WEBVTT

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 Enjoyment. Enjoyment is a really big thing, isn't it, in our culture and the way that we live.

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! The barista serves you a coffee. Enjoy. The salesman gives you the keys. Enjoy. People say,

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 are you enjoying your work? Are you enjoying your children? Are you enjoying your retirement?

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 Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy. It really is the litmus test for everything, isn't it? Enjoyment.

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 But do we really know the meaning of the word in life? It turns out from our passage this afternoon

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 that true enjoyment is a very, very slippery thing. It's a very difficult thing to grasp

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 and it's a complex thing in this world in which we live under the sun.

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 It's been a while since we've been in Ecclesiastes but in the chapter before this, the preacher

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 of Ecclesiastes says these words, everyone to whom God has given wealth and possessions

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 and power to enjoy them, this is the gift of God. He tells us enjoyment is a power that doesn't

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 come to us naturally or necessarily. It is not something that man can gain by himself within

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 his own power. It is a power, it is a gift that only God can give. Enjoyment is received

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 as a gift. Now, you might remember, it's been a while, hasn't it, since we've been in this

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 book. But the preacher of Ecclesiastes takes us on a tour of the world, a realistic tour

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 of the world. And Ecclesiastes is such a helpful book because it speaks to all of us, it speaks

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 to us if we're Christians or if we're atheists, if we're agnostic or we're secularist or anywhere

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 on the scale. It speaks to us without using complicated theological language or religious

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 terms. And it just says to us, let's look at the world as it is. Let's see the world in

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 its realism. Let's see what it's like to live in this world if there is no God. And let's

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 see the absurdity of life in this world without God. And to realise that the systems by which

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 we live and trust and expect are actually broken and frustrated. That what should happen in the

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 world doesn't always happen. That there are anomalies in life, unexplained things. And his

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 particular point today is that while God gives wealth and possessions and material things to

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 people, true enjoyment is elusive, no matter what you've got. And that's the problem here,

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 isn't it? If you look at verse 2, he gives the example of a man. He's an outstanding man,

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 a man to whom God gives wealth, possessions and honour, so that he lacks nothing of all that

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 he desires. Can you imagine that? Yet, he says, God does not give him power to enjoy them,

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 but a stranger enjoys them. This is vanity. It's a grievous evil. He's saying here that there

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 is something worse than being a person who has absolutely nothing in this world. There is

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 something worse than that. It is being a person who has everything without really enjoying anything.

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 He shows us two things here. He shows us, first of all, a grievous evil in this world. A grievous

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 evil, this confused promise of enjoyment and human inability to enjoy things properly.

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 A grievous evil, firstly. Stories were told in ancient Greece of the various punishments that

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 the mythical god Zeus dished out on his enemies. And one Greek myth tells the story of Tantalus.

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 Tantalus had been invited to a meal with Zeus, the gods and the mortals eating together. But Tantalus

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 upset Zeus over something. So, Zeus made Tantalus to go into Hades and to stand in a pool of water.

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 Sounds okay? But whenever Tantalus bent down to drink the water, the pool would drain underneath his

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 feet. He was so near and yet so far to enjoying the water. As an added torment, Zeus positioned Tantalus

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 below a tree full of fruit. But he could never quite grasp the succulent fruit there. Tantalus.

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 Tantalus. Homer describes the scene as Odysseus visits Tantalus in Hades. Odysseus says,

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 I saw the awful agonies that he had to bear. The old man stood in a pool of water which nearly reached

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 his chin. And the thirst drove him to unceasing effort, but he could never reach the water to drink

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 it. Whenever he steeped to drink, the pool was swallowed up. And there at his feet was the dark, dry earth.

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 Trees spread their foliage high above him. And there dangled pomegranates, apples, sweet figs and

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 luxurious olives. But whenever the old man went to grasp the fruit, the wind would toss up the branches

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 into the shadowy clouds above. What a tortuous experience that must be. But it's not just for a world of myth.

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 He says here, isn't he, this is the grievous evil, this phenomenon that actually exists in the real

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 world. Where like Tantalus, a person can have everything around them while not enjoying anything

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 truly. And this guy here in the passage, he has everything, doesn't he? Wealth, possessions.

