Daily Bible Devotionals

“Indeed, I took all this to heart and explained it all: the righteous, the wise, and their works are in God’s hands.  People don’t know whether to expect love or hate.  Everything lies ahead of them.  Everything is the same for everyone: there is one fate for the righteous and the wicked, for the good and the bad, for the clean and the unclean, for the one who sacrifices and the one who does not sacrifice.  As it is for the good, so it is for sinner; as for the one who takes an oath, so for the one who fears an oath.  This is an evil in all that is done under the sun: there is one fate for everyone.  In addition, the hearts of people are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live – after that, they go to the dead.” Ecclesiastes 9:1-3 (HCSB)

On a fly-over, today’s passage may seem depressing.  Solomon tells us that all people can expect the same end: death.  Whether you live righteously or wickedly, everyone will die.  Job professed it poetically and with blunt acceptance:

“And He said: ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there.  The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.’” Job 1:21 (NKJV)

But where both Job and Solomon stopped short was that they omitted the obvious follow-up question: And then what?  Sure, we all die, but what happens after we die?  The writer of the New Testament book of Hebrews gives the answer.

“And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment…” Hebrews 9:27 (NKJV)

So, there is life after life.  Death is not the end; it's just the end of our lives on Earth.  And, while our righteousness in this life (even righteousness through Jesus) does not necessarily save us from experiencing physical death, it does ensure the believer can stand before the Lord, justified, on the Day He passes judgment.  In simple terms, Heaven awaits those who can pass that judgment.  And what happens to those whom the judgment of God finds guilty?  The essence of “judgment” is that those who do not meet a legal standard must suffer the penalty of falling short of the law.

The point Solomon is making in today’s passage is that all the stuff we may acquire in this world is meaningless, given that nobody can take it with them to the grave.  You may have been successful in business or education in this world, but how will that help you escape the judgment of God?  For the unbeliever, this world is as close to Heaven as they will ever come, so I understand why they would try and get all they can now.  But for the believer, this world is as close to Hell as they ever have to get. And that reality allows us to live joyfully, which may contradict our circumstances.

“Listen, my beloved brethren: has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?” James 2:5 (NKJV)

“Then I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of holiness, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done. This also is vanity. Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. Though a sinner does evil a hundred times, and his days are prolonged, yet I surely know that it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before Him.” Ecclesiastes 8:10-13 (NKJV)

Late Winter/early Spring of 2011, I had just arrived in Israel when news broke that the citizens of Egypt were rioting in Cairo.  By the time I left Israel, Egypt’s leader Hosni Mubarak had been deposed, and a defacto government run by the Muslim Brotherhood was forming.  But it did not stop there.  In what would later be called “Arab Spring” (the period of time between late 2011-2014), the leaders of Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Yemen were ousted.  Syria and Bahrain went into civil turmoil, the governments of Kuwait, Lebanon, and Oman changed, and Morocco and Jordan implemented constitutional reforms.  Judgment day had come for Middle Eastern dictators! One of the things that puzzled Western political analysts for decades was how the people tolerated totalitarian authority for so long!  Was there truly a God who judges sin?  And if so, why did He wait so long?

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 (NKJV)

Yes, God is gracious and merciful, but there is a time appointed when His Justice must eclipse Grace and Mercy, or else He is not holy.

“Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.” Acts 17:30-31 (NKJV)

Will men and women heed the warnings of the Bible?  Only time will tell. But, sadly, many will be wooed into believing they have more time to repent, only to be caught off guard by events that have been predicted for thousands of years.  Not just non-believers but church attenders as well.  Surrender to Jesus while there is still time!  

“As for you, son of man, the children of your people are talking about you beside the walls and in the doors of the houses; and they speak to one another, everyone saying to his brother, ‘Please come and hear what the word is that comes from the Lord.’ So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them. And when this comes to pass - surely it will come - then they will know that a prophet has been among them.” Ezekiel 33:30-33 (NKJV)

Grab your Bible & experience the Groundworks Ministries Podcast as Steve Wiggins leads us through the full chapter of Ecclesiastes 7. Click the links below to watch or listen now!

