Today we begin a new 12 week series entitled, The ABC’s of faith. The larger idea is based on the idea that we learn over time through an exploration process of success and failure. Everything we come to know and understand is built over time on the foundation of trial and error.
So it’s not a surprise that a person unpacking the learning process would create the rudimentary blocks of language to help support learning. The person who perhaps deserves credit for formulating the concept was the English writer Sir Hugh Plat, who wrote of the idea in a 1594 book of inventions titled, The Jewell House of Art and Nature. A concept that would remain dormant for another 100 years until English philosopher John Locke in his 1693 work Some Thoughts Concerning Education, mentions the general concept behind alphabet blocks. It would take another 175 years from that point until industrialist Samuel L. Hill would apply for a patent in 1867 for wooden blocks mass produced in Brooklyn, New York.
Even the building blocks of learning language are built on concepts, ideas of trail and error only to one day be used by others to build more concepts.
Like any kind of learning, spiritual ideas take time to move from concept to the practical. In the same way we learn to read and write, our spiritual learning begins when we become aware. It reminds me of a story from the book, One Minute Wisdom by Anthony de Mello.
Even though it was the Master’s Day of Silence, a traveler begged for a word of wisdom that would guide him through life’s journey.
The Master nodded affably, took a sheet of paper and wrote a single word on it: “Awareness.”
The visitor was perplexed. “That’s too brief. Would you please expand on it a bit?”
The Master took the paper back and wrote:“Awareness,awareness,awareness”
“But what do these words mean?” said the stranger helplessly.
The Master reached out for the paper and wrote:“Awareness, awareness, awareness means AWARENESS.”
Awareness is defined as knowledge or perception of a situation or fact.
The traveler needed to ‘read the room.’ In the same way, until we take a moment to assess what’s happening all around us, we fail the rudimentary step to learning.
In Ecclesiastes 1:2 and again in 12:8, we find this curious observation in the ESV Translation: “Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity”. Today, when we hear the word vanity, we think of pride, conceit, and an exaggerated opinion of and attention to oneself. But here in the book of Ecclesiastes, the word vanity is correctly understood as “meaningless,” In the NIV translation we read: “‘Meaningless! Meaningless!’ says the Teacher. ‘Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.’”
Vanity and its translation is a key word in the book of Ecclesiastes, appearing 34 times. The original Hebrew speaks of the fleeting nature of things. It is translated as “meaningless,” “futility,” and “pointless” in various Bible versions.
The author of the book of Ecclesiastes, who refers to himself as the “Preacher” (ESV) or “Teacher” (NIV), is King David’s son Solomon. To fully understand Solomon’s muttering that “all is vanity,” we must study the context.
Ecclesiastes is unique from any other book in the Bible. Written by Solomon in the later years of his life, its central theme is the pointlessness of human activity and human goals apart from God. During this season of his life, Solomon attempted to understand life using human reason and intellect. His exploration stemmed from a perspective of worldly wisdom based on available information from the physical realm.
Solomon may have been out of fellowship with God when he wrote Ecclesiastes. Like many worldly philosophers, separated from God and His divine revelation, Solomon concluded that nothing in life has significance. The human experience has no purpose. Solomon’s search proved futile based on one pivotal detail—his pursuit was limited to the finite span of life that humans experience on earth. Ecclesiastes speaks to those times when life seems empty or doesn’t make sense. Our human experiences are often bewildering and confusing. Wicked people succeed while the righteous suffer, and horrible injustices are all around (Ecclesiastes 3:16; 4:1–5). Ultimately, life and all of our human endeavors are pointless in themselves.
Solomon's wisdom is simple: The more humans grasp for tangible things of our world, the more they turn out to be like smoke and wind. (Ecclesiastes 1:4).
Herein lies one of the greatest wisdoms of all time.
If you pursue money, you will always be in search of a little more. I read an article this week on a 60 year old gentleman who had over 2 million saved. He was asking the financial expert if he had enough to retire and pursue his passion of helping people. The financial expert was succinct. The average life expectancy in the US is 78 years old. That means you have 18 years left. 2 million divided by 18 = $111,111 per year. Like John D. Rockefeller, at the height of his wealth and influence when asked, “how much money is enough?” His retort was “Just a little bit more.” Money will never fill the hole we have in our soul.
If you lust for power, you will never have enough. As Ayn Rand, novelist, philosopher and screen writer once said, “Power-lust is a weed that grows only in the vacant lots of an abandoned mind.” The vacant mind is the mind that buys into the lies of our culture. The lie of the evil one that success is material possessions, titles of an industrial class (supervisor, manager, director, Chief) and unfettered power gives anyone the ability to do whatever one wants. It’s living the lie that Power will fill the hole we all have in our soul.
If those who seek justice as the sole aim of your life, often lose the capacity for mercy for everyone. Justice without mercy is judgment without compassion. Others lean towards the opposite. They offer mercy when justice is demanded. Ultimately, this is enabling. Enabling is another form of injustice and may even be abuse. If we keep people from learning lessons needed to survive, we cripple them by forcing a reliance on man over God. Seeking justice for others as a sole aim in life will never fill the hole we have in our soul because eventually our idea of justice will be shown to be corrupted by humans being human.
Ultimately, everything in our lives is like wind because the only solid thing is death (Ecclesiastes 1:4,11). No matter what we grab in this life, we can't take it with us. It’s why there are no moving vans following the funeral hearse.
Like Solomon, if we look for meaning and purpose apart from God, our quest will end in frustration. Apart from God, His revelation of Himself, and His purposes, our lives are indeed vacant and void of meaning. Anything that lacks eternal value has no real value at all.
Herein lies the first Spiritual building block: Awareness. Awareness that people, places, things and experiences of this world will never satisfy the longing every human has in their heart.
Spiritual Awareness is defined best by Paul in his letter to the Ephesians. This is Ephesians 6:12, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
Our struggle is not just physical. We must never lose sight of and settle for the superficial view that physical forces are responsible for our difficulties. Yes. Many of our difficulties come as a result of human interaction either past or present. However, life is inherently spiritual. The beginning foundation of a lasting faith is recognition and appreciation of the whole spectrum of life. The good life is the fully alive life, a life of vigor and joy and fruitfulness and freedom — is not found in possessions or gaining more, but in giving more. The good life is a life of generosity towards God and others. We gain by giving. We find by losing. The good life according to Jesus is to say, “Yes, I may be broken, but I am being healed...not by stuff, but by the Spirit of God. Yes, I am grieving, but I trust God to supply my needs according to his glorious riches.”
It’s why communion is so important. It brings us into the mystery of our faith. It takes us to the heart of our awareness. Christ has died. Christ is Risen. Christ will come again.
References:
https://tedium.co/2017/05/16/alphabet-blocks-history/
https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/New-International-Version-NIV-Bible/
https://www.spokengospel.com/devotionals/ecclesiastes-1#read
https://www.crossway.org/articles/what-does-ecclesiastes-12-mean/
https://www.gotquestions.org/all-is-vanity.html
