“Fear God and keep His commandments,
For this is man’s all. For God will bring every
work into judgment, Including every secret thing,
Whether good or evil.” Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
King Solomon wrote this quote from the Book of Ecclesiastes. He was the son of King David and a very wealthy and wise man. His premise about life is the world offers vanity, emptiness, and little hope.
Solomon believed you cannot find God in religion or government and life will bring unavoidable troubles. He counseled everyone to enjoy life to the fullest and sums up life with the wisdom in this Bible verse.
Life really comes down to having a realistic fear of God and a sincere respect for His character. God created you and will end your life in His perfect timing. You fear God because He has power and dominion over all things and rules with justice and retribution. He blesses and He curses. So the most important thing you can do is understand God and keep His commandments.
At the end of your life, you will have a face to face meeting with God and He will hold you accountable for every action in your life both the good and the evil.
The challenge today is to live a life pleasing to God. You can never do this on your own. You will stumble and fall.
Solomon failed God towards the end of his life. He entered into idolatry by marrying foreign wives and strayed away from God resulting in the kingdom of Israel to be split apart during his son’s rule.
God has now provided a very precious gift that was not available to Solomon. You can have the person of Jesus, the Son of God, live inside you in the essence of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will teach you how to live a godly life and lead you into His paths of righteousness.
Solomon is right about the perils and emptiness of the world but if you are a believer you have Jesus who has overcome the world living inside you. He wants to give you an abundant life and provide you with more than you ask or think!
Hal Hollister Ministry 