Making Work, Work

Today we will be reading from Ecclesiastes 4. Again, I saw all the oppressions that are done under the sun, and behold the tears of the oppressed, and they had no one to comfort them. On the side of their oppressors, there was power, and there was no one to comfort them. And I thought the dead, who are already dead, more fortunate than the living, who are still alive. But better than both is he, who has not yet been, and has not seen the evil deeds that are done under the sun. Then I saw that all toil and all skill and work come from a man's envy of his neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind. The fool folds his hands and eats his own flesh. Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of toil and a striving after wind. Again, I saw vanity under the sun, one person who has no other, either son or brother, yet there is no end to all his toil. And his eyes are never satisfied with riches, so that he never asks, for whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure. This also is vanity and an unhappy business. Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil, for if they fall one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up. Again, if two lie together, they keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him. A threefold cord is not quickly broken. This is the word of God for the people of God. You may be seated. Well, good morning, Summit family. If you have your Bibles, please meet me in Ecclesiastes, chapters four and five this morning as we're going to talk this Labor Day weekend about work. What an irony. As you're making your way to Ecclesiastes, chapter four, wanted to just say that our fiscal year here at Summit runs from September 1st through August 31st. And so we just wrapped up our fiscal year. And I've got outstanding news for us at this past fiscal year. We baptized a little over 1,200 people. Can we just stop and give God praise and celebrate all that that's happening? I grew up in a wonderful church, but man, I don't know if I saw a dozen baptisms at my church. And so to be able to celebrate 1,200 baptisms, it's not a credit to just a wonderful leadership that we have. But God has smiled on this church and his spirit is among us. And we are so, so grateful to God for all that he is doing in and among us.

When Ty Cobb retired from Major League Baseball some 98 years ago in 1928, and it's hard for me to wrap my mind around this, he had set 90 Major League records. That's 9-0. Many of his records would last another 50 years. If you were to put together a short list, a top 10 list of greatest of all time Major League Baseball players, you got to put Ty Cobb on the list. He was a part of the first class inducted into Major League Baseball's Hall of Fame there at Cooperstown. In fact, in his class, he had garnered more votes than anyone else. And one of the members of his class was a guy by the name of Babe Ruth. You'll be hard pressed to find a baseball player more accomplished than Ty Cobb. And yet when he retired in 1928, the accomplishments didn't stop. He was an early investor in Coca-Cola. He was also an early investor in a company that we now know as General Motors. Yes, that's right. In his lifetime, he had amassed a personal fortune just in investments of well north of a hundred million dollars. It's not a stretch to say that in world history, you would be hard pressed to find an individual who had accomplished more in their life than Ty Cobb. So why is it then? to the Hall of Fame, there's Ticob seated at a table all by himself. No one wants to spend time with him. Why is it then that when Ticob dies, only three former Major League Baseball players showed up at his funeral? I think Ticob would tell us the reason why. He would say, "You know what? If I had to do my life all over again, I would have had some friends." You need to understand, Ticob was so relentless in accomplishments and achievements. He was so driven to be the best that in the end of the day, he became a narcissistic individual whose punchline to all of life, especially work, it began and ended with him. He was a narcissistic individual. So here's Ticob. Some point in his life, he made the devastating decision to trade relationship for accomplishment. And Ticob died unloved and unknown. This reminds me of that great line in John Steinbeck's wonderful literary classic, East of Eden. You've read it, no doubt.