“There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, and it is common among men: A man to whom God has given riches and wealth and honor, so that he lacks nothing for himself of all he desires; yet God does not give him power to eat of it, but a foreigner consumes it.  This is vanity, and it is an evil affliction.” Ecclesiastes 6:1-2 (NKJV)

When I was a boy, my friend's father owned a restaurant across town.  They happened to also be our next-door neighbors.  I had always wanted to eat at their restaurant, but my folks would never take me.  Well, one summer, when I was eight years old (4th of July weekend, to be exact), my friend’s family invited me to eat with them at their establishment.  When I asked my mom and dad, they said, “No.”  I was so mad!  So, I walked next door, told my friend’s father that my folks said, “Yes,” got into their car, sunk down in my seat, out of view, and drove away with them.  Furthermore, I took my birthday money ($20) with the intent of spending it all at the “buy one, get one free” fireworks stand my friend’s dad said they were going to visit.

Let’s just say the whole trip took longer than I had hoped. It was way past dinnertime when I arrived back home, full of good food and holding a grocery sack full of fireworks.  That is when I found out that my parents had called the police, and the whole neighborhood was searching for “the lost Wiggins boy.”  It was also when I found out that the Shreveport Louisiana Sheriff’s Department recommends that parents whip their children with leather belts in such circumstances. At least they did back then.  But the worst part was when my parents made me watch as my brother and sister were allowed to shoot off all my fireworks.  Very slowly and sadistically.

So, believe me when I tell you that I internalize today’s passage deeply.  I did not feel my parents were being fair by letting my siblings enjoy the instruments of my wealth.  Sometimes, we feel the same about God.  We work hard, only to see someone else enjoy the fruits of our labor.  We cry out, “God is not fair!”  But the reality is that God is not “fair.”  He is “just.”  Fairness implies that everyone should get the same amount, the same income, the same house, the same health, etc.  Justice promises that everyone will ultimately be weighed according to the same standard: God’s Word.

Personally, I am glad that God is not fair because that would mean that everyone would have to stand under the full force of His judgment, which brings up another attribute of God’s character: His gracious and merciful Love.

In terms of what we deserve for our labors, the Bible tells us that the “wages of sin is death.”  But because God is loving and not willing that anyone would perish, He poured out His judgment upon Jesus on the Roman cross.  Jesus paid a debt He did not owe in order to pay a debt we could not afford so that we could stand before God, justified.

Another concept that is misunderstood in our culture is that of wealth and peace.  Our culture says that if a man works hard and obtains wealth, wealth will bring him peace.  But what profits a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul? (Mark 8:36)

“Guard your steps when you go to the house of God.  Better to draw near in obedience than to offer the sacrifice as fools do, for they ignorantly do wrong.  Do not be hasty to speak, and do not be impulsive to make a speech before God.  God is in Heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.  For dreams result from much work and a fool’s voice from many words.”  Ecclesiastes 5:1-3 (HCSB)

Years ago, when I was in college, I used to work summers at the Whirlpool refrigerator plant.  It was a great experience, paid well, and made me glad to return to school in the fall!  One phenomenon that occurs to assembly line workers is that when they go to sleep at night, they dream of working on the assembly line…and their dreams are usually focused on a scenario where they can’t keep up with the pace of the conveyor belt.  It’s kind of depressing to work all day and dream about work all night.  But as I said, it's a shared dream.  So common that the Bible mentions it in today’s passage: Dreams result from much work.

Today’s passage also tells us that a fool’s voice results from many words.  I am a professional singer, so I am always happy to hear when a young singer has spent time practicing and finally finds their voice.  Nobody is happy when a fool finds his voice.  Have you ever been around a person who never stops talking?  Anyone can be chatty on any particular day, but there are some people who never stop!  Personally, I try and avoid such people, not because I don’t want to carry on a conversation with them, but because I CAN’T carry on a conversation with them.  I can’t get in a word edgewise.  The Bible calls such endless speech “foolish.”

It is even more foolish when we approach the Lord with such speech.  I am not saying we should not petition the Lord; we should do so often.  I’m simply relaying God’s Word to you.  A recent UCLA Study focusing on the rise of spirituality on college campuses discovered that only 13% of college students sought “spirituality” to learn what God required of them.  The vast majority only sought “spirituality” for what God could do for them.  Going before the Lord with a list of demands and accusations is equivalent to being “hasty to speak” and “impulsive to make a speech before God.”

Yes, the Lord wants us to petition and beseech Him, but we must always keep in mind the reality of our relationship with Him.  He is God in Heaven, and we are His creatures on earth.  From this perspective, we are more likely to guard our steps and draw near to Him in reverent obedience.   Obedience to what?  To His revealed Word, the Bible.  

