Jump Start # 1176

Ecclesiastes 10:7 “I have seen slaves riding on horses and princes walking like slaves on the land.”

We continue our series this week of unique phrases from the Bible. These expressions are full of lessons that teach, warn and lead to greater insights. These expressions are easy to preach. They are easy to remember. They challenge thinking and invite us to explore deeper meanings with our God.

Our verse today comes from the powerful book called Ecclesiastes—Solomon’s exercise on finding what life is all about. The shallow and easy things do not satisfy nor give depth or answers. The glitter in life is vain. Page after page, Solomon searches. By the 10th chapter, where our verse comes from, Solomon is exposing folly. Foolishness is not it. Solomon defines the destructive nature of folly. This chapter reveals several characteristics of foolish thinking.

• Folly ruins beauty (1)
• Folly makes a terrible guide (2-3)
• Folly attains undeserved honor (6-7)
• Folly can’t hold it’s tongue (12-14)

Solomon observes something very odd. It is a part of this folly. He sees princes walking and servants riding horses. This is backwards. It ought to be the other way around. What he sees isn’t commendable. This has nothing to do with sharing or humility. This section begins with, “There is an evil I have seen…” (v. 5), then our verse, “I have seen slaves riding…” (v. 7). This is evil. This isn’t right. Princes are supposed to be riding. When they are walking and the slaves are riding, things are bad. Slaves are supposed to serve princes. Slaves groom the horses that the princes ride. Slaves help the princes mount the horses. Slaves walk behind the horses, ready to come to the princes calling. That’s how it is supposed to be. What Solomon saw was upside down and inside out.

Now all of that leads to a wonderful concept for us. Are we walking or riding? Which one are we doing? Remember, this is not intended to be a compliment. Princes should be riding not walking. When they are walking and the slaves are riding, this isn’t right. This is bad.

We are children of God. We are princes of royalty. We belong to the King. This doesn’t mean we are better than others. It doesn’t mean that we are privileged. It’s not time to stick our noses in the air and get all uppity. That’s not the thought here and that’s not the point. Instead of acting like we belong to God, we act like we belong to the world. Instead of riding, we are walking.

1. Princes walk when they want what the servants have. That’s a strange twist of things. It ought to be the other way around. The slaves ought to dream of living in the palace someday. They long to have what royalty has. But when princes want what the servants have, they are walking not riding.

We do this when we measure life by what we have instead of who we are. We forget that we are Christians who belong to the King. We measure success by the square footage of our house or how large our TV screen is. That’s servant thinking. Princes have Heaven as their home. There is nothing that compares to that. Princes realize that they have the greatest gift, the grace of God. Yet, when we stumble through a day, complaining and worrying and we can’t see that we are Heaven bound, are we walking instead of riding. Peter said that there is a hope within us that ought to be noticeable. There is a joy that runs deep. This is why an apostle who was in prison could express great confidence and joy to others. It’s not the circumstances. It’s not where you. It’s not what you have. It’s who you are and what has you. Riding or walking? Are we not much different than our co-workers and our neighbors other than we go to church on Sunday? Is that the difference? Christ in us ought to change our way of seeing things. Our hope, our joy, our passion, what is important, our priorities are all readjusted because of Jesus. We are a new man in Christ. We are a different person. When we remain unchanged, other than going to church, we are princes who have settled on walking. Christ dwells in us. The word of Christ richly dwells in us. Those “in us” verses ought to do something to us. When we have a bug in us, it affects us. When loved ones have cancer in them, it affects them. The same for us when Christ is in us. Paul said I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. Slaves are consumed with worry. They are glued to the nightly news. Earthquakes, fires, wars, economic gloom worries the heart of slaves. Princes know that the King remains on the throne. Princes know that these things come and go but Heaven lasts. Princes know that someday all those things will be over. Princes look beyond those things. They are looking past the hood of the car. They see what’s down the road. They see God. Walking or riding? Are you beat up by worry? Are you consumed with fear? Are you stressed about life? Are you obsessed with superficial things such as who kissed who in Hollywood or who wore what to the award show? Who cares. That’s servant thinking. That’s mindless, useless and superficial. Princes ride. They ride with glory. They are headed to Heaven. They do not want what servants have? Why? Why settle for inferior when God offers the best. Riding or walking?

