Oh man. Now look, I just gotta be honest
with you that song at all of our locations.
Hope has the name. If you were into that song of
that song was affecting, you already heard the sermon today
so you can probably just get up and leave be okay because no
don't do that. I worked really hard on this
sermon so I don't I don't want you to miss out but boy that is
the message that you're going to hear today is that hope has a
name and that name. Is Jesus, and we're going to
find it in the Book of Ecclesiastes.
Before we get into that, I just want you to be praying hard for
what's going on at Camp right now, because high schoolers are
there, and I was there yesterday afternoon, and I was hearing
testimonies being given and people sharing from their heart,
high, schoolers sharing from their heart college, students,
sharing from their heart and and God is working in a powerful
way. There, right now, he's moving in
the lives of those high schoolers and that's what that
camp is all about. It's about life change.
It's about seeing the Holy Spirit, work in young hearts and
developing those hearts into fully devoted followers of
Christ Disciples of Jesus that are going to follow him all the
days of their lives. So you be praying for them.
Okay. Would you do that?
What a welcome, all the campuses that are joining with Today,
everybody inside everybody online and I'm going to totally
date myself, all right? I'm a Billy Joel fan.
How many of you even know who I'm talking about, okay?
I'm a Billy Joel fan and I can't help it because it's my age and
the, and like, when his like big albums came out as my senior
year in high school and Billy Joel came out with the album,
The Stranger, and it was an incredible.
Incredible album had songs like moving out.
Only the Good Die Young. She's Always a Woman to me, just
I love you. The way you are because I'm in
every single song on that album was a hit.
It went platinum 10 times over. I want you to think of just for
a second, like, you know, you're dating me.
But I want you to think how many artists do you know that had
number one songs in three different decades?
It's pretty short list, Billy Joel's one of them.
So that was in that was in 78 and 83 that was the year.
I got married, he came out with another incredible album called
an innocent man. Once again hit after hit was all
inspired by Christie Brinkley. He'd married right Uptown Girl
tell her about it. Keeping the Faith the longest
time. And of course the innocent man
had just hit after hit. It went platinum, 70.
Times over. The last major album that Billy
Joel released was in 1993, 10 years after that.
And it was called River of Dreams and the title track on
that album. I don't know.
It might be familiar to you just listen to it, you'll get a How
many of you remember that? Oh yeah.
Just an incredible song. Lot of great songs on this album
as well. But so I mean just he just kept
on pumping out the hits and the interesting thing about River of
Dreams, that album used the afterlife.
As an as the inspiration for the the album.
But there's only one problem with that using that as
inspiration, Billy Joel's an atheist.
So, he writes a whole album about the afterlife, does an
incredible job and he's an atheist.
Hey, grew up in a Jewish home and he dabbled with
Christianity, early in life, but that's where he ended up Landing
as an atheist and that's all well and good for Billy Joel.
Except when his seven-year-old daughter at the time.
Alexa asks him, this question is she's getting ready for bed,
Daddy. Where do we go?
When we die? Billy Joel didn't have a good
answer for that. But he put down his thoughts in
a song that's on that album, a lullaby.
And it's I don't know you decide what you think about his idea
because his response was given in a 2016 interview with Sirius
XM. And this is his quote, I told
her that after you die, you go into other people's hearts and
they take you with them through their lives.
And then you pass that on to your children.
He went on to describe the question is daughter, gave him.
As a scary question. Hmm.
Some of you may have heard the name of Stephen Hawking great
physicist passed away not too long ago.
He was renowned for his theories but he was also an atheist and
he was quoted saying this it is my view that the simplest
explanation is that there is no God, no one created the universe
and no one directs our fate, this leads me to a profound
realization. There is probably no heaven and
no after I've either we have this one life to appreciate the
grand design of the universe. Isn't that weird?
They talks about a grand design with no designer.
We we have this one life to appreciate the grand design of
the universe and for that, I am extremely grateful.
Hmm. Well, there in the vast minority
about four percent. According to a Pew research poll
about 4% today of the American population is atheist, another
5% would call themselves agnostic.
