I'm turning now in the word of God, near the middle of your Bibles, in the book of Ecclesiastes, so the Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the book of Ecclesiastes chapter three, and reading verse one. Ecclesiastes chapter three and reading verse one. To everything, There is a season and a time to every purpose under heaven. And my title and subject for this morning's message is Discovering Light's Purpose. The vast majority of people in this world will never discover the true meaning and purpose of life, because they don't understand that life can sit, well, people understand that there are seasons, but they don't understand why these seasons come upon us. And this is such a profound passage of scripture. It's a very well-known passage of scripture, or at least it used to be in this country. There's even a pop song based on this passage. I wouldn't recommend this song, and it really misunderstands what this passage is all about. But what do we make of the seasons of life? Life is made up of seasons. We read them here in this verse. To everything there is a season, and there is a time to every purpose, Under heaven What do we make of this list this item of these many items that make up these seasons? Is this teaching us that there are? times When well, it's appropriate in certain situations to do some certain things and not to do certain things There's a time in life where I should seek Love and so on and there's a time when I should refrain from doing so well No, that's not what this passage is teaching at all It's actually teaching the complete opposite. These seasons are not optional. These seasons are set in stone. These seasons are destined or predestined by God. These seasons cannot be avoided by us. They cannot be changed by us. These seasons are inevitable. And we know this is the correct interpretation because the first two items on the list Make it very clear that we can't change these things. For example, this is the first two items in verse two. A time to be born and a time to die. You cannot choose where you will be born. You cannot choose when you will be born. You don't know the day of your death. These things are all in the hands of the Lord, in the hands of God, and everything else, all the other items on this list are the same. They are set in stone, they are destined, we cannot change them. They are inevitable, they will happen to us. So what is the implication of this truth? That there are seasons in life which all of us will go through, and we cannot avoid these things, and we cannot change these things. Well, the implication of this truth is this, is we're not free as we think we are. And many people have this mindset and understanding today. I don't believe that there is a God. I'm a free thinker. I can do as I please. I can do as I want. I can control my own destiny. This passage says, no, you cannot. You can only respond to the circumstances and situations that come upon you in life. And these situations and circumstances are well beyond your control. You cannot control. You can respond to them, yes, but you cannot control these things. You are shaped. And without the living God, without God in my life, I'm actually manipulated and I'm controlled and I'm changed by these things. I'm changed by these things. I'm shaped by the circumstances and situations in life. And without God in my life, I'm shaped and I'm changed for the worst. The seasons of life, the shifting scenes of life will bring out the worst in me. Without the blessing of God, without the Lord in my life, if I'm someone who merely lives for the material things of this world, if I'm only, and we all were once in this condition, If I'm a person who just merely lives for the here and now, and I have no hopes beyond the horizon of this life, these seasons that I go through will bring out the very worst in me, and it will ultimately lead to the judgment of God. So there is a solemn passage, but we need to investigate these things. Well, I begin at verse two. Well, I read from verse one, to everything there is a season, which cannot be changed, a time, to every purpose under heaven, a time to be born, a time to die, a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted. There's picture language employed here. A time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted. This is speaking of agriculture. This is agricultural language. This is speaking of farming. The farmer puts his back into preparing for the harvest and preparing the ground, sowing the seed. And there will be times when his harvest is successful, but there will be times when his harvest is unsuccessful, when his harvest fails, and he will be forced to pluck up those crops that didn't produce a harvest, and he will have to start all over again. He will have to fertilize the ground, and he will have to do so all over again. And what this is teaching us is that there will be seasons in life where I will invest in certain things, and people invest in all kinds of things in this life, but they won't produce any lasting fruit. I will have to pluck up these things. These things will not give me any lasting value. I won't see long lasting fruit in the many things I invest in in this world. And many people, for example, and this is a trap that younger people can fall into, but certainly older people can fall into this trap as well. For example, investing in reputation. what people are wearing, the fashion and so on, and what is in vogue and what is popular. And many people invest a lot of effort into this, how I look, my image, how I appear before