Worship That Matters Ecclesiastes 5:1-7 Introduction

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1 Introduction Solomon continues to observe life from both a human and divine perspective. In the first two chapters he discusses the emptiness of a life apart from God. In the third chapter the Preacher suggests that God has a plan; and even thought that plan is sometimes layered in mystery; it is a good plan, a trustworthy plan. In this chapter the Preacher makes observations about human words (vv.1-7); human wickedness (vv.8-12) and human wretchedness (vv.13-17) and human wisdom (vv.18-20). In his commentary Be Satisfied Warren Wiersbe entitles this chapter Stop Thief and proceeds to outline the chapter Don t Rob the Lord (vv.1-7); Don t rob others (vv.8-9); and Don t rob yourself (vv.10-20) (see pp.63-71). He cites a magazine cartoon where a dejected and depressed looking man is seen walking out of the bank manager s office. The manage says to his secretary in the caption; He suffers from back problems: back taxes, back rent, and back alimony. Bill Earle wrote; When your outgo exceeds your income, your upkeep will be your downfall. Clearly the Preacher notes that there is a connection between human worship and human income. In the book of Ecclesiastes the Preacher has journeyed into the man s courtroom to look for justice and man s marketplace to see how human beings conduct business; the Preacher has searched the human roads of commerce and travel and made visits to the palace of power. Now the Preacher peeks into the Temple of God and man s worship. Clearly Solomon would have been an expert on the Temple in Jerusalem since he ordered its construction and would have been intimately aware of the Sanctuary, the sacrifices and God s call to worship. In the Temple the Preacher observes mindless worship; careless prayer; and people making empty promises to God. The Danger Of Mindless Worship (v.1) Ecclesiastes 5:1 (NKJV) Walk prudently when you go to the house of God; and draw near to hear rather than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they do evil. In the ancient world of Solomon s Temple animal sacrifice was a constant reminder of the powerful and terrible consequences of sin. The soul that sins shall surely die. The writer of Hebrews in the New Testament argues that the permanent sacrifice of Jesus is the satisfying solution to the problem of human sin. The death of Jesus Christ on Calvary s Cross does what the law could never do--make a person acceptable to God. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more 1

2 consciousness of sins. (3) But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins ever year. (4) For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins (Heb. 10:2-4). We are a holy priesthood. We as Christians offer up holy sacrifices; spiritual sacrifices; Paul encourages us to offer up our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God, which is our reasonable service (Rom.12:1-2). We offer gifts and callings to be employed in God s service; reaching the lost; loving the poor and the needy; discipling the saints. Romans 15:16 (NKJV) that I might be a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. Paul saw himself as a priest and the Gentiles his bloodless sacrifice; his offering to God. We worship God through giving our time, our talent, our treasure. We offer a broken heart (Psalm 51:17) and our prayers whispered or spoken in faith (Psalm 141:1-2). Solomon reminds the reader to walk prudently when you go to the House of God; we might translate that walk carefully or watch your step; the Hebrew reads; keep your foot. People were coming into the Temple of God and the worship of God but they were not sincere in their worship. They weren t coming to listen. The people came to offer sacrifices but left the Temple worse than when they arrived. Growing up--many of us heard parents say; watch your step young-man; watch your step young lady. In anger we sometimes draw dangerously close to the border called disrespect; respecting parents is one of God s big ten commandments. Life without boundaries is neither safe or secure; but invites chaos. When we come to the house of the Lord we are to draw near to hear, to understand, to learn, to obey, to worship. Wiersbe writes; What was their sin? They were robbing God of the reverence and honor that He deserved. Their acts of worship were perfunctory, insincere, and hypocritical (Be Satisfied; p.64). When Solomon writes draw near to hear he means hear from God; but that does not mean simply listening to the message, it means hearing and obeying the message. Sacrifice was never a substitute for disobedience. The sin of Saul was to hear the Word of the Lord and then refuse to obey the Word of the Lord. Saul tried to cover his sorry disobedience with insincere sacrifices and pious promises to honor God on Saul s own terms. Offerings in the hands without obedient faith in the heart became the sacrifice of fools, because only a fool thinks he can deceive God. The fool thinks he is doing good, but he or she is only doing evil. And God knows it (Be Satisfied; p.64). What is the solution to the problem of mindless worship? Adequate preparation. We must prepare our minds and our hearts for worship. With the right kind of thoughts and the right kind 2

