Okay, Ecclesiastes chapter 7, and we're going to begin reading in verse 11. You know, I'm going to speak on when things go wrong, which was very apt this morning, because everything went wrong in the previous service. But anyway, Ecclesiastes chapter 7, verse 11. Wisdom is good with an inheritance, and by it there is profit for them that see the sun. For wisdom is a defence, and money is a defence, but the excellency of knowledge is, that wisdom giveth life to them that have it. Consider the work of God, for who can make that straight which he hath made crooked? In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider. God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him. All things have I seen in the days of my vanity. There is a just man that perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness. Be not righteous over much, neither make thyself over wise. Why shouldst thou destroy thyself? Be not overmuch wicked, neither be thou foolish. Why shouldst thou die before thy time? It is good that thou shouldst take hold of this. Yea, also from this withdraw not thine hand. For he that feareth God shall come forth of them all. Wisdom strengtheneth the wise more than ten mighty men which are in the city. For there is not a just man upon the earth that doeth good and sinneth not. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for this morning, for the opportunity to be here, to share the Word of God together. We ask, O God, as we open up the Scriptures, that you would open up our hearts, that we would be receptive to your truth, that we would be not just hearers of the Word, but doers also, committing ourselves to obedience, to being surrendered, and to living for the Lord Jesus as we ought. We pray, Father, that you'd use this time for your glory and for the glory of your Son. We pray you'd use it for the growth and encouragement of your people. In Jesus' name, amen. Well, last summer we had with us our Spanish Flues visitor, Jose, and I'm sure many of you remember Jose when he was here. And poor Jose, you know, he was staying with us at our home for three months. Somebody promised to take him to London and take him around the sights of London, but that never happened for whatever reason. And it was coming toward the end of his stay and it occurred to me that Jose, the only thing he had seen in England in his three months was the inside of KFC. and I thought we could do better for him than this. You know, he did have a little day trip out to Leek one morning and that was about the height of his adventures. And so I said to him one day, I said, do you want to go to Alton Towers? Do you like theme rides, theme parks? And he said, yeah. He said, I love that. And so we arranged, he and I, to go off to Alton Towers one day and just enjoy all the fun of the theme park. But you know, there comes a point in your life when that form of insanity passes you by. And you realize, actually, this is probably not the best way for me to spend my day. And so I went out there, and you know, it's an assault on all your senses. You know, you're hurled left, right, and upside down, and twisted around, and dropped into holes, and thrown out of holes. you know and all the rest of it and there's one ride up there that I have never ever liked and if you've been to Alton Towers I'm sure you've rode this ride, the Nemesis and I've never liked Nemesis even when I was a young man I didn't like Nemesis because Nemesis it just throws you around like a ragdoll and when you get to the end at least when I get to the end I always come off it disoriented and I feel a little bit sick Well on this occasion I came off most rides feeling disoriented and a little feeling a little sick. But you know you get off that ride in particular you just feel dizzy you feel ill and I sort of came to the conclusion that probably this is my last time going to Alton Tours and riding those rides. I'll leave that for younger people. But you know sometimes life has a way of tossing you around doesn't it. It has a way of twisting and turning and leaving us in a spin, leaving us disoriented, leaving us a little sick to the pit of our stomachs, and we just wonder what in the world is going on. You know, I've always appreciated the little poem by John Greenleaf Whittier. Don't quit. I'm sure you've heard that poem, but it's one that I have read many times. When things go wrong as they sometimes will, when the road you're trudging seems all uphill, when the funds are low and the debts are high and you want to smile but you have to sigh, when care is pressing you down a bit, rest if you must. but don't you quit. And it's a great sentiment. And I always appreciate that poem and the sentiment of that poem. But listen, when life is pressing you down a bit, you're going to need more than a poem to get you through. You're going to need more than sentiment to get you through. And so in Ecclesiastes chapter 7, Solomon is teaching us that God has wisdom for us, and that wisdom is one of the great essentials for living. True wisdom is found in obedience to God and His Word, in seeking God, in praying to God. In fact, true wisdom is taking what we know about God from the Bible, what we know that the Bible says, and applying it to our life situations and our circumstances. Notice Solomon teaches us that God's wisdom as revealed in his word, enables us to handle the unexpected and to deal with the unforeseen, so that when things go wrong, we should, in the first place, be secure. Look at verse 11. He says, Wisdom is good with an