When you saw this line, like me, you were floored. Steinbeck says, "When a man comes to die, no matter what his talents and influence and genius, if he dies unloved, his life must be a failure to him and his dying a cold horror." It's Ticob. As we come to our text today, Ecclesiastes chapter 4, verses 7 through 8, Solomon could well have been writing about Ticob. Look at what he says in verses 7 and 8, Solomon says, "Again, I saw vanity under the sun, one person who has no other, either son or brother, yet there is no end to all his toil and his eyes are never satisfied with riches so that he never asked for whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure. This also is vanity and an unhappy business." Solomon is describing an individual. Let's call this individual the lonely workaholic. Can you see them now? I can see them, see it there, some Michelin-rated restaurants. They've got maybe on a custom-made suit, maybe adorning one of their wrists as an expensive watch, finest cut, a steak is on its plates, staring them right smack dab in the face. The waiter has poured them the most expensive glass of wine. This individual is the picture of success. They've climbed the corporate ladder. Maybe they've got medallion status on some airline and some hotel. Here they are. Man, you're looking at this person. The grass doesn't grow under their feet. They are about it. They're driven. They've been in a relentless pursuit of excess, but look again and what you'll see is a successful individual who's driven, who's seated at this table alone. No friends. Solomon even takes it a step further.

No family. I've got a buddy of mine, his pastor friend, he says, "You know what, I've been pastoring for years and here's what I've never heard. I've never heard an adult sit in my office reflect on their childhood. I've never heard them say, "My dad got up every single morning in his beat-up truck and he took me to breakfast before he took me to school in his beat-up truck and if he did that every day, drop me over school in his beat-up truck and here I am years later, I am scarred to death because my dad dropped me off every day in his beat-up truck." His pastor friend of mine says, "Never heard that." He says, "What I have heard is my parents drove the most expensive cars. They never had time to take me to breakfast. Never had time to drop me off at work. [BLANK_AUDIO] And at some point, they made the same decision tie-top made. I'm going to trade relationship for accomplishments. Solomon says, "Don't do that." It's meaningless, and Solomon is pointing to a reality that I am just now coming to grips with, and that is the older we get, the more our regrets will be relational. I want to be clear, Solomon is not critiquing work. I don't want anyone to leave this little message with a low view of work. In fact, let me just bum you out with some information here. Work shows up in Genesis chapter 2, Genesis chapter 3, sin enters the world. The fall happens, which means work predates the fall, which means here comes the bum you out part. A lot of theologians say, because work predates the fall, work will be in heaven. It will be a part of our future eternal reality for those of you who are retiring, be encouraged because there's coming a point, you're going back to work. So Solomon is not diminishing work. He is not critiquing work. What he is critiquing is our approach to work.

He's pleading with us. Don't trade relationship for accomplishment. I actually think he's being a bit autobiographical for you, and I just want you to understand, I think, I think it's a word for us in general, but especially in the triangle, the Raleigh Durham area, I've met so many of you all, and you guys are crushing it, and you're killing it, man. It's wonderful. You know, right now you've started the business, or you've joined the company, and things are going great, man. Your career trajectory, it's up and to the right, and it's wonderful, and you're scaling Mount Significance, others of you, you're a student, you're a college student, you're a grad student. You've got grand dreams, man. I'm going to crush it, I'm going to start the business. I'm going to join in with that Fortune 500 company. I'm going to be a part of the medical profession, whatever it may be, man. Let me just get to you now. When you're flatlining, when you're checking out, you will not say, "I should have spent more time at work." So here's my sermon in a sentence, this is the essence of Ecclesiastes 4 and 5, Solomon hones in on work and the fruits of work, which is wealth. Solomon wants us to know that for work to work, it cannot be about me, but we, to say it another way, relationships must be greater than accomplishments. Here's what Solomon's going to do and it's masterful. He's going to take this thing called work. He's going to say, "Your work in order for it to thrive, in order for it to transition from meaningless to meaningful, your work needs to hook into, it needs to have three critical relationships." First relationship, Solomon speaks of, he says, "In order for work to work, our work must reach down."

