Day 5—Feast of Tabernacles 2017

How Solomon's Life Went Wrong

Complacency, self-righteousness and sin starts with becoming philosophical

Fred R. Coulter—October 9, 2017

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Welcome, brethren, to Day 5 of the Feast of Tabernacles. We're starting the second half of the Feast. Here we're into about 500 years of the Millennium and we can learn from Solomon some very important lessons. What are going to be the greatest sins of people during the Millennium:

• complacency
• self-righteousness
• sin

God is not taking away free moral agency; everyone will still have to choose. Even though we find in Ezek. 36 that God is going to give them a heart of flesh and take away out of them the heart of stone. Nevertheless, people are going to have choices.

We'll project ahead just a little bit to Day 7, when at the end of the Millennium Satan is released to go to those nations that are out in Gog and Magog in the four corners of the earth. They come to make war against Jerusalem. How did the people get out there? Because they chose, in spite of everything that God has done:

• removal of Satan the devil
• giving human nature less pull of the flesh
• government by God
• the saints to rule over them
• proper teaching
• proper food
• working and doing everything

But people will be born into this society where everything is controlled and run by God and the Family of God.

There's going to be free moral agency, and people will choose not to go God's way. They will choose so, in spite of everything.

When Adam and Eve were in the garden with God, did God stop them from choosing? No, He didn't! Free moral agency for every person all the way down through time.

We can learn some more lessons from Solomon, because here was he only time on earth, during the reign of Solomon—especially the first half; second half no so good, in fact, very bad, awful—we will see that's by choice.

Proverbs 20:27: "The spirit of man is the lamp of the LORD…" Every human being has 'the spirit of man.' When there's repentance and baptism and receiving of the Holy Spirit, then the Holy Spirit unites with the spirit of our mind and we are now begotten children of the kingdom, but not yet born into the kingdom. When Christ returns then they will be born into the Kingdom of God, born again! During the Millennium, how is that going to be at that time?

Verse 28: "Love and truth preserve the king…" We're going to see that that is not only true of the king, but anybody else. If you:

• walk in the love

which are the commandments of God

• love your neighbor
• love God
• are converted
• yielded to God

He knows it, because He can search the spirits, search the heart, and we'll be able to have that ability, too, to teach people. When they start really going the wrong way we'll be able to tell them, if they go the left hand or the right hand, that that's not the way to go (Isa. 30)—you walk in the way of God!

"…and his throne is upheld by mercy" (v 28).

Proverbs 21:1: "The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD as the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He will." In other words, going to lead.

If you're led by the Spirit of God rather than you own thoughts and your own ways and your own self then you're going to find success, love and so forth. God will ensure that you grow and overcome. But here's the catcher with human nature and independent free moral agency:

Verse 2: "Every way of a man… [or woman] …is right in his own eyes…" We're going to see what happened to Solomon; we will see complacency, self-righteousness and sin!

"…but the LORD ponders the hearts" (v 2). God knows the heart of man. The heart of man without anything to do with God is 'deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.'

Verse 3: "To do righteousness and justice is more pleasing to the LORD than sacrifice…. [keep that in mind] …A high look, a proud heart, and the plowing of the wicked are sin" (vs 3-4).

We're going to take these verses and come back here to 1-Kings 11 and see what happened to Solomon. He had everything going. God spoke to him twice in vision, God gave him wealth, riches, power and his kingdom. God also gave him the understanding for judgment.

Let's see what happens when you have everything that your heart desires and you don't remain faithful to God. There will be those who do that, because we saw in Day 4 in Isa. 65 that the sinner will die a hundred years old accursed! That's during the Millennium.

So, there will be those few, how many we don't know. The reason we don't know, and God doesn't know, is because He has given free moral agency to every human being to choose. So, let's see what happens when you do not do things God's way, though God has blessed you, when you turn your back on God when you should be coming to Him, and everything looks right in your own eyes.

1-Kings 11:1: "And King Solomon loved many foreign women…" One of the biggest problems human beings have is with sex, money and religion.

"…even the daughter of Pharaoh, Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, Hittites" (v 1).

• Did Solomon know better? Yes, he did!
• What did he choose? He chose to love them!

But that is not Godly genuine love!

