Amen. Thank you, Jeff, and happy Father's Day
to all the dads out there. It's a joy to celebrate
on Father's Day the multiple children being dedicated,
really the families, right, dedicating their
lives to the Lord. It starts in our home. Now,
I know it's already seemed like a full service
so far, right? We could just pack up and go home,
but there is a lot more that Solomon has for
at least a couple lessons that Solomon has for
us this morning. So we're just going to jump.
Right back in. You guys know the outline. If
you haven't, take a picture of it. Last time
we were in Ecclesiastes chapter 11, verses 1
through 6. We considered the wisdom of generosity.
Here are our takeaways. We are called to be generous
without limit. We're called to be generous without
expectation. And we are called to value eternal
hope over temporary gains. Now today, it might
seem like a pivot where we go as we continue
in chapter 11, but Solomon is going to elaborate
even further on the nature of generosity while
he turns our attention to think about youth and
about aging and how to pursue gladness and joy
in this life. So grab your Bibles, turn to Ecclesiastes
chapter 11. That was my tagline like Jeff. Did
you catch it? Every Sunday. Do you hear him say
that? It's like a Jeffism, you know? Isn't it
fun to... He called us to imitate last week,
you know, so some of you are awake this morning.
Okay, we only have four and a half verses today,
but there's a lot to explain. Let's go ahead
and stand for the reading of God's word as we
always do. I'm going to read the whole chapter,
actually. It's not very long. And then we're
going to finish with the first verse or first
half of the verse of chapter 12. So hear the
word of the Lord, Ecclesiastes chapter 11. Cast
your bread on the surface of the waters, for
you'll find it after many days. Divide your portion
to seven or even to eight, for you do not know
what calamity may occur on the earth. If the
clouds are full, they empty the rain upon the
earth. And whether a tree falls toward the south
or toward the north, wherever the tree falls,
there it lies. He who watches the wind will not
sow, and he who looks at the clouds will not
reap. Just as you do not know the path of the
wind and how bones are formed in the womb of
the pregnant woman, so you do not know the work
of God who works all things. Sow your seed in
the morning and do not put your hands down in
the evening, for you do not know whether morning
or evening sowing will succeed or whether both
of them alike will be good. And here we are today.
The light is sweet and it is good for the eyes
to see the sun. Indeed, if a man should live
many years, let him be glad in them all, and
let him remember the days of darkness, for they
will be many. Everything that is to come will
be vanity. Be glad, young man, during your childhood,
and let your heart be merry during the days of
young manhood. And walk in the ways of your heart
and in the sights of your eyes, yet know that
God will bring you to judgment for all these
things. So remove vexation from your heart. Put
away evil from your flesh. Because childhood
and the prime of life are vanity. Remember also
your creator in the days of your youth before
the evil days happen. You may be seated. Now
I want to ask a question that you don't have
to answer out loud. Just answer it in your heart.
Have you ever been guilty of the I'll get to
it later thinking? Yeah, I'm not asking for specifics
or the honey -do list. Wifey, please, don't let
anyone know. You know those things that you just
keep putting off. You know you need to do them,
but you keep putting them off. You know, like
getting the oil changed in the car. Lawn care.
Doing your taxes. Hopefully those are done. You
know, even if you filed for an extension, hopefully
you get that done. Simple tasks at work or home
that keep getting delayed. I know I have many
of those things. You know, as humans, We often
delay things that we know we should do because
we're focusing on things that right now seem
more important or they seem more enjoyable. You
know, some things do matter less and some things
do matter more. If you let your lawn get out
of hand because, you know, hey, it's World Cup
season. Maybe you're just watching a lot of,
you know, soccer. You found out we had a kickball
team as they're calling it in the South, right?
