Tag: Ecclesiastes

On Leadership & Submission

I find this beginning of the “Divided Kingdom” era fascinating. Rehoboam is the rightful heir to the throne, but God decides to remove the kingdom from him because of the sins of his father, Solomon1. So God makes a promise to Jeroboam2 that if he honours the Lord in the same way David did, he will rule over Israel forever. Of course God knew exactly how it would turn out, so He never really had to worry about making good on that promise. And here’s where the story gets interesting…

On the issue of taxation, Rehoboam ignores the council of faithful older men who advised him to reduce the burden on the people to endear loyalty, instead taking the advice of young people who encourage him to flex his authority and tax them all the more! This leads to a deadly revolt on the part of the people, who end up promoting Jeroboam to king. And so, all of Israel — with the exception of Judah and Benjamin — side with Jeroboam and have nothing to do with Rehoboam and his iron fist.

There is a lesson to be learned here about leadership! If you are in a position of leadership there are two ways you can think about it. One way — the way Rehoboam chose — is the top-down “authority” type of leadership. “What I say goes, because I am in charge!” And that certainly is an avenue open to you, of course we see the consequences of that action in the deadly revolt… The other type of leadership — the way demonstrated by Jesus — is a bottom-up “servant” type of leadership. “We’re moving in this direction because I have sought the Lord and it is what is best for all of us.”

And that would be a great take-away, but there’s more to the story!

After this, Jeroboam — now in charge of most of Israel (the territory of 10 tribes) — decided that people would want to go back to Jerusalem (Rehoboam’s territory) to worship God. So what solution does this bright bulb come up with? Rather than building a temple to Yahweh, the God who GAVE HIM THIS KINGSHIP, he instead chose to bring back the golden calves of Aaron and say that THESE are the gos who brought Israel out of Egypt! Upon seeing this, the Levites abandoned their land and moved to Judah. And those among the populace who wanted to be failed to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob also defected to Judah. That’s right, their priority for God led them into a situation that was less good for them physically and financially, but was infinitely better spiritually.

And herein lies the second take-away for the day; our primary loyalty should be with God. We ought not to act in a way that is self-serving, but instead should be focused on our first (that is, our PRIMARY) love—Jesus. Even if it means submission to an authoritarian leadership. Now, of course we should want the leadership over us (our Governments, our bosses, our pastors(!)) to be Godly and bottom-up, servant-style. I get that. But our leadership preference and physical/financial comfort should NEVER be prioritized above our spiritual health and position.

Let’s be good leaders, seeking good leaders. But let’s also keep our priorities in order!

  1. This would be a fascinating issue to study on another day. If Solomon was the transgressor, why was no punishment visited upon him… for David’s sake? ↩︎
  2. Did the names REALLY need to be so similar? He could’t have chosen a Jim instead? ↩︎

Everything is a Gift from the Lord… Even That!

Our church recently brought on a young man as a pastoral intern who was in charge of the music ministry. I told him that this position was a lightning rod and to mentally prepare for people to be upset with choice he made. But I also said he should do what he can to learn something from every interaction. Good and bad. Sometimes people will encourage us. Sometimes people will offer constructive criticism. But sometimes people will offer destructive criticism and try to tear us down. Those times suck. However, even when that happens, we can still learn from it. What nugget of truth was wrapped in that scathing remark that can be taken and applied?

My wife recently returned from a women’s retreat and was challenged there about trials. The women there were told to “Not let this trial go to waste”. This is the same idea, wrapped up in a concise and repeatable phrase. We can’t suffer only for suffering’s sake! That is crazy. Instead we should think of it like building a muscle. Yeah, it hurts in the moment. But we will be all the stronger for it later.

Now, I’m not much of a write-in-your-Bible guy, but this verse is highlighted in my daily devo Bible.

Enjoy prosperity while you can,
    but when hard times strike, realize that both come from God.
    Remember that nothing is certain in this life.

Ecclesiastes 7:14

Remember that whatever situation you find yourself in, it is not by accident! God has done this on purpose. How does He want you to grow? What can you learn for future application? What purpose does the Lord have for this season of your life?

Living in the Past

Ecclesiastes gets a bad rap for being “depressing” or “melancholy” or whatever. But I find it a fascinating and focusing read. What are we giving our time to? Is it something worthwhile or another bullet on Solomon’s massive list of things that are “meaningless”? To that end, this passage from the end of Chapter 5 is fantastic:

To enjoy your work and accept your lot in life—this is indeed a gift from God. God keeps such people so busy enjoying life that they take no time to brood over the past.

Ecclesiastes 5:19b-20 (NLT)

I was nostalgic from an early age. I think wistfully about playing with my Hulk Hogan and Junk Yard Dog toys while watching the Paul Daniels Magic Show in the mid-1980s. And sometimes it makes me sad at what is gone. But the great irony is that while I was pining for a time that is gone I missed the time I was IN… then I would wish to have that time back. And so the cycle would continue where I was constantly longing for that which is gone rather than enjoying it while I had it.

In comes Solomon to encourage us to work and accept our lot in life. Because we are so happy in the moment we HAVE RIGHT NOW, that we are not distracted by what we used to have in times long past!

Friends, enjoy what you have. Don’t be discontent wishing you had more. Don’t be heartbroken longing for things lost to time… before long that is how you will think of TODAY. If you root your joy in the Lord that contentment is much easier to harness and cling to.

The Unrighteous Righteous

Throughout Kings we have seen David described as righteous over and over again. We are told that he obeyed all the laws and regulations of the Lord and — if you’re like me — the justice side of your brain is hollering, “WHAT!?”

Is this the same David who married foreign women? The same David who forced himself on a vulnerable married woman? Who tried to cover that affair up? Who had the husband killed so he could marry his baby-mama? The one who was too cowardly or distant to discipline his own children? The one who refused to hold his own men accountable? The one who tasked his son to exact revenge on his behalf? That guy? That guy obeyed ALL THE LAWS AND REGULATIONS? Are we sure we’re talking about the same fellow?

Then we read about Solomon marrying 700 women of royal birth. Remember these were treaties signed with foreign nations! So not only was Solomon amassing women who will turn his heart away, but these women are also of royal birth and represent treaties with a great many nations and/or city-states. And, of course, if you are going to maintain good relationships with those peoples with whom you have a treaty, you are going to honour their heritage for fear of upsetting this new ally. You can see something similar today in the way our political leaders in the west will attend a Catholic Mass on Christmas, a Hindu Temple for Diwali, and a Muslim Mosque for Ramadan.

It is clear that both of these men have broken the laws and regulations. So then, why is Solomon found guilty where David is found innocent? Make it make sense!!

The difference was the same then as it is today. We need to pause the ‘JUSTICE!’ part of our brain and examine the ‘grace’ part. In order to bring a better understanding, let’s look to the Apostle Paul. This passage from Romans is talking about Abraham, but it could just as easily refer to David or anyone else who came before Jesus, but trusted in the Lord:

Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. 22This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Romans 4:20-22 (NIV)

Today I was again reminded that David was a man “after God’s heart”. This doesn’t mean that David was PATTERNED after God’s heart, but rather that he was CHASING after God’s heart. His eyes were on the Lord, even if his hands and feet and eyes and… other things… were places they should not have been. And that — to quote Robert Frost — has made all the difference.

This is the same way that God sees us today. This is how our faith is credited to us as righteousness. The righteousness that we could not hope to earn by our works. And so this righteousness is a gift of grace through faith that justifies us in the eyes of the God who will be our ultimate judge.

Justified. Just-as-if-I’d never sinned at all.