Join me as we break down the last handful of chapters of the book of Ecclesiastes.

All right, you guys, welcome back

to part two of the Sound Mind series

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where we are wrapping up Ecclesiastes.

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And we read in part one,

chapter 8 through chapter 12.

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As you already know,

I am Sarai, your host.

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But as always, I thank

you guys for being here.

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And most of all, I am so grateful,

and I am just so thankful that you

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even made it this far to part two.

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So if you listen to all of the episodes

of the Sound Mind series through

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Ecclesiastes and you are here, I applaud

you because I know this was not an easy

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book to get through, um, even for myself.

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Like I said, I've read

it several times already.

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But I really wanted to continue to

dive into just other messages that

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I have been really contemplating,

um, and working on, and I am just so

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excited to continue to bring you more.

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Um, we are also kind of running

up on our year anniversary of

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the podcast, which is insane.

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I started in July, and we are

now about halfway through May,

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so we're almost at our one year.

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So I'm definitely preparing

something special for that

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one year, um, anniversary.

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I don't know if it's going to be,

like, a month of specific things, uh,

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specific episodes every Monday, or if

it will be just, like, one, um, special,

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per se, different anniversary type,

um, episode when that, that comes.

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It's, uh, which I believe is, like,

right after July 4th or July 6th,

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I believe was the first episode.

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Um, but anyway, I digress on that.

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And I wanna jump into deciphering

what I read in part one, which was

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chapter eight, nine, 10, 11, and 12.

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So we read five chapters,

which were very short.

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Um, but as always, I have

plenty notes here for you guys.

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I'm not gonna go through every single

one, um, but there were a lot of key

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things that stood out to me, um, as

I read this many, many times and as

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I read it even now when I recorded,

um, chapter eight through 12.

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So, uh, we're going to go back to

chapter eight, and I'm gonna go and,

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uh, discuss kinda, like, the little

side notes that I have on here.

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So I have a side note right on chapter

eight, verse one that says, "No one."

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And verse one says, "Who is

like a wise man and who knows

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the interpretation of a thing?"

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No one is my answer.

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No one knows the proper interpretation of

anything in this world, why things happen.

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Um, only God knows that.

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So that's something that was made

abundantly clear as I read, um, obviously

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as I'm reading through the Bible

and as I read through Ecclesiastes.

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Um, then here I have at the end

of verse one, countenance, which I

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actually learned as I was reading.

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Countenance is, like, your glow per se.

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Now people say, like,

"Oh, you're glowing."

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Um, but in biblical terms,

that's your countenance.

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So if you have, um, a glow about you, your

countenance is happy, you, um, have joy.

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If your countenance is dark,

then you're probably sad,

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depressed, going through anxiety.

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Um, so that, the end of verse one says,

"A man's wisdom makes his face shine, and

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the sternness of his face is changed."

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So I just put countenance there

on the side, um, just 'cause I, I

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love, like, all these words that

I've learned from reading the Bible.

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But anyway, uh, let me see.

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Follow the laws is my next note here on

verse five which says, "He who keeps his

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command will experience nothing harmful."

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In this section, um, King

Solomon is talking about a king.

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He's not talking about king with a

capital K, which is God or Jesus.

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He's just talking about

a king of that time.

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So he's saying in verse five,

"He who keeps his command will

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experience nothing harmful."

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So my take on that was we

need to follow the laws.

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So now if you are speeding,

you're gonna be pulled over.

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You're not following the law,

you're gonna get a ticket.

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If you steal, if you murder, if you

do anything that is not part of the

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laws and is definitely not okay with

today's society as it was not, um, back

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then either, um, then you are going

to experience things that are harmful.

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So do good, do no evil, essentially.

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Then I have in the remainder of,

uh, verse five through six, I put

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the right time for everything.

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And five and six say, "He who keeps his

command will experience nothing harmful.

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And a wise man's heart discerns

both time and judgment."