Verse 2: "Of the nations, which the LORD had said to the children of Israel, 'You shall not go in to them, and they shall not go in to you; surely they will turn away your heart after their gods.' But Solomon clung to these in love."

Solomon was an all or nothing kind of guy, so he wasn't content with two, three, four, five or six—or a hundred. You talk about really going overboard on this.

Verse 3: "And he had seven hundred wives… [Can you imagine the arguments between the women! Whoa!] …princesses, and three hundred concubines…."

If you're a single man and all of these thousand women—think of that, a thousand women; that blows my mind! He got henpecked so much that he listened to them.

"…And his wives turned away his heart" (v 3)—from the Lord. They had their gods, they had their way, and they thought—just as Solomon thought he was right—that they were right.

How do you stop all of the arguing and bickering? If you're henpecked this much, you give in! See what happens? A little leaven leavens the whole lump! Think of all the leaven that this was.

Verse 4: "For it came to pass when Solomon was old… [doesn't tell us how old he was; it doesn't matter—young or old—sin is sin] …his wives turned away his heart after other gods…."

If anyone knew better, it was Solomon! Remember the charge that we read that David gave to him? Keeping the commandments of God, if you do, God will be with you! If you don't God will wipe all of this away from Jerusalem. And we know that God did do that!

"…And his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God as was the heart of David his father" (v 4).

Notice that in his self-righteousness and complacency and sin—Solomon had all three at once—it affected his thinking; it always does, especially when you think you're right. I don't think the problems that we're going to face with the people that we're going to rule over in the Millennium are this severe, but there will be problems.

What happens when a person comes to the point that:

• regardless of the circumstances
• regardless of who you are
• regardless of where you are
• regardless if God is near
• regardless of the children of God who are ruling and reigning are near

if free moral agency is used, stubbornly stuck to and there is no repentance, what happens? It gets worse!

Verse 5: for Solomon went after Ashtoreth, the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom, the abomination of the Ammonites; and Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD…" (vs 5-6).

Remember: it's not how you start, it's how you finish! So, Solomon is not doing very good here in finishing up his life; not like he started out. What a tremendous start he had! Fantastic! Everything given to him! That's what it's going to be like after the Millennium is all established. Children are born into the society and they know nothing when they are born. Here's the society and here's how they're taught. They see the people and what they do, but they still have free moral agency.

When Solomon was young he didn't use it in an evil way. He used it a Godly way! All the world, all the kings; remember the Queen of Sheba came and was overwhelmed with everything. Think of what happened! Solomon received the tribute of 666 talents of gold a year, plus horses, mules and women from around the world. I wonder what that harem was like?

Here's what Solomon did because he was right in his own eyes, and he failed to give God credit for everything! That is the beginning of complacency, self-righteousness and sin!

Verse 7: "Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill, which is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. And likewise he did for all his foreign wives… [all 700] …and burned incense and sacrificed to their gods" (vs 7-8).

Stop and think about that. When the temple was dedicated, look at all the offerings that Solomon, the people and all of the officials were able to offer. Fantastic! At the dedication of the temple, God came in the cloud of God's presence—the Shekinah—was put into the temple. Solomon gave a fantastic prayer on his knees and his arms outstretched to God. God answered that prayer as we cover in Day 4. The burnt offering that was on there, fire came down and just consumed it entirely. That's how pleased God was with Solomon; now look at it!

Sidebar: Look at all the mistakes that people make—men and women—when they've been faithful up to a certain point and then they begin to have confidence in self and they sin.

Verse 9: "And the LORD was angry with Solomon because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel who had appeared to him twice."

What do we read in Prov. 21? God knew all of this! Did He send warnings? Yes, He did! How did He do it? We'll see in a minute!

Verse 10: "And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; and he did not keep that which the LORD commanded."

• How are we going to handle it in the Millennium?

People will get to points like this and we're going to have to intervene and correct them!

• What if they still refuse?

It's possible that they could! In fact, it's probable that a good number will do that.

Verse 11: "And the LORD said to Solomon, 'Since this has been done by you, and since you have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant.'" That's Jeroboam, who was a prince of Joseph's tribe—Ephraim and Manasseh—and one of the leading generals of Solomon.