That's a little harder word maybe to Define, but what it
means is that they really don't have or think there is an
explanation for our existence, it's a question without an
answer Psychology today. The magazine says about Force of
Americans believe in an afterlife and the other 25%
really don't believe or don't know, they just, they just don't
know. some might say that these beliefs that we carry with us
about about an afterlife about heaven or hell or you know, this
Reckoning, they're not scientific, but their religious
superstition But I have to tell you, there was a long list of
scientists who did believe, like, Copernicus Francis Bacon,
Kepler Galileo, Descartes, Blaise Pascal, Isaac Newton,
Robert Boyle, Max Planck Albert. Einstein Louis Faraday, Pat
Louis pasture, K many more, a lot of scientists.
I recognized that there was a grand design and a grand
designer. But that's not really the point.
The point is are the question is what do you believe?
And why do you believe whatever it is that you believe?
And if you're looking for the answers to the deepest questions
and this is definitely one of them, the deepest questions of
life and you turn to your Bible, I'm going to say something
that's a little out of my personal character and that is
this it's probably a good idea to stay away from The Book of
Ecclesiastes. Because Solomon.
In this stage of his life is a man with no Rock to stand on in
the middle of water over his head.
Now, make no mistake. It is true that God gave
Solomon. This Incredible Gift of
practical wisdom. And we can use that practical
gift of wisdom, as we read what he has written like for all the
things that we deal with, in our lives, in the lower story
component of our lives. And we do know that Simon
believed in God. I mean you can read Ecclesiastes
and you can see. Yeah, he definitely believed in
God, he wasn't an atheist and you can even say that he
believed that we would have to answer to God for whatever we
did. Because the very end of the He
does say that but there is nothing that gives me the
impression that he actually believed that he would ever meet
God. Or have any kind of a meaningful
relationship with God or experienced an Afterlife with
God? I, I see him kind of as a Proto
sadducee. So like, you know, during the
time of Jesus, there were the Pharisees and the Sadducees.
Those were like, the two religious governing bodies that
came together to form. What was called the Sanhedrin
and the major difference between the Pharisees and the Sadducees
as the Pharisees believed in the Of the Old Testament and life
after death, and the Sadducees, did not believe in the prophets
of the Old Testament, or they did not, and they did not
believe in life after death. And that's why I kind of see
Solomon as a Proto sadducee before, you know, like hundreds
of years before they were ever a thing.
Why do I believe that? Well, I believe that because of
Solomon's own words, let's look at Ecclesiastes 8, 14 and 15.
There is something else. Meaningless that occurs on Earth
The righteous who get with the wicked deserve, and the wicked
who get what the righteous deserve now.
That's true, isn't it? You've seen that you've
experienced that and it's probably frustrated you before
how come there's they seem to be and I am, you know, this too.
I say is meaningless so I commend.
Listen to this, the enjoyment of life.
Because there is nothing better. For a person under the sun, then
to eat and to drink. And to be glad.
Kind of reminds me of a story. Jesus said about a guy who tours
small Barnes down, he built bigger Barns, and he said, now,
let's take life, easy and eat and drink and be merry. and, God
came to him that night and said, you fool.
This night, your soul will be required of you and then who
will get all that you've stored up for yourself.
But when I look at Solomon in Ecclesiastes 8 I see a man who
has no little or no regard for the upper story makes me
question. Did he even believed that there
was life after death? Look at Ecclesiastes, 3, 19 to
21, surely the fate of human beings is like that of the
animals. The same fate awaits them both
as one dies so dies the other I'll have the same breath
humans, have no Advantage. Listen to that over animals.
Everything is meaningless. All go to the same place all
come from dust and to dust all return, who knows if the human
Spirit, listen that, who knows? That means it's a question.
If the human Spirit Rises upward, if the spirit of an
animal goes down into the Earth, he has no idea.
This is a man with questions, but no answers, Answers doesn't
look like it to me. Look at Ecclesiastes 6:12 for,
who knows what is good for a person in life during the few
and meaningless days that they pass through like a shadow who
can tell them what will happen under the sun after they are
gone. Again questions?
No answers. Huh.
How did he come to this conclusion?
What do did anyone before him believe in an afterlife?
Or was that just kind of the general consensus?
A thousand years before, Jesus was born?
Now, that's not true. His father did David believed in
an afterlife. Let me show you a few passages.
In Psalm, starting with 16 9 to 11.
