Ecclesiastes 3:11 “He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.”
In the beginning God…..
Before the Creator of heaven and earth formed anything we know, He was.
When we consider the balance of life, there is a beginning and end to all things. The idea is one that dominates our existence, we are born naked and helpless and if we live long enough we leave this world as we entered. It’s not easy wrapping our minds around an idea that doesn’t involve a set measure of time and yet there is a reality that defies our perception.
Solomon reminded anyone who would listen…you must consider life as it pertains to eternity if you are to maintain a right perspective.
Alexander Maclaren noted that within Ecclesiastes the Preacher has been “enumerating all the various vicissitudes of prosperity and adversity, of construction and destruction, of society and solitude, of love and hate, for which there is a scope and convergance into one short human life. His conclusion…. because there is such an endless diversity of possible occupations, and each of them lasts but for a little time, their opposite has as good a right of existence as itself.
‘In our embers is something that doth live.’
We grow old and grey, our hands become wrinkled, our bodies ache, and the youthful vigor we once knew passes with time. We are reminded almost daily of the brevity of life and that everything must pass, but when it all comes down to it we realize, there is something more.
In the heart, the inmost spiritual being of every man, eternity, in the sense of the word, does dwell.”–Mclaren
The Immortal Guest
Within the framework of society lies an eternal foundation, but if you don’t know where to look, you’ll miss it.
Psalm 103:15-18 “As for man, his days are like grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
For the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
And its place remembers it no more.
But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting
On those who fear Him,
And His righteousness to children’s children,
To such as keep His covenant,
And to those who remember His commandments to do them.”
Within the framework of our bodies dwells the image of God. The spirit of man is the only element of existence that does not perish with time. Immortality is not some elusive antidote to the brevity of life, it is there already and dwells within us like a guest that awaits its day.
It seems that most if not all experience the rise and fall of life, from prosperity to adversity, yet few can claim to have been insulated from its grip. But what can we say… is life only about surviving this seemingly endless cycle of joy and pain, only to find at the end it was all for not?
The reminder comes that there exists a greater purpose, an eternal purpose that can be grasped by the prince or the pauper. It is those who attempt to suppress the Truth of God and deny His existence that causes hopelessness in those who seek for more.
Romans 1:18-19 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.”
The Spark of Eternity
If the spirit of man is the tinder of what is to come, the Spirit of God is the spark that lights the flame of righteousness.
How is that flame set afire?
The infilling of the Holy Spirit can only happen in the one who is made worthy. Being made worthy is not an action that is acquired but a gift that is given.
Jesus is the only way to gain access into this eternity of true life.
For those who have accepted Jesus’ measure of grace, the fire of the Spirit burns deep within the soul. It is appreciably distinguished from the fake attempts the world uses to masquerade as fulfillment. All the world can supply is a cheap substitute that bears no lasting value. Alcohol numbs the pain of hopelessness, drugs blur the lines of a reality that can’t measure up, relationships promise a false hope, and entertainment is only for a moment.
The life of Christ is indelibly linked to life, hope, and peace.
Luke 24:32 “And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”
What was the burning the disciples of Jesus experienced on the road to Emmaus?
Proximity to Jesus is confirmed by the Spirit of God in man.
The knowledge of the eternal has been revealed and this revelation was formed from the beginning.
Consider your history and recognize the path of Life.
The Circle of Creation
- Creation—It all began in the garden. God created man and formed woman, the union of His creation was perfect until sin entered in and then came death…spiritually.
- God abided—in His people who revea His name among the world and the revelation of righteousness as founded through His law.
- Jesus came—what the first Adam could not do by flesh alone, Jesus as the last Adam accomplished. Perfection bridged the divide that sin created and communion with God became very personal.
- The church—carries with it the image of the eternal value of Christ in us, the hope of glory, beckoning anyone who might join in.
- The New Creation—has taken seed in those born again and will be formed on the earth again one day. God’s people will dwell with Him in perfection as Adam once did and the eternal nature of life will be realized by those whom God has called blessed forever.
Isaiah 46:8-10 “Remember this, and show yourselves men;
Recall to mind, O you transgressors.
Remember the former things of old,
For I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like Me,
Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things that are not yet done,
Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
And I will do all My pleasure”
Enter in…
The hope of mankind can only be entered into by one door.
Jesus is that door.
John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
Without Christ, your life will remain on the outside looking in, the eternal nature of life remaining as only a “what might have been”. Hell will be a time of eternal regret for those who lived for worldly pleasure. In the end finding the short thrill ride is over far too quickly and nothing remains.
Do you want to dwell in eternal torment or with the eternal God of glory who formed you and loves you?
Sin is what keeps people from this reality. Unbelief dominates the way. A lack of trust, selfish pride…you name it, it all steals your future. There is nothing you can do to absolve yourself from the clutches of sin’s judgement, only the perfect sacrifice of Christ can fulfill the requirement.
The cycle of life will end just like the universe God created and all who remain are God’s people…where will you be in that day?
U.T. 