Some of you got that. Okay, good. Now, it can
be annoying maybe to see weeds pop up in your
lawn or look unruly, but those consequences of
not caring for your lawn would be a lot less
severe than if you don't perform a needed oil
change for your vehicle in a reasonable amount
of time. One consequence is going to be very
different than the other, right? To ignore what's
needed, to prolong necessary responsibilities,
it could be seen as being short -sighted. Seeing
what's in front of you, not looking down the
road at what is coming next if you delay. All
of us wrestle with the reality of sight. For
some people, it may seem easier for them to look
down the road, for them to look at what's coming
next. I think for most people, it's more natural
to look at what's right in front of you, what's
right here and now. So our challenge then as
people is to see things clearly for what they
are, to see beyond the here and now to what will
be, to what will come, to know these present
realities, but to not be surprised by future
outcomes based on our responses today. If you
don't water your lawn, what is going to happen
in the Santa Clarita summers? Jeff will tell
you. He loves lawns. Go tell him happy birthday
and then you can ask him about his lawn care
regime. If you don't pay your taxes, what will
happen? If you don't worship God as creator,
as savior, what will happen? See, that is what
Solomon is getting at. Now our passage for today,
beginning in verse seven, it seems like it's
a hard shift from the instruction on generosity
that he gave just a few verses earlier. It seems
like he's pivoting to a different teaching about
youthfulness and gratitude. And like he's just
abandoning those previous thoughts of being generous.
But this is why studying God's word is so important.
We often will miss context. And especially for
us today, we missed ancient. Near East context.
We don't understand those things because our
culture today is very different. We speak different.
We think different. Even though we are humans
and we understand the human condition, the way
that we speak and relate is different across
cultures and time. You remember in the previous
passage where we were last time, the ships sailing
and the bread on the water, that didn't make
sense to us today based on our context. When
I walked us through, an ancient Near East understanding,
hopefully it did make sense. So now as you look
down to the text, as you look at Ecclesiastes
chapter 11, verse 7, it begins with a qualitative
statement about light, that it is sweet. Now
for us today, we might think that just means
taste. You taste something that's sweet, like
a crumble cookie. You know, you've had one of
those? Maybe you're like, no, those are too expensive.
You should try one just for the experience. What
about a latte with full sugar? You guys like
half sugar people? I don't know. Maybe that's
pretty sweet, right? Now, some people don't prefer
sweet. Fair? Some of you might be like, yeah,
I'm more of a salty person. I like the savory
things, right? And so the meaning of this passage
then, it could be lost on you if you don't study
it. Now, let's think about Solomon's day. There
was no crumble cookie. There was no Starbucks.
There was no Henry's coffee. Shout out to the
real ones out there. There was no trophy coffee.
There was no cheesecake factory. There was no
dessert place or storefronts that specialized
in sweets. Life in the ancient Near East was
very different than ours today, even though that
human heart condition remained the same. There
were not endless choices of where to eat or what
to enjoy. You know, you ask a father, where are
you going to go on Father's Day? We have all
these lists of options that we could do. That
wasn't the case in the ancient Near East. For
most people, food was simply a staple. It was
not a luxury. So in that instance, it'd be more
like really impoverished context today. You know,
at Children's Hunger Fund, I visited families
who, they just survive on the staple products
like rice and cornmeal and beans. And now when
I do that, we make a point to bring sweets for
the kids. when we visit. We don't bring toys
often. We like to bring sweets. And you wouldn't
believe how their faces light up when we bring
just a little candy, whether it's a sour one
or a little chocolate. Even the parents, even
the parents want some when they see that. Because
in their context, sweets are a luxury. In their
context, it's a privilege to get a sweet. It's
not something that they expect. Now, make the
same connection with Solomon's day. Light is
a luxury, like sweet. It's not a right. Light
is sweet not just by taste, but by enjoyment
of what is not typical. Light is pleasant by
its nature. We ought to delight in it the way
we would delight in sweets if sweets were less
common for us. Because we don't always experience
the light. It is sweet when it comes. Now, if
you've ever witnessed a sunrise that took your
breath away, if you've ever seen God's creation
during the day and just marveled, you think about
the majesty of the Grand Canyon, the vastness
of the ocean, a striking peak or multiple peaks
of a mountain range. During the day, the light
allows you to see those things. Without light,
you don't get to experience. the full beauty
of God's creation. Without the light, it's just
dark. It could be there, but you don't know.
