Greg Laurie - The Foolish Wise Man (02/15/2018)
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Pastor Greg Laurie preaches on Solomon, the wisest yet foolish man in Ecclesiastes, who chased pleasure, wealth, and wisdom but found only emptiness and vanity under the sun. He shows how Solomon's compromises in marriage, morality, and priorities led to a meaningless life, urging us to fear God, keep His commandments, and choose life in Christ before it's too late.
The Reality of Boredom and Depression Today
The title of my message is "The Foolish Wise Man". Now, I don't even think I need to ask this question, but I'll ask it anyway. How many of you have ever been bored? You've been bored? Raise your hand up. If you've ever been bored. Okay. How many of you are bored right now? Raise up your hand. Okay. Get out now. Okay. I haven't even started. I tell you, if you're bored after what you just heard, there's something not right.
But boredom is an issue in our culture today, isn't it? You know, you'll see a kid with a smartphone, and they're texting their friend while playing the game on their iPad, while watching television, and then they'll say, you know, I'm bored. Did you know that the word boredom did not even exist in pre-modern languages? So it seems that boredom is a relatively modern term, a condition that afflicts more people today than it seems as though were afflicted, say, centuries ago.
Not only are we bored as a modern society, but we're depressed as well. I read that antidepressants led the market in prescription drugs in 2007, totaling $12 billion in sales. And in 2008, they still ranked among the top five pharmaceuticals being dispensed in the United States. So put it all together. It sounds like we're a nation of bored and depressed people. I mean, is that a description of you?
You know, maybe there's a lot of things that you've tried in life to kind of get that buzz, to get that thrill, to get that charge, to reach that high. I saw an interesting person being interviewed recently. Her name is Robin Smith. She's a doctor. She's written a book called Hungry: The Truth About Being Full. And she writes about people who have achieved phenomenal success in life. And she called it being hungry for the high note.
She made an interesting statement. She said that Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston, who both, of course, died early deaths, the conventional wisdom is drugs killed them. But she points out in her book, quote, "people say that drugs killed them. Drugs do not kill them. What killed them is they were striving and hungry. They were striving to hit the high note again." In fact, in an interview that Whitney did with Oprah, not long before she died, she actually said, "I'm trying to hit the high note again." You know, with massive record sales or worldwide success. And then suddenly you can't reach that plateau again. And so people go into deep depression.
Solomon: The Man Who Tried It All
But listen, boredom and depression are nothing new. There was a guy that wrote these words, "there's nothing new under the sun." That's the guy we're going to focus on right now. Because this is a man who lived centuries ago and yet experiencing same issues. He was an architectural genius, masterminding the building of incredible structures. He was worth billions of dollars. I'm not talking about Bill Gates or Rupert Murdoch or Donald Trump. I'm talking about a man that was a king over Israel. And his name was Solomon.
And his is one of the greatest stories ever told. You might say that Solomon tried it all. If anyone could ever say, been there, done that, bought the t-shirt, it was certainly Solomon. In fact, he was what you might describe as the hedonist extraordinaire, making Hugh Hefner look like a lightweight in comparison. Solomon was highly educated. Yet he would go in these unbelievable drinking binges. He chased after women like there was no tomorrow. He committed himself to researching the roots of human behavior to discover why people did what they do. Meanwhile, as a king, he ignored the affairs of state. He neglected his family. He set aside all spiritual truths and principle.
And whether it was passion, pleasure, philosophy, sex, or money, he determined to find out everything he could about the topic. He was going to explore it from every side. He was going to personally do it. Now, you might say, not that. Sounds like fun. Well, it wasn't so much fun, as we'll see as we come to the conclusion of his story. Because, in fact, Solomon ended up squandering amazing opportunities and effectively throwing away most of his life.
But, you know, one of the things I appreciate about the Bible is it's a thoroughly honest book, isn't it? I mean, if someone does well, it tells us that. If someone does well and has a fall, it tells us that too. If someone does horribly, it tells us that. There's no whitewashing in the Scripture. There's no cover-up in the Scripture. There's no spin in the biblical stories. The spin stops here, right? Because the Bible is direct and honest. And it gives us its heroes, warts and all.
Now, some people seem to get it right from beginning to end, like Joseph and Daniel. Others got it right sometimes, like Samson and Saul. Others mostly got it right, like King David. And some got it mostly wrong, like Solomon.
