Sermon: Choices and a Man After God's Own Heart: Turn, Turn, Turn

#1689
Mark Schindler
Given 14-Jan-23; 66 minutes

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We are going to begin the sermon today in one of the most well-known and perhaps least appreciated section of scriptures in the Bible, except for their lyrical cadence. Please begin turning to Ecclesiastes 3.

Now I do not believe the value of these verses is underestimated by those within the Body of Christ, who realize the cycle of events for all men who live under the sun. But to rest of the world a number of the “merisms” in verses 2-8, promote the paradoxical frustration of life. For the most part their significance is ignored except maybe for their entertainment value as lyrics in a song written by Pete Seeger, and popularized by the Rock group “The Byrds” in the 1960s. We are actually going to get back to Pete Seeger’s song in the second half of this sermon today.

But for now, let us begin with God’s words regarding life under the sun as recorded in Ecclesiastes 3. We will be reading verses 1-14.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-14 To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to gain, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

What profit has the worker from that in which he labors? I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied. He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God. I know that whatever God does it shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, and nothing taken from it. God does it, that men should fear before Him.

In his series on “Ecclesiastes and Christian Living” John Ritenbaugh wrote:

In Ecclesiastes 3, Solomon gives those of us whom God has called wondrous knowledge capable of filling our minds with great possibilities. In it, God confirms that these possibilities can be fulfilled because He, from His sovereign position on high, is overseeing our preparations for His Kingdom. He controls time and events, doing it in such a way as to create His purposes in us without denying us the use of our free-moral agency.

In this way, we bear some responsibility for making right choices, and thus we play a role in our preparations. We must make our choices by faith, voluntarily giving ourselves in submission to His will and His way. He tests and proves the validity of our faith while creating circumstances for us to navigate through, overcoming the conditions that the trials present. He gives us gifts by means of His Spirit to enable us to make right choices and bring glory to Him as we grow and overcome.

A few weeks ago, in the early part of December, I watched the movie, It’s a Wonderful Life. This is the first time in 10 or 15 years I watched what had been my favorite movie many years ago, when it was a vaguely remembered film that was only shown occasionally on late night TV. It was in the quiet after midnight hours that I first saw this movie from 1946 during the first few years after Nancy and I were married. She had gone to bed for the night but I was still too wound up to sleep after working a 4-12 shift. On this particular night, in the ancient days when there were only a few television stations, and they would play some old forgotten film before going off the air in the wee hours of the morning, I first saw what quickly became my favorite film.

However, a number of years down the road suddenly this movie was all over the networks during the Christmas season and was declared a Christmas holiday classic and mere overly sentimental schmaltz! Without a doubt there was a large presence of Christmas within the story, but even the first few times I saw this movie it was during summer reruns. They took a very good movie about a man of good character making right choices and wrapped it up into the commercial Christmas package!

Perhaps I lost interest in the movie because it was also during the same period of time that God was giving Nancy and I the ability to see the demons in the season. But, for whatever reason I lost interest in this very fine movie that was really all about self-sacrificial choices.

I know there have been some that have referenced the movie as a point of illustration over the years and I do not want to take God’s time to do a movie review, but I think it may be helpful to highlight a bit of the focus in the story, as we head into this sermon.

For any of you who have never seen the film it revolves around a man by the name of George Bailey, who at the beginning of the film is on the verge of suicide because of something he did not do, but he sees no way out of the situation that will absolutely destroy him, his family, and his lifelong reputation. It begins with the voices of many different people individually praying for George Bailey, because although they do not know the circumstances, they know that he is in a great deal of trouble.

Then we see the star-filled heavens and a few voices discussing what needs to be done to help George, including an angel, who is assigned to help him not make the worst choice he could ever make, “Taking away his precious God-given life,” as the angel later tells him. From this point through the rest of the film we see a recap of George Bailey’s life from a boy of about 12 until this time, as a 40-something year old man.

It begins with him, his little brother, and some friends sledding down the side of a hill on coal shovels, having a contest to see who could go the farthest. His little brother goes the farthest, but it takes him right into a hole in the ice of the pond at the bottom of the hill. George rushes, slipping and sliding across the ice and jumps in the pond, saving his brother from drowning in the icy waters. But it was costly to George because infection set in and he lost his hearing in one ear.

