WEBVTT 00:09:00.100 --> 00:12:07.620 evening notation zero five sing they're starting on the first thank you for this 00:12:07.620 --> 00:12:11.200 day for another opportunity as always to gather to sing praises in your name to 00:12:11.200 --> 00:12:14.170 learn from your word Lord just thank you for all the souls that were saved this 00:12:14.170 --> 00:12:19.270 evening and I just pray that you strengthen those children put them in a 00:12:19.270 --> 00:12:22.750 position where they could get on the right path and get fired up for you with 00:12:22.750 --> 00:12:25.730 their life and just be good servants unto you Lord and that you would just 00:12:25.730 --> 00:12:29.190 protect them and have your hand of blessing and protection on them also 00:12:29.190 --> 00:12:32.260 pray Lord for this service that you have your hand of blessing and protection on 00:12:32.260 --> 00:12:35.240 us that you would open our ears to the message and fill pasture with your 00:12:35.240 --> 00:12:42.310 spirit these things we pray in Jesus name amen for our next hymn number 216 00:12:42.310 --> 00:12:54.290 surely goodness and mercy 216 216 remember that part that's and I shall 00:12:54.290 --> 00:12:59.960 dwell is only after the third verse so all the days of my life and then into 00:12:59.960 --> 00:13:05.950 verse 2 after the third verse then we do the and I shall dwell all the way 00:13:05.950 --> 00:13:20.790 through to the end 216 216 surely goodness and mercy 00:13:20.790 --> 00:13:24.170 there on the first 00:13:24.170 --> 00:17:19.110 quote it word quickly on family member you will receive a prize on the inside 00:17:19.110 --> 00:17:23.430 we have our service times listed there sunday morning at 10 30 sunday evening 00:17:23.430 --> 00:17:28.100 at 4 30 and our wednesday bible study through ecclesiastes at seven 00:17:28.100 --> 00:17:31.580 we have all of our soul winning times listed there below as well as our year 00:17:31.580 --> 00:17:35.420 to date statistics plus an extra five for this 00:17:35.420 --> 00:17:37.860 evening so praise god for the five that were saved tonight 00:17:37.860 --> 00:17:41.900 so really we're at 3 10 for the month so great 00:17:41.900 --> 00:17:46.640 results out soul winning we do have our visitor card there as well as our online 00:17:46.640 --> 00:17:48.840 giving information if you'd like to do that 00:17:48.840 --> 00:17:52.220 on the back is our upcoming events this saturday 00:17:52.220 --> 00:17:56.210 is the listener's pick soul winning marathon that we put out several weeks 00:17:56.210 --> 00:17:58.810 ago and so patterson new jersey is going 00:17:58.810 --> 00:18:01.830 to be the city that brother cameron his wife are going to go to 00:18:01.830 --> 00:18:05.170 i've already heard from many people that are going to be traveling to 00:18:05.170 --> 00:18:08.360 this area to attend the soul winning marathon on top of the people that just 00:18:08.360 --> 00:18:11.460 live there locally so please keep this in prayer we're 00:18:11.460 --> 00:18:13.770 just hoping as many people can go out as possible 00:18:13.770 --> 00:18:17.990 that way there could be a great harvest of souls and then next wednesday 00:18:17.990 --> 00:18:21.870 we'll take a break in ecclesiastes and we'll be partaking of the lord's 00:18:21.870 --> 00:18:25.890 supper for the wednesday service next week. April 4th 00:18:25.890 --> 00:18:28.920 that's going to be the Oklahoma City soul winning marathon 00:18:28.920 --> 00:18:32.590 there's another qr code there below if you want to sign up and register 00:18:32.590 --> 00:18:35.770 so we can know how many people are coming to this but always 00:18:35.770 --> 00:18:39.760 the eastern marathons are always really great receptive so great time to go soul 00:18:39.760 --> 00:18:42.230 winning please do join us for that marathon 00:18:42.230 --> 00:18:47.250 meeting at nine o'clock am for coffee and donuts at the early wine park 00:18:47.250 --> 00:18:50.360 playground and then soul winning will start at 10 o'clock 00:18:50.360 --> 00:18:54.770 that day we have another soul winning marathon on may 2nd 00:18:54.770 --> 00:18:57.950 that's the oklahoma state university stillwater campus 00:18:57.950 --> 00:19:01.530 soul winning marathons we're going to try out some college soul winning 00:19:01.530 --> 00:19:04.720 may 9th we're having a mother's day tea activity 00:19:04.720 --> 00:19:08.060 may 20th through the 24th is the anti-israel conference 00:19:08.060 --> 00:19:12.370 steadfast baptist church june 17th through the 20th 00:19:12.370 --> 00:19:16.480 is the european soul winning conference in frankfurt germany so lots of great 00:19:16.480 --> 00:19:19.650 soul winning events coming up for sure keep those in 00:19:19.650 --> 00:19:23.030 prayer and then we have our prayer list back on the inside of the bulletin on 00:19:23.030 --> 00:19:26.630 the right side there was some in the last couple of 00:19:26.630 --> 00:19:30.880 weeks there's been some updates miss jennifer's mom the 00:19:30.880 --> 00:19:34.280 surgery went well for piper but we're still praying for her 00:19:34.280 --> 00:19:39.160 recovery that you go to sleep well pain management go well and all of that 00:19:39.160 --> 00:19:43.370 brother cameron praying for his upcoming appointments his health 00:19:43.370 --> 00:19:47.340 also one that was texted to us today the lemon family 00:19:47.340 --> 00:19:50.270 at first works baptist church i'm not sure if you know that family great 00:19:50.270 --> 00:19:53.130 family there they're praying for their baby uriah's 00:19:53.130 --> 00:19:56.810 heart condition and baby uriah is still in the womb 00:19:56.810 --> 00:20:01.830 so twins in the womb and one of the baby babies has a really serious heart 00:20:01.830 --> 00:20:05.090 condition and they're thinking that as soon as the baby is born 00:20:05.090 --> 00:20:08.820 the baby's gonna immediately have to go into surgery so it's a pretty serious 00:20:08.820 --> 00:20:12.330 matter and so just asking you to pray faithfully 00:20:12.330 --> 00:20:16.490 for that family please so that's baby uriah like i said 00:20:16.490 --> 00:20:19.660 so before we go to our next song and the rest of the service let's go ahead and 00:20:19.660 --> 00:20:23.660 go to the lord in prayer tonight heavenly father we come before you this 00:20:23.660 --> 00:20:27.650 evening humbly asking you to just refine your ear to us that you'd answer 00:20:27.650 --> 00:20:30.840 these requests according to your will god we want to 00:20:30.840 --> 00:20:35.690 lift up the lemon family in prayer to you that you'd please just heal the body 00:20:35.690 --> 00:20:39.030 of baby uriah in the womb that you just help baby's heart 00:20:39.030 --> 00:20:43.490 to work properly lord and that you just help them to get all the care necessary 00:20:43.490 --> 00:20:47.390 for the best possible outcome here i just prayed that you would just work a miracle 00:20:47.390 --> 00:20:51.030 and this baby's life would be saved not only would the baby's life be saved 00:20:51.030 --> 00:20:53.970 but that the baby would go on to live a full and healthy life 00:20:53.970 --> 00:20:57.650 pray that you just bless their family as well that you'd give them strength and 00:20:57.650 --> 00:20:59.710 comfort during this difficult time help them 00:20:59.710 --> 00:21:03.750 to hold on to their faith and lean into their walk with you lord i also want to 00:21:03.750 --> 00:21:07.630 pray for brother cameron his upcoming health appointments that you bless him 00:21:07.630 --> 00:21:11.030 that you just help him to get the best possible treatment and answers that you 00:21:11.030 --> 00:21:15.780 can get lord i also want to pray for miss jennifer's mother piper that you 00:21:15.780 --> 00:21:19.920 continue to bless for healing that you just have full range of motion after the 00:21:19.920 --> 00:21:24.170 surgery that you help her with her pain help her to be able to sleep well we also 00:21:24.170 --> 00:21:26.620 want to pray for the upcoming soul winning marathon 00:21:26.620 --> 00:21:31.130 in patterson new jersey that travel for the halls would go well everything would 00:21:31.130 --> 00:21:33.890 be smooth that as many people as possible would 00:21:33.890 --> 00:21:37.250 hear about this event come out pray that new soul winners would come out 00:21:37.250 --> 00:21:40.140 to this event lord that we'd be able to use this time to 00:21:40.140 --> 00:21:43.250 equip new soul winners to learn how to preach the gospel 00:21:43.250 --> 00:21:46.320 that our efforts can go forward even after we leave patterson 00:21:46.320 --> 00:21:49.770 and we pray that you bless all the christians over on the east coast without 00:21:49.770 --> 00:21:53.280 a new ifb church that you just help them to be faithful soul winners lord 00:21:53.280 --> 00:21:57.470 i also want to pray for brother eric and brother zach that you just keep them 00:21:57.470 --> 00:21:59.720 safe over in the philippines that you just 00:21:59.720 --> 00:22:03.900 keep them healthy help them to be inspired to work hard 00:22:03.900 --> 00:22:07.380 pray that you just keep the door of opportunity open for them 00:22:07.380 --> 00:22:10.970 pray for evangelist tanner fir that you just bless his soul winning trip right 00:22:10.970 --> 00:22:14.570 now lord that you keep him safe that you bring him back to the u.s safely 00:22:14.570 --> 00:22:17.940 lord i also want to pray for pastor stuckey 00:22:17.940 --> 00:22:20.930 evangelist urbanic that you bless all the great works that they're doing over 00:22:20.930 --> 00:22:24.920 in the philippines that you bless the family members of 00:22:24.920 --> 00:22:29.180 church members here who need prayer for sickness and salvation lord 00:22:29.180 --> 00:22:32.310 i just pray that you just use anchor baptist church as a bright and shining 00:22:32.310 --> 00:22:35.440 light here in the city to reach people with the gospel bless 00:22:35.440 --> 00:22:45.870 the service now and you see me pray amen for our third song this evening go in 00:22:45.870 --> 00:22:54.530 your white handouts to psalm 15 lord who shall abide in thy 00:22:54.530 --> 00:23:00.460 tabernacle psalm 15 1 5 in your white handouts 00:23:00.460 --> 00:23:17.510 psalm 15 we'll sing there starting on that first verse 00:23:17.510 --> 00:23:24.230 lord who shall abide 00:23:27.760 --> 00:27:15.630 plesiestes plesiestes chapter 2 said in mine heart go to now 00:27:15.630 --> 00:27:19.340 i will prove thee with mirth therefore in your pleasure 00:27:19.340 --> 00:27:24.290 and behold this also is vanity i said of laughter it is mad 00:27:24.290 --> 00:27:29.060 and of mirth what doeth it sought in my heart to give myself unto wine 00:27:29.060 --> 00:27:34.020 yet acquainting my heart with wisdom to lay and to lay hold on folly 00:27:34.020 --> 00:27:41.270 till i might see what was that good for the sons of men which they should do 00:27:41.270 --> 00:27:43.050 under the heaven all the days of their life 00:27:43.050 --> 00:27:48.630 i made me great works i builded me houses i planted me vineyards 00:27:48.630 --> 00:27:52.770 i made me gardens and orchards and planted trees in them 00:27:52.770 --> 00:27:57.210 of all kinds of fruits i made me pools of water 00:27:57.210 --> 00:28:00.660 to water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees 00:28:00.660 --> 00:28:07.220 i got me servants and maidens had servants born in my house 00:28:07.220 --> 00:28:11.780 also i had great possessions of great and small cattle above 00:28:11.780 --> 00:28:17.380 all that were in jerusalem before me i gathered me also 00:28:17.380 --> 00:28:22.450 silver and gold and the peculiar treasures of king treasure of kings 00:28:22.450 --> 00:28:28.300 and of the provinces i got me men singers and women singers 00:28:28.300 --> 00:28:32.820 into the lights of the sons of men as musical instruments 00:28:32.820 --> 00:28:37.590 and that of all sorts so i was great and increased 00:28:37.590 --> 00:28:40.730 more than all that were before me in jerusalem 00:28:40.730 --> 00:28:45.620 also my wisdom remained with me whatsoever mine eyes desired i kept not 00:28:45.620 --> 00:28:50.250 from them i withheld not my heart from any joy 00:28:50.250 --> 00:28:55.290 where my heart rejoiced in all my labor and this was my portion 00:28:55.290 --> 00:29:00.660 of all my labor then i looked on all the works that my hands had wrought 00:29:00.660 --> 00:29:04.360 and on the labor that i had labored to do 00:29:04.360 --> 00:29:08.120 and behold all was vanity and vexation of spirit 00:29:08.120 --> 00:29:14.130 and there was no profit under the sun and i turned myself to behold wisdom 00:29:14.130 --> 00:29:17.510 and madness and folly for what can the man 00:29:17.510 --> 00:29:21.750 do that cometh after the king even that which 00:29:21.750 --> 00:29:27.770 hath been already done then i saw that wisdom exceleth folly 00:29:27.770 --> 00:29:32.740 as far as light exceleth darkness the wise man's eyes 00:29:32.740 --> 00:29:36.900 are yet in his head but the fool walketh in darkness 00:29:36.900 --> 00:29:41.340 and i myself perceived also that one event happenedeth to them all 00:29:41.340 --> 00:29:46.230 then said i in my heart as it happenedeth to the fool 00:29:46.230 --> 00:29:50.090 so happenedeth it happenedeth it happenedeth 00:29:50.090 --> 00:29:57.240 even to me and why was i then more wise then i said in my heart that 00:29:57.240 --> 00:30:01.940 this also is vanity for there is no remembrance 00:30:01.940 --> 00:30:06.540 of the wise more than the fool forever seeing that 00:30:06.540 --> 00:30:10.150 which is which now is in the days to come 00:30:10.150 --> 00:30:14.070 shall all be forgotten how dyeth the wise man 00:30:14.070 --> 00:30:19.250 as the fool therefore i hated life because the work 00:30:19.250 --> 00:30:23.210 that is wrought under the sun is grievous 00:30:23.210 --> 00:30:26.970 unto me for all is vanity and vexation of spirit 00:30:26.970 --> 00:30:32.150 yeah i hated all my labor which i had taken under the sun 00:30:32.150 --> 00:30:37.460 because i should leave it unto the man that shall be after me 00:30:37.460 --> 00:30:42.230 who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool 00:30:42.230 --> 00:30:48.390 