Solomon's Godly Heritage and Early Wisdom
So who was this guy? Well, he was the son of David and Bathsheba. He became the ruler over Israel after his father's death. And he had the potential to be a great king because, as it turns out, God gave to Solomon supernatural wisdom on a scale that was not known up to this point. He was renowned as the wisest man on the face of the earth. Not only that, but he had this amazing godly heritage.
Now, we know his father slipped up, and we looked at that in our studies in David. But hey, let's not forget that David was uniquely described as the man after God's own heart. And David got a lot of things right and passed those things on to Solomon. But Solomon followed them for a while and then just chucked them and went his own way as he went in his search for the meaning of life.
His conclusion after his vain search was as follows. Ecclesiastes 1:1-3. He says, "The words of the preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem, Vanity of vanities, says the preacher. Vanity of vanities. All is vanity. What profit has a man from all his labor in which he toils under the sun?"
Now what does that even mean? Understand when Solomon uses the word vanity, it doesn't mean the same thing it means to us today. When we think of vanity, we think, well, of a vain person. You know, the kind of person who never saw a mirror they did not like. A person that loves to look at their own reflection and talk about themselves and focus on themselves, etc. That's actually not what the word means that Solomon uses.
And as a matter of fact, this word vanity is used 38 times in Ecclesiastes. And the word can be translated emptiness. So you could just as easily translate that as emptiness, emptiness. All is emptiness. Or futility. Or meaninglessness. Or a wisp of a vapor. Or a hollow empty ring. Or nothingness. You could translate it nothingness, nothingness. All is nothingness.
Solomon is effectively saying that there is nothing on this earth that will satisfy us completely. No thing. No pleasure. No relationship because he had tried everything you could try. It is not unlike a person getting on one of those stationary bicycles and now they are more high tech than they used to be and they have a little video screen and on your little screen you are going up a hill so it gets a little harder to ride. Then you are going down a hill and it is a little bit easier. It is very exciting because you are riding through all these amazing places but the reality is you never moved an inch. And that is sort of the idea that is being conveyed here as you are spinning your wheels. You are not really going anywhere.
Life Under the Sun: Empty and Repetitive
Here are some more of his conclusions about life without God in Ecclesiastes 1 verse 1. These are the words of the teacher King David's son who ruled in Jerusalem. Everything is meaningless. Utterly meaningless. Why do people, what do they get for all their hard work? Generations come and go but nothing really changes. The sun rises and sets and hurries to rise again. The wind blows south and north, here and there, twisting back and forth, getting nowhere. The rivers run into the sea but the sea is never full. And the waters return again to the rivers. That flows back to the sea.
Everything is weary and tiresome. No matter how much we see we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear we are never content. History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. There is nothing new under the sun. What can you point out that is new? How do you know it didn't exist long ago? We don't remember what happened in those former times. Wow. What a downer this guy is. He is like a Quaalude. I mean how can anyone be so depressed? Well because he did everything.
Have you ever wondered why high profile people who are super rich, who are super famous often have substance issues or alcohol issues or other problems? Why is that? Well that is because they get to do what others only dream about. See as long as you have the dream, if you will. As long as you think, oh one of these days I will have this success or one of these days I will get that car. One of these days I would have this other accomplishment under my belt or whatever. They do it. Then they move on to the next level. And they do that. And they move to the next level. And they do that. And they can't keep that high that they were on. They can't hit the high note any longer. So they turn to other things. Solomon is describing a life without God.
David's Final Advice to Solomon
Now as I already said, he was raised in a godly home. Listen to this advice his dad gave him on his death bed. King David said to his son, Solomon, "Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve him with an undivided heart and a willing mind, for the Lord searches all hearts and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts." Son, listen to me, his dad was saying. I know a thing or two about life too. I have made my mistakes. Don't forget what happened with your mother and I. And I don't want that to happen to you, son. I want you to learn from my mistakes. But I also followed the Lord. And I served the Lord. And you know that I suffered a lot as Saul hunted me down and persecuted me. But I never struck back. And I kept my heart bright before God. And it was never divided, Solomon. You need to serve the Lord with an undivided heart. You can't live off my faith, son. You need your own faith.
And that is true for all of us. And as parents we want to pass that legacy on. We want our kids to get it. And then our grandchildren to get it. We want our God to become their God. Right? As Naomi said to Ruth. As Ruth said to her mother-in-law, Naomi, I mean to say in Ruth 1:16, "Your people shall be my people, and your God shall be my God."