From the time he was a boy, it was George’s dream to work in the family business for four years after high school, save his money, and then go to college after spending some months working his way around round part of the world and exploring some of the most exotic and faraway places. But this never happens. Due to the various circumstances of life and to the benefit of others, he never leaves his home of Bedford Falls. He ends up living what he considered a happy, but mundane life as a businessman, husband, father, and community leader by default, just making ends meet.

Although a leader in the community, it is not because he ever sought the power and prestige of office but by the fact that he constantly and consistently made sacrificial choices to the benefit of others rather than himself. In this way he literally became indispensable and what one would call a major pillar of his community.

I do not want to go any farther into a plot line of It’s a Wonderful Life other than this short synopsis and the point of the movie that George Bailey was given a “wonderful gift from God to see what the world would have been like without him,” as the angel later tells him. The point was that his life and self-sacrificial choices all along the way had a major impact for the better on almost all who knew him individually and the community as a whole.

Through the movie it is apparent that there is a very special sterling character that drove him to make the right choices for the benefit of others, with all the ups and downs of life. Perhaps partially innate, most certainly and obviously in the film, part of the product of good parenting, as well as a bit of prayer. However, in spite of the fact that, at its base it is a fine film about making the right choices, it still is a Hollywood fantasy from a 1943 short story, entitled the “Greatest Gift” that is loosely based on Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.”

Not everybody is a George Bailey, whose life’s choices directly affected all those around him for the better. With him there the people around him were in reality much better off than they would have been without him because of the self-sacrificial choices he made. Without him the world was a much more chaotic and darker place. We sure do not have that kind of effect on those around us. Or do we?

Brethren, God is teaching each and every one of us to make decisions that directly impact those around us. But, unlike George Bailey, a man with such sterling character that he was always compelled to make the right self-sacrificial choice, God has called the basest of men to learn to trust Him by constant communication to become men and women after His own heart.

I know we all are very, very familiar with this scripture but let us remind ourselves exactly what God is working with at this time. Paul writes:

I Corinthians 1:26-28 For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are.

This should be hitting us right between the eyes! It makes no difference who we may have thought we were when called by the Father to His Son. This is not merely how the world sees us, but this is the reality of our lives apart from God. In verse 28 we are reminded that unlike a truly altruistic George Bailey, God has chosen the base and despised.

The word base is number 36 in Strong’s, transliterated as agenes. The word is only used once in the New Testament. It not only means one who does not live up to expectations of his place in life, but it also can be translated “ignoble.” This is someone lacking nobility in character, quality, or purpose. Quite the opposite of a George Bailey.

A little further down in the verse we are called “things that are despised.” Again, quite the opposite of a George Bailey. This word despised is number 1848 in Strong’s and transliterated exoutheneo, and it means contemptible, despised, least esteemed. Brethren, this can be really discouraging when we dig into what we looked like, and not just from the perspective of men but from God’s perspective.

No matter how much of a George Bailey we thought we were, or even seemed to be, this is the reality of what we were along with all men when God in His perfect sovereign authority decided to put us into the Body of Christ. However, before we end up being the George Bailey at the beginning of the film, so depressed that he considered it would be better if he had never been born, let us go back a few verses to what should be the focus of the hope that is before us. Let us go back and read what is the reality under God’s sovereign care. Please drop back to I Corinthians 1, verses 3-10.

I Corinthians 1:3-10 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

Grace and peace is God’s gift to us, in a world in division and chaos, while learning to make the exactly right choices with the gifts God has given us all through Jesus Christ. This is not some fantasy dreamed up by men, but it is part of the reality of being trained by the God of the universe to think and act just like He would in every circumstance throughout eternity.

This is God’s preparation process to make each and every one He has placed within the Body of Christ to become men and women after His own heart. This is God’s individually tailored life-long project to be just like the Father and the Son.

God tells us through the apostle Paul in those ensuing verses of I Corinthians 1:4-9, that by the grace of God we have been enriched in everything through Jesus Christ, coming up short in nothing but with everything we need to make the choices that are going to keep us on the right path with Jesus Christ.

Brethren, something we need to keep absolutely clear in our minds is that God’s plan right from the beginning was to face the choices that are going to create us in His very image and likeness. But He is doing it in a way that may seem to be contrary to the way we, carnal-minded men, think it should be done.

