Ecclesiastes chapter 12. Old Testament Ecclesiastes. You kids, that's Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, somewhere in the middle of your Bible. The very last chapter of Ecclesiastes. We're going to read the whole chapter. Our text is going to be verse 11. But I want to set this up. And you kids, I want you to listen carefully. I want your attention. When I say kids, the very first line says, remember you're created in the days of your youth. So if you're a youth, would you listen up? I want you to understand what's going on here in the first eight verses, and that is a description here of old age. There's a description, a metaphorical, poetical description of old age. And so older people will recognize this. They're not meant to be pressed too far, but they're saying, look, while you're young, Listen to God. While you are young, listen. Don't think that when you get old, that's the time to turn to the Lord. He says, while you are young and you still have your right mind, you can still hear, you can still see, you can still walk, you can still live, listen to your Creator. That's what He's pressing on you. He's pressing that now, right now, is the day for you to hear your Creator, your God, your Savior speak and call you. to faith. So listen carefully to this reading of God's Word and what the Spirit of God would say to His church. Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth. Before the difficult days come and the years draw near when you say, I have no pleasure in them. While the sun and the light, the moon and the stars are not darkened and the clouds do not return after the rain. In the day when the keepers of the house tremble and the strong men Bow down. When the grinders, the teeth, when the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look through the windows grow dim, when you can't see anymore, when the doors are shut in the street, you can't hear, and the sound of grinding is low, when one rises up at the sound of a bird and all the daughters of music are brought low, also they are afraid of height and of terrors in the way. When the almond tree blossoms, when the hair turns white, huh? The grasshopper is a burden. You're weak. Can't even lift a grasshopper. And when desire fails, for man goes to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets. Remember your creator before the silver cord is loosed or the golden bowl is broken or the pitcher shattered at the fountain or the wheel broken at the well. then the dust will return to the earth as it was. And the Spirit will return to God who gave it. Vanity of vanities, says the preacher. All is vanity. And moreover, because the preacher was wise, that's what we're going to hear about this morning. Because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge. Yes, he pondered and sought out and set in order many Proverbs. The preacher sought to find acceptable words. And what was written was upright words of truth. In the words of our text, the words of the wise are like goads, and the words of scholars are like well-driven nails given by one shepherd. And further, my son, be admonished by these of making many books, There is no end, and much study is wearisome to the flesh. Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter. Fear God, and keep His commandments, for this is man's all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil. May God bless the reading of His Word. Brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ, This is a wonderful passage for a pastor to hear. This is an important passage for a teacher to hear. This is a passage that gives perspective for parents. This is a passage that students need to take seriously. It gives comfort. It gives incredible insight and perspective, especially after a hard year of labor. This passage, I think, is the Old Testament equivalent to 2 Timothy 3.16 and 17. You catechism students, you probably remember that, right? Right off the top of your head. Every scripture of God is given by inspiration. It is for rebuking. It is for instructing. It is for encouraging. It is for the training in righteousness. Well, this passage is kind of affirming that. Here's what the purpose of the Word of God is. Here's what the words of the wise are for. It's talking about the authority of the Scriptures. It's talking about the relevance of the truth. It teaches us where wisdom and sanity and truth are found. See, we live in times when it's harder than ever sometimes to be a teacher or a student. There's little confidence, so often, little confidence in this world for such a thing as truth. Is there truth out there? Can we rely on the Bible? Can we rely on wisdom? Can we rely on anything? Well, the people of God, Christians, Schools, seminaries, pastors, teachers, parents, we're affected by that spirit too, that tendency to sometimes wonder about the relevance of the truth, the reliability of the truth. What good is there? When it's all said and done, what good is there in teaching? What good is there in preaching the truth? We look back on a year of Sunday school instruction and catechism instruction and teaching in the classroom. What good has it been? What good is it? And you as students need to ask yourself, what good is it to me? Well, the preacher here, Solomon, says the words of the wise. You need to hear the words of the wise. The words of the wise are effective. The words of the wise are powerful. So we're going to