(Ecclesiastes 9:1-18)
For I have taken all this to my heart, even to examine it all, that righteous people, wise people, and their deeds are in the hand of God. People do not know whether it will be love or hatred; anything awaits them.
2 It is the same for all. There is one fate for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean and the unclean; for the person who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good person is, so is the sinner; the one who swears an oath is just as the one who is afraid to swear an oath. 3 This is an evil in everything that is done under the sun, that there is one fate for everyone. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of mankind are full of evil, and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterward they go to the dead. 4 For whoever is joined to all the living, there is hope; for better a live dog, than a dead lion. 5 For the living know that they will die; but the dead do not know anything, nor do they have a reward any longer, for their memory is forgotten. 6 Indeed their love, their hate, and their zeal have already perished, and they will no longer have a share in all that is done under the sun.
7 Go then, eat your bread in happiness, and drink your wine with a cheerful heart; for God has already approved your works. 8 See that your clothes are white all the time, and that there is no lack of oil on your head. 9 Enjoy life with the wife whom you love all the days of your futile life which He has given you under the sun, all the days of your futility; for this is your reward in life and in your work which you have labored under the sun.
10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity, planning, knowledge, or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.
11 I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise nor wealth to the discerning, nor favor to the skillful; for time and chance overtake them all. 12 For indeed, a person does not know his time: like fish that are caught in a treacherous net and birds caught in a snare, so the sons of mankind are ensnared at an evil time when it suddenly falls on them.
13 This too I saw as wisdom under the sun, and it impressed me: 14 there was a small city with few men in it, and a great king came to it, surrounded it, and constructed large siegeworks against it. 15 But there was found in it a poor wise man, and he saved the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man. 16 So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the wisdom of the poor man is despised, and his words are ignored. 17 The words of the wise heard in calm are better than the shouting of a ruler among fools. 18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.
TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:
God's purpose in creating us was that we would have a close, personal relationship with Him and others, and live forever with Him. But mankind chose to disobey, so we live in a fallen, broken, sinful world. It doesn't matter how good a person tries to be, or even if they go through all the right motions and say all the right things, in order to go to heaven, we have to be perfect. This is impossible in our own efforts.
All have sinned and fall short of God's glory. So our only hope is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, accepting His free gift of forgiveness and His righteousness, which reconciles our relationship with God for all eternity. And why wait to make this important decision? Not only will our relationship with the Lord help us now, we do not know when we will die.
While here on earth, we all can choose to work hard and enjoy the fruit of our labor, but we all must die, whether we are believers, or nonbelievers, whether good or bad. The questions are: for whom will we live while here on earth, and where will we go after we die? Even as believers, while we will still go to heaven to enjoy eternity with the Lord, if we decide that we only want to work for ourselves here on earth (good or bad), what we gain can only be enjoyed while we are here on earth.
When we commit our lives and our work to the Lord, to His glory, everything we do is in His hands. Better to do things in the Lord's strength and wisdom, than our own, which is shortsighted and feeble in comparison. This involves trusting in Him to do the things that He asks of us, no matter what happens. In a close relationship with the Lord, we will desire what He desires. Therefore we will desire to share the good news that the Lord wants to have a personal relationship with everyone.
When we have an opportunity to share the gospel with someone, they could be interested, disinterested or angry. We have no control over anyone else's reactions, actions or decisions, we can only control our own. So no matter the outcome, when our good deeds are done with right motives, which is with God's love, and in His strength, wisdom and righteousness, God will reward us for those things, maybe not right now, but definitely in heaven. Meanwhile, we are to enjoy, nurture, build and protect the close relationships we have with others, especially the relationship we share with our spouse. And together, we are to enjoy and celebrate the Lord's love, joy, peace and blessings!
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