Please turn with me to the beginning of the Book, as we do so often, and see again how this whole purposeful plan of God got started.

Genesis 2:8-9 The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He put the man whom He had formed. And out of the ground the LORD God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Genesis 2:15-17 Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

Genesis 3:1-7 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’” Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

I know that I have used these scriptures so many times in recent sermons. But we have to get it through our heads that God is absolutely sovereign over His creation, and this is not the start of Plan B! I believe that Herbert Armstrong spent so much time here in the last few years of his life because this is where God purposely moved His work to create men in His own image of unbending loyalty forever. Men began the process to learn the way of peace with the way of war. War is the fruit of choices apart from loyally staying in line with the will of the Father.

There are two vital multi-millennial long lessons that God very purposely began here. 1) The pain of living apart from the perfection of God’s law, and 2) Understand down to the very fiber of our being that when He is finished it is only going to be by His grace alone that we are going to be part of the Family. Although we must do our part in the work it takes to learn to live as He lives. He owes us nothing and we owe Him everything!

Brethren, right from the beginning God purposely gives us the clear opportunity to see that without the work They alone can do, we have no life beyond the brevity of human existence, no better than an animal!

Please turn with me now to Deuteronomy 29. We will be reading from Moses’ final instructions to Israel before they entered the Promised Land. But I would like us all to look at this while thinking about these words beyond physical Israel but to the spiritual Body of Christ, and our walk through the merisms of this life and the choices we need to make within them.

I ask that we look at this in the bigger picture of choices that must be made in faith and the goal that can only be achieved in unity and loyalty to God, even when the circumstances we go through are almost incomprehensible within our human thinking.

Keep in mind this is the chapter immediately following God’s instructions that can clearly apply to all men and all nations regarding what produces blessings or cursing’s, both nationally and individually.

Deuteronomy 29:10-19 “All of you stand today before the LORD your God: your leaders and your tribes and your elders and your officers, all the men of Israel, your little ones and your wives—also the stranger who is in your camp, from the one who cuts your wood to the one who draws your water—that you may enter into covenant with the LORD your God, and into His oath, which the LORD your God makes with you today, that He may establish you today as a people for Himself, and that He may be God to you, just as He has spoken to you, and just as He has sworn to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

I make this covenant and this oath, not with you alone, but with him who stands here with us today before the LORD our God, as well as with him who is not here with us today (for you know that we dwelt in the land of Egypt and that we came through the nations which you passed by, and you saw their abominations and their idols which were among them—wood and stone and silver and gold); so that there may not be among you man or woman or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations, and that there may not be among you a root bearing bitterness or wormwood; and so it may not happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he blesses himself in his heart, saying, ‘I shall have peace, even though I follow the dictates of my heart’—as though the drunkard could be included with the sober.”

Deuteronomy 29:27-29 “Then the anger of the LORD was aroused against this land, to bring on it every curse that is written in this book. And the LORD uprooted them from their land in anger, in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as it is this day.’ “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”

I think we need to take these verses beyond this part of God’s plan and expand it out to God’s overall plan for us to learn to live as He lives. We need to see this is all under God’s sovereign plan for us to learn to live His Word through Jesus Christ and follow Him, even though we have trouble, as human beings, really comprehending the big picture that must be a loyal walk—in faith.

It is also vital for us to understand that even though we have “all gifts and understanding” to make right choices within the words of His law, we are going to make some really bone-headed mistakes along the way and that brings us to the next section of this sermon that may help us to keep going even when we do wander off in the wrong direction.

God expects us to make choices within the merisms of this life. But we must remember the one critical element in making those decisions that does not simply lie in being compelled, as a George Bailey good guy. So just to remind ourselves I want to us to turn to the perfect lesson from the one human being who always made the right choices within the same merisms of life we face, under the same pressure. Please turn with me to John 7.

John 7:53 And everyone went to his own house.

John 8:1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them.

John 8:23-29 And He said to them, “You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” Then they said to Him, “Who are You?” And Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning. I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him.” They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father. Then Jesus said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.”

Now please turn to Luke 22.

Luke 22:39-40 Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him. When He came to the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.”

