Bow's, Arrows & Strings

Ecclesiastes 4:7-12

7 Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun.

8 There is one alone, and there is not a second; yea, he hath neither child nor brother: yet is there no end of all his labour; neither is his eye satisfied with riches; neither saith he, For whom do I labour, and bereave my soul of good? This is also vanity, yea, it is a sore travail.

9 Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.

10 For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.

11 Again, if two lie together, then they have heat: but how can one be warm alone?

12 And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

I. God did not create us to do life alone.

A. Verse 8 talks about a person who does nothing but work all of the time and not make time for others.

1. They will never be satisfied…

2. Who will be their beneficiary?

Illustration

Ellen Goodman told the tragic story of a man who worked as hard as the man the Preacher has just described. When he died at the age of fifty-one, his obituary said that the cause of his death was a coronary thrombosis, but most people knew better. At the office six days a week, often until 8 or 9 at night, his friends and family said that he simply worked himself to death. Yet on the day of his funeral, when the company was already making inquiries about his replacement, the president looked around the office for candidates and said, “Well, who’s been working the hardest?” But the zinger line was delivered by the dead man’s wife. When a friend said, “I know how much you will miss him,” she said, “Oh, I already have.”

B. The most valuable thing that all of us have are the relationships around us.

1. Luke 12:13-21 (READ & Expound)

II. Two are better than one. - Ecclesiastes 4:9

A. If God thought one was enough He would have stopped with Adam but thank God He didn’t! (And all the men said Amen!)

1. God designed us for relationships.

2. Relationships are hard work… RELATIONSHIPS ARE GOD’S WORK!

B. Better Together, Stronger Together - Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

1. V.9) They have good reward for their labour…

2. V.10) If one falls down there is someone there to help them back up…

3. V.11) They keep each other warm…

4. V.12) They are stronger together against attacks…

III. God has a plan for His Church and it involves each of us.

A. Ephesians 4:1-16 speaks of the structure of the Body of Christ

B. Ephesians 4:17-32 speaks of things that can destroy that Body and instructs us on what to do about them.

IV. Bow’s, Arrows & Strings - 1 Corinthians 12 explains that we are one body with many members and we need each other.

A. God doesn’t have a person to waste.

1. The Bow’s are the older saints who carry Theology and Wisdom (60+)

2. The Arrows are the younger Christians who are proficient in technology and have strength to run (20-40)

3. The Strings are the bridge… The Christian generation in the middle that tie them both together. (40-60)

¥ Theology with Technology

¥ Wisdom with Strength

B. When we understand our place we can celebrate each other.

1. We ALL need each other…

Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Matthew 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

... This takes togetherness

Closing:

Let’s recommit to work with one another

Let’s be open to what God is doing today

Let’s repent to one another and to God if we have allowed a division in the body…