other people. And people, for example, who plant and invest in this, well, this won't produce any fruit. You'll have to pluck this up. It won't last. And it's a painful reality that people normally discover when they come to middle age. They have what you call a midlife crisis. And I will be pushed into this season whether I like it or not. And I will have to adapt and I will have to change. And all the time I've invested in how I look and how it will all collapse like a house of cards. Because I haven't realized that life is made up of changing seasons. And I have to discover what is the main purpose of life. But many investments that I make in this world, without the Lord, they will not bear fruit. I will have to pluck these things up. I will have to abandon my factuations and my dreams, a certain lifestyle that I've always dreamed of, or maybe even careers. Sometimes we can fulfill our careers, but sometimes we have to abandon these things. These seasons are inevitable. No matter how discerning I am, No matter how clever I am as a person, I cannot foresee these things and I cannot change them either. So this is really what this passage is teaching. But we want to look at some more verses. We come down to verse 3, for example. And we're given some further details. into the seasons of life. Verse three, a time to kill and a time to heal. I can't look at all the items in this list because we'll be here for longer than intended. This is not quite the same as describing death, a time to kill and a time to heal, but it's communicating the fact that we live in a world where there is death and suffering. This was never intended by God. God created this world perfect. God created this, if you read the book, if you read the beginning of Genesis, this world was perfect. It was without death and suffering. But because we live in a world where we have rebelled against God and the law of sin and death operates, there will be seasons where we experience great loss. Loss of loved ones. At some point, friends, I will experience the grief of losing someone who I may have loved. So this is inevitable in this life. In fact, from the moment we're born, we're in the process of dying because of sin. And illness reminds me that when I get ill at times, it reminds me that death is looming on the horizon. Well, I mustn't dwell too long on, because there's quite a few items on this list, but we look at the latter half of verse three, a time to break down, and a time to build up. There will be seasons of demolition and destruction in life, where my hopes and ambitions crumble and are destroyed. And this is certainly the case, because if I only live for this life and for this world, I will suffer many unnecessary disappointments. Of course, those who are Christians, that we will suffer disappointment as well, Ultimately, these things will be blessed to us and I'll explain what I mean by that a bit later But without Christ without being connected to my creator many things will crumble I will have to Or there will be seasons of demolition and destruction because this world cannot be trusted this these the world's promises will be they The promises of this world are broken time and time again There is times of construction Verse four, verse three, I beg your pardon, a time to break down, a time to build up. There are times when I make progress in life. There are times of construction. There are times when I advance in certain areas. But with times of construction, there are responsibilities and work can be strenuous. Although there are times of advance and construction in various departments of life, I can, well, again, without the Lord in my life, I can be building and investing and making progress in certain areas, but these things won't last. I'm focusing my attention, I'm focusing all my emotional energy and my money and so many other things into certain areas of life. But these things will not last. This building will crumble. It will be destroyed. I think I derive a great sense of purpose in this area, but I will not be satisfied. I will not fully derive the purpose that I'm seeking after. This particular venture, this particular issue, or this aspect of life where I'm investing so much time, Well, it won't stand the test of time. So for example, people who invest a lot of time in entertainment, I have to go to work, I come home from work and I just switch on the TV and I watch hours and I'm on set. Well, I invest time in this and I'm amused by these things, but will it stand the test of time? Will I derive the purpose that I'm seeking after in these things? No, you won't. These things will be destroyed, a time to break down and a time to build up. But then these items continue, verse four, a time to weep and a time to laugh. There will be times of great sorrow and sadness. That's unavoidable in this sin sick fallen world. There will be a time when relationships will be broken and it will be very painful. There will be many other disappointments. Times of redundancy are made redundant, or many other difficulties, regrets. But there will also be times of joy and laughter. We read in verse 4, a time to laugh. There's times of pleasure. And this is a gift from the God. God has given things to us in this life to enjoy and appreciate. Many good gifts, even to those who despise him and hate him. God has given us many legitimate things to enjoy, even in this fallen world. So there will be times of joy and pleasure, but again, without the Lord in my life, these things will be superficial. They will be superficial at best. I will be missing