In other words, if your work isn't about helping other people, your work will be meaningless. This is exactly what he does, beginning in chapter 4, verse 1, Solomon begins to paint this picture of oppression. He says, "Again I saw all the oppressions that are done under the sun, and behold the tears of the oppressed, they had no one to comfort them on the side of their oppressors, power, and there was no one to comfort them, and I thought the dead who are already dead more fortunate than the living who are still alive, but better than both is he who has Then I saw that all toil and all skill and work come from a man's envy of his neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after one. So here's Solomon, he talks about, man, I'm looking around, I'm just surveying. There's all kinds of oppression happening. We know what oppression means. This is Solomon's language. This isn't our current cultural milieu language, but Solomon's language, oppression. It's the picture of an individual who's being victimized by people in power who instead of using their power to pull people up are mishandling their power to keep people down. Solomon is saying, man, that's, I'm looking around and I'm seeing that. All of him, he talks about the tears of the oppressed. There's no one to comfort them. And it's almost like he's taking us on a tour of world history. We've seen this. I remember some years ago, standing in the Holocaust Museum there

in Washington, D.C. Some of you have been to some of the Nazi death camps, like the death camps at Auschwitz. Can you see their emaciated bodies? Can you hear their groans? Here are people, the very kinds of people Solomon is talking about. They've been oppressed. I could take you to the killing fields of Rwanda. I could take you to the middle passage there where these slave ships took people from the West Coast shores of Africa, sold them through the middle passage. I could take you in more recent years to the genocide in Rwanda. Oppression is a part of what it means to be in a fallen world. And Solomon says, I'm looking at all of this. I'm seeing their tears. There's no one to comfort them. And then he goes, man, it's better to not even been born. Can I just ask you a question real quick? This isn't even in the manuscript. Does oppression move you? Like you get the sense Solomon has moved. There's no sense of pull yourself together, stop being a victim. No, he's moved. Oh, Brian, thank you for the tour of world history. But let me just remind you, Brian,

we live in Raleigh, Durham. This is 2026. Oh, no, there's injustice and oppression right here. 2026. Let me just throw some things your way. In the last year, for instance, Wake County received, wrap your minds around this, 10,000 reports of child abuse or neglect. 10,000. Interact a local group that serves domestic violence victims, served 5,600 domestic violence cases. That's just one organization in one county. And it's not even including the people they couldn't help. Or how about this every day, right here in the triangle, there are an average of 13 abortions every day. Like does that move you? Like it's something happening here. Okay, Brian, thanks for this, thanks for this. I thought, I thought you were talking to us about work. Oh, what Solomon does next, literally, it floored me this week. I'm trying to study this thing. And I mean, okay, so I'm going to oppression. I got it, but what in the world does this have to do with work? And Solomon immediately connects it to work. He now talks about there's two kinds of reactions we can have to what we just witnessed. Two kinds of reactions we can have as it relates to work to 10,000 child abuse cases in Wake County,

13 abortions every single day in the triangle, 5600 domestic violence cases. There's two kinds of work reactions. Number one, look at it, verse five. The fool folds his hands and eats his own flesh. So right on the heels of talking about oppression, he now talks about one response is lazy idleness. To get the picture, there's oppression. Work is a good gift from God. One of the things that God gives through work is wealth, revenue, God is saying 10,000 cases, 5600 domestic violence things. I've given you a job, put money in your hand, do something. One reaction is a fool. Pression all arounds this picture of an able-bodied person who could go to work, sitting on their mama sofa, playing video games all day, no sense of ambition, no sense of direction in life. They may get up to go down to the basement, to hop on their computer, sitting in their tidy wities, pontificating on the problems of the world through social media, from their mama's house. And Samasar, are you kidding me? You are the hands and feet of God, and you won't work. Unless you think Solomon has let you off the hook, you're gainfully employed people. Oh no, next verse, he comes for you. There's another extreme. Verse 6, "Better is a handful of quietness than two hands full of what of toil, the idea of work, and the striving after when." So he contrasts one of two individuals, one individual. They've got one handful, which is good. The other handful, there's quietness, the idea is peace, is margin. So I'm busy, but I'm not really, really busy. I can actually spend time with the oppressed. I can actually pick up a homeless person, take them out to lunch because I've got something called margin, but the other person, their problem isn't lazy idleness. Their problem is excessive busyness. Two hands full of toil. Type A, driven, driven, driven, driven, driven, no time. It's exactly who Jesus had in mind. Centuries later, if you've been around church, you heard the stories. It's parable, the good Samaritan. Here's an individual. They're walking along the road.

