
We discovered how fear of reproach had greatly impacted our Psalmist.

Psalms 119:39 “Turn away my reproach which I dread, For Your ordinances are good.”

In the previous stanza the Psalmist actually prayed that God
Would turn away these sort of negative reproaches from him.

And certainly we understand that mentality.
After all Jesus taught us to pray:

Matthew 6:13 “‘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.’”

I certainly don’t have a problem with praying
That I can avoid persecution or attack.

And yet, we also know that because of the condition of this world,
Some reproach is absolutely unavoidable.

It is coming.

And so while the Christian may certainly pray to escape reproach,
The Christian at the same time must be prepared to answer it.

And that is what we discussed last time we studied this stanza.
We talked about how to make that wise answer.

We’re not going to rehash that entire sermon here,
But I do think some discussion is certainly necessary.

Peter addressed this topic sort of head on.

1 Peter 3: 13-15 “Who is there to harm you if you prove zealous for what is good? But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed. AND DO NOT FEAR THEIR INTIMIDATION, AND DO NOT BE TROUBLED, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;”

There was a sense in which Peter understood that if you do what is right
Then you should be able to avoid most confrontation and reproach.

However, Peter also knew that is not always true.
There will come times that you will “suffer for the sake of righteousness”

Jesus taught:
Matthew 5:10-12 “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

And that is what Peter was talking about.
• Peter knew that there would be times when the righteous would suffer simply because they are righteous.
• Peter knew about reproach.

And at that point Peter gave some stellar advice.
• “Do not fear”
• “Do not be troubled”
• “sanctify Christ as Lord in your heart”
• “always be ready to make a defense”
• “always be ready to give an account for the hope that is in you”
• “give an account with gentleness and reverence”

That is all sound advice.

It was directed to people just like this Psalmist.
Avoid reproach if you can, but when it comes
And you are called to give an account, then give a splendid account!

You may remember the early church here.
TURN TO: ACTS 4:23-31

• On the previous day, Peter and John had been going to the temple to pray where they encountered a crippled man and Peter healed him.
• This drew a crowd and Peter began to preach about Jesus and the necessity that Israel repent and return.
• The chief priests came up with the Sadducees and arrested Peter and John and put them in jail.
• On the next day the intimidation began.
• Peter and John were surrounded by Annas and his entire mobster family in order to intimidate them.
• But Peter and John remained confident and boldly proclaimed that they must obey God rather than men.
• Verse 21, “When they had threatened them further, they let them go…”

Peter and John went to the church and told them all about it.
• The miracle
• The sermon
• The arrest and night in jail
• The interrogation
• The threats

In some sense the church was just put on notice.
How do you respond?

Here is how the early church responded:
(READ 23-31)

• No fear, no intimidation.
• They sanctified Christ as Lord
• And they prayed

Verses 29-30, “And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and grant that Your bond-servants may speak Your word with all confidence, while You extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.”

They wanted confidence.
They wanted to know what to say and they wanted the boldness to say it.

The church began to contemplate how to respond to reproach.

This is something that the church must do.
• We certainly desire to live in peace with all men.
• We certainly desire things like unity and harmony.
• We certainly desire to get along in our society.

But there are times when the church must also
Voice both her dissent and her response.

Certainly this is a requirement for elders.
Titus 1:9 “holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.”

But you are also aware that
You may not always be in the company of your pastor.

There may very well come a time
• When you are called upon to give an account.
• When you are called upon to “have an answer for him who reproaches”

Now this stanza of Psalms 119 actually outlines responsibilities here.

• Verses 41-43 speak to what would be God’s responsibility.
• Verses 44-48 speak to what would be our responsibility.

You notice the Psalmist’s prayer to God.

(41-42) “May Your lovingkindness also come to me, O LORD, Your salvation according to Your word; So I will have an answer for him who reproaches me, For I trust in Your word.”

The Psalmist prays first and foremost for God to provide
• “lovingkindness” and “salvation”
• Just as God has promised or “according to Your word.”

During that reproach he is asking God to be loyal to me and to save me.

We might better understand it as him asking,
“Be on my side, and bail me out!”

I need You to show up and give me an answer.

And this is certainly warranted.
Jesus said:
Matthew 10:19-20 “But when they hand you over, do not worry about how or what you are to say; for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say. “For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.”

