What's It Like Down Under? (Part 4)

If there is a powerful and loving God. Why does evil exist. That is a question was asked by King Solomon 3000 years ago. Back then he was considered to be the most powerful man in the world. If this was a question that is been asked by some poor helpless person that would have been understandable if that question has been raised by someone who is personally suffering injustice that would've been understandable right. I mean, if this question has been raised by someone who has given so much of himself and received nothing in return. That would have been an understandable question, but this question has been asked by the man who was considered to be the most powerful man of his day kings and queens were coming from all over the world just to observe the wealth and the wisdom and the power of King Solomon and yet he's asking all this important question. Which tells me one thing that even the most powerful man in the world is incapable of generating integrity in the hearts of others, even the most powerful man in the world is incapable of changing the heart of other men. We often refer to the presidency of the United States, and the media always loves to refer to the office as the most powerful office in the world is the most powerful position in the world is the most powerful person in the world. They obviously have not read the books written by those who around presidents who tell us that this is pure fantasy. As they watched and saw firsthand at times when these so-called most powerful men in the world stood helpless and unable to do what they think they can able to do.

In fact that's what the conclusion that the book of Ecclesiastes chapter 4 comes down to King Solomon witnessed the tragedy of injustice. He become very disheartening to becomes very discouraged.

He becomes despicable like Mrs. Beth is better than life.

But before I get to Ecclesiastes 4 and five, Jonah covered today. I will answer that question I will answer the question why there's a powerful God is a loving God, what evil exists and I'm going to answer to the satisfaction of no one. Okay, I'm telling you have to. So if you raised your expectations relaxing the mail because Christian philosophers have been trying to answer this question about the existence of evil and suffering in the world for hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of years, to the satisfaction of no one. In fact, I can tell you I personally have never met anyone who became converted to Christ somebody who came to believe in Jesus. Somebody who became eternally saved as a result of a debate or an argument over receiving satisfactory answer to that age-old question about the existence of evil in the world. Why is that, as a personal opinion because all of the explanations in the world is not to convince anyone. The secret is not in the explanations and in the debate and in the arguments because debates and arguments are not gonna change hearts I wanted him or not. This is very important. If you would say to them, and these are the arguments we all used. If you would say to a nonbeliever that God allows evil to exist so that that may have a free will to choose between good and evil God and Satan. They will not buy it will scoff at it if you say to them that God paid with his own precious blood in order that he may give those who come to him power to overcome evil with good. There will scoff at that, if you say to them only when you accept God's generous gift God's remedy for evil. Can you see his loving and his merciful hand working in the lives of his children will scoff at that, if you say to them that evil exists so that there may be a contrast between evil and the goodness in the mercy and the graciousness of God. There will scoff at that pleaser was the answer. The answer is not necessarily in the explanations themselves. The answer is not in the debating and arguing.

Point counterpoint.

The answer is not winning an argument because you can win the argument is the person, the answer is a lovingly inviting them to surrender and experience the goodness of God for themselves. Their answer is to invite them to receive the gracious gift of God, of eternal life, and when the hearts changed everything else will follow. I want to show you this from Scripture. Lazarus was a man of very few means of this worldly goods but he lived for God. The rich man right next door had everything that we think a person could have lived for self and so when they both died.

Lazarus goes to what the Bible calls the bosom of Abraham, which is a euphemism for heaven and the rich man ends up in the place of torment 24 seven, which we call hated Bible calls Haiti or Hell. And then the rich man is only being in hell for a few minutes and he turns out to be a great evangelist immediately. He will cry out that Abraham ever have father (please I don't want my family to come to this place and I know that if you allow Lazarus to rise from the dead, they will believe and there were turned to God and that will not come when I am do you remember Abraham's answer Abraham's answer was very simple.

If they are not going to believe the word of God, even if Lazarus rises from the dead that are going to believe a please don't misunderstand. Okay, we are under no obligation to give an explanation for our faith.

We are under obligation to lovingly patiently explained the word of God. We are under obligation to thoughtfully testify to the power of God working in our lives.

We are under obligation to live our lives in such a way as to make Jesus shine through us so that they can hunger for him. We are under obligation to lovingly urge please and invite people to come and experience for themselves, and taste and see how God is God is but explanations and arguments and debates in themselves and not the secret that brings people to Christ. What is the secret. The secret is in lovingly, patiently persevering really explaining his plan of salvation.

Look, everyone everywhere is looking for some secret formula. Everybody is looking for some little plan some sort of clever method that is gonna make people believe in Christ but Abraham told us Richmond and he said to him, God's Word has the power to change lives.

