Without God - Part 16: In Your Toil, Relax!

 

“… Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil …”

—Ecclesiastes 4:6a

A Sabbath Day of Rest, or the most common expression of this concept, has almost totally disappeared in our current society. I’ve remarked before that in my childhood of the 1950s the only store open on Sunday in my hometown of 18,000 people was a small cigar store in the downtown business district. This store also sold newspapers from around the country, which helped explain why it was open on Sunday.

I’m not kidding! All grocery stores were closed. All drug stores were closed—although they had emergency phone numbers posted in case you needed to reach the pharmacist. Almost all gasoline service stations were closed. The “Five and Dimes” and hardware stores were closed. Many restaurants were closed. Only a few of the seedier bars were open.

It was Sunday. It was supposed to be a day of rest. And, people took that concept seriously. In the summer, they might take a picnic lunch to the nearby state park. Afternoon drives in the countryside were common—gasoline cost only 18 cents per gallon! Extended family got together for Sunday dinner. Friends visited at each other’s houses. Almost everyone went to church.

My Jewish friends used to laugh and say: “We have a double Shabbat: Our regular one on Friday evening through Saturday evening, and the Christian one on Sunday! We get two days off instead of just one! Even we Fundamentalist Christians couldn’t stray too far from home on Sunday, because we had both Sunday morning and Sunday evening services. The concept of Sabbath Rest was very real. And, I truly believe it made for a better society.

The profound idea of Sabbath Rest, as a commandment from God, touched King Solomon, as well. After writing about the futility of labor, he makes this observation, found in Ecclesiastes 4:5-6:

Fools fold their hands and ruin themselves. Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.

He’s saying:

“Yes, it’s important that we labor. We can’t just sit around like fools. But, from time to time a person needs to grab a handful of tranquity to balance out the futility of labor.”

How about you and me? Do we really grasp the importance of Sabbath Rest. Do we so overextend ourselves that Sunday becomes just another day? Oh, we may attend church on Sunday morning. But, the rest of the day is treated just like any other. We fill it with every imaginable activity conducted at a frantic pace.

While we cannot return to the tranquil days of the 1950s, maybe we need to rethink what we do on the Sabbath. Maybe we need to tap into the amused observation of my dear Jewish friends from more than half a century ago and take advantage of a genuine Shabbat.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Without God - Part 15: The Motivator for Work

 

“And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another.”

—Ecclesiastes 4:4

This is the fifteenth blog post based on the Book of Ecclesiastes. So far, King Solomon, reflecting on what he has learned in his old age, has shared how futile life is without God. He uses the phrase “under heaven” to denote a state where earthly humans are unaware of, and offer no worship for, or commitment to, God. In today’s verses, Solomon reflects on what motivates those who have no relationship with God, as found in Ecclesiastes 4:4-6:

And I saw that all toil and all achievement spring from one person’s envy of another. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. Fools fold their hands and ruin themselves. Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.

Without the meaning that God provides in one’s life, everything is meaningless, futile, vanity. This should not surprise us. As believers, we can look around at a world filled with every kind of evil. And, evil is insidious. It affects every aspect of our lives. We see it in our businesses, in our homes, in our politics, in our friendships, in every part of our lives. Where evil thrives, discord, dissent, discouragement, disenchantment, disturbance, and every other negative quality simply overrules every good intention.

But, with God—with a personal and a corporate relationship to Him—life takes on meaning, value, and worth. There is plenty to celebrate, enjoy, and profit from, when God is the One who leads us along the pathway He has opened up before us.

At the beginning of this new day, let’s take time to pause in the busyness of our day and reflect on the impact our relationship with God has on our lives. Then, let’s prayerfully thank Him for His goodness—expressed to us in the many blessings He pours into our lives.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Without God - Part 14: The Result of Oppression

 

“I saw the tears of the oppressed—and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors—and they have no comforter.”

—Ecclesiastes 4:1b

If you were king of a great nation, what changes would you make to society? I can hear your answers echoing in my mind: “Banish all oppression, bring peace to the nation, end poverty, bring harmony among the races, end political discord, make certain all people had enough to eat and a roof over their heads, devote all possible resources to end the dread diseases that afflict so many people …” and your list would go on and on and on.

The most natural thing in the world is to expect that, if we had the absolute power over our nation, we would change society profoundly. But, I wonder if we would be able to do so.

In his time, King Solomon had absolute authority over the kingdom of God’s chosen people. He has vast riches and enormous resources. Yet, at the end of his life, please notice the words he writes, as found in Ecclesiastes 4:1-3:

Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun:

I saw the tears of the oppressed— and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors— and they have no comforter. And I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive. But better than both is the one who has never been born, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.