Therefore, my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices my body will
rest also, rest secure because you will not abandon me to the
realm of the Dead. Nor will you let your faithful
ones cdk? You will make known to me the
path of life. And you will fill me with joy in
your presence with eternal Pleasures at your right hand,
even though that's prophetic about Jesus, this is what David
believed. You look at 4915 some 4915 but
God will Redeem Me from the realm of the Dead.
Buy me back is what redeem means.
He will surely take me to himself.
Look at chapter, 73 verses 23 to 26.
Yet, I am always with you. You hold me by my right hand.
You guide me with your counsel and afterward.
See that you will take me into Glory.
Whom have I in heaven but you the Earth has nothing.
I desire besides you. My Flesh and my heart May Fail.
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
So Solomon had a conclusion, but it wasn't the same conclusion as
his father. As a matter of fact, you can go
all the way back, the very first book written in the Bible, not
the first one that you see in order that's Genesis, but the
first one written in the Bible, the oldest book is the Book of
Job. And if the it's the oldest Old
Testament book, what did job think about the afterlife?
Well, let's look at Job, 19:25 227.
I know that my redeemer lives and that in the end he will
stand on the earth and after my skin has been destroyed yet in
my flesh, I will see God. I myself will see him with my
own eyes. I and not another how my heart
yearns. Burns within me, you know, jobs
got no idea how God's going to do this, but he believes in his
heart, that somehow God is going to raise him from the dead, not
awesome. Through it all.
And he went through a lot job maintained that God was right.
Even though it seemed like God was allowing job to suffer for
no reason at all. But the only way for God to be
right, that made sense to job, was that there had to be A
resurrection. Just job.
No. Abraham did lived a thousand
years before Solomon. Abraham said that he believed in
a city with foundations and also a specific resurrection and a
general Resurrection. We know that because of Hebrews,
11 10 and 11, 19 says, this is talking about Abraham.
He was looking forward to a city with foundations, whose
architect and Builder. Is God, that's talking about
heaven. And in Talking about sacrificing
his son, Isaac, Abraham reason that God could even raise the
dead, he thought he was going to kill his son on that mountain.
And then God was going to raise him back to life.
So and so in a manner speaking he did receive Isaac back from
death. Abraham believed in an
afterlife, so did Moses? 14:46 BC, almost 500 years
before Solomon Moses was at the burning bush and God spoke
through that burning bush to Moses.
And he said, these words, I am the god of Abraham.
I am the god of Isaac and the god of Jacob, by the way,
Abraham. Isaac, and Jacob had been dead
for hundreds of years, Before Moses was at that bush.
When Jesus was arguing with the Sadducees and they were saying
there was no afterlife Jesus reminded them of this scripture
and said you remember at the burning cuz they did believe in
Moses and the law and the burning bush and he said you
remember that. He said I am the god of Abraham,
the god of Isaac and the god of Jacob because you see what the
sadducee said was that God is not a god of the Dead.
He's a god of the living. and so, he used their own scripture
against him and said, look, When God said that, Abraham, Isaac
and and Jacob, even though they were long dead to the world,
they weren't dead. They were still living because
he was still that God. In Exodus 32, 32 Moses says
this, he says, but now, this is when he's pleading for the life
of the Israelites in the wilderness, please forgive their
sin. But if not, then blot me out of
the book, you have written, he's referring to the Lamb's Book of
Life. He goes, let me pay for them.
Erase me from your book. So Solomon had plenty of great
examples if you really were one to discuss the afterlife but for
some reason he just didn't get it.
Why is that? You see Solomon over and over
and over. In the Book of Ecclesiastes, not
only says this is meaningless. He also uses this other phrase
and that phrases under the sun. Under the Sun.
So Under the Sun is descriptive term of the lower story.
It's that the life that you live where you're just grinding it
out every day. And Solomon's wisdom is great
for the lower story. If you're wanting to do well
under the sun, then Solomon's got a lot of stuff to share with
you, right? But you know there's an upper
story and it's not under the sun, it's over the Sun.
Solomon believed in God, but he had little understanding of his
relationship. God's relationship to people.
And it's pretty clear to me, that he saw death, pretty much
as the end. I mean we see this in
Ecclesiastes 9 verses 1 to 10, look at this.
So I reflected on all this and concluded that the righteous and
the wise and what they do or in God's hands but no one knows
whether love or hate, awaits them all share a common Destiny,
the righteous and the Wicked, the good, and the bad, the
clean, and the unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those,
who do not as it is with the good.
