The End Of The Matter

Mar 29, 2026

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 1:07

Relationships have rules. Rules are often not the focus of the relationship, but the rules are there nonetheless. And we often find out the rules when we break the rules. Rules, relationships have rules, they're often not written down, but we learn those rules in the context of the relationship. We learn the rules over time, we learn the rules through shared experiences, we learn the rules through success and failure. Relational rules are learned and they also change as the relationship matures and develops, and the rules that govern that relationship often mature and develop as well. Several years ago, I was attending a funeral of a man who had passed away and he left his wife, a widow, and left his adult children without a father. And as the family was gathering together and they were preparing for that funeral, the son was talking to his now widowed mother, and he was talking to her about man, you and dad had a wonderful relationship. And he wanted to know what was it? What was it that you did that made such a wonderful relationship between the two of you? What was the secret? And in response to her son's question, the woman answered and said, Well, in the first several months of our marriage, we learned what we did that annoyed the other person, and we stopped doing those things. Brilliant. I thought pestering was a love language. She said, we learned what we did that annoyed the other person and we stopped doing those things. That's a great start, right? But we know that's not the whole story, right? Now we know that in quality relationships that move toward maturity, we learn what the other person doesn't like and we don't do those things anymore. We also learn what they do like and we pursue those things. A few years after Lynn and I were married, uh, Gary Chapman wrote his landmark book entitled The Five Love Languages. You might remember the five love languages. They've endured a long shelf life, they've been republished and repackaged. But the five love languages was a relatively new book shortly after Lynn and I were married, and everyone was reading it. We were still young on our marriage. We were still learning what we did that annoyed the other person. We also were still learning how to love one another and what pleased the other and how to put that into practice. And this book promised that we could learn our spouse's unique love language. And as we learned their unique love language, we could put that into practice and really communicate love well and they could receive it well. So that's what the book promised. We grabbed the book, we started reading it, we needed the help like everyone else. The five love languages in the book, in case you've forgotten them, are acts of service, gifts, quality time, words of affirmation, and physical touch. So we started reading the book, and we were looking for the secret, and we were hoping to learn that love language that our spouse had and put that into practice. And so we started reading the chapters, and as we got to the end of the chapter, my wife would say, Well, I like that one. That's it. Acts of service? She's like, Oh, that's my love language. And then we read gifts. She's like, Yep, I like that one too. Quality time? Absolutely. Words of affirmation? For sure. Physical touch, yes. My wife has all five love languages, and they're on some mysterious rhythm that I'm still trying to figure out. After 37 years, she's still a mystery. The truth be told, there are many ways all of us give and receive love. And there are various ways in which love is expressed and various ways in which it's recognized and received. And we learn those things in the context of the relationship. We learn those things in the context of shared experience. We learn those things through failure and success. We also learn those things through forgiveness and repentance and new beginnings. We learn those things as we do life together. So relationships have rules. There are things that we just do and things that we don't do based on the value of the relationship and based on the preciousness of the one that we are in relationship with. Now, with that in mind, what rules are governing your and my relationship with God? Again, they're not the focus of the relationship, but they're there nonetheless because we are in relationship and relationships have rules. So what rules are there that govern your and my relationship with God? We don't want to do the things that annoy God, and we want to do the things that please him. And so, what are those things? Now, let's be clear here as we get started. In our relationship with God, like all other relationships, the rules aren't the focus, but they do exist. For example, even back in the Old Testament, the nation of Israel, they were God's chosen people. They were in a special relationship with him. But before God gave them the rules, before God gave them the Ten Commandments, he said to them, I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. He didn't say to them, Hey, if you keep these rules, I'll come down and rescue you, and then you'll we'll be in relationship. No, he began with grace and with promise. And he said, I am the Lord your God, I'm the one who brought you out of slavery. We are already in a relationship. Now live this way, have no other gods before me. In the New Testament, Jesus said, If you love me, you will keep my commandments. So if we are in a mutual relationship of love with Jesus, then there are things that we will do, commandments that we will keep, and things that we will not