Can't you see him now? Robbers are lurking. They pounce on this individual. They beat him within an inch of his life. Can't you see tattered clothes? Can't you see bloodied nose? Can't you hear his moans? He's on the precipice of dying. He's laying there in the road from, here's the detail, from Jericho to Jerusalem. And then Jesus now introduces two other characters, two church individuals in full-time vocational ministry. The first one is a priest. He sees the individual. I mean, I've got this sermon to preach. I've got maybe about 100 people going to give me their sacrifice. I've got to offer them up to the Lord. I've got a busy day. I can't stop and deal with this. The other person right after him, worship leader Levi, here's an individual. I've got choir team rehearsal, praise team rehearsal. Well, I've got to make sure I'm remember the setlist. I don't have time to deal with this individual. And he's laying there in the street and who passes him by excessively busy, driven people. At some point, traded relationship for accomplishment. Is that you? Is that you, driven, but no time, no margin. And notice who Jesus lifts up in the parables. It's a good Samaritan. I don't think we talk enough about this. We know he's gamefully employed. Why? Because he's got money to pay the guy's bills. I'm going to stop. I got margin. One handful of work, another handful of quietness. I got margin. I can stop. I can take time. Let me stop. Let me deal with this man. Let me put you on my donkey that I paid hard money for my hard work. Let me just take you to an end. Let me just reach into my pocket. Let me just take the money I got for my last check. Let me give it and just say, let me take care of your needs. I got margin. I got money. I'm not going to pawn this off on the government. It's my problem. So I imagine God sitting with us today, his arm draped around me. Hey, Brian, man. Yeah, man. I've blessed you with the strength of work. That's awesome, man. Giving you a wonderful job. And that's great, man. Enjoy. Yes. You're a Pastor J.D. The other week, man. Enjoy going to vacation. Enjoy. I created Tabletop Mountain in Cape Town, South But also, would you see that winter over there? What are we gonna do about that foster care system? There's a couple here who would love to adopt, but they don't have the money to do that international adoption that they really want to do. What are we gonna do about that? The educational disparities here.

What are we gonna do about that? If you're working just to pay bills, just to live in the house you want, just to, meaningless, chasing after the wind. First relationship, Solomon, is pleading with us. Do not trade relationship for accomplishment. Your work needs three relationships. Number one, it needs to reach down to help others. But number two, it's got to reach out to others. This is what Solomon gets to beginning in verse nine. He says, again, two are better than one, because they have a good return for their toil for. If they fall, one will lift up his fellow, but woe to him who's alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up again. If two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who's alone too, will withstand him. A three-fold chord is not quickly broken. The first relationship is really a helping posture. I understand God has given me work. He's allowed me to get the fruit of work so that I can help others less fortunate than me. This posture now is one of companionship. Who am I traveling with? Who am I rolling with? Who am I locking arms with? Solomon is very clear. You are not created to navigate life alone.

In fact, that word alone that Solomon uses, the implication is, man, that is not how God designed it. This goes back to the creation account again. The opening pages of Genesis is God is creating the world, man, he'll create something, he goes, man, that's good. And he'll create something and he'll slap the high five with the Holy Spirit like, man, that's good. And create something else, slap high five with Jesus, man. That's really good. And the only time he doesn't say good, but the only time he says not good, is at the end of the day, where here's Adam, he's been working, name of the animals. By the way, you know which animals he named at the start of the day, where the creativity was running high, orangutan, praying, mantis. Then you know what animals he named at the end of the day when he was ready to go home, cat, bat, rat, gnat, let's wrap this up, and as he's going home, by himself, this is not good. Look, man, I'm 53 years old and I'm just gonna tell you something that's freaking me out right now. And I don't say this from a posture of self-righteousness, I hope you're praying for Pastor JD, hope you're praying for me and all your leaders at man, I just wanna run through the finish line, but for the grace of God, man, I could have a moral implosion, but I'm looking at a lot of my colleagues, man, moral implosions, and when I do the autopsy,

