Ecclesiastes 9:7-12
“Go eat your bread with enjoyment, and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has long ago approved what you do. Let your garments always be white; do not let oil be lacking on your head. Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that are given you under the sun, because that is your position in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.”
“Go eat your bread with enjoyment, and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has long ago approved what you do. Let your garments always be white; do not let oil be lacking on your head. Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that are given you under the sun, because that is your position in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.”
“Again I saw that under the sun the race
is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor the bread to the wise,
nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the skillful; but time and chance
happen to them all. For no one can anticipate the time of disaster. Like fish
taken in a cruel net, and like birds caught in a snare, so mortals are snared
at a time of calamity, when it suddenly falls upon them.”
Sermon:
15 years ago today, our nation
experienced the largest loss of life by a foreign attack on American soil since
the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. 2,996 people were killed and
another 6,000 were injured. Civilians, soldiers, and emergency responders were
all killed at the Word Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a field near
Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Since then, conservative estimates suggest that another
1.3 million people have died in the War on Terror.[1]
And that estimate doesn’t even include what has happened in Syria, something
some might connect to the shift the world underwent following that fateful day
15 years ago.
Today we take a moment to remember all
the fallen: soldiers, first responders, mothers, fathers, and children. We
especially remember the first responders who had to fight for healthcare after
contracting a number of serious diseases following their fight to save others
at the World Trade Center. We remember their sacrifices and public service. May
we continue to respond to their sacrifice with equal portions of generosity.
Earlier this week I read a story about
the two fighter pilots who were attached to the Air National Guard unit near
Washington, D.C. After the first two planes hit, they were scrambled and
ordered to take down the third jetliner despite the fact that neither of their
planes had live ammunition. One of those two fighter pilots were the first
female to ever pilot an F-16 in her squadron. The other was her commander. Both
scrambled that morning assuming that were embarking on a suicide – kamikaze – mission
to protect our nation’s capital from United Flight 93. The commander told his
subordinate that he was going to aim for the cockpit, while the second pilot
stated that she would aim for the fuselage – burying her own life in an attempt
to protect the capital. As most of us know, the passengers of Flight 93 took
matters into their own hands, overwhelmed the hijackers, and forced the plane
to crash land in a small Pennsylvania field far from its intended target. The
two fighter pilots went on later that day to escort Air Force One and enforce a
no-fly zone over Washington, D.C.
These are tales of bravery, sacrifice,
and public service. Their stories will long live in our national memory. But
they are also messages of warning. They tell us that life is not always
predictable. Sometimes, when our eyes are most attuned to the airspace that
could carry ICBM’s from our traditional enemies, we get hit from places we
never would have expected. Life can throw us curveballs and we never really
know what fate has in store for us. So it’s with this in mind that I chose this
week’s scripture.
In this morning’s scripture reading we
heard from two separate, yet related, sections of the author’s developing
thoughts. In the first, we hear him tell us that we should do what we can to
enjoy life while we are still able to do so.[2] In
the second, we hear him tell us that time and chance hamper all of us
regardless of strength, intelligence, or skill.[3] We
cannot anticipate the times at which we will face hardship or death. We all
share together a common fate, regardless of character, privilege, or the lack
of such things.[4] Yet, we also are given an
opportunity. Verse 9 tells us that our portion in this life is to enjoy life
and to make the best of our work and our pleasure. Life is something that we
cannot hold onto forever and so we must make the most of the present.
When we hear this second part of this
morning’s scripture, we come to hear a reality that we all know to be true.
Life does not have prescribed rules that guarantee success. We don’t control
time and we cannot predict the accidents that shape our existence. We are
especially incapable of predicting when a tragedy will strike that may put an
end to someone’s ability to enjoy life, achieve goals, or to fulfill their
potential. The author of Ecclesiastes relates this experience to two common
images. People are like fish and birds. Both species wander about innocently
and just live their lives. Yet, both can be caught. The trap might be sprung or
the net drawn in at any time. It is not only the fully mature who will be
caught, but anyone whom fate provides. That’s why we, like the fish of the sea
and the birds of the air, must make the most of the time we are given. We don’t
know when our time will come so we need to make the most of every moment.
This morning I want to lay out several
ways that we can implement this biblical reminder to make the most of what
we’ve been given.
· Be engaged – everyday gives us many new opportunities.
