Ecclesiastes 9:13 -18

Yes, disasters occur in God's world, but they are often the result of human folly.

A story involving one of the greatest of human catastrophes, invasion and war.

A powerful king laid siege to a small city with few inhabitants. But there was an unexpected outcome - a man "poor but wise" rescued the city "by his wisdom". The Teacher gives no details. All we are told is that this man used his wisdom to bring the great king's plans to nothing. But once the crisis was past, people forgot about him; instead of honoring him, they ignored him.  

Wise advise can do much good, but only if others listen and act accordingly; and a fool or a wicked man may undo all the good that wise advice may do. People may be swayed by style rather than substance, paying attention to whoever makes the most noise or seems most impressive. 

If we are tempted to blame God for the world's manifest ills, we should remember the saying - when we point a finger at someone else, there are three fingers pointing back to us. 

Ecclesiastes 9:7-12

Eat...with gladness...drink...with a joyful heart...enjoy life...

Don't even ask whether God wants you to enjoy these things - He does.

They are part of the world He has made; they are your "lot". 

Ecclesiastes 9:1-6

Don't dwell on these things; take time instead to enjoy food, drink & friends - all the things that cheer you up.

The righteous and the wise and what they do are in God's hands.

Moreover, all share the same fate. In death everyone looks the same, no matter how they behaved while alive. 

Ecclesiastes 7:9-18

God has made some things in this world crooked. God makes bad times as well as good times, so that we cannot know what the future holds; most baffling of all, the righteous and the wicked sometimes experience the opposite of what they seem to deserve.

Neither wisdom nor righteousness have guaranteed outcomes in this life. It is God who is sovereign over all that happens, whether good or bad, not us.

Further, even the quest for righteousness and wisdom may lead us astray. Do not be over-righteous, neither be over-wise. At first sight this seems astonishing thing to say - can we be too righteous or wise? But on reflection, perhaps yes, if our motives are wrong. Some, for example, seek wisdom and righteousness in order to boast about their achievement, or in order to gain power over others.

So, we must not seek wisdom and righteousness with the wrong motive. Nor (obviously) should we go in the opposite direction and indulge in wicked and foolish behavior that is to invite God's judgment. We should avoid both these wrong paths and live our lives in the fear of God - reverently, acknowledging how limited we are in power, knowledge and goodness compared to our creator. 

Ecclesiastes 6:7-12

Question: What is our basic problem?

Answer: Enough is never enough. We always want more.

But there is a wisdom which can help us here. A wisdom which is particularly accessible to the poor (which is why "the wise" in parallel with "the poor"). The poor cannot gratify many of their desires because they lack the resources. This teaches them wisdom - wisdom to say No to wandering desires. The wise approach to life is to enjoy what we already have ("what the eyes sees"), and not yearn for what lies out of reach, which is truly "chasing after the wind" and utterly futile.  

God is sovereign, and we humans must recognize our God-given limitations. 

God has made things the way they are. Everything has been 'named'. That is, God has assigned everything its due place. In particular, it is 'known' what humans can accomplish and what lies beyond them. All attempts to resists these facts, whether verbally or in other ways are futile. It is not that God is unwilling to bless humans, but the blessing comes on God's terms. Disregarding His will in the pursuit of our own plans will only lead to futility.

How can we know anything? Who knows what is good? But this is The Teacher's method. He has not yet put all his cards on the table - at this stage he leaves issues unresolved because he wants to prod us into thinking hard about our lives.

Points which emphasis human limitations - life is brief; we do not know the right time for everything; we lack the full picture; the future is uncertain. He does not pick up other, more positive earlier statements (that certain things are clearly "good" or at least better) because he wants to challenge us - How we truly recognized our limitations? If so, what will our response be?  

Ecclesiastes 5:18-20

 

To enjoy what lies near to hand; to be content with you "lot". 

When God gives someone wealth...and the ability to enjoy them.

We should accept our limitations as created beings, and not let our enjoyment of what God gives us be spoilt by a desire for what lies beyond our grasp.