when I do the autopsy, here's what's frightening, what got them, wasn't the sexual morality, what got them, wasn't being funny with the money, what got them, wasn't poor stewardship of power. Beneath all of that was isolation. At some point, the brand got bigger than their character. No one knew them. You know how many of these guys would invite me to come preach at their church and they're introducing me as their dear friend. And I'm like, bro, we talk once every two years. If I'm your dear friend, you're hurting. Solomon's pleading with us. Man, for work to work, for your life to pivot from meaning less to meaning full, you need real relationships. Why? Solomon gives us three realities, reality. Number one, plain and simple. Don't have to spend a day in seminary to figure any of this out. Solomon begins by wanting us to know that our work is more productive, not when we go alone, but with others. Again, verse nine, two are better than one because they have a good reward for their toil. Mine's the old African proverb. The old African proverb says, "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with others."

It's productive. Some years ago, I was with a study group at Oxford University, we were not enrolled at Oxford University and be clear on that, but we were part of a study group, Oxford University, I mean, there's no way I could be at Oxford University and not go to the world's most famous pub. The Eagle and Child. So I go there 'cause there was like this amazing small group that met there. Probably the coolest small group in world history. Man, sure enough, they're a little plaque where they sit. This small group called themselves the Inklings. And I remember standing there in the Eagle and Child and just remembering one story from this small group that used to meet, oh, I don't know, about 90 years ago. And I remember this one story, one of the members of the group is like, ah, man, things are not going well. I've been working on this book and the book's not really coming along really well. I'm thinking about giving up, man. I just, you know, I had higher hopes for it, but the plotlines that come together, the words aren't flowing. And then one of the other members in the group was like, man, no, no, no, you can't give up on it. What if you just brought the manuscript to us when we got together and let us hear and let us offer some advice and reluctantly, this is what the guy does. So he brings the manuscript and he starts reading it to him

and he gets encouragement. He does it week after week and lo and behold, he stays with it, the plotline comes together and thankfully so, because the book he was about to give up on was Lord of the Rings and the author was J.R.R. Tolkien and the one who encouraged him not to give up on him was a little guy named C.S. Lewis. All of that happened within the context of community. I wonder how many dreams are dying because you're not walking with someone else. I wonder how many ideas that God has literally placed in you and he's birthed that thing in you and it's dying by the wayside because you are walking alone, reality. Number two, Solomon says, I hate to break it to you, but you're gonna fall, verse 10, for if they fall, one will lift up his fellow, but woe to him who's alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up. Solomon is reminding the ancient readers, they all understood this of the treacherous nature of travel. The further you got out back then from the local village or city or town, the more treacherous your journey became. There were robbers who were lurking and one of their tricks was they would dig these pits and when you traveled by night, Thomas Edison hadn't been born yet, there weren't streetlights to light the way, so you're walking an almost virtual darkness outside of these little lamps

and these huge pits had been dug and if you're traveling alone and you fall in, game over. What you had to do is travel with others 'cause the reality is at some point you're gonna fall and if you're traveling, they can lift you out but if you're traveling alone, game over. Some years ago, I read John Krakauer's classic book Into the Wild, I think it came out in the '90s, so I don't mind giving it away. It's a tragic tale of a guy by the name of Chris McCandless. It's worth you reading. Chris McCandless came from an affluent home, believe in Atlanta. He decided at some point that he wanted to get away so he goes to Alaska, gets there, decides to hike in the wilderness. He's warned over and over again, a stretch of territory you're looking to go in. We do not advise you trying to navigate this alone. He wouldn't listen. He ultimately dies of starvation. Some weeks later, his body is found on an abandoned bus. When they find him, they also find this sign that he had written, "Look at it with me." Attention possible visitors, SOS. I need your help, I am injured, near death, and two weeks to hike out of here. I am all alone, this is no joke. What got him wasn't the starvation. What killed him was isolation.

