WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:11.000 Well, perhaps you could turn with me in your Bibles to the book of Ecclesiastes. 00:00:12.419 --> 00:00:18.800 You'll find it on page 679. We're going to meet Ecclesiastes chapter 12. And actually, 00:00:18.879 --> 00:00:22.679 we've come to the conclusion. I realize there's lots of people who haven't been here for much 00:00:22.679 --> 00:00:29.920 of the series or any of it at all. But here we come to the conclusion that our editor has, 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:39.600 on the wisdom of Ecclesiastes. And so, we'll hear it, and then we'll think about its teaching 00:00:39.600 --> 00:00:47.740 together. So, Ecclesiastes chapter 12, beginning at verse 9. Not only was the teacher wise, 00:00:47.740 --> 00:00:55.120 but also he imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order 00:00:55.119 --> 00:01:02.839 many proverbs. The teacher searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and 00:01:02.839 --> 00:01:10.780 true. The words of the wise are like goads. They're collected sayings like firmly embedded nails given 00:01:10.780 --> 00:01:18.560 by one shepherd. Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. Of making many books there is no 00:01:18.560 --> 00:01:25.820 end, and much study wearies the body. Now all has been heard. Here is the conclusion of the matter. 00:01:26.480 --> 00:01:35.879 Fear God and keep His commandments. For this is the duty of all mankind. For God will bring every deed 00:01:35.879 --> 00:01:47.020 into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil. So, here is the point. Fear 00:01:47.019 --> 00:01:59.179 God and keep His commandments. Words are powerful things, aren't they? Words can make us change. A 00:01:59.179 --> 00:02:04.739 driving instructor tells us to go left or go right, and we will change direction. Words are powerful 00:02:04.739 --> 00:02:14.379 for making things. Think about wedding vows, and they make a marriage. Words can be inspiring. 00:02:14.379 --> 00:02:22.639 We have to listen to Martin Luther King's, I have a dream speech to appreciate that. Words can also 00:02:22.639 --> 00:02:32.120 cause breakage. You're fired. Words can be weapons, or words can be sweet medicine. 00:02:33.479 --> 00:02:40.000 Proverbs 16, verse 24, rather, like honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. 00:02:40.000 --> 00:02:48.180 So, the important question as we come to the end of the book of Ecclesiastes is, which words should we 00:02:48.180 --> 00:02:57.960 listen to? Whose wisdom should direct us? We live in the day of the life hacks. We have bookshops that 00:02:57.960 --> 00:03:04.960 are chock full of self-help guides. And so, here we have this wonderful little section at the end of 00:03:04.960 --> 00:03:12.640 Ecclesiastes, where we're not listening any longer to the preacher or the teacher of the first twelve and a half 00:03:12.640 --> 00:03:23.379 chapters. Now we hear the words of an editor, as he wants to summarize and to give his response to all 00:03:23.379 --> 00:03:30.260 that the preacher has written and said. So, we can think about this little section a little bit like 00:03:30.259 --> 00:03:39.539 a book review, or maybe the blurb that you find on the back of a book that tells you why this is worth 00:03:39.539 --> 00:03:46.819 listening to. This is a man who knows, in verse 12, that of making many books there is no end, and much 00:03:46.819 --> 00:03:55.419 study wearies the body. Somebody in the Bible college that I went to had that taped up in our study hall, 00:03:55.419 --> 00:04:02.119 for obvious reasons. But he knows, this guy, he knows there are many books, there are many places 00:04:02.119 --> 00:04:10.239 to go to find wisdom, and it's entirely possible to become weary as people looking to know how to 00:04:10.239 --> 00:04:16.139 live, but choosing to listen to the wrong word. And so, as we come to the end of the book of Ecclesiastes, 00:04:16.339 --> 00:04:21.680 the teacher does, the teacher's editor here does two very simple things for us. He gives us two 00:04:21.680 --> 00:04:29.620 recommendations. One, he's going to recommend to us this teacher and his writings, and then