Add correct line breaks, correct capitalisation, correct punctuation, correct Australian English spelling, and correct KJV Bible verse quotations and references to my paragraphs where applicable. But do NOT — I repeat — do NOT alter or change ANY words from my paragraphs under ALL circumstances. Make meaningful paragaphs:
The Final End (Ecclesiastes 3:16-22)
I. The Final Judgment (v.16-17)
II. The Final Condition (v.18-21)
III. The Final Perspective (v.22)
Warm greetings in the blessed name of our Lord and our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Well, this morning we are going to consider the theme, the final end. The final end on our own. We do not know where we come from. We do not know why we are here. We do not know where we are going. Why? Because our heart is dead. We are spiritually blinded. We are spiritually dead. We do not know who is God.
And that is how our condition is when we are born. And it's all because of sin. Because of sin, we do not know God. Because of sin, we do not know the truth of our existence. But a common question is, what is the meaning of life?
Many have gone to mountains to places where they believe they will be able to find the answer. But they won't. There will always be a vacuum in the heart. The emptiness that they will feel at the end of the day. They thought they have found it but there seem to be no answer.
Vanity is vanity. All is vanity. And that's what we also learned from the book of Egypt. Of course we are not able to cover the entire book. To see his entirety. But in the passage that we have revealed to us the final end, the final end is the reality.
We need to know what is the meaning of life because we do not know. So we try to create something meaningful to our life but we try to make our life interesting, make our life worthwhile. So as many as try to spend time with the family, try to make their life enjoyable, pleasurable.
But we will come to a point that we realize that when we try to do all these things without God, it is still emptiness. And so over here we pray that the Lord will help us to understand with the perspective of this final end that we will one day arrive.
And let me share with you from this passage all starting with the word final. First we look at a final judgment.
In order to understand the final end, we must understand the final judgment. So verses 16-17, we read, "And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there. I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work."
We talk a lot on what is right and what is wrong. We talk a lot of what the people are doing whether they are right or wrong. And this is the kind of world that we are living in.
And many of time we are influenced. We pass judgment. We make command and if we are sure enough we will criticize and we do not find that in the animal kingdom. Well the animal kingdom is a very peaceful kingdom. They only sought for survival.
Now of course there are there is all these killings but it's a process know a process of living and surviving. Well there is no right or wrong in the animal kingdom. So to them it does not matter whether one is right or wrong. You just survive.
They do not know what is the truth, what is error. They have no personal rights how they should fight for it like we do. They just fight for survival. Either they are protecting their young or they are trying to secure food for their stomach sake. So that's the the system that we see in the animal kingdom.
Or their existence is all for their survival. You take away their food, they're going to fight you to the end. You become their enemy. But if you give you food, you give them food, they will become your friend.
Now, what about man? Now man's kingdom or this world in in which we live in although is also about survival but it is also about judgment. That's why animals and men they are different simply because man is made in the image of God and so therefore we have the ability to judge what is the truth and what is right what is the arrow that's why there are rules and regulation in place everywhere imagine a place without rules All that place will be chaotic.
But that's the main difference between man kingdom and the animal kingdom. And so death applies only to us not to the animals because we are made in the image of God.
Solomon says, "And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment and that is only to man's kingdom." The world in which we live in the one who wrote this book Ecclesiasties is Solomon himself.
He's the king, the king of united Israel. It is both the ruler as well as the judge. And so, under the sun, there is the place for judgment. But why did he say in the place of judgment that wickedness was there, as well as the place of righteousness that iniquity was there?
Because we are talking about judgment on earth. Now, as far as you can see, man in general, you see a human judge sitting on his seats, or we can call it the bema judgment. Often refers to how the judge will sit on a higher chair in order to pass judgment.
What is a human judge? And a human judge is not God. He's not able to see through the heart. He's not able to see through the motive, the intent of man. And so, what can he use to make a right judgment? You can only rely on evidences, weaknesses, and even then the human judge may make mistakes.
And what if the judge is not a righteous judge? It is a judge that love money, to undert his judgment is crooked or is not righteous. Well, as long as you put a man to uphold justice and righteousness, that very man is still a sinner. And even if he's a believer, he is still capable of sinning and making mistakes.
So that's why we know every time come to a legal case, know they have to make a vow, no, regardless of their belief. They have to vow. They have to make sure that they speak nothing but the truth, so that the judge will be able to pass the right judgment in the end.