And if that cannot do it. Nothing will do is a rough translation but you know what I me that ultimately the conclusion that King Solomon came to that was his ultimate conclusion that Solomon has reached after he lived under the sun and saw things and experience things as we been seeing in the series of messages entitled what is like down under and sign chapter for the book of Ecclesiastes, he reaches the answer by visiting various places. First of all, he goes to the courts, the halls of justice, and then he looks into the marketplace in the business world. Then he goes to the highway of life, and finally he goes and looks inside his own palace, where the power resides. So first when he goes to the halls of justice and all you can see his miscarriage of justice and become so discouraged he sees corruption. The place where the lady justice has her eyes blinded and holding scales in her hand, there are loopholes there are bribery as there are payoffs and there are people being convicted and yet there were innocent and some who are guilty of being getting off Scott free. And when Solomon saw the victims of injustice crying and weeping and nobody to comfort them.

He becomes despairing of life. Aren't you glad that the Holy Spirit's name is a comforter no matter what causes you to tears in life no matter what causes you pain alive even when you are alone and nobody can understand what you're going through there. Here is the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, the covenant he discomfiting you he is strengthening you he's urging you on. He's taking you over to the other side from us and Michael. But this man was a key. This man had power.

This man was a leader is the truth to most of us look up leaders and say while they got it all. They've got it all company employees a look at the president of the company's eyes got it all in the nation. We look at our present was a manual he's got all the powers of most powerful man in the world after all the media set it.

Sometimes workers think that the company president is got all the power of the sometimes employees think that their boss, their CEO have no problems whatsoever. They got all the problems he doesn't.

Sometimes employees think that the president of the CEO has no challenges in his life and what they don't understand is that these leaders are often subjected to some challenges and some pressures that they will never understand they are subjected to unfair criticism. They are subjected to betrayal and disloyalty by others that are subjected to lying and intrigued by others that are subjected to vicious rumors and attitudes that are subjected to all kinds of challenges in life than the average person does not understand the average employee doesn't understand that the boss can leave the problems in his office when he goes home that he carries all the problems with him everywhere he goes that he carries his and his responsibility everywhere he goes that he feels the burden of providing for the work is that he feels the burden of pleasing the board that he feels the burden of pleasing the shareholders that he feels the burden of creating successful, the company that he feels the burden of meeting market expectations that they feel the burden of rules and regulations over which they have no control that they often have the burden of being harassed by some bureaucrat somewhere that the often have the burden of being accused of unfairness and bias by disgruntled employees. They often have the burden of standing there helpless and powerless in front of some problems. We ask you this one is less, wrote a letter to your boss and say thank God for you.

Thank you for what you do see the list goes on and on. Those challenges are so unique to leaders. Leaders of all sorts good and godly leaders have unique challenges. They carry huge burdens. The average person does not understand those burdens and no one can understand a leaders problem except the leader here.

King Solomon most powerful man in the world. He's a leader. He tells us that he is suffering as all leaders do quietly. He's even despairing of his monumental task, like many leaders do the tasks that they carry that they often suffer in silence. In fact, I am so thankful because Solomon was honest enough to open his heart to C that most leaders of companies and businesses and elsewhere. They carry these burdens in the Don never open up and tell others about it. Solomon did. I think that for that.

Secondly, this powerful man strongly King of Israel goes to the marketplace. While disgusted with what he saw in the halls of justice is is I'm wondering if in the business world, things are better so he thought he might get a reprieve. If he goes to the business world and see how the business world is working and they found two kinds of people. There he finds one who's working very very hard time in their working day and night for what purpose not so that they can beat the competition will just be successful know. He said they are working so hard, so they're able to get some of more goodies of this world and get more possessions of this world and the second person he sees is the lazy one and the lazy one did not work at all, just that there watch everybody else work, but he found the hard-working people. He said they are working so hard not in order that they may take pride in their work, so Bailey can be just good stewards of the time that they said that they working hard so that they can accumulate and have the goodies of this world so that people can envy them if you will walk arising while look at them, they got everything. The biggest house the biggest car is the best of this in the best of everything I wanted to him right. Please there is nothing wrong with having things in fact, there is nothing wrong with competition, but success is placed ahead of honesty were in trouble. Listen to other journalist had written about life in Washington DC. He said ambition is a raving insatiable beast that most often demands to be fed in this town." Whereas for the lazy Solomon said he said well they not only eating away at the resources they are eating away at their self-respect. They are eating away at their own self worth. Someone Cianci verse six he said dancers balance.