secondly, 00:04:29.740 --> 00:04:36.259 we'll see that he recommends the teacher's key point, which is to fear God. Okay, so even for 00:04:36.259 --> 00:04:41.960 those of you, I know there's many of you who haven't been here before, as we come to the end, 00:04:42.019 --> 00:04:48.540 we kind of get to review and to think with this editor about all that's come before. So, first of all, 00:04:48.540 --> 00:04:55.400 let's see him recommend the teacher and his writings. So, we've come to the end of this book. 00:04:56.240 --> 00:05:02.200 You know, why accept it as wisdom? Why look to apply it to our lives? Well, that's what the editor 00:05:02.200 --> 00:05:09.680 wants to address. So, he begins in verse 9 by reminding us that the teacher was wise. Okay, so 00:05:09.680 --> 00:05:15.980 there is wisdom here from this teacher. And of course, according to the Old Testament, wisdom, 00:05:15.980 --> 00:05:22.980 the beginning of wisdom is to fear the Lord. And we're going to get there later. But to know and 00:05:22.980 --> 00:05:29.640 to enjoy God as creator and redeemer, savior, that's wisdom. And this teacher, he has it. So, 00:05:29.700 --> 00:05:35.780 therefore, if we are the people of God, we can learn from this guy because he'll give us direction 00:05:35.780 --> 00:05:41.860 because he's living the way God would want us to live also. But he doesn't just have this wisdom 00:05:41.860 --> 00:05:48.379 for himself. And that would be a wonderful thing in and of itself. He shares this wisdom with others. 00:05:48.379 --> 00:05:57.060 Not only was the teacher wise, but also he imparted knowledge to the people. So, let's think together 00:05:57.060 --> 00:06:03.520 about some of these words of wisdom that he imparts. First of all, in verse 9, we're reminded 00:06:03.519 --> 00:06:12.079 that our teacher has given us words of knowledge. And in some senses, that summarizes what the whole 00:06:12.079 --> 00:06:19.479 book is trying to do. The teacher is trying to direct us, here is how to live wisely in the ups and 00:06:19.479 --> 00:06:28.419 downs of life. Here is a wise way to proceed when we don't know, but God knows. And so, for example, 00:06:28.420 --> 00:06:33.819 and this is where having our Bibles open is going to be helpful, chapter 7, verse 11 and 12, 00:06:34.660 --> 00:06:41.200 we read this, wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing and benefits those who see the sun. 00:06:41.680 --> 00:06:49.259 Wisdom is a shelter as money is a shelter, but the advantage of knowledge is this, wisdom preserves 00:06:49.259 --> 00:06:58.340 those who have it. So, to listen to this teacher's knowledge is to receive a wisdom that can preserve 00:06:58.339 --> 00:07:05.179 and guard our lives. And for those of us who were here last week, we heard some really key 00:07:05.179 --> 00:07:14.639 knowledge for our lives. Chapter 12, verse 1, remember your Creator in the days of your youth. 00:07:15.539 --> 00:07:22.479 And what he wants to do is he wants to direct us to know our God and to enjoy our God. That's 00:07:22.479 --> 00:07:26.979 knowledge. Biblically, that's knowledge, and we find that here in Ecclesiastes. 00:07:26.980 --> 00:07:35.819 There are also words of beauty, our editor says, that we can find in this book. And so, when it says 00:07:35.819 --> 00:07:41.379 the teacher searched to find just the right words, what he wrote was upright and true, he's taking 00:07:41.379 --> 00:07:51.480 great care to order, to select, to put things in a beautiful way. And there is beauty in this book. 00:07:51.480 --> 00:08:01.720 Think about how it begins. Again, go to chapter 1 and look at this poetry about the cycles that we see 00:08:01.720 --> 00:08:08.220 in the world. In some ways, it can give a sense of despair, but there's beauty as well. The sun rises, 00:08:08.360 --> 00:08:14.480 the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north. 00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:23.700 Round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. Or the very famous poetry of chapter 3, 00:08:24.240 --> 00:08:31.439 reflecting the realities that there are times and seasons for life. There is a time to be born and 00:08:31.439 --> 00:08:38.220 a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, 00:08:38.220 --> 00:08:46.639 a time to tear down and a time to build. These are words that are true, but they're also beautiful. 