“In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also hath made the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him.” KJV
“When the times are good be happy; but when times are bad consider: God has made the one as well as the other; therefore, a man cannot discover anything about his future.” NIV As we have seen in earlier articles, Ecclesiastes, written by King Solomon, is unpredictable. Solomon was writing as a world-weary fellow who had everything that his heart desired and he found it rather boring and empty. The idea was that the full meaning of life is found in fearing God, or as we would say from the New Testament perspective, reverence and trust in God. In this verse he reminds us that good and bad will happen, and that we will have uncertainty about the future. His first advice is be joyful when things are going good. This seems like unnecessary advice, but is it really? Sometimes we can’t enjoy the good things because we are worried about a lot of other things. Like Martha, we are sometimes “careful and troubled about many things.” (See Luke 10:38-42) Or like the seed in the parable of the sower that fell among the thorns, we become choked up by the cares of this life that we are so negative that we can’t really rejoice over the good things. We need to adopt the verse from Psalm 118:24: “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” It could be that some people might be so depressed that they can’t recognize the good and prosperous times even in the midst of them. His second advice was when we face days of adversity that we consider. You might want to ask at this point, what does this mean? In my estimation it means several things. One is when we face adverse times we need to consider that adverse times are bound to come, and consider, or think about it and find out what God is trying to teach us. When Paul was enduring his “thorn in the flesh” he went to God in prayer and was told that he would keep his “thorn in the flesh,” and that Christ’s grace would be sufficient to see him through it. Considering this answer Paul saw that through his weakness he could better discover God’s strength. In other words, he saw his complete dependence on Jesus. A second thing is that we need to consider that other people have experienced adversity. In other words, we are not the only ones who have gone through times of adversity, and that we are not too good to have them. Sometimes they might be reminders from God that we need to make some changes in our lives. Another thing that I have discovered is that the adverse times will end. One of my favorite sayings when I am going through adverse times is to say, “this too shall pass,” and it always does. Some adverse things last longer than others, but they, too, will eventually pass. These up and down changes in our lives can make us wonder about the future. This is when we need to say: “I don’t know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future.” (I know, I know, that is an old cliché, but it is still true even if it has been quoted over and over again.) This will cause us to realize that God is with us and ministering in our lives through the good times and the bad. It will also help us to know that the God of the present is the God of the future. There will never be a time that He will forsake us, whether things are going uphill or downhill in our lives. Solomon is right, we do not know what is in the future or what we will have to face in the future. That is why it is ultimately important to face each day with faith in Jesus Christ. Faith does not help us know what the future will be for us, but it does make us realize that we do not have to dread the future, for God will be a part of it. It is my prayer that whether you are prospering or in adversity, the One who holds the future will hold you and see you through. Bro. Joe
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AuthorDr. Joe Beauchamp is the author of this blog and website. Categories
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