inheritance, and by it there is profit to them that see the sun. For wisdom is a defense, and money is a defense, but the excellency of knowledge is that wisdom giveth life to them that have it. You know what Solomon is telling us here? He's telling us that wisdom never capitulates to circumstance. You say, well, what do you mean by that? Well, the comparison Solomon makes here is between having money and having wisdom. Now, we know from Scripture that the love of money is the root of all evil. But money is a necessity of life. And the Bible has a great deal to say about money. And in that respect, it tells us that we ought to save money. where we can and when we can proverbs chapter 21 20 says there is a treasure a storehouse to be desired and oil in the dwelling of the wise but a foolish man spendeth it up you know when i was a young fella and i first got my job i used to go and spend every penny at the weekends used to go and you know before i was saved i'd get out and friday night and blow it all at the nightclub and then they'll have nothing for the rest of the week and wait till the next payday come along and then spend it all on drink and dancing and girls and all the rest of it. Well what a foolish way to spend your money! And the Bible says that that is a foolhardy thing to do. It says there's wisdom in storing your money off. There's wisdom in saving for a rainy day you know proverbs chapter six points us to the aunt it says go to the aunt thy slugger and i love this consider her ways and be wise you know every aunt you ever sees a female do you know that and yet solomon says consider her ways he doesn't say consider his ways because you never see a male aunt all the male aunt does is basically uh is uh to get involved in the reproduction process and then it dies you know and that's it it uh impregnates the males the females and it dies but every aunt you see scurrying around your yard is a is a female and how does solomon know that how could he tell they the gender of the ant well there's no way he could have known he doesn't have a microscope he didn't have any means of analyzing it but but god told him go to the ant thou sluggard consider her ways and be wise well what is her wisdom having no guide or overseer or ruler she provides her meat in the summer and gathereth her food in the harvest And you know, the aunt is wise in that respect. She gathers her meat in the summer, and she saves it all up for the harvest time. When autumn comes, she's ready to go. She's gathered her food in the harvest. She's ready to go for whenever winter befalls her. You know, if you get out and about this weather, In the early mornings, particularly, you'll see the squirrels. The squirrels are going crazy. They're all over the place this time of year. What are they doing? Well, they're hunting down their nuts that they've buried earlier on in the season, in the summer months, in the spring months, and they're going to those little hiding holes and they're gathering in their food in preparation of winter. In other words, they have saved for a rainy day. You think about the story of Joseph. Joseph tells Pharaoh there's going to be seven years of plenty, followed by seven years of famine. And he advises Pharaoh that the best thing to do would be to prepare for the seven years of famine by saving during the seven years of plenty, so they would have food for 14 years and not just eat everything up in seven years. And of course, what wise counsel that was. Now, the scripture discourages us from being greedy, from being covetous, from hoarding. But it also encourages us at the same time to be good stewards and to be wise and to be saving and putting money away for a rainy day. So money saved up is a money that is there in defense when things go wrong. And that's what the Bible says. It talks about money as a defense. If I have saved money, then I don't have to sweat it out if an unexpected bill comes in. I don't have to worry if my car breaks down or my washing machine breaks down. I have a little money set aside, and I'm prepared for that bill. I'm ready to go. But there's something better than money, and that is wisdom. And just as money is a defense against hard times, wisdom too is a defense. Because wisdom enables us to live our lives from a divine perspective and helps us to prepare ahead for days of adversity, when things go wrong. If we seek after wisdom, we'll be secure. Not only will we be secure, but here Solomon tells us we should be surrendered. Look in verse 13. He says, Consider the work of God, for who can make that street which he hath made crooked? In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider. God also hath set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him. All things have I seen in the days of my vanity. There is a just man that perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness. You know, Solomon tells us to consider the work of God. That is, to evaluate what God is doing. For who can make that straight which he hath made crooked? You know, in the natural world, when you look in the natural world, you see there are many things that God has made with a bent, or God has made crooked. You know, you think about the rainbow. The rainbow is always in a bow, isn't it? The clue's in the name, a rainbow. It's always bowed over. You'll never see a straight rainbow. The banana is bent. You never see a straight banana. You look into the natural world and you see things like the shell of a snail. Do you realize the shell of a snail is twisted? The