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 He owns a detached London home. I quite like cars. And there's a guy on my street who has this

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 gorgeous BMW, BMW Estate. It's got white leather trim. And I envy him, if I'm honest. I see him

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 driving it. I envy him. But the preacher wants us to question, how are we judging the world?

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 Who are we jealous of? Because it is a grievous thing, he says, that sometimes the ones that

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 we envy are actually the ones that ought to be pitied. I judge that man on my street to

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 be blessed and to be satisfied because of the things that he has outwardly. But it ain't

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 necessarily so. For some reason, this man in the passage does not have this power to enjoy.

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 Enjoyment does not come as standard with stuff. He gives another example, doesn't he, in verse

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 3. If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are

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 many. But his soul is not satisfied with life's good things. And he also has no burial. I say

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 that a stillborn child is better off than he. We'll talk about the stillborn child bit in

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 a moment. But just look at this man here. He has made it, hasn't he? In the culture in

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 which the preacher speaks, he has done it. He's reached a peak. He's reached the kind of

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 zenith of life, hasn't he? And he says, let's put a figure on enjoyment. Let's quantify, if

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 we can, enjoyment. Look, how many years of life would you like? How much money would you

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 like? How many children do you want? And the preacher really hands it up, doesn't he? He

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 maxes out the numbers. This guy, he's got a hundred children. It's ridiculous, isn't it?

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 But he's maxing it out. A long life, verse 6. Let's think, how long do you want to live?

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 A thousand years? No, verse 6, he lives a thousand times two years. Two thousand years. He's made

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 it. He's got long life. He's got riches. He's got children. He's got everything. But even

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 after all of that, verse 6, he enjoys no good. He sees no good. Somehow, he stood in a pool

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 of affluence that drains away every time he tries to taste it. Maybe ill health plagues him.

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 Maybe with more money just comes more worry. He gets sleepless nights. Maybe it's simply

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 that it's just never quite enough, is it? How much will be enough? Just one more child.

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 Just a few more years of life. Just a bit more money. But no matter if you're penniless or

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 a millionaire or you have a large brood, if you live out a century or more, the answer

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 is often the same, isn't it? Just a little bit more. I'd be satisfied then. Just a little

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 bit more. That's all I ask for. But enjoyment doesn't always come as standard with more.

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 Bankers have jumped off bridges asking what is the point of life? In some financial crisis

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 they say I've lost it all and so I might as well end it all. But even more grievous than

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 that the preacher tells us is the man who can think such dark thoughts about his own life

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 when he's gained it all. When he's reached the top and he can't get any higher and he's

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 still not satisfied. It's important we see what he's not saying here. He's not denying that

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 some possessions and things that we can have are more satisfying than others.

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 Some things are just better, aren't they? It's important we see he's not saying that

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 the man who lives under a bridge is objectively as well off as the man who lives in a mansion.

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 Some people have things which are better than others. Some people have more money and more

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 children, more. God gives wealth and possessions and honour to some people more than others.

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 That's life, isn't it? But he's warning us that enjoyment does not come necessarily with more.

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 A person can have the best things in life and yet remain unfilled. He is a man who is not

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 satisfied with good things and verse 3, he has no burial. Somehow with all of this stuff he can die

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 unnoticed and unfulfilled and unlamented. And so the writer says to us it's time to rethink who you are

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 jealous of and why. Because the people that we are quickly most jealous of in the world are not always

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 the happiest. And often they are the most miserable people in the world. Because enjoyment is a power that

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 comes as a gift from God. And it is not automatic in the gain that we take in life.

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 Now if we think about that and we look at it logically, that seems unfair, doesn't it?

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 It seems unfair that even when a person manages to eke their way up the ladder and to earn lots of good

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 things in their lives, to get to the top, when a person does that in a right way, when they get

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 everything that their heart desires, they're still left wanting more. It's unfair. Seems cruel, doesn't it?

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 That's why the writer says that it's a grievous evil that this happens. That the system that we expect to

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 work is broken. That things don't happen as they should. That enjoyment doesn't always come as we expect it to

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 come with stuff. And that is a grievous evil. It shouldn't be like that.

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 And yet, whilst it is a grievous evil,

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 the world is like that

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 as a kindness from God.

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 It is a kindness.

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 The world is like that and we cannot do anything about it.

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 Just look at verse 10 there.

