–Zane Grey  (The Call of the Canyon)

 

       “Man goes out to his work and to his labor until the evening.”
                         –Psalm 104:23 (NKJV)
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T. S. Eliot wrote, “humans cannot bear very much reality.”  They would rather live in a world of fantasy, dreams–a land of wokeness and illusion.  Truth for them is hard to handle so they make up their own truth to suit their needs or agenda.  There is soft diplomacy, political correctness in all of its foolishness, the deconstruction of terms (i.e., sin, dead).  People try to cover up their blemishes wanting that perfect face or body.  Ah, but truth cannot be hidden.
       Ecclesiastes 10 reminds us of our folly.  Two things that have always frustrated me in my work, my career, my life is the folly of mediocrity and incompetence.  In our society today we cannot get away from incompetence or the mediocre worker.  Look with me at verses 6-11 of chapter 10.

          6 — Folly is set in great dignity, while the rich sit in a lowly place.
          7 — I have seen servants on horses, while princes walk on the ground like servants.
          8 — He who digs a pit will fall into it, and whoever breaks through a wall will be bitten by a serpent.
          9 — He who quarries stones may be hurt by them, and he who splits wood may be endangered by it.
        10 — If the ax is dull, and one does not sharpen the edge, then he must use more strength; but wisdom brings success.
        11 — A serpent may bite when it is not charmed; the babbler is no different.  (NKJV)

A fool is a person who will not accept the truth.  Look for a moment at the work place.  Who is the Boss?  How do you treat him?  Do you grumble at the work that you are given?  Hmmm, perhaps we should move this into the area of life–who is the “Boss” of your life?  Do you grumble when He puts a task before you?  
       Work while you have the opportunity.  Gone is the Puritan Work Ethic, the idea that whatever you do you should do to the best of your ability for it is unto the Lord that you work.  He has given you the ability, the strength, and the knowledge to get through this life.  More and more I see the Peter Principle put into action–the placing of the incompetent in places of authority.  And that is true of us who elect our political officials.  Look at the incompetence.
       For a moment look at the situation presented in the verses above, then at the danger.  Throughout life you will find that there are at times inevitable risks, but there is also the fact of inexcusable stupidity.  Look at the situation of digging a pit–the danger is that you may fall into it.  When you break through a wall do you consider what is on the other side?  It may be a snake.  The one who quarries stones always faces the danger of being hurt by falling stones.  Oh my, have I seen the next one put into action on more than one occasion; the person who splits logs incompetently is endangering himself and maybe others nearby.  When you chop wood, make sure the blade is sharp for it makes the work go easier, but the incompetent overexerts himself, while the mediocre person will not take the time to sharpen the ax and will only cut part of the wood–enough for today, but not for tomorrow.
       Wisdom thinks ahead.  It seeks and knows the truth then acts upon it.  The wise man seeks out the Lord, while the fool says that God does not exist.  The wise realizes that he needs a Savior, and that eternal looms closer every day.  The fool, the incompetent, doesn’t see the end.  He lives for himself for the day only.  So, I would say, “Incline your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding.” (Proverbs 2:2, NKJV)

                    –Louis L’Amour  (High Lonesome)

       “Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness.”

                    –Mark 1:12 (NKJV)         
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“When the heart is full, it brims over in some outward act of devotion,” said the preacher F.B. Meyer.  The key here is “heart is full.”  One reason that there may be little done for God is that the heart is full of other things.  We get too full of the world, we get dissatisfied with our life, and therefore, the heart is full of other things.  Look today at the first part of Psalm 95.

          1 — Oh come, let us sing to the LORD!  Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.
          2 — Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.
          3 — For the LORD is the great God, and the great King above all gods.
          4 — In His hand are the deep places of the earth; the heights of the hills are His also.
          5 — The sea is His, for He made it; and His hands formed the dry land.
          6 — Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.
          7 — For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand….   (NKJV)

       Here, in this Psalm, we are given an invitation.  An grand invitation to worship the King of kings.  The Psalm is declaring the greatness of God, and it is our choice, but also our responsibility and obligation to give proper reverence.  This is a call for the people of God to worship the Lord.  
       We see in these few verses the idea of the Creator, the Sovereign God, and the Shepherd.  Often, because of daily struggles or events we become disillusioned with God.  We get dry, bitter, and our thoughts regarding the regal Person of God are not scriptural.  When that happens we turn to Psalm 95 and remember who He is.
       God is our Rock, our “steadfast sufficiency and security” (Lawson) so lets worship joyfully.  God blesses us more than abundantly therefore we need to praise Him for His many blessings and show proper gratitude.  We should worship God, not only for His mighty deeds, but simply because He is–He is God!  The term “bow down” means “the total self-humiliation, submission, and adoration to be rendered by those who approach God.” (Lawson)  
       He blesses us, He leads us, He feeds us for He is the good Shepherd.  Worship Him with your mouth, your thoughts, your actions, your full-being.  I like what the great English preacher, Joseph Parker said, “God! God! God! Best defined when undefined; a Fire that may not be touched; a Life too great for shape of image; a Love for which there is no equal name. Who is He? God. What is He? God. Of whom begotten? God. He is at once the question and the answer, the self-balance, the All.”