do based on the relationship that we are in. So what are those rules that are guiding your relationship and my relationship with God? In Ephesians chapter 5, the Apostle Paul writes to these New Testament followers of Jesus Christ who are living in the land of Ephesus. He writes to people who are in relationship with God. They've heard the gospel, the good news of the glory of the blessed God who mercifully saved sinners unto himself through Jesus Christ. They've placed their faith in Jesus Christ. They're now in relationship with God. Paul writes to them and he says to them, Find out what pleases the Lord. That's interesting. Find out what pleases the Lord. Are you and I doing that? Finding out what pleases the Lord? Are you and I finding out what annoys the Lord and we're stopping those things and we're finding out what pleases the Lord and we're putting those into practice? The Bible tells us that you and I have been uniquely made in God's image. I've been made in God's image. You've been made in God's image. That means there are ways in which I will bring God pleasure that you don't. And there are ways in which you will uniquely bring God pleasure that I won't. That's fascinating. Are you and I finding out what pleases the Lord and doing those things in the relationship that we share? Eric Little. I've read a couple of biographies about Eric Little. He was known as the Flying Scotsman. Eric was a runner, a track and field runner. He ran for Scotland in the 1924 Olympics. Matter of fact, he went to the 1924 Olympics and he won gold and even set a world record in the 400-meter race. In that same Olympics, he also won bronze in the 200-meter race. Now, what's fascinating about that is those two events were not his best event. His best event was the 100-meter dash. That's what he qualified for the Olympics in. Everyone in the world expected Eric Little to go to the Olympics and win the 100-meter dash. Well, he gets to the Olympics and he doesn't run the 100-meter dash at all. You remember why? They scheduled the 100-meter race to be run on Sunday. And Eric Little had a rule. He had a conviction that he established for himself. Eric didn't run on Sunday. He ran on Monday through Saturday. He didn't run on Sunday. He went to church and he worshipped God on Sunday. He gets to the Olympics. This is the Olympics. This is the once-in-a-lifetime chance. He's scheduled to run the 100-meter race. It's his best event. He's going to win gold in it. He gets to the Olympics and he doesn't run because he's going to do what he believes honored God. That's interesting. Eric was a fantastic Christian man with an exceptional Christian testimony. Before the Olympics, he committed to go to China as a missionary. And he publicly made that known. That was his life ambition. He believed that to be his life calling. His departure for China as a missionary was delayed because of his own commitment to run in the Olympics. This really annoyed his younger sister, Jenny. Jenny knew that he had committed himself to be a missionary, and now he's postponing his exodus to go to China to be a missionary because he's going to run in the Olympics, and she's annoyed with that. She thought he was putting off what God would really have him to do. She thought he was wasting his time by running these silly races. She thought he was competing for a temporal crown, Olympic gold, and not an eternal crown. And so Eric and Jenny, brother and sister, they have this debate. And in the middle of that debate, as they're talking about this, Eric says this. He said, Jenny, God made me fast. And when I run, I feel his pleasure. God made me fast. And when I run, it's a worship thing for me. I bring God pleasure. So Eric worshiped God in church on Sunday. That was his conviction. It was his rule. Eric worshiped God in his training. And in his running Monday through Saturday. Eric said, God made me fast. When I run, I feel his pleasure. You know what? God didn't make me fast. Did he make you fast? He made Eric Little fast. He didn't make me fast. When I run, I don't feel God's pleasure. Matter of fact, I feel something entirely different. I feel like the death angels coming after me. And if he wants me, he can catch me because I'm not running. Eric Little discovered ways in which he uniquely brought God pleasure. And he did those things. He lived according to his convictions. He also recognized that God made him uniquely and he worshipped God in his athleticism. Are you and I finding out what pleases the Lord? Are you athletic? God make you that way? Are you artistic? Are you creative? Are you academic? Are you contemplative? How has God wired you as a unique image bearer? And are you finding out what pleases the Lord and doing those things? Now, just to finish the story, after the Olympics, Eric did become a missionary to China. And he went to China and he served the balance of his life as a missionary in China. He was very effective. He ultimately died in a prisoner of war camp, a Japanese internment camp during World War II. His story has been written down, many biographies written about his life. His life was even memorialized in that 1980s film, Chariots of Fire. You might remember that. The fantastic thing about Eric Little, his athleticism is as memorial as his missionary service. He ran to please God, and he's known for it. Ephesians chapter 5 says, find out what pleases God. You're in a relationship with God. If you've trusted in Jesus Christ, you've been brought into a relationship with find out what pleases the Lord and do those things. At this point, some of you might like, are we left to ourselves to find out what