Soulfood

Mike Emlet

Life is transient and death is waiting to end it. Why work so hard when it all ends in death and within a few years even the memory of my life will be lost to those who come after me?

This is the tone of Ecclesiastes. How do we live wisely as we experience the disappointments of life that always ends in death?

The good gifts we enjoy are not intended to bear the weight of our hopes and our search for meaning.

Qohelet – the convener of the people. He asks what man gains by all his work under the sun? Qohelet attempts to gain as many experiences and perspectives as possible to try and see what is good for people to do in the few days of their lives. Upon examination, it is all vanity!

Hevel – smoke, vapor, enigma, vanity, futility – this is all that is to be gained from our toils under the sun (in this life), per Qohelet.

It’s not just that possessions and power are fleeting – so is my life. Whatever I do will be left to someone else to finish or discard. No one has power to retain the spirit or power over the day of death. (Ch 8:8)

We prefer to live life under the illusion that it will continue as it is until we grow old – and what seems old when we are younger keeps being pushed off as far as possible so we don’t have to think about them.

We make plans (like reading all the books I’ve bought) we know we will never accomplish. These plans are our way of controlling our future – and distract us from living in the present. We buy things we know we don’t need. We look for followers and influence to feed our desires for meaning and fulfillment.

All of this is vanity. There is no payoff to these things.

There is a point though – finding meaning in simple things. These are the “nothing better” statements in Ecclesiastes and are the wisdom found there.

2:24 There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil.

3:12-13 I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live; also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil – this is God’s gift to man.

12:13 is the framing statement of Ecclesiastes. We may not understand the purposes or point of what we are doing, but when we fear God and keep his commandments we will have done our duty.

What are the foundations of this view of life?

1. We are creatures, finite and needy. Understanding this allows us to rest and trust our good shepherd.

2. We are to receive the present day as a gift. These good gifts are for us and our joy and are a meaning unto themselves.

3. The despair of Ecclesiastes cries out for a redeemer and a savior – and Jesus answers our cry. It is the bad news that gives meaning to the gospel

Jesus answers our cry in 5 ways:

1. Jesus enters in to Hevel himself and becomes subject to it – God himself is with us in futility.

2. Jesus perfectly feared God and kept his commandments and still died. But he reverses futility by his resurrection from death! The days of futility are numbered – they are not the end of the story.

3. Jesus rescues us and gives us eternal life in the present by uniting himself to us in his death and resurrection. Therefore our labor in the Lord is not in Hevel (in vain)! It gives meaning and purpose to the labor of the moment.

4. Jesus helps us live open-handedly with the gifts of life and work and possessions. The enjoyment of these gifts now has an eschatological meaning – it points us to what is coming! We no longer hoard the gifts for themselves but because by them we remember the greater gifts towards which they point us. And so we can let go of them and still enjoy what is truly enjoyable – hope in the future glory.

5. Jesus helps us deal patiently with the mysteries, heartaches, and frustrations of this life by showing us that everything will be made right. All will be well, and all will be well, and all manner of things will be well. (Julian of Norwich)