That's the secret word events. The operative words of the secret is balance. Having balance in life is an important word to remember balance. Sadly, Solomon goes to the highway of life and you know what he sees. He sees loneliness, isolation becomes discouraged and then he concludes that godly partnership that godly friendship that godly companionship is very important in life. He said to a better than one and three strands cannot be easily broken. In fact the Bible from cover to cover tells us that we are to encourage one another that we are to motivate one another that we are to pray for one another that we are to uphold one another that we are to support one another that we are to protect one another that we are to carry one another's burden to a better than one forcefully started looking at his own house. Is the West Wing of the White House, for he looks at the place of power at the seat of power versus 13 to 16 and there Solomon discover that one of the greatest dangers of leadership is isolation is isolated.

That's his conclusion is because who serve the king in common and often they want to flatter him with flattering words and I want to tell them what they think he wants to hear instead of telling him the truth and those people don't help anybody, and I know you are not testified to the that the only ones were really helpful to us of those thoughtful brothers and sisters are those who sincere and secure brothers and sisters who can tell us the truth, not what they think you want to hear.

They help us much better and much more in the king is exalting them to do that when Solomon finished looking around and get so thoroughly depressed in the halls of justice and in the business world. The highway of life and in his own palace and and then when he finally gets so discouraged and he looks up in the great finally looks up. Stop living on the other side of the live where above the sun and he said God is in control of life.

God is in control of the various experiences God makes all things beautiful in his time.

Beloved, you know this life is complex. It's difficult and often life is not easily explainable. That's a fact. But when you look around you.

When you look around you. It is not very difficult for you and me to find someone who needs encouragement find someone who needs to be prepared to be discipled to be encouraged to betray particular the next generation.

And that's really the burden of his heart to come toward the end of chapter 4 goes on to chapter 5 and he says who's going to train the next generation. Who's going to disciple the next. Who's going to prepare the next generation. And he gives instruction to those who are coming behind beloved is a very, very important lessons, but because of the shortness of time I could not go through chapter 5, verse by verse or let me summarize it from and to give you the whole chapter in a summary form all right. You're right. Fasten your seatbelts. He said be ready to hear and obey the word of God. He said you must remember that sacrifice is not a substitute for obedience.

This is remember to take your prayer life very seriously because God sees the very secrets of our hearts, they should remember when you make a vow to the Lord, you must keep it because God takes you at your word because he's expecting you to take him at his word, he says don't rob the Lord of worship that is due his name. If you do that you gonna rob yourself of all the blessings that comes as a result of worshiping the Lord in truth and in the spirit be honest with God. He said come clean with God. Don't play games with God. Don't be embittered when you see injustice and corruption try to do something about it.

And if you can do something about it. Still, don't fret because God will do something about it.

Don't let money to be your master. Don't let the love of money, control you don't derive your satisfaction from the accumulation of wealth last chapter 5 I want to tell you this, as I conclude John the Rockefeller almost almost ruined his own life. I remember this was America's only billionaire back there. He had an income of $1 million a week is a lot of money by another more money now, but I really think about it, but he was a very sick man. He was very sick at the age of 53. They thought he was dying. In fact he was living on crackers and milk. He could not sleep out of worry hardly could sleep at any time of the night at all. Then somebody challenged him and he began to give his money away to the kingdom to God's work, he began to give 1 million other time as a gift and we do know that the moment he began to do that. His health completely changed overnight. Literally. And he lived to celebrate his 98th birthday. Anything that is nothing wrong with money. Solomon is not saying that there is nothing wrong with money what you do with it will determine your joy in life or lack of it is really what he saying I'll stay with the word about said if I have an opinion out there is an opinion, but this will do what God said. He said what you do with it will determine whether you have joy in life or you don't and that is why Solomon's final conclusion in chapter 5 of book of Ecclesiastes. He says enjoyment in life does not come from possessions, enjoyment of life does not come from wealth. The enjoyment of life does not come from riches, enjoyment of life comes from knowing the living God.

It comes from receiving everything from his hand with thanksgiving, whether it's pain or pleasure as you saw in the last message. These all the different colors of God is using the painted beautiful tapestry is called your life and skull my life but you know I'm aware of the fact it could be somebody here today have never really experienced the power of God never come to Jesus Christ or surrendered and received his gift of eternal life in somebody humor still living under the sun feel so discouraged that I'm chasing after the Windows all meaningless. Just like Solomon saw today you can say Lord Jesus Christ. I reprint my turn to you I confess, come into my life. Bring me the joy that only you can bring. Thanks for listening to this message from Dr. Michael.

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