UPPERMOST IN THE MINDS OF MOST MATURE CHRISTIANS IS “WHAT MATTERS MOST”
Mother Teresa was born in 1910 in Macedonia. At a young age, she felt called to be a nun and help the poor. At the age of 18, she was trained for missionary service in India.
At first she was a teacher; however, the poverty in Calcutta motivated her to start a new order called “The Missionaries of Charity”. Her objective was to look after people nobody else looked after. She felt that a fundamental principle of the teachings of Jesus is to serve Christ by doing what she could for “the least of these”.
Moved by the plight of the poor, she left the convent to live full-time among the poor people in Calcutta. For many years, she and a small band of fellow nuns survived on minimal income and food. In 1952 she opened her first home for the dying, helping people to die with dignity. Her work spread around the world so that now there are 700 missions in over 130 countries in her name - including orphanages for children and hospices for the dying.
Mother Teresa’s recognitions include The Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, Congressional Gold Medal, and Honorary citizenship of the United States in 1996. In 1997 she stated her strong Christian conviction: “A nation that kills its babies has lost its soul.”
Uppermost in the mind of Mother Teresa and in the minds of most mature Christians is: What Matters Most is life and everything else that is of God and has eternal value.
Meaning in life is not to be found in recognitions or possessions or prestige or power or pleasure, but, in obedience to God’s will, to be and do what He wants us to be and do, no matter where we live and move and have our being - whether we live in Calcutta, India or Jonesboro, Georgia. “Only to be what He wants me to be every moment of everyday . . .” Folks:
We have lived a long life, and we have done our best to contribute to the well-being and advancement of our families in particular and society in general. Most of us have served the Lord in and through His Church and in our task of bringing up children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
And now, during our home stretch years, we have the time to do a Life Review (which I encourage you to do) and to thank God for the memories and privileges that have been ours - while continuing to make memories . . .
Perhaps your epitaph and mine will read like that of Israel’s greatest king: “David, after he served God’s purpose in his own generation, fell asleep.” (Acts 13:36)
We were born to serve God’s purpose! In his book, The Purpose-Driven Life, Rick Warren reminds Christians: “You are not an accident. Even before the universe was created, God had you in mind, and he shaped you for His purposes. These purposes will extend far beyond the years you spend on earth. You were made to last forever!” Solomon put it this way: “God has planted eternity in the human heart.” (Eccl. 3:11)
As Solomon approached the “end of his days”, his heart’s desire was to encourage generations after him to understand fully what matters most.
Known for his secular as well as spiritual wisdom, Solomon learned that a lot of the things of this world intended to give security, happiness, and a sense of well-being have little if any lasting value. Like the morning mist, the material part of life is vaporized in the heat of the day – when put to the test of reality.
The wisest person in history thought about: his possessions . . . his power and prestige . . . his pleasures: He had accumulated great wealth . . . become the most admired man in the world . . . had nothing pleasurable withheld from him -but he concluded: None of these things has eternal value.
You can’t take it with you! You never saw a hearse pulling a U-Haul trailer!
As we make our way through Ecclesiastes, you may be prone to feel a little depressed by what you read; but let me put it in a positive light with a quote from a sign hanging on the wall of my CPA’s office (where my income tax returns were filed): “Not to spoil the ending for you, but everything is going to be okay.” So . . .
Let’s wade into the “words of the searcher, son of David, king in Jerusalem”, with a view toward the positive outcome that not only awaits us at the end of the book but also at the end of our journey here on this earth! Ecclesiastes 1:1-14 . . .
It’s actually easy to see what this wealthy, admired man of valor and honor tried to get people of common sense to understand:
There are negative consequences to living one’s life without a spiritual connection, with no purpose beyond providing for survival needs.
The “searcher” and author of this book was at a disadvantage compared to the advantage we have --- our position of looking back to the Messiah of God who came . . . lived . . . died for our sins, thereby introducing new meaning into life.
Whereas Solomon could only think in terms of trusting in the Lord to make things right someday, Christians can literally make the point: “Life without Christ is meaningless”. Either way, Solomon’s recurring theme in Ecclesiastes is on target: Life without God has no purpose “under the sun”.
(Adaptation of G. Campbell Morgan’s take on this repetitive phrase by Solomon):
“This man had been living through all his experiences ‘under the sun’ concerned with nothing ‘above the sun’. He did this until there came a moment of truth in which he reviewed his life. And indeed there was nothing ‘under the sun’ in and of itself that could satisfy one’s deepest longings. For, you see, it is only as we take account of that which is over the sun as well as that which is under the sun that things under the sun are seen in their true light.”
To focus solely on that which is “under the sun” – the visible world along with the things of this world – is to miss the mark of the Lord God’s purpose for bringing the earth and all that dwell thereon into existence. From cover to cover, the Bible tells us: Life is a journey with purpose! Solomon discovered that, without purpose:
Life seems pointless like trying to write with a pencil that has no lead . . .
Life seems circular (going around in circles) like a cat chasing its tail . . .
Life seems dissatisfying as if all the stuff we have to make life easier is not good enough, so we must have more stuff, greater than before . . .
Life seems miserable because we forget happy times . . . the good fortune that was ours as we overcame obstacles to get where we are today . . .
Life seems like a dead end street which vexes us to no end due to the fact that we are losing control . . .
Without God and therefore without purpose, is it any wonder that culture turns its back on God? When God is removed . . . God’s Word is redefined . . . God’s people are relegated to second class citizenship because we seek to abide by standards of righteousness . . . chances for meaning in life are reduced to zero.
So, is there any way to get off that Godless treadmill described by Jesus as “the wide and broad way that leads to destruction”?
St. Augustine wrestled with that question centuries ago and wrote:
“He who has God has everything. He who does not have God has nothing. He who has God and everything has no more than he who has God alone.”
Solomon had God and everything, but concluded that he had no more than we who have God alone. Solomon had it all but still had that feeling of emptiness!
Let us update Solomon’s conclusion: Life without Christ is meaningless.
Accept Him today as your Savior. Believe His promise to prepare a place for you. Crown Him today as the one and only King of your life. Decide in your heart to live and love like Him. Expect His return (when He shall receive you unto Himself that where He is there you may be also) to be worth it all.
“It will be worth it all when we see Jesus”!
“Since, then, you are in Christ,” said Paul, “set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died to sin and, therefore, your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.” (Colossians 3:1-4) To be in Christ is to be in God is to be in Glory! Amen!