We don’t know when those opportunities will never be around again. We should
try to make the most of them.
· Be positive – life can throw us more than we can
handle – more than our spirits can bear. But God also stands there with us
during our trials and helps us through them. No matter what it is – be it
mental illness, substance abuse, work troubles, or grief we should all remember
the words, “I can do all things, through Christ who strengthens me.”[5] If
you’re struggling it might be helpful to reflect on that verse and seek out
positive communities of love that can help you. God wants us to help each
other.
· Be a servant – psychologists have long noted that
being kind and empathetic to others, serving them, can benefit you. It doesn’t
just release endorphins and make you feel good about yourself, although it does
that too. It also helps make you more grateful for what you have and helps you
focus less on the problems that are occupying your attention. “In
fact, studies have found that when people with medical conditions (e.g.,
cancer, chronic pain) "counsel" other patients with those same
conditions, the "counselors" often experience less depression,
distress, and disability.”[6] Being helpful and
empathetic to others has even been shown to improve physical health.
· Be all you can be – most of us have probably heard the
phrase. It’s been used a lot in Army advertisements over the years, but it
expresses a wonderful element of human potential. We all have opportunity and
we should do our best to make the most of it. Life is about thriving in what we
have been given. So the best we can do is to try and grow into the best version
of ourselves that we can be.
If we pay attention to the messages that Jesus gave
his disciples it’s very clear that he didn’t want to make their lives
miserable. That’s not what Christianity is about. He wanted to help them make
their lives more abundant and enjoyable. Following Christ doesn’t save us from
the enemy we call death, but it does enrich our lives with meaning, community,
and hope. It tells us that although we may die, we will be raised again and
given the opportunity to live in a better world – one where all of our species’
faults and weaknesses are gone. As Paul who wrote in a letter to the
Corinthians:[7]
“What
is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. 43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory.
It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a physical body, it is raised a
spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 Thus it is written, “The first man, Adam, became
a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. 46 But it is not the spiritual that is first, but
the physical, and then the spiritual. 47 The
first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is[j] from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so are those who are of
the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. 49 Just as we have borne the image of the man of
dust, we will[k] also bear the image of the man of heaven.”
“50 What I am saying, brothers and sisters,[l] is this: flesh and blood cannot inherit the
kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Listen, I will tell you a mystery! We will not
all die,[m] but we will all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the
last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised
imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For
this perishable body must put on imperishability, and this mortal body must put
on immortality. 54 When this
perishable body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on
immortality, then the saying that is written will be fulfilled:”
“Death
has been swallowed up in victory.”
55 “Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”
55 “Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”
We
share in the fate of our Common Ancestors – Adam and Eve. We are human. But God
loved us so much that he became human too; and in doing so, he offered us a way
to escape the pit we call death. He offers us the opportunity to live
abundantly in this life, as Ecclesiastes does, but he also offers us the
opportunity to be raised from the dead too. God is in the business bringing
dead things back to life. The world may be broken and diseased, but God has a
plan to heal creation and wrap us back into a better plan and a more beautiful
cosmos.
But all of this goes back to a very
simple lesson. In the fact of death and life’s seeming meaninglessness, we
should all embrace the good life – both in our work and in our play. We need to
embrace life with passion because it is God’s gift to us in this moment. We are
gifted with the opportunity to make the most of our portion, if we will only
rise to the opportunity. May we rise to this opportunity and sow where there is
dessert. May we rise to this opportunity and reap where there is harvest. May
we rise to this opportunity and pray where there is confusion. May we rise to
this opportunity and embrace all people as family. May we rise to greatest
opportunity we could ever have and embrace the chance to participate in God’s
healing work over all of creation. Amen.
[1]
Physicians for Social Responsibility, “Body Count: Casualty Figures after 10 Years
of the ‘War on Terror’” (March 2015) http://www.psr.org/assets/pdfs/body-count.pdf
[2] Ecclesiastes
9:7-10.
[3] Ecclesiastes
9:11-12.
[4] Ecclesiastes
9:1-6.
[5] Philippians 4:13.
[6] Sherrie Borg
Carter, Helper’s High: The Benefits (and
risks) of Altruism, Sept 4th 2014: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/high-octane-women/201409/helpers-high-the-benefits-and-risks-altruism
[7] I Corinthians
15:42-55.
No comments:
Post a Comment