out on the very best in life, because with the Lord in my life, things will, well, I'll have so much depth to my life, so much more context. It's so sad when you see people far away from the Lord and they're living life in a vacuum. They're living for such small and petty things. And they don't realize that these things don't last. These things have no lasting value. But with the Lord in my life, I have times of joy and pleasure. But even in times of great difficulty and heartache, that joy does not go away. That peace, which God promises, does not dissolve. But if I'm someone who lives away from the Lord, Pleasure, times of pleasure and joy, they come and go. And I have to rely upon my circumstances for my pleasures and my joys. I depend upon these things. If I become a child of God, I have this abiding joy and peace, which will sustain me in any season of life. So this is the wonderful truth of those who come to know the Lord for themselves. Verse five, a time Well, again, I read the latter half of verse five, because we don't have time to look at all these items, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing. Times of friendship, times of socializing, times when much love is lavished upon us. Normally in childhood, although sadly, that's not always the case, but most of the time we take for granted in childhood, we're loved the most. The most attention is lavished upon us, times when we're embraced, times when we're loved. But there are also times in life of loneliness, times of isolation, times when, well, I'm not as loved as I used to be. Things have changed. A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing. But you know, dear friends, even in times when things have gone wrong, life has taken a turn for the worst in my life. And I used to, well, things used to be going so well for me. Happily married and many other pleasant circumstances, but life can be so unpredictable. But with the Savior in my life, even though things may turn out for the worst outwardly, having the Lord Jesus Christ as my Savior. Oh, friends, it changes everything. I could be someone who's in prison for the faith, and yet I will have so much peace and joy knowing that the Lord is my Savior, having these things. It's difficult to describe these things. You have to come to Christ to experience it, that I no longer have to depend upon the circumstances of life. to receive joy, it's given to me by God secretly. The world cannot see these things, but this is what the Bible clearly teaches. This is what every child of God can testify and verify. So, a time to embrace, a time to refrain from embracing. But verse six, a time to get, and a time to lose, a time to keep, and a time to cast away. Time to get. Well, we can certainly understand what this means. a time to, well, accumulate things, a time to get. And don't we live in an age where people are just so infatuated by this, I must have this, I must have that, an age of rampant materialism, where people are hypnotized by material things, and they don't see any greater purpose to life. Waiting, well, Having their hopes set upon, well, I'm investing, I'm saving up money for this thing, I'm using one credit card, two credit cards, three credit cards to purchase this thing, my next holiday and something, and people live for these things. But this verse warns us that times of plenty do not last. Look at this verse. Verse six, a time to get and a time to lose. There will be times when I accumulate things, but there will be times of great loss. And even if I am able, and people are, plenty of people, well, they are well off, they have money, and they may have this status throughout life, but they will lose out in many different ways. There will come a point in my life, even if I have wealth, I don't have the capacity anymore to enjoy it, nor do I have the appetite to enjoy it. This is so often the case, where I set all my hopes and ambitions on certain things, and the novelty wears off so quickly. Why? Why am I not satisfied? And you can read the papers, you can read what Celebrities, and they all say the same thing. If they're honest, they all say that despite all the riches I have, I'm a miserable person. I'm a very depressed person. But why? You've reached the very top where everyone seems to be trying to reach this high place where you've gotten to in life. You've accumulated all these things. You have all the wealth you want. But why aren't you happy? Because we were never created for these things. We were created for eternity. And there's a verse here in this chapter which speaks of this, a very profound and weighty verse, which we will get to in a moment. But there will be times when we accumulate things, there will be times when we gain things, but there will be times when we lose a great deal. In gaining many things without the Lord, maybe many material things, one relationship after another relationship, and sometimes people boast about these things, But without God in my life, without his forgiveness, I will lose my contentment. I will feel so empty inside. That's the consequence, that's the price. There will be time, and in just living for this world without the Lord, I will lose, not only will I lose eternity, but I will increasingly lose virtues. I will be, I will, my character will wither away, it will rot, it'll decompose. I'll become more selfish. I'll become more greedy. I'll become more embittered with life. So I will lose, I may have so many things, I may possess many things, but I will lose a great, I will lose a great deal. Verse seven, a time to