And that was certainly proved true with Peter and John for even when they were surrounded by the Chief Priests we read:
Acts 4:13-14 “Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus. And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply.”

It is clear that in that instance Christ was for them
And Christ delivered them or saved them.

• He gave them wisdom.
• He gave them confidence.
• And even though they were uneducated and untrained in debate, Jesus bailed
them out.

That is what the Psalmist wants.
Help me God in that situation.

The Psalmist also prays (43) “And do not take the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, For I wait for Your ordinances.”

It is a call very simply that God would not let him forget the Scripture.

Remember what Jesus told the apostles:
John 14:26 “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”

• That was a promise given to the apostles and it is such that allowed them to
record the New Testament.
• We might simply pray that God help us remember His word any time we are
called to give an account.

But simply we see at the outset that the Psalmist understands
That a certain part of this burden falls on God.

He is not going into this battle alone.

• He prays that God will show him loyalty.
• He prays that God will deliver him.
• He prays that God will bring His word to mind so he’ll have an answer.

And all of those are really good prayers.
I highly recommend you pray all of that
Any time you are called to give an account.

Tonight as we think about confidence that is a very important part of it.
IT IS CONFIDENCE IN GOD.
• It is confidence that God will not fail you.
• It is confidence that God is for you.
• It is confidence that God will deliver you.
• It is confidence that God will bring His word to your mind.

Your confidence in that situation rests upon who God is & what God does
We certainly never miss that.

But the thing I want to look at a little more closely TONIGHT
Is the SECOND HALF of this stanza.

It is in verses 44-48
Where the Psalmist talks about his responsibility in this process.

I hesitate to say that applying these principles will give you confidence.
I think certainly it is best that all our confidence be in God.

But I will say that FAILING TO APPLY these principles
Will CERTAINLY ERODE any confidence that you might have.

To put it another way.

If you aren’t faithful to take care of your responsibility in this area,
It is going to make it extremely difficult for you to be confident
When you are called to give an account even with God on your side.

Let me explain what I mean.

In these last 5 verses the entire emphasis shifts to the Psalmist expressing to God what he will do.
• (44) “I will keep Your law continually”
• (45) “I will walk at liberty”
• (46) “I will also speak of Your testimonies before kings”
• (47) “I shall delight in Your commandments”
• (48) “I shall lift up my hands to Your commandments”
• (48) “I will meditate on Your statutes”

They are statements of commitment.
They are statements of action.

And this is what I want you to understand.

You should never be confident in your own ability or knowledge or faithfulness, but if you don’t do the things the Psalmist mentions here you’re going to have a really tuff time being confident even in God.

So let’s look at the Psalmists commitment; his responsibility.

There are 3 main things here you should see.
#1 HIS COMMITMENT TO OBEY GOD’S LAW
Psalms 119:44-45

You see the commitment very easily.
• “I will keep Your law continually”
• He goes on to add “Forever and ever.”

I know we can get into the gospel implications of this and recognize that no man has ever obeyed the law continually or forever and ever except for Christ.

That we understand.

And yet, no Christian ever goes to God and says,
“God I’m committed to obey 75% of Your word.”

Though we certainly fail
The Christian ambition & commitment is exactly what this Psalmist says
• It is the goal…
• It is the objective…
• It is the ambition…
• To “keep Your law continually, Forever and ever”

Let me ask you WHY?
Certainly because it’s God’s law and we want to please Him.

But more than that…
• We are talking about the dilemma of being called to give an account.
• We are talking about have “an answer for him who reproaches”

WHY IS OBEDIENCE SO IMPORTANT IN THAT SCENARIO?
(45) “And I will walk at liberty”

Very simply put the Psalmist recognizes that
There is a freedom that is only found in being a law-keeper.

We know that in a judicial sense in our own country.
If you break the law you lose your freedoms.

While it is true that you may lose your freedoms even if you are obedient to the law, you will certainly lose them if you disobey it.

Remember what Jesus said
As He prepared the disciples for their first missionary journey.
Matthew 10:16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.”

What is He saying?
When the world wants to beat you in the head,
Don’t supply the hammer.

