Chase the Wind or Stand on the Rock
Text: Ecclesiastes 3:1-17
THANKSGIVING AND PRAYER
If you will, take your Bibles this morning and open them up to the Book of Ecclesiastes.
I’ve been looking a lot at the wisdom literature from Scripture recently, and I don’t know about all of you, but in these times that we’re living in, I know that I personally need a lot of wisdom. I need wisdom to understand, to discern, and process the information that seems to flood our ears and overwhelm our minds. I mean, let’s just be honest here. There’s a lot of darkness and wickedness out there in the world today. A lot of lies and falsehoods, and misinformation being pushed around by so called experts, and the talking heads of news corporations, and even in the Church, we have leaders who are pushing Marxism, and false doctrine… Wolves in sheep’s clothing is what the Lord called them. And every day, there seems to be some new, world shattering event that is going to lead to our destruction, or our demise.
And it’s been that way for some time, but it’s ramping up it seems.
In 1971 scientists were saying it’s going to be global cooling, and in 77’ they said we’re just a few years from another ice age. In 1999 it was global warming, and in 2001 they said in about 20 years or so parts of the east and west coast would be under water.
In 2001 scientists were warning us of West Nile Virus, then in 2003 it was SARS (which is actually the first strain of Covid), Swine Flu in 2009, Bird Flu in 2015, Zika in 2017, and now Covid – 19. We’ve got wars and rumors of wars… China moving towards global dominance and the US seems to be in its pocket. We’ve got 20 years in Afghanistan and the Taliban are now back in control of that country and our government is negotiating with them as if they were a legitimate state.
What I’m trying to say is that we live in a sinful and fallen world, and all of creation is groaning for the Day of Redemption. It seems like everything is moving so rapidly and changing so fast that it’s impossible to keep up with it all. And in the last year or so, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard politicians, or the so called experts say something like, “Well we’ve got to get so many vaccinations in order to return to normal.” Or “wearing masks is the ‘New Normal’”. And before that, it was “We’ve got to address the grievances of BLM and Antifa, to get back to normal.” And before that it was something else. Let me just tell you all something. All of that – everything I just mentioned is the result of a fallen world. And it should make us all – if you’re a Christian… it should make us all, long for the Day of the Lord. It should make us all long for the Day when Jesus returns and sets all things right once more. It should make us all uncomfortable and realize that this world is not our home… our home is with Jesus.
And that’s why I wanted us to look at this text this morning, because I believe that it will help us not only understand that change is all around us, but that Jesus is still Lord and that He’s still in complete control.
So let’s turn to Ecclesiastes 3:1-17 and follow along as I read from God’s Word (READ TEXT).
A couple of weeks ago, I was watching the livestream of the G3 Conference, and I was listening to Voddie Baucham preach from the Book of Revelation. And he said something very interesting. He was talking about the rhythm of the book. We see the number 3 used over and over again. We see the number 7 used over and over again. We see the number 12, and its variations used over and over again.
Well… we don’t see that here in Ecclesiastes chapter 3. In-fact; there’s no discernable pattern in birth and death, in killing and healing, weeping and laughing, or war and peace. Instead; what we see is that change is always happening around us, and there’s really not a whole heck of a lot that we can do about it. In-fact; Solomon even says that in verse 11… he says that, “God has made everything beautiful in its time, and yet man cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.” I mean…we can know that change is happening, and that change is going to come… but we really don’t know what type of change is going to come do we?
So tell me, who among us can say when the next rain will fall?
We can make predictions and give our best guesses, but not with any real certainty. In 2019, who knew that in 2020, there would be this massive upheaval caused by a pandemic? Who would have said that in 2020 there would be places in the United States of America where local congregations would be told by their local and state governments that they could not gather and worship the Lord as commanded by Scripture? Change is happening all the time, and when it comes, sometimes there’s not a lot we can do about it.
And it can be hard not knowing how long change is going to last as well.
Just the other day I was reading a story about how people in Michigan, NY, and California tend to be having an unprecedented uptick in the number of blow-ups in the restaurant industry. People are just losing it, blowing their top, becoming angry and violent for the slightest of reasons. The writer of the article went on to explain that the reason for this is because people can usually deal pretty well with hardship and change when they know there’s an endpoint or conclusion to it… but when it just goes on and on, and on, they lose hope… they lose their cool… and fall into despair and anger, and frustration.
Change can also make us ask the questions of how and why? How am I going to make ends meet if I’m unable to go to work? How am I going to feed my family with inflation going through the roof? How do I navigate all of these changes? We can ask, why is this happening? What is God’s purpose in all of this? Why now? Why me?
Well listen… Solomon wrestled with all of this in our text. He sees that change happens. He can’t explain it all, and he realizes that often times man is powerless to affect change, or prevent change. And he sees the problems and issues in the world…
And I think it’s really interesting, because one thing he does do is make a distinction between vanity and what is a better way of living. He says that if we follow the Lord, and obey the Lord, it’s better.
If we do the things we should do, like work with our hands, and not be idle, that’s a better way.
There’s a better way to live through change, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we don’t face the struggles and challenges of change… it’s just a better way to go through it. And we do have to go through it. God causes it to rain on the just and the unjust. God’s people have to go through storms. God’s people have to endure change and fight against anxiety just like everyone else. And he wrestles with the problem of evil. He sees the injustice and immorality in the world. He sees that every man will someday return to the dust from which he was made.