But even the best judge can make mistakes, and that includes wickedness, and that includes iniquity. This is what Parliament is driving at. You may have the judicial system in place, but because it is man who is in control, well, there will always be the imperfection in this system.
That's why we need God. So that's why the next verse says, I said in my heart. So without a background of man being the judge who is imperfect in all his judgment, Solomon says, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked.
See the contrast, the contrast between the judgment of man and the judgment of God. When man judge, he can make mistake. But when God judges, he will never make mistake. Even to the intent of the heart, the thing done may be right, but when the heart is wrong, it is still wrong. And that the kind of judgment that reserve and belong to God.
To the final judgment is by the final judge. God is the final judge with the final judgment. And so, when we look at consider the final end, one day we will stand before the final judge, and he will pass the final judgment.
Now, on earth, while we are now sitting here, still going about with our life, we let the word of God judge us, because we have God's word telling us how God will judge us. And so, we help oursel with this judgment.
Gradually, we change, we repent, but we must sin less and less. We must not ignore what God has given to us in his word. It is for our spiritual good that we may change. We may not be perfect, but we must change because there will come a final judgment.
And how are we going to stand before the final judgment? Before the final judge? And we know that his judgment will never go wrong. Well, never means never. His judgment is perfect. He will not punish wrongly. He will not underp.
And we also know that punishment is for the wicked. What about the righteous? Well, the righteous, they will be saved for sure because of the wonderful works of redemption that the Lord Jesus has done.
So when God judge the believers, he will be judging according to their works. Whether they they have done according to his word, whether they are right or wrong when they were on earth as a believer. So the kind of judgment or punishment could be the probably of the lot of reward, right? What kind of rewards?
Well, we do not know. But for those who have done right, they will be rewarded. But we also know that when the judgment come with the commandation, it means no, when we are on earth, we have obeyed the law. We have followed the scriptures.
We have lived a life of holiness and godliness before him. And that also includes our mind and our heart as we serve, as we live, not for show, not to please man, but to please God. And God knows.
What about the wicked? The judgment come with condemnation. For all those who rejected him, for all those who refuse to believe in the saviour and have all their sin cleansed and wash away by the blood of the Lord Jesus.
So they remain in that rebellion. Although when they stand before God, they will be punished. They will be judged. And reserved for them will be the lake of fire. And so their final judgment for them is not something they even known right now. That's why they continue to sin and rebel against God.
But thank be to God that we know God have opened our eyes to see the final end that comes the final judgment. And we thank God that he has saved us. He had given us his only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, that through him we might be saved.
Though the final judgment is not hidden from us, we are born again by the grace and mercy of God. Our eyes are open. Our hearts are open to know the scriptures. We know what is going to happen. We are not kept in the dark. And so we know the final judgment. It is not about eternity and death. We know the wicked will be condemned and perish for eternity in the lake of fire. So we know the final judgment even though it is not here yet but it will come.
So that will cause us to double up our effort because there are still many who are still outside God's kingdom. Too many too many in our life. Are we not supposed to go into all the world to preach the gospel? Well, the mission field begins right at home. We are the only shining light of the gospel at home if we are the only believer or in class in school or at work in your office. We are the only lights. No, it doesn't matter whether people call themselves Christian or not because it doesn't matter.
They may call themselves Christian because they are in a Christian country or because they come to church or because they hold the Bible or because they pray and serve that doesn't make them Christian. We know that isn't it. It is faith faith alone in the savior alone that we are born again that all our sins are wash away by his blood. Not when we believe what he has done, how he has saved us from our sin, how he died on the cross and then rose up on the third day for our justification.
and how he has ascended into heaven interceding for us and one day he will return and to be the final judge. And so we know our final end because of the final judgment that is coming. And looking at the world, we know that we are not living very far from the final judgment. It is coming. It is coming. That's why we have no excuse now that we are saved. Life and death takes on a whole new meaning.
But we cannot go back to sin. The world needs us to point them to Christ. And it is the Christ of the scripture, not the Christ of our imagination, not the Christ that we prefer, but the Christ of the Bible that we need to tell the world. We must turn to him to repent and be saved. The final judgment is in his hand. Will you stand before the final judgment?
Now Solomon also revealed to us beside the final judgment he revealed to us the final condition verses 18-21. He says, "I said in my heart concerning the estate of the Son of Man that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts. For that which befalled the Son of Man be followed beasts, even one thing befalled them. As the one diet, so diet the other.
