Wisdom is Kinda Pointless
September 9, 2016 — Ecclesiastes 1:12–15
I the Preacher have been king over Israel in Jerusalem. And I applied my heart to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven. It is an unhappy business that God has given to the children of man to be busy with. I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.
What is crooked cannot be made straight, and what is lacking cannot be counted.
One of the results of living in a world driven by the evidences that we see, rather than the truths we have been given, is that our measure of spirituality is deeply rooted in results. Look through the shelves of Christian book stores, and next to books about prayer, and church leadership are volumes about finances, successful marriages, and interpersonal relationships.
The fact is, we have bought into a lie that tells us if we are Believers we are capable of lives that are full of blessing. We would be quick to say that God isn’t going to give you a private jet, but debt-free living? A successful marriage? ABSOLUTELY!
I don’t want to disparage media that strives to help people. This life is certainly important. However it is the same people who say that we can’t offer food to the poor without a gospel message, who offer a self-help book under very similar circumstances.
The truth is that when we replace the gospel with building affordable housing, or debt-free living, we are just chasing after the wind. I will use the same saying that I have heard before: we don’t want to send people to hell with a full belly.
Understandably people get pretty indignant with people who are arguing against feeding the poor. This is not a call to stop, but rather to understand that improving this life is not the point, or promise of Salvation. On the contrary, being united to Christ is a call to come and die.
When we look to the early church they thought that caring for the poor, and managing the finances of the body was important enough to appoint leaders to take care of those things as their job, but they were never under the impression that they were just lining up under what God had taught was the wise thing. They were doing it because of who they were, and because being true to who they were demanded it.
The logic of the time demanded that those who converted ought to be circumcised, and refrain from eating bacon, but Paul made it pretty clear that walking by the visible manifestations of religion were pretty backwards. Christians aren’t supposed to be judged by their marriages or pocket books either.
So much of our efforts in shaping our day to day lives are certainly out of a holy response to live life in an honoring way to God. However, the lurking danger of idolatry will constantly be around the corner when Christians seek out a wisdom-filled life.
It is also worth noting that the life lived out in perfect wisdom is kind of a downer. The Teacher said so himself. It is a struggle to work hard enough for a good marriage and good finances. Being a Christian doesn’t make it any easier. That’s why we are just as likely to get a divorce or be broke as everyone else.
Many leaders will point at that and see a problem. “Look!” they might say, “We aren’t doing any better than the rest of the world. Let’s get some programs going to teach people about money management, and let’s put a conference about loving your spouse!” Sadly, it is quite possible that we are pumping a lot of time and energy into trying to capture the wind.
This shouldn’t be a call for us to give up and just sit around waiting to die. If you become a nihilist after reading Ecclesiastes you are missing the point. The fact is that it really doesn’t matter if you live the life of wisdom perfectly frees you to strive to live it as best as you can. Because the wonderful truth is that the perfectly lived life of wisdom has already been completed and is yours to have. We just have to believe what is already true.