Well, initially, Solomon followed his father's advice. And his heart was not divided at first. But then he started opening himself up to things he had no business being a part of. And things went from bad to worse. And he went on his little research project to see what was out there. But listen, just to show you how well he started, and how off track he got, now let's go to our text in Kings there, chapter 3, verse 5. So turn over there with me if you would. 1 Kings chapter 3, verse 5.
God's Blank Check to Solomon
So here is Solomon now. He is a young boy. He has just taken over for his dad. His father is in heaven. And we read that, at night the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream and said, "What do you want? Ask and I will give it to you." Now just imagine that for a moment. Imagine if God came to you tonight and said, "Ask what you want and I will give it to you." What would you say? He didn't put any conditions on it. He just said, "Ask and I will give it to you." It is called carte blanche. Right? Whatever you want, ask for it now.
Look at Solomon's reply, verse 6. Solomon replied, "You were wonderfully kind to my father David, because he was honest and true and faithful to you. And you have continued this great kindness to him today by giving him a son to succeed him. O Lord my God, now you have made me king instead of my father David, but I am like a little child who doesn't know his way around. And here I am among your own chosen people, a nation so great they are too numerous to count."
Now look at what he asked for, verse 9. "Give me an understanding mind, so I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong. For who by himself was able to govern this great nation of yours?" The Lord was pleased with Solomon's reply and was glad that he had asked for wisdom. And God said, "Because you have asked for wisdom in governing my people, and you have not asked for a long life, or riches for yourself, or the death of your enemies, I will give you what you asked for. I will give you a wise and understanding mind, such as no one has ever had or ever will have. And I will give you what you did not ask for riches and honor. No other king in the world will be compared to you for the rest of your life."
I love that. And this is the Lord effectively offering a blank check to Solomon. What do you want? But because Solomon had his priorities in order, he prayed the right way. Now, you say, Would God ever do this for me? As a matter of fact, he will. Listen to this. Jesus said in John 15, "If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you." Another translation from the original language states that same verse this way. Jesus speaking, "If you maintain a living communion with me, and my words are at home with you, you can ask at once for yourself whatever your heart desires, and it will be yours."
Now that sounds really great. Whatever your heart desires. And we sort of gravitate toward that part of the promise. Yeah. Whatever my heart desires. Wait a second. Don't mess with the condition. Jesus said, "If you maintain a living communion with me, and my word is at home with you." Listen, if you are walking in close fellowship with God, and His word is at home in your heart, you are going to pray for things that bring God glory. And if you are praying for self-indulgent things, it would be doubtful you are maintaining a living communion with Him, and His word is at home in you.
The Purpose of Prayer and Seeking First the Kingdom
So Solomon was living the right way. Really, what is prayer? What is the purpose of prayer? To talk God into something? Do you really want to talk God into something? I don't think so. I think the idea of prayer is not to get God to do what I want Him to do. Prayer is to get me in alignment with the will of God. If I am in my little boat, and I want to get to the dock, and I take my rope and I throw it up in that dock, and I start pulling myself toward it, what is happening? Is the dock being pulled toward the boat, or is the boat being pulled toward the dock? Well it is the latter, right? It is the boat being pulled toward the dock.
So when I pray, am I pulling God toward me? Come on God. No, no, no. I am pulling myself toward God. And that is what Solomon did. And it reminds me of the promise of Jesus when He says, "Seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." Now what is the context of that statement? He was saying, Don't be like the nonbelievers who obsess over what they are going to drink, what they are going to eat, what they are going to wear. Don't worry about that stuff. But you instead, seek first the kingdom, or put God first in your life, and all these things shall be added to you. He will give you what you need.
And in the same way Solomon had his priorities in order, and now the Lord tacks on these amazing blessings. Hey, I am going to give you a long life. I am going to give you wealth. I am going to give you all these things you did not ask for, because you asked for wisdom. God will give you what you need. He will supply all of your needs, according to His riches and glory in Christ, according to Philippians 4:19. By the way, that does not say He will supply all of your greed. It says He will supply all of your needs.