Yay, they have all one bread. So that a man had no preeminence above a beast. For all is vanity. All go unto one place, all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again. Who know the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?"
Well, by now we know the fundamental difference between man and the animals. Man is made in the image of God according to Genesis chapter chapter 2. How man is made but animals animals are not made in the image of God. But animals are living. We are also living. We live as well as we die. So men and animals seem to be the same because they live and because they die. And that's what we see over here in this passage, isn't it?
Solomon says in verse 18, I said in my heart concerning the estate of the sons of men that God might manifest them and that they might see that they themselves are beasts. Well, our final conditions in terms of our physical body. Now, this is something we must know. We can never escape from this. This is the reality. We live and then we die. Same as animals.
What happened to the animals also happened to us. Dust to dust is also can be said to them because they on they die they also return to the ground. When we stop breathing we will die. So animals and men the same. Okay? As long as they breathe, they live. But on they stop breathing, they die. So we both live and die. All go into one plate. All are of the dust and all turn to dust again.
And until verse 20, that's why the conclusion many make is man is no different from animal. Then they stop there because we live and then we also die. We are all the same and some even go to the extent we are also animals. In fact, God also said in verse 18 that they might see that they themselves are beasts. So we are all animals. Maybe we just a little smarter than them in some ways.
Also Solomon says in verse 19, so that a man had no preeminence above a beast. But Solomon also believed that we are all the same men and animals. The same right to live. We live and we die. That's why there are many activists, animal lovers who fight for animals. Why?
But we need to know something that God want us to know. Because if we stop here in verse 20, then it is all vanity. That's what Solomon says as well. It is vanity. The end of it all is vanity. Nothing empty.
But God gave us also verse 21.
What is verse 21? It's in a question form. It says, "Who know the spirit of a man that goeth upward and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?" Do we know this verse? Are we aware that this verse makes the whole world different between us and the animal?
Now note that we also believe that animals have spirit. No, because over here very clearly is stated, who knoweth the spirit of a man that goeth upward and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth. We know how a living person is different from a dead person. Oh, when the body lies in a coffin, that person must be dead. That's why he lie in the coffin. And how? But how do we know he is dead? He is not breathing.
What about animals? Animals also the same, isn't it? So the body is dead because the body is no more living. That's the difference between a living person and a dead person. But here the different between man and animal, one goes up, the other goes down.
Now it is profound over here because when the spirit of a man leave a body, the body is dead already lying in the coffin. The spirit goes up. All spirit including believers and unbeliever all goes up. Now when you say goes up, what does it mean? Often time we say goes up mean go to heaven, but here the it must mean that goes up goes to God, doesn't mean to go to heaven because all spirit of man will go up. That's what we must understand, and when the spirit stand before God, the final judgment is not yet. When the spirit stand before God will decide, and God will If this spirit a believer or not, if he's a believer, he will go to heaven. But he's unbeliever, he will go to hell to be reserved for the final judgment.
That's why we must understand the spirit of a man will go up to God, not to heaven. And what about the spirit of the animal? You will go down. Now go down doesn't mean go to hell. Go down mean go to the ground together with the body. So it means no more, no more.
Well, of course, we have come across with I'm not sure whether it cartoon or fiction. What they like to say that all dogs go to heaven. Of course, we wish we wish all dogs go to heaven. Animals also go to heaven. But the Bible says very clearly the spirit of the beast will go downward. So in other words, there is no more life for them.
The fact when Jesus come, he came to save men, not animal, not angels, only to men. Because man will live for eternity either in heaven or in hell or in a lake of fire.
Although this is something which I personally have learned know in the court of the study, as much as we want to believe that because animals oh we love our animals, we love our pet, our pet dog, pet cats or birds or fishes, we want them to be with us. We have spend good moments, enjoyable time. So sometimes we we enjoy our time with them more than with human because animal will not talk back. Human will talk back. Maybe we find solace in that.
But the Bible is truth. It tells us where animals will go, where they will end up. So we have to accept them. This is the biblical truth.
Once a man dies, he will go back to the earth, not to dust. In fact, in chapter 12, Ecclesiastes 12:7 also say the same thing. Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it. It will not happen to animals.
Animals will just go back to the ground. Spirit and body go to the ground will be no more. No more.
But for man, the spirit shall return unto God who gave it. And God will decide, God will determine.
