Jump Start # 3218

Ecclesiastes 9:11 “I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise nor wealth to the discerning nor favor to men of ability; for time and chance overtake them all.”

Our verse today from the wise Solomon is one of those significant statements that we see lived over and over in what we call life. Things just do not always work out the way you expected or thought that they would. One can prepare well. One can do his homework. One can dot all the “I”s and cross all the “T”s but the unexpected happens. Even when one anticipates every conceivable angle, time and chance still happen.

Solomon’s list is quite impressive: the swift, the warriors, the wise, the discerning, and men of ability—each one accomplished. MVP’s, we’d call them. Allstars. But time and chance overtakes them. The guy who ought to win, doesn’t. The most qualified doesn’t get the job. The team that ought to be in the finals isn’t. Things happen. Time and chance.

From this we are reminded:

First, not everyone is going to respond and act the way I think they should. This even includes brethren. Some ought to apologize, but they won’t. Some ought to step forward and serve as shepherds, but they don’t. Death calls the young before they got much of a chance to do anything. All of this can be disappointing to us, but we must understand that not everyone is going to act the way that I think they should. Not everyone thinks the way you think. Not everyone feels about things the way you feel about things. What you care about, some don’t. What is important to you, for others, it is unimportant.

This ought to tell us that we have to listen and let others tell us where they are on the page of life. Just because a guy sits in a church building on Sunday morning, does not mean that he is righteous, kind and Christlike. Not everyone is going to act the way that I think they should.

Second, time and chance changes things. The swift ought to win the race. The best horse ought to win the Derby. That doesn’t happen. The best time ought to win the championship. That doesn’t happen. Everyone has an off day. There are factors such as weather, crowds, injuries, moods that play into all of this. Time could refer to age. The longer we are on this planet, the less we are capable of doing. Time catches up with us.

Third, all of this has a way of making a person declare that life is not fair. And, that’s right. It’s not. In a fair world, the best win. The strongest dominate. But sometimes the strongest are defeated. Sometimes the best lose. Life is not fair. Darwin’s survival of the fittest simply does not fit with this verse. The fittest sometimes does not survive. Time and chance, those things belong to God. It rains when there is an outdoor wedding. It snows in the spring and is hot and dry at Christmas. And, when we deal with other people, life really gets unfair. Some cheat. Some lie. Some take advantage of others. Some don’t care. When you play by the rules, but others don’t, it hurts. When you try to be nice, but others are rude, it hurts. Some are aggressive. Many are selfish. And, yes, it’s not fair. The wicked prosper. A guy who can throw a football halfway down a football field will get paid millions and millions and a guy who preaches his heart out, trying to save souls eternally, has to sweat the bills, life is not fair.

We can sit down and pout about it, but that won’t change things. We can get mad, but that won’t change things. We recognize the point Solomon is making. Time and chance changes everything. It’s life. It’s part of a broken world that we live in. We must make the most of it and do the best that we can.

Fourth, there will be days when time and chance shines favorably upon us. We win the race when we shouldn’t have. We were not the swiftest. We win the battle when we were not the strongest. Time and chance were on our side. But, there will be other days when time and chance does not favor us. Maybe we were the one who should have won the race, but we didn’t. Time and chance shined on the other guy that time.

So, what are we to do with all of this? We are to walk by faith. We make it our ambition to please the Lord. There will be days that are blessings. There will be days that are hard. There will be days that favor us. There will be days when the winds blow against us. Prayerful and thankful are what we need to be. Our behavior and attitudes are more important than winning races or the victories we have in battles. Our children notice us. Our victories can make our heads swell if we are not careful. And, our defeats can cause us to give up if we are not careful.

Paul said that he learned the secret of living in abundance and of having little. Time and chance…those are elements that we do not control. Those are factors that can ruin us if we are not careful.

Be brave. Be strong. Be faithful.

Roger

Jump Start # 707

Ecclesiastes 9:11 “I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise nor wealth to the discerning nor favor to men of ability; for time and chance overtake them all.”

Ecclesiastes is Solomon’s look at life from “under the sun,” a favorite expression in that book. Under the sun, things don’t look so hot. Under the sun there doesn’t seem to be much of an advantage in being smart or righteous, because in the end you die, just like the fool. What’s the use! Under the sun, everything a person works for goes to someone else, sooner or later. Life under the sun doesn’t seem fair.

Our verse is an extension of that theme. Under the sun, those who ought to win often do not. This is true in running races, this is true in battles. We could add to that list. In sports, the teams that ought to win often don’t. I sure understand that. I’m in a fantasy football league with several family members and friends. I believe there are 12 of us in this league. It’s a simple thing, just pick the winning team each week. Guess who is soundly in last place? Yes, me. Those who ought to win are not winning! The same is true in political races. The same is true in simple things like getting the job, getting the promotion. Often the boss’ cousin who never graduated from college gets what you are qualified and trained for.

We scream “that’s not fair,” and that’s exactly Solomon’s point. Those who are wise do not always get bread. Often, it’s the guy who is running a scam. Wealth isn’t promised to the discerning. Time and chance or what we might call luck has something to do with all of this.

If what Solomon wrote is true, then what’s the point? Why go to school? Why try your best? Why be honorable and a person of integrity and ethics? Why, if it may not pay off or a worthless person wins? If we are not careful in our thinking, we will throw in the towel and simply slide into the muck and mire where others are and become one of them.

The passage does not say that the wicked and worthless win out over the righteous every time. That’s not true. We know that. Honesty does pay, if not financially, it does in character and in reputation.

The righteous are not promised that this world would favor them because they are righteous. That is our thinking, not God’s. Righteous ways are noticed. Jesus said, ‘let your light shine…’ Paul said a similar things as he contrasted the righteous to a crooked and perverse generation.

Hard work and diligence is the right thing. We know that. The world is full of those who try to cut corners, cheat the system, get by with as little as possible, and benefit on top of all that. What they are doing is not right. They void themselves of character, they do not learn how to develop themselves in the end they are dependent upon others to do what they cannot.

Solomon’s view was horizontal—life under the sun. Our view is vertical—life under the SON. Under the SON (Jesus), righteousness prevails. Under the SON (Jesus), good deeds are remembered. Under the SON (Jesus), the righteous is rewarded.

Time and chance are a part of our world down here. It won’t always be fair nor right. There will be people in position of leadership who can not lead. There will be people in position of power who will abuse that. There will be people who do the selfish instead of the right thing. Some will take advantage of others. Because of their position little can be done. This is life under the sun…someday we will be around the throne where the SON is and all of this will be a distant memory that really won’t matter.

It’s like a flight on an airplane. Whenever I fly, there is always someone who asks, “How was your flight?” Some, were not so good. Bumpy, loud, and not comfortable at all. But once on the ground and busy doing other things, that plane ride is forgotten. It doesn’t matter. I tend to think much of what bothers us now will be like that in eternity. Traffic jams, long lines, impatience, sick kids, missing car keys, lousy bosses, picking the wrong teams, being overlooked again for a promotion—all distant memories. Those things won’t matter once we’ve reached our destination, Heaven.

Time and chance happens—but God knows. You just keep doing what you should. Don’t get a bad attitude. Don’t lose your cool. Don’t forget that you are headed somewhere. Don’t forget that you follow the SON (Jesus).

Roger