You know, you have heard the expression, careful what you wish for, you might get it. That is true. You do not want God to Grant to you whatever you desire, because you might end up asking for the wrong thing. There was a guy who was stranded on a desert island and he saw some kind of, you already know where I am going, don't you? He saw like a lamp laying in the sand. And what is this? He picked it up and rubbed the sand off. Of course the genie appears, right? And the genie says, "I will give to you three wishes." He says, "Oh wow. Well genie, my wish is I want to be off of this island in a Cadillac convertible, cruising down PCH." Poof! Both wishes were answered. And he is cruising along. And it is so great. And he has one wish left. The genie says, "What is your last wish?" He goes, "I am going to kind of hang on to that, the genie. I will let you know. Don't worry about it, you know."
And the guy turned on the radio and the song for Oscar Mayer Wieners was playing. So he started, "I wish you were an Oscar Mayer Wiener." That is it. So, okay. Careful what you wish for. You might get it. See the problem is that is a dated reference. There used to be a song for Oscar Mayer Wieners. How many of you remember that song? Why didn't you laugh then? Don't you get it? He was singing along while he had one wish left. And the lyrics were, "I wish I were an Oscar Mayer Wiener." See, that is what happened to him. Did I not make that clear? Whoa, tough audience. Tough audience. I feel like Rodney Dangerfield up here. All right.
Solomon's Three Major Compromises
Okay, so one of the problems that led to Solomon's fall. Number one, he compromised his walk. He compromised his walk. Solomon had this relationship with God to start with. And as a matter of fact, he built the temple. Now David wanted to build a temple. And the Lord said to David, "No, you have shed too much blood. You are not going to do it." But David amassed a lot of money toward this project. And so it was his son Solomon that was able to bring that about.
And when that temple, the first temple, was dedicated to God, Solomon in 1 Kings 8:58 said, "May the Lord give us His desire to do His will in everything. It will be all of His commands, laws, and regulations He gave our ancestors. And may you as people always be faithful to the Lord our God. May you obey His laws and commands just as you are doing today." That sounded great. It was just one problem. Solomon himself was not doing that. He had already disobeyed God by marrying a non-believer.
Because 1 Kings 3 says, Solomon made an alliance with Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and married one of his daughters. At that time, the people of Israel sacrificed their offerings at local altars. For a temple honoring the name of the Lord had not yet been built. So Solomon loved the Lord and followed the instructions of his father David. Except that Solomon too offered sacrifices and burnt incense at the local altars. See at this point, before the temple was built, people would offer their sacrifices to God on pagan altars. And Solomon did this too, all the while saying he loved the Lord. Why? Because he was married to this non-believing Egyptian chick. Okay? And she worshiped false gods, so he worshiped false gods.
Here is how it works in the real world. You marry a non-believer and you think you are going to pull them up. Newsflash, they are going to pull you down. What happened to Solomon? Did he get her to worship the true and living God? Oh no, no. She got him to worship on pagan altars. And that is always the way it works out. And that is why the Bible tells us not to be unequally yoked. 2 Corinthians 6:14, "Don't be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. What fellowship does righteousness have with unrighteousness, what communion does light have with darkness?" Or another translation. And I like this translation. "Don't become partners with those who reject God. How can you make a partnership out of right and wrong? That is not partnership. That is war."
Now that is a good statement because that is what is going to happen to you. You are going to get pulled down. And especially when it comes to anything remotely romantic. Okay? So when some non-believing guy or girl asks you out as a Christian, your response should be, "I am sorry. I do not want to get involved with a guy who is not a Christian. Are you a Christian?" Now you have to understand, guys, they will lie to your face. Girls too, as a matter of fact. You will say, "are you a Christian?" "Well, why do you ask?" "Well, because I will only go on with a Christian." "Oh, right. Okay. Praise the Lord. How about a little hug for your big brother?" As in the Bible say, greet one another with a holy kiss. Let us work on that right now.
You will say, "well, are you a Christian?" He will say, "no, but I am open. I am open." Right? "Well, will you come to church with me?" "Yeah, I do that." "Yeah, come on to church with me." "All right. Yeah, we have a Bible study on Thursday nights. Will you come?" "Oh yeah, I will come." "All right. He says, well, I will pick you up." "Well, what time?" "Church starts at seven. I will pick you up at like six. And we will grab a bite to eat." "All right." So he picks you up. You go out and get a bite to eat. Now it is like 6:30. It is 6:40. The church is starting to say, "oh, well, let us get some dessert." And get some dessert. "Well, let us talk a little more. You know, oh, we are too late for church. Oh, isn't that too bad? Hey, you want to go out again?" See, they are pulling you down. You are not pulling them up. They really want to meet you. Say, "I will tell you what. I will meet you tonight." "Great. Where?" "At church. I will keep a seat open next to me." But in a way you are not going down that road.