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Verse six: "Because of every matter

there is a time and judgment, though

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the misery of man increases greatly."

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So again, do good, not bad.

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If you are following the law, if

you're doing things as you should,

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you're going to be able to rest.

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If you do things, um, in secret, if

you're lying, if you're cheating,

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if you're stealing, um, then you

are not going to have lots of rest.

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So the, the right time for

everything and then, and also

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there's a time for judgment.

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There's gonna be a time where we stand

before God, and we're gonna have to

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answer for all of the things that we did.

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So- Don't you want to

just do things right?

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How are you going to look at Jesus and

stare God in the face and say, "Sorry,

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God, I don't know what I was doing"?

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There's no excuses.

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We're all going to be judged by the

one and only person that can judge.

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Anyway, I digress there.

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Um, and I have a note here also that says

for that, that the flesh is impatient.

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Um, you know, the more that we do

bad things, we become impatient.

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Um, if we have an argument or if we just

have something where we know that in part

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we're also wrong, we're not gonna have

that rest, and we become impatient, and

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we wanna try and fix and mend the things

that we wronged, um, or that we did.

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Um, of course, 'cause we're

always battling with wrong and

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right, so why not just do right?

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You know?

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We're not always right.

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Anyway, verse eight, I have here

a note that says, "After death..."

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Oh, let me see.

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"After death from hell or sin?"

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Question mark.

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And then I put, "Our self

or flesh holds no power."

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So verse eight says, "No one has power

over the spirit to retain the spirit."

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Okay, exactly.

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So us, our physical bodies,

our flesh, we do not have the

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power to obtain the spirit.

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Um, in this case, I do believe

he's talking about the Holy

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Spirit, the Spirit of God.

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Um, remember, King Solomon did not have

the Holy Spirit, but he was inspired

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by the words of God and by God himself.

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Um, I'm assuming that.

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I know this is obviously inspired by

God, which is why it's in the Bible.

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But the person, the human, the

flesh, does not have the power to

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invoke God and the Holy Spirit.

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And it goes on to say, "There is no

release from that war, and wickedness will

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not deliver those who are given to it."

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Um, and it-- I put under

to it, I put, "To sin."

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Um, and then my side note

there, like I had said, was,

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"After death from hell or sin."

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So if we believe and we have faith,

and we know that from the New Testament

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that we have faith that Jesus came,

he died, and he resurrected on the

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third day, that belief and that faith

of that action from God to give us

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his only Son will then empower us and

will invoke the Holy Spirit within us.

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So that is when we are

given the Holy Spirit.

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That is the only way, and we

know that now as we continue to

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read, um, in the New Testament.

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And I hope that you are reading- That

is the only way to have the Holy Spirit.

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So here, King Solomon is saying that

there is no release from that war.

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So in this time, like, if you're fighting

with your flesh, there's no release.

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Like, you can't get

rid of that wickedness.

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It...

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You will not be delivered from it.

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You won't be rid of that feeling,

um, for those who are given to it.

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Those who are given to sin,

um, which sin equals death, you

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won't be delivered from that.

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The only way to be delivered from that

is to surrender to God, and again,

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we can't do that our bodies ourself.

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God is the only one that can give

us that spirit, um, which again,

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I, you know, continuing to say God,

Jesus, Holy Spirit, they're all one

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and the same, um, but they do have

different parts in, in our salvation.

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And anyway, I'm just...

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I'm not gonna get into too much detail.

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That's gonna be for the, uh, New

Testament as we continue to read in the

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New Testament and not in Ecclesiastes.

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But anyway, I digress and we continue.

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I put here...

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Man, every single time that he finish

a paragraph, I put conclusion, but

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there are so many conclusions that

I'm deriving from Ecclesiastes.

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So I'm gonna go ahead and jump over to

verse 17, excuse me, verse 16 through 17.

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Um, my side note says, "To create on our

own," and then I put, "This is true," and

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then a last note that I have here says,

"Joy does not come from money or work.