2. Princes walk when they are governed by their appetites instead of their convictions. When convictions are lacking, we take the easy way. When convictions are lacking we take the safe way. When convictions are lacking we do what everyone else is doing. There are expressions, such as, “Going with the flow,” that define this thoughtless, faithless ‘dog eat dog’ world that many are stuck in. Not princes. They do the noble thing. They often do the hard thing. They are governed by not feelings but faith. They are controlled not by impulses of the moment, but by Christ. It radiates all through their life. They stick with the plan. They stick with the budget. They stick with what they know. Temptation knocks, but they don’t answer. People try to side track them, but they stay the course. They are determined and directed. They cannot be bought off by

Satan, nor nudged off by family or friends. They are riding, not walking. Servants, like animals, are governed by feelings, appetites and impulses. They spend without thinking and then get into all kinds of trouble. They say things without thinking and get into all kinds of trouble. They do not think about consequences. They are easily led by friends to do things that they know are wrong, but they lack convictions. They can’t say no. They feel pulled, pushed and used. And they are. They are going no where and have nothing. Misery, problems, and messes seem to define the life of servants. It doesn’t have to be that way, but they don’t want to do what it takes to change. They want to ride like princes, but they don’t want to say no. They want to ride but they can’t commit to Jesus. They want to live like a sinner and die like a saint. Won’t happen. Never happens. Princes ride, servants walk.

How about you? Are you riding or walking? Has Christ changed you from the inside out? Are you different than what you once were? Riding or walking…

Roger

Jump Start # 826

Ecclesiastes 10:7 I have seen slaves riding on horses and princes walking like slaves on the land.

Solomon, the author of Ecclesiastes, writes this book from his perspective. It is what  he sees. The book is stuffed with several contrasts. Many of them are only understood from the standpoint of the spiritual. For instance, he said in the seventh chapter, that going to the house of mourning is better than the house of feasting. We get that spiritually. That is the only way we get that. Funeral home or birthday party? Give me the birthday party. I don’t know anyone who just pops into the funeral home because he loves funerals. Funerals are sad, serious, and a reminder of what’s ahead for us. Parties are fun. Food, laughter, jokes, friends, great times. We love parties. We only go to funerals when we have to. I know a guy who owns a funeral home. I dropped in to see him one day. He was eating his lunch in his office, which was just a few feet from a room where you don’t want to know what happens. It gave me the willies.

Our verse today, is another contrast from Ecclesiastes. The princes were walking and the slaves were riding. Now, it’s important to get what Solomon is saying. On the surface, this may not seem so bad, in fact, it may makes us compliment the princes. It’s nice to make the little guy feel important for a day. Instead of the slaves waiting on the princes, it was the opposite. The slaves were riding and the princes were walking. This is not intended to be understood as something nice. This is not intended for us to think nice of the princes. In the verses before, Solomon says, “there is an evil I have seen under the sun…” Our verse begins, “I have seen..” The slaves riding and the princes walking is the evil that Solomon saw. The preceding verse continues, “folly is set in many exalted places while the rich men sit in humble places.” Slaves riding and princes walking is folly. It is evil. The princes need to be ruling. This is not about who is better than another, or equality, but roles that people play. The prince is royalty. He needs to act that way and live up to that position. The slaves are slaves. They serve. Slaves do not know how to rule and princes do not know how to serve. Some of the least qualified serve. We understand that in politics. A recognizable name, some money and a person can be elected to Congress, even though he is like a slave. He knows nothing about leading.

This chapter exposes the trouble of folly.

• Folly ruins beauty (1)
• Folly makes a terrible guide (2-3)
• Folly attains undeserved honor (6-7)
• Folly can’t hold it’s tongue (12-14)

There is a great lesson for you and I here. We are sons and daughters of God. We follow the King of kings. We belong to that holy nation and that royal priesthood. Heaven is ours if we follow Jesus. He is royalty. We have the greatest gift—salvation. We have the best guide—Jesus. We have the greatest care—God. We have the most precious prize—Heaven. We ought to be riding like princes. Instead we often are walking.

We do this when we want what the servants have. We are princes. We often have this backwards. It is the servants who dream of living in the palace. It is the servants who long to be princes. Princes don’t dream of being servants. When we chase what the world is after, we are walking not riding. When we define life the way the world does, we are walking not riding.

We do this when we settle for second best. God has the best for us. When we settle for anything less and anything else, it is always second best. Second best attitudes, instead of the best attitudes. Second best hearts instead of the best hearts. Second best behavior instead of the best behavior. Second best marriage instead of the best marriage. Some are content with second best. We are princes. Are you walking or riding?

We do this when we measure life by what we have instead of who we are.  Stuff makes us feel important. Stuff is what seems to be important. Stuff confuses us with success. We think we are some body because of all the stuff we have. Yet on the inside of our hearts, may lie worry, bitterness, fear, and pride. God is impressed with the size of your heart, not the sixe of your house

We act like servants when we fail to realize that our place is in the palace. A palace is where princes live. They don’t live in the servants chambers. The BBC show, Dowtown Abbey, illustrates the difference between the upstairs people and the downstairs people. The servants are downstairs. The servants eat after the upstairs people do.

Our citizenship is in Heaven, Paul said. We sing, “This world is not my home,” yet, some of us act as if it is. We belong in Heaven. We belong to God. We are princes. We need to live as if one foot is already in Heaven.

Are you walking or are you riding?

Roger