1 Peter 4:15-16 “Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name.”

Think about the many trials of Jesus.
• It would have been far easier for them to condemn Him if they actually had any evidence against Him.
• Now to be sure, they hated Him so much that they invented false charges but the point is that He didn’t make it easy.

If you want to be able to give a defense to those who reproach you I can promise you that your defense will be much easier
If you are actually innocent.

It will be much easier for you to defend the truth you proclaim
If you have lived the truth you proclaim.

The fastest way our world discredits the Christian message
Is by pointing out the inconsistent living of Christian people.

Part of being able to give a good defense is by living an obedient life.

1 Peter 2:11-12 “Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul. Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

1 Peter 2:15 “For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men.”

That is also why when Peter told you to be ready to give an account he began by saying, “but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts”

Nothing will derail your defense of the gospel faster
Than when people start pulling out all your instances of disobedience.

But even beyond that, nothing will erode your confidence faster
Than your own awareness of your failures.

Have you ever contemplated sharing the gospel or preaching repentance to someone only to have this thought: “Who am I to tell them to repent?”

You may have been extremely convicted about the truth of your message
But it was your own disobedience that eroded your confidence.

YOU WERE AFRAID, not because you were wrong,
But because YOU WERE HYPOCRITICAL.

You had yet to deal with the log in your own eye
And knew you were not equipped to deal with the speck in theirs.

It is a real dilemma.

If you want to maintain your confidence
On the day when you are called to give an account
That will be much easier if you have been obedient.

• So obey the Scriptures.
• And in those areas where you have not obeyed, repent of your disobedience.
• Make it your ambition to live an obedient life
• And I promise you it will be far easier to give an account to those who reproach you.

You need a commitment to obey God’s Law
#2 A COMMITMENT TO PROCLAIM GOD’S LAW
Psalms 119:46

Here the Psalmists commitment is still clear.
“I will also speak of Your testimonies before kings And shall not be ashamed.”

We’ve talked about this many times.
• We’ve read Paul’s famous “I am not ashamed of the gospel”
• We’ve listened as Paul told Timothy “Do not be ashamed”
• We remember our Lord saying to “Confess Me before men”

We know the passages and we understand the calling.

Where I think we often fail is in the preparation.

I heard John MacArthur say one time that “Sermons should never be the primary goal of your Bible study, they should only be the overflow of it.”

And I certainly understand the point
That there is primarily a desire in our study of God’s word
To commune with God and to know Him better.

However,
I would point out that even though the majority of Christians may not study the Bible with an eye to writing a sermon…

Every Christian should study the Bible with the expectation
Of sharing what they have learned with someone.

Certainly we study the Bible to see God and to learn truth.

• But when you study the Bible do you give any thought to how you might explain the passage to someone else?

• When you study the Bible do you give any thought to how you might apply it to a situation or someone’s life?

• When you study the Bible do you contemplate how this truth confronts the culture and how you might use it to do so?

I love the specific word the Psalmist uses here.

He says, “I will also speak of Your TESTIMONIES before kings”

• God’s word is certainly called His “law” as something we are to obey.
• God’s word is certainly called His “precepts” as guides for living.
• God’s word is certainly called His “statutes” as that which is engraved in iron and immovable.
• God’s word is certainly called His “ordinances” as that which governs life.

But God’s word is also called His “testimonies”
As that which is to be proclaimed.

When we read God’s word there must be an understanding,
Even a commitment to realize that some day
I will be called upon to proclaim these truths I am learning.

Do you remember the rebuke that the writer of Hebrews gave to his congregation?
Hebrews 5:11-14 “Concerning him we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.”

Do you think of yourself as a teacher?
• The Bible calls us a kingdom of priests, does that not include teaching?
• We are lights in darkness.
• We are salt to the tasteless.

There is very much an EXPECTATION
That you will be the one to disseminate truth to the world.

2 Timothy 3:13-17 “But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. You, however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

Again we understand that God has given His word to be shared.
• That we will use it to confront an evil culture.
• That we will use it to bear witness to Christ.
• That we will use it to give an account of our own hope.

• We use it to teach.
• We use it to reprove.
• We use it to train in righteousness.

The Psalmist knew this in his study.

He wasn’t just studying God’s word as some sort of elective in life. It wasn’t just some hobby. He was training for battle.