pleases the Lord? Is it totally on us to find out what pleases the Lord and do those things? Isn't there anything written down that we might know what pleases the Lord? Isn't there a better book than the five love languages that so we could find out what pleases the Lord? Well, thankfully, God has given us a book. Right? God has given us a book. And in the book, God has revealed Himself to us so that we might know Him, so that we might trust Him. So that we might believe in Him and be related to Him. God has given us a book. He's told us how the world is greatly broken. He's told us what He's done through Jesus Christ to repair the world. He's told us how through faith in Jesus Christ we can be brought back into a right relationship with him. And he's told us how to live now that we are in that relationship. We're not left guessing, we're not left to figure it all out. He's told us what is good and what is right and pleasing to the Lord. Well, for the past several weeks, as already mentioned in the announcement this morning, we have been as a church going through the book of Ecclesiastes. So if you have your Bibles with you this morning, take your Bibles out. Turn with me to Ecclesiastes chapter 12, very end of the book. If you don't have a Bible with you this morning, there's one in the seat back in front of you. You're glad to use that one. If you don't own a Bible, certainly take that one home with you, consider it our gift to you. Ecclesiastes at this point should be easy to find, right in the middle of your Bible. Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Simon, Isaiah. We have been in this series in the book of Ecclesiastes, and the author, who calls himself the preacher in the opening chapter, the author has taken us on a long journey. And according to the book, the preacher has taken a very studied look at life and the reality of life under the sun, and he's recorded for us how life really is. Life is painful, and life is pleasurable at the same time. Life has gray days and life has sunny days. Life is repetitive and cyclical, and there's nothing new under the sun. It's the same old, same old, and yet nothing is ever the same. And it's constantly changing, and life is chaotic. Life is unfair, it's unjust, it's uncontrollable, and at times very unpleasant. And yet, life is filled daily with unearned pleasures of food and drink and friends and fellowship and multiple gifts to enjoy every day. Life is short, and yet God has set eternity in our hearts. We long for permanence in a world that is temporary. Life is full of times and seasons. And mostly those times and seasons are outside of our control, but not outside of God's control. Life is uncertain, but death is certain. Yesterday I had to officiate a funeral, a funeral of a friend, really good man. Coach Track at Heritage High School for 30 years, passed away, is now with the Lord. Life is uncertain. Death is certain. Death is a great enemy, and death is a great gift because God has dealt with death. And he has sought what has been driven away. We've been learning these things for nine pages. That's how long your uh the book of Ecclesiastes is in my Bible. For nine pages, the preacher has been taking us on this exploratory trip, telling us how life really is under the sun. At various times, as we've gone through the book, he's allowed us to pop our heads above the sun and see life from God's perspective. And that's been refreshing and that's been encouraging. There are things that we don't know that God knows. And there's all sorts of things that God is doing that's just beyond our imagination. And he's working things out for good, which is fantastic. But the preacher here in Ecclesiastes has been exploring life under the sun, and as he's doing that, with all of its life, with all of its complexities and uncertainties, he's he's searching for what really matters. And more specifically, how are we to live our lives during our short existence, our brief time under the sun? Are there any rules in our relationship with God? Is there a rule to keep? At the end of the book, the preacher lands on two things that inform our wise living. I'm gonna give them to you up front and then we'll look at them in order in the text. But two things that inform our wise living. First, be in awe of God and do as you please. How do you like that? When's the last time you came to church and we're told to do as you please? The preacher's gonna say, be in awe of God and do as you please. We're gonna learn that what we esteem, what we value, directs our desires. So if we value the right thing, we'll do the right thing. And the preacher's gonna say, stand in awe of God, your creator, and do what your heart directs you to do. And then the second thing, he's gonna say, be in awe of God and keep his commandments. Well, God has rules, relationships have rules, and God has revealed what those are. And the preacher's gonna say, do what he says, because God is telling us the truth, and he is right, and his way is best. Go his way. All right, so that's where we're gonna go. We're gonna begin with the first one, be in all of God and do as you please. I'm gonna have you look in your Bibles. We're gonna actually go back into chapter 11, just up a little bit into verse 7, and we'll read down to verse uh one of chapter 12. Follow along as I read, as we look at this very first principle, be in all of God and do as you please. And I'm gonna make a little bit of commentary as we go through the text, so just uh bear with me and keep your eyes in the scripture. Chapter 11, verse 7. He says, Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun. In