Wait a minute! Why didn’t King Solomon fix the things that were broken in his world? The truth is he genuinely tried to do so. But, Solomon learned that sin has such power even his kingly authority could not turn the tide toward righteousness, equality, fairness, and justice. Solomon’s statement above is a cry of despair, and a confession of his failure.

You see, only God can bring about revival—the coming to life again, to return to a normality where all things are in balance. Only God can cause people dead in their trespasses and sins to live again. Only the mercy, grace, and love of God, expressed through His Son, Jesus, can bring about the kind of changes that must occur to put society on the right pathway.

John Stott, in his article appearing in the October, 2011, issue of Christianity Today magazine, suggests there are four ways that Christians can influence society: ¹

• The Power of Prayer
  
  
• The Power of Truth
  
  
• The Power of Example, and
  
  
• The Power of Group Solidarity
  
  

As we begin a new day, we do not need to fall into despair because of the vagaries of our society. Rather, we can determine to exercise the four powers that Stott has outlined. If we do so, we will begin to see how the power of Christ, in and through us, can change our world.

 

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1 Stott, John. “Four Ways Christians Can Influence the World.” Christianity Today. Carol Stream, IL: Christinity Today Publishing Company, 2011. This referenced article first appeared on ChristianityToday.com on October, 2011. Used by permission of Christianity Today, Carol Stream, IL 60188. All Rights Reserved. This article may not be copied, printed, or used in any fashion without specific permission of Christianity Today. Citation of Copyrighted material is made on this blog post strictly for Educational Fair Use illustration purposes only. All Rights Reserved by the original Copyright Holder.

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Without God - Part 13: Enjoying Our Work

 

“So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot. For who can bring them to see what will happen after them?”

—Ecclesiastes 3:22

“Work is supposed to be hard,” my dad remarked when I complained that wiring boats was difficult and that I itched all over. As usual, he was right!

When I turned twelve years old, my dad asked me if I thought I would want to go to college. While I knew that no one in the entirety of my extended family had ever attended college, I responded in the affirmative. He then said, “Well, you’d better get a job. Your mom and I will not be able to afford to pay for your college education.” I did not realize that he was teasing me. So, I promptly went out and began to search for work.

Fortunately, though my hometown was landlocked, there was a boat store a few blocks from my home that bought fiberglass shells and turned them into custom watercraft for use on inland lakes located forty or fifty miles away. The owner had started this somewhat unlikely business because he knew that, within five or six years, a huge flood control project on the Allegheny River would create a very large recreational lake located just a relatively few miles away.

After asking me some questions, the boat store owner hired me to install the electrical wiring for the boats he was outfitting. I was already six feet tall and could easily reach into the space under the front of the boat where much of the electrical equipment was housed. The downside for me was that the fiberglass of the hull made me itch all over. Nevertheless, after each school day and on Saturdays, I worked at that boat store for about a year, learned a lot, and began to save all the money that I made. I also went through many bars of Lava soap, getting those glass fibers off my skin at the end of each work day.

“Work is supposed to be hard.” That was the mantra of my father, who had become an adult just a few years before the stock market crash of 1929 and the ensuing depression that had gripped our nation. He knew what it was to work hard for very little wages. In fact, at no time, in the 74 years of his life, did he ever make more than $5,000 a year.

In his declaration of futility, when a life is lived without a connection to God, King Solomon asserts in Ecclesiastes 3:22:

So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot. For who can bring them to see what will happen after them?

The answer to Solomon’s question, which is why he wrote this somewhat disturbing Book of the Bible to begin with, comes from his understanding that the only power that can dispel futility in someone’s life is the relationship that person has with God.

How fortunate we are that, because of the Lord Jesus Christ, we have such a relationship. God is the one who can bring us to see what will happen after us. He is the One who instills joy into our labor. He is the One who can give us rejoicing hearts, even as we work hard. Yes, God can give us joy in our labor. He can prompt us to sing while we work. He can give us relief from toil by making our hearts rejoice in Him.

Let’s begin another day by praising God that He is a “Burden Lifter.” He is One who can make even the hardest work tolerable. He can bless our labor and make our hard work have purpose and meaning beyond the mere task at hand. He is the One who can help us see how our hard labor can bring great benefit to us and to others.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Without God - Part 12: Are We Really Like the Animals?

 

“Who knows if the human spirit rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?”

—Ecclesiastes 3:21

I confess that I am not an “animal person.” I do have great respect for people who love animals. I see the joy that these folks derive from the relationship they have with their pets.