Well, this is what Solomon did. And one thing led to another with him. And things went from bad to worse. Number two, he compromised his wealth. He compromised his wealth. Solomon amassed a huge fortune. Because people would pay him large amounts of money to hear his great wisdom. I mean, this guy was so wise that people would come from around the world to sit at his feet and ask him questions. The queen of Sheba herself said the half hasn't even been told how wise this guy is. So he would make a lot of money out of all these opportunities. And he just hoarded that money.
You know, money is a wonderful servant. But it is a hard taskmaster. And that is one of the reasons why the Lord tells us that we should faithfully give to him. Because when I give back to God, I am saying, A, I recognize everything that I have comes from you. And B, I am giving back to you and investing in your kingdom. And some people don't do this. As a matter of fact, most surveys that have been done are revealed that the average American Christian gives an average of two to three percent of their income. And nine to ten give nothing at all.
And yet God says in the book of Malachi, "do people cheat God? Well, as a matter of fact, you have cheated me." Then people say, "when have we cheated you?" God says, "you have cheated me out of the tithes and offerings due to me. You are under a curse. Your nation has been cheating me. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, so there will be enough food in my temple. And if you do, the Lord says, I will open up the windows of heaven for you and pour you out a blessing so great you won't have room enough to receive it." So he compromised his money, his wealth.
Compromising Morality and the Pursuit of Pleasure
And number three, he compromised his morality. He compromised his morality. If it wasn't bad enough that he married a non-believer, now he is starting a collection. Check this out. Solomon had 700 wives. I am not making this up. And if that wasn't enough, 300 concubines. What is that? Ask your mother when you get home. But you get the idea. I mean a thousand women effectively at his disposal, not only was this wrong morally, but it caused him to turn to other gods.
In 1 Kings 11, God says, "You shall not associate with them, neither shall they associate with you, for they will turn your heart away after other gods." But Solomon held fast to these in love, and his heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God as the heart of his father David had been, and Solomon was evil in the sight of the Lord, and he did not follow the Lord fully, as David his father had done. So he is involved with all these women, and now his heart is going toward the false gods that they worship.
Now what happens? Well, here in Ecclesiastes 1, we are going to see what he did. Verse 13 says, Solomon says, "I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven." This word seek can be translated, seek and explore. In fact, in the Hebrew it can be translated, to investigate the roots of a matter. So Solomon is effectively making this his research project. He is going to research the roots of human behavior. Why do people do what they do?
So he started by getting the finest education available in his day. But yet, despite that fantastic education, there was still an emptiness in his life. In Ecclesiastes 1:16, he said, "Look, I am wiser than any of the kings who ruled in Jerusalem before me. I have greater wisdom and knowledge in any of them. So I work hard to distinguish myself from foolishness. But even now I realize that this was like chasing the wind. For the greater my wisdom, the greater my grief." Now why is that? Because he was seeking wisdom without God. And that left him empty. And it always will.
So he shifts gears. He is going to go from being a brainiac to a party animal. All right. Academic pursuit isn't doing it for me. It leaves me empty. I am going to just check my brains at the door and party. He took literally the lyrics of the Beastie Boys song, You have got to fight for the right to party. And that is what he did. He is just going to party. Ecclesiastes 2. "I said to myself, Come on. Let's give pleasure a try. Let's look at the good things in life. But I found that too is meaningless. It is silly to be laughing all the time. I said, What good does it do to seek only pleasure?"
The Emptiness of Pleasure, Laughter, and Wealth
You know some people they just want to be distracted. They just want to laugh. Just laugh about whatever. Just get a little escape from their problems. A comedian Jerry Seinfeld said, and I quote, "Everyone is looking for good sex, good food, and a good laugh. They are little islands of relief and often what is a painful existence." End quote. Just a little laugh, a little distraction. But the Bible even says, "Even in laughter the heart has sorrow." Can you remember that? Or maybe it is reality for you now. You know you are at a party with all your friends and everyone is laughing. Had a few drinks. You don't even know what you are laughing at. Have you ever noticed how drunk people laugh at nothing? The more they drink, the more they laugh. At what? Who knows? And so that is what the scripture is saying. It is stupid to be laughing all the time. Listen, I am all for laughter. I am all for joy. I am all for humor. But sometimes we should be mourning when we are laughing. And Solomon realized that it was an empty kind of laughter he was experiencing.