shall he have rule over all my labor wherein i have labored 00:30:48.390 --> 00:30:52.680 and wherein i have showed myself wise under the sun 00:30:52.680 --> 00:31:00.180 this is also vanity therefore i went about to cause my heart to despair 00:31:00.180 --> 00:31:04.240 of all the labor which i took under the sun for there 00:31:04.240 --> 00:31:08.600 is a wise man whose labor is in wisdom and in knowledge 00:31:08.600 --> 00:31:14.130 and in equity yet to a man that hath not labored therein 00:31:14.130 --> 00:31:18.650 shall he leave it for his portion this also is vanity 00:31:18.650 --> 00:31:23.450 and a great evil for that for what hath man 00:31:23.450 --> 00:31:27.390 of all his labor and of the vexation of his heart 00:31:27.390 --> 00:31:31.470 wherein he hath labored under the sun for all his days 00:31:31.470 --> 00:31:38.160 are sorrows and his prevail grief yea his heart taketh no rest in the 00:31:38.160 --> 00:31:43.950 night this is also vanity there is nothing better for a man 00:31:43.950 --> 00:31:48.260 than that he should eat and drink and that he should 00:31:48.260 --> 00:31:55.670 make his soul enjoy good in his labor this also i saw that it was from the 00:31:55.670 --> 00:32:00.830 hand of god for who can eat who can or who else 00:32:00.830 --> 00:32:07.120 can hasten thereunto more than i for god giveth to a man 00:32:07.120 --> 00:32:13.020 that is good in his sight wisdom and knowledge and joy but to the 00:32:13.020 --> 00:32:17.900 sinner he giveth travail to gather and to heap up that he may 00:32:17.900 --> 00:32:22.550 give to him that is good before god this also is 00:32:22.550 --> 00:32:28.430 vanity and vexation of spirit right gracious lord thankful to be gathered 00:32:28.430 --> 00:32:31.740 in your house thankful that the son is going to save you do the preaching of your 00:32:31.740 --> 00:32:34.840 word bring lord this will pass from spirit 00:32:34.840 --> 00:32:43.460 with the clarity of mind to it down this chapter of the isis chapter two and if 00:32:43.460 --> 00:32:46.850 you remember this book is a much more cerebral uh 00:32:46.850 --> 00:32:51.780 philosophical type book where the man solomon he's basically 00:32:51.780 --> 00:32:56.830 trying to figure out the meaning of life and spoiler alert in chapter 12 he says 00:32:56.830 --> 00:33:01.310 fear god and keep his commandments for this is the whole duty of man but as we 00:33:01.310 --> 00:33:04.500 go through ecclesiastes he's kind of like doing these 00:33:04.500 --> 00:33:09.520 self-experiments where he's just giving himself over to different areas of life 00:33:09.520 --> 00:33:13.110 and kind of just testing and trying things to see 00:33:13.110 --> 00:33:17.250 what is life all about what is it that the sons of men are doing under the sun 00:33:17.250 --> 00:33:20.440 and he really gives himself over to three different areas in this chapter 00:33:20.440 --> 00:33:25.860 number one the vanity of self-indulgence notice what it says in verse one 00:33:25.860 --> 00:33:32.480 he says i said in mine heart go to now i will prove thee with mirth therefore 00:33:32.480 --> 00:33:37.050 enjoy pleasure behold this also is vanity now 00:33:37.050 --> 00:33:40.850 in eclesiastes of course like any other book of the bible 00:33:40.850 --> 00:33:45.000 we know that this is the inspired words of god holy men of god spake 00:33:45.000 --> 00:33:49.460 as they were moved by the holy ghost so every single word that we find here 00:33:49.460 --> 00:33:53.210 in eclesiastes is true in the sense that it was actually said 00:33:53.210 --> 00:33:56.480 it actually happened but i want you to keep in context that 00:33:56.480 --> 00:34:01.190 not every single thing that solomon says or thinks or does in eclesiastes 00:34:01.190 --> 00:34:05.020 is necessarily good or the best wisdom or the best advice 00:34:05.020 --> 00:34:08.130 because again what is he doing he's kind of going through life and just testing 00:34:08.130 --> 00:34:11.320 these different areas and so the first thing he does is hey 00:34:11.320 --> 00:34:17.490 i'm going to go prove my heart with what mirth what is mirth just means happiness 00:34:17.490 --> 00:34:21.730 joy pleasure excitement he's like i'm just going to give myself over to as 00:34:21.730 --> 00:34:26.250 much pleasure as possible as much happiness as much joy he says 00:34:26.250 --> 00:34:31.350 therefore enjoy pleasure and behold this also is 00:34:31.350 --> 00:34:35.610 vanity one of the areas of life where people try to seek meaning 00:34:35.610 --> 00:34:38.880 is of course in pleasure that's what most of 00:34:38.880 --> 00:34:42.210 this world is living for right people who are not serving god people who are 00:34:42.210 --> 00:34:45.540 not dedicating their life to church soul winning things like that 00:34:45.540 --> 00:34:48.700 what is it that they're living for they're living for pleasure 00:34:48.700 --> 00:34:52.050 now that could look differently for a lot of different people right 00:34:52.050 --> 00:34:55.700 for some people pleasure is sitting at home playing video games 00:34:55.700 --> 00:34:59.280 for other people pleasure is taking a road trip on a motorcycle 00:34:59.280 --> 00:35:03.020 or going sailing or traveling the world but you know this is what the world is 00:35:03.020 --> 00:35:05.980 seeking today is pleasure and as we're going to see 00:35:05.980 --> 00:35:10.120 in this chapter it does not end up satisfying him even the guy solomon who 00:35:10.120 --> 00:35:13.610 is the richest man in the world who was able to give himself over to as 00:35:13.610 --> 00:35:17.110 much pleasure as he totally wanted now go if you would 00:35:17.110 --> 00:35:21.250 keep your place there to luke chapter 12 luke chapter number 12 00:35:21.250 --> 00:35:25.010 and of course in man's pursuit of pleasure today 00:35:25.010 --> 00:35:28.220 what that really means is the pursuit of money 00:35:28.220 --> 00:35:31.530 i mean for most people let's be honest if they're just going to give themselves 00:35:31.530 --> 00:35:34.710 over to pleasure what does that look like in a practical 00:35:34.710 --> 00:35:38.140 sense it usually means giving themselves over to money 00:35:38.140 --> 00:35:41.240 because a lot of people in this world whether they want to verbalize this or 00:35:41.240 --> 00:35:44.830 not thinks that money can buy happiness and 00:35:44.830 --> 00:35:47.220 if that's not the case then please tell me why 00:35:47.220 --> 00:35:51.370 the american dream is chasing money to be rich why so many people would just 00:35:51.370 --> 00:35:54.610 want to be rich today but you know what being rich is not 00:35:54.610 --> 00:35:58.720 necessarily a blessing now it can be but not necessarily look at luke chapter 00:35:58.720 --> 00:36:02.670 12 verse 16 it says and he spake a parable unto them 00:36:02.670 --> 00:36:05.820 this is jesus saying the ground of a certain rich man 00:36:05.820 --> 00:36:10.480 brought forth plentifully and he thought within himself saying what shall i do 00:36:10.480 --> 00:36:14.260 because i have no room where to bestow my fruits 00:36:14.260 --> 00:36:18.800 and he said this will i do i will pull down my barns and build 00:36:18.800 --> 00:36:22.850 greater and there will i bestow all my fruits 00:36:22.850 --> 00:36:26.370 and my goods so notice this rich man he's being blessed 00:36:26.370 --> 00:36:29.560 in the sense that his ground is bringing forth plentifully 00:36:29.560 --> 00:36:33.470 hey his crops are being blessed he's making lots of money 00:36:33.470 --> 00:36:37.140 and even though he's making lots of money notice that he doesn't necessarily 00:36:37.140 --> 00:36:40.650 have like an inner peace about this he's not really content in his life 00:36:40.650 --> 00:36:43.840 because when he is making a bunch of money and things are going good 00:36:43.840 --> 00:36:47.190 he's thinking like man what do i do what am i supposed to do right now 00:36:47.190 --> 00:36:50.700 i have all this money all these goods i know what i'll do 00:36:50.700 --> 00:36:54.220 hey i'm gonna tear down my barns and build 00:36:54.220 --> 00:36:58.110 greater notice he says and there will i bestow 00:36:58.110 --> 00:37:01.860 all my fruits and my goods and so like you know he 00:37:01.860 --> 00:37:05.260 builds these new barns in his mind at least he's planning on doing this 00:37:05.260 --> 00:37:08.830 and what's their ultimate purpose to just store stuff 00:37:08.830 --> 00:37:13.180 to just keep stuff in a room right isn't there a lot of people like this today 00:37:13.180 --> 00:37:16.820 where they just want to accumulate so much stuff but at the end of the day 00:37:16.820 --> 00:37:21.140 how much stuff can you really enjoy at one time i mean a lot of people today 00:37:21.140 --> 00:37:25.010 have to buy like a storage unit to keep all their stuff 00:37:25.010 --> 00:37:28.180 that they can't fit in their house and it's like they don't use it 00:37:28.180 --> 00:37:31.740 they don't go to it they just keep this extra stuff in a storage unit and it 00:37:31.740 --> 00:37:34.380 just sits there and it's like that is vanity 00:37:34.380 --> 00:37:37.650 vanity of vanity say it the preachers you know makes me think of j leno 00:37:37.650 --> 00:37:42.240 and j leno has a collection of just hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of 00:37:42.240 --> 00:37:44.940 cars and it's like bro you can only drive one 00:37:44.940 --> 00:37:48.110 at a time and how many of those cars sitting in his garage 00:37:48.110 --> 00:37:51.760 has he driven one time maybe or has he maybe even never driven 00:37:51.760 --> 00:37:55.030 i bet you there'd be some of those right at the end of the day if you're just 00:37:55.030 --> 00:37:57.640 chasing after money even if you're successful you're just 00:37:57.640 --> 00:37:59.630 going to end up with a building full of stuff 00:37:59.630 --> 00:38:03.940 and that's it and it's not going to be satisfying and it doesn't last 00:38:03.940 --> 00:38:07.160 because look what it says in verse 19 i will say to my soul 00:38:07.160 --> 00:38:10.650 soul thou hast much goods laid up many years 00:38:10.650 --> 00:38:14.610 take thine ease eat drink and be merry what is that mirth 00:38:14.610 --> 00:38:18.000 pleasure oh people want to get rich so that they could be you know having 00:38:18.000 --> 00:38:20.230 pleasure eat whatever they want drink whatever 00:38:20.230 --> 00:38:23.720 they want be happy be merry and some people they spend 00:38:23.720 --> 00:38:29.000 their entire life chasing after this they sacrifice you know crazy amounts 00:38:29.000 --> 00:38:31.930 of time with their family they sacrifice all these 00:38:31.930 --> 00:38:34.460 things they sacrifice going to church oftentimes 00:38:34.460 --> 00:38:38.330 they sacrifice reading their bible they sacrifice going to church serving god 00:38:38.330 --> 00:38:41.480 being around god's people but notice verse 20 but god said unto 00:38:41.480 --> 00:38:46.240 him thou fool this night thy soul shall be required of thee 00:38:46.240 --> 00:38:49.660 then whose shall those things be which thou has provided 00:38:49.660 --> 00:38:52.920 so is he that layeth up treasure for himself and is not rich toward god 00:38:52.920 --> 00:38:56.010 so notice someone who's just seeking money seeking pleasure 00:38:56.010 --> 00:38:59.350 first of all even if you succeed you're just going to end up with a bunch of 00:38:59.350 --> 00:39:01.970 stuff in a barn that's just going to sit there 00:39:01.970 --> 00:39:06.130 then when you think man i'm going to finally make it next week things will 00:39:06.130 --> 00:39:09.380 calm down when i'm rich and when i'm famous and when i can have 00:39:09.380 --> 00:39:13.430 mirth and pleasure and joy and i can just take ease and enjoy my 00:39:13.430 --> 00:39:17.110 life and then god says you're going to die and then it's just over 00:39:17.110 --> 00:39:21.060 and you know for a lot of rich people you know rich people don't often get 00:39:21.060 --> 00:39:23.900 saved right jesus said that it's easier for 00:39:23.900 --> 00:39:27.380 a camel to go through an eye of a needle than for a rich man to be saved 00:39:27.380 --> 00:39:30.940 because why rich men are not really willing to trust someone else they think 00:39:30.940 --> 00:39:33.090 that they have built everything in their life 00:39:33.090 --> 00:39:36.500 and so this man he's rich he's built this business he's 00:39:36.500 --> 00:39:39.760 made all this money he finally achieves it and then his soul is required of him 00:39:39.760 --> 00:39:42.850 and he dies and he probably went to hell that's the 00:39:42.850 --> 00:39:45.370 reality that's the reality for a lot of rich men today 00:39:45.370 --> 00:39:48.300 they make it and then they die and go to hell that's vanity 00:39:48.300 --> 00:39:51.630 vanity of vanity say it the preacher go back to ecclesiastes chapter two 00:39:51.630 --> 00:39:56.310 you know it doesn't make sense to just chase after self-indulgence 00:39:56.310 --> 00:39:59.570 number one you might not even make it you might not even achieve all your 00:39:59.570 --> 00:40:03.490 goals number two if you do you might find that it's unsatisfying 00:40:03.490 --> 00:40:07.460 and your life can end any moment and it could just all be over 00:40:07.460 --> 00:40:13.190 verse two i said of laughter it is mad and if mirth 00:40:13.190 --> 00:40:17.210 what do with it right so other people you know some people want to 00:40:17.210 --> 00:40:20.830 find pleasure and meaning in life by just seeking pleasure 00:40:20.830 --> 00:40:24.080 other people they want to find meaning by laughter 00:40:24.080 --> 00:40:28.840 right comedy is a huge genre today in our world and some people they're 00:40:28.840 --> 00:40:32.690 just constantly seeking to laugh right isn't that why a lot of 00:40:32.690 --> 00:40:36.750 people just scroll endlessly on tiktok just watching funny videos 00:40:36.750 --> 00:40:40.250 they just want that quick dopamine hit that quick laugh 00:40:40.250 --> 00:40:43.910 ha ha this person hurt themselves ha ha look at this ai cat 00:40:43.910 --> 00:40:47.650 ha ha look at these funny videos but do you think like after they've scrolled a 00:40:47.650 --> 00:40:49.880 hundred videos do