Nothing Better: Part 1 (3)
And I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven; this burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be exercised. Ecclesiastes 1.13
God and the good
We have established that God—Who created all things and Who, according to Scripture, keeps everything going (Eph. 1.11; Heb. 1.3)—has an idea about “good.” As He finished each day of His work creating the cosmos and its inhabitants, He paused to pronounce His work and the products of it, “good.” And at the end, when all creation was finished and ready, God described it as “very good.”
So in His mind, God has an idea about “good”—what it is, what it consists of, and how one might go about knowing and embodying it. We’re in pursuit of the most important question anyone can ask, “What’s the greatest good I can do with my life?” And since God has weighed in on this subject, we who know Him should be quick to turn to Him for guidance in achieving an answer.
But there’s the problem. At least for many Christians. Many who profess to believe in Jesus, and probably do have a sincere faith in Him, are unskilled at discovering God’s will from His Word. They look to pastors and teachers to open it to them, but these shepherds don’t always address the issues that are most on people’s minds. And our skills at the discipline of feeding on God’s Word from treasures Old and New are undeveloped and, in many cases, inconsistently employed or poorly used. Such an approach to reading and studying God’s Word may “get us by” (in our own thinking), but it will not suffice to guide us in understanding the really important issues of life.
Like what God means by the term “good” and hence what constitutes a “good” work or a “good” life.
As believers, we know that God has redeemed us by grace through faith so that we should do good works (Eph. 2.8-10) and be zealous and ready for them (Tit. 2.13, 14; 3.1). And we also know that, increasingly, God seeks to bring forth His notion of “good” through every aspect of our lives, as one of the fruit of His indwelling Spirit at work within us, willing and doing of His pleasure (Gal. 5.22, 23; Phil. 2.13).
But still—how do we get at this? How can we discover an idea of “good” that fits who we are and what we do, reflects the thinking of Jesus (1 Cor. 2.16), and empowers us to answer the most important question anyone can ask?
We look to the wise, that’s how.
Solomon’s credentials
By many—if not all—accounts, Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived. Not perfect, no, not by a long shot. But wise, so wise that emissaries and ambassadors and monarchs came to him from all over the world to hear his wisdom and carry it back to their countries (1 Kgs. 10). Even Jesus commended the greatness of Solomon and his wisdom (Matt. 12.42).
We’ll get to the “greater than Solomon” matter in due course. For now, let’s ask how Solomon managed to become so wise. If we’re going to turn to him for wisdom in answering the most important question anyone can ask, we should understand the source of his wisdom so that we can emulate it ourselves. After all, Solomon is only going to give us so much insight for answering our question. If we don’t acquire some of the wisdom he had, we won’t know how to live the answer to our question once we’ve found it.
Solomon took four steps to gain his world-impressing wisdom.
First, he sought it in prayer (1 Kgs. 3.3-12). Probably more than once. Wisdom comes from God, Who has an idea about “good”, so if we want wisdom, we’d better get in the habit of seeking it in prayer. For everything. Every day. More and more.
Second, Solomon applied himself to studying about wisdom (Eccl. 1.13). He desired to study, setting his heart on doing so. He sought learning about everything he could. Such study was difficult, as he acknowledged, but he knew that God had appointed it to people to study to be wise, so he pressed on at it.
Third, Solomon lived what he was learning, and not always as he should have, as we read in Ecclesiastes 2. But he did more things wisely than foolishly and, at the end of his life, seems to have understood his errors and come around to true wisdom, which he counsels all who read him to know and follow.
Finally, Solomon reflected on what he was learning and shared it with others. He wrote scads of Proverbs and who knows what else. He wrote about everything he was studying—buildings, farming, music and the arts, human psychology, everyday life, flora and fauna and other aspects of creation. Everything! Writing down what you’re learning helps to deepen the impression of knowledge. And sharing what you’re learning with others refines learning toward its proper application in wisdom.
Solomon’s observations
So, what did Solomon, in all his wisdom, come to know about the greatest thing any of us can do in this life? Let’s let him answer in his own words:
“Nothing is better for a man than that he should eat and drink, and that his soul should enjoy good in his labor. This also, I saw, was from the hand of God” (Eccl. 2.24).
“I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God” (Eccl. 3.12, 13).
“So I perceived that nothing is better than that a man should rejoice in his own works, for that is his heritage. For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?” (Eccl. 3.22).
“So I commended enjoyment, because a man has nothing better under the sun than to eat, drink, and be merry; for this will remain with him in his labor all the days of his life which God gives him under the sun.” (Eccl. 8.15).
We’ll be unpacking Solomon’s observations as we continue seeking an answer to our question.
Search the Scriptures
1. Meditate on the four passages from Solomon listed above. How do we know he’s addressing the question of the “greatest good” that anyone can do?2. What do these passages seem to have in common?
3. How do they differ?
Next steps—Preparation: How would you describe your practice of seeking, studying, living, and sharing wisdom? Where should you improve?
T. M. 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).
How should joy affect our lives as Christians? Our booklet, Joy to Your World!, can show you how both to know more of the Lord’s joy and to invite others into it as well. Order your copy by clicking here.
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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.