So it is with the sinful as it is with those who take Odes.
So, With those who are afraid to take them, this is the evil in
everything that happens Under the Sun.
The same Destiny over takes all. It's like, he doesn't have like,
heaven hell. Good bad, huh?
No. It's the same.
It's all the same. And basically, you're dead.
The hearts of people. Moreover, a full of evil, and
there's a Madness in their hearts while they live in
afterward, they join the dead. Anyone who is among the living
Has hope we just sang a song. Hope has a name.
Anyone who's living has hope good question.
If they really do, even a live dog, is better off than a dead
lion. For the living know that they
will die, but the dead know nothing.
They have no further reward. And even their name is
forgotten. Their love their hate, their
jealousy have long since vanished never again, will they
have a part in anything that happens Under the Sun?
Go eat your food with gladness. Drink your wine with joyful
heart for God has already approved what you do like okay
whatever you want always be clothed in white always anoint
your head with oil enjoy life with your wife whom you love all
the days of this meaningless life that God has given you.
To the sun, all your meaningless days for this, is your lot in
life in your toilsome labor under the sun.
Boy, if that isn't cynical and fatalistic, I don't know what it
is. So the real question isn't what
Solomon didn't see? The real question is what you
see? What you see right now.
I can't tell you what, you see. Only you can tell yourself that
but I can tell you what, I see, I see a man paying a debt for me
on a Roman cross, so that I can be free.
I see that I see a dead body coming to life again to prove to
me that he can do the very same for me.
It's what I see. I see a broken person healed in
places that no physician can reach except for the great
physician I see. Person that is filled with
purpose and hope as he looks at an unknown future.
I see a relationship available to every person right now.
No matter what they've done, that is greater and more
long-lasting than any other relationship that we can
realize. I see the burden of my sin
falling away and being carried away.
And I can see a person lit up with Holy Spirit fire.
Number of years ago. I'd say about 11 or 12 years
ago. I was in Colorado Springs at a
retreat with some friends of mine.
Jim Putman I was going to have an opportunity to speak with
him. David Platt was there.
I was really looking forward to meet a guy that was going to be
there. His name was Avery Willis.
Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to meet him because two
weeks before that conference he died.
And that was a sad day for that conference in the eye, you know,
and the opportunity that I wanted to have but Avery Willis
was describing his life and his eternity and he wrote it down
before he died, and this is what he said.
This is a quote. I am part of the Fellowship of
the unashamed. I have holy spirit Power.
The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line.
The Vision has been made. I'm a disciple of his.
I won't look back. Let up, slow down back away, or
be still. My past has redeemed.
My present makes sense. My future is secure.
I'm finished and down with low living site walking, small
planning smooth, knees, colorless dreams, tamed Visions
mundane talking, keep living and dwarfed goals.
I no longer need prominence prosperity.
Position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity.
I don't have to be right first, tops recognize praised regarded
or rewarded. I now, live by faith, I leaned
on his presence, walk by patients, lift by prayer and
labor by power, my face is set. My gate is fast.
My goal is heaven. My road is narrow, my way is
rough. My companions are few.
My guide is reliable. My mission is clear.
Here, I cannot be bought compromise.
Detour lured away, turn back, diluted or delay.
I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice hesitate, in the
presence of the adversary negotiate at the table of the
enemy Ponder at the pool of popularity or Meander in the
Maze of mediocrity. I won't give up, shut up, let up
until I have stayed up prayed up paid up and preached up for the
cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus.
I must go until he comes. Give till I drop, preach, till
all, no work till he stops me. And when he comes for his own,
he will have no problem. Recognizing me, my banner will
be clear. Amen.
I couldn't have said it that
well, but I'll say this someday. I will open my eyes in heaven.
And my vision will be filled with the face of Jesus.
I will walk on the streets of pure gold.
I will eat from the Tree of Life and drink from the river of the
Water of Life. I will see my mother.
My father, my brother. And the actual people from the
bible stories. I've taught for all these many
years. I'll have a new body it's
smaller than this one. I'll glorified body and a new
mind to go with. I won't send any more.
I won't get sick anymore, I won't hurt anymore.
I want more nor weep anymore every dark and awful thing.
If this world will be swallowed up in the overwhelming light of
my heavenly father. You know.