Brethren, after the probably exhausting days of the Feast of Tabernacles, everyone else went home to rest, but Jesus went up to the Mount of Olives, as was His custom, to make sure, as a human being He consistently was ready to make the right choices to do what was pleasing to and glorify the Father. We must keep it firmly in our minds that Jesus Christ lived as a man just like we do. This was not any kind of act! Those things He heard from the Father came through the Holy Spirit stirred within Him in the consistent communication in prayer so that He always did those things that please the Father. Now please turn to Hebrews 2,

Hebrews 2:17-18 Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.

Hebrews 5:1-11 For every high priest taken from among men is appointed for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. He can have compassion on those who are ignorant and going astray, since he himself is also subject to weakness. Because of this he is required as for the people, so also for himself, to offer sacrifices for sins. And no man takes this honor to himself, but he who is called by God, just as Aaron was. So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him: “You are My Son, today I have begotten You.”

As He also says in another place: “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek” who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear, though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, called by God as High Priest “according to the order of Melchizedek,” of whom we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.

We have a perfect leader to follow because in giving up all His rights and privileges as God, as stated in Philippians 2, He became the human begotten Son of God, probably without even a vivid memory of the glory He shared with the Father. He was indeed God with us but dealing with life’s merisms just as we do, looking in faith to do what is pleasing to the Father in making the right choices.

Brethren, I hope we all can deeply appreciate just what was sacrificially done for us so that we can be created in the image and likeness of God. It almost is incomprehensible, but it demands the same depth of faith from each of us, even as we may stumble along the way.

This brings us to the next point in this sermon. Even though we have a perfect example to follow we are going to stumble, but it is what we do when we stumble that is the key. I would like us now to turn to II Samuel 24, verses 1-4. The example of King David, who was a type of Christ, but more than that, we need to look at him as how we should be a type of Christ.

II Samuel 24:1-4 Again the anger of the LORD was aroused against Israel, and He moved David against them to say, “Go, number Israel and Judah.” So the king said to Joab the commander of the army who was with him, “Now go throughout all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, and count the people, that I may know the number of the people.” And Joab said to the king, “Now may the LORD your God add to the people a hundred times more than there are, and may the eyes of my lord the king see it. But why does my lord the king desire this thing?” Nevertheless the king’s word prevailed against Joab and against the captains of the army. Therefore Joab and the captains of the army went out from the presence of the king to count the people of Israel.

II Samuel 24:8-9 So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. Then Joab gave the sum of the number of the people to the king. And there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men who drew the sword, and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.

Now turn to the I Chronicles 21. This is the same account but from a different perspective and adds a little more details,

I Chronicles 21:1-5 Now Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to number Israel. So David said to Joab and to the leaders of the people, “Go, number Israel from Beersheba to Dan, and bring the number of them to me that I may know it.” And Joab answered, “May the LORD make His people a hundred times more than they are. But, my lord the king, are they not all my lord’s servants? Why then does my lord require this thing? Why should he be a cause of guilt in Israel?” Nevertheless the king’s word prevailed against Joab. Therefore Joab departed and went throughout all Israel and came to Jerusalem. Then Joab gave the sum of the number of the people to David. All Israel had one million one hundred thousand men who drew the sword, and Judah had four hundred and seventy thousand men who drew the sword.

About a month ago we received a letter from someone who was confused regarding between the account in II Samuel that identifies God as the one who prompted David to number his troops and the I Chronicles account that identifies Satan as the instigator of this sin of pride.

My response to this letter was actually the starting point for this sermon and the choices that are made with God or apart from God. I began my response by pointing to God’s sovereignty over everything but that He does not tempt us to do evil. Using Jesus’ outline for prayer I pointed the person to the J. B. Phillips translation of verse 13, which reads: “Keep us clear of temptation, and save us from evil”.

Because temptation to do evil is all around us and carnal nature is always looking to please itself in the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life, which opposes the will of God, we need His help always to steer clear of those things that will drag us down. We need to be asking God daily to keep us from being overwhelmed by temptations within this swirl of life, that will, if left unchecked drag us into evil.

King David, even though he was a man after God’s own heart, because he was quick to repent when finally realizing he had severely slipped, found himself driven by his own carnal nature to do a census on this occasion and thus was headed in the wrong direction.

Here, although it was towards the end of his lifetime of overcoming, again, rather than doing what he should have done by looking to God in prayer and steer clear of temptation, he just let Satan influence him, even after Joab, not a very godly man himself, warned him that this was not a good idea.