Verse 12: "But I will not do it in your days, for David your father's sake, but I will tear it out of the hand of your son."

What does it say in the Ten Commandments about idolatry? The first commandment: have no other gods; don't do it! Then idols: weren't all these temples idols? incense altars idols? Yes! It says you shall not make it. For 'He's a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the children unto the third and fourth generations. Did children suffer, as well? Yes!

Here's something else that God does, and this is something that they haven't learned in the world today, and in America and Britain.

Sidebar: Take for example Sweden. To show you how they have turned their back on God so much, God sent in the adversary. Who are the adversaries? The Muslims! Consider that the Swedes are noted to be the most tolerant wonderful people—get along/go along people—in the world. But they've turned their back on God. How long have they done it? A long, long time!

So now, what's invading their country, and they're inviting them? The most intolerant people in the world, the Muslims! Of course, they're so embarrassed that they don't dare report the truth of what's going on. That is correction from God! Rather than come down and do it personally Himself, God always send an adversary just like He did here.

Verse 14: "And it came to pass the LORD stirred up an adversary against Solomon, Hadad the Edomite. He was of the king's seed in Edom." Very interesting; a terrorist group attacking, killing!

Does what the king does affect his people? Yes! Was he to look upon as 'we'll just raise up a greater and greater army and get rid of these people? You don't fight against God that way!

The way that you handle it when you get that kind of correction from God is by repentance and change of behavior. So, none of the western countries—that includes America—are going to have an end of terrorism until they return to God in mass repentance for all of their sins, beginning with killing—murdering—the most innocent: the unborn in the mother's womb! It will not stop!

• you can delay it a while by building fences
• you can delay it a while with extreme vetting

But unless there is repentance, it will not go away!

Hadad was joined by the Midianites and came down and found solace in Egypt. Sounds like a repeat of what's going on now. Who is the same yesterday, today and forever? God! Are those the punishments that we have? Yes! Until people turn to God, it isn't going to stop! It isn't going to change!

Let's see what is the beginning of sin? Anybody's sin? Here is a tremendous example of it. 2-Tim. 3 applies to Satan the devil. You read about Satan's sin. He got lifted up in the vanity of his own beauty and glory. Got his mind on himself, instead of loving God. Satan loved himself so much that he said, 'I'm going to take over the throne of God!' and he got a third of the angels to follow him in this rebellion. That's a key thing to remember. We're going to see that this happened to Solomon. This is a choice, and it will happen to those during the Millennium. We will be able to see how and when this develops, and we will be able to instruct people to repent, change and not get lifted up with self. Where are most of the idols anyway? In the mind!

2-Timothy 3:1—this is what's wrong with the whole world; it starts out with this one thing: "Know this also, that in the last days perilous times shall come; for men will be lovers of self…" (vs 1-2). What follows? Solomon had it all given to him.

"…lovers of money…" (v 2). Solomon had all the money that there was, yet, he ended up taxing all the people so much that that was a sore point with the ten northern tribes.

"…braggarts... [We'll see that. What did Solomon do?] …proud, blasphemers…" (v 2). Wasn't that blasphemous what Solomon did in building all those temples? offering the sacrifices to other gods? burning incense to them?

"…disobedient to parents…" Turning his back on the legacy of his parent David and his mother Bathsheba.

"…unthankful, unholy" (v 2). All of these sprout from the one thing: "…lover of self…"

Verse 3: "Without natural affection…" If you have a thousand women, is that "…natural affection…"?

"…implacable, slanderers, without self-control, savage, despisers of those who are good, betrayers, reckless, egotistical, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God; having an outward appearance of Godliness, but denying the power of true Godliness…." (vs 3-5). But as for you, turn away from all these.

Let's take those verses and come back to Ecc. 1; I think you will find it very interesting. All of those applied to Solomon. We've also seen it in our day in the Church and the things that go along. Stop and think about it, even with your children. When they start exercising their free moral agency to love themselves and their way, despise you, want to go their own way and have nothing to do with God, doesn't 2-Tim. 3 fit that? Yes, indeed! '

Look at the world today; isn't that the way the world is run? rejecting God? Without a doubt! What happens is that you do not apostatize all at once. You do so a little at a time, starting with loving self. How can you tell when a person is loving himself more than anything else? You talk about yourself! Keep this in mind as we go through some things here. God gave Solomon everything that he had:

• through his father to build the temple
• through God's blessing and riches that God poured out upon him
• through the power that God gave to him

Remember IFMA: free choice! God will not intervene in independent free moral agency to make us into robots, because that would defeat His purpose.

