When the New Testament looks back at the Old Testament, what it says in summary form, quoting

Romans 15 is, whatever was written in former days was written in former days

written for our instruction that by the steadfastness and the encouragement of the

scriptures, we might have hope.

Everything in the Old Testament was written

to give you hope.

This story about Aces' folly was written to give you hope this morning. So my purpose, I believe, is simply God's purpose, namely to unpack the story written and told to give Bethlehem and everybody in this room hope this morning. That's my goal.

Aesum made a big mistake, a very foolish mistake. He didn't rely upon God. He relied upon man.

And my goal is to just so unpack the reasons for that folly in such a way that they grip you and don't let that happen in your life.

So that you walk out of here sort of medicated against Aces folly, immune to Aces' folly, that the temptation rising to

commit Aces' folly in your life would not happen.

You won't catch that disease. Now let me illustrate what I mean by the alternative

perhaps of Aces folly. The opposite of Aces' folly is trusting God or hoping in God. Yesterday, as I began to put my hands on the keyboard

to type out this message. I stopped because I had aces folly in my mind real clearly.

And I bowed my head and I said, Lord, I have a text. I have an idea. I have a mind. I have hands.

I have a computer. I have a mind I have hands I have a computer I have time a free day

Lord willing uninterrupted I can write this sermon. But Lord, very consciously now I renounce reliance upon my text, my idea, my mind, my hands, my computer, my day, my freedom. I renounce reliance upon all these good things that you have created and given to me.

I renounce reliance upon them right now and I look away from me to you and I pray that in and under and around

and through and on top of this effort now on this Saturday you will so

powerfully and deeply work that what will be made will not simply be the work of a

man but the work and the word of God.

These people don't need another man-made thing.

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