Leaving this World as They Came: LOST!
And this also is a severe evil; Just exactly as he came, so shall he go. And what profit has he who has labored for the wind? All his day he also eats in darkness, and he has much sorrow and sickness and anger. Ecclesiastes 5:16-17
And this also is a severe evil; Just exactly as he came, so shall he go. And what profit has he who has labored for the wind? All his day he also eats in darkness, and he has much sorrow and sickness and anger. Ecclesiastes 5:16-17
Darkness, sorrow, sickness, anger, and perishing, is as Solomon called it, a severe evil. When you really consider the fact that those in this condition do not know nor can they know what we, who have been saved by God's grace, have in Christ Jesus. Twice in the book of Proverbs a startling and sobering message is manifested about those who feel and think that their life is right, yet is anything but right. Both Proverbs 14:12 & 16:25, reveal that “There is a way that seemeth right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” How do these two passages relate to Ec. 5:16-17? Notice how Solomon describes the life of a man who is born and dies LOST, as laboring for that which can not be grasped. This picture of toiling for the wind is metaphorically speaking of useless labor. It is describing a life that has no eternal value. A life that is eternally good for nothing. We could call it a life nothingness. Jesus affirmed this thought of uselessness and utter destruction and devastation in Mark 8:36 by asking these two questions, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?.” To leave this world as you came is an eternal tragedy that can never be reversed or redeemed.
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To fully understand and appreciate the value of this passage we must reflect upon the condition of a child at his or her conception and birth. King David knew he was “Brought forth in iniquity, and in sin his mother conceived him” (Ps 51:5). He also described the wicked or those who are wrong and not right, as being “Estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they are born speaking lies. Their poison is like the poison of a serpent; they are like the deaf cobra that stops its ear, which will not heed the voice of charmers, charming ever so skillfully” (Ps. 58:3-5). Those who perished during the worldwide flood recorded in Genesis were of this type. They entered the world LOST and perished LOST forever. Moses described them as being a people of great wickedness and that every intent and thought of their heart was only evil continually (Gen. 6:5). A child is born a sinner. We all were born sinners. And apart from being supernaturally interrupted by Jesus we all die as lost sinners separated from God for eternity.
To fully understand and appreciate the value of this passage we must reflect upon the condition of a child at his or her conception and birth. King David knew he was “Brought forth in iniquity, and in sin his mother conceived him” (Ps 51:5). He also described the wicked or those who are wrong and not right, as being “Estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they are born speaking lies. Their poison is like the poison of a serpent; they are like the deaf cobra that stops its ear, which will not heed the voice of charmers, charming ever so skillfully” (Ps. 58:3-5). Those who perished during the worldwide flood recorded in Genesis were of this type. They entered the world LOST and perished LOST forever. Moses described them as being a people of great wickedness and that every intent and thought of their heart was only evil continually (Gen. 6:5). A child is born a sinner. We all were born sinners. And apart from being supernaturally interrupted by Jesus we all die as lost sinners separated from God for eternity.
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Have you ever noticed how babies are always in want? They can’t verbally communicate what they want with clear intelligent words but their actions SCREAM that they are in desperate want. The LOST man lives his entire life in wantonness. His lifestyle SHOUTS to a world around him that he is governed by his lustful wants. He may not be willing to verbally communicate his deepest desires to those in his life but how he lives gives it away. Babies are always self-centered and they require that we give them our full attention from day-to-day. The same mindset belongs to a LOST man who dies after living a self-centered life. His way of living unveils his way of thinking. He thinks that life is about him and everything in life should revolve around him. Babies must always be pampered, or they will quickly let you know. They want it their way even when they don’t know what their way is. The LOST man must be continually pampered either by us or himself. He want his toys, his comforts, and his belly always full. If it does not go his way, he’ll pout like a big baby. Babies are most often always takers and not givers. Yes they make us laugh and cry. They smile when we talk their language, giggle at their reactions, and feed them their favorite meal but they are babies. This is what babies do. They are takers. As much as we’ll give they will take. They are babies and we understand that they need our nurturing care so we continually give and give and they continually take and take. The LOST man lives a life as a taker and not a giver. He takes to live. He knows no other way of living. The sad thing is that characteristically the LOST person dies as they were born, in want, living a self-centered life, while being pampered, and always taking what he can to live life his way. Proverbs accurately describes this generation of lost men and women who live and die just as they were born.