So what’s the answer? What do we do? Change is all around us, and trying to control that is like chasing the wind. Solomon concludes that it’s vanity… so where does that leave us? Do we just throw our hands up and give up? Do we have our own meltdown and lose all hope?
No… Absolutely not! If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, that’s the last thing you do… no… let me rephrase that… that’s something you should never do. Because even though change is all around, and we don’t know what tomorrow holds – we know who holds tomorrow. You see, our God doesn’t change. HE IS THE SAME.
Hebrews 13:8 – “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever!”
Our God, is not subject to change. He isn’t affected, or perplexed, or confused by change. Our God directs the seasons. He is sovereign over time and space. He calms the storms… and while change is happening all around us – God makes everything beautiful in its time. So what that tells us is that change is around us, but it’s still under the all-mighty hand of God. And verse 14 tells us that whatever God does, endures forever… and as for all the injustice and wickedness in the world… verse 17 tells us that God will judge the righteous and the wicked for there is a time for every matter and for every work. Are we catching what Solomon is throwing here?
He’s saying to us, that what seems like craziness to us… and what seems to be uncontrollable to us… and all the things we don’t know about… and all the things we can’t control… and all the things that are coming down the pipe in the future – ALL OF THOSE THINGS… and EVERYTHING… God is in control of it all! He is the Alpha and the Omega – the first and the last! He is God Almighty! He declares the end from the beginning! He is all knowing, He is all powerful, He is ever present. He is the God who parts seas, and walks on water. He calms storms with a word.
He is the God who created the heavens and the earth by the words of His mouth. He set all the stars in place. He is the God who created time itself, and seasons, and set the borders of the oceans, and keeps them at bay. Colossians 1:16-17 says, “For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him, all things hold together.”
He is the God who holds our breath in His hand… and not even the tiniest of sparrows falls without His approval.
So change, and everything it brings… is under the sovereign control of our God.
Now does that eliminate all trials and stress, and struggles? No it doesn’t. What it does do is allow us to face those things, and face the changes of this world, and meet those struggles head on, knowing that our God has a plan and purpose even for those things. It allows us to walk through the valley of the shadow of death, because we know it’s the Great Shepherd that is going to lead us through it. It allows us to keep going through life, not in fear or despair, but in faith, knowing that our heavenly Father loves us, and cares for us.
You see, when we know… and I mean, we REALLY know, that God will work all things together for good those who love Him and are the called according to His purpose… when we really know that, it doesn’t matter what changes may come. Because we can have complete confidence in that. If sickness strikes, we know that it’s somehow, someway going to work together for good. When hard times hit, it will work together for good. When struggles seem to overwhelm us, like waves crashing all around, we cry out “Lord Save me!” Just like Peter did, and Jesus will be there!
My question for all of you this morning is – DO YOU BELIEVE THAT?
It’s easy for us to say it. It’s easy for us to quote it. But I’ve seen in the 20+ years that I’ve been in ministry that a person can quote it all day long, but when the storm actually comes, they fall apart. I’ve seen it over and over again… when the sun is shining and things are going well, it’s all fine and dandy, but when the storm comes, when trials and struggles hit, and our lifestyles are threatened, and our paychecks our threatened, and our livelihood is threatened, or our health… a lot of these folks, who make a profession of faith, show that they actually have none. They forget that as Christians this world is not our home… they forget that we – as followers of Christ, are not supposed to be seeking comfort and worldly success, but rather, the glory of God and the advancement of His kingdom.
Real quickly… turn with me over to 1 Peter 4:7-14… we’ll read through that and I’ll close… Look at what Peter says here, “The end of all things is at hand.” In other words, we as believers know that someday, Jesus is coming back. This world is going to end. God is going to dissolve it with fire. It’s coming… and the fact of the matter is – we’re closer now to that day than we’ve ever been. And if you’re paying attention… you probably would agree with me that we’re right on the doorstep of that day. Jesus is coming. So Peter says there, “The end of all things is at hand” and then he goes on through verses 8 – 11 and explains how we as Christians should be living in light of that… but verses 12 through 14 is what I really want you to look at… He says, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial WHEN it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.” You notice there, he didn’t say that the fiery trial MIGHT come upon you… he says, WHEN it comes. When it comes, don’t be surprised, don’t be taken aback, don’t feel that you’ve somehow been singled out. It’s not a strange thing – in this fallen world, the fiery trial isn’t the “New Normal” it’s the same old “Normal” – but we wait for that day when Jesus comes.
So Peter says there, “don’t be surprised… it’s not some strange, out of the ordinary occurrence… but instead REJOICE!” Rejoice as you share in Christ’s sufferings, so you may rejoice and be glad, when His glory is revealed.”
So please hear me this morning Church… change is all around us. It’s coming at us faster and faster, like birth pains.
And we don’t have to always like it, or even embrace it… but at the same time, understand that our sovereign Lord God Almighty is in control, and we have to trust in His good providence. We have to lean into Him and cling to Him tighter than ever before, and we have to know in our heart of hearts, that He is coming again.
Knowing that will strengthen us in our faith. It will give us courage to keep fighting the good fight of faith. It will help us to keep our eyes on Jesus, and not be overcome by the darkness of this world.
CLOSING