other words, it's good to be alive. It's good to be above ground, it's good to be in the presence of the sun. Verse 8 So if a person lives many years, let him rejoice in them all, but let him remember the days of darkness will be many. All that comes is vanity. It's short. Life is short, there will be light days, there are gonna be dark days. Receive your days as a gift from God and rejoice in them all. Don't cultivate yourself in unhappiness. Verse 9. Rejoice, O young man, in your youth. Now, pay attention to this young man in youth. He's gonna say it six times over. So back in verse nine, rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let God and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes, but know for all these things God will bring you into judgment. Now there's that principle: walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes, do as you please. But don't forget your creator, and don't ignore your judge. Be mindful of him, stand in awe of him, and do what you want. You have the freedom and the responsibility to do so. Verse 10 remove vexation from your heart, remove irritations, frustrations from your heart, and put away pain from your body. For youth and the dawn of life are but a breath. They're vanity. Life is short. So don't nurse relational wounds. Remove vexation from your heart. Frustrations irritation. Don't nurse relational wounds. Don't hold on to hurts and griefs. Don't maintain grudges and grievances because life is way too short for that. You'll be old before you know it. So don't waste your life discipling yourself to be unhappy. Verse 12, uh, chapter 12, verse 1. Remember also your creator in the days of your youth. There it is, the sixth time, before the evil days come, and the years draw near of which you say, I have no pleasure in them. It's from this portion of scripture here at the very end of the preacher's book, that I land on that first paradigm for wise living in relationship with God. Be in awe of God, stand in awe of Him, be in awe of God, He's your creator, and do as you please. And do it now. Do it when you're young, because you're gonna be old before you know it. You're gonna be old tomorrow. I like the three R's that he gives us in the text. Remember your creator, remove frustrations from your heart, rejoice in your days, honor God, and do as your heart desires. Well, that's the first principle. I notice in the text that six times he refers to youth and youthfulness. Going forward in the text, we left off in chapter 12, verse 1. He's gonna contrast, the preacher's gonna contrast youth and old age. And he's gonna give us this poetic description of old age, which is which is kind of funny. So look with me at the text. We'll read verses chapter 12, verses 1 through 8. Verse 1, he says, Remember also your creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come, and the years draw near of which you say, I have no pleasure in them. In other words, growing old is no fun. Growing old is no fun. Here's the poetic description of growing old. He goes on to say, Before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened. We grow old and we no longer see well. And the clouds return after the rain. There are more cloudy days than sunny days. And in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, what are the keepers of the house? These right here are the keepers of the house. We call them guns today. He says, In the day when the keepers of the house Tremble and strongmen are bent and the grinders cease because they're few. In other words, we grow weak, we become bent over, and our teeth fall out. And those who look through the windows are dimmed, and the doors on the street are shut. We don't go out and party like we used to. We don't get invitations to go out like we used to, the doors are shut, and we stay at home. When the sound of the grinding is low, we can't hardly hear. And one rises at the sound of the bird. We can't hardly hear, but the slightest noise will wake us up, and we're up all night long. And all the daughters of song are brought low. They are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way, we gain new anxieties as we grow old. The almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails. We're now on the fall of life. Because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets. Now he's going to give us metaphors of death. Before the silver silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern, and dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. Vanity of vanities, breath of breath, says the preacher, it's all breath. In other words, here's the point life is really short. So be in awe of God and do as you please, and do it when you're young. Because you're going to be old tomorrow. Stand in awe of God and do as you please. Learn to live in a relationship with God. Do it now. Don't put it off tomorrow because this isn't going to last long and you'll no longer be living your life. You'll now be preparing for your exit when you go to meet your Maker. So be an awe of God and do as you please. So today, young people, you young ones who are in the room, good number of you younger than me, desire God and learn to desire God and then do as your heart desires. Desire God, learn to desire God, and do as your heart desires. Be joyful in your creator, accountable to your judge, and then by faith live out your heart desires. Live in ways that please the Lord. Now the second principle for wise living comes a little later in the text. So let's keep reading. Let's look at where we left off. Chapter 12, verse 9. We'll read right to the end of the paragraph. Chapter 9 says, or