you think that they've been satisfied 00:40:49.880 --> 00:40:53.170 or do you think they want to keep scrolling when they've watched all those 00:40:53.170 --> 00:40:55.930 funny videos so they're like oh man that really hit the spot i'm really 00:40:55.930 --> 00:40:59.010 satisfied or do they just want to keep scrolling right it's called doom 00:40:59.010 --> 00:41:03.080 scrolling for a reason because you just keep going you keep going it sucks you 00:41:03.080 --> 00:41:08.280 in he says of laughter it is mad and of mirth 00:41:08.280 --> 00:41:12.500 what do with it go to proverbs if you would proverbs 00:41:12.500 --> 00:41:20.250 proverbs chapter number 14 proverbs 14 the bible describes how there's some 00:41:20.250 --> 00:41:23.570 people who they seek laughter they seek joy 00:41:23.570 --> 00:41:28.090 and even in the midst of their laughter inwardly they're actually miserable 00:41:28.090 --> 00:41:31.860 so you can't just assume because you see someone smiling or you see someone 00:41:31.860 --> 00:41:35.350 laughing that that means that they're actually content or actually happy 00:41:35.350 --> 00:41:37.500 inside because look at verse 12 it says 00:41:37.500 --> 00:41:41.070 there's a way which seemeth right unto a man but the end thereof are the ways of 00:41:41.070 --> 00:41:44.720 death verse 13 notice even in laughter 00:41:44.720 --> 00:41:48.600 the heart is sorrowful and the end of that mirth 00:41:48.600 --> 00:41:52.900 is heaviness see i believe that real fulfillment you could actually find real 00:41:52.900 --> 00:41:56.880 fulfillment and real contentment in serving god hey paul said i've learned 00:41:56.880 --> 00:42:00.860 in whatsoever state i am therewith to be content that's the 00:42:00.860 --> 00:42:03.490 inspired words of god he's not just putting on a show 00:42:03.490 --> 00:42:07.250 the apostle paul is actually content he knows how to 00:42:07.250 --> 00:42:11.280 be abased he knows how to abound he suffers persecution 00:42:11.280 --> 00:42:15.730 he rejoices he goes through all these terrible things he's still content 00:42:15.730 --> 00:42:19.470 now on the outside there could be times where the apostle paul stoic 00:42:19.470 --> 00:42:22.560 maybe even crying maybe and having a sad countenance but there's an 00:42:22.560 --> 00:42:26.330 inward peace in being in god's will there's an inward peace 00:42:26.330 --> 00:42:30.200 in keeping god's commandments whereas for the world even times when they're 00:42:30.200 --> 00:42:33.210 laughing even at times when you think they look 00:42:33.210 --> 00:42:36.140 joyful when they're laughing when they're giggling when they're having a 00:42:36.140 --> 00:42:39.150 good time inwardly there's this deep spiritual 00:42:39.150 --> 00:42:43.120 darkness and rot in their soul and they know it 00:42:43.120 --> 00:42:46.950 deep down inside you know don't let the life of sin deceive you today 00:42:46.950 --> 00:42:50.940 when you see the videos of the college parties and people are at the college 00:42:50.940 --> 00:42:53.730 parties everyone's dancing and swaying and 00:42:53.730 --> 00:42:58.030 drinking alcohol and hanging out just having a good time so it seems 00:42:58.030 --> 00:43:02.180 because oftentimes inwardly those people are completely sad and miserable 00:43:02.180 --> 00:43:05.210 because a lot of times the reason why people have to go to parties 00:43:05.210 --> 00:43:09.190 where they take drugs and they drink alcohol is so that they could just 00:43:09.190 --> 00:43:13.400 numb the pain of their crappy life that's the reality today 00:43:13.400 --> 00:43:17.340 a lot of people take drugs and alcohol just because their life actually really 00:43:17.340 --> 00:43:18.920 sucks you know if you have such a great life 00:43:18.920 --> 00:43:22.180 why do you have to inebriate yourself why do you have to just dull all your 00:43:22.180 --> 00:43:27.260 senses why isn't sobriety fun to you because your life obviously sucks okay 00:43:27.260 --> 00:43:29.950 and that's what the bible's saying here it's like hey even in laughter the heart 00:43:29.950 --> 00:43:33.260 is sorrowful and the end of that mirth is heaviness 00:43:33.260 --> 00:43:37.940 hebrews 11 i'll read for you verse 12 verse 24 says by faith moses 00:43:37.940 --> 00:43:41.570 when he was come to years refused to be called the son of pharaoh's daughter 00:43:41.570 --> 00:43:45.470 choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of god 00:43:45.470 --> 00:43:49.430 than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season 00:43:49.430 --> 00:43:54.590 so the bible describes that sin does have a certain pleasure aspect to it 00:43:54.590 --> 00:43:58.630 which is obviously why people sin but notice it's a pleasure that lasts for a 00:43:58.630 --> 00:44:01.120 season but you want to know what comes after 00:44:01.120 --> 00:44:05.150 that season is over pain sorrow i mean the bible says 00:44:05.150 --> 00:44:09.860 that the way of transgressors is hard right hey they are they they that are of 00:44:09.860 --> 00:44:12.350 a merry heart or merry countenance have a 00:44:12.350 --> 00:44:16.020 continual feast the bible says serving god keeping his commandments 00:44:16.020 --> 00:44:19.280 every day is joyful every day could be a party serving god 00:44:19.280 --> 00:44:22.790 but you know people going out and for example wasting their youth committing 00:44:22.790 --> 00:44:25.820 fornication you know outwardly it could seem like 00:44:25.820 --> 00:44:29.080 they're bragging about it you know they think they're so cool 00:44:29.080 --> 00:44:31.630 you know the the athletes think they're so cool because they're getting all the 00:44:31.630 --> 00:44:33.790 pretty girls and they they seem so happy 00:44:33.790 --> 00:44:38.540 but you know what afterwards there's shame afterwards there's emptiness 00:44:38.540 --> 00:44:42.000 afterwards there's sorrow it's the pleasures of sin for a season 00:44:42.000 --> 00:44:45.940 people go out and sow their wild oats commit fornication oh we're just having 00:44:45.940 --> 00:44:49.150 a good time until the bastard child comes the child 00:44:49.150 --> 00:44:51.610 outside of wedlock oh we're having so much fun we're 00:44:51.610 --> 00:44:55.170 having such a good time until the sdd comes hey let's go out and 00:44:55.170 --> 00:44:58.740 get drunk we'll have a good time until your friend dies in a car 00:44:58.740 --> 00:45:02.540 accident from a drunk driving accident hey it's just the pleasures of sin 00:45:02.540 --> 00:45:06.800 for a season so we as christians we should not just like envy this world's 00:45:06.800 --> 00:45:10.610 mirth envy this world's revelings and partyings 00:45:10.610 --> 00:45:14.650 and think like man those guys look like they're having so much fun 00:45:14.650 --> 00:45:17.900 but we're just you know independent fundamental baptist it's like look 00:45:17.900 --> 00:45:21.300 young people don't have the wisdom to realize that they are not 00:45:21.300 --> 00:45:25.120 missing anything by missing out on the party scene 00:45:25.120 --> 00:45:28.470 you are not missing out on anything you know i 00:45:28.470 --> 00:45:32.450 thank god by his grace i got saved at a pretty young age i got saved in my teens 00:45:32.450 --> 00:45:35.470 and you know what thank god because of the good influences i had 00:45:35.470 --> 00:45:39.210 the good preaching that i was under you know i've spent my entire 20s 00:45:39.210 --> 00:45:43.590 three to thrive soul winning reading the bible i have zero regrets about that 00:45:43.590 --> 00:45:47.400 i have zero regrets about getting married at 21 years old i have 00:45:47.400 --> 00:45:50.820 zero regrets about having a bunch of kids as soon as me and my wife got 00:45:50.820 --> 00:45:54.960 married i have zero regrets about not missing the party scene and the drunk 00:45:54.960 --> 00:45:56.870 you know drunkenness college see all that stuff 00:45:56.870 --> 00:46:00.530 i have no regrets and missing that stuff but a lot of teenagers today think 00:46:00.530 --> 00:46:05.130 that they're gonna miss out on something by not enjoying this world's mirth 00:46:05.130 --> 00:46:08.820 but you know what solomon said he said hey mirth it's mad 00:46:08.820 --> 00:46:11.630 laughter it's mad it's empty it's meaningless 00:46:11.630 --> 00:46:21.360 go back to ecclesiastes chapter number two ecclesiastes chapter number two 00:46:21.360 --> 00:46:26.520 now similar topic here it says this in verse three i sought in my heart 00:46:26.520 --> 00:46:31.720 to give myself unto wine yet acquainting mine heart with wisdom and to lay hold 00:46:31.720 --> 00:46:35.050 on folly what does folly mean stupidity 00:46:35.050 --> 00:46:39.460 being stupid being dumb and to lay hold on folly till i might see 00:46:39.460 --> 00:46:42.720 what was that good for the sons of men which they should do unto the heaven 00:46:42.720 --> 00:46:46.530 all the days of their life right so he gives himself over to mirth 00:46:46.530 --> 00:46:50.420 to pleasure to laughter he's like now i'm just going to give myself 00:46:50.420 --> 00:46:55.180 over to wine right now wine can mean several different things in the bible 00:46:55.180 --> 00:46:58.670 it can mean pure fruit juice it can mean luxury 00:46:58.670 --> 00:47:02.010 and it can mean alcoholic wine i think we could pull some of those 00:47:02.010 --> 00:47:06.200 from this but the primary thing i think he's given himself to is alcohol 00:47:06.200 --> 00:47:09.860 why do i say that because he says he's going to lay hold on folly 00:47:09.860 --> 00:47:13.620 i mean he literally says hey i'm going to try this experiment 00:47:13.620 --> 00:47:17.650 i'm just going to try to be as stupid as possible i'm just going to be try to be 00:47:17.650 --> 00:47:20.590 the biggest moron ever hey maybe ignorance is blessed maybe 00:47:20.590 --> 00:47:24.000 i'll have a happier life if i just become a raging idiot and you 00:47:24.000 --> 00:47:27.840 know the fastest way to become a raging idiot is to drink booze 00:47:27.840 --> 00:47:31.330 you know to drink alcohol because wine is a mocker 00:47:31.330 --> 00:47:34.800 strong drink is raging and whosoever is deceived thereby 00:47:34.800 --> 00:47:38.860 is not wise so he's like hey i'm just going to give myself over to folly i'm 00:47:38.860 --> 00:47:43.140 just going to become a complete idiot and give myself over to wine now how do 00:47:43.140 --> 00:47:47.080 people act when they're drunk they act like idiots don't they they say 00:47:47.080 --> 00:47:51.170 all sorts of perverse things slurring their words we've all seen 00:47:51.170 --> 00:47:53.620 those you know man on the street videos where 00:47:53.620 --> 00:47:55.430 they're like interviewing drunk people it's like 00:47:55.430 --> 00:47:58.670 why do those things get views because people are saying dumb entertaining 00:47:58.670 --> 00:48:01.900 stuff because they're drunk but they're saying stupid foolish stuff 00:48:01.900 --> 00:48:05.450 aren't they and not only they're saying dumb things they're doing dumb things 00:48:05.450 --> 00:48:09.060 they're getting behind the wheel drunken they're going up and 00:48:09.060 --> 00:48:12.000 ruining their marriage by being with some other woman they're doing all 00:48:12.000 --> 00:48:14.310 sorts of stupidity i mean i've told this story before i 00:48:14.310 --> 00:48:17.490 remember seeing uh in this law enforcement class i took in high school 00:48:17.490 --> 00:48:20.030 we were doing um trauma first aid learning and they 00:48:20.030 --> 00:48:23.630 showed us like this incident where this drunk guy was trying to 00:48:23.630 --> 00:48:25.690 play fruit ninja in real life does anyone 00:48:25.690 --> 00:48:29.190 remember the phone game fruit ninja where it's like you got the sword yeah 00:48:29.190 --> 00:48:32.520 and you gotta like as the fruit's coming down on your screen you gotta like top 00:48:32.520 --> 00:48:33.790 it before it hits the ground or whatever 00:48:33.790 --> 00:48:37.300 well someone was doing this with a drunk guy and he ended up like taking the 00:48:37.300 --> 00:48:39.590 sword and just like putting it into his own 00:48:39.590 --> 00:48:43.670 hand and like almost cut his hand off and it's like why does that happen 00:48:43.670 --> 00:48:47.230 because of alcohol that's why because you know what you wouldn't sit there 00:48:47.230 --> 00:48:50.220 play fruit ninja if you're sober and if you were you would at least have 00:48:50.220 --> 00:48:52.470 better hand-eye coordination than you when you were drunk 00:48:52.470 --> 00:48:56.880 right it's like i'm just going to give myself over to stupidity now 00:48:56.880 --> 00:49:00.580 go if you would to isaiah 65 because this is a bible study tonight i want to 00:49:00.580 --> 00:49:03.580 real quick look at some verses in the bible 00:49:03.580 --> 00:49:07.310 that use the word wine because some people make the mistake 00:49:07.310 --> 00:49:10.350 of thinking every single time they see the word wine 00:49:10.350 --> 00:49:14.420 that that is talking about an alcoholic beverage but like i said there are 00:49:14.420 --> 00:49:16.870 multiple different types of wine in the bible 00:49:16.870 --> 00:49:21.160 one of those is pure fruit juice like i said look at isaiah 65 verse 8 00:49:21.160 --> 00:49:25.880 the bible says thus saith the lord notice as the new 00:49:25.880 --> 00:49:32.120 wine is found in the cluster all right so this is a beverage the new wine 00:49:32.120 --> 00:49:35.990 that is found what in the cluster of the grapes what is that 00:49:35.990 --> 00:49:40.310 that's juice and notice what the bible says and one sayeth destroy it not 00:49:40.310 --> 00:49:45.770 for a blessing is in it for so will i do for my servant's sake that i may not 00:49:45.770 --> 00:49:49.790 destroy them all so here wine is described as something 00:49:49.790 --> 00:49:53.270 being still in the cluster there's no way possible this is talking about 00:49:53.270 --> 00:49:56.750 alcohol right that happens in fermentation after it's taken out of 00:49:56.750 --> 00:49:59.420 the cluster it's talking about juice and the bible 00:49:59.420 --> 00:50:03.800 speaks positively of it saying hey it's a blessing right so when you're trying 00:50:03.800 --> 00:50:07.420 to figure out in a verse hey is this is this alcohol or is 00:50:07.420 --> 00:50:11.020 this a different type of wine i can just help you with this rule if 00:50:11.020 --> 00:50:15.280 it's mentioned positively it's not alcohol if the bible is saying 00:50:15.280 --> 00:50:19.760 hey all tables are full of vomit and filthiness and there's no place 00:50:19.760 --> 00:50:23.170 clean that's talking about alcohol if it's talking about hey 00:50:23.170 --> 00:50:27.080 you know you're gonna be behold strange women you're gonna utter perverse things 00:50:27.080 --> 00:50:30.550 you're gonna pervert judgment in your heart that's talking about alcohol 00:50:30.550 --> 00:50:33.880 positive mention like jesus turning water into wine 00:50:33.880 --> 00:50:37.770 that's talking about juice okay now go to joseph for 00:50:37.770 --> 00:50:44.990 also wine i believe can picture luxury giving yourself over to as much 00:50:44.990 --> 00:50:47.510 pleasure as possible which again kind of fits 00:50:47.510 --> 00:50:51.040 this self experiment that solomon is going through here 00:50:51.040 --> 00:50:54.270 in isaiah chapter number four verse 11 the bible says this 00:50:54.270 --> 00:51:00.720 whoredom and wine and new wine take away the heart now is there 00:51:00.720 --> 00:51:03.970 anything wrong with juice in and of itself no but 00:51:03.970 --> 00:51:08.490 especially in the ancient world juice is a very very rare treat that 00:51:08.490 --> 00:51:10.640 you would get because it's super expensive 00:51:10.640 --> 00:51:14.920 it's super hard to make it's not a common thing that we have here like you 00:51:14.920 --> 00:51:19.180 could find on every street corner every gas station every store will 00:51:19.180 --> 00:51:22.330 have juice not then if you're drinking juice it's very 00:51:22.330 --> 00:51:25.200 special it's a luxury item it's an item that 00:51:25.200 --> 00:51:28.530 represents riches right so these things take away 00:51:28.530 --> 00:51:30.740 our heart what whoredom that makes sense right 00:51:30.740 --> 00:51:33.490 if you're committing fornication if you're committing adultery that's 00:51:33.490 --> 00:51:35.430 going to take away your heart from the things of god 00:51:35.430 --> 00:51:39.950 wine drinking alcohol absolutely right and 00:51:39.950 --> 00:51:43.480 new wine giving yourself just fully over to luxury and pleasure 00:51:43.480 --> 00:51:46.870 you know that also is going to take away your heart from the things of 00:51:46.870 --> 00:51:52.030 god i'll just read for you proverbs 23 verse 29 says who hath woe who hath sorrow 00:51:52.030 --> 00:51:56.310 who hath contentions who hath babbling who hath wounds without cause who hath 00:51:56.310 --> 00:51:59.290 redness of eyes they that tarry long at the wine 00:51:59.290 --> 00:52:02.200 i wonder what kind of wine that's talking about the one that makes your 00:52:02.200 --> 00:52:04.720 eyes red that makes you babble that make you have 00:52:04.720 --> 00:52:08.120 contention that makes you have wounds without cause from fruit ninja 00:52:08.120 --> 00:52:12.090 that's alcohol right they that tarry long at the wine they that go to seek 00:52:12.090 --> 00:52:16.330 mixed wine look not thou upon the wine when it is 00:52:16.330 --> 00:52:19.450 red when it give it its color in the cup when it 00:52:19.450 --> 00:52:23.900 moveth itself aright so notice isaiah 65 you have wine 00:52:23.900 --> 00:52:27.740 in the cluster the bible says it's a blessing then here there's a wine 00:52:27.740 --> 00:52:30.950 that we're not even supposed to look at what it's the wine that's red 00:52:30.950 --> 00:52:34.670 that moves itself in the cup right what is that fermented 00:52:34.670 --> 00:52:39.080 alcoholic wine look the bible condemns christians drinking alcohol 00:52:39.080 --> 00:52:43.070 the bible condemns christians drinking any amount of alcohol 00:52:43.070 --> 00:52:46.370 how do you how can you say that because the bible says not to look at alcohol 00:52:46.370 --> 00:52:50.200 how am i supposed to partake of alcohol if i'm not supposed to look at it 00:52:50.200 --> 00:52:52.890 right i mean doesn't the bible say that about you know married men to other 00:52:52.890 --> 00:52:55.260 women lust not after her beauty in thine 00:52:55.260 --> 00:52:58.300 heart are you gonna tell me it's like okay to partake of a little bit of 00:52:58.300 --> 00:53:00.420 cheating on your wife like that's ridiculous right 00:53:00.420 --> 00:53:03.990 no it's wrong drinking alcohol is completely wrong 00:53:03.990 --> 00:53:07.560 we believe in abstinence here from alcohol go if you would to 00:53:07.560 --> 00:53:12.090 first simothy 3 first simothy 3 now i bring up those different 00:53:12.090 --> 00:53:16.730 versions of wine because one of the qualifications of a bishop 00:53:16.730 --> 00:53:20.790 is that they are not given over to wine as you'll see here in first simothy 3 00:53:20.790 --> 00:53:23.730 verse number two it says a bishop then must be blameless 00:53:23.730 --> 00:53:26.910 the husband of one wife vigilant sober of good behavior 00:53:26.910 --> 00:53:31.130 given to hospitality apt to teach notice not given to 00:53:31.130 --> 00:53:34.920 wine not greedy a filthy lucre but patient 00:53:34.920 --> 00:53:40.520 not a brawler not covetous so here i believe that the primary application of 00:53:40.520 --> 00:53:44.280 what this pastoral qualification is is talking about 00:53:44.280 --> 00:53:48.650 being someone who's given to luxury that's given to just this world's good 00:53:48.650 --> 00:53:52.060 and just this world's pleasure why because it says not given to wine 00:53:52.060 --> 00:53:55.660 no striker not greedy a filthy lucre but patient 00:53:55.660 --> 00:53:58.820 right so you don't want to you know we don't want to have a pastor that's just 00:53:58.820 --> 00:54:02.710 obsessed with the things of this world they just have to have the best and 00:54:02.710 --> 00:54:05.650 newest of everything and they're just they're waking up 00:54:05.650 --> 00:54:08.360 thinking about what's the new toy i could buy and they're just excited about 00:54:08.360 --> 00:54:10.900 every model of every new thing you know that's not someone who really 00:54:10.900 --> 00:54:15.660 has their heart on the things of god as you can see by solomon's self 00:54:15.660 --> 00:54:18.990 experiment when he's putting his heart on the things of this world 00:54:18.990 --> 00:54:22.630 he's putting his heart on pleasure and mirth and wine 00:54:22.630 --> 00:54:26.680 and at the end he just says hey all this is vanity and vexation of spirit 00:54:26.680 --> 00:54:30.390 so you know it would be inappropriate for a pastor's life to just be mainly 00:54:30.390 --> 00:54:33.000 characterized by vanity and vexation of spirit 00:54:33.000 --> 00:54:36.660 it's not to say that it's wrong for a pastor to make good money 00:54:36.660 --> 00:54:39.740 especially if it takes time to build because notice it says 00:54:39.740 --> 00:54:43.820 not greedy of filthy lucre but patient it's like if a pastor already built a 00:54:43.820 --> 00:54:46.360 business already had great income he built that 00:54:46.360 --> 00:54:48.510 over time there's nothing wrong with pastor making good money 00:54:48.510 --> 00:54:51.140 there's nothing wrong with the pastor being paid well by the church but there 00:54:51.140 --> 00:54:52.410 is something wrong with the pastor that's just 00:54:52.410 --> 00:54:56.390 given to wine given to luxury every meal has to be the ribeye 00:54:56.390 --> 00:55:00.490 every trip has to be the most extravagant thing ever that would be 00:55:00.490 --> 00:55:04.880 wrong go back to ecclesiastes 2 ecclesiastes chapter number 2 00:55:04.880 --> 00:55:10.250 so remember we're just walking through his self-experiment here of him trying 00:55:10.250 --> 00:55:14.100 to find meaning it's not found in laughter it's not found in mirth it's 00:55:14.100 --> 00:55:17.640 dead sure not found at the bottom of a bottle it's not found in luxury 00:55:17.640 --> 00:55:22.000 what about building projects look at verse four i made me great works 00:55:22.000 --> 00:55:26.070 i builded me houses i planted me vineyards right 00:55:26.070 --> 00:55:29.960 some people they're just obsessed with the next building project the retiree 00:55:29.960 --> 00:55:32.740 right they're just out in the vineyard they're out in the garden that's all 00:55:32.740 --> 00:55:36.230 they care about that's their life i made me gardens 00:55:36.230 --> 00:55:42.980 and orchards and i planted trees in them of all kind of fruits i made me 00:55:42.980 --> 00:55:47.030 pools of water to water there with the wood that bring it forth trees 00:55:47.030 --> 00:55:51.160 i got me servants and maidens and had servants born in my house 00:55:51.160 --> 00:55:54.260 also i had great possessions of great and small cattle 00:55:54.260 --> 00:55:58.150 above all that were in jerusalem before me i mean 00:55:58.150 --> 00:56:03.110 this is a very very rich man i mean those of us who 00:56:03.110 --> 00:56:06.050 have houses whether you own or rent it's like if you 00:56:06.050 --> 00:56:09.220 do any addition to your house it's like super expensive 00:56:09.220 --> 00:56:12.400 you have to plan it out for a really long time could you imagine just like 00:56:12.400 --> 00:56:16.020 endless building projects pools vineyards 00:56:16.020 --> 00:56:20.390 gardens trees all these crazy things that he's got going on 00:56:20.390 --> 00:56:24.530 not only that he's got servants he's got servants and maidens 00:56:24.530 --> 00:56:27.940 i mean his thousand women his wives and concubines 00:56:27.940 --> 00:56:30.630 you know i don't even know are they even doing the dishes because they have 00:56:30.630 --> 00:56:34.840 servants and maidens here i mean is is solomon even mowing the lawn i 00:56:34.840 --> 00:56:38.170 highly doubt it right because he's got all these servants and maidens i mean he 00:56:38.170 --> 00:56:41.690 can just kick up his feet and enjoy his little pool enjoy the 00:56:41.690 --> 00:56:45.330 vineyard oh i want a pomegranate today he said of all fruits right oh i want a 00:56:45.330 --> 00:56:49.760 pomegranate i want strawberries i want oranges i want apples i mean 00:56:49.760 --> 00:56:53.800 look if earthly possessions could get you happiness 00:56:53.800 --> 00:56:57.870 surely solomon would have been happy surely solomon would have achieved 00:56:57.870 --> 00:57:01.350 joy and happiness and contentment if money could buy those things 00:57:01.350 --> 00:57:06.010 but guess what he didn't because it can't it can't i mean look at his riches 00:57:06.010 --> 00:57:10.290 servants maidens servants born in my house also had great possessions of 00:57:10.290 --> 00:57:15.110 great and small cattle above all that were in jerusalem before me 00:57:15.110 --> 00:57:19.350 i mean this is the best cattleman who's ever lived in jerusalem 00:57:19.350 --> 00:57:22.760 he's like no one has succeeded in the cattle business 00:57:22.760 --> 00:57:26.800 more than me in all of history here in jerusalem i mean this guy has just 00:57:26.800 --> 00:57:31.030 maidens but as we'll see he's still not happy but that's not it look 00:57:31.030 --> 00:57:34.560 verse eight i gathered me also silver and gold 00:57:34.560 --> 00:57:38.530 and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces 00:57:38.530 --> 00:57:42.030 you know so some people they're into building projects some people they want 00:57:42.030 --> 00:57:47.190 a pool they want a garden they want a pond they want trees they want 00:57:47.190 --> 00:57:49.730 fruit right other people they just want to collect 00:57:49.730 --> 00:57:54.670 money or collect items right and he's like i just gathered me also silver and 00:57:54.670 --> 00:57:58.040 gold and the peculiar treasure of kings and 00:57:58.040 --> 00:58:01.020 of the provinces who even knows what that is i mean it's 00:58:01.020 --> 00:58:04.890 obviously something rare strange peculiar the bible says 00:58:04.890 --> 00:58:07.960 peculiar treasure you know these are your antique collectors 00:58:07.960 --> 00:58:12.140 oh man i'll be happy if i just get one more world war ii gun now that might be 00:58:12.140 --> 00:58:15.560 true it's close to being true right if i just get one more world war ii gun 00:58:15.560 --> 00:58:19.690 if i just get one more you know old original book copy if i just get one 00:58:19.690 --> 00:58:22.710 more really cool collectible item but none of these 00:58:22.710 --> 00:58:28.320 things satisfied him he says i got me men singers and women singers no 00:58:28.320 --> 00:58:33.240 notice just endless entertainment entertainment all day all night he's 00:58:33.240 --> 00:58:36.580 going to the fancy restaurant where they're playing for him as he's eating 00:58:36.580 --> 00:58:39.360 right they've got the stringed instruments they're playing 00:58:39.360 --> 00:58:42.460 they're singing men women you know some people really like 00:58:42.460 --> 00:58:46.440 male voices singing some people like women he gets both whatever he wants 00:58:46.440 --> 00:58:51.270 men singers women singers and the delights of the sons of men 00:58:51.270 --> 00:58:54.590 as musical instruments and that of all sorts right 00:58:54.590 --> 00:58:58.710 so he just keeps unto himself delights people things that people like 00:58:58.710 --> 00:59:02.430 like what musical instruments what kind just all of them 00:59:02.430 --> 00:59:06.140 just every sort right and hey a lot of people are into music 00:59:06.140 --> 00:59:09.530 they think it'd be really cool to have all these different you know types of 00:59:09.530 --> 00:59:12.860 instruments but yet still he wasn't happy yet still 00:59:12.860 --> 00:59:17.230 he was not satisfied he says so i was great 00:59:17.230 --> 00:59:21.220 and increased more than all that were before me 00:59:21.220 --> 00:59:28.440 in jerusalem also my wisdom remained with me and whatsoever mine eyes desired 00:59:28.440 --> 00:59:32.230 i kept not from them i withheld not my heart 00:59:32.230 --> 00:59:35.910 from any joy for my heart rejoiced in all my labor 00:59:35.910 --> 00:59:38.970 and this was my portion of all my labor now look 00:59:38.970 --> 00:59:42.830 