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 Whatever has come to be has already been named.

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 And it's known what man is and that he is not able to dispute with one stronger than he.

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 That is how the world is.

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 And God has subjected the world to frustration.

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 We know that, don't we? Ever since

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 before, back in Genesis 3.

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 God has placed a curse on the world.

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 Frustration.

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 And there is evil and grievousness in the world and in the systems by which we hope to live.

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 And whilst that is a terrible thing, it is also a great kindness from God.

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 It is a kindness to wake us up.

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 And to burst the bubble.

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 Because secondly, it is a gracious kindness.

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 This confused way of things.

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 Of enjoyment.

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 Of our inability to always enjoy things, even when we gain things.

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 It is a grievous evil and it's a gracious kindness.

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 I don't know if you are sort of sat here listening to the preacher in Ecclesiastes 6.

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 And you might sort of think, well, I get what he is saying here.

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 But actually, I am okay.

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 I feel quite content with my life.

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 I am not a millionaire.

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 I rent.

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 And that's okay.

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 I am fine with a mediocre life.

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 I am fine with Friday night TV.

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 And takeaways.

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 I am fine with my family.

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 And relative good health.

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 I am not an athlete.

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 But I am okay.

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 I am good.

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 I don't need more.

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 If that is you, let me say that you are gifted.

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 That is a gift from God.

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 To be content in that way.

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 God has given you this time.

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 He has arranged circumstances in your life that you would feel like that.

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 You can enjoy things.

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 And that is a good thing.

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 Perhaps you don't even know that it's a gift.

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 But it is a gift from God.

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 And you are to be envied if that's you.

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 God is helping you to enjoy life.

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 But even if that is you,

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 the preacher wants all of us

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 to feel the tension

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 of why that isn't true

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 for many other people.

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 You might not be asking the questions

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 that the preacher is asking.

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 But somebody needs to.

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 Because things are not always

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 how we assume they should be.

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 More does not always mean better.

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 And God kindly speaks to us

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 in that phenomenon.

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 saying to us that this world

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 and your things

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 actually are no place

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 for ultimate rest

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 and satisfaction

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 and enjoyment.

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 That the enjoyment of good things

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 is not in the things themselves.

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 enjoyment isn't as standard.

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 But it comes from me.

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 Says God.

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 He said,

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 I want to turn your thinking

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 upside down on this.

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 And so what the preacher does is

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 he gives us extreme examples,

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 doesn't he?

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 We've had the extreme man

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 with all the riches

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 and the children.

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 And then we get this other example

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 of a stillborn child

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 in verse 3.

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 When we hear that verse

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 and when we hear those words

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 stillborn child

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 it feels quite frightening,

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 doesn't it?

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 It feels worrying

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 that he uses this comparison

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 and he claims

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 that a stillborn child

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 can be better off

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 than anyone.

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 We kind of

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 come back away from that,

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 don't we?

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 Something jars with us there.

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 He's using very powerful

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 poetic language.

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 But actually what he says

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 is true here.

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 He says,

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 I've shown you one extreme,

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 the man who has everything.

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 He has made it.

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 Now let me show you

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 the other extreme,

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 the one who has nothing.

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 The one who never had anything.

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 A stillborn child.

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 And the question

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 that hangs in the air

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 is who is better off

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 between the two?

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 And he shocks us,

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 doesn't he?

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 A stillborn child

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 is better off

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 than the man

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 who had all those things

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 in his life.

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 He plays with our minds here.

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 He exposes the scales

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 we use to judge

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 true enjoyment

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 in life.

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 Because according

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 to the systems

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 of the world

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 we naturally

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 trust in

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 and live by,

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 the answer seems

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 obvious,

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 hasn't it?

00:18:58.879 --> 00:19:00.139
 Which is better off?

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 Well, we want to say,

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 do you even need

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 to ask the question?

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 We think of the

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 stillborn child here

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 and we say,

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 don't we,

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 what a waste.

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 What a waste of life.

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 It is tragic,

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 isn't it?

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 It is a terrible thing.

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 But when we say,

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 what a waste,

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 might we say that

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 in the wrong way?

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 Might we say that

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 because we feel

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 that that person

00:19:31.320 --> 00:19:32.020
 died

00:19:32.020 --> 00:19:33.660
 before they had

00:19:33.660 --> 00:19:34.920
 a chance to live?