chapter 12, verse 9 says, Besides being wise, the preacher, he's the guy who introduced himself in the first chapter, the preacher also taught the people knowledge, weighing and studying and arranging many proverbs with great care. The preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, they'll keep you on the path. And like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings. You can build your life on them, they'll hold up. They are given by one shepherd. God is the author behind this book. My son, beware of anything beyond these, of making many books, there's no end, of much study, there's a weariness of the flesh. The more you know, the more you're gonna find out you don't know. Here it is, the end of the matter. All has been heard. I once had an old man tell me. I once had an old man tell me, if I were to live my life all over again, I would do, and my ears perked up because I thought, oh, this is important. This is what the preacher's saying. End of the matter. I've looked at life under the sun, I've done all my exploration, I've done all my research, I've done all my thinking. The end of the matter, all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments. For this is the whole duty of man. This is the whole duty for every man. For God will bring every deed into judgment with every secret thing, whether good or evil. So here at the very end of the book, and we're wrapping up the series, we're right at the end of the book, we find two ways for wise living in relationship with God. First, be an of God and do as you please. Your heart's desires will impact that. Second, be an of God and keep his commandments. That's interesting. When we think about keeping commandments, when we think about commandments, we probably quickly turn in our minds to the Ten Commandments, the list of thou shalt's and thou shalt nots, and that Old Testament law. We learn from our Bibles that the Ten Commandments and the Old Testament law was given to the nation of Israel as they waited for the promised Messiah who was coming into the world through them. So the Israelites were a chosen people. They were a special people. The Savior of the world was coming into the world through their nation. The commandments and the law that God gave was to be their national constitution. The law and the commandments directed their individual, societal, ceremonial, and religious life. The commandments and the law, it was a comprehensive guide. It included their calendar, it included their holidays. As I pointed out earlier, the commandments didn't establish the relationship between them and God. God's grace did that. And God's promise did that. God came to them and said, Hey, I'm the God who brought you out of Egypt, out of your house of slavery. God's grace established the relationship, and his promises did that. They believed God and were united to him, and their belief in God not only united them to him, but also directed them. They took God at his word, and they became submissive and obedient to his word as they waited for the promised deliverer to come. Now they didn't always do that with perfection. We know that. But that's the purpose of the law. Let's be clear: keeping the commandments didn't save them. Keeping the commandments didn't put them in a right relationship with God. God's grace did that. But keeping the commandments revealed that they did believe him. And they were living by faith under his benevolent authority as they were waiting for their deliverance. So the Old Testament commandments and the Old Testament law, it was intended to be a guardian until their deliverer came. Well, we know today the deliverer has come. The one the world was waiting for, the one that they were looking for, he's come. Jesus is here. That means the law, the Old Testament commandments and the law has fulfilled its purpose. It was a guardian until Christ came. It pointed us to Jesus. So the law, that Old Testament commandments and law, that the purpose has been fulfilled. We also know from Jesus' life that he fulfilled the law perfectly. Therefore, today we're no longer Old Testament covenant commandment keepers. We're not. Let me give you one example. Just I'll take one little sliver of the law and show you how we are not Old Covenant commandment keepers. Today, we no longer take a lamb to a priest at a temple so that sacrifice might be made so that we could be forgiven and approach God in worship. We don't do that anymore. Well, why don't we do that anymore? We don't do that anymore because Jesus has come. Jesus is come. He's the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. We no longer take a lamb to a priest. We need a priest. Jesus is it. He's the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He is our great high priest. Through Jesus, we draw near to God and we find full acceptance. We no longer take pilgrimages to the temple. You know, we never go, you know, we don't go annually over to Jerusalem to visit the temple. Why? Jesus has replaced the temple. He's the place where we worship God. Jesus is the final sacrifice for sin. We don't make sacrifices for sin any longer. He's the final one. Jesus kept all the commandments, every one of them. Those commandments that pointed to him and were to guard and guide the nation until he came, Jesus never broke the law. He is our righteousness. He is our peace. He is our acceptance. Jesus is our Savior. He's the Sabbath. All that Old Testament law pointed to him and he's fulfilled it. And so as New Testament followers of Jesus Christ, who've placed our faith in Jesus Christ as our promised Savior, as was given through the nation of