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It's from things above and God."

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And then verse 16 through 17 says, "When I

applied my heart to know wisdom and to see

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the business that is done on Earth, even

though one sees no sleep day or night,"

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that's where I put true, we don't rest.

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Verse 17, "Then I saw all the work

of God that a man cannot find out

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the work that is done under the sun."

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Even if we try to figure out God's

game plan, God's will, God's purpose

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for us, we can't figure it out.

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We have to be led by him.

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We have to surrender.

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It continues to say, and I have

this actually sco- um, uh, like all

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outlined, "For though a man labors to

discover it, yet he will not find it."

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So even if we work towards it, we

won't find it, and it's funny because

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we won't really know even everything

that the Bible holds, like, all its

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secrets and all the little intricacies

that we try to, like, look into.

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Even me, even me here with this

podcast, we won't know everything and

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every single purpose that is in this.

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This is basically just a manual, um, and

for us to try to do the best that we can

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based off of God's love and what he wants

for us to be reconciled back to him.

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However As much as we try, we're not gonna

know until we are with him face to face.

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Um, so then it says, "Moreover, though

a wise man attempts to know it," meaning

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what I put there, to create on our own,

like to know, make our own assumptions,

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"he will not be able to find it."

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So Solomon clearly says here that

doesn't matter how many times you try

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to come to your own conclusion, to

see what it is that God has prepared

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for you, you're not gonna know.

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You're gonna find out eventually, but

you're not gonna find it on your own.

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So be patient, stay the course,

listen, be obedient, is what

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I'm taking from this chapter.

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We're jumping into chapter nine.

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Chapter nine, man, ugh, I

have chills right now the

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more that I just keep reading.

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Um, ooh,

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this one, this one, this one is good.

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I love verse nine on this one.

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But we're gonna start here with verse one.

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Says, "For I considered all this in my

heart so that I could declare it all,

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that the righteous and the wise and

their works are in the hand of God."

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My friends, this is confirmation.

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Verse one: The wise and the righteous

and their works are in the hand of God.

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So if you try to do things the

right way, you are covered.

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You are covered by God's

grace, by God's mercy.

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Your hand...

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Excuse me, your life is in his hand.

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Okay?

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So this is just confirmation that

if you're doing things as he is

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saying here in our Bible, in our

manual, in you're acting and you're

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putting God before everything that

you do, you are going to be okay.

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You're in his right hand.

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But it continues to say, "People

know neither love nor hatred by

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anything they see before them.

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All things come alike to all."

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Now in verse two: All

things come alike to all.

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This is where people say,

"Why did this happen to me?

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I'm a good person," and then they

see evil prevailing and not being

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thrown in jail, not suffering.

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Um, it says here clearly, "All

things come alike to all."

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And I'm gonna continue reading.

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"One event happens to the

righteous and the wicked."

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So the same things can happen

to the good and to the bad.

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I put here trials or even good things.

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It continues to say, "To

him who sacrifices and him

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who does not sacrifice."

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So the hardworking American, the

hardworking person versus the lazy

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American, the lazy person who just

sits at home and wants to, like,

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feed off of government funds or

whatever it is, or- Or state funds.

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Um, the same things happen.

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There are good people, there are

bad people, there are working

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people, and there are lazy people.

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Then it says, "As is the

good, so is the sinner.

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He who takes an oath as

he who fears an oath."

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So again, it's, Solomon is

saying, "I did the legwork.

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I tried my, my youth, and I gave my youth

to living in folly, living in mirth, and

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here I am trying to now be righteous.

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And having walked with all these riches

and doing all these things, I can tell

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you that the same things happen to me.

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Trials happen to me."

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And this is what we need to

get through our thick skulls.

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We go through all of these

things, and we are human.

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We are flesh.

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We are not God, we're, we are not Jesus.

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We are not King Solomon.

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We're no one that is in this

book, yet we don't suffer, of

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course, like Jesus suffered.