Have you ever noticed how babies are always in want? They can’t verbally communicate what they want with clear intelligent words but their actions SCREAM that they are in desperate want. The LOST man lives his entire life in wantonness. His lifestyle SHOUTS to a world around him that he is governed by his lustful wants. He may not be willing to verbally communicate his deepest desires to those in his life but how he lives gives it away. Babies are always self-centered and they require that we give them our full attention from day-to-day. The same mindset belongs to a LOST man who dies after living a self-centered life. His way of living unveils his way of thinking. He thinks that life is about him and everything in life should revolve around him. Babies must always be pampered, or they will quickly let you know. They want it their way even when they don’t know what their way is. The LOST man must be continually pampered either by us or himself. He want his toys, his comforts, and his belly always full. If it does not go his way, he’ll pout like a big baby. Babies are most often always takers and not givers. Yes they make us laugh and cry. They smile when we talk their language, giggle at their reactions, and feed them their favorite meal but they are babies. This is what babies do. They are takers. As much as we’ll give they will take. They are babies and we understand that they need our nurturing care so we continually give and give and they continually take and take. The LOST man lives a life as a taker and not a giver. He takes to live. He knows no other way of living. The sad thing is that characteristically the LOST person dies as they were born, in want, living a self-centered life, while being pampered, and always taking what he can to live life his way. Proverbs accurately describes this generation of lost men and women who live and die just as they were born.
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There is a generation that curseth their father, and doth not bless their mother. [12] There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness. [13] There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! and their eyelids are lifted up. [14] There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men. [15] The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. Proverbs 30:11-15a
There is a generation that curseth their father, and doth not bless their mother. [12] There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness. [13] There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! and their eyelids are lifted up. [14] There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men. [15] The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. Proverbs 30:11-15a
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What is the great evil that surrounds this person? They think and feel that their way of living is right because they know no different. They have always lived this way from birth. They were born into a fallen and broken world that can not profit them eternally. They could gain everything this world had to offer and it would never be enough. Jesus told Nicodemus that “one must be born again to see or even enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:3-5). LOST people live and die in the same condition they were born in, DECEPTION. They have never been Permanently Interrupted by God’s Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. They have never been Powerfully Invaded by God’s Conquering Grace. They have never been Profoundly Influenced by the Lord or His ways. They have never been Personally Invested in God’s Kingdom They have never been Progressively Interested in God’s Purpose. They never been Purposely Involved in the Lord’s cause. They have never been Providentially Identified as a Disciple of Jesus Christ. LOST men and women live an uninterrupted life of deception from birth to death. If you have been Permanently Interrupted by Jesus, thank God for it today by giving up your rights to His cause and for His glory. (2 Cor. 5:14-21) Pray and ask the Lord to use you as a deliverer of souls. Ask Him to open the eyes of those you know personally who are perishing in their own deception. Ask Jesus for His power to be an authentic witness to rescue the perishing for His glory. Why ask these things? They are as they were born: LOST
What is the great evil that surrounds this person? They think and feel that their way of living is right because they know no different. They have always lived this way from birth. They were born into a fallen and broken world that can not profit them eternally. They could gain everything this world had to offer and it would never be enough. Jesus told Nicodemus that “one must be born again to see or even enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:3-5). LOST people live and die in the same condition they were born in, DECEPTION. They have never been Permanently Interrupted by God’s Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. They have never been Powerfully Invaded by God’s Conquering Grace. They have never been Profoundly Influenced by the Lord or His ways. They have never been Personally Invested in God’s Kingdom They have never been Progressively Interested in God’s Purpose. They never been Purposely Involved in the Lord’s cause. They have never been Providentially Identified as a Disciple of Jesus Christ. LOST men and women live an uninterrupted life of deception from birth to death. If you have been Permanently Interrupted by Jesus, thank God for it today by giving up your rights to His cause and for His glory. (2 Cor. 5:14-21) Pray and ask the Lord to use you as a deliverer of souls. Ask Him to open the eyes of those you know personally who are perishing in their own deception. Ask Jesus for His power to be an authentic witness to rescue the perishing for His glory. Why ask these things? They are as they were born: LOST