00:19:36.160 --> 00:19:36.880
 Before they had

00:19:36.880 --> 00:19:38.400
 a chance to experience

00:19:38.400 --> 00:19:39.400
 stuff

00:19:39.400 --> 00:19:41.620
 and to experience

00:19:41.620 --> 00:19:42.300
 things

00:19:42.300 --> 00:19:43.340
 and to gain

00:19:43.340 --> 00:19:43.860
 anything?

00:19:45.200 --> 00:19:45.840
 They never got

00:19:45.840 --> 00:19:46.280
 the chance

00:19:46.280 --> 00:19:47.520
 to go to a restaurant.

00:19:47.880 --> 00:19:49.280
 or to go

00:19:49.280 --> 00:19:50.000
 to a musical.

00:19:51.080 --> 00:19:51.640
 They never got

00:19:51.640 --> 00:19:52.000
 the chance

00:19:52.000 --> 00:19:52.640
 to earn their

00:19:52.640 --> 00:19:53.100
 millions,

00:19:53.220 --> 00:19:53.640
 did they?

00:19:53.800 --> 00:19:54.780
 How tragic.

00:19:55.080 --> 00:19:56.020
 What a waste.

00:19:57.640 --> 00:19:58.300
 They've never

00:19:58.300 --> 00:19:59.040
 even seen

00:19:59.040 --> 00:19:59.740
 the sun.

00:20:00.260 --> 00:20:00.640
 They've never

00:20:00.640 --> 00:20:01.500
 felt the breeze

00:20:01.500 --> 00:20:02.380
 on their face.

00:20:03.460 --> 00:20:04.180
 They've never

00:20:04.180 --> 00:20:05.340
 gained anything

00:20:05.340 --> 00:20:06.180
 in this life.

00:20:06.400 --> 00:20:07.520
 And it's the worst

00:20:07.520 --> 00:20:08.300
 possible life

00:20:08.300 --> 00:20:08.960
 we can imagine,

00:20:09.040 --> 00:20:09.480
 isn't it?

00:20:09.480 --> 00:20:11.519
 one that never

00:20:11.519 --> 00:20:12.480
 even got started

00:20:12.480 --> 00:20:13.519
 in the first place.

00:20:14.099 --> 00:20:15.400
 Never enjoying

00:20:15.400 --> 00:20:16.420
 anything.

00:20:18.059 --> 00:20:19.220
 But that's just it,

00:20:19.279 --> 00:20:19.700
 isn't it?

00:20:21.980 --> 00:20:23.079
 Enjoyment does not

00:20:23.079 --> 00:20:24.000
 come as standard

00:20:24.000 --> 00:20:24.980
 with those

00:20:24.980 --> 00:20:25.880
 things.

00:20:27.160 --> 00:20:28.000
 For us,

00:20:28.160 --> 00:20:28.720
 enjoyment

00:20:28.720 --> 00:20:29.860
 is so

00:20:29.860 --> 00:20:30.779
 mingled

00:20:30.779 --> 00:20:31.960
 with stuff

00:20:31.960 --> 00:20:33.940
 and experiences

00:20:33.940 --> 00:20:35.259
 and gain

00:20:35.259 --> 00:20:36.960
 in God

00:20:36.960 --> 00:20:37.539
 himself.

00:20:39.779 --> 00:20:40.039
 And so

00:20:40.039 --> 00:20:41.519
 the stillborn

00:20:41.519 --> 00:20:42.200
 child can

00:20:42.200 --> 00:20:43.059
 possess

00:20:43.059 --> 00:20:44.240
 what the

00:20:44.240 --> 00:20:45.119
 wealthy man

00:20:45.119 --> 00:20:46.019
 fails to

00:20:46.019 --> 00:20:46.480
 grasp

00:20:46.480 --> 00:20:47.299
 in all of

00:20:47.299 --> 00:20:47.900
 his affluence.

00:20:48.660 --> 00:20:49.299
 Just look at

00:20:49.299 --> 00:20:50.039
 verse 5.

00:20:51.140 --> 00:20:51.420
 Moreover,

00:20:51.720 --> 00:20:52.319
 it's not seen

00:20:52.319 --> 00:20:52.759
 the sun

00:20:52.759 --> 00:20:53.200
 or known

00:20:53.200 --> 00:20:54.079
 anything yet.