God wants us to choose! He wants us to do it of our own free will volition, as led by God's Spirit to love Him and serve Him with all heart, mind, soul and being. As we go down through life, it needs to get more intense and greater and greater. Not as with Solomon. He started out and it got less and less until God had to take away the ten tribes from him.

There was a point that Solomon came to where he began to justify himself and look to himself more than God. Yet, at the same time, he would still acknowledge God somewhat.

Ecclesiastes 1:1 "The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. 'Vanity of vanities,' says the Preacher, 'vanity of vanities! All is vanity.'" (vs 1-2). It is true, without God all is vanity, but with God all is for eternal life! With God, with the love of God, all is for eternal life! Not vain!

Verse 3: "What profit does a man have in all his labor, which he labors under the sun?…. [cynical] …One generation passes away, and another generation comes; but the earth remains forever" (vs 3-4). Where is God? Who create it?

Verse 5: "The sun also arises, and the sun goes down, and hurries to its place where it arose" (vs 3-5). Who created it?

Verse 6: "The wind goes toward the south, and it turns around to the north; it whirls around continually; and the wind returns on its circuits." Who created it?

Verse 7: "All the rivers run into the sea; yet, the sea is not full; to the place from where the rivers come, there they return again. All things are full of labor; man cannot utter it; the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing" (vs 7-8).

What happens? When you begin to leave God—it doesn't happen all at once—it starts with becoming philosophical, rather than oriented to God! That's what we have here: philosophical! Looking at the natural course of things separate from God! That's something to keep in mind.

Verse 9: "That which has been is that which shall be; and that which has been done is that which shall be done; and there is nothing new under the sun. Is there a thing of which it may be said, 'See, this is new'? It has already been in days of old, which were before us. There is no memory of former things, neither shall there be any remembrance of things that are to come by those who shall come afterwards" (vs 9-11).

Here's the evidence of self-love. As we go through here, note the Is—41 Is, 27 me, myself. Not one reference to God! He forgot, by choice! He justified himself in what he was doing that he was good, rather than understand that every human being lives, moves and has his/her being from God.

• every breath of air
• every morsel of food
• every drop of water
• everything that there is

all comes from God!

Verse 12: "I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem." He should have said,

'And the Lord God Almighty, the God of my father David made me to succeed my father in this wonderful throne, over all of these people who are God's people, all of Israel.'

But what happens when you become lover of self, pleasure and things? You forget God! You become philosophical! Instead of the Word of God, you now use your own thoughts, or the thoughts of other men in philosophy instead of God's way.

Verse 13: And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under the heavens. It is a grievous task… [he mentions God here once]: …God has given to the sons of men to be exercised by it." One time he mentions God; all the rest is I, me and myself.

Verse 14: "I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and striving after wind." Without God that's true! But there are always going to be things you need to do to repair, to make good, etc.

Verse 15: "What is crooked cannot be made straight; and what is lacking cannot be numbered. I spoke within my own heart… [he didn't say that he prayed to God for understanding] …saying, 'Lo, I have become great and have gathered more wisdom than all that have been before me in Jerusalem; yea, my heart has experienced great wisdom and knowledge.'" Who gave it?

Verse 17: "And I gave my heart to know wisdom and to know madness and folly; I perceived that this also is striving after wind. For in much wisdom is much grief; and he who increases knowledge increases sorrow" (vs 17-18).

Really? That is true if you don't retain the knowledge of God! He experimented with life; that's how he got a thousand women. Think of that! That's beyond comprehension! We only found one mention of God—v 13.

• nothing about the love of God
• nothing about the goodness of God
• nothing about the fact hat God created all these things and gave them to us
  • how we are to use them
  • how we are to develop them
  • what it is to be

NO! "…lovers of self…" just like Paul wrote.