The light allows you to see. Now, God brought
light into the world as something good. So it's
good for our eyes to see the sun. You know that
even the unbelieving world recognizes that? There's
a label that the unbelieving world has for those
who are impacted by missing the sun. Some of
you know it. Seasonal affective disorder. You
heard of it? You know what it is for a short?
Sad. Not trying to make fun of it. That's their
acronym. Now, people indeed are sad and they
struggle when they don't see the sun and it's
always gloomy. Now, we don't have that issue
in beautiful Southern California. It's sunny
here all the time. But if you've been far north
in the winter, you've experienced those short
days. And those long nights, have you not? Now,
the Pacific Northwest, they take that top rank
in the continental U .S. for the highest rate
of sad in the U .S. Alaska earns the top spot.
You can imagine why. Their annual cloud cover,
the average number of days that they experience
without the sun each year, it's high. So Solomon
says, light is sweet. It's good for us to see
the sun. How does that connect with being generous?
Now, the Hebrews, God's covenant people, of which
Solomon was, he was born into that, they knew
that light in life meant being generous in life.
Because the contrast of a light of life was a
selfish, dark life. They knew that intrinsic
connection. Now, how do I know this? I want you
to consider Matthew chapter six. I'll have it
up here for you. Jesus taught on this. In fact,
the whole chapter in the Sermon on the Mount
is where it comes from, is about giving to the
poor. It's about rightly valuing eternal things.
So Jesus says this, the eye is the lamp of the
body. So then if your eye is clear, your whole
body will be full of light. But if your eye is
bad, your whole body will be full. of darkness.
Jesus says your eyes matter, sight matters, and
how you see the world matters. If your eyes are
open, you're going to see the needs of others.
Your life will then be full of life and light.
If we carry that thinking, bad eyesight, selfish
eyes are full of darkness. Bad eyesight focuses
inward. Bad eyesight short -sighted, not looking
down the line. It's a person who lives in the
moment and forgets that their future choices
are going to catch up with them. You can forego
the lawn care today. It's not an imperative that
you need to take care of it. But if you keep
putting it off, one day it's going to become
an unmanageable mess. Now, if you connect this
here in verse 7 with the previous passage regarding
generosity, you see that the good eyesight focuses
outward to the need of others. Now, beyond that,
good eyes allow you to see what you have while
you have it. So you can look at verse eight in
the text. And here, Solomon calls the reader
to be glad in all their years, even if they live
a long time. And he says this, the reality of
living a long life is that there will be dark
times. Now, he noted in the previous verse, not
all the years are going to be full of light and
sweetness. The days of darkness will be many,
he says. I want you to think about what that
word day means. What that word day means to us,
and let's think about what it means in Hebrew.
Now, usually, typically, it implies a full 24
-hour period, right? When we say the day, we
don't just mean during the day, typically. We
mean the whole day. Day and night. Hours of light
and then hours of darkness. Now think about it.
Even during the daytime, the hours of sunlight,
there can still be dark times. A cancer diagnosis
does not respect the hour of the day. The grief
of losing a loved one does not only come around
at night. The bitterness of this world doesn't
wait to reveal itself until the night. Solomon's
cure for our consideration isn't to be just doom
and gloom. Oh, so there's so many dark days.
I'm just going to be sad. Rather, he tells us
this. Anticipate the difficult days. Anticipate
them. Know that they're coming. Know that many
days will be dark so you can appreciate the days
that are light. He says it's all going to be
over very soon. Everything that is to come will
be vanity is what he says. It's a breath. It's
wind. It's here today and gone tomorrow. So appreciate
what you have while you have it. Be generous
while you can be generous. connecting with the
previous passage. Because if you think that generosity
is for your old age, what if that old age never
comes? If you think you need a certain amount
of wealth to be generous, what if that day never
comes? What if you wait your whole life to be
generous later on, only to realize you never
cultivated the habit of generosity? And then
it's too late. So he says, don't be short -sighted.
