He was “from the beginning” and is “the eternal life, which was with the Father”; there is never a time when Jesus has not been. But even more incredible is that the eternal Son of God humbled Himself in order to serve those whom He created. This is the beauty of the incarnation. Its not just some stuffy doctrinal defense of Christ’s divinity & humanity, it’s a full-blown celebration of the unbelievable unity & fellowship believers have with the God of the universe!

Real & complete joy is found in the nature & work of Jesus Christ, and it’s expressed (lived out) in the fellowship of believers. Christ completes joy, and because His body is comprised of other believers, we need to be in fellowship with them in order to experience and express this joy properly.

Church - God is glorified when we find our joy in Him together.

He was “from the beginning” and is “the eternal life, which was with the Father”; there is never a time when Jesus has not been. But even more incredible is that the eternal Son of God humbled Himself in order to serve those whom He created. This is the beauty of the incarnation. Its not just some stuffy doctrinal defense of Christ’s divinity & humanity, it’s a full-blown celebration of the unbelievable unity & fellowship believers have with the God of the universe!

Real & complete joy is found in the nature & work of Jesus Christ, and it’s expressed (lived out) in the fellowship of believers. Christ completes joy, and because His body is comprised of other believers, we need to be in fellowship with them in order to experience and express this joy properly.

Church - God is glorified when we find our joy in Him together.

When we start to consider the things that are really important in life & have eternal value, we find that they are not really THINGS at all – they are the relationships we have. In John’s first letter he plainly tells us the truth about relationships, and shows us how to have relationships that are meaningful & real, for both now and eternity. You can know that you have been reconciled with the Father and have eternal life.

His offer of salvation is real and it’s eternal, and according to Jesus in John 3 it hinges on belief. Belief is absolutely necessary, & our works done for the glory of God authenticate/prove our faith. Can we say with James that we show our faith (belief) by how we live (our works)? [James 2:18]

1 John was written so that we might be motivated to live out what we say we believe and so that we can KNOW we have eternal life.

When we start to consider the things that are really important in life & have eternal value, we find that they are not really THINGS at all – they are the relationships we have. In John’s first letter he plainly tells us the truth about relationships, and shows us how to have relationships that are meaningful & real, for both now and eternity. You can know that you have been reconciled with the Father and have eternal life.

His offer of salvation is real and it’s eternal, and according to Jesus in John 3 it hinges on belief. Belief is absolutely necessary, & our works done for the glory of God authenticate/prove our faith. Can we say with James that we show our faith (belief) by how we live (our works)? [James 2:18]

1 John was written so that we might be motivated to live out what we say we believe and so that we can KNOW we have eternal life.

When we start to consider the things that are really important in life & have eternal value, we find that they are not really THINGS at all – they are the relationships we have. In John’s first letter he plainly tells us the truth about relationships, and shows us how to have relationships that are meaningful & real, for both now and eternity. You can know that you have been reconciled with the Father and have eternal life.

His offer of salvation is real and it’s eternal, and according to Jesus in John 3 it hinges on belief. Belief is absolutely necessary, & our works done for the glory of God authenticate/prove our faith. Can we say with James that we show our faith (belief) by how we live (our works)? [James 2:18]

1 John was written so that we might be motivated to live out what we say we believe and so that we can KNOW we have eternal life.

It really is a shame that lots of people look at Ecclesiastes and see pessimism and a downer. As he’s drawing things to a close, Solomon informs us that it was actually written for our PLEASURE. God’s words and commands are intended to DELIGHT us!

His words are also intended to “prod” us into action - that's what goads do. Shepherds use them to direct their herd down the proper path, away from those that lead to destruction.

Fear God and keep His commands [v.13] – trust Him and obey Him. There’s importance in the order here. The evidence of trusting/fearing God is obedience, but you will never obey God if you don’t trust/fear Him.

Why do we obey and why are we gladly wounded by the one Shepherd? Because the day of reckoning is coming. One day every action (deed) and every thought (secret thing) will be brought into judgment by God.

The Good Shepherd uses the reality of our sin as a goad to drive us to the cross. Jesus lived the life we couldn’t and died the death we deserved in order to redeem everyone who believes from the curse and penalty of sin. We will all face a day of judgment, and we will either face it with Christ as our substitute or we’ll face it alone. You don’t have to face it alone. Believe in the Son. Fear God, obey His commands. Be reconciled to Jesus today, because today can be the day of your salvation.

It really is a shame that lots of people look at Ecclesiastes and see pessimism and a downer. As he’s drawing things to a close, Solomon informs us that it was actually written for our PLEASURE. God’s words and commands are intended to DELIGHT us!

His words are also intended to “prod” us into action - that's what goads do. Shepherds use them to direct their herd down the proper path, away from those that lead to destruction.

Fear God and keep His commands [v.13] – trust Him and obey Him. There’s importance in the order here. The evidence of trusting/fearing God is obedience, but you will never obey God if you don’t trust/fear Him.

Why do we obey and why are we gladly wounded by the one Shepherd? Because the day of reckoning is coming. One day every action (deed) and every thought (secret thing) will be brought into judgment by God.

The Good Shepherd uses the reality of our sin as a goad to drive us to the cross. Jesus lived the life we couldn’t and died the death we deserved in order to redeem everyone who believes from the curse and penalty of sin. We will all face a day of judgment, and we will either face it with Christ as our substitute or we’ll face it alone. You don’t have to face it alone. Believe in the Son. Fear God, obey His commands. Be reconciled to Jesus today, because today can be the day of your salvation.

It really is a shame that lots of people look at Ecclesiastes and see pessimism and a downer. As he’s drawing things to a close, Solomon informs us that it was actually written for our PLEASURE. God’s words and commands are intended to DELIGHT us!

His words are also intended to “prod” us into action - that's what goads do. Shepherds use them to direct their herd down the proper path, away from those that lead to destruction.

Fear God and keep His commands [v.13] – trust Him and obey Him. There’s importance in the order here. The evidence of trusting/fearing God is obedience, but you will never obey God if you don’t trust/fear Him.

Why do we obey and why are we gladly wounded by the one Shepherd? Because the day of reckoning is coming. One day every action (deed) and every thought (secret thing) will be brought into judgment by God.

The Good Shepherd uses the reality of our sin as a goad to drive us to the cross. Jesus lived the life we couldn’t and died the death we deserved in order to redeem everyone who believes from the curse and penalty of sin. We will all face a day of judgment, and we will either face it with Christ as our substitute or we’ll face it alone. You don’t have to face it alone. Believe in the Son. Fear God, obey His commands. Be reconciled to Jesus today, because today can be the day of your salvation.

“Remember your Creator in the days of your youth” because you’re going to encounter life’s frailty and death’s certainty. “Remember your Creator” means trusting Him, obeying Him, and walking with Him. Remember by setting aside yourself and giving all of your life and all of your future and all of your opportunities to God.

“Remember your Creator in the days of your youth” because you’re going to encounter life’s frailty and death’s certainty. “Remember your Creator” means trusting Him, obeying Him, and walking with Him. Remember by setting aside yourself and giving all of your life and all of your future and all of your opportunities to God.