Israel, as New Testament followers of Jesus, we read Ecclesiastes 12, 13, and it says, fear God and keep his commandments. This is the whole duty of man. Well, we recognize we're no longer under that old covenant. We're in a new covenant. We're no longer Old Testament commandment keepers. We've been set free from the law so that we might belong to Jesus. So then what commandments remain for us to obey? Relationships have rules. Are there commandments for us to obey? Matthew chapter 28, verses 18 and 19, Jesus says to his disciples, All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. That's a big statement, isn't it? All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of me, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. That's interesting. We often stop before that. We often stop with, go therefore and make all, you know, disciples of all nations, baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Hard stop. There's not a hard stop. Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. That tells me that baptized disciples of Jesus Christ are to be taught to observe the commandments of Jesus, not so that we can come into the relationship. We've been brought into that relationship by God's grace through faith in Christ, but we are to be taught to observe the commands of Jesus so that we might live well and wise into this new relationship that we've been given. John chapter 14, Jesus said, If you love me, you'll keep my commandments. He doubles down on that a little later and he says, Whoever has my commandments and does them, he it is who loves me. A little later in that same passage, he says, This is my commandment that you love one another. And then as we continue reading through the New Testament, we discover that love isn't just a fuzzy feeling between people. It's actually patience and kindness and respect and goodness. You know, as we read through the New Testament epistles, I mean, we're followers of Jesus Christ. He's fulfilled the law, he's our Savior, He's replaced the law in the sense that He's fulfilled it completely. But as we read through the New Testament epistles, we discover the New Testament epistles found it, follow a very similar pattern to one another. The first part of the epistle always tells us about the greatness of the magnificence of God's grace in saving us unto himself through Christ. His immeasurable kindness. We were lost in sin. Christ has come, he's rescued us unto him, he's done all that was necessary to remove all the barriers in the relationship. And the first part of the epistle just magnifies God's grace in saving us unto himself through Christ. Then we get to the second half of the epistle, and every time it tells us how we are to live our new lives, what we are to do. The grace that we have been given, how that impacts us as we live this new life, as we await the return of our promised Savior. So in the New Testament, and when you get to the second part of the epistle, it always tells us and gives us instructions, commands on how we are to work out our salvation in reverence and in awe, and how we're to put off our old life and put on a new life, and how we are to grow up and mature into this relationship that we have been given by God's grace. You see, relationships have rules. Jesus has commandments for us to obey, and we're not ignorant of what they are. That's remarkable. We're not left up to ourselves to figure it out. Jesus has commandments for us to obey, and we're not ignorant of what they are. You know, we are to find out what pleases the Lord, and as unique image bearers, we're able to do that as we do life in relationship with Him. We're to find out what pleases the Lord, but we also know what pleases the Lord. Because thankfully, He's told us what pleases Him. Isn't that great? That's good news. It's really difficult for me in my relationship with my wife if she never tells me what annoys her. Or she never tells me, you know, what I do that pleases her. It's difficult when I'm living in that mystery. If she says, you know, when you do this, it really annoys me. I can I can stop doing those things if I know them and if I'm kind and loving. But we know what pleases the Lord. Because he's told us what's pleased him. This is this is just good news. We've got a book, and it's better than the five love languages. He says, This is do this. That's remarkable. Couple of concerns here. A couple of concerns here when we think about commandment keeping, uh, particularly as New Testament followers of Jesus. First, we're not legalists. We're not legalists. Let me tell you what I mean by that. We aren't living today as New Testament followers of Jesus. We're not living as though our teeth-gritting, law-abiding obedience is gaining us favor with God. No, we have God's favor. He's made that clear. He's given us Jesus Christ. And Jesus is our righteousness, Jesus is our peace, Jesus is our acceptance, Jesus is our savior, we have God's favor. So we're not keeping rules as though we are gaining God's favor. So we're not legalists, we're also not lawless. We're also not living our lives as if this relationship is all grace and there's no parameters. It's all grace, there's no rules. No, Jesus says, if you love me, you'll keep my commandments. In the commandments, they're grace to us. They're more grace to us. We're not legalists, we're not lawless. By God's grace, through faith in Jesus Christ, we're now in relationship with our living God, our creator, our redeemer, our judge. The relationship that we've been brought into, it's central to everything. And it also supplants everything and is superior to everything. We no