And so now he continues on. But he says, "Well, I am just going to get into drinking." Ecclesiastes 2:3. "After much thought I decided to cheer myself with wine while still seeking wisdom. I clutched at foolishness. In this way, I hope to experience the only happiness most people find during their brief life in this world." So you know I am just going to drink. He became a wine connoisseur. Have you ever watched people order wine in a restaurant? And you know they have this thing. The guy, I don't know. I don't know the terminology. Excuse me. I am not a wine connoisseur. But they have the little... You know, here is the cork. They will smell the cork. And then they will hold the wine and swirl it around. You know. And then they will take a little sip and... You know, spit it out. And they will go, "I will have that." You know, it is like ripple. They don't know. They think they are wine connoisseurs. I just watch you and go, this is so stupid to me. You know. But Solomon became a wine connoisseur. Oh, I am going to go and try all of that. And he got into every kind of alcoholic drink you could think of. But after hangover one, two, and three. Not the movies, but life. He saw how empty that was too.
So he shifts gears again. And with unlimited resources at his disposal, he thought, "I am going to just build stuff. I am going to build the coolest palaces and the most lavish homes ever seen." Ecclesiastes 2:4. "Tried to find meaning by building huge homes for myself and by planting beautiful vineyards. I collected great sums of silver and gold. I hired wonderful singers, men and women. I had many beautiful concubines. I had everything a man could desire." But as I looked at everything I worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless. It was like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere.
I mean, Solomon, you know, he would book the best singers. I mean, when you are this rich, you have whoever you want. You don't listen to, you know, a CD by Beyonce. You have Beyonce come and sing. And you pay her whatever she wants. Oh, we are going to have U2 tomorrow night. You know, in fact, I read that there are a lot of bands out there that will go and play at private functions. A lot of times we don't hear about this. But Celine Dion for a private performance charges $6.5 million. The Rolling Stones charged a Texan investor $7 million to play an hour long set. $7 million. My favorite is the Eagles charged over $6 million to play one song at a private party. Hotel California. Man, that must have been great, huh? Woke up to the Hotel California. But I mean, that is the kind of Wolf Solomon had. So he didn't listen to the recording. He brought the artist in. He had the person right in front of him singing. But even that, he says, was empty.
Solomon's Regret and Advice to the Young
So now he is coming to a clear-eyed conclusion at the end of Ecclesiastes. And among other things, he deeply regretted wasting his youth. And he doesn't want others to make the same mistake. Ecclesiastes 12:1. "Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth. Before the difficult days come and the years draw near, when you say, I have no pleasure in them." Or as the New Living Translation puts it in Ecclesiastes 12:1. "Don't let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor Him in your youth before you grow old and no longer enjoy living."
You know, youth, that is such an important time in life. And you set the course of your life there. The evening of your life is decided by the morning of it. The end by the beginning. I made a commitment to Christ when I was 17 years old. I felt like I had already lived a very long life because of the environment I was raised in with my mom and her alcoholism and all the divorces and such. And then my own experimentation with drugs and drinking and all that stuff. So at the age of 17, in many ways I felt like I was 50 already. You know? So I was ready for a radical change.
And now, I gave up quite a few things. In fact, pretty much I dumped all my so-called friends. They were really worthless anyway. It wasn't a big sacrifice. Because I didn't want to be in that environment anymore. I needed a whole new start in life. And I just committed myself to studying the Bible and being a part of the church and growing spiritually. And so did I give up a few so-called fun times? Yeah. But you know what? I have had so much more fun as a follower of Jesus. And I don't regret any of those things I gave up.
And every now and then I will run into an old friend from high school. You know what is really sad? Is when someone still thinks they are in high school. When they are 60. Or in their 50s. And they can't let it go. And you look at him still living that life, or at least trying to live that life. And some of them are in their second, third, even fourth marriages. And maybe their substance abuse has taken a toll on them. And you think, oh man, come on. Why did you live that way? And you look at Solomon and he say, man, don't waste your youth. Don't throw your youth away.