When it comes to generosity, don't waste the
prime of your life, your young years, being selfish
and missing opportunities to serve others. He
tells us to pursue a light of life, gazing upon
the sun. And if you catch the wordplay there,
right? He wrote this before the advent of Christ,
but now through the corridor of time and the
revelation of Jesus, now we can look at that
and say, wow. Yeah, if we're considering gazing
upon the Son, S -O -N, then we're going to consider
a life of service, a life of caring for others,
because we're pursuing a life that's full of
light. That's what it means to follow Jesus.
Now, Solomon continues to underscore that principle
into verse 9. He tells the young man or the young
person to be glad, literally to rejoice in the
days Solomon is not telling you to rejoice only
because of your youth. He's not saying that being
young in and of itself is a reason to rejoice,
that being fit or not having wrinkles or any
hair loss is a cause for joy in the Lord. Though
some of us may enjoy that, think about this.
Our American Hollywood -inspired culture would
have you think that that is what's most important.
You think about all of our efforts to preserve
youth, that the standards of beauty somehow only
exist between the ages of 20 and 35. That's what
the secular world teaches us. You know there's
a cult of youth in our society? Another society
that adopted this cult of youth is South Korea.
So much effort and industry and money is put
in to looking young. Now, followers of that way
of thinking would say that you absolutely should
rejoice in being young and fit and full of life.
But if Solomon isn't saying that, what is he
saying? What is he encouraging? Instead of rejoicing
in the fact of being young, Solomon is telling
us this. Rejoice while you are young. Rejoice
during the days of your youth. It's a massive
difference in terms of emphasis. See, if you're
to rejoice in your youth, then your joy is being
young. Your joy is youth itself. your source
of joy then is rooted in being young. Which,
if you carry that into old age, would mean that
once you're no longer young, you can't be joyful
anymore. Do you see the end of that? That kind
of thinking creates curmudgeons, love that word,
who don't appreciate life and light. That kind
of thinking cultivates a love for nostalgia.
rather than gratitude for God's kind gifts. A
wrong emphasis on youth shifts our joy and the
source of our joy from the creator himself, which
is outside of us, to the creation, to ourselves.
So instead, Solomon says rejoice while we are
young. And he says don't delay. Don't wait until
you're too old to have joy in this life. In the
same vein of his encouragement to not delay being
generous, he tells us don't miss or don't delay
the joy of life when you are young. Don't store
up your expectations for a better day here on
earth. Instead, be glad while you are young.
Why? Because it's a vapor. The prime of your
life, your youth, is but a breath. So is old
age. You know, the older we get, the faster that
breath disappears. So he says, cultivate joy
now, especially in youth, but no matter your
age, don't delay. Some of you may have seen those
memes. It says something, I can't remember exactly
who's on it. You might. It says something like,
when I was young, all I wanted was for people
to stop telling me what to do. Now that I'm older.
All I want is for somebody to tell me exactly
what to do. You know, life is like that. One
day, we're the authors of our best life now.
We take the bull by the horns, right? We decide
our fate and our destiny. And before we know
it, the pressures of being an adult, of providing
for others, become altogether overwhelming. complicated,
and we just want somebody to come and guide us
through the chaos of life. For that young person
who's taking the life by the horns and you don't
understand that meme this morning, for those
who are tempted by the cult of youth, Solomon's
antidote for you is to cultivate joy during youth.
Taken with those previous two verses, he's saying,
use your sight to see Light. Care for others
and don't be selfish or short -sighted. And do
this while you're young. Learn to appreciate
the days God gives you in your youth. Now that's
a great principle whether you're young or old.
Cultivate joy. Look out for others. Appreciate
what you have while you have it. That's not dependent
on age. Now the second half of verse 9 gives
a potentially troubling I want you to look at
your text, because I'm going to read mine, and
yours might look a little different. Ecclesiastes
11, verse 9, part B says, Now, if you're reading
out of the NSB, it should read something like,
follow the impulses of your heart. Now, I often
don't swing at the NAS, but in this case, I don't
think that's a helpful rendering. Here's why.