longer belong to ourselves. We've been bought with a price. We now belong to God, and we're happy to belong to God because we're beneficiaries in the relationship. And because God has so loved us and so given us Christ, who has become for us our Savior, because of that, the commands of Jesus coming from that kind of heart, they don't fall on us as burdensome demands, but as more grace. I understand in the relationship, in my relationship with my wife, the rules aren't the focus. I don't wake up tomorrow morning like, what rules am I going to keep today? No, I'm going to live in relationship with her, but I know the I know the rules exist. The same is true. We are grateful in our rules that we have been given. They're not the focus, but we're grateful for the instruction because it guides and guards our hearts as we learn to live in relationship with God. As you and I, we don't we don't want to annoy God, and we want to bring God pleasure. Thank God He's told us. He's told us. Matter of fact, Titus chapter 2, and I better land this message. Titus chapter 2 tells us that the grace of God that has brought us salvation, and thank God for his grace that has brought us salvation. The grace of God that brought us salvation is Jesus Christ. He says in Titus chapter 2, the grace of God that has brought us salvation is the same grace that teaches us how to live godly lives in this present age. As we wait, just like the Old Testament Israelites did, as we wait for the return of our promised deliverer, the one who came and died on the cross for our sin, was buried and rose again and provided for our salvation. As we're waiting for his return, we have grace, not only in our relationship that's been established through Christ, but grace to live. Thank God, today we can find out what pleases the Lord. We have instructions, we have rules, and they come to us as more grace. We can learn to put these things into practice. We can do them, and we are so grateful for them. We can do them for God's glory and for our good. You know, the commandments, when you think about commandments, it always brings up the matter of authority. We obey the one that we are under. So there's two ways to think of this. Two ways to think of living life under commandments. Uh, first, you can attempt to live your life without any authority. You can attempt to live your life without any authority, no accountability to your creator, no concern for future judgment. You can just do your own thing, and you'll be a slave. Sounds counterintuitive. No authority, you'll be a slave. You can do your own thing, be your own authority, and you'll be a slave. You'll be a slave to yourself, slave to your sin, a slave to everyone's opinion of you, a slave to your own little self-reputation management project, slave to your own self-glorification project. So you can live without any authority and be a slave, or you can humbly come under the authority of King Jesus. Recognize that God gave him to be your savior. You can embrace Jesus as your savior, come under his authority as Lord, keep his commands, and you'll be free. You try to be your own authority, you'll be enslave yourself. You come under the benevolent authority of King Jesus and you obey his commands, you'll be really living life. Because that's the way life is meant to be lived. The commands are grace to us, they're good for us. They free us. They free us from our sin, free us from our past, free us from all the opinions of people, free us from our attempts to earn everyone's praise. They free us to belong to God and to grow up as his child under his heavenly care. Galatians chapter 5, verse 1 says, It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. We are the most free when we are living under King Jesus' authority. Well, 12 weeks ago, Pastor Joe kicked off this sermon series through the book of Ecclesiastes. In the opening message, he said this wisdom begins with seeing life for what it is. Today we get to the very end of the book and we see that wisdom ends with fearing God and keeping his commandments. The message at the end of the book is remember your creator and walk in the ways of your heart. He'll change your desires. Fear God and keep his commandments. This is the whole duty of man. Let me close in prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the Lord Jesus Christ. Ah, we thank you that he is the promised savior and that he has come. And that the law has fulfilled its purpose, pointing us to Jesus Christ. We're grateful that Jesus came and fulfilled the law and was perfectly obedient, perfectly obedient on our behalf, and then paid for our sins in his own body on the cross, and then rose again. Powerful, able to give life and freedom and eternal life to those who come to you through him. We thank you for the relationship that is established by grace, not by our efforts. Father, we also are grateful that you have told us how to live. Now that we are your children, having come under your benevolent authority and having experienced your love and having received Jesus, we're not left guessing. You've told us, and we're so grateful for your instruction. I thank you for this book that we've gone through together, this book of Ecclesiastes, for all that we've learned through it. I pray that you would take your word, press it deep upon our hearts and minds, continue your work as you've promised to do to transform us into the image of Jesus Christ. Father, we love you. We thank you for all that you've given us, all the grace that we've received, everything we need for life and godliness, and we praise your name. In Jesus' name I pray.

unknown 42:09

Amen.