i think a lot of people think in their heart 00:59:42.830 --> 00:59:47.530 that they would love to have this man's life right a lot of people were what 00:59:47.530 --> 00:59:51.070 waking up super early in the morning working hard all day 00:59:51.070 --> 00:59:55.300 getting home late cooking dinner you know feeding the kids helping the kids 00:59:55.300 --> 00:59:57.590 doing doing yard work doing all these things 00:59:57.590 --> 01:00:00.870 and a lot of people they read this and they're like this sounds like paradise 01:00:00.870 --> 01:00:03.630 right sitting around your pool enjoy the 01:00:03.630 --> 01:00:06.970 garden you got men and women singing to you playing it 01:00:06.970 --> 01:00:10.850 you want to tell them to go away play an instrument yourself you could do that 01:00:10.850 --> 01:00:15.160 whatsoever his eyes desired the bible says he withheld not from them 01:00:15.160 --> 01:00:18.970 i mean could you imagine that level of wealth and power and access 01:00:18.970 --> 01:00:22.070 where you just you see something you think something 01:00:22.070 --> 01:00:25.320 and boom you can get your hands on it a lot of people would 01:00:25.320 --> 01:00:28.550 love to have that life or they think that they would have love to have that 01:00:28.550 --> 01:00:32.820 life a lot of people are seeking that type of life that type of power but 01:00:32.820 --> 01:00:36.130 i'm telling you you do not want to have this type of a life 01:00:36.130 --> 01:00:40.230 go if you would to proverbs chapter number 30 you do not 01:00:40.230 --> 01:00:44.180 want to have this type of a life this type of a life would become 01:00:44.180 --> 01:00:50.600 so boring so meaningless so monotonous i mean even a lot of 01:00:50.600 --> 01:00:53.640 people when they retire just feel like their 01:00:53.640 --> 01:00:57.860 life sucks and they miss going to work i mean you spend 30 40 years going to the 01:00:57.860 --> 01:00:59.850 job and then you retire and oftentimes it 01:00:59.850 --> 01:01:02.950 doesn't take people six months to be like i'm gonna go get a part-time job at 01:01:02.950 --> 01:01:05.260 cabela's or something because i'm just bored 01:01:05.260 --> 01:01:08.200 i'm gonna go to lowes i'm gonna go to home depot whatever because i'm just 01:01:08.200 --> 01:01:11.960 bored i've got nothing to do i mean look what the bible says in 01:01:11.960 --> 01:01:17.270 proverbs chapter 30 verse 8 it says remove far from me vanity and lies 01:01:17.270 --> 01:01:24.160 notice this give me neither poverty nor riches feed me with food convenient 01:01:24.160 --> 01:01:28.860 for me so notice his prayer is god don't give me poverty right no one 01:01:28.860 --> 01:01:31.710 is like oh i want to be poor i want to be destitute i want to be 01:01:31.710 --> 01:01:34.800 starving i want to not have enough clothes and shelter 01:01:34.800 --> 01:01:38.050 he says hey give me neither poverty nor riches 01:01:38.050 --> 01:01:40.980 everyone can understand why you don't want poverty but a lot of people are 01:01:40.980 --> 01:01:43.030 puzzled when they say what why are we praying 01:01:43.030 --> 01:01:46.670 that we don't have riches why is it that we would not want to be rich this is 01:01:46.670 --> 01:01:50.720 why verse 9 lest i be full 01:01:50.720 --> 01:01:57.420 and deny thee and say who is the lord or lest i be poor and steal and take 01:01:57.420 --> 01:02:00.860 the name of my god in vain let's talk about being poor first why 01:02:00.860 --> 01:02:05.370 don't you want to be poor it's obvious right it's just hardship it's struggle 01:02:05.370 --> 01:02:09.170 and you might be tempted to do things that are immoral to make ends meet 01:02:09.170 --> 01:02:13.080 you might be tempted to lie about your time you might be tempted 01:02:13.080 --> 01:02:16.650 to steal something because it's really hard for you to obtain anything 01:02:16.650 --> 01:02:19.670 right and we understand that that's a natural temptation people would have and 01:02:19.670 --> 01:02:22.450 he's saying i don't want to be poor because i don't want to be tempted to be 01:02:22.450 --> 01:02:25.420 that type of a person why doesn't he want to be rich he says 01:02:25.420 --> 01:02:28.580 lest i be full and people think of course we want to be full of course we 01:02:28.580 --> 01:02:31.090 want to have everything but notice he says lest i be full and 01:02:31.090 --> 01:02:36.680 deny thee and say who is the lord you know what's scarier than 01:02:36.680 --> 01:02:38.970 getting to a point in your life where you're tempted to steal 01:02:38.970 --> 01:02:42.780 is getting up to a point in your life where you completely forget about god 01:02:42.780 --> 01:02:48.200 where you go days months years of your life without reading your bible 01:02:48.200 --> 01:02:51.920 without caring about church without preaching the gospel to someone 01:02:51.920 --> 01:02:55.190 without getting on your face and begging god for mercy 01:02:55.190 --> 01:02:58.210 and asking for his provision in your life and saying god 01:02:58.210 --> 01:03:02.110 i acknowledge you i know i need you please be with me please give me 01:03:02.110 --> 01:03:04.170 strength please give me power you know you 01:03:04.170 --> 01:03:06.030 never want to get to a point in your life 01:03:06.030 --> 01:03:10.100 where you're comfortable with forgetting god and you know i think it's better for 01:03:10.100 --> 01:03:12.410 us too if we have to choose one or the other 01:03:12.410 --> 01:03:15.440 for us to be more on the side of running a little bit scared 01:03:15.440 --> 01:03:20.060 running a little bit lean in our life if that's what keeps us right with god 01:03:20.060 --> 01:03:23.960 you know i would love for our church to grow but i would not want our church to 01:03:23.960 --> 01:03:26.990 grow at the expense of me just feeling so 01:03:26.990 --> 01:03:30.570 comfortable and so hands-off that i no longer get on my face and ask 01:03:30.570 --> 01:03:34.260 for god's blessing on this church because you know what i do i get on my 01:03:34.260 --> 01:03:37.590 face and i beg god to bless this church to give us more 01:03:37.590 --> 01:03:41.940 laborers to bless you guys to help us why because i'm not obsessed with the 01:03:41.940 --> 01:03:44.940 things of this world i'm not obsessed with my pool and my 01:03:44.940 --> 01:03:48.240 orchard and my servants and my you know all these things 01:03:48.240 --> 01:03:52.120 because i don't have them right now what if i did have all those 01:03:52.120 --> 01:03:54.940 things you say oh pastor aus you could never be that type of person 01:03:54.940 --> 01:03:59.200 sure i could we all have all the same flesh right you know if i just had 01:03:59.200 --> 01:04:03.410 unlimited money unlimited assets access to anything i ever wanted 01:04:03.410 --> 01:04:07.050 could that change me as a person it potentially could it potentially could 01:04:07.050 --> 01:04:10.420 it could potentially for you and so like what should our prayer be god don't give 01:04:10.420 --> 01:04:13.630 me poverty but don't give me riches either and you 01:04:13.630 --> 01:04:16.570 know what god just give me whatever is going to make it to where i 01:04:16.570 --> 01:04:20.080 still depend on you right hey you know i bet you a lot of these 01:04:20.080 --> 01:04:23.330 mega pastors where they're just bringing in millions and millions of 01:04:23.330 --> 01:04:26.090 dollars into their church you know i wonder how often they get on 01:04:26.090 --> 01:04:30.310 their face and ask for god's power and ask for wisdom 01:04:30.310 --> 01:04:34.720 and ask for help to lead the church and ask for god's power and blessing to be 01:04:34.720 --> 01:04:36.840 on the church i wonder how often it happens with those guys 01:04:36.840 --> 01:04:41.070 probably never probably never whereas like hey 01:04:41.070 --> 01:04:44.860 if you're just starting a business or you're just taking off in your career 01:04:44.860 --> 01:04:48.910 i bet you you pray a lot don't you you're asking god for your provision 01:04:48.910 --> 01:04:51.820 i bet you if things are tight financially i bet you you're constantly 01:04:51.820 --> 01:04:55.080 saying god please help me god help me to get a raise god help 01:04:55.080 --> 01:04:58.800 things to last longer in my family god please take care of us god please help 01:04:58.800 --> 01:05:01.100 trump to stop starting world war three and i ran 01:05:01.100 --> 01:05:04.780 so we could fill up our gas tanks again right you know these things that we pray 01:05:04.780 --> 01:05:08.140 but you know what would you do that if you were just completely full 01:05:08.140 --> 01:05:11.600 had everything that you wanted you know anything that your eyes desired 01:05:11.600 --> 01:05:14.890 you could just not withhold your heart that would you be the same person 01:05:14.890 --> 01:05:19.300 i doubt it i doubt it and you know what i've seen it time and time again 01:05:19.300 --> 01:05:22.940 where someone you know starts a business and their business gets blessed by god 01:05:22.940 --> 01:05:28.040 and they take off and they start making tons of money and before they were a soul winner 01:05:28.040 --> 01:05:32.980 before they were three to thrive like before they cared so much about doctrine and reading the bible 01:05:32.980 --> 01:05:36.380 and then they just go through long periods of time where there's just nowhere to be found 01:05:36.380 --> 01:05:40.890 and like i've seen some people where they were never found again where they just stopped serving 01:05:40.890 --> 01:05:44.410 god completely and i don't know what happened to them other people kind of see them go back 01:05:44.410 --> 01:05:49.750 and forth a little bit it's like look there are more important things under the sun than your 01:05:49.750 --> 01:05:57.070 stupid pool then your instruments then the delights of the sons of men then your silver then your gold 01:05:57.070 --> 01:06:02.450 what's more important is living a life giving honor to god acknowledging the lord and you know 01:06:02.450 --> 01:06:07.210 what i would never trade that for any amount of money in the world if i could push that button 01:06:07.210 --> 01:06:12.200 and have a life where anything my eyes desired i could be given that i would not push that button 01:06:12.200 --> 01:06:17.030 because i've read the bible and i see what happens and i'm telling you there's a lot of people they 01:06:17.030 --> 01:06:21.610 would press that button don't press this mystical button that doesn't exist okay don't press it 01:06:21.610 --> 01:06:29.240 because it would ruin your life go if you would back to ecclesiastes ecclesiastes chapter number 01:06:29.240 --> 01:06:36.620 two so man he's living everyone's dream you would think but verse 11 he says then i looked on all 01:06:36.620 --> 01:06:42.200 the works that my hands had wrought and on the labor that i had labored to do and behold all was 01:06:42.200 --> 01:06:49.180 vanity and vexation of spirit and there was no profit under the sun you know he had everything 01:06:49.180 --> 01:06:53.710 people could want but when he looked at it once he actually finally attained it and he said you 01:06:53.710 --> 01:06:57.120 know what i'm looking at all the labor that my hands had wrought and you know what i'm seeing 01:06:57.120 --> 01:07:02.840 it's all vanity what does that mean emptiness not profitable not only just vain but he says and it's 01:07:02.840 --> 01:07:07.800 vexation it's actually annoying him he actually is not happy you know you don't want to be one of 01:07:07.800 --> 01:07:13.310 these people that envy the rich and famous don't envy the hollywood actors and actresses because 01:07:13.310 --> 01:07:20.060 you know what they have such high rates of suicide drug abuse sexual abuse you know alcohol abuse 01:07:20.060 --> 01:07:26.040 why because they they climb the rat ladder and they get there and they realize it's all vain it's 01:07:26.040 --> 01:07:30.590 all meaningless and not only is it meaningless it's actually vexation of spirit it's actually 01:07:30.590 --> 01:07:35.030 not what it's portrayed to be i mean i think it was jim carrey several years ago was just talking 01:07:35.030 --> 01:07:39.710 about how hollywood is so evil and wicked and it's like the illuminati and his pedophilia and all 01:07:39.710 --> 01:07:44.460 that stuff it's like the guy is like broken he's like a broken person a lot of these celebrities 01:07:44.460 --> 01:07:50.770 end up just being broken people having mental breakdowns drug addictions i mean heath ledger 01:07:50.770 --> 01:07:56.560 right couldn't sleep he's constantly popping sleeping pills until he dies robin williams oh 01:07:56.560 --> 01:08:01.280 there's so much laughter with robin williams right i mean boy he was smiling a lot he was laughing a 01:08:01.280 --> 01:08:08.250 lot inside he's miserable he's miserable he's sad he is what ended up committing suicide ended up 01:08:08.250 --> 01:08:15.280 killing himself so don't sit here and daydream right oh if only if only i could be rich if only 01:08:15.280 --> 01:08:19.620 i could be famous if only i could make it to hollywood or something like that don't daydream 01:08:19.620 --> 01:08:24.040 like that because it's not what it's cracked up to be i'll read for you hebrews 13 five the bible 01:08:24.040 --> 01:08:29.920 says let your conversation be without covetousness and be content with such things as he have for he 01:08:29.920 --> 01:08:34.830 hath said i will never leave thee nor forsake thee hey the grass is not always greener on the other 01:08:34.830 --> 01:08:40.530 side be content with the things that you have be content with the wife that you have don't be like 01:08:40.530 --> 01:08:46.830 solomon and get 999 more okay be content with the house that you have hey if you need a bigger space 01:08:46.830 --> 01:08:51.590 work hard pray to god to bless you but don't sit here and just covet i have to have a bigger house 01:08:51.590 --> 01:08:55.480 i have to have more pools have to have more orchards have to have more servants you'll never 01:08:55.480 --> 01:09:01.850 be satisfied you'll just have you'll just be vexed so number one the vanity of self-indulgment number 01:09:01.850 --> 01:09:08.290 two the vanity