(go to the next track)

Ecclesiastes 2:1: "I said in my heart, 'Come now, I will test you… [the heart] …with pleasure to find out what is good.' and, behold, this also is vanity. Isaid of laughter, 'It is madness,' and of mirth, 'What does it accomplish?' I sought in myheart to give myself unto wine, yet, conducting my heart with wisdom; and to lay hold on folly, until I might see what was good for the sons of men, what they should do under the heaven the few days of their life" (vs 1-3). He should have said to:

• seek God
• learn of God
• love God

It all begins with loving self! Then comes complacency, you no longer go to God. Then comes sin, because you have to justify what you're doing. This is exactly what Solomon did!

Verse 4: "I made great works for myself; I built houses for myself; I planted vineyards for myself. I made gardens and orchards for myself, and I planted trees in them, of all fruit. I made pools of water for myself, to irrigate groves of growing trees. I bought men slaves and women slaves, and servants were born in my house; also I had great possessions of herds and flocks, above all that were before me in Jerusalem" (vs 4-7).

Verse 8: "I also gathered silver and gold to myself, and the treasure of kings and of the provinces…." Solomon should have said 'God gave me. Why am I here doing this.' See the difference?

"…I got men singers and women singers for myself, even the sensual delights of the sons of men, and many women…. [a thousand] …So, I was great and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem; also my wisdom remained with me" (vs 8-9).

Think how different it would have been, and how different the kingdom would have been. When the king goes bad, the country goes bad. The king sins and the people say, 'Look, he did it.' So, everything degenerates! It got so bad in the northern ten tribes that after the ten tribes were taken from Solomon's son Rehoboam and given to Jeroboam that there wasn't one righteous king in the ten tribes. Jeroboam set the pattern by building the gold calves and putting them in Dan and Bethel.

In Judah there were some kings who were from very good to very evil. There were those who sought God and those who didn't. The northern ten tribes: no!

• lover of self
• lover of things
• lover of pleasures

You can't have a greater demonstration of the fulfillment of 2-Tim. 3:1-8 than right here in Ecc. 1 & 2. Also, a lesson for us so we can help the people and teach them in the Millennium. Bu remember, sin begins with I, me, myself.

Lover of pleasure, v 10: "And whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them; I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure; for my heart rejoiced in all my labor, and this was my portion of all my labor. Then I looked on all the works that my hands had done, and on the labor that I had labored to do; and, behold, all is vanity and a striving after the wind; and there is no profit under the sun" (vs 10-11)—IF you leave God!

Verse 12: "And I turned to behold wisdom, and madness, and folly; for what can the man do who comes after the king? Only that which has been already done. Then I saw that wisdom excels folly, as far as light excels darkness. The wise man's eyes are in his head; but the fool walks in darkness; and I myself also perceived that one event happens to all of them. Then I said in my heart, 'As it happens to the fool, so it happens even to me; and why was I then more wise?' And I said in my heart that this also is vanity" (vs 12-15)—without God! The answer is:

• Solomon was more wise, because God gave him wisdom
• he was more wealthy because God gave him wealth
• God blessed him to sit on the throne of David to rule the 12 tribes of Israel in righteousness and wisdom that came from God

So that all the people would profit! So that all the world—the kings—bringing tribute and gold to him every year; he could have set them down and said:

 'Gentlemen, I'm glad you have come on these ships over the seas to hear what I have to tell you concerning God! If you listen carefully to me, we'll send you home with the Word of God so that you can teach your people. I've got a whole lot of Proverbs that I've done, which will help all of the young people in your nations.'

Think how the world would have been different, except for one man who loved himself more than God!

Verse 16: "For there is no memory of the wise more than of the fool forever, since that which is now shall all be forgotten in the days to come. And how does the wise die? Even as the fool!" You take your last breath!

Verse 17: "Therefore, I hated life…" How many people come to that point? Why do they hate life? Because:

• they have forgotten God
• they have become complacent
• they have become self-righteous
• they have sinned

Now, with this, he had nothing to look forward to! No wonder it was all vanity! What do we have, brethren? We have everything to look forward to, in spite of all the difficulties that come along!

