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January 16, 2025 · 9:00 pm

Appointed Times

1 To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven: 2 A time to be born, And a time to die; A time to plant, And a time to pluck what is planted; 3 A time to kill, And a time to heal; A time to break down, And a time to build up; 4 A time to weep, And a time to laugh; A time to mourn, And a time to dance; 5 A time to cast away stones, And a time to gather stones; A time to embrace, And a time to refrain from embracing; 6 A time to gain, And a time to lose; A time to keep, And a time to throw away; 7 A time to tear, And a time to sew; A time to keep silence, And a time to speak; 8 A time to love, And a time to hate; A time of war, And a time of peace. 9 What profit has the worker from that in which he labors? 10 I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied. 11 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.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-11

God is in control. This is a comforting thought for the Christian. It reminds us that our lives are not spinning around in an out-of-control manner. Chance and happenstance play no part in our circumstances. Rather, our circumstances are divinely controlled by God Himself. Even when it doesn’t appear to be the case, God is still in control.

Solomon confronts this fact as he observed the rhythm and flow of life. May we see the nature of God’s control as we study this lesson this week.

Chapter 3 comprises one of the most famous passages of scripture in the Old Testament. Everything has an appointed to a time. The good and the bad, the joyful and the sorrowful are appointed to this life. Perhaps the following breakdown can make the point clearer.

Appointed Times for………………………..

Birth and Death

Planting and Destruction

Killing and Healing

Tearing Down and Building Up

Crying and Laughing

Mourning and Dancing

Cast Stones and Gather Stones

Embrace and Refrain

Gaining and Losing

Keeping and Discarding

Tearing and Sowing

Silence and Speaking

Love and Hate

War and Peace

Wow! What an incredible list. And God controls it all. He sovereignly reigns through our ups and downs, our victories and defeats, and our success and failures. God is in control of it all.

We may be thinking “if God is in control, then why is my life so difficult?” Shouldn’t my life be easier if God controls all things? There is no easy answer for these questions. God never promises ease and comfort on this earth (John 14:27). We live in a sinful world that will create circumstances that hurt us and cause us pain. We can’t understand it all. Yet, when can be comforted knowing that God is provident, in charge, and that He will never leave us.

God has given us an eternal perspective. We instinctively know that God exists and we are accountable to Him. We should be thankful that God has revealed Himself through Jesus Christ. For through Christ’s perfect life and sacrifice we have eternal life.

Tony French

Process

But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.

James 1:14-15

In this section of Chapter 1, James get to the heart of the sin playbook. If we can learn how this process works, we can learn to recognize and defeat it. Let’s examine the process of sin for a moment.

Desire—All sin begins with desire. Not all desires are evil. Often, wholesome and good desires can be perverted to lead us into sin. Desire is not sin, but, desire can be used to begin the temptation process in our lives.

Deception—Once desire is established in our minds, temptation moves to deception. When we are deceived, we have a tendency to get a skewed outlook on life. Our desires lead to us to believe the wrong things about God, about the Bible, and about ourselves. We begin to believe that we know better than God and that we can ignore the Bible. Deception is dangerous and deadly.

Disobedience—The next step is outright disobedience to God’s Word and commands. Sin leads us away from God and towards ourselves. Sin allows us to become our own god! What a terrible sequence this process of sin reveals.

Death—The final stop for the sin process is death. All sin leads ultimately to death. When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden of Eden, it lead to death. They lived for many years after their sin. Yet, eventually, inevitably, they died. Sin leads to death and destruction. (Romans 6:23)

How do we overcome sin and temptation? Realize that God’s Word and God’s ways are best. When desires well up within you, remember what God’s Word tells us. Remember His commands and avoid deception in your life. Recall that God gives us commands and boundaries to protect us and help us to live Godly, peaceful lives.

And then fight it! We are not helpless in this matter. God’s Spirit lives within us (1 Corinthians 6) and He helps us overcome. Trust God to help you endure the temptation and overcome by the grace of God (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Tony French

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