of living wisely verse 12 he shifts gears here in ecclesiastes 2 12 he says and i turn 01:09:08.290 --> 01:09:14.670 myself to behold wisdom and madness and folly for what can the man do that cometh after the king 01:09:14.670 --> 01:09:18.990 even that which hath been already done he's like man sucks for whoever comes after me because i've 01:09:18.990 --> 01:09:22.950 already done it all what are you going to do have great cattle what are you going to do build pools 01:09:22.950 --> 01:09:26.600 build all these things i've already done it all what's going to happen after me that which has 01:09:26.600 --> 01:09:33.960 already been done verse 13 then i saw that wisdom exceleth folly as far as light exceleth darkness 01:09:33.960 --> 01:09:38.400 so keep in mind he's kind of walking us through his self-experiment here one of the things he 01:09:38.400 --> 01:09:43.400 already told us about was that he gave himself over to wine and to lay hold on folly he's like 01:09:43.400 --> 01:09:48.010 i'm going to be as stupid as i can i'm just going to live a really foolish and stupid life 01:09:48.010 --> 01:09:54.040 then he turns and he beholds wisdom madness and folly and he's considering these things and he 01:09:54.040 --> 01:09:59.960 kind of comes to his first good conclusion all right it says in verse 13 then i saw that wisdom 01:09:59.960 --> 01:10:05.910 exceleth folly as far as light exceleth darkness it's like we're glad that that experiment panned 01:10:05.910 --> 01:10:11.870 out that way we're glad you figured that out hey being wise is better than being stupid lay hold 01:10:11.870 --> 01:10:17.750 on wisdom rather than laying hold on folly and it's like yeah do you even have to say that like 01:10:17.750 --> 01:10:24.570 isn't that common sense but there's people in this world that glorify stupidity there are churches 01:10:24.570 --> 01:10:30.250 there are preachers that get up and it's part of their persona it's part of their personality 01:10:30.250 --> 01:10:35.950 of being stupid and they glorify it and they act like it's cool i'm just an old country boy i can't 01:10:35.950 --> 01:10:40.880 even read half the words on this here page but i believe in my faith hey man i don't know if the 01:10:40.880 --> 01:10:47.080 earth is a globe or a turtle or flat i just trust god amen it's just like don't glorify stupidity 01:10:47.080 --> 01:10:53.850 okay that is dumb that is foolish he says hey i saw that wisdom exceleth folly as far as light 01:10:53.850 --> 01:11:01.490 selleth darkness now look he's going to go on to explain that wisdom in its ultimate form still is 01:11:01.490 --> 01:11:07.600 vain in some ways still to some extent is vain because he talks about hey if i'm wise i've noticed 01:11:07.600 --> 01:11:11.980 that some of the things that happen to foolish people still happen to me and i could be wise i 01:11:11.980 --> 01:11:16.210 could build something great and i could hand it over to a fool so it's like trying to find your 01:11:16.210 --> 01:11:22.340 ultimate fulfillment in wisdom is also vain but here's the thing it's better than being foolish 01:11:22.340 --> 01:11:26.920 so pick your point there's there's still some vanity involved but you know what the vanity of 01:11:26.920 --> 01:11:32.560 wisdom is way better than the vanity of being foolish i'll read for you a couple verses proverbs 01:11:32.560 --> 01:11:39.410 24 verse 9 the bible says the thought of foolishness is sin and the scornor is an 01:11:39.410 --> 01:11:46.030 abomination to men we need to remind people that being stupid is a sin you know what that means 01:11:46.030 --> 01:11:50.540 you should be being corrected by the word of god and by the preaching of god's word there should 01:11:50.540 --> 01:11:56.940 be preaching against stupidity not stupid preaching not getting up and glorifying stupidity no the 01:11:56.940 --> 01:12:02.460 bible says that the thought of foolishness is sin it's breaking god's commandments it's offending 01:12:02.460 --> 01:12:07.340 god being stupid is not cool pick up a book i don't care how long it's been since you've been 01:12:07.340 --> 01:12:12.790 in school oh i just don't like reading why do you like being stupid how long oh you simple ones 01:12:12.790 --> 01:12:18.110 well you love simple simplicity and fools hate knowledge right it's like saying hey you have a 01:12:18.110 --> 01:12:24.110 choice to get wisdom and you have a choice to stay stupid and you know what shame on an adult man 01:12:24.110 --> 01:12:29.090 that's stupid i mean i have i could not believe this this happened to me recently where i actually 01:12:29.090 --> 01:12:35.450 encountered someone who was an adult who grew up in america who was illiterate spoke english as 01:12:35.450 --> 01:12:41.140 their first language and was illiterate let me tell you what that is a shame you need to learn 01:12:41.140 --> 01:12:45.260 you need to get some smarts and look hey if you're there you can't change it right this very moment 01:12:45.260 --> 01:12:50.500 but it's like you better work on getting some wisdom because being illiterate in 2026 america 01:12:50.500 --> 01:12:57.100 is a shame you should be embarrassed for that i'll read for you a couple more proverbs 3 13 01:12:57.100 --> 01:13:03.460 happy is the man that findeth wisdom and the man that geteth understanding proverbs 4 5 get wisdom 01:13:03.460 --> 01:13:09.020 get understanding forget it not neither decline from the words of my mouth hey we should be 01:13:09.020 --> 01:13:14.000 seeking wisdom and of course what is the ultimate wisdom it's the bible it's the word of god you 01:13:14.000 --> 01:13:19.660 need to be seeking that wisdom seek it as its buried treasure seek it with all your heart get 01:13:19.660 --> 01:13:24.370 wisdom verse 14 of ecclesiastes 2 now this is probably my favorite verse in this chapter 01:13:24.370 --> 01:13:32.390 it says this the wise man's eyes are in his head but the fool walketh in darkness and i myself 01:13:32.390 --> 01:13:39.530 perceived also that one event happeneth to them all so the bible is contrasting two people the 01:13:39.530 --> 01:13:44.470 wise man and the fool he says hey the wise man's eyes are in his head obviously this is not talking 01:13:44.470 --> 01:13:48.210 about the geographical location of your eyeballs because whether you're a fool or whether you're 01:13:48.210 --> 01:13:53.140 wise your eyes are located in the same place okay we get that but he's saying hey the wise 01:13:53.140 --> 01:13:57.280 man's eyes are in his head but the fool walketh in darkness this is a verse that i quote to my 01:13:57.280 --> 01:14:02.500 children all the time because if you have kids you know something about them and that is when 01:14:02.500 --> 01:14:08.300 they walk they walk like this they walk with their head down right and i'm always telling them hey 01:14:08.300 --> 01:14:14.500 eyes up the wise man's eyes are in his head right saying hey the wise person has awareness the 01:14:14.500 --> 01:14:20.340 wise person is vigilant the wise person is taking the wisdom of god's word and looking around and 01:14:20.340 --> 01:14:25.260 understanding the world and foreseeing the evil and hiding himself being prudent stuff like that 01:14:25.260 --> 01:14:29.990 the wise man's eyes are in his head but the fool walks in what darkness meaning that they don't 01:14:29.990 --> 01:14:34.080 have vision they can't see they got their head down they've got something covering their eyes 01:14:34.080 --> 01:14:38.590 i'm always telling my kids hey the wise man's eyes are in his head they're always tripping they're 01:14:38.590 --> 01:14:42.160 always falling why because they're walking in darkness it's like you got to be able to see 01:14:42.160 --> 01:14:46.100 where you're going you got to have your eyes but here's the thing you know yeah toddlers do that 01:14:46.100 --> 01:14:50.230 but there's a lot of people who are constantly tripping and falling in this life and constantly 01:14:50.230 --> 01:14:55.470 hurting themselves and constantly damaging themselves because their eyes are not in their 01:14:55.470 --> 01:14:59.850 head they're walking around in darkness see if you're walking through this life and you're not 01:14:59.850 --> 01:15:04.450 reading the light of the king james bible you are walking in darkness if you are walking through 01:15:04.450 --> 01:15:10.820 life just by the will i think will i feel will i just feel like you are walking in darkness you 01:15:10.820 --> 01:15:15.710 got to get your eyes in your head by getting your eyes on the bible and finding out what it is that 01:15:15.710 --> 01:15:21.890 god actually wants you to do with your life and guess what the word the will of god is not a 01:15:21.890 --> 01:15:28.480 mystery okay go if you would to romans 12 keep your place there of course i am so tired of this 01:15:28.480 --> 01:15:35.920 overly mystical you know this eastern pagan type mysticism that's constantly talking about the 01:15:35.920 --> 01:15:40.910 mystical will of god i just want to find out the will of god i'm just praying for the will of god 01:15:40.910 --> 01:15:47.880 in my life god has given you his will notice what it says in romans 12 it says i beseech you 01:15:47.880 --> 01:15:52.920 therefore brethren by the mercies of god that ye present your body as a living sacrifice 01:15:52.920 --> 01:15:57.990 wholly acceptable unto god which is your reasonable service here's one thing i know that god wants for 01:15:57.990 --> 01:16:02.610 you is for you to present your body as a living sacrifice for you to live your life for christ for 01:16:02.610 --> 01:16:07.140 you not to be selfish and only seek your own desires and pleasures of this life but to offer 01:16:07.140 --> 01:16:13.120 yourself a living sacrifice i know that that is god's will for you why because the bible told me so 01:16:13.120 --> 01:16:18.460 you know earlier this week i was releasing some videos about how salvation is not of repentance 01:16:18.460 --> 01:16:21.630 and someone's on there saying wow we found someone with all the answers it's like i do 01:16:21.630 --> 01:16:26.160 have the answer on salvation not because it came from my wisdom but because it came from the bible 01:16:26.160 --> 01:16:30.540 yeah i do know how to get saved these things have i written unto you that believe on the name of the 01:16:30.540 --> 01:16:35.230 son of god that you may know that you have everlasting yeah i know i do know jesus i do 01:16:35.230 --> 01:16:38.620 know that i'm saved i know that from god's word hey i know that god wants you to be a living 01:16:38.620 --> 01:16:43.830 sacrifice how because it's in god's word hey look at verse two and be not conformed to this world 01:16:43.830 --> 01:16:50.820 but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable 01:16:50.820 --> 01:16:58.510 and perfect what will of god right so we have to renew our minds we have to transform our minds 01:16:58.510 --> 01:17:03.450 be renewed unto the what will of god how do you do that by reading your bible when you read your 01:17:03.450 --> 01:17:07.640 bible you can know the will of god what does god want me to do in my marriage well he wants 01:17:07.640 --> 01:17:12.780 wives to obey their husbands and for husbands to love their wives kids you know what does god want 01:17:12.780 --> 01:17:17.850 me to do obey your parents workers what does he want you to do work hard as unto the lord 01:17:17.850 --> 01:17:22.270 preachers what does he want you to do preach the word hey soul winners what does he want you to do 01:17:22.270 --> 01:17:27.690 preach the gospel right god's will is not a mystery folks god's given us his word we know 01:17:27.690 --> 01:17:33.060 what god's will is but you have to be that wise man that whose eyes are in his head walking in 01:17:33.060 --> 01:17:41.520 wisdom not the fool who walks in darkness go back if you would to Ecclesiastes 2 so the wise man his 01:17:41.520 --> 01:17:48.910 eyes are in his head he's using his god-given faculties he's observant alert prudent vigilant 01:17:48.910 --> 01:17:54.440 he could foresee the evil i'll read for you proverbs 22 3 a prudent man foreseeeth the evil 01:17:54.440 --> 01:18:00.660 and hideeth himself but the simple pass on and are punished so the wise man hey he's analyzing 01:18:00.660 --> 01:18:05.990 situations he has insight into situations because of the wisdom he's been given to god's word he 01:18:05.990 --> 01:18:10.190 could look at a situation and say hey this is going down a bad path this is doomed this is 01:18:10.190 --> 01:18:14.810 dangerous let's hide ourselves from this evil that's the wise person the fool is what walking 01:18:14.810 --> 01:18:21.880 in darkness they're not observant right the fool is either not observant or they're just willingly 01:18:21.880 --> 01:18:27.700 blind they're just willingly not seeing signs that they should be seeing go if you go to verse 15 it 01:18:27.700 --> 01:18:33.610 says then said i in my heart as it happenedeth to the fool so it happenedeth even to me and why was 01:18:33.610 --> 01:18:40.520 i then more wise then i said in my heart that this is also vanity so notice wisdom better than folly 01:18:40.520 --> 01:18:45.230 but still ultimately has some level of vanity because he's saying man i just gave myself over 01:18:45.230 --> 01:18:51.020 to wisdom i became wise and i noticed something about this unfair life we live in hey one event 01:18:51.020 --> 01:18:58.760 happens to the fool it also happens to the wise right don't we see just crazy you know acts of chance 01:18:58.760 --> 01:19:03.090 time and chance happen into the mall the bible says where a really wise person just has something 01:19:03.090 --> 01:19:06.990 crazy happen to them i mean hey you could do everything right in life you could grow up in 01:19:06.990 --> 01:19:11.830 church you could serve god you can be on the soul winner you can become really skilled and educated 01:19:11.830 --> 01:19:16.830 you can start making a lot of money and your child can still get cancer you could still get hit by a 01:19:16.830 --> 01:19:21.340 car crossing the road you could still have just a random thing happen to you and you know what that 01:19:21.340 --> 01:19:25.550 same random thing that