When I was six-years-old, I was attacked by a rabid dog and had to undergo the rather painful rabies shots into my stomach. This created in me a fear of animals in general and of dogs in particular.

Yet, over the years, I have come to appreciate the way that many people respond to their dogs. Recently, I even had a very positive experience with a dog at the home of one of my friends. This rather large dog seemed to sense that inside I was a “teddy bear.” He came up beside me and leaned against me as if to say, “It’s okay. I won’t hurt you. You and I are both just big guys.”

Many people seem to believe that we humans are no different, and certainly no better, than animals. I believe that a very careful reading of Genesis 1 and 2 should put that idea to rest. But, I’m certainly not going to argue with people who feel such a kinship to animals.

In the ruminations of his old age, King Solomon asked some questions that he intended to answer later in his writings. But, these questions resonate with the question that I have asked in the title of this blog post: “Are we really like the animals?” Please notice what Solomon wrote, as recorded in Ecclesiastes 3:18-21:

I also said to myself, “As for humans, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals. Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return. Who knows if the human spirit rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?”

In a later blog post, we will see how Solomon answers this last question. For now, let me give you a bit of a spoiler: “Yes, we can know if the human spirit rises upward and the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth.” How?

In their natural state, animals respond to their genetic programming. They act as they do because God created them to act in that way. Humans, on the other hand, have the ability to make choices in a thoughtful and reasoned way that does not exist in animals. Part of the choice humans made was a choice to disobey the one instruction that God gave first man and first woman: “Do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” (Genesis 2:17)

The redemptive act of Jesus was God’s gift to His human creations. Why? Because only humans needed redemption. If this is true, why did Solomon ask the question? He did so in order to be able to examine whether life on this earth was futile apart from a relationship with God.

As we begin a new day, let’s examine our own lives. Do we truly have relevance apart from our relationship with God through His Son, Jesus? The answer to that question is a good barometer of our spiritual condition, and one that we should take quite seriously.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Without God - Part 11: The Forgotten God

 

I said to myself, “God will bring into judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time to judge every deed.”

—Ecclesiastes 3:17

I’ve mentioned recently in a post on this blog that I have a number of dearly loved Christian friends across a fairly wide spectrum of the Christian church—from Fundamentalism, to Evangelicalism, to Liberal Mainline-ism, to Roman Catholic, to Eastern Orthodox, to those who have had a more traditional faith from their childhood, but who no longer attend church services regularly. In an increasingly growing number of these dear ones, they have begun to strongly emphasize a different interpretation of Scripture than the one that I believe is absolutely foundational to holding to solid Christian orthodoxy.

That last statement in itself would cause these dear ones to rise up with shouts that I am a prisoner of my own presuppositions. If that is the case, then I gladly and wholeheartedly embrace those presuppositions. These dear ones might also accuse me of clinging to outdated and obtuse positions regarding a whole host of theological “absolutes” because I am afraid of losing either my employment or my hard-fought position within my particular circle of Christian associates.

I confess that such charges make me smile. After all, my livelihood has not now, nor never has, depended on my theological beliefs. Furthermore, in my old age I am so isolated from anything resembling a “circle of Christian associates” that I am hardly afraid of losing something that I do not now have, nor ever have had.

Instead, I am saddened that what I observe in my dear friends is a seeking after a new god who is profoundly different from the God that I see throughout the totality of Scripture. Of course, I believe that God has chosen to reveal Himself to us—in the words of the Apostle Paul from 1 Corinthians 13:12—as through a darkened mirror. God allows us to see Him in as much detail as He feels we can handle. But, as finite, sinful humans, we simply do not have the capacity to see the fullness of God and never will be able to do so until we see Him in heaven. There, we will see Him in all His glory and we will all do the only thing we can do when we stand in His Presence: we will fall to our knees before Him and worship Him.

This new god that my dear friends have posited has arisen from very disappointing experiences in their lives, when God, as they had previously imagined Him, did not respond as they felt He should. Some tragedy has befallen them. They expected God to act in a certain way, and He failed to follow their expectations.

Now, I know that it is easy to sit on the sidelines of other people’s lives and “tsk-tsk” their failure to understand that no one can put God in a box. But, again, Scripture makes it plain that God’s thoughts are not our thoughts, nor are His ways our ways (Isaiah 55:8). Why in the world would we ever think that we could predict how God might act in any situation?

