It is a discouraging world that we live in. Devastating headlines in the morning paper, chronic or terminal illness in someone we love, frustrations, disappointments, anger, and loss loom around us. It can be easy at time to lose sight of joy and give in to despair. Where is God in this? What kind of world has He put us in, anyway?
King Solomon was a man who faced the questions of life head-on. Though clearly a wise and wealthy man, he expressed his disillusionment with the human existence in the book of Ecclesiastes. One word, one phrase reflected the cry of his heart as he puzzled over the complexities of life in a fallen world: vanity, vanity of vanities. All is meaningless under the sun if this life is all there is.
Yet a closer examination of the book shows Solomon had another view in mind as well; that of life viewed through the lens of an eternal God with an amazing plan. There are glimpses of that view in his book as well.
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven;
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace." (Ecc. 3:1-8)
Solomon studied the rhythms of life and expresses early in the book how futile it can feel to those born into this world. Early in his poem of Ch. 3, that is seen in "a time to be born and a time to die," and later as well in "a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to keep and a time to throw away." We can sense the weight of the curse: death, destruction of relationships, and decay. But if one pays close attention to the rhythms of life, there is something else there. Sometimes, there is healing. Things torn down make way for something to be rebuilt. Weeping turns to laughing, and mourning turns to dancing. There is a reversal of the curse. Things are set right, and hope dawns new in our soul.
That is the hope of the gospel, and it is how to be set free from the weight of disillusionment. When circumstances take unimaginable twists, when sin is exposed in horrific ways, we take comfort in the hope of redemption. Christ entered our broken world as our Savior, took the weight of our sin and its curse on Himself, and broke it forever when He rose again.
The time for redemption shall come! The rhythms of this fallen world will be ushered in to an age that cannot be measured by time and in which Christ will reign. There will be no more death, no more sorrow, and the relationship between God and His people will never be marred by sin again.
O Glorious Day!!
2 comments:
Good meditation in light of the news we all received last week.
The study that led to this post was in progress before we heard the news, so it made for a timely encouragement from the Lord.
I'm thankful for light-hearted, fun-filled days when they come, but also realize how empty life is when my hope becomes planted in things that are temporary.
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