It is through God’s Word that we know Who He is and where we fit into the whole equation.  It is through God’s Word that we learn what He requires of us and how to approach Him.  And it is knowledge of God’s Word that quiets the heart and stills the tongue, for we babble, mostly, out of ignorance and anxiety.  It is God’s Word that transforms fools into followers.

“Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labor.  For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.  But woe to him who is alone when he falls.  For he has no one to lift him up.  Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm;  But how can one be warm alone?  Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him.  And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”  Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NKJV)

I used to work on the staff of a fairly large church in Southern California.  The church was located in an area of So-Cal called "The Inland Empire” (aka The IE).   Forty minutes inland from Newport Beach and forty minutes from Palm Springs, the Inland Empire is a "settling" place.  If you’re tired of the high premium lifestyle of Orange County, but you’re not ready to retire in the desert, you’re probably looking for a more affordable way of life in-between.   That’s the IE.

For some reason, the IE is also a haven for homeless people.  Almost every major street intersection hosts someone holding a sign, begging.  Along many sidewalks, it is common to see a person pushing a shopping cart chocked full of their life’s possessions.  

One afternoon, I was on my way to lunch with one of our church’s pastors when he remarked that he used to be homeless.  I’d never had a conversation with a former homeless person.  So, I asked him two questions: 1) How did you become homeless? And 2) How did you get free from what seems to be an irreversible downturn?

His answer to the first question was simple.  “I became homeless because I burned all my relationships.”  He said that it all began by living selfishly and unaccountably.  Once he burned through all his close personal relationships, he was only left with convenient “party” relationships.  Eventually, his unaccountable lifestyle led to the loss of his job.  No money meant the loss of his party friends.  Then he turned to desperate means of hustling for money in parking lots and theft to survive.  He lived in his car.  Then, the car broke down.  One day, he returned from begging to find his “home” (car) had been towed.  Homeless.

So, how did he journey back to the point where he was a pastor on a major church staff?  Someone shared the gospel with him.  And from rock bottom, he entered into a personal relationship with Messiah Jesus.  He began reading the Bible and praying.  He became accountable to the Lord for his thoughts and actions.  That led to new personal relationships with other believers, a roommate, and eventually a job, car, wife, and kids.

We don’t have to be without a house to be homeless.  Many people are spiritually and emotionally “homeless.”  But it doesn’t have to be that way.  Followers of Jesus always have a family to love them and a home awaiting them. (John 14:2-3)

“I have seen the task God has given humanity to keep us occupied.  He has made everything suited to its time; also, He has given human beings awareness of eternity, but in such a way that they can’t fully comprehend, from beginning to end, the things He does.  Know that there is nothing better for them to do than to be happy and enjoy themselves as long as they live.  Still, the fact that everyone can eat and drink and enjoy the good that results from all his work is a gift from God.  I know that whatever God does will last forever; there is nothing to add or subtract from it; and God has done it so that people will fear Him.”  Ecclesiastes 3:10-14 (CJB)

Humanity is a collection of people under grace.  That is not to say that everyone on earth follows Jesus and is saved.  I am simply saying that whenever sinful people are in clear view of the all-seeing Holy God, it is only by His grace and mercy that they remain un-judged and alive.  Solomon knew this quite well.  In today’s passage, he observed the simple fact that a person can “eat and drink and enjoy the good results from all his work” is due to God’s grace, His gift to both believer and unbeliever.

So, why is God so gracious?  Why does He delay judgment on the earth?  Because He wants people to choose Him, to believe in Him, or as the Bible puts it: to FEAR Him.

“The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness.  He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 (NIV)

And what, exactly, does it mean to “fear” God?  It means to honor, respect, worship, and revere Him.  Much more than the everyday pedestrian “respect” we may give another person, to “fear” the Lord is to acknowledge that He is the Creator and we are creatures; He is Lord, and we are slaves.  His Way is the only way, and any course corrections we might make in order to deviate from His way would be errant and never lead us to a right relationship with Him.  Fearing God is foundational to our salvation, joy, and success.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1:7 (NKJV)

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.”  Psalm 111:10 (NKJV)

Fearing the Lord carries the attitude which proclaims, “This may not feel right, but because I trust God and believe His Word, I will live according to His instruction and in the hope of His promises, given to all who faithfully follow Him.”  In fact, today’s passage claims that mankind cannot fully comprehend eternity; therefore, to fear God is also to faithfully admit that eternity lies in His hands.  His alone is the power to eternally save or destroy.  Yet, He chooses to extend forgiveness.  Will you choose Him?