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No one will ever suffer

to, to that extent.

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Um, however, even before He went to

the cross, He suffered just like us.

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He knows, just like us, everything that

we go through, which is why He is able

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to have mercy and have grace on us,

and basically reconcile us back to God,

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because he's gonna say, "God, Father, I

lived this that this person is living.

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I know what this is.

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I already took this from them so

that they can come back to you."

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So he's, I guess, in terms for

today, and I don't wanna, like,

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downplay it, he's essentially

like a mediator for us as well.

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He is that middle person

that can get us back to God.

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So not to continue to ramble, but

verse one and two very specifically

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say that the righteous and the

evil will endure similar things.

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However, the difference for us,

for the believers and the followers

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of Christ, is that we know that we

need to have that long suffering

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in order to get to the Father.

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I digress.

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Verse three also cements it even

further, and it says, "This is an evil

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in all that is done under the sun,"

and I have this in a little square.

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"The one thing happens to all."

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One thing happens to all.

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We all go through the same thing.

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So skipping over to verse nine,

I absolutely love verse nine.

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So if there are any men or any

married women that are watching

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this, this was something that King

Solomon wanted to share for the men.

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Um, and it says, verse nine

Ecclesiastes chapter 9, verse 9.

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"Live joyfully with the wife whom you

love all the days of your vain life,

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which He," capital H, God, "has given you

under the sun all your days of vanity.

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For that is your portion in

life and in the labor which

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you perform under the sun."

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So ladies, we are our husband's

portion, and you can take a

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portion as, um, you know, when...

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Like when we read the Bible, it

says that, you know, God, the

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Word, is our, is our portion.

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Like this is what keeps us going.

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And right here we are being compared

to being the portion for our husbands.

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And, you know, I myself have been

working through a lot, um, of my

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earthly ways and trying to compress

my earthly feelings and my earthly

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thoughts and my earthly words, and trying

to not demean and not haste towards

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saying everything that is on my mind.

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And I do have to pray a lot about it.

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I do have to, um, really just hold back

a lot because the more that we say out

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loud and we put these scenarios in our

head and we, you know, how us Cuban say,

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<|diarize|>"Maquinamos las cosa" Like we

just, like a machine, we continue to go

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over and over and over the same things.

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We just wanna explode.

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Um, and we can't be our husband's

portion, something healthy, something

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good, something that gives them strength

to continue, if we are in that state.

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And again, like I said,

I am so guilty of that.

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Um, probably still till this day, I would

like to, um, say humbly that I believe

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I have made some strides in that area.

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Am I perfect?

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Absolutely not.

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I will never be perfect.

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Um, but I think I am much better in

recognizing when I am going through

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something like that and I can try and

take a step back and breathe and pray

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and just listen to worship music and

just keep myself, uh, busy without

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wanting to jump into conversations.

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Because, you know, if we're not of a

sound mind, like this series, if we

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are not of a sound mind, if we are not

at peace with ourselves, then we are

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not going to bring peace to others.

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Okay?

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So just keep that in mind.

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Ecclesiastes chapter 9,

verse 9, "Live joyfully..."

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Um, this is to the husbands, but

also wives, take notice, take heed.

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"Live joyfully with the wife whom

you love all the days of your vain

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life, which He," God, "has given you

under the sun all your days of vanity.

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For that is your portion in

life and in the labor which

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you perform under the sun."

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So it also does continue, uh,

verse 10, so I really do hope that

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you guys read verse 10 as well,

even though you heard me read it.

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Um, but that really just stood

out to me because we have a lot

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of work to do, husbands and wives.

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So we need to, um, be as willing

to listen as to, uh, be willing to

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speak, and obviously trying to do all

these things with love because it is

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very difficult, very difficult to be

around that person for your entire

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life without getting into a kerfuffle.

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You know?

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It's just, it's not easy.

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So learn each other, love each

other, and keep Christ at the center.

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That's all I got on that.

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Um, we're gonna jump into chapter 10.