Please consider here that no one is blameless and God’s anger was kindled against all of Israel, including its leader King David, who was apparently so far out of touch with God that his action brought great calamity and punishment down on the whole nation, who deserved it.

But it is at this point I would like us to take a bit of a detour before we go farther into the most important point of this sermon, because it is part of our choices and becoming people after God’s own heart. You may find this a bit off the subject but this is exactly the subject regarding our role in becoming like David—a people after God’s own heart.

Romans 13:1-5 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake.

I Peter 2:17 Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.

Brethren, within the whirlwind of merisms, one of the most difficult problems we face today is to remember something I came across in the Expositor’s Bible Commentary when preparing this sermon. The following comment was made about II Samuel 24:1 and it should be carefully considered by each one of us, who knows by the grace of God who is in charge. Expositor’s Commentary noted: “The ruler’s sin [speaking of David here] is a punishment to a wicked people; if God were not angry with a people, He would not give up their governors to evils that provoke His vengeance; justly are we charged to make prayers and supplications as for all men, so especially for rulers."

With this in mind, please turn back with me to II Samuel 24 and this time we are going to pick it up in verse 10.

II Samuel 24:10-17 And David’s heart condemned him after he had numbered the people. So David said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done; but now, I pray, O LORD, take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have done very foolishly.” Now when David arose in the morning, the word of the LORD came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying, “Go and tell David, ‘Thus says the LORD: “I offer you three things; choose one of them for yourself, that I may do it to you.”’” So Gad came to David and told him; and he said to him, “Shall seven years of famine come to you in your land? Or shall you flee three months before your enemies, while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ plague in your land? Now consider and see what answer I should take back to Him who sent me.”

And David said to Gad, “I am in great distress. Please let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for His mercies are great; but do not let me fall into the hand of man.” So the LORD sent a plague upon Israel from the morning till the appointed time. From Dan to Beersheba seventy thousand men of the people died. And when the angel stretched out His hand over Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD relented from the destruction, and said to the angel who was destroying the people, “It is enough; now restrain your hand.” And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. Then David spoke to the LORD when he saw the angel who was striking the people, and said, “Surely I have sinned, and I have done wickedly; but these sheep, what have they done? Let Your hand, I pray, be against me and against my father’s house.”

Brethren, if you were an Israelite and you watched 70,000 people around you die in 3 days do you think you would see yourself or David as the problem, especially if your family or friends were some of those people most severely effected in God’s correcting punishment?

I am not saying that any of our leaders are people of the caliber of a David. But what does God tell us? To those who have God’s Holy Spirit to know what to do in this type of situation, how to become people after His own heart includes this. Quit pointing the finger at the leaders and seek to make the turn ourselves and repent, just like David did!

I told you in the first few minutes of this sermon that the merisms in Ecclesiastes 3 were only, for the most part, significant to the world for their entertainment value as the main lyrics in a Pete Seeger song made popular in the mid 1960s by the English rock group the Byrds. I also told you we would get back to that later in the sermon, and here is why.

As I was working on the introduction for this sermon one week ago on Friday afternoon, I had offhandedly added the title of Peter Seeger’s song, just as a point of reference. However, after dinner Friday evening when Nancy and I were listening to John Ritenbaugh’s Bible study on Matthew Part 2, that title became a trumpet blast for what I had been preparing for this sermon over the last month.

My intent was twofold. First, I wanted us to recognize our responsibility to be making choices within this “whirlwind of those merisms under the sun” to stay behind Jesus Christ, who did it perfectly, using the same lines of communication as Him. This is no compelling mystical self-sacrifice to make the right choices as a “good” guy like George Bailey but someone always seeking first the will of the Father in study and prayer, in every circumstance.

And the second thing was show the hope that even though we are failing to do this perfectly like Jesus Christ, God is still creating men and women after His own heart when we follow David’s example.

As I said, suddenly a trumpet blast was sounded in the last 30 minutes of John’s Bible study. You see just about the only lyrics that Pete Seeger used in his song that were not in the Bible was the titled refrain that I had just written in the introduction: TURN, TURN, TURN!

The last part of the Bible study last week was so encouraging to me because in it I heard a reaffirmation of the hope that I wanted to express at the end of this sermon today. It is the work of God’s creation as a spiritual nation after His own heart, and how we all have a part in it even though it is only going to be by the grace of God through Jesus Christ that this is to be a finished product. We know, as it says in,

Acts 13:22 And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.