Some commentators have taken this advice right
here, second half of verse 9, to mean something
other than I think Solomon intends. So rather
than see this as an instruction, which we'll
get to in a moment, they look at this exhortation
as an encouragement. to do whatever the heart
wants as long as they remember God is going to
bring everything into judgment. I don't think
that makes much sense. Now, Solomon is authoring
this. He's penning it with his hand, but he's
inspired by who? The Holy Spirit. So God is writing
to us. So with that interpretation, it would
be like God telling us, Live however you want.
Sin, all you want, just know that judgment is
coming. Does that make any sense to you? Does
that seem consistent with God's character? Throughout
his work, Solomon has shown the futility of living
for yourself. The futility of living for the
moment. The foolishness of living for your flesh.
I'll show you up here on the screen. Going back
to even chapter three, he warned us that God
is gonna bring our deeds into judgment. I said
in my heart, God will judge both the righteous
man and the wicked man for a time for every matter
and for every work is there at the judgment seat.
He cautioned us from chapter five about hasty
words. He said, don't be hasty with your mouth
or impulsive in your heart. He says, don't be
impulsive with your heart. So that's my knock
on the NES. to bring up a matter in the presence
of God, for God is in heaven, but you are on
the earth. Therefore, let your words be few.
Be cautious. He gave us a proper understanding
of how to live in the world later on in chapter
five. He said, here's what I've seen to be good,
which is beautiful to eat, to drink, and to see
good in all one's labor in which he labors under
the sun during the few days of his life, the
vain days of his life, which God has given him.
This is his portion. In chapter seven, He even
taught us about our proclivity to sin. He taught
us about this, even though God made us upright.
He said, see, I found only this, that God made
men upright, but they have sought out many devices.
I can go on more. Chapter eight. He reiterated
the same advice earlier in chapter five, the
same principle. He said, so I laud gladness.
For there is nothing good for a man under the
sun except to eat, to drink, and to be merry,
and this will join with him in his labor throughout
the days of his life which God has given him
under the sun. Same encouragement. Chapter 9.
He reminds us that death is coming. He says calamities
can occur without explanation. He said, again,
I saw under the sun the race is not to the swift.
The battle is not to the mighty, and neither
is bread to the wise, nor riches to the discerning,
nor favor to men who know, for time and misfortune
overtake them all. Moreover, a man does not know
his time. Like a fish sees in an evil net, and
birds sees in a trap, so the sons of men are
ensnared at a time when it suddenly falls on
them. And even in the last chapter, Solomon taught
the leavening principle that Jesus will teach
on a thousand years later. He says just a little
foolishness is going to leaven the whole lump
or the whole loaf. Foolishness may start small,
but it will have a disastrous effect on your
life. He who digs a pit may fall into it, and
a serpent may bite him who breaks through a wall.
He who quarries stones may be hurt by them, and
he who splits logs may be endangered by them.
So now, in chapter 11, Solomon is not changing
course. Solomon's understanding of God and of
the heart of man is clear from the beginning
to the end of this work. Like a masterful storyteller,
he's woven instructions with stories and proverbs
and wounding statements to our back, but he's
not veered off course. He's constantly maintained
a testimony of honoring God in all things. So
here, in the second half of verse 9, He is not
encouraging a hedonistic lifestyle. What does
that mean? That's a lifestyle of want and desire.
Whatever you want, you give to yourself. It's
YOLO. You only live once. It's doing whatever
you want because your time is limited. It's the
wrong way of looking at it. Instead, Solomon
instructs us with the same foundation we've seen
this entire time. The same foundation is be glad,
young man. during your childhood. Let your heart
be merry during the days of young manhood and
walk in the ways of your heart and in the sights
of your eyes, yet know that God will bring you
to judgment for all these things. Now here's
a caution to those who might misunderstand this
wisdom. If you are morally ambiguous, you need
to remember that idolatry will bring judgment.