very top end of it is the shell it had when it first came into this world, the little tiny shell. But then as it grows, that shell twists around and around and around and grows with the snail. You know, none of us like snails, a few of us like snails, particularly in our gardens. But actually, when you look at that shell, it's a work of art. It's a tremendous act of creation in which God made something crooked. He does the same thing with seashells. He does the same thing with some animal horns which are beautifully twisted. He even has twisted the very base code of life, the DNA of our being, and of every living being is in the form of a helix, a twisted formation. The same is true of plant twines and of seed pods. Some things in life are just as twisted. The word crooked here means that which is beyond reason, that which is inexplicable. Listen to me. There are things coming into your life that are inexplicable. There are things that are going to happen to some of you and you're going to want an answer. You're going to want a reason. You're going to come and you're going to say, Pastor, why would God allow that to come into my life? You know what my answer is going to be? I don't know. I don't know. You see, sometimes we think the pastor has all the answers because he perhaps knows more of the Bible than everybody else. But nevertheless, there are things that the pastor cannot answer. There are things that have happened that are so beyond reason, that are so inexplicable, that humanly no one can come and tell you this is why. But God knows, in the words of Whittier's poem, you know, life is strange with its twists and turns, as every one of us sometimes learns. Sometimes you hear people say that very thing. Sometimes they say that something in life threw them a curveball. What does that mean? It means that something took them by surprise. That something unexpected happened. That something occurred that they couldn't bat off easily. Something that they couldn't have planned for, something they had no control over, something that wasn't straightforward. Now, what happens when life goes wrong? What happens when life throws you a curveball? What happens when it seems that you're walking along a crooked path? Well, what are you going to do about that? Well, here's the answer, nothing. The Bible says there's nothing you can do about that. Now, that's not fatalistic. We're not entering into fatalism. We're not saying, que sera, sera, whatever will be, will be. But what we are saying is this, that in all of these inexplicable events, God has it in hand, that He has it under control. And as one writer puts it, what God sees tomorrow, yeah, well, we're not able to mend. What God sees tomorrow, we're not able to mend. You know, all of us, certainly all of us who own homes and cars and have families, have insurances. Insurance on our vehicles, insurance on our homes, insurance on our lives. And in all of those insurance policies, if you read down through the small print, which so few of us really do, but if you read down through the small print, you'll find that there is an exemption clause which talks about an act of God. And there are times when insurance companies will not pay out on the policy because the thing that has happened is deemed to have been an act of God. That is, it was something that was unpreventable, something that was inexplicable, something that couldn't be prepared for. It was something that was beyond human control. So if you look again at that little clause in your insurance policies, you'll find that includes things like flood, earthquake, volcanoes, hurricanes, that kind of thing. Those things are considered to be acts of God. You know, I would dare say if you were on the M5 and hit a bad tornado and found yourself on the M5, going south when you're You call your instructor up and say, look, how's your act? That's on the inside. Renato came and picked me up and put me in five. Say, I'm fine. OK? I'm not paying her no mind. An act is something that's predictable, something that can prevent it. Here's what you have to learn. You have to learn to be predictable. Now, look how solemn it is in verse 18. He says, It's going to be joyous to have Preston back. You get a lot of people telling you, you've been allowed to stay in. Well, it'll probably be difficult. But, well, you know, I've got this bound. Preston's around. He's so kind. Or perhaps if you got a non-exempt refund from something years ago, you could already set up one now. Though I had been paying for it for years now. Like I said, they were paying me with interest. I checked my way, $700. Well, I was a high school student. I went away. I said, sure, I came for savings. You're a happy camper, you're rejoicing, rejoicing in their prosperity. You'll be like my wife, you know, she goes to Debenhams, she goes to Marks and Sparks or wherever she's going, she's buying herself an outfit and she saves 50% off and she'll take it up to the till and they'll say there's another 50% off and she ends up paying just a few, you know, she comes home excited She'll hold up these garments and here's what she'll say to me, how much do you think this costs? Do you ever have that, guys? Your wife holds up the garment, how much do you think this costs? As if we're some high retailers in women's fashion. How much does this cost? And I always say the same thing, 50p. Well, it's never 50p, is it? But she's excited. You can tell she's excited because she's got herself a bargain and you wouldn't have. But what about the day