• some of them are not very pleasant
• some of them very difficult to handle
• some of them hard to deal with

That's why we need the vision that God is going to give us the kingdom so we can teach people what Solomon never learned: to love God and serve Him! So, he became bitter, hateful!

Verse 17: "Therefore, I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun is grievous to me; for all is vanity and a striving after wind. Yea, I hated all my labor, which I had done under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who shall be after me" (vs 17-18).

Rather than saying, 'Rehoboam my son, look at all that you're going to inherit, and here are the things of God that you need to learn so you can be a good king and rule over the 12 tribes. It didn't have to split; there was no need for it to split, but for the sin of Solomon. Amazing, isn't it?

Verse 19: "And who knows whether he shall be wise or a fool? Yet, he shall have rule over all my labor in which I have labored, and have shown myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity."

That's what you're supposed to do, leave it to your son and your grandchildren with the teaching and message of God. Is that not what we're going to do during the Millennium? Yes, indeed! We're going to have a thousand years to do it! Solomon only had 40 years, and look at what he did.

Speaking of ending life, how many people in the world hate life? Why? Because they're living in sin and not loving God! They may even hate themselves instead of loving themselves! That's a double whammy! Amazing, isn't it? It starts out with self and IFMA—choose!

Look at everything here in Ecc. 1 & 2; everything that Solomon speaks of was a choice. He chose to do this; he chose to do that; but the biggest choice he made was to put God way off someplace rather than making God the central focus of his life. In God we live, move and have our being!

Verse 20: "And I turned to cause my heart to despair of all the labor, which I had done under the sun." Self-imposed depression. Some people have that, because their minds are on themselves, they give up on God, they're having a tough life and they don't know what to do. They don't know how to cope, so they go into depression, rather than getting on their knees and pray to God and ask for help, strength, understanding and wisdom to come out of it.

Verse 21: "For there is a man whose labor is in wisdom, and in knowledge, and with skill; yet, to a man who has not labored in it, he shall leave it for his portion. This also is vanity and a great evil." No, a great thing IFyou do it right! IF you have God in it! If it's all self—if it's all me, myself and I—and you're not thinking of other people…

Where is it that he was so thankful at this stage in his life to be able to be king over all Israel and serve the people? He should have been going out there and being with them, teaching them and all of that sort of thing. NO! He stayed in Jerusalem, experimented around like a 'hippy' of the 60s that we had here in America. Now look at them.

Verse 22: "For what has man from all his labor, and from the striving of his heart, in which he has labored under the sun? For all his days are sorrows, and his labor vexation; yea, so his heart does not take rest in the night. This is also vanity" (vs 22-23).

Every single one of his complaints would not have to be there if he hadn't pushed God out; if he hadn't decided to love himself and serve himself. The king is to serve the people; that's what Jesus Christ said. Not to lord it over, not to take from them so that you can be absolutely submerged in all the physical things and wealth, and you yourself become an unhappy individual:

• because you've had so much that you've wasted
• because you've left God

Does that describe our nation? Look at what's happening!

Verse 24: "There is nothing better for a man than that he should eat and drink and make his soul see good in his labor? This I also saw, that it was from the hand of God."

Three times Solomon mentions God, and combined altogether, 68 times he mentions I, me, myself! Who was he worshipping? Himself!

Verse 25: "For who can eat, or who can enjoy it, more than I? For God gives wisdom, and knowledge, and joy to a man who is good in His sight. But to the sinner He gives labor, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him who is good before God…. [He even convicted himself with his own words. That is an amazing thing!] …This also is vanity and a striving after wind" (vs 25-26).

Then Solomon becomes very philosophical in Ecc. 3, mentioning a lot of things that right and good. The philosophers had certain things that were right, but they didn't have God!

During the Millennium, everything is going to be there:

• Jesus Christ
• all of the saints as
• kings and priests
• rulers and teachers

to bring

• the Truth of God
• the love of God
• the Word of God

to the world, so they don't end up like Solomon!

After receiving all the blessings of God, look at what he ended up being. Not even satisfied with all the wealth, with all the things that he did. He hated life! Rather than being joyful and saying, 'O Lord God, look at what You have given. Help me to serve the people of Israel. Help me to do what is right.'