look at these three things. You'll see the outline there in the bulletin, these three ideas. First of all, the words of the wise are compared to two things. First of all, the words of the wise, verse 9 tells us, or verse 11 tells us, are like goads, goads. A goad is a long hardwood stick, right? And at the end of one end is a sharp metal object that is fitted onto it, and it has a point. And what you use that like is as a goad. You poke. You poke the bull. You poke the heifer or the cow in the rear end to get it moving, to make it go the right direction, or to correct it when it's veering off course, or to get it to produce. Come on. Stir it up. Let's go. Let's go. Pull the plow, whatever it's supposed to do. On the other end of it is a flat chisel. And that flat chisel is used to scrape dirt off of things or scrape gunk off of things, plow blades and things like that. It gets gummed up and you use that chisel to take the dirt and the clogs off. It's a very graphic kind of language that Solomon's using. Solomon is a great observer of life. And he looks at things like this, and even a king like Solomon knew about a goad. Tells you that he was interested in life, wasn't he? But Solomon is saying, you know, Christians are like cattle often. Like cattle. Catechism students are like cattle. Sunday school students are sometimes like cattle. Even adults. Members of the church could be like cattle. Even pastors are like cattle. We're all that way. We need to be sometimes goaded. We need to be encouraged. We need to be encouraged to go the right direction. We need to be stirred up to go in the way that God would have us go. Sometimes we need a lot of spiritual gunk and dirt knocked off that's developed. We need to put the death sent. We need to put out of our minds thinking that is not to God's glory. It's not to God's glory. We need to put it away. You need the gunk knocked off, right? And the preacher says wise words are used by the Holy Spirit to do that. Wise words. But you need to understand this, too. Especially if you're a teacher, you need to understand this. The goat is not nagging. The goat is not carping. I think parents sometimes have to hear that, and so do teachers. Sometimes we think that if we could say it 50 times, maybe they'll listen. Usually, if they don't hear it after once or twice, you're going to have to do something else to get their attention. But instead, we keep goading, goading, goading. So sometimes that's a bad thing. Sometimes you provoke your children to wrath by those things. A goat is not an ag. It's not a carper. You need the right goat. Wise words, he says. Wise words. We need to be wise. We need to think. We need to meditate sometimes. How do I apply the truth? How do I bring it to bear in an effective way? You see, he says it takes wisdom. You've got to think. You've got to observe. You've got to step back. Somebody said once that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and over again, expecting a better result. You see, you can't just carpet, carpet, carpet, carpet. Use wisdom. Use wisdom. The words of the wise. He's pleading with us. Be wise in how you teach. Be wise. Be thoughtful. But you see, ultimately our trust, our hope, The words of the wise will be like goads because they're given by one shepherd. Notice what it says in the passage. We'll come back to that. But they're given by one shepherd. And in that, you need to understand the shepherd is going to take these words ultimately. So ultimately, that's our hope, right? Not that I'm so wise, but that the shepherd will bring them home. Well, there's another thing that the words of the wise are compared to. They're like well-driven nails. Well-driven nails. The word translated well-driven is plant, a plant. When a thing is well-planted, right? When it's rooted, it's firm, it's fixed, it takes hold, it's secure. The words of the wise are like a well-driven nail. When a nail is sunk in, it secures that board that it's sunk into, often for decades. Decades, think about that. Some of you have done remodeling work in your home. I remember as a kid, my grandfather used to hire my brothers and I to tear apart old houses for the material and stuff in them. And you'd pull them apart, and you'd think, you know, that nail, that nail was driven 60, 70, 80 years ago. And it held up that house all that time. That's a well-driven nail, right? Well, it secures a thing. And it's a satisfying thing, a satisfying feeling to know you've sunk a nail in just the right place to secure a house for generations. That's a satisfying thing. As a teenager, I used to work on a construction crew sometimes, framing. And you just then used to use hammers. And you'd sink that nail. And it was a satisfying feeling to sink that spike into that stud through the plate and it would hold that wall to this day. Well, wise words, well-driven into the heart and well-driven into the mind will secure a soul for eternity. That's what Solomon said. For eternity. It will bind us by the Holy Spirit's use of those well-driven words will unite us to Jesus Christ. And that's especially true for training children. Life-forming words that they need to hear, that they need to be taught. Good words, wise words, faithful words. And that's what this preacher did. It says the preacher was wise and he still taught the people knowledge. He pondered, he set out, and he sought out and set in order Proverbs. Why? Why, he wanted words