The end of this verse is also translated in the Amplified, “I have found David son of Jesse a man after My own heart, who will do all My will and carry out My program fully.” In the Bible in Basic English, it says: “I have taken David, the son of Jesse, a man dear to my heart, who will do all my pleasure.” In the Contemporary English Version, "David the son of Jesse is the kind of person who pleases me most! He does everything I want him to do." But I really think the NET Bible adds another dimension that we need to consider today, regarding all His elect. It says: “I have raised up David to be a man after my own heart, to do all my will.”

God is in the process of creating each one of us to become followers of our Elder Brother Jesus Christ and become what He is.

Although His line of communication to the Father was as perfectly maintained as any human being’s could, so that He always made the right choices, always doing the will of the Father within the merisms of everyday life, we fall short! But through a lifetime of turning, we have a lifetime of hope.

In the last 30 minutes of the Bible study on Matthew Part Two, John Ritenbaugh said:

Two conditions absolutely necessary to have a relationship with God: 1) to believe that He is God, 2) Repentance. But when it comes right down to it beyond the belief that we all have the only good is built on repent. Repent, what does it mean?

John continues:

Sometimes we make it far too complicated so I am hoping to simplify it for you. Some are concerned for not having enough strength to overcome. Why do we not have enough strength to overcome? I think you are going to find it is directly connected to repentance.

John then turned to Isaiah 59 and after strongly suggesting that this chapter be studied in depth, John said:

God is speaking on a national scale, castigating them for the conduct of their lives. But think of this personally for it applies just as much. “Behold the Lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot say neither his ear heavy that it cannot hear!” Why would he say that? Because spiritual strength is required to overcome spiritual problems. It is not required for overcoming some thing, but for overcoming spiritual problems! It is required for growth in producing the fruits of the Spirit.

John continues,

Now why do we not have enough spiritual strength? Does it not say we have enough of God’s Spirit? Where is the source of that Spirit? It is God. That is why he says the Lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot save! God can give us strength, but because the connection between us and Him is not good, we lack that strength that saves us from our problems.” [I would like to add here that it is the source of our poor choices that us lead in the wrong direction.]

“But your iniquity have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you that He will not hear. For your hands are defiled with blood and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies your tongue has muttered perversity.”

Isaiah goes on and on and explains various aspects of various things about how these peoples’ hearts are. First thing, “the way of peace they know not, there is no justice in their ways." That is, they do not have common sense. “They have made themselves crooked paths [not straight paths, whoever takes that way shall not know peace.” [Remember what Paul said in the beginning of I Corinthians. Peace and grace to you.] Ever feel a lack of contentment, ever feel dissatisfaction and discouragement and frustration? “For His judgment is far from us, but we walk in darkness,” and we do not seem to get answers to our problems, and then our lives seem to become hopeless, and instead of having relief we seem to sink deeper and deeper into the depression and discouragement.

John then went through various scriptures showing the disconnect between God and His people. But then he came to the piece so important to this sermon today and God’s work through Jesus Christ in creating us all after His own heart. He said, as he moved to Ezekiel 33:

I want to go next to Ezekiel and let us begin to clear this up with Ezekiel 33.

Ezekiel 33:11 Say to them: ‘As I live,’ says the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’

So He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked but that the wicked turn from his evil way and live!

John continued a bit further along in the study, and says,

Now the Hebrew just simply means to turn. Now get the picture: here are the wicked, they are going down a road and the road is leading to death and God says “Turn.” He does not even say how far, He just says turn! Because if you keep going in that direction you are gonna die! But if you turn your direction and at least go off on a tangent you have a chance of ending up someplace else. So he simply says turn away from the direction that you are going! Now at this point, as I said, He does not say how far to turn, just simply “Turn!” Well (still in Ezekiel) in verse 14-16, He repeated it again,

Ezekiel 33:14-16 Again, when I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ if he turns from his sin and does what is lawful and right, if the wicked restores the pledge, gives back what he has stolen, and walks in the statutes of life without committing iniquity, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of his sins which he has committed shall be remembered against him; he has done what is lawful and right; he shall surely live.

