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WATCH YOUR STEP! Ecclesiastes 5:1-20 Ecclesiastes, Part 10
1. REGARDING WORSHIP: BE SINCERE, v.1-7 Sort of like an oasis in a hot desert, these first seven verses give the believer an opportunity to take an honest look at those times when we step away from our homes and workplaces and into the presence of God. What is important when we come into God's house? What is worship and why is it important? A. Offer Sacrifice with Obedience: LISTEN UP and LEARN! In Ecclesiastes 5:1, what is the sacrifice of fools? How does it relate to one who sacrifices without consideration "that they do evil." The sacrifice of fools related to offering animal sacrifices without an obedient heart. To offer sacrifice without knowing the difference between right and wrong or truth and error is what foolish people do. King Saul offered the "sacrifice of fools" as Samuel told him: it is better to "obey than sacrifice." Many wrongly think that just going to a place of worship will satisfy God and soothe their conscience, "for they consider not that they do evil." The sacrifice of fools is when one goes through the motions, but the heart is not hungry to love and obey the Lord and to live out His truth. Today we do not offer animal sacrifices, but we are still priests offering sacrifices that God will be pleased with. What kind of sacrifice are we as believers to offer today? 1. Our Bodies: Romans 12:1,2 It would be foolish to offer our gifts if our heart is not given over to the Lord. It would be the sacrifice of fools to sing songs of praise to the Lord and not really surrendered to Him. Listen before you give! B. Offer Prayer with Care: v.2,3 Now, how can we be hasty to utter things before God, and what are we being warned against in these two verses? Solomon warns against THOUGHTLESS AND WORDY PRAYING. We ought to be thoughtful and concise in our words and prayers. "God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few." Does this mean that we are not to make long prayers in private? No. The context here is public worship. We are not to make long prayers in public to impress those listening. Save your long prayers for your own closet! Jesus said, "But when ye pray use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking" (Matthew 6:9). One thing about the Lord's Prayer, it is concise, succinct, and it cuts right to the heart of what we need to do in our prayer. When he says that God is in heaven, this is not a statement of distance, but of perspective. God is in heaven, He knows everything, He sees everything, and he even sees your thoughts and heart desires, so do not think by shouting He will hear us better, or that our words will wow or impress God. He knows everything. He knows our words before we utter them, our thoughts before we think them. v.3: "For a dream (good, deep sleep) cometh through the multitude of business (Good hard work). The writer is emphasizing that restful sleep and dreams is the result of hard, honest labor. So much talking in prayer leads to foolishness. C. Offer Vows with Do Power: In the light of these verses, should believers make vows? Or is it better to just avoid them entirely? Vows are good and important. We need to make commitments and keep them. We need CONVICTIONS to make COMMITMENTS then we need CONSISTENCY to follow through. We should not make vows rashly, but on the other hand, we ought to make vows. To maintain our marriages, to bring up our children in God's Word and Church, to read through the Bible in a year, to witness to a soul during the week, to have our devotions each day for during a month, in serving the Lord. Marriage vows do not mean much today. Til death do us part? Today its, Till an affair do us part, or til an argument do us part. Oh, it was a mistake, I got out of God's will! 1. Jacob made a vow to serve and give his tithe to God: Gen.28:20-22 2. Regarding WEALTH: BEWARE! v.8-20 An old Japanese proverb says, "Getting money is like digging with a needle: spending it is like water soaking into the sand." Who has not struggled with financial frustration? Seneca the Roman once stated, "Money has never made anyone rich." More than one has sacrificed their health to gain wealth, then they lose their wealth to gain back their health! More than one has frantically sought to earn enough to buy the things they were too busy to enjoy! Let's take special heed to God's advice on wealth: Who will not be satisfied with money and why? A. The one who loves money and wills to be rich will never be satisfied with his wealth. Well, you say, "Money may not be the most important thing in the world, but it sure is way ahead of whatever is number 2!" The love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and we must beware. Take heed, and beware of covetousness, for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things he possesseth. Money and material mastery do not hold our lives together. The rich fool was full of things, but he was empty of time to enjoy those things. How come having more possessions and making more money does not guarantee that you will have enough or be satisfied? B. Having more money does not mean you will have enough. As money increases, so do the expenses many times, so you are left with the same at the end: nothing! Although money does solve some problems, it can not resolve every problem. As a matter of fact, a lot of money can create many new problems. It can create pride, paranoia, and suspicion and selfishness. The more one has, the more one has to worry about! It can create an entourage of people who seek to live off the wealthy person. A vivid example of this is the group of leeches that seem to flock around a boxing champion or even the new group of protectors that surround wealthy athletes in the NBA or other major sports leagues. "Wealth maketh many friends, but the poor is separated from his neighbor." Prov.19:4 Who has a better night of sleep and why? C. Money does not bring peace: v.12 Joe Louis, the late boxing champion, used to say, "I don't like money actually, but it quiets my nerves." Money often can bring the problems of worry and anxiety. At the age of 53 John Rockefeller was the world's only billionaire, earning about a million dollars per week. But he was sick and could not sleep. What did he do? He started to give his money away, and he lived to see his 98th birthday. What really helps bring peace enough for a good nights sleep? A hard days work! Money does not bring peace, but hard work does! What is the point of the story of the rich man who riches perish? How can one have financial security in this world? D. The main point is this story is money does not provide security. Here is the picture of a wealthy man who hoarded his goods like a Scrooge, a miser clutching onto his pennies, but then he lost his fortune through a misfortune, or a financial collapse, so that he has no inheritance to pass down to his son. The man dies with nothing. This is a "sore evil." Many people think it is the government's job to provide financial security for the elderly through government programs, but this also is not possible. Safety and security are only in the Lord! Inverses 18-20, Solomon makes his third conclusion. How would you summarize Solomon's conclusion? Is it a sin to be rich? He makes three points for us to ponder about gifts from God: 1. The ENJOYMENT of life: Find pleasure in the simple things. 2. The FULFILLMENT of work: To have strength to labor is God's gift. 3. The CONTENTMENT of life: You will not have any regrets about life, and you will not have to moan your way through life that you are getting so old. The key is contentment and gratitude in the heart, not money in the wallet. True contentment does not come from external things, like what we have or what we see or do, but it is a disposition of the heart. Christian contentment is finding peace within our own heart because of fellowship with God, and not outward things. Regarding wealth, enjoy what you have. It is not wrong to be rich! As a matter of fact, if you can handle money, material things can be used for great blessing in the work of God. So it is not a sin to be rich, but it is a sin to WILL to be rich or to make being rich your life goal. We must not be in love with money, and we must guard against the delusions that wealth bring. Be content with what you have, and REJOICE in your labor that God has given to you, then you will not have any regrets about your life (v.20), and you will not have to complain that you are getting so old but you will be just enjoying your life today as God has given it. |