of adversity, when things go wrong, when things seem twisted, when things are difficult, when things are gnarled, when things turn you upside down and rattle you all about? Well then you've got to step back and ask yourself, why would God allow this to happen? Solomon says, in the day of adversity, notice the word, consider, evaluate, take some stock. You know, this day, just like the good days, is a day when God is under control. That's what he wants you to consider. Now, though you may not grasp the adversity, God has a purpose for it in your life. God has made life such that we don't know what's coming around the corner. That's what he says. Here's the reason why you have days of prosperity and days of adversity to the end. To what end? That man should find nothing after him. In other words, that he shouldn't know what lies ahead. You see, here's the thing. God doesn't want you to know the future as far as your life is concerned. You realize that? That's why God's word condemns soothsaying and astrology and psychics and that kind of thing. Because man is not to pursue his future in that way. Why does God not want you to know about the future? Well, first of all, if you knew about the future, it might make you very miserable in the present, right? If you knew what lay ahead. But second of all, he wants you to take every day as it comes, good or bad, and to walk with him and to trust him. And so he sets one against the other. You don't know what is going to come. So what am I to do when life takes one of these twists and turns? Well, I'll tell you what we're not to do. We're not to doubt God and we're not to question his way or his word. Look in Job chapter 33 for a moment. Job chapter 33 brings us to the council of Elihu. Elihu was the youngest of Job's friends. And I was actually, as it turned out, the wisest of his friends. The other men spoke foolishly and spoke out of turn. They had good theology but terrible application. And Job chapter 33, this young man gives a word of counsel to Job in his misery, and he says, Why dost thou strive against him? in verse 13. Why dost thou strive against God? For he giveth not account of any of his matters. He says, Job, you know, here you are sitting here, you've lost 10 children, you've lost all your business, you've lost all your property, you've lost your health, your relationship with your wife is going downhill, your friends are here making you miserable. Why in the world are you arguing with God about that? Because God is not going to give you an explanation. Not specifically. Look at Isaiah chapter 45. Isaiah chapter 45. Now we're in Isaiah chapter 42 Wednesday evening coming and that's tremendous. In fact this whole section of Isaiah is an amazing section of the book. But in chapter 45 in verse 9 the writer Isaiah says, Woe unto him that striveth with his maker. Let the potsherds strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, what makest thy or thy work? He hath no hands. You see what he says there? He says, shall the clay say to he who fashions it, what he should do, how he should be made? Can a jug say to the potter, I don't want to be a jug, I want to be a plate? No, the jug has no say, the clay has no say. The potter's in control and that's the picture of our lives. It's not for you and me to tell God what should happen or what we should be or what should be done. It's for us to simply trust the potter. Paul in Romans chapter 9 says the same thing in verse 20. It says, Nay, but O man, who art thou that replyest against God? Who are you to question God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour and another unto dishonour? When you think about it, if anybody knows about pots and pots, potters and potteries, it's people who live in this area, isn't it? And when you think about the pottery that's developed in this area, that's made in this area, you have some kinds of pottery that is very valuable and much sought after. You know, if you go down to Moorcroft Pottery and you try to buy a piece of Moorcroft, it's going to cost you. You know, you may take a good wadge of money. You're going to have to take several hundred pounds to buy a piece of moorcroft. But you compare what moorcroft makes with what steelite makes. Steelite just makes functional pottery. It makes cups and plates and jugs for hotels. And so when you're in a hotel and you hear a piece of pottery being smashed in the back room in the kitchen there, well, nobody bats an eyelid. Nobody worries. But if you drop a piece of moorcroft, people are concerned. Because one piece is very valuable, one's a piece of honor, and one's a piece of dishonor, one is a throwaway piece. Now the question is, who makes the decision which is which? The potter does. The potter dons. And so it is in life. Some people in life go through life blessed and blessed and blessed again. Other people go through life and it's one struggle after another struggle after another struggle. It's problem upon problem upon problem. Difficulty after difficulty. Honestly, even as a pastor, sometimes I look at our congregation and I see some people and they live a blessed life. And then I look at other families and other people and I think, these people just go from one trauma to another trauma. You say, well, who does that? Who makes that decision? Why is that? God has his own purposes. And some he makes to honor, and some he makes to dishonor. Some people have a life that is blessed, and other people have a life that is troublesome. But it's not for us to question God. Rather, it's