Readings
6/19 - Ecclesiastes 1-6
6/20 - Ecclesiastes 7-12
6/21 - 1 Kings 10-11; 2 Chronicles 9
6/22 - Proverbs 30-31
6/23 - 1 Kings 12-14
6/24 - 2 Chronicles 10-12
6/25 - 1 Kings 15:1-24; 2 Chronicles 13-16
This week we read the book of Ecclesiastes. A general rule to help understand the books attributed to Solomon is to think of Song of Solomon as Solomon in his youth. Proverbs is Solomon in his prime years. Ecclesiastes is an aged Solomon reflecting on his younger years.
A funny thing happened a few years ago during an afternoon break at the AFLC Annual Conference. Some of my friends and I were playing baseball. It was a beautiful day and we ready for a break from the meetings and wanted to enjoy some comradery. As we were playing, a man I didn’t recognize came by saying, “Vanity, Vanity! Everything is vanity!” To put the best construction on this, I suppose he was trying to encourage us to do something else with our time. I don’t really know.
One of the themes of Ecclesiastes is that from an earthly view, everything is pretty meaningless. Yes… even baseball. Apart from God, chapter 9 shows, there is not much to do of worth so you might as well eat your bread, drink your wine, wear fancy clothes, and enjoy time with your wife. Apart from God, that is all that one can really do, chasing after earthly pleasures.
With God, things are entirely different. No longer are your pursuits in vain. God gives everything meaning. Everything under the sun has purpose and meaning because God is God. That means that you can receive the gifts of God with faith and thanksgiving, and you can enjoy them. That means good food, wine, nice things, good work, time with your spouse and even baseball can all be enjoyed fully!
Certainly, all of God’s gifts can be abused and to abuse a gift from God is to sin. But the abuse of the gift does not make the gift itself an evil thing. When we abuse a gift of God, whether it be our neighbor with an unkind word, or food by eating too much, we know that we have a good and gracious God who is quick to pardon those who go to Him with a broken and contrite heart.