Here's what that means. If you push the boundaries,
of right and wrong. If you test the limits of
what is good and permissible versus unwise, then
you welcome the judgment of the Almighty. What's
the other end of the spectrum? To the morally
uptight. You need to remember that God gives
life to be enjoyed, not to be despised. So if
you restrict yourself from all joy and light
and life, for irrational fears and perfectionism
and upsetness that things aren't going your way,
you will rightly be rebuked for not appreciating
the life that God gives. You are able to walk
in the ways of your heart and the sight of your
eyes if your eyes are full of light and life.
You remember, this is a call back then to verse
seven. the sweetness of life. And earlier I brought
up that quote from Jesus in the Sermon on the
Mount out of Matthew chapter six. The eye is
the lamp of the body. So then if your eye is
clear, your whole body will be full of light.
But if your eye is bad, your whole body will
be full of darkness. If then the light that is
in you is darkness, how great is the darkness.
Friends, here's the principle. If your eye is
clear, if your sight is clear, your whole body,
your whole condition will be full of light. But
if your eye is bad, you lead yourself toward
darkness. So don't be deceived. If your eye is
clear and full of light, you will be able to
walk in the ways of your heart. and the sight
of your eyes because you won't stumble. The heart
that is rooted in the fear of God can walk in
whatever way it desires. How about that? The
heart that is rooted in the fear of God can walk
in whatever way it desires because it will desire
what is right. Fearing God is actually the key
to enjoying this life. When that day comes then,
when judgment comes and God brings all things
to bear, you'll have no reason to be afraid.
That is wisdom. Here it is. Fearing God now means
you won't fear him later. Think about that. Fearing
him now means you won't fear him later. Don't
ask me for the nuance of that. It's a plain statement.
If you rightly fear him now, on that day, when
judgment comes, you'll rejoice. In verse 10,
Solomon underscores the principle of being wise
during our youth. So if you look at the text,
first he says, remove vexation from your heart.
Now earlier in verse 8, he warned about the many
days of darkness. And he's remaining consistent.
Is it not true? I don't know everyone's story
in here, everyone's testimony right now. I know
many. Aren't there so many things that trouble
us? So many difficulties of life? Hardships?
There's a lot. But what Solomon says is, let
it be put away from you. Remove it. You know
what that word vexed means? It means to be agitated,
like stirred up. So being easily vexed, it's
people who are hot -headed. They lose control
easily. Doesn't that describe young people? I'm
not being mean. Look at a toddler. They're really
good at it. Are they not? They go from zero to
100 like that. But those tantrums of the toddler
years. They turn into fits of rage as we age.
Do they not? Some people, they show their vexation
through raised voices, through tears, or through
even violence physically. Others try to hide
their vexation, even though it's still there
and it still shows. They avoid things. They're
dismissive. They have a disconnected approach
to people and to relationships. See, whether
it's seen or unseen, vexation rests where? In
the heart. So whether you're young or old, being
hot -headed or being vexed easily, it robs you
of joy in this life. You can't control when grief
and sorrow come. He's not saying remove all hardship
from your life. You can't control those things,
but you can put away vexation. You can put away
that. easy to agitate nature with God's help.
Now, you don't need to fret so much about the
future and your plans, do you? You don't need
to be so worried about the events of this world,
do you? You don't need to get so upset when your
friend or your boss does something you don't
agree with, do you? You don't need to be so bothered.
by everything you see on the news or social media,
do you? Do you really need to be so worked up
when the relationship ends poorly? Do you really
need to fret when life's hardships come your
way? Solomon says, beyond this, put away evil
from your flesh. It's what he says in verse 10.
Literally, he's telling the reader, Don't harm
your body. Don't do things against your body
that will rob you of joy. Now again, I'm going
to pick on the toddler first. Don't they do that?
When they have the tantrum, where do they throw
themselves? To the ground. Is that good? No.
We learn how to harm ourselves from a very young
age out of our anger, out of being vexed. Left
unchecked, where does that lead to when we get
older? Young people, they often think they're
invincible, do they not? You don't have to answer.