00:20:54.339 --> 00:20:55.200
 It finds

00:20:55.200 --> 00:20:56.099
 rest

00:20:56.099 --> 00:20:57.700
 rather than

00:20:57.700 --> 00:20:57.960
 he.

00:20:57.960 --> 00:21:00.500
 how can

00:21:00.500 --> 00:21:00.819
 that be

00:21:00.819 --> 00:21:01.160
 true?

00:21:02.799 --> 00:21:03.360
 How can

00:21:03.360 --> 00:21:03.660
 that be

00:21:03.660 --> 00:21:04.100
 right?

00:21:04.539 --> 00:21:04.880
 How can

00:21:04.880 --> 00:21:05.160
 that be

00:21:05.160 --> 00:21:05.500
 real?

00:21:07.100 --> 00:21:07.819
 When there's

00:21:07.819 --> 00:21:08.740
 no source

00:21:08.740 --> 00:21:09.460
 of life

00:21:09.460 --> 00:21:11.180
 or enjoyment

00:21:11.180 --> 00:21:12.160
 or rest

00:21:12.160 --> 00:21:13.039
 or happiness

00:21:13.039 --> 00:21:13.940
 that lies

00:21:13.940 --> 00:21:14.720
 behind the

00:21:14.720 --> 00:21:15.220
 things that

00:21:15.220 --> 00:21:15.640
 we gain

00:21:15.640 --> 00:21:15.980
 in this

00:21:15.980 --> 00:21:16.539
 world,

00:21:17.360 --> 00:21:17.740
 for the

00:21:17.740 --> 00:21:18.680
 secularist

00:21:18.680 --> 00:21:19.279
 or the

00:21:19.279 --> 00:21:19.700
 atheist

00:21:19.700 --> 00:21:20.340
 or the

00:21:20.340 --> 00:21:20.980
 agnostic,

00:21:21.240 --> 00:21:21.620
 actually,

00:21:22.140 --> 00:21:22.680
 there is no

00:21:22.680 --> 00:21:23.340
 answer to

00:21:23.340 --> 00:21:23.579
 that,

00:21:23.680 --> 00:21:24.039
 is there?

00:21:24.519 --> 00:21:25.079
 As to why

00:21:25.079 --> 00:21:25.380
 he would

00:21:25.380 --> 00:21:26.000
 say this.

00:21:26.000 --> 00:21:27.960
 a stillborn

00:21:27.960 --> 00:21:28.500
 life is

00:21:28.500 --> 00:21:29.019
 simply a

00:21:29.019 --> 00:21:29.960
 tragic waste

00:21:29.960 --> 00:21:30.480
 of life.

00:21:32.079 --> 00:21:32.460
 But the

00:21:32.460 --> 00:21:33.259
 preacher shows

00:21:33.259 --> 00:21:33.579
 us that

00:21:33.579 --> 00:21:34.519
 life and

00:21:34.519 --> 00:21:35.700
 rest and

00:21:35.700 --> 00:21:37.500
 happiness and

00:21:37.500 --> 00:21:38.400
 fulfilment are

00:21:38.400 --> 00:21:39.420
 not gained

00:21:39.420 --> 00:21:40.660
 in things

00:21:40.660 --> 00:21:42.819
 and experiences

00:21:42.819 --> 00:21:44.200
 in isolation

00:21:44.200 --> 00:21:44.980
 from God

00:21:44.980 --> 00:21:45.500
 himself.

00:21:47.420 --> 00:21:48.440
 It is a

00:21:48.440 --> 00:21:49.339
 great comfort,

00:21:49.460 --> 00:21:49.940
 isn't it,

00:21:50.299 --> 00:21:51.220
 to those who

00:21:51.220 --> 00:21:51.980
 mourn at

00:21:51.980 --> 00:21:52.759
 such an awful

00:21:52.759 --> 00:21:53.420
 moment,

00:21:54.279 --> 00:21:55.599
 that there is

00:21:55.599 --> 00:21:56.359
 more to

00:21:56.359 --> 00:21:57.519
 real enjoyment

00:21:57.519 --> 00:21:58.379
 and real

00:21:58.379 --> 00:21:59.219
 life than

00:21:59.219 --> 00:22:00.299
 simple sensory

00:22:00.299 --> 00:22:01.240
 experience.