““I say to the wicked you shall surely die.” If he turned from his sin and do that which is lawful and right, if the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he walked in the statutes of life without committing added iniquity, he shall surely live, and shall not die. If he turn away from his iniquity, that is, away from his lawless, if he turn away from his sin!

John then went on to show the great lengths God is willing to go to pardon all who return to Him on the path behind Jesus Christ. Then after expanding on this turn, within all the circumstances of life, and the assurance from God that repentance is always available to us if we are willing to turn the right way, John comes to David and why he was a man after God’s own heart, even as he dropped the ball even in his old age.

John showed sin must be confessed, that it must be admitted to God. God wants you to be very specific about it. Then in reference to David’s magnificent psalm of repentance. Psalm 51, he said,

I want you to notice that David never worked to justify his position. He never says I did it just because. He never says, “I did it because I was weak.” He gives not one excuse nor does he blame anyone else. His only attitude was, “God, I am throwing myself on Your mercy. Whatever You want me to do You are completely justified in doing it. If you want to kill me, God, I know I deserve it.” That is what he says in verse 4. There is no hemming or hawing, no trying to shift blame, no rationalization, no justification, no excuses.

Finally, after going to II Corinthians 7 and expounding on Paul’s words to the Corinthians about true godly repentance. John said:

Godly sorrow produces repentance to salvation, but the sorrow of the world works death, because it does not produce a turn! If it does not produce a turn, you are kidding yourself! Your heart is deceiving you and all you are doing is feeling sorry for yourself that you are having to suffer this pain, discouragements, dissatisfaction, or whatever. You are sorry for the effect on yourself. You are not sorry that God was injured by your sins! You are not sorry that Jesus Christ was put to death because of your sin! You are not sorry toward God! You are only sorry for yourself and that will not produce anything!” [John finished with] Real repentance is that state of mind that produces a turn!

Brethren, our lives are full of choices within merisms under the sun. Jesus Christ has shown us the way to stay perfectly in communication with our Father and make those self-sacrificial choices always in line with the will of the Father. He has set the bar for us because He did it Himself, but, like David, we are going to fall short! But through Jesus Christ we can continue in godly repentance, blaming no one else but ourselves, while sincerely and from our heart turning to continue to make our way through the merisms of life and follow Jesus Christ, just like David did.

We are going to begin to wrap up where we began with Ecclesiastes 3, but I am not going to read it from the Bible but rather from Pete Seeger’s lyrics. Although all Pete Seeger saw was the spinning confusion of life, but what we should be able to see his words in light of what God expects from us:

To everything turn, turn, turn.

There is a season turn, turn, turn.

And a time to every purpose under heaven.

A time to be born, a time to die,

A time to plant, a time to reap,

A time to kill, a time to heal,

A time to laugh, a time to weep.

To everything turn, turn, turn.

There is a season turn, turn, turn.

And a time to every purpose under heaven.

A time to build up, a time to break down,

A time to dance, a time to mourn,

A time to cast away stones,

A time to gather stones together.

To everything turn, turn, turn.

There is a season turn, turn, turn.

And a time to every purpose under heaven.

A time of love, a time of hate,

A time of war, a time of peace,

A time you may embrace,

A time to refrain from embracing.

To everything turn, turn, turn.

There is a season turn, turn, turn.

And a time to every purpose under heaven.

A time to gain, a time to lose,

A time to rain, a time of sow,

A time for love, a time for hate,

A time for peace, I swear it's not too late.

This then brings us back full circle to the apostle Paul’s opening salutation to the Corinthians and by extension to us, brethren, who were the base and despised of this world. “Grace to you and peace from God the Father and the LORD Jesus Christ,” through whom you were enriched in everything, to make choices according to the will of the Father and know when we slip but turn in the right way. It is never too late to turn! Because God is faithful, by whom we were called into the fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, to be made men and women after His own heart!

For a final scripture we will be going to Proverbs 14 (which just so happens to be today’s Proverb, for any who are following David Maas’ suggestion from his sermon a few weeks ago).

Proverbs 14:2 He who walks in his uprightness fears the LORD, but he who is perverse in his ways despises Him.

Proverbs 14:26-27 In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, and His children will have a place of refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to turn one away from the snares of death.

Brethren, you are no longer among the “despised” of I Corinthians 1, but you are among those who have found the “fountain of life” in turning to walk upright and always do the will of the Father through Jesus Christ!

MS/skm/drm