If we have believed in Christ that Christ is our Saviour, you will receive us into where he is, where he dwells. But if not, we will be away from him until the final judgment, and that will be for eternity. And so that's the final condition of man when he dies. The body goes down, the spirit goes up. No exception. All spirit goes back to God.
Though the spirit of man is eternal, but the spirit of animals is not eternal. It is no more. So this is the final condition. Do you know your final condition? It's more than just knowing what will happen at the end times.
I hope we are all waiting for the rapture when we will just be caught up when the Lord come and the trumpet will sound. Then all those who are dead in Christ will rise from the dead, and they will be given a new body, and then with the glorified body we will all meet our Lord in the midair, and together with him we will go to heaven. Well, that's what we are looking forward.
But right now, right now, before that happen, we must know the final condition that will happen. If we do not believe, if we're not sure whether we are safe or not, be sure now. The choice is yours. Do not wait.
And the final condition is closely linked to the first point, which is the final judgment. And after knowing the final judgment and the final condition, we have the final perspective. Verse 22.
"Wherefore I perceive that there is nothing better than that a man should rejoice in his own works, for that is his portion. For who shall bring him to see what shall be after him?"
Now after knowing the final judgment which is from vers 16 to 17 and also the final condition from verses 18 to 21, we must know that when this final judgment and condition happen to us it is the end. It is the end.
And the end means there is no turning back. We cannot say sorry to God and then reset, then everything start over again. You can't over it is the end. You cannot turn back the clock.
And so Solomon is now saying, or in verse 22, you must get the right perspective now before you come to the final judgment, before you come to the final condition. Get the get the final perspective now. You cannot wait until then. It will be too late so that your final judgment, your final condition will be secure in the Lord.
I'm sure when you stand before God before the final judge, what do you want God to say to you? Is it not not well done thou good and faithful servant? Enter thou into the joy of thy law. You don't know what we want to hear the commendation.
I do not want the Lord to say no how I have been a hypocrite or how I have lived my life in sin. Although I may come to church, although I may read my Bible, although I may pray, I may even serve, but I've done it all for sure. I have not done it rightly. I have not done it to the Lord. I just want man to praise me. I just want man to give me a position that is honorable, so that you will have nothing bad to say about me.
Do you want God to say that of you? Of course not. Of course not.
To the final judgment, we need a final perspective. Huh? In order to make it to the final judgment. And what about our final condition when we return to God after we die?
I do not want God to say I have not believed and so therefore I deserve to end up in hell. What I have been attending church all these months, all these years. Do you want that to do want God to say that to you?
Well, that can be our final condition when we stand before God at a final judgment. Then we will end up in hell, end up in the lake of fire for eternity. And so the final perspective we need to have the final perspective, and here Solomon says, wherefore I perceive ah I know deeply now, it doesn't mean that I know and that's it. No, I'm I know I am still knowing, but I'm glad I I'm known it and I'm glad that I'm still knowing it.
That there is nothing better than that a man should rejoice in his own work. Now that does not mean that therefore he minds his own business or start cutting people off his life. A man to rejoice in his own work means, well, he's focused on what God has given the work for him to do. He's not focusing in the past. He he just live whatever he feel, not whatever he likes.
Or maybe he's a follower. He follow what the world is leading him. Oh, everyone is going this direction. I just follow. But now the final perspective I must do what God have called me to do. That's totally different. Even if it goes against what the world is doing, I will do what God have called me to do. That's my final perspective.
That's what Solomon is saying over here. And not that do and then bearing grudges, thankful full of bitterness. No, it is to do it with great rejoicing, to rejoice in doing all those things that God have called us to do for that is our portion. We don't compete with one another. We don't fight for this thing because God has portioned out according to his highest wisdom to what we need to do for him on this earth.
Do you know what God has given to you? What is your work at home? What is your work in school or at work or even in church? What is the role that God want you to assume and play on his behalf? And then when we know that to enjoy doing it, no bitterness, no complain, but to do it with great joy because we are doing it for him. And that's our final perspective.
We all have our own portion. Let us not envy other people's portion. Because if you if we envy other people's portion, we're telling God, God, you do not know what I need or what I want. I know better than you. That's what we're telling God. But God knows. Sure, he know.