               “Where no fruit appears to cheer them
               And they seem to toil in vain,
               Then in mercy, Lord, draw near them,
               Then their sinking hopes sustain,
               Thus supported, let their zeal revive again.”
                         –Thomas Kelly

                    –2 Corinthians 1:17-18(HCSB)
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I have often read through things in the past without really looking at them.  Some of this is due to my lack of diligence is searching out what was being said, some of it was that it might have been hidden from me until just now.  I am so thankful for those who study the Word of God and pass on their knowledge for it often causes me to take a second, or third, of fifteenth look at Scripture.  In saying all of that, I am indebted to some thoughts from Alistair Begg’s devotion.
       Here is a verse I have often read over quickly without doing proper contemplation.  “To whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.” (Acts 1:3, NKJV)  Why did Jesus linger on earth for forty days after the resurrection?  Yes, the simple and right answer is to be a witness of Himself, to leave a testimony of His resurrection.  Begg points out that it was for more than that.  He says that it was to “open their minds.”  To what?  “To better understand the Old Testament Scriptures and to prepare them for the coming of the Holy Spirit.”  Jesus chided them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken!” (Luke 24:25, NKJV)  Then later, Luke writes, “And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.” (Luke 24:45, NKJV)
       If Jesus had immediately gone to heaven after the resurrection, what would have happened to Thomas?  Would he have stayed in his unbelief and lack of faith?  Peter?  Would he have remained discouraged and stayed in the fishing business if the Lord had not spoken with him?  Luke writes that “they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy” (Luke 24:52, NKJV)  Who were the “they”?  Most likely it was those who would be in the upper room waiting for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
       Think for a moment.  The scene before Mary, the last thing she sees of her son is His ascension.  Far cry from the desecrated body hanging on the cross.  Did Jesus appear and speak with His brothers and sisters during these forty days?  Most likely.  James and Jude became leaders in the Church, but I have often wondered what happened to Joseph and Simon.  Were they still in unbelief if He spoke to them, or did they become leaders in the Church just not as visible as James and Jude?  I believe that Jesus would have done his utmost to persuade them all.  
       One more thing to consider.  When Jesus was in the grave, they were all in despair.  They were in fear not knowing what to do, or what would happen to them.  Jesus, their Master was gone, in the tomb, dead.  But now!  He has walked and talked with them for forty days.  He has now ascended to His Father–note, that He is no longer with them, but what is their reaction now?  “And they worshiped Him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God.” (Luke 24:52-53, NKJV).  They obeyed and waited until the Promise of the Father came to them and were filled with the Holy Spirit.  They knew for certain that Jesus was alive and still working in their lives.

                    –Elmer Kelton  (The Day the Cowboys Quit)

       “The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way, but the folly of fools is deceit.”

                    –Proverbs 14:8 (NKJV)
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Ho-hum, that’s good enough.  That’s enough work for the day; it will satisfy the boss.  A life of mediocrity, it is one that is to be shunned!  When I was teaching it would drive me to frustration (if I let it) to see kids just get by.  I often told them the problem is that I want you to make it, to succeed, more than you do.  They would give me an apathetic look, they were yawning in their minds knowing that the “spirit of slap” might come upon me if they did it openly.
       Ecclesiastes 10 deals with the mediocre person–who is actually a fool.  I did a study years ago which I shared on these pages, “How to Live in a Pagan, Apostate, and Foolish World.”  That is the world in which we are living.  Look and contemplate, remember we are not only to see with our eyes, but also to engage our brains and spirit when we read, at Ecclesiastes 10:1-3 (NKJV)

          1 — Dead flies putrefy the perfumer’s ointment and cause it to give off a foul odor; so does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor.
          2 — A wise man’s heart is at his right hand, but a fool’s heart at his left.
          3 — Even when a fool walks along the way, he lacks wisdom, and he shows everyone that he is a fool.

Sometime, when you want to improve your reading, try out Erasmus’ “In Praise of Folly.”  In it he points out the foolishness of the many things that people do and believe.  Folly is a lack of good sense; a lack of foresight; the failure to realize the consequences of a stupid act before it occurs.  A little folly, a little foolishness, can cast a shadow over a once honorable life.  A wise man will go God’s way, will seek His direction, but a fool will do what is right in his own eyes.  
       Have you, as a parent, or as a supervisor/boss every shown someone how to do something or instructed them in how something should be done and then they go back and do it the way they want?  They do not heed your advice or instruction–that person is a fool.  Get this:  fools don’t learn, because fools don’t listen!  Look at verse 3, it is easy to identify a fool.  They don’t think of the consequences before they act or speak.  In fact, they act upon impulse not looking at the whole situation.  They practice what so many of our politicians do and those of the woke crowd–they practice SYI (Share Your Ignorance).  What was it I read from Fox News?  “White House celebrates ‘Lesbian visibility week’ declares Biden.”  Then accuses the Republicans of “legislating acts of violence.”  Doesn’t that just give you the “spirit of slap”?  Fools rushing to folly.
       In closing this morning, I want to end with a couple more words regarding a fool.

               “A fool has no delight in understanding, but in expressing his own heart.”  –Proverbs 18:2 (NKJV)
               “A fool’s lips enter into contention, and his mouth calls for blows.”  –Proverbs 18:6 (NKJV)

See right there, in verse 6, the fool actually calls for the “spirit of slap” to rain down upon him.  Don’t be a fool, don’t add an act of folly to your life’s resume.  Walk in the way of the Lord, follow His direction and guidance into the way everlasting.