00:22:04.039 --> 00:22:05.000
 That we can

00:22:05.000 --> 00:22:05.659
 see here that

00:22:05.659 --> 00:22:06.359
 there is more

00:22:06.359 --> 00:22:07.240
 to be life

00:22:07.240 --> 00:22:08.799
 than the

00:22:08.799 --> 00:22:09.199
 eye can

00:22:09.199 --> 00:22:09.519
 see.

00:22:10.959 --> 00:22:11.980
 Life is a

00:22:11.980 --> 00:22:12.379
 gift,

00:22:13.619 --> 00:22:14.519
 and enjoyment

00:22:14.519 --> 00:22:15.559
 of life

00:22:15.559 --> 00:22:16.339
 is a gift.

00:22:17.459 --> 00:22:18.139
 And God

00:22:18.139 --> 00:22:18.839
 can give

00:22:18.839 --> 00:22:19.659
 that gift

00:22:19.659 --> 00:22:20.500
 to someone

00:22:20.500 --> 00:22:21.079
 who has

00:22:21.079 --> 00:22:21.839
 nothing

00:22:21.839 --> 00:22:22.919
 in the

00:22:22.919 --> 00:22:23.279
 world's

00:22:23.279 --> 00:22:23.639
 eyes.

00:22:23.640 --> 00:22:25.120
 someone who

00:22:25.120 --> 00:22:25.600
 never had

00:22:25.600 --> 00:22:26.120
 anything in

00:22:26.120 --> 00:22:26.440
 the first

00:22:26.440 --> 00:22:26.880
 place,

00:22:27.780 --> 00:22:28.400
 whose life

00:22:28.400 --> 00:22:29.000
 never even

00:22:29.000 --> 00:22:29.780
 got started.

00:22:30.320 --> 00:22:30.740
 God can

00:22:30.740 --> 00:22:31.120
 give that

00:22:31.120 --> 00:22:31.520
 gift to

00:22:31.520 --> 00:22:32.100
 that person.

00:22:34.300 --> 00:22:35.220
 The answer

00:22:35.220 --> 00:22:36.560
 this afternoon

00:22:36.560 --> 00:22:37.380
 in enjoyment

00:22:37.380 --> 00:22:38.240
 isn't having

00:22:38.240 --> 00:22:38.920
 less,

00:22:39.180 --> 00:22:39.720
 necessarily.

00:22:39.880 --> 00:22:40.520
 It's okay to

00:22:40.520 --> 00:22:41.180
 have nice

00:22:41.180 --> 00:22:41.440
 things,

00:22:41.560 --> 00:22:41.780
 isn't it?

00:22:41.800 --> 00:22:42.280
 It's okay to

00:22:42.280 --> 00:22:42.620
 have good

00:22:42.620 --> 00:22:43.020
 things.

00:22:44.180 --> 00:22:44.720
 But you

00:22:44.720 --> 00:22:45.540
 can be at

00:22:45.540 --> 00:22:46.759
 rest even

00:22:46.759 --> 00:22:47.860
 with nothing.

00:22:49.060 --> 00:22:49.560
 How?

00:22:49.559 --> 00:22:51.339
 The answer

00:22:51.339 --> 00:22:52.019
 is God,

00:22:52.220 --> 00:22:52.619
 isn't it?

