Is the pursuit of our dreams
a guarantee that we will live a
fulfilled life? Much of modern advertising seems to think so. “This car will be your ultimate dream“; “that retirement plan will usher in your carefree future”; ”this piece of real estate is guaranteed to be your heaven on earth”!
We must learn to think very carefully about such statements and measure them against the wisdom of the Word of God of God. Theology matters! Life is ultimately theological.
Solomon had set his heart upon such a quest. He spared no expenses
in the pursuit of
self- indulgence, allowing his
thoughts and desires to lead them wherever they would take him
to. However when he considered the
world theologically i.e. from the viewpoint of God, he discovered
that the pursuit of all these things, apart from the fear
of God would lead to no
lasting satisfaction. And so, we find his oft repeated saying,
“All is vanity… a striving after the wind …”.
And
we have to keep on reminding ourselves that this is not his ultimate
conclusion.
His ultimate thoughts end with God. At the end of this book we
read, “The end of the matter, all has
been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of
man. For God will bring every deed into judgement, with every secret thing,
whether good or evil.” (12:13-14)
It is not the wisdom about the fallen world
that gives meaning to the fallen world; it is the fact that there is a God
above this fallen world. He supplies meaning to this fallen
world. Theology matters!
I trust
that you are seeing what Solomon is saying.
Life apart from God at the center is ultimately meaningless, empty and
even despairing. Paradoxically our fallen natures incline us not to want God at the centre of our lives, and yet we have
this vacuum in our heart - this craving for ultimate meaning, of
which the church father, Augustine (354- 430 AD) reminds us in his Confessions:
“O God
our hearts are restless until they are
found in you!” [1]
Such an observation should not surprise us,
for we were made for God. Life is theological, and theology matters.
In Ecclesiastes 3
Solomon helps us to see that one of the
great secrets towards
experiencing satisfaction and meaning in life is to recognize and
embrace the providence of God over everything in life. He wants us to accept
that God has made a time for everything!
He is in charge of our joys and our sorrows.
It is this fact that brings balance to the soul. We shall see this thought repeated
again as we now survey Chapter
5.
But before we get there, just a brief recapitulation of Ecclesiastes
4. This chapter passage
looks at injustices and
oppressions, jealousy and envy, at loneliness, and at political intrigue in this
fallen world. Solomon
wants us to see that if we are looking for ultimate satisfaction from
people or stuff in this
life, we
are going to be sadly
disappointed. Satisfaction in this life cannot come from focusing on this
life. It has to come from something outside this life. It must come
from someone above this life. Life is theological. Theology matters. This thought then
brings us to Ecclesiastes
5.
Outline of Ecclesiastes 5
5:1-7: How we should approach God in worship?
5: 8 – 9: How should we respond
to the oppression of the poor?
5:10-17: A reflection upon the emptiness of prosperity without God.
5:18-20: Enjoy what you have, while you have it. The
keyword here is joy![2]
1. 5:1-7: HOW SHOULD WE APPROACH GOD
IN WORSHIP?
The key - worship thoughtfully and reverently – learn to live from the centre
5:1 Guard your steps… draw near to listen:
In worship learn to listen. Let God have the first word in your life.
This is better than to offer the
sacrifice of fools. This thought forms the contrast. Fools have loose
tongues; they are noisy. They don’t listen. Jesus warns us concerning those who babble
and who use many words (Matt 6:7). Much of modern worship is noisy, unguarded
and non-listening to the Word of God. Theology corrects false notions of worship. Theology matters!
5: 2-3 Be
not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and
you are on earth. Having told us
that we must be quick to hear (and obey), we are now urged to be slow to speak.
The governing theological principle here is
this, "God is in heaven and
you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few." This is important
for us to consider. Even though
we are privileged to have entered into an intimate relationship with God (through Christ), we
must also learn to know our place. Let us
be careful not to substitute our reverent
intimacy with God with a a flippant overfamiliarity. God
is to be feared (see 5:7 –
also 3:14; 7:18 ; 8:12; 12:13). Don’t
think that you don’t know God as well as you think.
- He is infinitely righteous and holy , and you are not.
- He sees everything with perfect clarity , and you do not.
- He is infinitely great and awesome in His Being, and you are less than a speck of dust in creation.
- You don’t know the mind of God (Isa.55: 8-9).
- He is utterly self- sufficient in His own wisdom and counsel (Rom. 11:34; Isa. 40:13 ; 41:28) and you have a finite mind, and are dependent on His grace to sustain you.
- You are not His counsellor or His private secretary.
- You don’t have to instruct or remind God of anything - something that we often forget in prayer. You don’t have to babble or to use many words to get through to Him (Matt. 6:7,8). A fool’s voice comes with many words (5:4). Fools say things about God that are not true at all. They come to false conclusions about His work in the world. Solomon warns us, “Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God.” (5:2)
5:4-6. Keep your vows! When
anybody in Israel made a vow before God, they were under
obligation to keep it - see Numbers
30:2 [For application,
see Hannah in 1
Samuel 1:11 and 1:21 for the fulfilment of
her vow]. The temptation was to
withhold one’s vow.
