BEFORE THE GOLDEN BOWL IS BROKEN

ACTION BEFORE THE GOLDEN BOWL IS BROKEN

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Ecclesiastes ESV 12:1-14 [King Solomon wrote] Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, "I have no pleasure in them"; 2 before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain, 3 in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows are dimmed, 4 and the doors on the street are shut--when the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low-- 5 they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails, because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets-- 6 before the silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern, 7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. 8 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity. 9 Besides being wise, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge, weighing and studying and arranging many proverbs with great care. 10 The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. 11 The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. 12 My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. 13 The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.

  Life includes problems, some writ in our past, presently active, others yet to come.

  I know of a family where one adult member is with deliberation a vigorous destroyer.

  Problems, including human destroyers, should not, must not dominate our thinking, for ours is the much higher calling.

  Paul made this point well; His past history was as a destroyer. He afterward often dealt with destroyers within the the church. His life involved much persecution. His known future was death by execution. All were hues on his life canvas, but by his submissive determination none framed his life picture.

  In submission within God’s redemption ours, let us not be dominated by the dark colorings of life.

  I pray this be so in my life and yours this day of our Lord . . . and forever forward, never forgetting that once the silver cord is broken, the golden bowl shattered, opportunity to obtain things of everlasting value will cease.  EBB4