Poised Under Pressure

January 21st, 2022

Poised Under Pressure

Ecclesiastes 8:10-16

10 Then I saw the wicked buried. They used to go in and out of the holy place and were praised in the city where they had done such things. This also is vanity. 11 Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil. 12 Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I know that it will be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him. 13 But it will not be well with the wicked, neither will he prolong his days like a shadow, because he does not fear before God.

14 There is a vanity that takes place on earth, that there are righteous people to whom it happens according to the deeds of the wicked, and there are wicked people to whom it happens according to the deeds of the righteous. I said that this also is vanity. 15 And I commend joy, for man has nothing better under the sun but to eat and drink and be joyful, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of his life that God has given him under the sun.

16 When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done on earth, how neither day nor night do one's eyes see sleep,

Empty Eulogies

Football analysts on TV love to praise the quarterback for his poise. It means he doesn’t get rattled by adversity, panicky under pressure, or flustered by failure. Whatever may happen around him, he stands in the pocket and runs the play that his coach has called. As Solomon calls us to spiritual poise in chapter 8, he paints two more scenes for us.

Stay poised when there’s no pay-off (10–13). First, Solomon takes us to a funeral where one person after another gets up to brag on the deceased. In life, this guy was popular, successful, respected, and even honored by his church. The only problem? You know that he was really wicked! He was corrupt, self-serving, and he did you wrong! Yet no matter how many times he did evil, it never seemed to catch up with him, You kept waiting for him to get what was coming to him; yet now here you sit at Shackelford’s Funeral Home, still waiting! It can make you lose your poise when there’s no payoff for doing right.

Joseph's Example

When the wicked prosper and the godly suffer, why not just give up on godliness? This is the premise of Psalm 73 and the life of Joseph (Gen 37–50). Being a faithful shepherd for his dad got Joseph thrown into a pit. Being a faithful servant to Potiphar got Joseph falsely accused and imprisoned. Being a faithful interpreter of dreams got Joseph left in prison. After fourteen years of that, you begin to question whether “faithfulness” is all it is cracked up to be! But Solomon reminds us that spiritual poise comes from knowing what God has said about judgment (8:2). I want instant justice (at least I think I do!): I do right, and I get instant reward; you do wrong, you get instant punishment. But that is not God’s way. The image he prefers is sowing and reaping.

Sowing Obedience

We’re all sowing a certain seed with our lives right now (see Gal 6:7–8). There often does not seem to be any immediate effect. But on a day which God has appointed, that seed is going to come up. What we have sown will be revealed, and we will answer for it. God wants us to sow righteousness and obedience with our lives right now, whatever the immediate payoff may or may not be, and trust him with the final results. Fear God. Do right. It will be well in the end. Remember that God’s patience with evil allowed you time to repent (2 Peter 3:8–9)!

I Commend Joy

Stay poised when life’s not perfect (8:14–16). In this final scene, you are lying in bed, staring at the ceiling. The clock reads “2:30.” You toss and turn. Your mind races. Why? Because life is unfair. The righteous get what the wicked deserve. The wicked get what the righteous deserve (v14). So you stay awake, asking ‘why.’ You replay events. You try to connect the dots. But you can’t figure it out. The inequities of life can certainly upset your spiritual poise! You can respond with despair, self-pity, anger, or bitterness. But Solomon reminds us again that God is not going to let you “figure it all out.” He has put many things out of your reach. He will not explain why he did this or that in your past; he will not lay out a detailed plan for your future (see Deut 29:29).

So how does a wise man or woman respond to life’s imperfections? Joy! “And I commend joy. For man has nothing better to do under the sun but to eat and drink and be joyful, for this will go with him in his toil through the days of his life that God has given him under the sun” (15). Accept that inequity is a reality in a fallen world. Obey God’s revealed will as best you can and trust God with the parts that you don’t understand and can’t control. And then have fun! Choose joy! Don’t become so fixated on what’s not right that you can’t enjoy the good gifts God has provided you! Invite a few friends over and grill some burgers. Read a good book. Go for a walk outside and drink in God's creation. You will always have plenty of problems, stresses, and unresolved issues until Christ returns. While you wait, I commend joy.

FOR THE NEXT INSTALLMENT, SEE:

Threshold of Abundant Life