You know it. Young people like to live life to
the edge, to drive too fast. How many of us have
stories of experimenting with drugs and alcohol,
tobacco, fooling around with the wicked occult
when we're young because we think it's not going
to matter one day? Young people all too often
harm their bodies without considering the joy
that it's going to take from them. Sometimes
those risks can even end your life. And if they
don't, you'll live to regret doing those things
and you'll be robbed of joy because you're suffering
the harm of those choices. Smoking seems cool
until you're diagnosed with emphysema. Driving
fast was fun. Until you got in an accident and
hurt yourself and others. Solomon says, don't
let vexation and don't let personal choices steal
your joy. Why? Why would he say this? He tells
you. He says, because the years of youth are
fleeting. Now the LSB and the NAS, they render
youthfulness here as childhood. and the prime
of life. Now, if you're reading out of the ESV,
you're going to see youth and the dawn of life.
Now, technically, from the Hebrew, none of those
are literal translations. The Hebrew word for
prime of life or dawn of life is actually blackness.
And you may be scratching your head, and that's
exactly where you should go because you think
about hair. It's only used one time in the Bible.
Taken in context with the previous word for youth,
it's referring to the black hair that comes with
youth as opposed to the gray hair that comes
later in life. And he says all of this is fleeting.
It's vapor. It's soap bubbles. Here today and
gone tomorrow. Young people think they're invincible
today, but it's fleeting. And how do we know?
Just look around at the older folks and ask if
they thought any different when they were younger.
Every older person in here will say, yeah, I
did. I thought youth would last forever. I didn't
think about what would happen when I got older.
I was living one day at a time. Even if our life
is just a breath, even if it's a vapor, it can
still be enjoyed. We can still appreciate the
gift of life. We can still soak in the sunlight
and appreciate its sweetness. We can enjoy these
new experiences that we get to have as creatures
under this creation. So this is for young and
old, not just for young. Don't delay in living
for God. That's the principle. Live as somebody
who will stand before God one day. Now think
about this. is setting on this momentary life.
Before you know it, the dawn will turn to dusk.
That's reality for all of us. So for the young
people here today, heed Solomon's call. And verse
1a out of chapter 12 summarizes this. He says,
remember your creator in the days of your youth.
Submit to Christ while you're young. while you're
in your prime of life, while your hair is not
yet gray. And he says, he's telling us here that
following Jesus is not going to dampen your enjoyment
of this life. Living for Jesus is actually going
to redeem the time of your youth. It will clarify
your purpose. It will calm your fears. It will
give you joy through the hardest trials of your
life. Submitting to the Savior brings joy and
a perspective on eternity. If you follow Christ,
you will not waste your life. You won't waste
the breath that God has given as a gift. And
to the older folks here today, I pray you've
been listening as well. Though the majority of
this text is targeted at youth, there are timeless
principles for everyone to embrace. What would
have been good for you in your youth surely is
still good for you now. Next time we jump back
into Ecclesiastes, Solomon's gonna speak very
pointedly to those who are closer to the dusk
of their life than to the dawn. And there will
be some good encouragements there. But to the
older folks, I'd say, even if you've seen in
your own life these principles proven over time,
my prayer is that your eyes would continually
be full of light. that you keep removing vexation
from your heart. And the text literally tells
us to banish such anxieties, such vexations,
banish them, send them away. Don't let them bother
you. And so whether you came to Christ young
or old, whether you're suffering from choices
that you made in youthful foolishness, if you
have Christ, you have so much to rejoice over.
Now, that's where we all need to settle as we
close today. Now, often throughout this series
in Ecclesiastes, we finished with some pretty
heavy introspection. That's what wisdom literature
does. It points and it pokes and it prods. But
today, I want to help us to not only look at
our questions, we'll still get our questions
on the screen, but thematically, the text is
leaving us at this point. Remember your creator.
Lift your eyes to the Savior. to the one that
we rejoice in, the one who can make our hearts
glad, the one who brings the brightest light
into our darkest days. There's no better way
to do that than to read God's word. So here's
what we're going to do. You're welcome to listen.