By the way, that is one of the reasons why at our church and our crusades we are always seeking to reach the next generation. And you know, every year we are thinking, what is the best way to connect to our culture? You know, musical styles change. Technology changes. If you look at the Harvest Crusade of 1990, it is a lot different today. And by intention and by design. Because our culture was different in 1990. And in 1991. I wore a suit in 1991 with legs like this wide and lapels out to here. I just went and saw Jurassic Park the other day in 3D. And that was around that same time frame. And I was cracking up looking at the clothes. Because this one guy is wearing a suit in the opening of the film. He thought, I wore that suit. And I hate it. What was I thinking? But you know, styles change. Culture changes. Music changes. We want to keep reaching the next generation. I am not interested in living in the past. I barely live in the future. Because I am always thinking, or I barely live in the present. I can't live in the future at all. Apparently, I don't know what time frame I am in right now. Okay, here is what I meant to say. Let me start over again. A person sees a bottle and a genie comes out. They are driving the convertible. Never mind. What I meant to say was, I don't want to live in the past. I barely live in the present. Because I am always thinking about the future. And thank you very much.
So, you know, sometimes people are critical. We don't like that music you are using now. It is just not our style. Oh? News flash. It is not about you. Why don't you think about some kids that would connect with it and load your vehicle up and bring them out. Because here is why. Here is why. Most people make their commitment to Christ before the age of 17. So, we want to keep reaching the next generation.
The Final Conclusion: Fear God and Keep His Commandments
Well, here is Solomon. He is saying, look, man, I have done it all. Don't do what I did. Learn from my mistakes. Don't forget the Creator in the days of your youth. Okay, so now he is building to the big crescendo. Here is what I have learned, Solomon is saying. I have done everything. I have tried everything. I have experienced everything. And here now I am going to tell you what I have learned. Are you ready? Here it is. Fasten your seatbelt. Ecclesiastes 12:13. "Let's hear the conclusion of the whole matter. Fear God. Keep His commandments. For this is man's all. God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether it be good or bad."
I mean, I love that. Here is the sum of the matter. Fear God. Well, I already knew that. Yeah, but are you doing it? What did his dad tell him? Serve the Lord with an undivided heart, Solomon. Learn from my mistakes, boy. Don't do what your old man did. Try to live your life right. And at first he had it down. And then he started wandering off and got himself into all kinds of trouble. So he is saying, Look, I am a seasoned pro. I know what I am talking about here. If you take God out of the picture, your life is going to be empty and meaningless and futile. However, if you want a full life, if you want life as it was meant to be lived, then fear God.
Now what does it mean to fear God? Does it mean to walk around cowering in fear that God is going to smack me around a little bit? No. The word fear could also be translated reverence God. We could translate it respect God. Have an awe of God. I know people like to think of the Lord as their buddy and their best friend. But listen, God is the creator of the universe and He is holy and righteous. Don't forget that about your buddy. So He is not just your companion. He is your creator. He is your Lord. He is your master. And you should submit to Him and follow Him.
So to fear God means to have reverence for Him. It is a healthy respect. That is what Solomon is saying. Have reverence for God. And keep His commandments. He has given us His commandments, sort of like guardrails in life, to keep us on the road. So we don't get ourselves in trouble. Live by God's standards. Have reverence for the Lord. That is what I have learned. In fact He says, this is man's all. And a better way to translate that would be, this is what will make a whole man. You know, you want to be a whole man or a whole woman. Well, then this is what you need to do. You need to fear God.
But so many people say, oh, you know, God doesn't know what He is talking about. And they go out there and have to learn everything the hard way. And how many more people are going to have to make these mistakes? How many more marriages destroyed? How many more children deprived of both parents? How many more lives destroyed by substance abuse? How many more people are going to just chase after material things and never think of others? You know, some people love people and use money. Others love money and use people. What do you do? Well, don't waste your life as Solomon did, because he did self-destruct. But thank God in the end he came around. And that is why he has something to say to all of us.
Really, Ecclesiastes is his account of what he has learned the hard way. He indeed was the foolish, wise man. He told the people at the dedication of the temple how to live. And he himself did not live that way. So let's think about that right now. Some of you are young. Some of you think you are still young. Some of us would admit we are getting older. So look, you are what you are and you are where you are in life. You can't change that. I am sure if we could, many of us would turn the clock back and maybe not do some of the things we did. But you can't change that any more than you can unscramble an egg. Okay? So what is done is done. So let's just deal with right now.