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Um, man, it's just so much.

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So much.

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Actually, chapter nine, guys,

please read verse 11 through 15.

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11 through 15.

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The entire chapter is amazing, but I

really do think that Solomon's conclusion

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of what he found specifically in being

lukewarm in God and in His word was

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put in verse 11 through verse 15.

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Um, and one of the, the notes here

in my Bible, you know how it's

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separated and it gives, like, little

titles, um, in verse 13 through 15

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says, "Wisdom superior to folly."

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So clearly that's a conclusion that

was drawn there, but verse 11 and 12

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give the comparisons of exactly what

you sought and what you found or what

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you, um, sowed and what you reaped.

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So I implore you to go back to part

one and listen to chapter 9 verse 11

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through 15 or just read it on your

own because I believe that is the,

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the conclusion and what we need, which

at the end of the day, as it says

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here, wisdom is superior to folly.

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Anyway, jumping to verse 10.

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Uh, excuse me, chapter 10.

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I think chapter 10 was talking

about stop being a know-it-all.

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Stop, um, trying to do things on your own.

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Stop trying to do things without God.

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Um, and I say that because

it starts off strong.

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It starts off by saying, "Dead flies

putrefy the perfumer's ointment."

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Okay, if we are making something, dead

flies around anything is going to just,

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like, spoil what we're working on.

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So if you're in the kitchen like me,

a lot of the time you see a fruit

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fly, if you see a fly or whatever

you wanna call it, um, in Spanish we

348

call it wasasa or, like, you know,

the fruit flies- Um, I think David

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told me gnats is also the proper name.

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I don't know.

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Um, but those things really spoil the

food, just like Dagmara will never eat

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at anything at a restaurant if it comes

even with, like, a tiny little piece of

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hair, which mind you, I don't either.

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I think that's disgusting.

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But that's just to say, those instances

putrefy something that's good.

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So chapter 10 starts strong.

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It's basically saying, like, "Stop

being a know-it-all," stop, um,

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uh, like adding all these crazy

things to something that is good.

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And it says here, "So does a little folly

to one respected for wisdom and honor."

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So for per- if a person who is respected

and has wisdom and is honored for...

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And I actually think of

pastors in this sense.

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If a pastor deviates, and he adds

something that is not righteous

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or not aligned with God and with

the Bible, then he's putrefying.

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He's putrefying, and he's making a

mockery, first of all, of those things.

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But he is also doing

something that's not good.

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So stop doing things on your own.

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In everything, we need Jesus.

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In everything, we need God.

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In everything, we need our Bibles.

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So stop doing things on your own.

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Stop being impatient.

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Easier said than done.

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I'm the number one most impatient person,

and I first learned that also with my

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family when I started going to church.

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"Come to church with me.

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Oh my God, I'm on worship.

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Oh my God, I'm doing slides.

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Oh my God, I'm translating.

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I'll make you understand what

the pastor is saying in Spanish."

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I am the first impatient person,

and instead of me letting God and

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Jesus do a work in their hearts,

I was pushing it and trying to,

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like, shove it down their throats.

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And we can't do that.

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We need to read chapter 10 and just

understand, like it says in verse 11, "A

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serpent may bite when it is not charmed."

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The babbler is no different.

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We need to stop babbling.

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We need to just take a step

back and stop spewing words.

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Our actions are going to show much

more than anything that we can say.

390

And again, that's why I say that as

a wife, I do fall short, um, oh, in

391

that area, you know, of marriage.

392

I do fall short because a

lot of times I was impatient.

393

And my words, and I always said

it, I need to stop saying this,

394

I am not good with my words.

395

Why am I not good with my words?

396

Because like a serpent may

bite, it's not charmed.

397

It's not something that's good.

398

I just start to babble,

and it makes no sense.

399

And would I stop, put a pause,

collect my thoughts- And try to speak

400

calmly, I may then make more sense

and not babble, and also not have

401

to force-feed information to people.