Who knows about your alcohol problem? Who knows about the emotional affair right now, it's just text messaging, but who knows that? Who knows about the financial mess that you're in. Who knows? My wife and I, man, we've been having this running problem. Hey, honey, we need to get in this small group. Yeah, okay, I'm with it, but are we really gonna put it out there? 'Cause we're not gonna really put it out. Why go through the motions? God deliver me from a church where people aren't gonna really put it out there. I just need a lot of arms. And the final reality here of Solomon under this idea of reaching out is that you will have opposition. Verse 12, "Though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him. A three-fold cord is not quickly broken." Again, the reality of ancient travel was robbers were lurking, the fight's coming. Opposition is coming. I know you probably won't face a robber in your lifetime, but we've got an even more dangerous enemy. His name is Satan. No, we need not fear him. He's been defeated on a hill called Calvary, and yet don't take him for granted. Peter says, first Peter five, he goes about as a roaring lion. He is checking us out.

The fight is coming, who's standing with you. Why don't you see what he's saying? You need people. I was reminded of this the other day, man. I was in Dallas, and I preached at this one church in Dallas a couple times a year, but he might happens to attend there. And we have this tradition after Saturday night service. He picks me up. And then we go to this little spot that he's joined. You can go ahead and put the picture of him up. It's me and a buddy in my mark. It's Joker joined the Cowboys Club, man. I just, that almost ended their friendship there. It's the most narcissistic fan base. And anyway, I digress. (audience laughs) And so here we are. I'm in town. I'm not feeling good about Saturday night service. Just sermon just didn't go well. All I want to do is go back to my hotel room and just kind of rework some things. Just kind of punt on getting together. I just kind of heard God say. I just need to go ahead and hang with him. Just the whole idea of don't trade relationship for accomplishment. So, man, we go. We ate an amazing dinner. They actually have good food.

They have to admit this. And after dinner, we sit out on the deck, man. We just start sharing hearts. And I start pressing in on something with him. And he starts pressing in on stuff with me, man. Before I know it, man, three hours have gone by. And I climb in the bed, man. My heart is full. I'm here to tell you, man, that the reason why I praise me to God, that I haven't blown my life up. Is that unsaved cowboys fans in my life? [laughter] Who do you share hearts with? Last relationship. Solomon wants us to understand in order for work to really work. It's got to be about we, not me. We need three vital relationships. One, we need to reach down. Help others, too. We need to reach out in companionship. But third, and most importantly, we have to reach up to God. Ecclesiastes 5, beginning in verse 1. Solomon says, "Guard your steps. When you go to the house of God to draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools. For they do not know that they are doing well. Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God. For God is in heaven, your on earth.

Therefore let your words be few. For a dream comes with much business and a fool's voice with many words. When you vow vow to God, do not delay paying it. For he is no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. Let not your mouth. Lead you into sin. Do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake. Why should God be angry at your voice and destroy the work of your hands? For when dreams increase and words grow many, there is vanity. But God is the one you must fear. He says, "Here's the third relationship your work needs. Here's the third relationship your life needs. It is the most important. It's got to reach up to God. He paints an individual who goes to church. And I know we're scratching our heads. What's up with all this vow talk? Tell me right, man. I only thought I was in a person to make a vow in church. Is that a wedding? What is this? Well, you've done it. If you haven't done it. emergency or some crisis situation. It goes something like this. Let me go to church. Life isn't really going well. I got to get there. God, if you get me out of this, then I'll do this.