00:22:53.919 --> 00:22:54.500
 It's an

00:22:54.500 --> 00:22:55.759
 oxymoron that

00:22:55.759 --> 00:22:56.679
 Jesus Christ

00:22:56.679 --> 00:22:57.740
 lived by,

00:22:57.839 --> 00:22:58.279
 and he

00:22:58.279 --> 00:22:59.720
 died by,

00:22:59.960 --> 00:23:00.740
 one who

00:23:00.740 --> 00:23:01.399
 possessed

00:23:01.399 --> 00:23:03.119
 everything as

00:23:03.119 --> 00:23:03.659
 the Son of

00:23:03.659 --> 00:23:03.940
 God,

00:23:04.000 --> 00:23:05.159
 eternal Son of

00:23:05.159 --> 00:23:05.399
 God,

00:23:05.480 --> 00:23:06.000
 who possessed

00:23:06.000 --> 00:23:06.659
 all of the

00:23:06.659 --> 00:23:08.039
 riches and

00:23:08.039 --> 00:23:08.899
 glory and

00:23:08.899 --> 00:23:09.759
 comfort and

00:23:09.759 --> 00:23:10.899
 satisfaction of

00:23:10.899 --> 00:23:11.299
 heaven,

00:23:12.299 --> 00:23:12.899
 and yet he

00:23:12.899 --> 00:23:13.559
 chose to have

00:23:13.559 --> 00:23:14.179
 nothing,

00:23:15.319 --> 00:23:16.139
 who for the

00:23:16.139 --> 00:23:17.539
 joy that was

00:23:17.539 --> 00:23:18.379
 set before him

00:23:18.379 --> 00:23:19.039
 endured the

00:23:19.039 --> 00:23:19.460
 cross.

00:23:20.539 --> 00:23:21.039
 And now he

00:23:21.039 --> 00:23:21.700
 is seated at

00:23:21.700 --> 00:23:22.319
 the right hand

00:23:22.319 --> 00:23:22.839
 of the throne

00:23:22.839 --> 00:23:23.359
 of God.

00:23:25.879 --> 00:23:26.480
 Discontentment

00:23:26.480 --> 00:23:27.339
 in great

00:23:27.339 --> 00:23:28.460
 riches is a

00:23:28.460 --> 00:23:29.639
 grievous evil

00:23:29.639 --> 00:23:31.399
 in this world,

00:23:31.899 --> 00:23:33.079
 but it's also

00:23:33.079 --> 00:23:34.019
 a great kindness.

00:23:35.740 --> 00:23:36.440
 God isn't

00:23:36.440 --> 00:23:37.759
 withholding your

00:23:37.759 --> 00:23:39.299
 right for

00:23:39.299 --> 00:23:41.079
 more when

00:23:41.079 --> 00:23:41.500
 he doesn't

00:23:41.500 --> 00:23:42.000
 give it to

00:23:42.000 --> 00:23:42.440
 you, when

00:23:42.440 --> 00:23:43.059
 you ask for

00:23:43.059 --> 00:23:43.299
 it.

00:23:44.200 --> 00:23:44.940
 He is

00:23:44.940 --> 00:23:46.059
 exposing your

00:23:46.059 --> 00:23:47.119
 need for

00:23:47.119 --> 00:23:47.440
 him.

00:23:47.440 --> 00:23:49.200
 And if

00:23:49.200 --> 00:23:49.820
 you feel

00:23:49.820 --> 00:23:50.920
 discontent

00:23:50.920 --> 00:23:51.380
 with all

00:23:51.380 --> 00:23:51.820
 that you've

00:23:51.820 --> 00:23:53.019
 got today,

00:23:53.580 --> 00:23:54.120
 that is

00:23:54.120 --> 00:23:54.980
 God's mercy

00:23:54.980 --> 00:23:55.680
 to you.

00:23:56.700 --> 00:23:57.140
 That is

00:23:57.140 --> 00:23:57.920
 his kindness

00:23:57.920 --> 00:23:58.700
 to bring you

00:23:58.700 --> 00:23:59.400
 to himself.

00:24:00.860 --> 00:24:01.200
 He won't

00:24:01.200 --> 00:24:01.759
 let us be

00:24:01.759 --> 00:24:02.580
 content with

00:24:02.580 --> 00:24:03.759
 second best,

00:24:04.000 --> 00:24:04.420
 will he?

00:24:05.140 --> 00:24:05.960
 He wants you

00:24:05.960 --> 00:24:06.640
 to be content

00:24:06.640 --> 00:24:07.460
 with him

00:24:07.460 --> 00:24:08.420
 and in him,

00:24:09.259 --> 00:24:10.019
 the giver of

00:24:10.019 --> 00:24:10.740
 true enjoyment.

00:24:11.740 --> 00:24:12.480
 Let's pray

00:24:12.480 --> 00:24:13.019
 together.

00:24:13.240 --> 00:24:13.559
 Let's pray.

00:24:14.000 --> 00:24:14.139
 Let's pray.

00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139


00:24:14.139 --> 00:24:14.139