402

And then they may receive

it in a different way.

403

Um, that doesn't mean that

the person at the other end

404

is always going to receive it.

405

Sometimes people are also going

through their own things, so we

406

do need to be cognizant of that.

407

We do need to understand

that not everyone is ready to

408

receive what you have to share.

409

Um, sometimes we don't

know how to read the room.

410

We just assume that, "I need to get this

off my chest, I need to talk about this,

411

I need to share this," and they're going

to be ready for what we have to share.

412

But guess what?

413

Guess what?

414

That's not always the case, and

sometimes we could really be

415

wrong about those things, too.

416

So that's why it's important

to just take a step back.

417

Um, it says here verse 12, "The words

of a wise man's mouth are gracious."

418

So if you're wise and you pick

and choose your battles, you're

419

going to come off as more gracious.

420

"But the lips of a fool

shall swallow him up."

421

And I have been swallowed

up so many times.

422

I have dug my own pit so many times,

and I know that everyone listening

423

or anyone in the back, um, can think

of times where their reaction or the

424

things that they said or the things

that they did backfired on them.

425

Um, or even plans that were made.

426

This isn't just about words.

427

Our, our mouth is very strong,

but this is also about our actions

428

and decisions that we make.

429

Um, so just take a step back, stop

being so foolish, stop jumping into

430

conclusions, um, and just be still.

431

Just be still and pray and, and,

and read and just kind of have

432

that reminder that we need to

take things with a grain of salt.

433

Not everything is an attack, not...

434

of the enemy.

435

Um, and things are also not always an

attack on us, but sometimes we just

436

feel so overwhelmed with life and so

overwhelmed with situations and people and

437

work and children and chores and errands

that we have a very big mental load.

438

Um, and we need to just talk about it.

439

We need to have a chat with Jesus.

440

And then if we still have things

on our chest and we have to unload

441

those things, then let us do it

graciously, and let it also be at a

442

time where it can be received better.

443

So, man, I digress with that.

444

That was a lot.

445

Um, so yeah, chapter 10 of Ecclesiastes

in a nutshell: stop trying to do things

446

on your own, do all things with Jesus

and God at the forefront, and start

447

on your right foot, not on your left.

448

Always on the right foot.

449

Do things right, you guys.

450

Okay.

451

Chapter 11.

452

Um, this one is the value of diligence.

453

And yes, the same way that you are

diligent in work, otherwise you would

454

be fired, you have to Be diligent

with your life, your decisions.

455

Kind of like taking chapter 10 to, like,

level two, but this one is more specific.

456

It's talking about here, uh, in,

excuse me, in verse one: "Cast

457

your bread upon the waters, for

you will find it after many days."

458

If you throw something into a river or an

ocean, the current is going to take it.

459

Obviously, in an ocean you may not

find it again, but, you know, if you

460

cast it into, like, a river or a canal,

someone is going to stumble upon it.

461

Eventually, the current is

going to take it where it goes.

462

However, giving-- verse two: Give-

giving a ser- giving a serving to

463

seven and also to eight, for you do

not know what evil will be on earth.

464

Verse three: If the clouds

are full of rain, they empty

465

themselves upon the earth.

466

Obviously, if you see that the clouds

are gray, what's going to happen?

467

It's going to rain.

468

So that-- those are, um, facts,

and those are determinations

469

that you can make on your own.

470

So chapter 11 is talking about

being diligent with what you have.

471

And in verse three, for example,

it's talking about clouds and rain.

472

In this time, if you had crops, if you

had a farm with animals, if you, you know,

473

were a grower, obviously you had to do

your diligence and work with the weather,

474

um, plow the fields to ensure that they

were, uh, maintained and kept healthy.

475

So this is-- in a nutshell, this is kind

of what chapter 11 is talking about.

476

We need to make sure that the things that

we're sowing, we can reap based off of

477

the diligence that we are putting into it.