Ecclesiastes 3:1: "To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under the heavens: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up" (vs 1-3).

All of those things are true, and for what purpose? To understand why we're here, where we're going, the purpose of life and what God is doing!

Verse 4: "A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together; 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… [he should have done that] …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 does he have who works in that in which he labors? I have seen the task, which God has given to the sons of men to be exercised by it. He has made everything beautiful in its time; He has also set eternity in their heart…" (vs 4-11).

Amazing statement, because all human beings have the capacity to think beyond themselves. All human beings have some sort of thought of eternity or living forever beyond this physical life. But unless you have the Word of God and the Truth of God, then you learn to love God and put it all together, and be able—through the thick and thin, all the experiences that you go through—to develop the character of God.

God's plan is so great! That's why the Feast of Tabernacles! God is going to expand His Family, expand everything greatly, and we're the ones to help Him to do that.

In a sense this is what we're going to begin doing when the Millennium starts (Acts 17). How will all the world have been under the beast and the false prophet? Worshipping Satan the devil! All the religions amalgamating together as one association of the religions of men. Think what the experience of these people is going to be? We'll be the first ones to come along and say:

'I'm here from God Almighty and the Lord Jesus Christ to help you, to serve you. Look at all the rubble around you because of sin and idolatry, and all of the fruitlessness of life because of what men have done. Now we're here to show you how to worship the true God, to understand His Word, and to know why He created you. We know that you had your own religion in the past, and we know that now God calls you to repentance.'

A little different than what we find in Acts 17. Here's Paul waiting for Timothy and Silas to come to him.

Acts 17:16: "But while Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he saw that the city was wholly given to idolatry, and his spirit was sorely moved within him." Compare Paul's feelings toward all this idolatry and stuff to how Solomon did, who made temples to other gods, burnt incense to them. He had a thousand concubines and wives. Quite a difference.

Verse 17: "Because of this, he [Paul] reasoned earnestly in the synagogue with the Jews and those who worshiped there, and daily in the marketplace with those who met with him. Then some philosophers of the Epicureans and the Stoics encountered him. And some of them said, 'What will this babbler have to say?' And some said, 'He seems to be a preacher of foreign gods'…" (vs 17-18).

That's what we will be when we come to help the people who survive through all the terrible things at the end. We're going to be preaching that God in Jerusalem and those of us who are with Him are not evil aliens from outer space.

'When they told you that, that was a lie. We have come to save you and the world, and to help you recover from this.'

Quite a different approach!

That was "…because he was preaching to them the Gospel of Jesus and the resurrection. And they took him and brought him to Mars Hill…" (vs 18-19). This was like saying 'Okay, let's come back to the center of all Greek knowledge and philosophy and religion right there at Zeus' temple,' with all the other gods around there. And the great philosophers who believed in Aristotle, Socrates and Pythagoras.

Sidebar: All of their philosophies came out of Babylon.

"…saying, 'May we know what this new teaching is that is spoken by you? For you are bringing certain strange things to our ears….'" (vs 19-20). Teaching the people who survive through the Great Tribulation, right at the beginning of the Millennium, there are going to be "…certain strange things…" When we get down through the Millennium, it's going to be 'that's the way that it is, folks!'

"'…So then, we desire to know what these things mean.'…. [here's a little inset by Luke, the author of the book of Acts]: …(Now, all the Athenians and the strangers sojourning among them spent their leisure in nothing other than to tell and to hear something new.)" (vs 20-21). That's how they did it without television, without too many books, recordings and things like that.

Verse 22: "Then Paul stood in the center of Mars Hill and said, 'Men, Athenians, I perceive that in all things you are very reverent to deities… [all the demons] …for as I was passing through and observing the objects of your veneration, I also found an altar on which was inscribed, "To an unknown God." So then, He Whom you worship in ignorance is the One that I proclaim to you. He is the God Who made the world and all things that are in it. Being the Lord of heaven and earth, He does not dwell in temples made by hands'" (vs 22-24).

There Paul is standing right in front of the temple of Zeus and all the idols, all of the strange gods saying that God doesn't dwell in there. Zeus is not a god. 'When I was down in Ephesus, they were going broke because I was preaching the Gospel.'