And so if my portion is know a very simple portion of looking after the choir for example, I do my best leading the choir to sing for the Lord so that the choir will be a blessing. What do I compare with the know the preaching or the teaching of God's word with some elevate to even a higher position? Well, why didn't you give me the position of a preacher or a pastor? Because I want to address the whole church. No, I want to teach them the Bible.
But if that is not your portion, then don't assume that portion because that is not God portion for you. Leave to those whom God has called and given that portion and for our portion let do it well. It could be a very small portion doesn't matter because that should be our final perspective because one day we will stand before God at a final judgment and with our final condition and that will be the end and the end will be glory. The end will be something that all of us will rejoice together as a big family.
Well, let us have the final perspective to call upon us to do what we are supposed to do, which is our portion, not waste our time away, doing other things neglecting our portion and only to regret it in the end. Our portion could be to minister to the people in need. Maybe at home we need to care for our elderly parents. Well, that could be our portion.
Or our children who need our attention right now. We do not push the children to the world or to let them teach our children. So that could be your portion right now to teach the children to protect them to care for them or your portion is to know at your workplace. I want to minister to this colleague of mine.
I want to share the gospel with him or her. That is my portion. I want to spend time with him or her. I want to do that which will lead him or her to the Saviour.
That could be your portion. I remember many years ago, in fact more than 30 years ago, my grandfather was admitted to the hospital for a leg infection.
Now, nobody would think that he will pass away because of a leg infection. So he was hospitalized, but he was very depressed because he was a very active person. So he when the doctor and nurses bound him to the hospital bed, he couldn't move, so he struggled. Although he got very depressed, but every day I got an opportunity to go to a hospital to visit him, to care for him, for because he was also hard of hearing, so each time you talk to him it's as if you're shouting at him, but not I'm not shouting at him. So that's why our conversation is very minimal because I do not want to be seen as how can you shout at your grandfather, but in my heart I wanted to share the gospel with him. I know that is my portion, but I procrastinated because if I were to share the gospel with him, the whole world will will will hear the gospel as well.
So at that time I I felt maybe not today, maybe tomorrow I'm coming again. So tomorrow comes again, I procrastinated. Then tomorrow come again, I procrastinated. And then one day I was at home, I received a phone call. What a call was to inform me no need to go to the hospital anymore because my grandfather had passed away because of my procrastination.
I did not fulfil my portion. But it is a regret. A regret that you cannot turn back the clock. Even though you want to fulfil your portion now, it is no more. No more. So that is my regret.
But I thank God for my grandmother. My grandmother was also an unbeliever. So I told myself I cannot procrastinate anymore. So I shared the gospel with my grandmother. Well, the next time I saw her, I share the gospel with her. But because he had dementia, so they cannot remember right then and then she say, oh I believe Jesus is my Lord, Jesus love me, I want to go to heaven, I want my sin to be forgiven.
I told share with her the gospel, but then the next time I come she forgot the gospel. They forgot at times you also forgot about me, but I share the gospel. I do not want to procrastinate because that is my portion. I make sure I fulfil my portion.
Well, is there a portion that God has given to you? Don't wait for the final judgment. Don't wait for the final condition. Have the final perspective right now. Know what you are called to do. What is your portion and to do it with great rejoicing?
If you have no portion, you have no part of of him, of God, of Christ. But thank be to God, we're here now. We are given the opportunity to hear the gospel, to hear the world, to know our final end.
What should we do? Go away doing nothing? No, we must change by and by. The Lord will help us, strengthen us, will make us useful know wherever he place us for his purpose, for his glory.
And so may the Lord help us as we know our final end. As we look forward to the final judgment and final condition, let us live with the final perspective.
Let us pray.
Our Father in heaven, we thank thee for thy word that we heard this morning. Forgive us for our unbelief. Forgive us for our indifference in attitude and behaviour. How we have neglect our spiritual life because of our love for this world.
And Lord, help us. Help us to have the final perspective of what life is all about and how thou has sent thy only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to save us from our sin, that we may live an abundant life, a life with a great purpose, a life with the portion that thou has given us to fulfil.
And Lord, we pray that we will be found faithful until we stand before thee at the final judgment, receiving the final condition, knowing that thou our God, the living, the one living and true God, all powerful, all knowing and everywhere present.
Oh Lord, may we be found faithful until we meet our Saviour face to face. We commit all this all unto the loving hand that we may be conforming to more and more to the image of our Saviour that others may also be driven to him for salvation.
Help us oh God in Jesus name we pray.
Amen.