00:08:48.360 --> 00:08:55.960 But it's not just words of knowledge or words of beauty. There are also words that on the surface 00:08:55.960 --> 00:09:06.460 are painful words. Look at verse 11 when it says the words of the wise are like goads. A goad was 00:09:06.460 --> 00:09:13.820 some kind of implement with sharp bits in it that would get a flock moving. So a shepherd would use 00:09:13.820 --> 00:09:22.280 a goad. Maybe we can think of a cowboy with its spurs, with his spurs rather. So think about a 00:09:22.280 --> 00:09:27.019 cowboy boots with spurs on them, and those spurs are intended to drive into the horse, to drive the 00:09:27.019 --> 00:09:34.200 horse forward. There is pain, but that pain creates the appropriate direction of travel. Same for a goad 00:09:34.200 --> 00:09:40.200 that would guide the flock. We've heard some words that we could describe, I think, as painful. 00:09:40.860 --> 00:09:47.960 Think about how he opens the book. Meaningless, meaningless, or vanity, vanity, says the teacher. 00:09:48.620 --> 00:09:57.759 Utter vanity. Everything is vanity. To be reminded that our life is like a mist, here today and gone 00:09:57.759 --> 00:10:06.580 tomorrow, can be really difficult to hear. Painful words. It awakens us to the fact that we are mortals, 00:10:06.840 --> 00:10:14.799 that all of us will die. But those painful words have an intention. They're supposed to turn us again 00:10:14.799 --> 00:10:21.819 and again to our God, who is eternal. Or to read chapter 3, verse 19. 00:10:24.179 --> 00:10:31.459 It's painful. Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals. The same fate awaits them 00:10:31.459 --> 00:10:39.159 both. As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath. Humans have no advantage over animals. 00:10:39.159 --> 00:10:49.019 Everything is meaningless. Chapter 4, verse 2. These are painful words. I declared that the dead who had 00:10:49.019 --> 00:10:56.219 already died are happier than the living who are still alive. So, one thing that our preacher has done 00:10:56.219 --> 00:11:03.339 is he's confronted head on some of the injustices, some of the suffering in life, and he's taken that 00:11:03.340 --> 00:11:11.180 perspective, imagine this is all there is. Imagine there's no God. And again, he does that to drive home the 00:11:11.180 --> 00:11:19.480 emptiness of that life and to point us to meaning and to life in God who is eternal. The teacher's point of view 00:11:19.480 --> 00:11:26.780 is very unlike John Lennon's famous, imagine. Imagine if there was no heaven. That was supposed to be a good 00:11:26.780 --> 00:11:33.280 thing. But our preacher in Ecclesiastes keeps reminding us, if there's no heaven, if there's no 00:11:33.279 --> 00:11:41.699 eternity, then what we're left with is the fact that life is short, that we all die, that there is no 00:11:41.699 --> 00:11:49.819 meaning to be found in the end. There is no gain to be found. So that, as we hear those painful words, 00:11:49.899 --> 00:11:55.779 we would change direction. We would escape despair by looking to the one who is above the sun, 00:11:55.779 --> 00:12:07.720 that we would look to God himself. Jesus himself used words as goads. Perhaps you remember in Acts 00:12:07.720 --> 00:12:15.759 chapter 9, Paul, the apostle, at this point a persecutor of the church, was heading to Damascus 00:12:15.759 --> 00:12:22.220 in order to arrest and to imprison Christians. Well, Jesus appeared to him on that road, 00:12:22.220 --> 00:12:28.180 and one of the things he said to Paul is that to Saul, it's hard for you to kick against the goads. 