God, if you rescue me, God, if you step in, God, if you bail me out, I'll do this over here. So some cases, God does it. He steps in. Crisis is averted. He bails you out. He saves. He rescues you. And then what happens? Many times we don't come through. We go back to life as normal. What does that show? God wasn't really the focal point of your life. The relationship wasn't authentic. God was never your CEO. He was your part-time administrative assistant, helping you get the life that you wanted. Psalm and says, "Don't do that." Don't be like the fool who goes to church, who comes to the house of God when he needs him, who's in proximity with God, but doesn't have an authentic relationship with God. In order for you to find a life rich with meaning, God's got to be in the middle of it all. This is what Leo Tolstoy has done. God, Lee, I'm just giving y'all great literary stuff today. Start with Steinbeck. C.S. Lewis. JR. Tolkien. Now Tolstoy. Here's Tolstoy. One of the greatest writers ever, the great Russian writer. Here's the guy who read the book that everybody talks about, while hardly anyone's really ever read from cover to cover, "War and Peace." Have you, Lewis read "War and Peace" from cover to cover? Yes, one person, one person. Wrote Anna Corinina, so many other classics. Is that the height? You talk about a person whose career trended up and to the right. He got to the top of the mountain. If you haven't read it, you've got to read his reflections, "My Confession." In "My Confession,"

he talks about getting to the top, and when he got there, he was depressed and suicidal. That's the top. This is what Tolstoy says. Look at it with me. "My life came to a standstill." The truth was that life was meaningless. Sound familiar? Then later on, Tolstoy gives the punchline, "Live seeking God, and then you will not live." "Live without God." Translation, Tolstoy is like, "Look, man, you're, you're talking to a guy, sold millions of copies, millions of dollars, had the estate, had it all, had the women, had it all." Didn't do it for me. And that was Solomon saying. Okay, Tolstoy, what did it for you is what he says, "God, that you do know Tolstoy literally turned his back on the riches of the world. He got rid of his house. He was, he was wanting to relate to the peasant, so he became a farmer. And during that moment in his life, when he became a farmer, letting go of two hands of toil, one hand of toil, one hand of quietness, he goes, "That's when I found meaning." No, I see Jesus now. No one had a more meaningful work life than Jesus. Here was a man when he came, his work reached out, one of the first things he does is he says, "I'm not going to bring the kingdom of heaven alone. I want to lock arms with 12 other guys. First thing he does, he just kind of picks people that we're just going to walk together in three of them. Peter, James, and John, he bore his soul. Garden of Gethsemane, amount of transfiguration. He says, "I'm not going to live in isolation. The Son of God." Not only that, his work reached up. John chapter 4, he says, "My food is to do the will of him. That's God who sent me." John 17, "Everything you've assigned me to do, I've done." - Mm. I got news for you.

We're all the oppressed. We had the worst oppression one could ever have. We were spiritually oppressed and in bondage. God did not peer over the balcony of heaven and said, "I got mine. You get yours. You work harder. You strive harder. You do it. You bootstrap your way up to me because God knew you couldn't get to him. So essential to Christ's work," he came down. He reached down and he's still in the business of reaching down today, pulling people up, not by your work. So I say to you, type A-driven person. Work hard. But the mountaintop you're looking to climb ain't going to satisfy you. It's the one who created the mountain. He's the only one. So father, we bless you. Everyone's here today and you're losing your mind because you're like, "Man, I'm checking all the boxes, but I'm still empty." Those boxes will never satisfy. Only Christ can. So I just want to make two calls and I'd love for our prayer team, love for our leaders to just come to the front right now, available to pray. All number one, those of you who are believers, and you're just like, "Hey, Brian, I think, man, I'm crossing that line between accomplishment and relationship, man. I just want to get my priorities together. So I want to invite you to just come forward in the next couple of moments and to just ask for prayer from one of us, a follower of Jesus, man. I just, I'm achieving and accomplishing, but I'm neglecting my relationship with God.

I'm neglecting my relationship with others. God, I just need my priorities realigned. And then I want to make a call. Some of you don't know Christ as Lord and Savior. You don't know Him. And you think work is going to do it. It's not. So I want to invite you now to come. Come to the only one who can satisfy the longings in your soul. So Father, we bless you. Thank you that in Christ, in our relationship with you, our life and our work can have meaning. In Jesus' name, amen. [MUSIC]