He was learning God’s word and digesting it
Because one day he might be given the opportunity to testify of it.

And this is yet another reason why so many Christians
HAVE NO CONFIDENCE to share the word of God.

• They have never considered in their own mind that this is their job.
• They have never made that inward commitment like this Psalmist that they
are going to share God’s word.
• They have always sort of side-stepped the job to someone else.
• And so they have no confidence to do it.

Now again, no man shares God’s word in his own strength.
Our confidence most certainly is in God,

But at the same time
IF YOU HAVE NOT yet begun to consider yourself a bearer of truth
Then I promise in the moment you’ll have no confidence to do so.

You need a commitment to obey God’s Law
You need a commitment to proclaim God’s Law
#3 A COMMITMENT TO LOVE GOD’S LAW
Psalms 119:47-48

The language is great here isn’t it!
• “I shall delight in Your commandments, WHICH I LOVE”
• “I shall lift up my hands to Your commandments, WHICH I LOVE”
• “I will meditate on Your statutes.”

This reality feeds the first two commitments.

We read the Psalmists prayer in verse 43,
“And do not take the word of truth utterly out of my mouth, For I wait for Your ordinances.”

It is a cry that God will let him both understand and remember His word.

And we read about
• How God will bring to your remembrance all that He said.
• How not to worry when you stand before kings for God will supply the words.

BUT HERE IS THE QUESTION.
Have you filled up the storeroom?

One thing we are NOT LOOKING FOR on the day of reproach
Is some NEW REVELATION.

Nor are we seeking to argue in our own logic.

When we are called to answer a reproach
There is only one thing we want to answer with
And that is THE WORD OF GOD.

Jeremiah 23:28-29 “The prophet who has a dream may relate his dream, but let him who has My word speak My word in truth. What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the LORD. “Is not My word like fire?” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?”

• We have no desire to give men our anecdotes…
• We have no desire to wow men with our logic…
• We have no desire to show men our experiences…

Isaiah 55:11 “So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”

What else would we give?

But the question to be asked now is have you feasted on it?
• Have you delighted in it?
• Have you loved it?
• Have you submitted to it? (“lift up my hands to”)
• Have you meditated on it?

Do you really expect on the day of reproach
That God is simply going to pop into your head
Some Bible passage that you have never read?

Or is it far more likely that God will bring to your remembrance that passage that you have studied and meditated on and loved?

Carrie shared her testimony during Disciple Now
(If you haven’t watched it, you should, it is great)

Even before I heard her share I knew some of the verses she would use.
• I knew Matthew 16:24 was coming out (“deny yourself”)
• I knew Philippians 3 was coming out (“count them but dung”)
• I knew Lamentations 3:22 was coming out (“mercies new every morning”)

Carrie was being called to give an account of the hope that is in her.
And those are the passages
That she has wrestled with perhaps more than any other.

• Those are the ones she has studied.
• Those are the ones she has meditated on.
• Those are the ones she has lifted up her hands to.
• And therefore those are the ones that she loves!

We all have them.
Romans 1:16 – “I am not ashamed of the gospel…”
2 Corinthians 5:21 – “He made Him who knew no sin…”
Romans 8:1 – “There is therefore now no condemnation…”

What are yours?
Those verses that you’ve digested and meditated on and perhaps wept over and finally submitted to and lifted up your hands to?

Are those not now the verses that you love?
And are those not now the verses that you are more prone to proclaim?

Well that’s great, now go get some more!
That is the commitment that is needed.

And again, it’s not that your confidence
Will ever be in your own Bible knowledge,
But I can promise you a lack of Bible knowledge
Will not help your confidence
In the day you are called to give an account.

When Paul spoke of the gospel armor he wrote:
Ephesians 6:15 “and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE;”

• You stand on this.
• This is your traction.
• Your foundation is this gospel of peace.
• Be prepared for it.

2 Timothy 2:15 “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”

BE READY.

So tonight as we just think a little bit about
Having confidence to answer him who reproaches
I simply want you to contemplate your own preparation.

• Be committed to obedience
• Be committed to proclamation
• Be committed to loving God’s word

It’s not that you should be confident in your own abilities,
That comes in God.

But a failure to be committed to those things
Will most certainly rob your confidence.