00:12:28.920 --> 00:12:37.580 So apparently, you know, God had been at work in Saul's conscience. Saul was being pointed towards 00:12:37.580 --> 00:12:45.279 the reality of Jesus as Lord and Savior, but he was resisting that. But eventually, as Jesus appeared to 00:12:45.279 --> 00:12:54.220 him, his faith was put in Jesus, and he went on mission. So goads, painful words, can serve a purpose if we 00:12:54.220 --> 00:13:03.759 receive them well, so that our direction would move towards God. But again, it's not just words of pain. 00:13:04.019 --> 00:13:11.159 We also find words that give security. There's a different picture in verse 11. So it begins, 00:13:11.159 --> 00:13:16.360 the words of the wise are like goads. They're collected sayings like firmly embedded nails 00:13:16.360 --> 00:13:23.199 given by one shepherd. So here we're invited to imagine a shepherd who's out in the desert, perhaps, 00:13:23.459 --> 00:13:28.779 and he's looking after the flock, and it gets to nightfall, and he needs to put up a tent. 00:13:29.639 --> 00:13:35.779 And as he puts up the tent, then he needs to drive in those nails. And when those nails are embedded 00:13:35.779 --> 00:13:45.699 in the ground, now he's a home, now he has shelter. The words of our teacher are intended to be a shelter, 00:13:45.899 --> 00:13:52.639 a refuge, a security. Where do we find that? So for example, if we go back to chapter 3, 00:13:52.759 --> 00:13:59.339 remember those times and seasons, that beautiful poetry. The point that the preacher was making there 00:13:59.340 --> 00:14:06.360 is that we all go through these seasons, but we don't know when these seasons will come to us. 00:14:06.360 --> 00:14:11.740 And the challenge for us is, how do we live well when we don't know what one day will bring, 00:14:12.240 --> 00:14:18.960 but there is comfort and security in knowing that God sends them, and God knows, and we can trust Him. 00:14:20.460 --> 00:14:26.280 There is also security for us in this book as we get to the positive instruction. 00:14:26.279 --> 00:14:35.559 So chapter 9, verses 7 to 10, lovely words. Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine 00:14:35.559 --> 00:14:41.919 with a joyful heart, for God has already approved what you do. And one of the things that we've seen 00:14:41.919 --> 00:14:48.139 again and again is that we are encouraged to enjoy the life that God has given to us, 00:14:48.799 --> 00:14:56.000 to enjoy the everyday gifts and kindnesses that come from the hands of our God. 00:14:56.000 --> 00:15:04.419 If we want to know how to live life wisely and well, here is security for us to receive from God, 00:15:04.519 --> 00:15:14.000 to enjoy each day as a gift. Chapter 12, verse 1, here's more security. When he says, 00:15:14.200 --> 00:15:20.799 remember your Creator, he's saying to us, you have a Creator, and your Creator invites you 00:15:20.799 --> 00:15:29.919 to know Him and to enjoy life with Him. And there is security for us when we have a personal living 00:15:29.919 --> 00:15:39.859 relationship with our God. So think about what he's just said. This teacher is wise. His words are full 00:15:39.859 --> 00:15:45.459 of knowledge and beauty, and those painful ones serve a good purpose, and there's words of security. 00:15:45.460 --> 00:15:51.180 It's the equivalent of a five-star review, isn't it? This is a way of saying that wisdom is wonderful, 00:15:51.340 --> 00:15:57.920 but he's not even done there. There's one more really important thing to notice in this review. 00:15:58.460 --> 00:16:06.500 At the end of verse 11, these words of the wise, they were given by one shepherd. Who's the shepherd 00:16:06.500 --> 00:16:14.120 he's talking about? Well, of course, at one level, he's talking about the teacher who's just imparted 00:16:14.120 --> 00:16:22.039 to us 12 and a half chapters of wisdom. But on a deeper, higher level, the Old Testament people of 00:16:22.039 --> 00:16:29.539 God knew that God was their shepherd. He is the shepherd of His people. That imagery is there in Exodus. 00:16:29.539 --> 00:16:37.860 That imagery is there in Ezekiel. And the point that we're invited to see here is that God is the 00:16:37.860 --> 00:16:43.699 source of all true wisdom. The wisdom that we find in the book of Ecclesiastes, that comes to the people 00:16:43.699 --> 00:16:50.599 through the teacher, but God is the source. So that we can trust these words if we want to know how to 00:16:50.599 --> 00:16:56.079 live wisely before God, because these are words of wisdom that come from God Himself. 