Solomon reminds us to let our “yes” be
“yes” or “no” before God, and
the NT
sees no change in status in this
when Jesus speaks about this subject
in Matt.
5:33-37. Words and vows are
important to God.
So, since our tendency
is to make rash vows, it would be better not to vow at all. Doing so might provoke
God to anger, so that He destroys the work of your hands (5:6b). And don’t say to the
messenger (the one who has heard your vow before God, and who
holds you accountable afterwards) – it was a mistake!
Be also careful of this, “when
dreams and words grow many, there is vanity” (5:3,7). Be careful that your
dreams and the many words (perhaps the counsel of friends that surround you) don’t make you say things you should not say.
The bottom line is this: Fear God. It is, as we have already observed
a recurring theme in this book.
Theology matters!
Learn to live from the center.
Don’t play the
fool with God.
Learn to listen to God.
Let your words be guarded when you
speak about God.
Speak sound words. theology of worship.
For
the rest, trust God.
2.OUR RESPONSE TO OPPRESSION AND VIOLATION OF JUSTICE (5:8,9)
What should believers do when they see oppression and lack of
justice and righteousness exercised in the land?
Firstly, they should not be
amazed by it (5:8a). This is the way life is under the sun, and in
the scheme of things every country has to contend with the frustration of officialdom and bureaucracy. It is in the
nature of bureaucratic officials to
oppress people. When a person gains
power over other persons, it seems inevitable that a moral weakness develops in
the person who exercises that power. Lord Acton (1834 -1902), English
historian and politician, famously said:
“Power corrupts , absolute power corrupts
absolutely“.
[See also Samuel’s warning about kings in 1 Samuel 8: 10-18]
Do not be amazed when these things happen. This is the typical expression of man’s
fallen nature. Believing the theology of the doctrine of the fall cures us from the romantic idealism of the communists,
the socialists and the capitalists. Theology matters!
V.9
is difficult to translate, but I think it says that even with bureaucratic and stifling systems a land can be
blessed when its king is committed to making sure that there are cultivated lands i.e.
food on the table!
3. THE EMPTINESS OF PROSPERITY AND AFFLUENCE WITHOUT GOD
(5:10-17)
How should believers
consider money and prosperity? Here are
some great insights:
5:10: Life without
God at the centre produces all
sorts of distorted perceptions. Nowhere
is this more apparent than with money and wealth. Solomon says that if money is your first love, then it will
leave you dissatisfied. 1 Timothy 6:9-10 warns us.
5:11:
Wealth brings its own set of challenges. My father used to say, “The
more you have, the more worries you have; the more you need
to fight to protect it.” This
is burdensome. The more you have, the
more you will have people around you who feed off you. Your responsibilities
increase. You live to work for others.
5:12:
Wealth does not provide peace and
contentment. It can actually make you restless
and sleepless. The common
labourer does not have this problem, whereas
the rich man may lie awake
at night wondering whether the stock -market would not perhaps leave him penniless
tomorrow morning. If money is your first love, then this love
will not put you to sleep
tenderly at night.
5:13:
Solomon shares a testimony of what he has personally seen, “There is a grievous evil which I have seen
under the sun: riches being kept by
their owner to his own hurt.” People in love with money, hoard their money
and possessions, and often become deeply suspicious, paranoic and insecure. Can
I trust my financial advisor? Can my
wife and children be trusted with my
money? How sad, when God, family
and friends move into
distance on account of the love
of money.
5:14:
Here’s another reason why wealth and
riches cannot satisfy. It so
easily slips through our fingers: “…
and those riches were lost in a bad
venture.” And then your son (or
family) who are your heirs sit with nothing!
5:15 -16: The truth of course is that “a
hearse pulls no trailer!” You can’t take it with you.
5:17:
“… all his days he eats in darkness in much
vexation, sickness and anger.”
The heart fixed on material wealth
makes you miserable - emotionally and physically!
4. ENJOY WHAT YOU HAVE WHILE YOU
HAVE IT (5:18-20)
WHAT IS THE
PROPER WAY FOR A BELIEVER TO LIVE WITH WEALTH?
(i) First
principle: Live in the fear of the Lord
(5:7)
(ii) Recognize
that prosperity can be a very real trial
to your faith. Thomas Carlyle (1798 -1881) a Scottish philosopher said, “For a hundred that can bear adversity,
there is hardly a one that can bear prosperity.”
Do not be owned by things;
things must be owned by you. “Possessions weigh me down in life; I never
feel quite free. I often wonder whether I own my things, or if my things own
me.”
That means that we use what we have been given by God to glorify God,
and to meet the legitimate needs of our
families and ourselves, and to do good to Christians, to promote the gospel,
and to be generous in our community.
The
result is joy (mentioned 4 times in 5: 18-20), and it is possible
because God is at the center! God frees us from the tyranny of possessions,
and this produces joy!
When Jesus is our greatest possession then our theology
is right!
The right theology matters.
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