Quick Note – Ecclesiastes 2:24-26 – Live in the Moment

Ecclesiastes 2:24-26 – 24 There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God, 25 for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment? 26 For to the one who pleases him God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner he has given the business of gathering and collecting, only to give to one who pleases God. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.

Portions of Ecclesiastes can be quite depressing, because they talk about how life and everything in it is basically vanity.  Whether it is your toil, whether it is your fun, whether it is your passion – all is vanity.  This book was written by King Solomon, who had every pleasure at his command.  He was one of the wisest people on earth, writing hundreds of proverbs.  He was one of the richest people to ever live, whose reign was characterized by silver being as worthless as stone.  And he was one of the most famous and respected people of all time.  He could have and had everything, so if anybody would know if there was a purpose or goal in life, it would be him.  However, he still found life to be completely worthless.  All was vanity.  His gardens, his servants, his flocks, his gold, and even his wisdom.  All to him was vanity.  How depressing! 

But interestingly, amid many of these depressing verses, Solomon also wrote wise and encouraging statements – statements of purpose and statements of how we should live our lives.  One of these statements is found in today’s verses.  Solomon said that because all was vanity, a person should simply eat, drink, and find enjoyment in his work.  That is how life should be lived.  Enjoy each day for what it is.  Live in the moment.  This sounds very worldly.  It sounds contrary to what Jesus tells us to do in laying up treasures in heaven.  But that is why it is important to read the following verses, “This also, I saw, is from the hand of God, for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment?  For to the one who pleases him God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy…”  Solomon made it clear that a person could only enjoy life by following and pleasing God.  Apart from God, there is no joy. 

God is the one who provides our food.  If He withheld it, we would starve.  God is the one who provides our drink.  If He withheld it, we would thirst.  God is the one who gives us a purpose and a goal in life.  If He did not direct us, we would be lost and wandering doing things that amount to nothing – that amount to vanity.  It is only by following and obeying God that we can please Him.  It is by doing His work, waiting on Him, that we can run and not be weary and walk and not faint (vs. 31). 

If you are feeling down, if you feel like there is no joy or purpose in life, if your work and toil feel heavy and vain, then I challenge you to examine your heart and ask whether you are living a life that is pleasing to God.  Because if you live a life that pleases Him, He will give you purpose and joy.  Only then can you truly enjoy life in the moment! 

One Purpose

1 Chronicles 12:33 – “Of Zebulun 50,000 seasoned troops, equipped for battle with all weapons of war, to help David with singleness of purpose.” 

It is said that one of the things that women do much better than men is multi-tasking.  They seem to be able to converse with a friend, read a magazine, watch a TV show, carry on some chores, and do some work all at the same time.  They have no difficulty in doing so.  Unfortunately, most men can’t do this well.  We need a singleness of mind – one goal and one task to finish at a time.  But whether you are good at multi-tasking or not, when you place too many goals and tasks at once, there is a tendency for them to be done half-heartedly and sloppy.  That is why whenever you have something very important to do that you focus on just the job at hand.

In our passage today, a historian records the number of troops that came from each tribe of Israel that joined David when he was ruling in Hebron.  One of the counts came from the tribe of Zebulun, which had an additional description.  In some versions, the description is translated along the lines of “…they were not of double heart” (KJV).  This translation seems to indicate that the troops of Zebulun had loyalty to only one king, David.  The other translation follows the wording in our passage today, “…to help David with singleness of purpose” (ESV).  This translation seems to indicate that the troops of Zebulun had only one purpose in life to help David their king.  Although these two translations can be seen as independent from each other, they can actually be closely linked, in that, the troops of Zebulun had one loyalty to David their king, and their loyalty consumed their lives to the point that they had only one purpose to serve their king.  Unlike most people today who have their loyalty and focus split in many different directions, these troops had only one desire that their king would be pleased.  This attitude surely helped them to be some of the mightiest troops in all the land and a blessing to their king.

We, as disciples of Jesus Christ, need to learn to be like these Zebulunites, which had a singleness of purpose.  As human beings, God made us with one purpose – to bring honor and glory to Him.  And this purpose is highlighted even more, when we give our lives to Christ as Savior and Lord, for we then willingly submit to His Kingship.  In Mark 12:30, Jesus Christ stated that the greatest commandment is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”  This commandment can simply be accomplished by having one loyalty and focus – Jesus Christ.  Like the Zebulunites, we should not have loyalty to any other masters, whether money, hobbies, family, work, or our own lives.  Like the Zebulunites, we should not have any other purpose like getting rich or famous, but should desire to just help our King to expand His kingdom.  A disciple of Jesus Christ will have a singleness of purpose that seeks to honor and glorify Christ.  What is your purpose?