Be content with you "lot" does not mean be boring or be timid and unimaginative. You can live an interesting, creative and bold life without transgressing the bounds God has set. Note too, that wealth can be enjoyed as God's gift. It is only the love of wealth which is wrong.

If God enables you to enjoy life, be content with that.

Enjoying the good things of life can, by God's grace, prevent us from dwelling excessively on the darker aspects of life (its brevity; the presence of injustice). Such enjoyment is not the final answer to these darker aspects.

It also brings with it certain dangers: for example, that pleasures like eating, drinking and enjoyable labor may become so central to our lives that if they are taken away from us, our faith collapses; or that in the midst of our enjoyment we may ignore the sufferings of others; or again, that we may treat others unjustly in our desire to secure the things that bring us pleasure.

But in themselves these things are good, a gift of God for which we can and should give thanks. As a friend of mine once put it, if God's children cannot enjoy God's gifts, who can?   

Ecclesiastes 5:1-7

When you go to the house of God, remember that it is God whose presence you are entering. You should come ready to listen to God's word. Not to blurt out your own words. Empty dreams expressed in rash words have nothing to do with worship. Bluntly, to pour out a stream of ill-considered prayers in God's presence is the mark of fools. 

Standing in awe of God. Worship is also about celebrating God's goodness with feasting and rejoicing or coming before God in joyful thanksgiving.  

Ecclesiastes 4:9-16

Recognize the limits of what you can accomplish.

You may do some good, but be prepared to be unpopular because you cannot meet the expectations of all those you govern.

Be prepared to be maligned by those who succeed you.

Even the king must face his limitations; even the most dedicated social reformers must be realists before they are anything else. 

Ecclesiastes 4:1-8

People are driven by envy. We see ourselves as in competition, struggling against our fellow humans, in order to possess the world's goods. In this struggle, we are tempted to cut corners, to trample on others or to use others as pawns in our plans.

But envy doesn't go away when it is fed; rather, it becomes yet more insatiable. The antidote lies elsewhere. We have to start telling ourselves - I have enough. I'm not going to seek more. Above all, I won't do wrong in order to get more.

Of course, you can't give up altogether. Complete idleness is not the answer. If you are idle, you will harm yourself. You must be responsible; you must provide for yourself and your family. You cannot be idle, but when you have enough, rest content with your one handful of tranquility. You may miss out on much by ignoring envy's voice, but you will also spare yourself much misery.     

A lonely striver. Envy and greed have consumed this person. He doesn't enjoy what he has because he is always looking for more. He senses that this is pointless, that he is only making himself miserable. But, like many modern over-achievers, he has been toiling for so long that he doesn't know how to stop; indeed, he is driven by a fear of what he will miss out on if he relaxes his efforts. What he does not see is that beyond a certain point, more is less.

Often humans end up embroiled in an unhappy business through their own bad choices. Not because God has arbitrarily intervened and engineered a bad outcome. Yes, our choices do have consequences - that is how God has made the world -  but when we don't like the consequences we should repent, rather than blame God.     

Ecclesiastes 3:16-22

 

Lot - what God has given us. 

If we are content with what God has given us, that is a strong witness.

If we recognize our creaturely nature and accept our Lot - that is a powerful testimony to God's goodness. 

Ecclesiastes 3:9-15

In God's Purposes, everything fits.

God determines the course of events and knows the right time for everything, for He has made everything beautiful in its time.

Further, God has set eternity in the human heart - we glimpse the vastness of His purposes; perhaps we can also sense how our own lives may fit into those purposes.

But full understanding eludes us - we cannot grasp God's work from beginning to end.  

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

There is a time to keep and a time to throw away.

All activities, even the most contradictory-seeming, have their place in God's dealings with His creation.

Ecclesiastes 2:12-23

If you are wise, you can see where you are going; you can see danger at a distance and avoid it; you can choose between options rather than simply suffering whatever life throws in your path. 

Ecclesiastes 1:12-18

If life seems a heavy burden, it is because we humans so persistently refuse to face reality, ignoring God's purposes and causing ourselves frustrations through our foolish schemes.