for us to surrender to his plan and to his will for our lives, whatever that may be. Now, in regard to adversity, Scripture does give us several indications why God may allow us to face certain problems in our lives. There may be a governmental reason. In 1 Corinthians 11, the Lord sets out the ordinance of the Lord's Supper. And in the midst of that, he tells us to judge ourselves, that we should not be judged. And then he goes on and talks about how that because some of them had misbehaved at the communion table, and they had abused the ordinance. He said, for this cause, some are weak and sickly among you, and some sleep. In other words, some people were being chastened because of their sin. God in his governance was chastening them. That's what happened in the life of King David. King David commits adultery with Bathsheba and murders her husband Uriah via the battlefield. And the consequence of that sin was that David suffered bereavement four times in his family. He lost four of his children. He lost Amnon. He lost Absalom. He lost Adonijah. And he lost the child that was born to Bathsheba. That was God acting against David and chastening him for his sin in that particular instance. Now we're not suggesting for one moment that every child lost is God's chastening hand, but in David's case it certainly was. So there may be a governmental reason. There may be an educational reason that God is helping you to understand his ways more fully. And certainly that's the case with Job. You read through the book of Job and Job is all over the place. He doesn't know why God's allowing the things that come into his life to happen. He doesn't understand the reasonings and the purposes of God. but you get to the end of the book and God begins to reveal himself and he says to him, Job, were you there when I made this? Job, do you understand this? Are you able to enter into the treasures of the snow? Can you figure out the ostrich feather? Can you figure out why there's a, why a horse is such a warrior? Can you figure out why an ostrich doesn't fly? Job, do you understand these things? No, you don't son. So what you're going to have to do is you're going to have to trust me. And so Job is forced really to understand the Lord's ways more fully. And then there may be a purifying reason. Peter says that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, may be found unto the praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ, 1 Peter 1.7. He's telling us that sometimes God is purifying us, purging our lives. There may be a developmental reason. James says in James 1, my brethren, count it all joy when you enter into diverse temptations or trials or difficulties. Knowing this, the trying of your faith worketh patience. It develops you, it matures you. Have you ever noticed that people who have struggles, people who have gone through trials, tend to have deeper roots than people who haven't? that there's a depth to those people that others perhaps don't possess, that those who just enjoy blessing after blessing after blessing oftentimes are not even aware of their blessings, and very often are quite late in their walk with the Lord, whereas those who've had to go through deep trials have a depth to them that others haven't entered into. And then it may be a productive reason In the book of John, in chapter 15, where the Lord Jesus presents himself as the true vine, he talks about how he has to purge those who are not bringing forth fruit. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh away. And every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. God has his reasons. And so Solomon says you need to consider. You need to sit down before God and with the Bible open and search the scriptures and indeed have God deal with your spirit and see what he's doing in your life. Consider. And then in verse 15, Solomon makes an observation that I'm sure you've made and I've made, and we've all thought about this. Notice what he says in verse 15. A just man perishes in his righteousness. A wicked man prolongs his life in wickedness. You know, Solomon says, I've seen it all. And he points to this. Well, it's a contradiction, isn't it? It seems to be something that doesn't sit well with us. The idea that a righteous man dies young, even though he's following God and adhering to his word, whereas a wicked man may live to a ripe old age. You look through history and recent history, even ancient history, you'll see this. You know, you take Lady Jane Grey. Lady Jane Grey was 16 years old when she was executed by Bloody Mary. When she was standing before the crowd at her execution, she said this, I look to be saved by no other means but the mercy of God and the blood of his only son, Jesus Christ. She's 16. Can you imagine a 16-year-old saying that today? It's hard to imagine, isn't it? She's just a child, really. And God is allowing her life to be taken. He's allowing her life to be cut short, snatching away her breath at the tender age of 16, and yet here she is, completely committed to the gospel of the Lord Jesus. Augustus Toplady, the great hymn writer who wrote Rock of Ages, Cleft for Me, dies at the age of 38. David Braynard, tremendous missionary to the North American Indians, dies at the age of 29. The renowned Scottish preacher, Robert Murray McShane, dies at the age of 29. Oswald Chambers, who wrote the devotional book, My Utmost for His Highest, who ministered actually at Fenton Baptist Church for a little while, he dies at the age of 43. Now you think about that and