3 of words. How can we possibly be willing to hear what the Lord has to say if we fail to prepare our hearts? We have every right to bring our sorrows and bring our burdens to the Lord. But you have to bring them in the right way; with the right heart. With a willingness to hear and then obey God s will. The Danger Of Careless Prayer (vv.2-3) Ecclesiastes 5:2 (NKJV) Do not be rash with your mouth, And let not your heart utter anything hastily before God. For God is in heaven, and you on earth; Therefore let your words be few. Mindless and insincere worship is complicated by careless prayer. The Preacher begins with watch your walk--and mind your talk. How should we think about prayer? Do we make liberties in our prayers in the hopes that God will understand and overlook our immaturity, our wickedness or our weakness? Some of us have enough sense to watch what we say around dignitaries. If you are careful in your speech around your clients and your children how is it that we give ourselves permission to say the most outrageous things to God? The Preacher warns about hasty words and too many words. Many of us have a surplus of words. Are you calm and quiet or are you agitated and disturbed? Our thoughts can easily be inundated with yesterday s trials, today s setbacks or appointments, tomorrow s plans; we are pressed by problems or urgent decisions. When Solomon writes God is in heaven, and you on the earth it is not so much distance that the Preacher has in mind; but perspective. You see things on the earth. God sees all things from his permanent throne in heaven. We have a temporal perspective. God has an eternal perspective. We have a point of view. He has points to view. God is invisible, immortal, eternal, unchanging; God hears all things; we can cast our cares upon Him, knowing He cares for us; and in the casting of our cares; in the presentation of burden; we also have the privilege of hearing His voice. What is the secret to acceptable prayer? Psalm 141:1-2 (NKJV) 1 Lord, I cry out to You; Make haste to me! Give ear to my voice when I cry out to You.2 Let my prayer be set before You as incense, The lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice. 3

4 Matthew 6:7 (NKJV) 7And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. Pray with a prepared heart. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks (Matt. 12:34-37). Ecclesiastes 5:3 (NKJV) For a dream comes through much activity, And a fool s voice is known by his many words. In verse 3 the Preacher offers the reader an analogy; the person who goes to sleep after working a hard days work dreams many dreams; so the many mindless words, or empty words, shows the person praying is a fool. What makes prayer effective or ineffective? It is not the length of the prayer but the strength of the prayer. Charles Spurgeon said; It is not the length of our prayers, but the strength of our prayers that make a difference. The Danger Of Worthless Promises (vv.4-7) Ecclesiastes 5:4 (NKJV) When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it; For He has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you have vowed. In the Old Testament God did not require the people to make vows or take vows in order to be accepted by God. Clearly the Lord allows people to make promises if their intention is to keep their promises (see Num. 30; Deut. 23:21-23; Acts 18:18). When Martin Luther was a young monk walking through the fields of Germany an electrical storm filled the sky and a nearby tree was struck by lightening. Luther saw it as a sign from God and cried out to God for help. Help me and I will become a monk. That sudden vow changed Martin Luther s life. John Newton a drunk and slave trader also made a vow to God; help me and I will change my life. Newton would later pen the words to Amazing Grace. God will sometimes use crises to awaken us in our carnal and selfish sleep. The problem; most of us are far willing to make a commitment than keep the commitment. We live in an age of half-hearted promises and empty commitments. If every single person kept their promises Asia and Africa would be over-run with missionaries. I now people who have made promises to God in the heat of life s battles and some have even managed to keep their promises. Ecclesiastes 5:5 (NKJV) Better not to vow than to vow and not pay. The Preacher is warning of two sins; the first sin is making a promise you have no intention of keeping; the second is the sin of lying to God. Making a promise to God is binding. The Preacher knows blaming God is foolish and bribing God is even more foolish. 4

