2006-10-15 Communion Dedication – Baldwin Christian Church 

Ecclesiastes 7:2-4 

2 It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart.

3 Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better.

4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth. 

We can’t see it, but times of sorrow cause something good to grow in us, something far more precious and enduring than laughter could ever produce.  Jesus said, “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted” (Matt 5:4). 

Fools seek after the noise of laughter and the distractions of worldly pleasures, hoping to drown out thoughts about dying, but the wise have peace in their hearts because, as it says in verse 2, they come to grips with dying. 

Hebrews 2:14-15 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 

Many people say they don’t fear dying, and some of them even joke about how much fun it will be in hell.  Judging by all the fun they’re having now, they don’t appear to be living “subject to bondage”, or afraid of death, but they are. 

Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life” (John 6:47). 

I can say the breath you took as I read that verse is just a drop in the bucket of breaths you will take in your lifetime, but I can’t say the life you’ve been given is a drop in the bucket of everlasting life.  I’m not sure that even God could make a bucket that big.  The life we are living today is very serious.  It may seem like a long time, but it isn’t, and what we do in this very short time will determine our everlasting life.  When Jesus said, “He that believeth on me hath everlasting life”, “believeth” is a present-tense action verb.  For those who “believeth”, death, the end of our days, has no sting, no power, and today… 

2 Corinthians 4:17-18

17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;

18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. 

Like the rings on a tree, your walk with Jesus will experience seasons of leanness and seasons of prosperity.  During hard times of drought, the tree’s growth rings are thin, but this closeness adds strength to the tree.  During seasons of drought, the tree didn’t look so good to you and me, but that’s because we can’t see what’s happening below the surface.  All that time, the roots were sinking a little deeper, searching diligently for that water of life.  One day, the drought will break and the storms will come, but those roots are a little deeper now, and they help the tree to stand better. 

Ecclesiastes 7:13-14

13 Consider the work of God: for who can make that straight, which he hath made crooked?

14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him. 

The seasons of prosperity, when the topsoil was saturated with moisture, indeed gave life and health to the part of the tree that we see (green leaves and abundant branches, etc), but the roots grew shallow, and the rings grew fat.  Prosperity can be a wonderful thing, but it has a sneaky way of taking the place of God in our heart.  One gust of wind can knock it all down, but we just have this tendency to equate prosperity with God’s approval.  He says there are days of adversity and days of prosperity, times to be joyful, and times to consider.  In both, let our hearts be settled on Him.