you compare it with some of the ungodly. Joseph Stalin, a man who committed genocide, killed literally millions of people, dies at the age of 74. Mao Zedong, who masterminded the cultural revolution in China, who was really the man who introduced communism in China in many ways, he dies at the age of 82. The Black Panther murderer, Donald Nielsen, dies at the age of 75. Robert Mugabe from Zimbabwe, he dies at 95. The profligate sexual offender, Jimmy Sabo, dies at the age of 84. And you look at that and you say, well, how come these guys lived to a ripe old age and those other guys who were godly died young? Now, if this life is all there is, well, Solomon has a point here. This is a vanity. If there's no justice. If people can do terrible things and just die and escape punishment, there's no justice, don't you agree? I mean, if Hitler can go into a bunker, having orchestrated the devastation of World War II and killed over 12 million people in gas chambers and 6 million of those being Jews, if he can do that and then just go into a bunker and shoot himself and in so doing find release and being able to escape justice, well then, life is a vanity. But here's the thing, nobody escapes justice. Savile hasn't escaped justice. Hitler hasn't escaped justice. Stalin hasn't escaped justice. Mao Zedong hasn't escaped justice. Robert Mugabe hasn't escaped justice. Dennis Nielsen didn't escape justice. You see, every one of those men is going to face this sure and certain judgment of God. Already they're in hell, at some point they're going to be resurrected and made to stand before the great white throne of judgment and their works will be judged and they will be cast into the lake of fire. They're not going to escape justice. But for the Christian who dies, well what? We enter into the glory of the Lord. We go to sit at the feet of Jesus. We go to enjoy the bliss and the blessing of heaven for all eternity. Lady Jane Grey goes to her death professing Christ as her savior and what? She goes to heaven and she's still in heaven. Joseph Stalin kills millions and dies and what? He goes to hell and he's still in hell. Now we may not always understand the reasons why people die when they do, and that's not important. You see, it's not important when you die, it's important where you go when you die. That's the important thing. Where do you go when you die? And so we don't always understand the whys and the wherefores, but wisdom tells us that God, if he is nothing else, is sovereign over us and that he has a purpose. And faith grasps the greatness of God and relaxes in his perfect will and plan for our lives. And so we are not only secure, we're not only to be surrendered, but now notice we're to be sensible. Look at verse 16. Ecclesiastes 7, verse 16. Be not righteous over much. Neither make thyself overwise, why shouldst thou destroy thyself? Be not overmuch wicked, neither be thou foolish, why shouldst thou die before thy time? It is good that thou shouldst take hold of this, yea, also from this withdraw not thine hand, for he that feareth God shall come forth of them all. You know, verse 16 is interesting, and it's a difficult verse in some ways to interpret, but listen to it in the Amplified Bible. It'll give you some idea as to the way this verse goes. It says, do not be excessively righteous like those given to self-conceit or self-righteousness, and do not be overly wise, pretentious. Why should you bring yourself to ruin? That's what it says. Do not be overly righteous. are excessively righteous, like those given to self-conceit. In other words, when life takes a dip, when life takes a twist, when life takes a turn, the Bible says, don't act like you know it all, like you have it completely under your grasp, that you understand it all perfectly, that you have no questions, no moments of doubt, no second guessing, You know, instead, the Bible tells us that we should be real. When things come along and we don't understand why my life has taken this dip and why things are going wrong, the Bible tells me to be balanced, to be genuine, both before God and before man. And don't be fatalistic. Don't abandon yourself to sin. Verse 17. Be not over much wicked. Now, we know that everyone's wicked. Verse 20, for there's not a just man upon the earth that doeth good and sitteth not. The Bible isn't saying that we should be a little bit wicked, but what it's saying here is that we shouldn't abandon ourselves to sin because we don't understand our circumstances. You see, here's the testimony of atheism. Atheism is often derived from a disillusioned heart, someone who, first of all, prays perhaps and doesn't get an answer from God, and secondly, experiences some things in life that they just can't weigh up. And so what do they do? They abandon God and give themselves to a life of pursuing personal pleasures. The Bible says don't do that either. That's a big mistake. In verse 18, Solomon says, get a hold on this. It's good that I should take hold of this day, also from this withdraw not thine hand. You know, a number of years ago, many, many, many years ago, I was in a four-seater aircraft flying over Alaska. And there was myself, Hazel, who was co-piloting the plane, and a missionary who was sitting beside me in the back. Those were the four seats. And it was a pretty scary flight at times. You're in a little aircraft like that. It's not like the same as being in a big 747, you know. It's like sitting on the back of a kite. And so, you know, you're flying around. And when turbulence hits, you