5 Ecclesiastes 5:6 (NKJV) Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, nor say before the messenger of God that it was an error. Why should God be angry at your excuse and destroy the work of your hands? In this instance the messenger of God is probably the Priest or the Temple Official who is given the news that the person can no longer keep the promise or the pledge that was made. The picture is of the priest or the temple official who comes to collect the promised sacrifice or gift only to hear the person say; I ve made a terrible mistake. Does God hear what we say? Does God expect us to keep our promises? The answer is yes. Does God also know when we are making a foolish vow or an insincere vow; or an impossible promise? The answer is yes. We sometimes make promises and we really mean to keep those promises; and we face the same sorrows and limitations; we make excuses; we rationalize (plausible but untrue excuses of why we do what we do). God sees through our excuses and is not pleased with our excuses. God does not overlook what we say when we are tender; when we are angry; when we are sad; when we are bad. Did it ever occur to you that God takes your promises seriously and personally? Did it ever occur to you that God is offended when you break your promise? Clearly is a difficult concept to wrap our heads around; but it remains true. Why should God be angry at your excuse? Ecclesiastes 5:7 (NKJV) For in the multitude of dreams and many words there is also vanity. But fear God. The Preacher points out that people imagine or dream about what it would be like fulfill the promise they made to God. They dream about giving large amounts to missions or ministries. Or they dream about a healthy marriage or mature discipleship; they dream about what it would be like to be sober or drug free or addiction free. They dream about fulfilling their promise or vow but they never get around to it. Their are people who love to come to the altar and weep; and pray and promise; but they practice a make-believe religion that neither glorifies the Lord or builds Christian character (see Wiersbe p.66). The section and the sentence closes with three words; but fear God; or rather fear God. What does that mean to fear God? Do you think it means at a minimum to take God seriously? Do you think it means we have the freedom to play games with God; or mumble empty thoughts or make meaningless promises to God? God takes your friendship seriously. When we see God 5

6 from the perspective of the Scriptures; when we understand God s nature and attributes it should deepen our love and expand our respect and in so doing our relationship. I read the story of 17 year old boy who was accused of burning down a church in Nashville, Indiana. At his trial he explained how he took a cigarette lighter to a church that was nearly a hundred years old. His reason; I was angry with God. A woman posted on online who lost her both her son and her husband in separate accidents; I am ANGRY at God. I am VERY ANGRY! She dared to write what we sometimes are reluctant to confess. Clearly God is a good God and it does no good to hide our feelings; but sustained bitterness toward the Lord who loves us is unwise and irrational. Some people think they need to forgive God. That s bad theology. God is incapable of doing wrong. God never requires our pardon. God s nature is perfect. Just and true are your ways O Lord. It s a bad idea to blame God for loss or sorrow. Conclusion Worship reminds us of values the world would rather we forget. In the Old Testament the book of Psalms was the Hymnbook for worship. Psalm 66:13-14 (NKJV) 13 I will go into Your house with burnt offerings; I will pay You my vows,14 Which my lips have uttered And my mouth has spoken when I was in trouble. Does it make sense to rob God, lie to God, refuse to worship God or honor God? For just a moment think about what it meant to worship the Lord in the Temple. In the Old Testament the burnt offering was called the Olah; a sweet aroma and a freewill offering. It usually consisted of a male sheep, goat, or bull, turtledoves or young pigeons (Lev. 1:3-17; 6:8-13). All except the skin burned on the altar of burnt offering (Lev.1:8; 7:8); morning and evening; the skin was given to the priests (Lev.7:8). The purpose of the burnt offering was to communicate total surrender to God as well as substitutionary atonement for the person who placed the gift on the altar. In the New Testament the surrender of Jesus Christ the Lord to God on behalf of the believer is typified in the Burnt Offering (see Heb. 12:2-3). Jesus empties Himself to become sin for the sinner (2 Cor.5:21; Phil. 2:6-8). We as Christians do not go into God s house with burnt offerings; but something far greater and permanent. We go with Christ. With Jesus as Lord and Savior. If Solomon s goal was to help the reader make worship living, vital, active, vibrant, truthful, meaningful that when should pay close attention! 6

7 The Lord seeks those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:24). In this passage The Preacher points out the values of drawing near and listening well (v.1); of staying quiet and calm (vv.2-3); of making commitments and keeping promises (vv. 4-5); and of deciding now--and refusing to deny later (vv.6-7a). Re-read the passage when you get a chance. Note all the action words; guard, draw near, listen, hasty in word, impulsive in thought, dream, make a vow, pay, speech, sin, destroy, fear. Thomas Howard wrote; I don t know whether I ve met an evangelical who does not lament the desperate, barren, parched nature of evangelical worship. C.S. Lewis wrote; The perfect church service would be one we were almost unaware of; our attention would have been on God. Worship services in many churches today are like a merry-go-round. You drop a token in the collection box; it s good for a ride. There s music and lot s of motion up and down. The ride is carefully timed and seldom varies in length. Lot s of good feelings are generated, and it is the one ride you can be sure will ne be the least bit threatening or challenging. But though you spend the whole time feeling as if you are moving forward, you get off exactly where you got on (John MacArthur). 7