rend, a time to sow. I won't speak about those items because of time, but the latter half of verse seven, a time to keep silence and a time to speak. There will be times in life, and this is often the case again when we're young, but that's not always the case, but there are times when I'm such an opinionated person. I think I know everything. I'm so confident. And there will be seasons in life There will be very hard knocks in life where that confidence will be knocked out of me. And I'm no longer speaking my mind like I used to. Because my conscience now refuses to keep quiet. Because of my pride, I've treated people with such cruelty. I've done terrible things. And my conscience is now haunting me about these things. A good example of this is social media. We live in a social media age, and people can be so cruel and can say such reckless things on social media. And then there comes a time when that person is exposed or they get into trouble because of the things they said. And the fame that they once had, the reputation that they... Overnight, it's gone. Times to speak and times of silence. There will be times in life when I have, well, I have great influence over people. Some people do. And I'm opinionated and I have much to say. But there will be times in life when I'm great, when I'm cut to the heart, when I'm humbled to the dust, when I've taken some hard knocks, I'm humiliated. The popularity is gone. I'm not as well known and appreciated as before. These things will come upon us whether We can't plan these things. We can't change these things. These things are set in stone They're ordained of god and these things will specially come upon us for the very worst if I don't know the lord If I don't know his guiding hand and his help in life these seasons will turn out for turn turn out for the worst verse eight a time to love and a time to hate a time of war and a time of peace a time of love a time of Well, as I'm growing up and I seek a partner and so on, times of love, loved when I'm younger, also times of hatred, or times of friendship as well. Not just speaking about seeking a partner in life, but times of friendship. But there will be times of hatred, when relationships turn sour, betrayals, and all these kind of things. And this happens, especially if I don't have the grace of God in my life. I don't have his help. in my relationships, times of war, times of peace among nations and in families and relationships. But now we come to verse 9, which gives us a summary of all these things. What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboreth? What's the point of all of this? Solomon is saying. These different seasons in life, the different seasons, the changing scenery of life. What's the point of investing in this life if these things, these unpleasant things, also good times of comfort and so on, but this is a time, this is a world where things are in a constant state of change. In the light of these seasons, the fact that this is a fallen world, What's the point of putting my trust, of casting my anchor in this world, which is constantly changing? Trying to find solid joy. And this is what people make. Friends, you make the greatest mistake in life. If you're casting your anchor in this world, you're trying to find solid joy, security, peace, purpose, meaning in this life. It's not here. You cannot find it. It's not here, not in this fallen world. And this is the whole premise of the... Book of Ecclesiastes. Vanity of vanity, says the preacher. Futility of futility. Life is vain. It's futile without God. I cannot find true purpose and meaning and lasting joy and value and security that we all crave after. I cannot seek these things beside God, beside the Creator. It's all vanity without Him. And now I come to one of the most profound verses in the Bible. Verse 11, look at this verse. He that is God has made everything beautiful in his time. Also he has set the world in their heart. Now I've got to explain the word world there in the original literally means vanishing point. So ideally it should be translated eternity. He also has set eternity in their heart. God has put eternity into the hearts of every human being. We were destined to live with him and love him and enjoy him forever. That's why God made us. We're designed for everlasting life. And so, without the Lord, I have this eternal vacuum inside my heart. No matter how much I accumulate in life, no matter how wonderful this person is, it's never enough. There's this empty void, you can fill it with as much things as you can, as many pleasures, you will still feel that sense that there's something missing. There's a massive gaping hole inside of me which can only be filled by my God because he has put eternity in my heart. Nothing in this life, because it's not eternal, will fill that empty void. There may be moments of pleasure, and as this verse describes, beauty, God has made everything beautiful in its time, but without God in my life, these things will be, these joys, these pleasures will be superficial at best. They'll be skin deep. They won't last. They come and go. We need him. I need him in my life. I need the Lord Jesus Christ. Otherwise, life is futile. It will all end in judgment. But how? How can I? have God in my life. Up until this point, preacher, I've just lived for my selfish desires. I've just lived life for myself. I've never given any thought to the Creator. I've never given any thought to Him, even though He's given me air to breathe, even though He's created all these things. I've treated Him as a complete stranger. Why should he look upon me with compassion? I've treated and this is this is the case with all of us friends. We're all guilty of this Why would god? Why would god look upon me with favor when i've treated him with him with such contempt? Well, god is gracious and he's pitiful And even though i've treated him this way He's provided a way of salvation for me. He's proved his compassion and pity towards me by sending his only son into the world. 