00:16:56.080 --> 00:17:08.100 Now, before we leave this point, I think we need to go wider and to recognize that just as our editor 00:17:08.100 --> 00:17:14.960 has said all these wonderful things about the book of Ecclesiastes, so he could say this is true of the 00:17:14.960 --> 00:17:23.640 whole Bible. Because the whole Bible are words of wisdom given to us by one shepherd, our great God. 00:17:23.640 --> 00:17:32.880 So let's just listen in and hear words both from and about Jesus. Here's some words from Jesus about 00:17:32.880 --> 00:17:40.040 the knowledge that He gives to us as the Son of God. He said, you will know the truth, 00:17:41.200 --> 00:17:47.900 and the truth will set you free. Here's an end of anxiety and weariness. How should I live so that I 00:17:47.900 --> 00:17:52.820 can feel that freedom that I was made for? No, the truth is it's found in and from Jesus. 00:17:53.900 --> 00:18:00.320 Jesus has said, if you know me, you'll know my Father as well. If we're looking to know God, 00:18:00.980 --> 00:18:06.500 then we have this wonderful words of wisdom from Jesus saying, you find God as you find me. 00:18:08.100 --> 00:18:12.080 Of course, Jesus too spoke beautiful, memorable words, didn't He? 00:18:12.079 --> 00:18:18.799 Our boys and girls in Sunday school are just starting in the book of John, and John is full 00:18:18.799 --> 00:18:28.179 of wonderful words. I am the good shepherd. I am the bread of life. We think of maybe his most famous 00:18:28.179 --> 00:18:35.379 story, the prodigal son, Luke 15, the father ran to meet his son through his arms around him 00:18:35.380 --> 00:18:42.700 and kissed him. Or Jesus' words to the thief who was dying beside him on the cross, but who recognized 00:18:42.700 --> 00:18:49.900 that Jesus was different, that Jesus had done no sin, and he heard the words, today you'll be with me 00:18:49.900 --> 00:18:58.840 in paradise. The words of the Bible are full of beauty and truth, and when Jesus speaks to them, 00:18:58.840 --> 00:19:05.160 he speaks to them to draw us to himself and his truth that saves. We know too that Jesus would use 00:19:05.160 --> 00:19:12.940 painful words in order to redirect or to properly direct his listeners. Maybe we could think about 00:19:12.940 --> 00:19:19.840 in Luke chapter 12, there was an occasion where there was a report given about a tower in Siloam, 00:19:20.340 --> 00:19:29.380 which had fallen down and 18 people had been killed. And Jesus used that as an occasion to tell people 00:19:29.380 --> 00:19:37.120 that they needed to be ready to meet with God. He said, unless you repent, you too will perish. No, 00:19:37.160 --> 00:19:45.240 those are painful words, but they're words that would lead them to salvation. Think about his parables 00:19:45.240 --> 00:19:57.200 of judgment. Jesus was often found saying, depart from me, I never knew you. Reports of weeping and gnashing 00:19:57.200 --> 00:20:07.000 of teeth. Again, painful words, but intended to drive us away from that judgment to turn to Jesus and find 00:20:07.000 --> 00:20:14.779 salvation. Because in Jesus, we also find words that give us security, security for now, but for eternity 00:20:14.779 --> 00:20:24.480 also. Now think about Jesus declaring, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live 00:20:24.480 --> 00:20:37.000 even though he dies. I am with you always to the very end of the age. Those who come to me, I will never 00:20:37.000 --> 00:20:46.579 send away. There's wonderful security in the words of Jesus, in the words of Scripture. So since this is 00:20:46.579 --> 00:20:52.940 true of Ecclesiastes, since it's true of the Bible, since it's true of what we hear from the Lord Jesus, 00:20:52.940 --> 00:21:02.019 really the only recommendation for you and I today is this. Let's take our Bibles and let's read them. 00:21:03.519 --> 00:21:14.059 Let's love this Word. Let's live by it. Perhaps to read and pray through again Psalm 19, or if you've 00:21:14.059 --> 00:21:19.740 got a lot more time, Psalm 119, described by some as a love song to the Bible. 