The End of the Matter - Ecclesiastes 12:1–14

We've come to the end of Solomon's search for meaning under the sun and he's discovered that he was searching in all the wrong places; his search has led him back to his Creator, the God of heaven and earth, the one who sits over the sun. It's been a long journey for Solomon, you do have to wonder why since he was given wisdom by God, but when you keep God out of the picture, you will need to look in a lot of different places only to discover that each place you look to for meaning will all fail you. This is why I enjoyed our Profession of Faith classes, deliberately reflecting on who we are as Jesus followers in our community.

Finally, Solomon turns to God and calls to the people, "Remember your Creator." When we hear the word remember, we look back and bring memories back into our consciousness again. There's no need to do anything with the memory except appreciate the moment that it evokes. For the Jews, the word “remember” means something more, "to act decisively on behalf of someone, to commit yourself to someone." We often hear in the Scriptures about God remembering his people. It doesn't mean that God forgot his people or dug up a memory and thought, "Yah, there’s the people I chose, I should reconnect with them and see how they’re doing." When the Bible talks about God remembering his people, it’s about how God begins again to act in significant ways that Israel could recognize. These were the times when Israel was once again reminded of how committed God is to them. It doesn't mean that God wasn't acting on behalf of his people before this, but that he was acting in ways that the people didn't always recognise. It’s much the same with us; we confess that God works all things for our good, but often can't see how God’s working. This is where faith comes in. 

When Solomon calls you to "Remember your Creator," he's calling you to commit yourself to God. This is about taking God seriously, not simply playing around with faith when it suits you, waiting for when it fits better in your life, after you've experienced all the things you want to do. That's why I'm not surprised that Solomon immediately follows his call to remember the Creator with a call to follow him from the time you’re young and not wait until times get hard or you're old.

The problem is that many of us act like Augustine, "Hey, wait a minute, let's first have some fun in life, sow a few wild oats before getting so serious about God." We've believed the world that tells us that God takes away our fun and replaces it with nothing but rules to follow. We're told to focus on gaining knowledge, seeking pleasure, investing in our careers, and building wealth first, and afterwards we'll fit God into our lives. When I was a youth pastor in Allendale, a young woman asked what I thought of her desire to go into missions. I encouraged her, knowing her commitment to Jesus. Her parents were furious, saying I had no business giving their daughter career advice. They wanted her to go to university and do something useful, meaning something that makes a lot of money. They believed she could do the faith stuff for God after she graduates and gets a good job; a way so many Christians think today. Without even realizing it, they walked the same journey Solomon did, believing meaning comes from what they do, accomplish, or gather for themselves. Is this what you unconsciously believe as well? Meaninglessness.

Solomon describes getting old like skies filled with clouds and rain; our thinking getting cloudy. The loss of our physical strength as the keepers of the house, our legs, tremble and the bend in our back grows. Our grinders fall out and we’re no longer able to eat foods like steak, taking away the enjoyment of eating. Our hearing goes, we wake up early in the morning, but can’t hear the birds singing as clearly outdoors. Our heads become covered in white like the blossoms of an almond tree; then death comes. Solomon doesn't want you to take the same meaningless journey he took, he’s encouraging us to choose God in our youth and strong times.

Solomon concludes, "Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind." This sounds so basic, and yet this is where Solomon guides us to find meaning in life. Fear God. This is repeated often in Scripture; especially the Psalms and Proverbs, but also in the New Testament; in Matthew 10, Jesus warns us, "Don't be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell." Later on, Paul calls us to "work toward complete holiness because we fear God." Tim Keller writes that ‘Fear’ in the Bible means to be overwhelmed, to be controlled by something. To fear the Lord is to be overwhelmed with wonder before the greatness of God and his love. It means that, because of his bright holiness and magnificent love, you find him ‘fearfully beautiful.’ That is why the more we experience God’s grace and forgiveness, the more we experience a trembling awe and wonder before the greatness of all that he is and has done for us. Fearing him means bowing before him out of amazement at his glory and beauty."

God's love and holiness is fully revealed in Jesus. Jesus leaves heaven, a place where there’s no evil, and comes to earth to live with us. It's more than a prince leaving his palace to live in the slums, because Jesus came not just to live with us, but he also came to take our punishment on himself so that we can be in the presence of God our Father. This punishment is no slap on the wrist; Jesus comes and takes all the sin of the world onto himself to the cross where he submits to death in our place. He does this for you and me because he loves us that much even though we’re not always so loveable and continually walk away from him.

We see God's love in Jesus as he relates to the people. The gospels are filled with stories of how Jesus reached out to people with grace, forgiveness, mercy, and love. These were people who had experienced little of these things from the religious leaders or from the Roman overlords, and didn't expect to experience them in their relationship with God either. While we too often take grace, forgiveness, mercy and love for granted, the people in Jesus' time had grown used to not expecting anything. They were hoping for the Messiah and freedom from the Romans, but I wonder if they hoped for much more than that. Today, where do the people at our workplaces, school, neighbourhoods and other places see real hope offered in their own lives; are they hoping to just get by, maybe having a few nice things, to be comfortable, have a few friends to share life with, and hopefully not get sick or lose what they have.

Imagine how their lives might be different if they knew God’s love for them; how they could be free from worry and fear, how important they are to God, and how God can use them to completely change another person's life by inviting them to follow and know Jesus with you. Can you imagine how free some of your friends might feel if they only knew that they can experience forgiveness and release from anger, fear, hopelessness and more because God loves them and sent Jesus to show us the way to himself. As they begin to follow Jesus with you, as they get overwhelmed with Jesus, as they give over control of their lives to Jesus, they’re 'fearing the Lord' as Solomon calls us to. Fearing God is the source of our strength to resist the attraction of sin and Satan. Paul says in Romans 3:18 that our main sin is that we "have no fear of God at all," no sense of awe and wonder at who God is and how much he loves us.

Solomon doesn't stop with fearing God; fearing God means keeping God's commandments, having a deep wonder and awe at who God is, being filled with God's love. We show our love to God by being the people God calls us to be. Jesus himself said that "if you love me, you will keep my commands." God gave us his commandments to shape us, mold us into people who reflect who he is. Because God is a God of love, Jesus summarises the commandments by calling us to, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbour as yourself." This means that loving God with everything you are and have, is how you’ll find meaning in your life. Yet Jesus knows we can’t keep the commandments the way we should, but that doesn’t mean we give up. Do the best you can today, and then tomorrow try to do a little better; this is the journey of sanctification. Meaning doesn't come from finding yourself or by focusing on yourself, it comes from focusing on God and others.

Jesus is our example in this. He came to call us back to God, he died for us, was raised from the dead, and now sits at the right hand of God interceding for us still. This is all rooted in his love for you. Jesus is the source for our meaning in life. Jesus says of himself, "I am the way, the truth and the life." Trust and follow Jesus, and you’ll find meaning and purpose by loving and obeying God and loving others as your life is shaped by service towards him and them. This love for others should be the driving force to inviting others to join you in your walk with God in following Jesus and working out who he’s calling you to become. Jesus' last command to go and make disciples is rooted in his love for all people and his desire that all people will come to know him and hear his invitation to follow him. Jesus is calling you to be his presence and voice. While you may search for happiness and meaning elsewhere, you’ll only find lasting happiness and meaning in Jesus.