Here you are today. Maybe you are very young. Maybe you are at the midpoint in life. Maybe you are a little bit older. But you can say, from this moment on, I am going to dedicate my life to God. From this moment on, I am not going to have a divided heart. From this moment on, I am going to seek to live a life that is right before the Lord. Morally. From this moment on, I am going to try to do what will bring glory to God. I can't change my past. All I can do is ask God to forgive me for it. And hopefully I will learn from my mistakes. And now I can walk forward. Listen. You don't decide the date of your birth. And you don't decide the date of your death. But you have everything to say about the little dash in the middle. So you have to live that well.
Solomon, well, he did not do a great job. But in the end he came around. So that was good. And I wonder where you are at right now. Most of you would say, well, I am sitting here in church looking at you. I know that. But I did not mean. I was speaking in sort of 60s vernacular. Like, where are you at, man? Okay. Here is what I am asking. Where are you at spiritually? Are you a person that has maybe been kind of drawn to some of these things? Maybe you have even been raised in the church. But you are sort of attracted to some of the things the Bible has told you to steer clear of. And you are sort of like that moth drawn to the light. Well, listen. Learn the lesson of this guy who did it all. And reap the consequences. Don't go that way.
But maybe there are some of you that walked with the Lord for a time. But now, later in life, you are starting to compromise. So you need to maybe come back and make a recommitment. But there are some of you here maybe that have never asked Jesus Christ to come into your life. You have never asked Him to forgive you of your sin. You don't know what it is to have this relationship with God. Here was Solomon's problem. And he used this phrase a lot in the book of Ecclesiastes. He talked about life under the sun. He said, life is empty under the sun. That is S-U-N. The idea being, life without God. It was just under the sun. But the problem was, Solomon didn't know about life under the Son. S-O-N. And everything can change. When you stop living under the sun. S-U-N. And start living for the Son. S-O-N.
You say, what are you talking about? The Son of God. When you start following Him and living for Him. Then you will find the purpose and meaning in life you desire.
Invitation to Choose Life in Christ
So we are going to close now in prayer. And if there is anybody that needs to ask Christ to come into their life and forgive them. Or maybe there is someone here that has fallen away from the Lord. Not unlike Solomon. Raised in a Christian home. But you have gone astray. And you need to return to the Lord. We are going to give you an opportunity to get right with God. And maybe some of you have just found yourself trapped in some kind of a sin. And you need to be free from it. Well, we will give all of you an opportunity to make a commitment or recommitment as we close now in prayer.
Let us all pray. Father, thank you for your word to us tonight. It is so relevant. It is so true. And nothing really changes. As Solomon said, there is really nothing new under the sun. It is just the same old, same old. Generation after generation. But the answers are the same too. And the answer is a relationship with you where our sins are forgiven. And now Lord, I pray for those that have joined us. Those that are listening. That may not have a relationship with you now. They do not know what it is to say with confidence that they will go to heaven when they die. Would you help them to see their need for Jesus and help them to come to you this night? We would pray.
While our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed and we are praying together, how many of you would say, Greg, I want God to forgive me of my sin. I want Jesus Christ to come into my life. I want to know that when I die I will go to heaven. I want my guilt taken away. I am ready to say yes to Jesus right now. I believe He died on that cross for my sin and Rose again from the dead. And I want Him in my life as my personal Savior and Lord. Pray for me.
If that is your desire, if you want Jesus Christ to come into your life and forgive you of your sin, would you lift your hand up right now wherever you are sitting? And I will pray for you. God bless you. God bless you. Just lift your hand up if you would. Let me pray for you tonight. God bless you there in the back. God bless you. God bless you too. Anybody else down here in the front row? God bless you. You want His forgiveness tonight. You want to start this relationship with the Son of God. Lift your hand up. I will pray for you tonight. Anybody else? God bless you there in the back. God bless you. God bless you too. And you. And you. And you. God bless all of you.
While our heads are still bowed, maybe some of you would say, you know, I've been raised in the church and I know what's right, like Solomon did. But I've gone astray. And I have not lived for the Lord as I should. And I'm pretty much fed up with it all. And I'm ready to come back to the Lord as Solomon did. Pray for me. I want to return to the Lord tonight. If that's your desire, will you lift your hand up and let me pray for you. You want to come back to Christ again. You want to return to the Lord. Lift your hand up. Let me pray for you. God bless you. God bless each one of you.
Lord, I thank you now for each one of these. And I ask you to give them the strength to stand up and follow you and receive all that you have for them. For we ask it now in Jesus' name. Amen.