00:21:19.740 --> 00:21:28.740 So that's him recommending the teacher and his writings. But let's now move on to our second point, 00:21:29.539 --> 00:21:37.039 where we discover the editor here recommends the teacher's key point, which is fear God. 00:21:38.319 --> 00:21:45.920 Now we know, I imagine, that it's popular today to have a life motto or a mantra. Many people choose 00:21:45.920 --> 00:21:53.660 them. You can go online and you can find literally hundreds of really positive life-affirming mottos 00:21:53.660 --> 00:22:02.160 to choose from. People like to choose perhaps Gandhi's, be the change you want to see, or think 00:22:02.160 --> 00:22:09.680 positive, be positive. I think for any of these life mottos, the challenge is always, how do we find one 00:22:09.680 --> 00:22:18.420 that is big enough to cover all of life? The ups and the downs. And this takes us back to our editor. 00:22:19.700 --> 00:22:27.160 So imagine, again, if this was the back, if this was the review on the back of the book of Ecclesiastes, 00:22:27.560 --> 00:22:32.400 we would find him saying, you should read this wisdom. It's truth that you need for your life. 00:22:32.400 --> 00:22:38.600 The teacher's main idea will change your life forever, if you lived in the day of advertising. 00:22:39.680 --> 00:22:44.120 And so what we need to discover as we come to the end of the book of Ecclesiastes is, 00:22:44.540 --> 00:22:52.700 what is the key point that he drives us to? And this is where it's really important, because 00:22:52.700 --> 00:22:56.640 there are lots of people who read the book of Ecclesiastes and who actually miss the point. 00:22:56.640 --> 00:23:03.220 Because the key point isn't necessarily the one that keeps getting repeated the most often. 00:23:03.640 --> 00:23:08.400 So some people read the book of Ecclesiastes and they hear so often, meaningless, meaningless, 00:23:08.540 --> 00:23:13.020 everything is meaningless, or vanity, vanity, and think, well, this must be the main point. 00:23:13.880 --> 00:23:18.840 Here is the preacher looking at life without God and saying, life without God is pointless. 00:23:19.820 --> 00:23:25.980 There's no real meaning. There's no real gain there. And of course, that's true, ultimately. 00:23:26.640 --> 00:23:33.340 But our teacher was always doing much more than just looking to one side and exposing the emptiness 00:23:33.340 --> 00:23:40.780 of life without God. He wants to give a positive message. And the point that we need to get, 00:23:41.180 --> 00:23:49.420 the life motto that is big enough for all of our lives, we find there in verse 13, two words, 00:23:49.420 --> 00:24:00.500 fear God, keep His commandments. This is a life motto, fear God, big enough to embrace how we live in our 00:24:00.500 --> 00:24:07.680 families and our friendships, how we carry out our work and our study, how we handle our joys and our 00:24:07.680 --> 00:24:14.440 sorrows, how we use our leisure and our pleasure, how we confront illness and death. Fear God. 00:24:14.440 --> 00:24:23.940 We find it five times in this book, this theme of fearing God breaks through, pointing us to life above 00:24:23.940 --> 00:24:27.580 the sun. So, chapter 3, verse 14. 00:24:27.579 --> 00:24:38.099 We find, I know that everything God does will endure forever. Nothing can be added to it and 00:24:38.099 --> 00:24:51.339 nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear Him. Chapter 5, verse 7. Much dreaming and 00:24:51.339 --> 00:25:02.500 many words are meaningless. Therefore, save yourself all that time. Fear God. Chapter 7, verse 18. 00:25:04.699 --> 00:25:12.199 It is good to grasp the one, not let go of the other. Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes. The 00:25:12.199 --> 00:25:20.980 fear of God will guide us in everyday wisdom. Chapter 8, verses 12 and 13. Although a wicked 00:25:20.980 --> 00:25:26.059 person who commits a hundred crimes may live a long time may live a long time, I know that it will go 00:25:26.059 --> 00:25:33.960 better with those who fear God, who are reverent before Him. Yet because the wicked do not fear God, 00:25:34.420 --> 00:25:43.400 it will not go well with them. Even if it looks like the wicked are prospering, still fear God. It's the 00:25:43.400 --> 00:25:55.080 right way to live in God's eyes. So, if fear God is the dominant theme of this book, what does it mean? 00:25:56.840 --> 00:26:04.220 If you want another book review, Mike Reeves, Michael