happens the fool can happen to you and so he's just saying like man why did i 01:19:25.550 --> 01:19:31.960 become so wise then you know if the same things are happening to the fool but again you shouldn't 01:19:31.960 --> 01:19:35.890 have your ultimate fulfillment and what you're seeking out of life is just wisdom in and of 01:19:35.890 --> 01:19:40.570 itself wisdom is better than folly but it still has a level of vanity to it he says verse 16 for 01:19:40.570 --> 01:19:46.130 there's no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool forever seeing that which now is in the 01:19:46.130 --> 01:19:54.860 days to come shall all be forgotten and how dyeth the wise man as the fool therefore i hated life 01:19:54.860 --> 01:20:01.850 because the work that is wrought under the sun is grievous unto me for all is vanity and vexation 01:20:01.850 --> 01:20:07.080 of spirit what a sad place to come into your life where you just hate your life but look a lot of 01:20:07.080 --> 01:20:12.000 people have been there where they just hate their life and you think well pastor you don't understand 01:20:12.000 --> 01:20:16.750 i hate my life because i'm poor because i need this because i'm having a terrible time no no no 01:20:16.750 --> 01:20:20.710 he was rich he had everything he could possibly want he gave himself over to every possible 01:20:20.710 --> 01:20:25.100 pleasure every mirth hey he's giving himself over to wine he's giving himself over to folly 01:20:25.100 --> 01:20:30.850 he's giving himself over to wisdom and he still at the end of it says you know what i hated life 01:20:30.850 --> 01:20:36.820 because i realized that all the works under the sun are vanity and vexation of spirit and notice 01:20:36.820 --> 01:20:41.100 what he's mad about he's like there's no remembrance of the wise more than of the fool forever seeing 01:20:41.100 --> 01:20:47.100 that which now is in the days to come shall all be forgotten how dyeth the wise man as the fool 01:20:47.100 --> 01:20:54.270 right so he's obviously has some level of care in his mind of his status and his legacy right 01:20:54.270 --> 01:20:58.950 here's the thing if you're just living for this world if you're if you're really a worldly person 01:20:58.950 --> 01:21:04.210 i could see why you'd care about your legacy but you know what if you are a dedicated christian 01:21:04.210 --> 01:21:08.170 and you realize that your life is just about getting other people into heaven and edifying 01:21:08.170 --> 01:21:12.390 other people and serving other people it doesn't matter if your work's so forgotten on this earth 01:21:12.390 --> 01:21:16.770 it doesn't matter if anchor baptist church someday is forgotten under the sun if there's 01:21:16.770 --> 01:21:20.590 going to be souls in heaven for all of eternity that are there because of the works of anchor 01:21:20.590 --> 01:21:25.600 baptist church hey who cares if i'm ever remembered as a pastor under the sun if i can be remembered 01:21:25.600 --> 01:21:30.810 as a servant of god up in heaven who cares if i'm remembered of being oh he was just you know such 01:21:30.810 --> 01:21:34.210 a good leader i don't care it's like are there people that i'm gonna meet in heaven that i got 01:21:34.210 --> 01:21:40.460 there by preaching the gospel that's what matters notice what it says uh go if you would verse number 01:21:40.460 --> 01:21:46.020 18 now this would be the third category he gives himself over to number three the vanity of toil 01:21:46.020 --> 01:21:53.560 verse 18 says yay i hated all my labor which i'd taken under the sun because i should leave it 01:21:53.560 --> 01:22:00.820 unto the man that shall be after me now again if you're working for the lord if what whatsoever 01:22:00.820 --> 01:22:05.450 you're doing you're doing as unto the lord you know it shouldn't matter in your mind who it's 01:22:05.450 --> 01:22:09.980 handed to when you're gone right who's gonna you know receive these things like in my opinion 01:22:09.980 --> 01:22:13.950 that just seems like a pretty vain thing to worry about like i'm being wise i'm building all these 01:22:13.950 --> 01:22:18.080 things i'm building this pool this orchard who's gonna inhabit this house when i'm gone it's like 01:22:18.080 --> 01:22:23.470 who cares you'll be gone it doesn't matter right stay there colossus 3 23 says and whatsoever you 01:22:23.470 --> 01:22:28.880 do do it heartily as to the lord and not unto men so hey who cares about the man that's going to 01:22:28.880 --> 01:22:34.590 come after you and take your works verse 19 and who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a 01:22:34.590 --> 01:22:39.200 fool yet shall he have rule over all my labor wherein I've labored and wherein 01:22:39.200 --> 01:22:44.210 I've showed myself wise under the Sun this is also vanity I would say it's a 01:22:44.210 --> 01:22:48.410 vain thing to care about like who cares just live your life singularly unto 01:22:48.410 --> 01:22:53.240 Christ you walk your Christian life you serve God you know that's all you can 01:22:53.240 --> 01:22:57.950 control you cannot control other people you cannot just control every per every 01:22:57.950 --> 01:23:03.660 successor every church plant every you know successor in business every 01:23:03.660 --> 01:23:06.940 successor in the presidency like these things cannot be controlled you just 01:23:06.940 --> 01:23:09.600 worry about yourself you know there's enough that you have to worry about of 01:23:09.600 --> 01:23:13.740 your own life to worry about what's gonna happen when I die it's like hey 01:23:13.740 --> 01:23:18.330 tomorrow we'll take care of itself serve God today he says in verse 20 therefore 01:23:18.330 --> 01:23:22.580 I went about to cause my heart to despair of all my labor which I took 01:23:22.580 --> 01:23:26.270 under the Sun but there's a man whose labor is in wisdom and in knowledge and 01:23:26.270 --> 01:23:30.360 in equity yet to a man that if not labor therein shall he leave it for his 01:23:30.360 --> 01:23:37.070 portion this also is vanity and a great evil so I mean he is describing a true 01:23:37.070 --> 01:23:42.090 fact the reality of this world that yes indeed there are a lot of people who 01:23:42.090 --> 01:23:46.390 they labor in wisdom they work super hard they're knowledgeable they're 01:23:46.390 --> 01:23:51.170 equitable and when they die or when they retire they turn things over to a jerk 01:23:51.170 --> 01:23:54.080 that runs everything into the ground right we've seen those examples in 01:23:54.080 --> 01:23:58.100 business where a man works super super hard he builds the company and then 01:23:58.100 --> 01:24:02.760 someone's just handed this you know entity that's been built by hard work 01:24:02.760 --> 01:24:06.410 and connecting with the customers and treating people well and someone walks 01:24:06.410 --> 01:24:10.130 in and they just see the bottom line and that's all they care about and they 01:24:10.130 --> 01:24:13.430 could run that business into the ground right there's businesses all the time 01:24:13.430 --> 01:24:16.910 they're just running the ground it could be the same thing in churches where a 01:24:16.910 --> 01:24:21.960 pastor works really hard builds a church dies gets sick retires and just some 01:24:21.960 --> 01:24:26.070 rando comes in it didn't work hard they didn't prove himself that person could 01:24:26.070 --> 01:24:30.120 just run things into the ground destroy it right nepotism this happens all the 01:24:30.120 --> 01:24:34.760 time oh I'm a boss I own a company therefore my son will for sure run this 01:24:34.760 --> 01:24:38.610 company whether he's cut out for it or not it's like I'm a pastor my son will 01:24:38.610 --> 01:24:41.570 take over as a passer whether he's cut out for it or not hey that's just a 01:24:41.570 --> 01:24:44.380 reality of this world he's saying there's people that work in wisdom they 01:24:44.380 --> 01:24:50.000 give it someone who's a fool and it gets destroyed verse 22 for what hath man of 01:24:50.000 --> 01:24:53.710 all his labor and of the vexation of his heart wherein he hath labored under the 01:24:53.710 --> 01:25:00.030 Sun for all his days are sorrow and his travail grief yea his heart take if not 01:25:00.030 --> 01:25:05.840 rest in the night this is also vanity you see where you get brought to in life 01:25:05.840 --> 01:25:10.340 where all you do is care for and live for the things under the Sun the things 01:25:10.340 --> 01:25:14.200 of this world I mean does this describe your life tonight 01:25:14.200 --> 01:25:19.310 reverse 23 again does this describe your life that all your days are sorrows I 01:25:19.310 --> 01:25:22.950 mean I know we have troubles don't we there's times over sorrowful but are 01:25:22.950 --> 01:25:29.340 just all your days sorrows and your travail grief yay his heart take if not 01:25:29.340 --> 01:25:33.360 rest in the night can you never get a good night's sleep can you never go to 01:25:33.360 --> 01:25:37.930 bed when it's time to go to bed I mean hey folks don't envy these people that 01:25:37.930 --> 01:25:41.570 seem to have it all because Solomon saying that all of his days are sorrow 01:25:41.570 --> 01:25:45.560 just man in general all of his days of sorrow was travail great grief yay his 01:25:45.560 --> 01:25:48.400 heart taking not rest in the night you know that is not how it should be for us 01:25:48.400 --> 01:25:53.080 as Christians go to Philippians for Philippians chapter number four now 01:25:53.080 --> 01:25:57.930 here's the thing this can be what your life is like unfortunately this can be 01:25:57.930 --> 01:26:01.770 what your life is like even as a Christian if you are living your life 01:26:01.770 --> 01:26:06.880 just quenching the spirit being selfish caring about money giving yourself over 01:26:06.880 --> 01:26:10.090 to wine giving yourself over to folly you could reach a point in your life 01:26:10.090 --> 01:26:13.580 where all of your days are grief where you just hate every day you hate life 01:26:13.580 --> 01:26:17.940 you hate being alive you can't even go to sleep can't even enjoy sleep can't 01:26:17.940 --> 01:26:21.000 enjoy anything in your life I don't want to get there that's a bad place to be 01:26:21.000 --> 01:26:24.800 and look we go through ups and downs as people some of us trials bigger than 01:26:24.800 --> 01:26:29.980 others but every single day having no joy that's intense that's extreme right 01:26:29.980 --> 01:26:35.470 there but what does the Bible command us Philippians chapter 4 verse 4 rejoice 01:26:35.470 --> 01:26:42.050 in the Lord always and again I say rejoice hey we have the option as 01:26:42.050 --> 01:26:46.380 Christians to rejoice and you know when rejoicing is gonna come natural to you 01:26:46.380 --> 01:26:50.460 is when you're walking in the spirit when you actually how do you have the 01:26:50.460 --> 01:26:53.580 joy of the Lord is when you're actually walking in the spirit and when you 01:26:53.580 --> 01:26:58.590 realize like hey you know my finances can be shot my house could be falling 01:26:58.590 --> 01:27:02.930 apart my servants suck cuz they don't even exist I mean I'm just thinking of 01:27:02.930 --> 01:27:06.320 music but I don't hear any of my ears it's like that's okay because I'm saved 01:27:06.320 --> 01:27:09.390 I mean that's one good thing to be happy about the fact that you're not gonna 01:27:09.390 --> 01:27:13.060 spend eternity in hell because you've trusted in Christ can you not rejoice 01:27:13.060 --> 01:27:16.090 about that and then you know you should do beyond that is you should actually 01:27:16.090 --> 01:27:21.040 strive to be a living sacrifice to serve God and go be a soul winner be a 01:27:21.040 --> 01:27:25.250 servant of God you know what if you do that there is gonna be rejoicing he that 01:27:25.250 --> 01:27:29.940 goeth forth and weepeth bearing precious seed shall doubtless come again with 01:27:29.940 --> 01:27:34.670 what rejoicing bringing his sheaves with him hey you know life can be hard there 01:27:34.670 --> 01:27:38.020 can be trials there can be sorrows but you know what brings joy how about 01:27:38.020 --> 01:27:42.320 getting someone saved that brings joy you know I think most of you probably 01:27:42.320 --> 01:27:45.620 already heard about the story of me and brother Warren soul winning this week 01:27:45.620 --> 01:27:49.010 one of the coolest things ever out soul winning I'm not gonna be able to make 01:27:49.010 --> 01:27:52.110 it to this upcoming Saturday soul winning time so I just said hey can 01:27:52.110 --> 01:27:55.460 someone go soul winning with me this Monday I just want to make up the time that way 01:27:55.460 --> 01:27:58.490 I'm not just like missing that time completely brother Warren went out with 01:27:58.490 --> 01:28:01.910 me we just started knocking a random apartment that was knocked pretty 01:28:01.910 --> 01:28:06.000 recently actually and we're knocking knocking we get this young teenage boy 01:28:06.000 --> 01:28:09.670 saved praise God we got this young teenage boy saved it was great then we're 01:28:09.670 --> 01:28:13.050 just knocking and no one's answering no one's want to talk to us just like for 01:28:13.050 --> 01:28:17.470 the rest of the time then like the very last door that we talked to knock on the 01:28:17.470 --> 01:28:21.780 door woman answers there's all these sweet kids in the background and she's 01:28:21.780 --> 01:28:24.680 nice I asked her hey you know more importantly than church because she 01:28:24.680 --> 01:28:27.870 said her kids go to church but she doesn't but she's a Christian hey more 01:28:27.870 --> 01:28:31.730 importantly than going to church if you were to die today are you 100% sure that 01:28:31.730 --> 01:28:35.160 you're going to heaven this woman just immediately started crying immediately 01:28:35.160 --> 01:28:39.160 just started bawling and I'm just like okay what's going on and she goes you 01:28:39.160 --> 01:28:42.960 know it's funny you said that because just on Saturday my nephew was murdered 01:28:42.960 --> 01:28:47.070 here in OKC and I knew exactly what she was talking about because I follow the 01:28:47.070 --> 01:28:51.490 news for our SWAT soul winning time but this kid when we go