478

So for the people that I know that

are listening, um, to this, because,

479

you know, sometimes you reach out to

me, if you have a new endeavor in your

480

life, if you have a new business, um,

if you have a new marriage, everything

481

is about the work that you put in it.

482

Um, obviously, like, yes, you have to

put work into it and you have to be

483

diligent, and you have to grow in your

business, but it is also about patience.

484

It is also about an attention to detail.

485

So for example Um, having that long

suffering in the, the dry season, you

486

know, when people don't always come back

to your business, you have to keep going.

487

Maybe people don't know

enough about your business.

488

Maybe you need to do a

little bit more marketing.

489

Um, and again, I'm talking

about today's day and age.

490

You know, in this, um, chapter,

they're talking about the fields and,

491

um, the, in, like verse six, "In the

morning sow your seed, and in the

492

evening do not withhold your hand."

493

So obviously you have to plant the seeds

early, and then at night you have to

494

go back to the fields, and you have to

continue to do the work, because there

495

is a time for everything, and that

goes with us in today's day and age.

496

We can't let our kids

either just run buck wild.

497

No, they have to be, um, they have

to be raised, they have to be taught,

498

and then they also have to learn.

499

And they're gonna put their, the things

that they learn into practice, and then

500

us as parents kind of have to, like, step

back and watch what we planted flourish.

501

And the same thing goes

for our businesses.

502

The more work we put into

our businesses, the more that

503

we're going to see it flourish.

504

But just like children and, uh, seeing

them, uh, being born and being raised and

505

just growing up, those things take time.

506

So the value of diligence,

like my Bible says here for

507

chapter 11, it's very important.

508

It's very valuable.

509

Everything that we put into

our businesses, our life, um,

510

our decisions, we have to be

calculated about those things.

511

We can't just, again, like our

children, let them run buck wild.

512

God is not letting us run buck wild.

513

He gave us our rules to follow.

514

He gave us our Bibles.

515

He gave us His commandments.

516

And the same thing goes for

our businesses and life.

517

We have our own rules that we need

to follow in order to be successful.

518

And for our salvation, we have our own

bottom line, our own rules that we have

519

to follow and continue to be patient in

and have faith in and have hope in, so

520

that we can then be reconciled to God.

521

So that's chapter 11.

522

I digress.

523

Um, and then the last chapter is chapter

12, where it really just kind of wraps

524

everything up, and it says, um, this

is titled The Whole Duty of Man, but it

525

really starts off with a very somber note.

526

Um, and I believe it's because it was

at the end of King Solomon's life, where

527

he says in verse one, "Remember now

your Creator," Creator with capital C.

528

Obviously, he's talking about God.

529

"Remember now your Creator, in the days

of your youth, before the difficult

530

days come and the years draw near when

you say, 'I have no pleasure in them.'"

531

So of course, the older we get- The

less pleasure we find in the things

532

that we really enjoyed before.

533

For example, we loved

drinking before we were 21.

534

Now we don't even find pleasure in that.

535

I have a bottle of wine, of Riesling,

that I love in my fridge, and it's been

536

there probably for, like, five months.

537

So I don't find pleasure in things like

that anymore, and we change with time.

538

Um, so this is definitely something that

King Solomon, uh, cemented in chapter 12.

539

Um, he also continued to say

that everything comes to an end.

540

Um, and he highlighted that specifically

verse two through, uh, through five, where

541

he, uh, talked about the sun dimming,

the clouds that return after the rain.

542

Um, he talked about, uh,

keepers of the house tremble,

543

of when strong men bow down.

544

So all of these things are metaphors

that he was using to show that things

545

have a beginning and things have an end.

546

Things come and things go.

547

Life is fleeting, like he said also

in one of the earlier chapters.

548

Life is but a vapor.

549

The s- the second that we blink, w- we

can be gone, and that's just a reality.

550

So at, at the end of the day,

like he said, there is a duty that

551

man has, and it's all wrapped up,

and it's all gonna go back to and

552

lead back to God and Jesus Christ.