of truth. He wanted to teach them words of truth. Firmly driven in the hearts and minds of the youth and of adults. And when they're old, they won't soon depart from these things. And that's what we're called to do. And that's what we've been trying to do in this last number of months in our Sunday school and catechism programs and so on. The Word is well driven. It's a wonderful thing to remember parts of lectures and parts of readings that are like well-driven nails still, given by good scholars. The words of scholars, teachers, parents are set into my memory and yours, and you know what I'm talking about. They're things you remember that were taught to you in your youth. I thank God for scholars. who are faithful, who are skillful in the use of words given by the One Shepherd, Jesus Christ. And we all together thank God for you teachers who have taken the time to give yourselves to this task for the children of this church and parents who are doing this on an ongoing basis. The Word of God faithfully used can train and form a life. They're effective. But you kids, you have to take them to heart. Kids, take them to heart. Hear them. Be trained by them. Alright, well secondly, the words of the wise are enough. Or the words of the wise are sufficient. Here we're talking about the sufficiency of Scripture. Sufficiency of Scripture. It means the Scripture is enough for its purpose. Its purpose for which God has given it. God gave us the Scriptures that we might be made wise unto salvation. That we might be instructed and trained unto righteousness. That we might be thoroughly equipped for every good work. The words of the wise, the words of the truth, the words of Scripture are enough. They will be sufficient. Verse 12 says, "...further, my son, be admonished by these." By these. That's the emphasis. This is enough. Let these words be your admonition. Let these words of the wise be enough for you. Of the making of the many books there is no end. And much study is wearisome to the flesh. You know what he's saying? He's saying, you know, some people set out to learn the truth and they never find it because they're always looking, looking, looking, looking, looking. They're always going to find the next thing. And so some of you sitting here today have been taught the word of the truth by parents, by pastors, by elders, by teachers, and you're saying, I think I'll go look somewhere else now. I'm not sure I buy what you're telling me. And you know what the wise man's telling you? He's telling you, of the making of many books, there is no end. If you set out on that path and you say, the Scriptures here aren't enough, then your search will be never-ending. Because this is the truth. And this is enough to bring you to faith in Jesus Christ. This is enough for your salvation. But if you think that the Gospel and the truth is not enough, well, you're setting out on a futile and a vain search. Solomon says. He says, I tried that. Let me tell you something. That doesn't work, he says. So I want to tell you this morning, brothers and sisters, you may be sitting under the Word of God, and I've had this happen, and I'm sure you as parents and teachers have, oh, it's boring. I don't want to listen to this anymore. I might have to learn these things. You're never going to come to a point in your life when these words of the wise aren't enough for you. There's never going to be a time when you've heard it too much. There's never going to be a time when you can say, I don't need it anymore. No, they are life. Remember in John chapter 6, Reverend Crone preached through that a few months ago. And remember that incredible sermon in John chapter 6? He starts out with probably 20,000, 25,000 followers standing there. He's teaching and teaching. By the time he's done, he has 12 people left. Everybody left. He ran them all off. That's one amazing sermon, right? They said, forget this, this is crazy talk. They rejected Jesus Christ the One Shepherd. But Jesus turns to those apostles that were standing there and says, are you going to leave me too? And Peter says, Lord, where else are we going to go? You have the words of eternal life. You have the words of eternal life. I can't find it anywhere else. The Scriptures are enough. The words of the wise are enough. And you're not going to find it somewhere else. Not the way to salvation. Not the way unto faith in Jesus Christ. Not the way unto eternal life. And so, let these words admonish you. Let these words instruct you. And actually, the grammar is, admonish yourself with these words. Take them into your heart, take them into your mind, and admonish yourself by them. Remind yourself of the Gospel. Remind yourself of the promises of God. Remind yourself of the wonderful calling of Scripture saying, When you sin, Lord, forgive me my sin and let it be covered by Your blood. Admonish yourself of the Word. Use the Gospel in those blessed ways to remind you that God is faithful. He will not leave you or forsake you. Parents, remind yourself what did God call you to teach your children and train them up in the way they should go when they are older and will not depart from it. Be faithful. Trust God. You see, admonish yourself by the words of Scripture. Take them on your own lips and in your own hearts and recall them. Let them be effective. There are thousands of books out there, thousands of lectures, and all these kinds of things, and it might seem