Verse 25: "Nor is He served by the hands of men, as though He needs anything, for He gives to all life and breath and all things." Yes, let's bring some food to Zeus.

Sidebar: In India they have a temple to the rats, because the rats are gods, so everybody brings a little food to feed them. Amazing! I wonder how often bubonic plague has come out of that?

"…as though He needs anything, for He gives to all… [everything that there is] …life and breath and all things…." (vs 25-26)—everything you need to live as a human being, but God made it so:

• you have to go to work
• you must produce
• if you plant the seed it will grow, but you have to take care of it and harvest, and you have to know what to do with it

same way with the animals:

• how to take care of them
• how to feed them

God made it all!

 "…And He made of one blood all the nations of men to dwell upon all the face of the earth, having determined beforehand their appointed times and the boundaries of their dwelling; in order that they might seek the Lord…" (vs 26-27).

God gave this choice beginning with Adam and Eve to all people. But most people have said, 'No, we don't want it.' What did they do right after the Flood? Probably 300 years after the Flood, maybe a little less than that, they didn't want God, they didn't want Noah, they didn't want Shem, they wanted Ham! They wanted the way of the 'religion' before the Flood! So, they began to bring it all back. They set up Nimrod as their leader in place of God. They began to build the Tower of Babel. Men don't want to do what God wants! There they had the opportunity, even with the teachers, even with what is right, even what happened with those who were the good teachers.

What happened after all the apostles died? The Church went into full pagan apostasy! so much so that in prophecy—the prophecy that God gave to John of Mystery Babylon the Great and the daughters (Rev. 17). John was amazed! He was astonished! How could such a thing be? Because that's the way that men under Satan do! That's what they were doing here, and that's why God has done all of it, and has given choice to everyone.

• What do you really want to do?
• What is that you want to do with your life?

God says, 'I'm here! I'll reveal Myself to anyone who truly seeks Me.' Today, God has revealed Himself in the Word of God; the voice of God is here: Obey My voice!That's where we started!

Verse 27: "In order that they might seek the Lord…" What has God promised if you seek Him? You'll find Him!

"…if perhaps they might feel after Him and might find Him; though truly, He is not far from each one of us" (v 27). Why is that? He's close because He made us, but He's far away in the thoughts of men, because they don't want God!

Verse 28: "For in Him we live and move and have our being; as some of the poets among you also have said, 'For we are His offspring.'" This is what we're going to teach during the Millennium: we are all the offspring of God.

God has created the vastness of the universe, and He wants every one of those who come into the Kingdom of God to have a part in the universe forever and ever. But you've got to do it God's way. That's why we'll be there during the Millennium to teach them to do it God's way. Here is how to do it! That's fantastic!

Being kings and priests with Jesus Christ to bring them:

• the Truth about God the Father
• why we're created the way that we are
• where we're going
• what we're doing
• how do we get there
• that they can have a part in becoming spirit beings

Not only within the boundaries of the land that they live in, but within their individual homes and within their individual lives.

Verse 29: "Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we should not think that the Godhead is like that which is made of gold, or silver, orstone—a graven thing of art devised by the imagination of man; for although God has indeed overlooked the times of this ignorance, He now commands all men everywhere to repent" (vs 29-30). That's what we're going to be doing all during the Millennium.

Having everything there, born into it, knowing the Truth, the only holdback is I, me myself—choosing to disobey! Most will choose to love God and serve Him, and we will be there to see that they do!

This is what the Millennium is going to be all about, the greatest time ever for the conversion of the most people till the Last Great Day ever in the history of the world up to that time, and we have been chosen b y God, trained by God with the Word of God. Then He's going to fill us with his wisdom, knowledge and understanding how to serve the people so that they can enter into the spiritual Kingdom of God, as well.

Scriptural References:

• Proverbs 20:27-28
• Proverbs 21:1-4
• 1 Kings 11:1-12, 14
• 2 Timothy 3:1-5
• Ecclesiastes 1:1-18
• Ecclesiastes 2:1-26
• Ecclesiastes 3:1-11
• Acts 17:16-30

Scriptures referenced, not quoted:

• Ezekiel 36
• Isaiah 30; 65
• Revelation 17

FRC: bo
Transcribed: 8-6-17

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