If you want to follow along the screen, I'll
have some phrases presented and words highlighted
that connect with our passage from today, but
it's not going to be the whole thing. But like
we normally do to our call to worship, I'm going
to ask you to stand. I want you to stand for
the reading of God's word because we're gonna
wrap up our preaching with reading. So hear the
word of the Lord. This is out of Colossians chapter
one, beginning in verse nine. For this reason
also, since the day we heard, we've not ceased
to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled
with the full knowledge of his will in all spiritual
wisdom and understanding. so that you may walk
in a manner worthy of the Lord to please him
in all respects, bearing fruit in every good
work and multiplying in the full knowledge of
God, being strengthened with all power according
to his glorious might for the attaining of all
steadfastness and patience, joyously giving thanks
to the Father, who's qualified us to share in
the inheritance of the saints in light. who rescued
us from the authority of darkness and transferred
us to the kingdom of the Son of his love, in
whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins,
who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn
of all creation. For in him all things were created,
both in the heavens and on earth, visible and
invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers
or authorities, all things have been created
through him and for him. And he's before all
things. And in him all things hold together.
And he is the head of the body, the church, who
is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
so that he himself will come to have the first
place in everything. For in him all the fullness
of God was pleased to dwell. And through him
to reconcile all things to himself, having made
peace through the blood of his cross. through
him, whether things on earth or things in heaven.
And although you were formerly alienated and
enemies in mind and in evil deeds, but now he
reconciled you in the body of his flesh through
death in order to present you before him holy
and blameless and beyond reproach. If indeed
you continue in the faith, firmly grounded and
steadfast and not moved away from the hope of
the gospel. which you have heard, which was proclaimed
in all creation under heaven. Amen? Friends,
you can have a seat as we wrap. I'm going to
give you the briefest summary. God, the one who
created all things, rescues people from darkness
and transfers them to light. Jesus, God in the
flesh, the image of the invisible God, redeems
people from their sins, Because he received the
judgment reserved for sinners, even though he
was without sin. And God, through Christ, reconciles
sinners, makes them saints, and prepares them
to stand before him without the judgment that
they deserve. That is who Solomon is calling
you to remember. Remember your creator. Remember
your savior. Remember your king. And especially
for the young people, but whether you're young
or old or somewhere in between, remember him.
Don't be confused about who made this world.
Don't be confused about who can save from this
world into the next. And I'll close with this.
More than just knowing facts about God or reciting
truth about the gospel in your daily life, the
call here, is to know God personally through
his son. Yes, the gospel saves, but be persuaded
by it. Let it be personal for you. Then when
you submit to Christ as Lord, you're not submitting
to an idea. You're submitting to a savior who
loved you, who died for you, who gave his life
for you so that you don't need to fear. in that
final day. Lord God, we come to you after so
much this morning from child dedications and
being reminded of those early dawns of life to
the encouragement about fatherhood. Men as they
age, passing on what they've learned about you,
honoring you in their homes, desiring to see
the next generation follow. And then the wisdom
from Solomon to look at life and light and see
good things. There's been so much for us to consider
today. So may our prayer be simple. Help us see
the sweetness of light. Help us enjoy the goodness
of this life. Help us to banish those vexations
that rob us of joy. Help us to know and remember
that choices today impact our lives in the future.
Above all of that, or perhaps as the foundation
for all of that, help us to remember you, our
creator, our savior, and our king. Help us to
see the light of Christ, to know him, to know
his gospel, but to be personally impacted by
the truth of your word. So almighty God, we ask
you this morning, help us. Help us lift our eyes
to the wonderful mercy that you display in Christ.
And we praise your name because you offer redemption.
You offer salvation to sinners like us. Our greatest
need met by you. In light of that, as we sing
praises to your name and respond to your word,
help us to do so with joy, not simply out of
obligation, not out of a responsibility, though
surely those are in view, but help us to see
the light and life that you give that allows
us to enjoy the goodness here and now amidst
the dark days. The light is sweet because we
don't always get it, not yet, but we can long
for and look for that day when Christ, you will
be the everlasting light of an eternal kingdom
without darkness. That's what we long for. So
give us eyes to see. Lift our hearts to praise
your name this morning. We pray this in Jesus.