cool, and it might be exciting, and it might be presented on an overhead, or it might be on YouTube, or something like that, and that's a cooler way to do it. But the words of the wise ultimately have to be heard. And you have to believe they're enough. They're enough. So beware of anything. One translation says, beware of anything beyond these. When it comes to knowing God, when it comes to salvation, when it comes to the realities, the spiritual realities of eternal life, these words are enough. Beware of anything that would claim your attention beyond them. Be admonished by the Scriptures. You know, if you think that it's wearisome sometimes to have a pastor or a teacher point you to truth in Christ, Solomon says, if you think that's wearisome, try living under the truth and the rule of man someday. That's what he's saying here. He said, try living life apart from God sometime. If you think the words of Scripture might be wearisome to you, try living under man's – apart from God. He says, now that's vanity. That's vanity. So be admonished by these. They are enough. And then finally, the words of the wise are effective. The words of the wise are effective. Why? Well, verse 11 says, they are given by one shepherd. Given by one shepherd, huh? These are God's words. Think of the imagery of a shepherd now. Think of how the Scriptures have used this shepherd imagery in Psalm 23 and other passages of Scripture. And Solomon, remember, is David's son. He doesn't use this image just out of the blue. He knows what he's doing here. They're given by one shepherd. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He leads me beside the still waters. He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His namesake. This one shepherd isn't going to send you in the wrong place. He's not going to send you on a fool's errand. If He leads you through the valley of the shadow of death, you don't have to fear any evil because this shepherd is with you. His rod, His staff will comfort you, right? He's preparing a table in the presence of your enemies. You will dwell in the house of the Lord forever under that shepherd. The words of this shepherd are effective. They are the words of eternal life. The shepherd shepherds his people by the Word. That's what the Bible says. My sheep hear my voice and they follow me. His Word, the Word of Jesus Christ, the Word of God is the power of God unto salvation to those who are being saved. The Word of the Gospel is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, able to penetrate even to the division of joint and marrow, of soul and spirit. The writer of the Hebrews says in chapter 4, so through the Holy Spirit, God will use the words of truth to turn us away from this empty, burned-out existence of a broken, fallen world and a rebellious heart that is described all the way through the book of Ecclesiastes, life apart from God. And the words of the wise will lead you in the paths of righteousness The words of the wise will lead you unto the joy of the forgiveness of sins through the gospel of Jesus Christ. So, to you teachers, to you elders, to you Sunday school teachers, and to you parents, teaching the truth, the gospel, this is right. This is right. And it is honoring to Christ, and it is exactly what people need. God bless you for taking the time and the effort to take it seriously. Keep at it. You young people, especially you young people, listen up. Listen to the words of Solomon. Are you taking the Word of God seriously? Are you taking the words of the wise seriously? The Word of God is like an inoculation process. The words of the wise are like an inoculation process. High school, Sunday school teachers, hopefully that rings a bell for you. You're being inoculated. You're being taught how to think, how to be wise, how to think with wisdom as you approach this world in which you live. And many of the challenges to the Christian faith And the word of the wise and the words of truth are like an inoculation. It's like an immunization. It begins to build up your immune system, your ability to live in that world as a pilgrim, but not be destroyed and devastated in your faith just because you don't know the answer to every challenge. The words of the wise, let them be like well-driven nails to you. Let the Word of God draw you to Jesus Christ above all. Let it draw you to Christ. Let it draw you to faith and hope in the Christ who died, giving His life in your place for your salvation, who rose again, who is the victor over sin and death and hell and judgment of every kind. And that Word is the Word of the Savior who's coming again to judge the living and the dead, but to bring a new heaven and a new earth and to bring peace and to bring you to everlasting fellowship with Him. Have the words of the wise, have the words of Scripture brought you to a heartfelt confession of faith? I want to challenge you to that, kids. Do you confess your faith in Jesus Christ? Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter. What are you here for? Why has God created you? Why has God in His providence put you in a home in a church that teaches you the Gospel, fear God. Keep His commandments. For this is man's all. All. Soli, Deo, Gloria. Remember? Your kids sang it, huh? To God alone be glory. This is man's all to glorify God. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil. Amen. Would you turn with me to hymn number 414? Let's stand up together.