“There is nothing better for a man than to eat, drink, and enjoy his work.  I have seen even this is from God’s hand, because who can eat and who can enjoy life apart from Him?  For to the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy, but to the sinner He gives the task of gathering and accumulating in order to give the one who is pleasing in God’s sight.  This too is futile and a pursuit of the wind.” Ecclesiastes 2:24-26 (HCSB)

“If your only goal is to become rich, you will never achieve it.” - John D. Rockefeller

Surely, there must be more to life than the acquisition of stuff.  Yet, “just a little more” seems to be the mantra of American culture.  Greed and gluttony are most certainly at the epicenter of our nation’s current financial dilemma.

It’s not hard to find a rich man, but have you ever found a satisfied one?  Rock stars and actors are among the most depressed people around.  You see, the more we acquire, the less the “emptiness” is satisfied.  Contented men and women are surely rare these days.  

I am reminded of the story of a simple Mexican fisherman.  One day, the Mexican was fishing on the river’s shore, minding his own affairs, when a vacationing American businessman approached him.  “Sir,” the American asserted, “I have been watching you from down the river.  During that time, you have caught five fish for every one I have caught; and all your fish are twice the size of mine.  What is your secret?”

“Señior,” the Mexican replied, “I have been fishing here my whole life.  I know all the places the fish swim throughout the day.”

Impressed, the American hired the Mexican to take him fishing for the day, and it turned out better than he had imagined.  Afterwards, the American paid his guide well and asked the Mexican about his life.

Shyly, the Mexican told his new amigo he had a simple life; he woke up in the morning and caught a few fish.  He kept enough to eat, and the few he had left, he sold in the market.  Afterwards, he went home and enjoyed a siesta with his wife.  In the evenings, he would stroll to the village square, drink wine and play guitar with his friends.

“What a tremendous wasted opportunity,” the American exclaimed.  “Did you know that you could make a lot of money guiding fishing trips?  And with that money, you could buy a boat and eventually a fleet of fishing vessels.  Then, you could open a cannery and export the fish you haul in all over the world!  You could become very rich.”

“What would I do then?” asked the Mexican.

Proudly, the American retorted, “Well, then you could retire and make your own rules.  You could wake up in the morning, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife, and in the evenings, drink wine and play guitar with your friends at the village square…” Be content.

“The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. ‘Vanity of vanities,’ says the Preacher; ‘Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.’ What profit has a man from all his labor in which he toils under the sun? One generation passes away, and another generation comes; but the earth abides forever.” Ecclesiastes 1:3-4 (NKJV)

It is important for people to believe their lives have purpose and that the energy spent working toward that purpose makes a difference in the world.  We don’t necessarily need to drastically change the world.  We can typically find happiness in knowing that our lives are making a positive impact in some aspect of it.  Or, perhaps, we simply need to know that we matter to someone and that our presence on earth brings someone joy.  That question about “what profit has a man from all his labor” was something King Solomon wrestled with.  Through Solomon’s life example in Scripture (and his own words today), we learn that it is quite possible to become extremely successful and recognized and respected by throngs of people yet feel completely empty and purposeless.  This was not just a personal journal thought of Solomon’s that we discovered under his pillow after he died.  Solomon included this message in Psalm 12, a song of Ascents.  That meant that when the Israelites were ascending to worship the Lord at the temple in Jerusalem, Solomon wanted them to deeply consider and contrast their labor in the world with their labor for the Lord.

“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so He gives His beloved sleep. Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate.” Psalm 127:1-5 (NKJV)

Messiah Jesus expanded on these exact same passages to underscore the utmost importance of denying the vanity of temporary, flesh-pleasing, worldly pursuit in favor of the eternal value of temporary persecution involved in Kingdom-building.

“When he had called the people to Himself, with his disciples also, he said to them, ‘Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when he comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” Mark 8:34-38 (NKJV)

Vanity is investing in an earthly kingdom which leads to hell and hinders the next generation.  Godliness is laboring for the gospel and ensuring our kids do, as well!