I really like Billy Joel's music. but when it comes to the
afterlife, Billy. Joel got it wrong.
Way wrong. You see, it's not about whether
or not you're in someone else's heart.
It's whether or not Jesus is in your heart.
Because hope. Has a name.
Solomon. He had a lot of answers to a lot
of Earthly questions. but when it came to heaven, all he had
was questions. And the only needed one answer.
He only needed one name. And that's the name you have.
And that's a name that you can call on.
Because the name of Jesus. Is the name of the son of God,
who came to this earth? For the purpose of dying for
your sin and mine. Being buried Rising again on the
third day to prove once and for all that, he has the power to
raise you from death to life and give you hope not just for
today. But for all eternity.
We're moving to a time of decision.
You know. I know that there's people in
this room. Right now, people online right
now. You know about Jesus.
You couldn't listen to this sermon without knowing more
knowing about Jesus. The question isn't whether or
not know about him? The question is whether or not
you knowing Wouldn't you agree with me?
There's a big difference between knowing about a person and
knowing a person personally, And God's not inviting you to know
about Jesus. He's not inviting you to know
about a savior. He's not inviting you to know
about a lord. He's inviting you to know Jesus.
To be in relationship with Jesus.
To know that he's your savior. To know that he's your lord.
Right now, what God wants? Is he wants to take that?
That place in your heart. That's empty or dark.
That's full of questions. And he wants to fill that empty
place with hope. He wants to fill that empty
place with the presence of his son.
And there is nothing in this world.
Nothing in the spiritual world. Nothing in eternity.
That has the ability to keep you.
From receiving that to yourself except one thing.
You. In this moment right now you're
the only one. That stands in the way.
Of being able to receive. The Eternal hope.
That comes from knowing Jesus Christ personally.
So, maybe the prayer today for you. if I'm speaking to you
right now, Is. I need to get myself out of the
way. And let God give me the thing.
That he paid for so dearly. There's going to be someone
standing right over here by this baptistry.
If you're online, there's a button that you can press and
you can talk to someone. They'll pray with you right now
because we would love nothing more than for you to make this
day, the most life-changing important decision-making day.
Of your entire existence on this planet.
And Heaven Will Rejoice going to tell you right now.
God has his angels. Standing.
It guard all around this building.
And he is protecting this moment for you.
So that you can have this Moment of clarity.
Where you can say? I want that.
And if you do, don't hesitate go right up to that person, talk to
him. You'll never regret it.
Many of you here today, have made that decision for Christ.
And I appreciate that. Just the thought of knowing that
we'll see each other in the glory of Heaven.
We're in all this other stuff is just gone.
And that will have that unfettered access.
Not only to God, not only to Jesus, but to each other and
experience, a Oneness, I mean, you could experience a little
tiny taste of it here, but it's nothing like what we're going to
experience together in eternity Right now if you're struggling,
maybe it's you, maybe it's someone, you know, someone that
you love, you're carrying a burden right now, that burdens
weighing you down, you're feeling the weight of it.
On your shoulders, I invite you right now whether it's your
issue or someone else's issue to come up here to these steps.
And lay it down. Talk to the Lord.
He'll hear you. Leave that burden here.
He'll take it. I wonder this is just for this
room, right? I wonder how many of you have.
Come up here to these steps in the past and shed tears.
What the carpet? With your tears.
Later burden down. There's going to be a change up
here next week. It's going to start actually
right after second service. This this stage is going to
change. Its going to be it's going to go
from like kind of a squared stage to a rounded stage.
It's going to have all new steps and everything.
Kind of like Billy Joel here. There's a lot of nostalgia.
A lot of memories on these steps.
Some of you Believers. Maybe say one last time.
For they, take these steps away and replace them with new ones.
I just want one last time. Come up here.
Pour my heart out to the Lord. Would you stand with me?
Heavenly father in Jesus name. I thank you that we have a place
to go when we feel powerless. When we feel broken, we hurt,
whether it's for ourselves or for someone else.
That we don't have to walk through this life by ourselves
and we don't have to shoulder our burdens alone that you're
right here with us that you don't leave us or forsake us.
And I pray father that our hearts would just be open to you
now. And I pray, father.
I will just take this moment. Take it captive.
And share it with you and your son.
In Jesus name, amen. In Jesus name, amen.