2,000 years ago, the Lord Jesus Christ was crucified on that Roman cross. Friends, this is history. Not only is it history, but you can put your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ without a shadow of a doubt. There is no message like this. There is no greater love. Do you know that Jesus' death was prophesied many hundreds of years before it happened? Do you know that it was prophesied even thousands of years before he came? Abraham, who lived 2,000 years before Christ, right back in the book of Genesis, God promised Abraham that through his coming seed, all the nations of the earth will be blessed. In other words, the gospel would spread. God told David through the Psalms, David lived 1,000 years before Christ, that the Messiah will be pierced with his hands and his feet, a form of execution that didn't even exist at the time. God told David that The coming Messiah will be pierced with his hands and his feet. And I can give you many other prophecies in the Old Testament, speaking about where Christ will be born, what he would do, how he will die for sinners. It's all prophesied in the Old Testament, hundreds of years, and in some cases, thousands of years fulfilled to the very letter in the life and the work of Jesus Christ. And I will reject him. Will I brush aside this message as irrelevant and just live for the passing things of this world, which make me into, and the seasons and the things of this life, they will actually make me into a worse person. I'll become more embittered and more hostile towards my creator, but God is throwing out a lifeline to you this morning, dear friends. It doesn't have to be this way. It doesn't matter what condition you're in, God is merciful. He can change me. He can forgive me. When he was bleeding and dying on that cross, he was suffering for my lies. He was suffering for my dishonesty. He was suffering for my selfishness. He was suffering for my rotten pride. He was suffering for all my sins. And he said to his father, in effect, he didn't say it verbally, but this is what was happening. Father, I will be punished. Father, punish me instead of that man, that woman, that child. I'll be punished, Father, instead of them. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Trust Him as your Savior. Be willing to give your life to Him. Surrender your life to Him. Repent of your sins and believe that He is your Savior. And if you mean it, if you pray that prayer of faith, God will help you, He will forgive you, and He will transform you. And you will receive a peace and a love and a joy which you've never experienced before. A peace and a love so profound, so wonderful, that it doesn't matter what season you're going through in life, it will never evaporate. Yes, there will be times of sorrow. Yes, Christians go through these seasons as well. No one is exempt from these things. But the difference is this. that now that I am a Christian, now that I am a child of God, these seasons God will sanctify. He will use these seasons to improve me, to prepare me for heaven, to bless me. It's all together different. These seasons take on a different design. Let me just give you some examples before we close. Verse two, a time to be born. a time to be given a new life, a time to be born again, a time to be entirely transformed, a time to die, a time to give up the old life, my old sinful life. Do you see how this passage takes on a new design? If I'm a Christian, if I could become a child of God, a time to plant, a time to invest in the kingdom of Christ, a time to pluck up, a time to give up those old sinful habits, those destructive habits and way of living, a time to give all that up and seek the Lord, and God will very much help me with this, a time to weep, a time to weep over my sins, to realize what a sinner I am, how I've offended my Creator, and to seek the Lord, and if I truly repent of my sins, He will give me a new start, a time to laugh, times of joy, When I come to the Lord, he will give me a joy and a peace which will abide regardless of what season I'm in. Can I ask you the question this morning? Do you have this anchor for the soul? Do you have this new life which the Bible describes? The Lord Jesus Christ terms it like this. You must be born again. Have you been given a new life yet? Have you experienced this wonderful joy and peace, knowing that you're God's, knowing that you're loved by him with a jealous care, with an everlasting love? Have you experienced this? Come to the Lord Jesus Christ, even this hour, and you will experience his forgiving love. And your life will no longer be governed by the seasons of life. You will no longer depend upon the circumstances of this life for your security, for your happiness, for your purpose. God will so change your life or so bless you that although you may go through dark times in life, your happiness, your purpose, all these things that we crave after, these things will come directly from him so that he will sustain me, uphold me through all the seasons and improve me and at last escort me into glory with himself. May this be your testimony, my friend. Amen.