553

And they gave us what we have to do.

554

Otherwise, everything else is vanity.

555

That is why it's so important

to know that we need to fear

556

God, we need to respect God.

557

He is righteous.

558

He is sovereign.

559

He is all-knowing.

560

He knows why and how

he brought us to life.

561

He knows our purpose.

562

He knows what we're going

to do, going to do tomorrow.

563

He knows where, what we're going

to do five minutes from now when

564

you stop watching this podcast.

565

So at the end of the day, our duty is to

just enjoy the blessings and the things

566

that he has given us, but also have that

respect for God and know that if we do

567

things the right way and we follow his

commandments, we're going to be okay.

568

We are going to have stood firm

in his word, in his will for us,

569

and we were obedient, and we will

be reconciled back to the Father.

570

But now knowing that it is

only through Jesus Christ.

571

Why?

572

Because we messed up like

in the beginning of Genesis.

573

Well, we're paying the price for

the pr- for the one that messed up.

574

But if we still follow this that he gave

us, that he left for us because he loves

575

us so much, then we will understand that

If we believe that God gave us His only

576

begotten Son to reconcile us back, to take

away our sins, and to reconcile us back

577

to Him, that He came, He died, and He rose

on the third day, He removed all our sins.

578

There is no more, um, there, there,

there is no more condemnation for us.

579

We've been forgiven.

580

The only thing that we have to deal with

is living on this wretched earth in our

581

flesh and our skin, then we will be okay.

582

We will be okay, and we will be back

with the Father when the time comes.

583

And I believe that that

is Solomon's message.

584

He did the legwork.

585

Excuse me, he did the legwork.

586

He truly did, and he shows us this.

587

He talks about work, being happy, how to

live with what God gave us, that being,

588

um, our riches, our children, our work,

our wives, our husbands, and at the end

589

of the day, just enjoying it and seeing

it as a blessing so we can go back to Him.

590

And I'm gonna read here, um, verse 13

through 14 as we wrap up so that you

591

can just understand the conclusion.

592

So verse 13 and 14 of Ecclesiastes

chapter 12, and it says, "Let us hear

593

the conclusion of the whole matter."

594

Clear as day.

595

"Fear God and keep His commandments,

for this is man's all."

596

Verse 14, "For God will bring every

work into judgment, including every

597

secret thing, whether good or evil."

598

So again, my friends, we

have wrapped up Ecclesiastes.

599

That was Ecclesiastes 12, chapter...

600

Uh, excuse me, verse 13 and 14.

601

And in conclusion, all

good things come to an end.

602

All bad things come to an end.

603

The difference is, are we

walking upright with God?

604

Are we including God and Jesus

Christ in everything that we do?

605

Do we make decisions based on

our flesh or based on what we are

606

listening and receiving from the Lord?

607

And that is the big difference.

608

We can't continue to

make our own decisions.

609

We have to continue to move with

God and Jesus Christ in mind.

610

And if we continue to do that, we

continue to stand upright in our faith

611

and never lose hope, no matter what

happens, because good and bad happens

612

to the righteous and the wicked, we

will one day be reconciled back to God.

613

And when we stand in front of God

and Jesus i- in judgment, we will be

614

answering for all of these things.

615

So much better than to be able to

have many crowns to lay at His feet

616

than to have to answer for all of

the things that we did that were not

617

good in the, um, in the sight of God.

618

So that's it for Ecclesiastes.

619

I thank you guys so much for staying

tuned for this very exciting, confusing,

620

and short and sweet book, but that packed

so many punches and so many lessons.

621

I hope it blessed you.

622

And if there's anything that you

guys need, as always, reach out

623

to me on social media or email me.

624

I will get you your New King James Bible.

625

But as always, my friends, just such

a joy to be here and to read for you,

626

and hopefully you are one step closer

to loving and knowing Jesus Christ.

627

Thank you, and see you guys next week