Reeves, wrote a really helpful book called Rejoice 00:26:04.220 --> 00:26:10.360 and Tremble. It's not up there, actually, but Rejoice and Tremble is a very helpful book on the fear of God. 00:26:10.359 --> 00:26:16.439 And here's his definition, which I found very helpful to hold on to. He talks about the fear of 00:26:16.439 --> 00:26:27.059 God as a heartfelt and happy enjoyment of God as creator and redeemer. And to read his book, you 00:26:27.059 --> 00:26:33.799 discover there is this fear that includes a sense of wonder. Maybe we've had that kind of experience, 00:26:33.799 --> 00:26:38.339 a sense of trembling in the presence of something glorious and beautiful. 00:26:38.339 --> 00:26:49.220 Well, to fear God is to tremble as we recognize how glorious our God in Christ Jesus truly is. 00:26:51.699 --> 00:27:03.459 Fear God. Here is truth that sets us free. Sometimes people can live with a fear of God that's unhealthy. 00:27:03.460 --> 00:27:12.980 fear of God. So, Martin Luther, the famous reformer, as a teenager, I think, maybe even younger than that, 00:27:13.380 --> 00:27:21.180 he was terrified of thunderstorms. And he became terrified of God's naked power until he came to 00:27:21.180 --> 00:27:28.120 faith, until he understood the kindness of God. And so, we can misunderstand the fear of God and only 00:27:28.119 --> 00:27:34.879 think in terms of power. So, having a proper understanding of the fear of God can set us free 00:27:34.879 --> 00:27:41.599 from that kind of negative, oh, I just fear God's power. Having a proper fear of God can also set us 00:27:41.599 --> 00:27:49.000 free from the fear of God's judgment. Perhaps we've lived in our past, maybe even in our present, with a 00:27:49.000 --> 00:27:59.000 really guilty conscience. Perhaps we've struggled over our sin. And then we've come to receive Christ as 00:27:59.000 --> 00:28:06.240 our Savior. And we understand that there is no condemnation for us, that our sin and our guilt has 00:28:06.240 --> 00:28:10.819 been paid for and removed. And so, that fear is now gone. 00:28:10.819 --> 00:28:22.839 To fear God is a truth that sets us free to enjoy Him as He truly is, to delight in His beauty, 00:28:24.179 --> 00:28:31.960 to enjoy Him as a good Father through His Son, the Lord Jesus. What does it look like to fear God? 00:28:31.960 --> 00:28:43.460 Three things very briefly. The first is obedience, fear God, and keep His commandments. To love God, 00:28:43.539 --> 00:28:54.160 to tremble at His glory, it is not separate from our call to keep His commands. Jesus wasn't 00:28:54.160 --> 00:29:01.819 embarrassed about connecting love and obedience. And so, a proper fear of God that delights in Him 00:29:01.819 --> 00:29:09.960 goes with keeping His commandments. Remember John 14, 15, if you love me, keep my commandments. 00:29:11.460 --> 00:29:20.220 So, we show that we fear our God, that we have this heartfelt and happy joy in Him as we obey. 00:29:22.000 --> 00:29:30.539 The fear of God also takes us right to our purpose as people. See the last line of verse 13, 00:29:30.539 --> 00:29:38.519 fear God says, fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. In the original 00:29:38.519 --> 00:29:45.700 Hebrew, it just says, for this is the whole of all mankind. This is the essence. This is what we are 00:29:45.700 --> 00:29:55.539 here for, to live in proper relationship with our God, to know Him and to enjoy Him, to love Him and to 00:29:55.539 --> 00:30:02.940 honor Him. So, in fearing God, we find our purpose. How many people do we know today who are desperately 00:30:02.940 --> 00:30:11.659 wondering, what is life all about? What am I here for? We're here to fear God. And then there's one last 00:30:11.659 --> 00:30:19.579 painful word, this time from the editor, as he reminds us of judgment. We should have this proper 00:30:19.579 --> 00:30:26.019 fear of God. Verse 14, for God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, 00:30:26.539 --> 00:30:34.679 whether it is good or evil. And he includes that there again to make us think, as we come to a close 00:30:34.679 --> 00:30:44.179 of this book, have I responded properly to this wisdom? Am I trusting in God? Am I fearing Him? Do I 00:30:44.180 --> 00:30:52.860 delight in Him as my creator and as my Savior? So, here we are at the end of Ecclesiastes, 00:30:53.620 --> 00:31:02.980 where we've been introduced to the key point, which is to fear God. And he introduces that to us so that 00:31:02.980 --> 00:31:11.360 we would live that out in our lives. But we need to recognize that to do that begins first with knowing 00:31:11.359 --> 00:31:19.719 Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior. We cannot have a proper relationship to our God outside of trusting 00:31:19.719 --> 00:31:29.919 in Christ. Let me commend and recommend Christ to all of us for now and forever, that we would discover 00:31:29.919 --> 00:31:38.459 Him as our creator, that we would enjoy the Lord Jesus as our Redeemer, that we would love Him as our 00:31:38.460 --> 00:31:50.759 friend and brother. Now all has been heard. Here is the conclusion of the matter. Fear God and keep His 00:31:50.759 --> 00:31:58.220 commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. Let's pray together. 00:31:58.220 --> 00:32:10.660 Father God, we live in a world where there are many fears and dangers, and there are many people who live 00:32:10.660 --> 00:32:19.059 with fears of different kinds. And so, Lord, we thank You for this invitation to a greater fear, 00:32:19.059 --> 00:32:27.379 fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord as the beginning of wisdom, to have a joy in who You are 00:32:27.379 --> 00:32:38.099 as our maker, and to have a sense of wonder that in Jesus You would be our Redeemer. And so, we pray that 00:32:38.099 --> 00:32:45.480 You would enable us as we come to the end of this book, to practice this fear of God, 00:32:45.480 --> 00:32:52.680 that we would want to keep Your commandments in response to all that You have done for us in the 00:32:52.680 --> 00:32:58.339 Lord Jesus, that we would understand that this is our purpose, that it wouldn't just be our duty, 00:32:58.460 --> 00:33:06.860 but it would be our joy to live with worship, to live with faith and obedience. And Lord, that You would 00:33:06.860 --> 00:33:13.980 keep us close to Your Word as a way of keeping us close to Yourself. We thank You for the beauty and 00:33:13.980 --> 00:33:22.480 the truth that we find all through the Bible. And so, we pray that we would be a people of the book, 00:33:23.019 --> 00:33:29.519 that we would love Your Word, that we would make time to read Your Word, that we would think deeply 00:33:29.519 --> 00:33:38.180 about it, and that we would apply it to our lives. And we pray for our good, for our joy, and for Your glory. 00:33:38.180 --> 00:33:39.220 Amen. 00:33:42.960 --> 00:33:52.500 Now, we'll finish our time singing the hymn, Behold Our God, and we can stand together as we sing. 00:33:52.500 --> 00:34:20.440 Who has held the oceans in His hand? Who has numbered every grain of sand? 00:34:20.440 --> 00:34:33.800 Kings and nations tremble at His voice. All creation rises to rejoice. 00:34:35.940 --> 00:34:48.579 Behold Our God, seated on His throne. Come, let us adore Him. 00:34:48.579 --> 00:35:04.199 Behold Our King, nothing can compare. Come, let us adore Him. 00:35:04.199 --> 00:35:28.980 Who has given counsel to the Lord? Who can question any of His words? 00:35:28.980 --> 00:35:42.980 Who can teach the one who knows all things? Who can fathom all His wondrous deeds? 00:35:44.480 --> 00:35:57.179 Behold Our God, seated on His throne. Come, let us adore Him. 00:35:57.179 --> 00:36:12.179 Behold Our King, nothing can compare. Come, let us adore Him. 00:36:12.179 --> 00:36:36.179 Who has felt the nails upon His hands? Bearing all the guilt of sinful man? 00:36:36.179 --> 00:36:50.960 God, God eternal, humble to the grave. Jesus, Savior, is now to reign. 00:36:50.960 --> 00:36:52.960 Behold Our King. 00:36:52.960 --> 00:37:04.740 Behold Our King, seated on His throne. Come, let us adore Him. 00:37:05.860 --> 00:37:19.559 Behold Our King, come, then compare. Come, let us adore Him. 00:37:19.559 --> 00:37:20.400 Amen. 00:37:33.960 --> 00:37:39.519 We'll close with these words of encouragement from the end of 2 Peter. 00:37:39.519 --> 00:37:51.340 Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and forever. Amen.