know, you really feel it in those little planes, you know. And the pilot has to move this way and that way. Well, the poor fellow beside me, you know, I'm not a great flyer, but he obviously had a big issue with flying. And his hand was gripped. onto the handle of the door, you know, like your back car door. He had this little handle and his hand was gripped there. I mean, it was weight. He was just holding it so tight, the whole thing. I don't know what he thought it would do for him if the plane went down because the handle was coming with him. But nevertheless, he was holding on to this thing. And when we got to our destination, we got to Fort Yukon in Alaska. He literally had to prise his fingers off the handle. His fingers had stiffened up and he just couldn't release the handle. He literally had to get up and bend his fingers to get his hand off the handle. Well Solomon says do that with wisdom. He says, get a hold on this. Don't let it go. Don't withdraw from it. He says, here's something to hold onto in the midst of difficulties. Get a hold on this. Those who fear God shall come forth. They're the survivors. They're the victors. They're the overcomers. People who hold onto wisdom in times of stress are the people who come out on top. You see, if you fear God, if you reverence him, if you seek after his glory, then you'll live well and live right, whatever the circumstances. He says, be sensible, and then he says in verse 19, be strong. Wisdom strengtheneth the ways. More than 10 mighty men which are in the city. God's wisdom gives the strength to face the dark days of our lives, the bad days. You know, I'm sure if you're anything like me, every now and then you'll see somebody on social media and they'll make an announcement. A Christian will make an announcement. Oh, I've got a new job. And somebody will ultimately come along and write underneath in the comments section, God is good. You ever see that? God is good. Oh, here's our new baby. God is good. Good news, I got a clean bill of health. God is good. Hey, we got the key to our new home. God is good. But what if it's not good news? What if it's a case of I lost my job? Is God still good? What if it's I lost my baby? Is God still good? What is it if the doctor gives me bad news and says it's a tumor and your life expectancy is limited. Is God still good? What if I've lost my home? I couldn't keep up the payments and the bank came in and foreclosed and I've lost everything. Is God still good? Friends, God is good. Even when my health is bad, even when I'm bereaved, even when I lose my property, even when I've lost a baby, even when I've been put out of a job, God is still good and holding on to that truth is wisdom and it will strengthen us to face those trials and those tough times when everything seems to be twisted and perverse and crooked and all around us seems to be going wrong. God is good all the time. You see, friends, life really is a roller coaster. You plan for things, you hope things are going to work out a certain way, and then what? Then life rolls out in a completely different way. You know, sometimes my wife says to me, you know, I didn't marry a pastor. What does she mean by that? Well, when she married me, I was a civil engineer. But you know what? Life is strange with its twists and turns, as every one of us sometimes learns. And I always say to her, yes, you did. You just didn't know it yet. We all have our plans. But God can twist and turn. He can make those plans crooked. And we go through highs, and we go through lows, and there are dips, and there are mountains, tough experiences, and life always catches us out when we're least prepared. You see, here's the thing about life. With life, you can never be sure. But with God, you can always be sure. He's the one unchanging factor in our lives. He says, I am the Lord. I change not. He says, I am from everlasting to everlasting God. I am the same yesterday, today, and forever. We use the term immutable. He is unchanging. He's sure in his person. He's sure in his love. We can be sure that God loves us no matter what happens. Even if I have lost my job, God still loves me. Even if I have sadly lost a baby, God still loves me. Even if I have just buried my father and my mother, God still loves me. Even if I lose my home, God still loves me. Even if I lose my health, God still loves me. You say, well, how do you know God loves you? Because the Bible says that God commendeth his love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. The proof of his love is expressed on the cross. God's love never changes for me. He never loves me less today than he did yesterday. Nor indeed will he love me more tomorrow than he does today. His love is ever the same. And we can be sure of his presence. For he's promised never to leave me nor to forsake me. God is always with me. And we can be sure of his wisdom because he has given us his word. Everything we need to know to get us through the journey of life. Maybe life has thrown you a curve ball. You had your plan, it was all laid out. You're gonna do this, you're gonna do that, and then what? End of it all, God threw a curve ball. And there's not much you can do about that. There's not anything you can do about it. You can't make straight that which God has made crooked. So what do you do? You lay hold upon the Lord. You lay hold upon his word. You surrender to his plan and you trust him to work it out according to his great and eternal purposes. And that, my friends, is what wisdom demands. Let's pray.