Jesus throughout the Scriptures: Wisdom Literature (6)
Pray Psalm 115.1-3.
Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us,
But to Your name give glory,
Because of Your mercy,
Because of Your truth.
Why should the Gentiles say,
“So where is their God?”
But our God is in heaven;
He does whatever He pleases.
Sing 115.1-3.
(Plainfield: Nothing But the Blood of Jesus)
Not to us, O God, not us, but unto Your Name give glory!
For Your love and faithfulness, ever to Your Name be glory!
Why should the nations cry, “Where is their God on high?”
You rule us, LORD, on high: Ever to Your Name be glory!
Read Ecclesiastes 12.1-14; meditate on verses 13, 14.
Preparation
1. What life experience does Solomon describe in this chapter?
2. What’s the main idea he wants to leave with us?
Meditation
As a seminary student, I came across the works of Paul Tournier, the Swiss psychiatrist. After reading one of his books, I was convinced he was a man of Wisdom, so I read everything by him I could find. I wrote to him with some questions, and he graciously replied, clarifying his views about personhood, the state of the world, and how we might recover our true humanity. That correspondence has been lost, but Tournier’s message about true personhood has stood with me all these years.
In his book, The Whole Person in a Broken World, Tournier wrote the following: “Our age is suffering because of the rift between the spiritual and the temporal. It is suffering not only because of the despiritualization of the world, but also because of the disincarnation of the church. The church, it seems to me, has separated itself from real life and thus simply abandoned the world to its practical difficulties and taken refuge in an ivory tower. And for this it bears a heavy responsibility for our present crisis. True, it sill goes on preaching, but far from the public place where the practical life of men is lived.”
Solomon, having “disincarnated” himself from living as an example of grace and truth (Eccl. 2), set out, in Ecclesiastes, to comment on the broken world of his day. He seems to have recovered his faith in old age—so beautifully described in chapter 12—and sought earnestly to help his son, Rehoboam, find his way to wholeness. Having said all he had to say, he concluded that personhood, becoming a whole person, depends on fearing God and keeping His commandments. Paul Tournier would have agreed.
But how can anyone do that? We cannot. But we need not despair. Jesus has done it for us, and, by believing in and following Him, His perfect righteousness—His wholeness—is imputed to us. And thus we are empowered to bring the Word of wholeness, by word and deed, to our broken, under-the-sun world.
Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162.“The disincarnation of the church”—need we say more?
The tragedy being we have done this to ourselves.
No one forced the church to be culturally disenfranchised.
No one stripped our strength to make us powerless.
No one intentionally marginalized us—usurping our credibility.
No one has ostracized and polarized us into impotence.
And certainly, no persecution, at least in the USA, has pushed us to the edge of non-existence.
Nope. This is a self-inflicted wound that the church seems intent upon festering and fostering.
Solomon disincarnated himself from God by not following the Law, and by putting himself, his hubris, his lusts, and his self-absorption first and foremost—the wisest man who ever lived became foolish in the blink of an eye. If it happened to him, all bets are off for everyone else.
It does not have to be this way—we are filled with the Holy Spirit,
Who continues to work and woo in the “despiritualized world”.
The message of hope, restoration, and Good News continues to go forth.
But unless the church is ready to disciple the new believers, all the seed sown will fall on rocky soil.
This message from Solomon is to the church—all the persons who make up the Body of Christ:
“Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all.
For God will bring every work into judgment,
including every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Eccl. 12.13, 14).
Fear God. Or bad things happen.
“An oracle within my heart concerning the transgression of the wicked:
There is no fear of God before his eyes…he has ceased to be wise and to do good” (Ps. 36.1, 3).
Keep His commandments. With the whole person.
“You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.
This is the first and great commandment” (Matt. 22.37 38; Ex. 20.1-11).
“And the second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt. 22.39; Ex. 20.12-17).
“On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Matt. 22.40).
God will bring all our works—secret, good, and evil—into judgment.
We, as Paul was, are “appointed for the defense of the gospel” (Phil. 1.17) to preach Jesus through our work and words, to participate in the Body of Christ, for the edification of others (Eph. 4.15, 16) and the proclamation of the Good News.
So that when we come to the end, we too, will be able to say: “according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Phil. 1.20, 21).
Therefore, we will not participate in the disincarnation of the church, but we will with all vigor, whilst we still can, be wise in Jesus, pursuing, as Solomon did (Eccl. 12.9, 10) the work of our Personal Mission Field, the work that we have been specifically called to do: fearfully, obediently, and joyfully.
“So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Ps. 90.12).
“…that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ, in Whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col. 2.2, 3). To strengthen Jesus’ Church.
Reflection
1. In what sense has the Church become “disincarnated”?
2. Why do we need to fear God and keep His commandments?
3. How does Jesus help us be “incarnated” in the world to live out the Law of God?
All things would be vanity and vexation, except they led to this conclusion, That to fear God, and keep his commandments, is the whole of man. The fear of God includes in it all the affection of the soul towards him, which are produced by the Holy Spirit. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Ecclesiastes 12.8-14
Pray Psalm 115.9-18.
Pray for help from Jesus, to shield you through temptation and to empower you for loving and serving others. Pray that you will grow in the fear of God and in love for Him, and that He will fill you with His peace throughout this day.
Sing Psalm 115.9-18.
(Plainfield: Nothing But the Blood of Jesus)
All who trust in Jesus yield—ever to His Name be glory—
find in Him their help and shield: Ever to Your Name be glory!
O Israel, trust the LORD! He helps us evermore!
Fear Him, obey His Word: Ever to Your Name be glory!
Blessings from our gracious LORD —ever to Your Name be glory—
will attend us evermore: Ever to Your Name be glory!
Bless all who fear You, LORD, all who obey Your Word,
all who Your Name adore: Ever to Your Name be glory!
Grant us, Savior, great increase—ever to Your Name be glory!
Bless us with eternal peace: Ever to Your Name be glory!
Heaven and earth are Yours; let every soul adore
and bless You evermore: Ever to Your Name be glory!
T. M. and Susie Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest this week: Read Moore (from the book, Revived!); from Crosfigell, “He Knows What He’s Doing”, on the work of the Holy Spirit; and “More of Jesus” from our ReVision series, “Pray for Your Church.” And new in our bookstore, Let God Be True and Enjoying God, both free to download and share.
Support for Scriptorium comes from our faithful and generous God, who moves our readers to share financially in our work. If this article was helpful, please give Him thanks and praise. And please prayerfully consider supporting The Fellowship of Ailbe with your prayers and gifts. You can contribute online, via PayPal or Anedot, or by sending a gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