to our SWAT soul 01:28:51.490 --> 01:28:54.660 winning time our soul winning action team we purposely go to the sites of 01:28:54.660 --> 01:28:58.660 homicides to minister to families there and the neighbors but this homicide 01:28:58.660 --> 01:29:02.800 happened way far away from her home didn't know this person didn't know that 01:29:02.800 --> 01:29:06.620 she would be there but yet I believe that God led us to that woman you know I 01:29:06.620 --> 01:29:10.060 believe that maybe God made my schedule all busy on Saturday so that I had to go 01:29:10.060 --> 01:29:14.320 soul winning on Monday to find that woman and you know what her nephew was 01:29:14.320 --> 01:29:18.830 murdered she was sad she was heartbroken but you know what we preach the Word of 01:29:18.830 --> 01:29:22.480 God unto her we preach the gospel unto her you know what she believed on the 01:29:22.480 --> 01:29:27.060 Lord Jesus Christ and got saved you know what so a horrible tragedy this 01:29:27.060 --> 01:29:31.130 horrific situation losing a loved one to murder a young teenage boy lost to 01:29:31.130 --> 01:29:34.010 murder but you know what happened as a result of that is that she ended up 01:29:34.010 --> 01:29:38.520 getting saved you know what that brings me joy that brings angels in heaven joy 01:29:38.520 --> 01:29:42.650 hey that should bring you joy right there it's like what would you rather do 01:29:42.650 --> 01:29:47.380 waste your life chasing money oh just living for nothing but your video games 01:29:47.380 --> 01:29:52.000 or your motorcycle trip or your boat trip or your next vacation and just 01:29:52.000 --> 01:29:55.380 serving yourself pleasing yourself but really hating your life really not 01:29:55.380 --> 01:29:58.770 being able to sleep really not being able to content or just like hey you 01:29:58.770 --> 01:30:00.910 know maybe things aren't perfect in your life maybe you're strapped 01:30:00.910 --> 01:30:03.580 financially maybe your health isn't great but it's like why don't you be a 01:30:03.580 --> 01:30:07.020 soul winner and get that joy because no matter what else is happening in your 01:30:07.020 --> 01:30:11.270 life you know if you're serving God you're on the right side don't look at 01:30:11.270 --> 01:30:14.870 your finances to see if you're right with God look at your actions hey am I 01:30:14.870 --> 01:30:19.380 in church am I loving God's people am I preaching the gospel am I reading his 01:30:19.380 --> 01:30:23.780 word am I getting on my face and praying to God asking him to bless me you know 01:30:23.780 --> 01:30:26.940 then you know you're on the right side and that could actually bring you joy 01:30:26.940 --> 01:30:32.110 that could bring you peace I'll read for you Psalm 122 verse 1 I was glad when 01:30:32.110 --> 01:30:34.930 they said unto me let us go into the house of the Lord you know makes me 01:30:34.930 --> 01:30:39.580 happy going to church makes me happy it makes me happy seeing God's people 01:30:39.580 --> 01:30:43.560 seeing God's house be full of people you know being around other like-minded 01:30:43.560 --> 01:30:46.520 Christians that should bring you joy in your life people who are not going to 01:30:46.520 --> 01:30:50.620 church they are missing out I'm telling you you really think that people in this 01:30:50.620 --> 01:30:54.890 area who are saved who have new IFB doctrine who know the truth that just 01:30:54.890 --> 01:30:57.210 aren't going to church you think that they're living happy lives I'm telling 01:30:57.210 --> 01:31:00.590 you they're not I would love for them to change that and get right with God 01:31:00.590 --> 01:31:05.790 Psalm 119 verse 11 says thy testimonies have I taken as in heritage forever for 01:31:05.790 --> 01:31:09.000 they are the rejoicing of my heart you know what else makes someone happy 01:31:09.000 --> 01:31:12.890 reading the Bible reading God's commandments the Bible says it's the 01:31:12.890 --> 01:31:19.190 rejoicing of my heart we live in a sinful stupid world and it's nice to 01:31:19.190 --> 01:31:23.090 just get a reality check from God's Word you know you're out in this world and 01:31:23.090 --> 01:31:25.570 you hear a man could be a woman a woman could be a man 01:31:25.570 --> 01:31:29.590 sodomites can adopt kids you just read the Bible and it makes me happy to 01:31:29.590 --> 01:31:35.010 bring me back to normal land look at Ecclesiastes 2 verse 24 notice he says 01:31:35.010 --> 01:31:39.030 there's nothing better for a man than that he should eat and drink and that he 01:31:39.030 --> 01:31:43.540 should make his soul enjoy good in his labor this also I saw that it was from 01:31:43.540 --> 01:31:47.620 the hand of God now here's the thing I do believe that it is a blessing of God 01:31:47.620 --> 01:31:51.630 for us to be able to enjoy the fruits of our labor I'm not one of these people 01:31:51.630 --> 01:31:55.560 that believes in being a static aesthetic excuse me where just don't 01:31:55.560 --> 01:32:02.130 enjoy food eat only peanut butter and jellies eat old canned expired food you 01:32:02.130 --> 01:32:06.550 know eat ketchup mixed with whatever weird expired food I believe in eating 01:32:06.550 --> 01:32:11.260 well enjoying your life eating good hey have a juice have a sparkling juice 01:32:11.260 --> 01:32:15.900 have sparkling water whatever soda whatever you're into right but ask 01:32:15.900 --> 01:32:20.790 yourself this verse 24 is this really true there is nothing better really 01:32:20.790 --> 01:32:25.070 Solomon there's nothing better for a man than that he should eat and drink 01:32:25.070 --> 01:32:30.100 there's nothing better in this life than to eat and drink that's that's too far 01:32:30.100 --> 01:32:33.610 folks hey I do believe these blessings are from the hand of God and you know 01:32:33.610 --> 01:32:38.170 what enjoy your life enjoy your life enjoy the food enjoy the thing the 01:32:38.170 --> 01:32:40.790 pleasures of this life but you know what it shouldn't be the ultimate thing 01:32:40.790 --> 01:32:45.930 you're living for verse 25 for who can eat or who else can hasten here into 01:32:45.930 --> 01:32:48.800 more than I he's like hey if I want to give myself fully over to food and 01:32:48.800 --> 01:32:52.240 eating who could do it better than me who could do it faster than me he's like 01:32:52.240 --> 01:32:58.020 I could do it right now anything I want period verse 26 for God giveth to a man 01:32:58.020 --> 01:33:02.610 that is good in his sight wisdom and knowledge joy but to the sinner he 01:33:02.610 --> 01:33:07.480 giveth travail to gather and to heap up that he may give to him that is good 01:33:07.480 --> 01:33:14.180 before God this also is vanity vexation of spirit last place we'll go to his 01:33:14.180 --> 01:33:19.010 first Corinthians seven so a little bit of a downer of a chapter when you're 01:33:19.010 --> 01:33:24.530 just walking through Solomon's you know self experiment here and you know the 01:33:24.530 --> 01:33:29.040 results are in on his experiment it's like all right self-indulgence vanity 01:33:29.040 --> 01:33:33.130 failed didn't bring him happiness at all right wisdom well it's better than 01:33:33.130 --> 01:33:37.050 folly as far as light excel at darkness it's better than folly but still 01:33:37.050 --> 01:33:40.900 ultimately vanity because bad things that happen to fools also happen to us 01:33:40.900 --> 01:33:46.490 also happen to him okay his labor his toil under the Sun vanity won't last 01:33:46.490 --> 01:33:50.580 forever probably will give in to a fool who hasn't labored in those things right 01:33:50.580 --> 01:33:55.540 you know eating good food drinking good drink enjoying your life hey you know 01:33:55.540 --> 01:33:58.730 that is a blessing from God but is it really just nothing better than those 01:33:58.730 --> 01:34:04.600 things right look at first Corinthians 7 verse 29 it says but this I say 01:34:04.600 --> 01:34:12.210 brethren the time is short he remaineth that both they that have wives be as 01:34:12.210 --> 01:34:16.490 though they had none you know that your life is short the Bible says the Bible 01:34:16.490 --> 01:34:21.270 says that our life is like a vapor it appears for a little time and then it 01:34:21.270 --> 01:34:27.820 vanishes away time is short pretty soon this life will be over pretty soon we'll 01:34:27.820 --> 01:34:31.180 be in heaven all the works and stuff that we've done under the Sun will be 01:34:31.180 --> 01:34:35.160 forgotten the vanity of this life will be forgotten look at verse 30 and they 01:34:35.160 --> 01:34:38.760 that weep as though they wept not and they that rejoice as though they rejoice 01:34:38.760 --> 01:34:43.190 not and they that buy as though they possess not they that use this world as 01:34:43.190 --> 01:34:49.460 not abusing it for the fashion of this world pass it away let's assume that the 01:34:49.460 --> 01:34:52.800 people I'm gonna talk about right now are all saved okay you know if you're 01:34:52.800 --> 01:34:57.060 married you don't get a special reward in heaven just for being married if all 01:34:57.060 --> 01:34:59.960 you ever did was get saved and get married pretty soon in heaven it's gonna 01:34:59.960 --> 01:35:03.260 be as if you were never married okay let's say that you didn't do anything for 01:35:03.260 --> 01:35:07.630 God but you built a huge business and you made all this money you know when you 01:35:07.630 --> 01:35:11.110 get to heaven it's gonna be as if you never made money it's gonna be as if you 01:35:11.110 --> 01:35:14.240 never built anything great because becoming great in the kingdom of God is 01:35:14.240 --> 01:35:18.330 not by making money on earth it's not by building a business on earth it's by 01:35:18.330 --> 01:35:22.110 serving God serving others winning people to Christ keeping God's 01:35:22.110 --> 01:35:26.410 commandments and you know what conversely hey if your life is full of 01:35:26.410 --> 01:35:32.940 poverty sorrow lack want pretty soon it's gonna be like you never lacked 01:35:32.940 --> 01:35:36.660 pretty soon it's gonna be like you were never poor hey you got a bunch of health 01:35:36.660 --> 01:35:40.080 problems in this life pretty soon it's gonna be like you never had any health 01:35:40.080 --> 01:35:43.530 problems right I mean just think about just all the different situations people 01:35:43.530 --> 01:35:48.890 are in one day it's gonna become so clear to everyone that this life is 01:35:48.890 --> 01:35:55.050 meaningless that this life is vain and I'm talking the good and the bad and 01:35:55.050 --> 01:35:59.140 pretty soon all the bad that you constantly struggle with and that you 01:35:59.140 --> 01:36:03.390 constantly complain about and the things that keep you from serving God pretty 01:36:03.390 --> 01:36:05.860 soon it's gonna be like none of those things ever happened and you're just 01:36:05.860 --> 01:36:10.080 gonna be living in eternity with the fruits of your spiritual labor and you 01:36:10.080 --> 01:36:14.990 know what I would rather be poor in this world have issues in this world have 01:36:14.990 --> 01:36:18.160 conflict have health issues I'm not begging for those things don't hear me 01:36:18.160 --> 01:36:21.800 wrong I'm just saying I would rather have those things but instead of 01:36:21.800 --> 01:36:25.940 laboring under the Sun labor for heavenly rewards and then I get there 01:36:25.940 --> 01:36:29.350 someday and it's like hey is as if I never had any of those problems and now 01:36:29.350 --> 01:36:35.010 I'm enjoying joy now I'm happy now it's mirth now it's party time now it's 01:36:35.010 --> 01:36:39.750 riches now it's a mansion hey now it's gold now it's those things then then 01:36:39.750 --> 01:36:44.430 waste my life building the gold and the silver and the trinkets and the musical 01:36:44.430 --> 01:36:47.360 instruments and the servants and the pools and the origin all these things 01:36:47.360 --> 01:36:50.100 and getting to heaven being like well it's as if I never had any of those 01:36:50.100 --> 01:36:55.120 things and now I'm dirt broke in heaven for all of eternity someday I'm telling 01:36:55.120 --> 01:36:57.820 you it's gonna become very very clear to people and you know what Solomon he 01:36:57.820 --> 01:36:59.800 ends up getting there in this book of course fear God to keep his 01:36:59.800 --> 01:37:03.200 commandments this is the whole duty of man but you know what I like that we're 01:37:03.200 --> 01:37:06.550 kind of walking through this experiment with him so that you don't have to do 01:37:06.550 --> 01:37:11.910 this yourself you don't have to go through your lay hold on folly phase you 01:37:11.910 --> 01:37:15.330 don't have to go through your let's drink wine phase you don't have to go 01:37:15.330 --> 01:37:19.710 through your let's love money phase let's you know just obsess about wisdom 01:37:19.710 --> 01:37:24.640 and obsess about toil and obsess over food and beverages hey let's use this 01:37:24.640 --> 01:37:29.420 world but not abuse it God gives us blessings you enjoy those blessings if 01:37:29.420 --> 01:37:33.810 God's giving you money hey praise God thank him for that recognize he gave you 01:37:33.810 --> 01:37:37.700 the power to get wealth recognize he's the source of that and hey if you enjoy 01:37:37.700 --> 01:37:41.580 your life you enjoy giving praise and honor to God while you serve him and you 01:37:41.580 --> 01:37:44.820 know what if you don't have any riches you don't have any of these things you 01:37:44.820 --> 01:37:49.000 thank God for your life and you give him honor and glory while you serve him 01:37:49.000 --> 01:37:53.680 anyways let's pray Lord thank you so much for this chapter I pray that you 01:37:53.680 --> 01:37:57.450 just continue to reveal truths that we need to hear from Ecclesiastes Lord that 01:37:57.450 --> 01:38:00.720 you just fill us with wisdom and please bless the remainder of our time together 01:38:00.720 --> 01:38:04.390 and bring us home safely tonight we love you and you see me pray amen 01:38:04.390 --> 01:38:34.620 asked him this evening will be number 100 him number 100 day by day him number 01:38:34.620 --> 01:39:05.660 100 100 day by day 100 there on the first 01:40:17.240 --> 01:41:16.830 missed