And, lest these dear ones accuse me of not being able to understand what they’ve been through, I am quick to acknowledge that this is so. I have not walked in their shoes. I have not had the same kind of trials that they have experienced. But, I have had my own trials and tribulations in life, and those trials have been enormously painful for me! Please let me explain:

When I first experienced a diabetic foot infection that became systemic and eventually caused me to have a partial amputation of my right foot in 1998, the spiritual leaders of my church prayed over me, anointed me with oil, and fervently asked God to totally heal me. But, He did not heal me and never has—at least not in the way that I imagined. I continued to suffer from a chronic osteomyelitis of the right foot. That chronic infection flared up from time to time, as it did in November of 2016. I began yet another regimen of powerful antibiotics. Month after month the infection continued to rage. I could no longer drive. I had to walk with a surgical boot. Would this torture never end?

In fact, I had a continual series of issues with my right foot that plagued me for 19 years until, in November of 2017, I had my right leg amputated below the knee. Am I angry with God that He did not completely heal me and did not allow me to keep my right leg? No, I am not. Am I disappointed that He did not act in the way that I might have hoped that He would act? No, I am not. While I am disappointed that I did not receive healing in exactly the way I hoped or prayed, I am not disappointed in God. Who am I to question Him? Who am I to dispute the plan that He has made for me. Why would I, when He does not meet my imagined expectations, discard my view of Him and seek some other god that would fit my preconceived notion of who God should be and how God should act?

The simple truth is that God did, indeed, heal me. After all other medical interventions failed—and I had some of the best doctors, nurses, and technicians working in my behalf for all of those 19 years—God healed me from the chronic infection of my right foot by having an amazingly skillful surgeon amputate my right leg, just in the nick of time. You see, gangrene had begun to form and spread upward from my foot, into my ankle, and without the amputation, the gangrene likely would have taken my life.

So, when my dear friends now speak of a god who is not one of judgment, but only one of love—a god for whom the gift of mercy and grace toward those he has created is no longer necessary—I say to them:

“Dear friends, you are setting aside the whole counsel of God. The Bible clearly teaches that first and foremost God is a Holy God. Because He is a Holy God, He is a God of Judgment. He cannot tolerate sin. That’s why He sent His one and only Son, Jesus, to die in our place. His anger had to be propitiated. His judgment satisfied. Our redemption was obtained by the only possible suitable sacrifice.

Teaching that God is One who only loves and accepts everyone is a distortion of the truth clearly shown in God’s written Word. Yes, God is absolutely a God of Love. In fact, without God real love cannot and does not exist. He alone is Love. His very provision of a means to satisfy His own judgment is, in itself, an act of supreme love.

But, God also is Holy. He wants those He loves to worship Him alone, to love Him back, to obediently follow His precepts. He wants those who love Him to embrace holiness, through the enabling power of the indwelling Holy Spirit (Leviticus 11:44-45, 19:1-2, and 1 Peter 1:14-16).

I understand that it is difficult to hold these two great truths in tension. To say that God is Holy and will judge sinners, while at the very same time declaring that God is Love, seems so very difficult. But, I submit to you that a real part of the absolute glory of the Christian faith is that these two truths about God must co-exist in the very tension that makes faith both necessary and possible.

To abandon the God of Judgment, and only embrace the God of Love, leaves us with a lopsided religion. It is every bit as much in error as my dear Fundamentalist friends who place a strong emphasis on outward behaviors, instead of focusing principally on an inward life-change. I also submit that only through surrender to the Holy Spirit’s patient guidance can we ever even hope to begin to experience wholeness in our lives—wholeness spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, and physically.

And this brings me to today’s passage from the pen of King Solomon. Please notice what he writes in Ecclesiastes 3:17:

I said to myself, “God will bring into judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time to judge every deed.”

If you have stayed with me so far in this rather lengthy blog post, let me ask a favor of you. Will you please pray with me for all those who once knew what I have described above as truth, but have now abandoned this sure foundation to run after another god? Pray that God will open their eyes to the error that has crept into their minds and hearts. Pray that they will accept the truth of God’s actions in their behalf.

My heart is broken that these dear ones have left the faith they once knew. While they believe they have seen a new and brighter light, I fear that what they see is a distortion created by the enemy, Satan, to bring about their own downfall, insofar as having a positive influence for the sake of the Kingdom of God here on earth. I thank you for considering my request.

And, let’s pray for each other, too. We need help in holding the truth of who God is in proper tension. We need help in recognizing He is both a God of Judgment and a God of Love.

And, of course, we must fully recognize that we dare not become agents of judgment ourselves, whenever we recognize that God is a God of Judgment. For judgment only belongs to Him. He has not given us a mandate of judgment. Rather, He has given us a mandate of love.

So, let’s allow the Holy Spirit to use us as instruments of God’s mercy, grace, and love. And, lest we become tempted to judge others, let’s remember that we too will one day stand before God, as Solomon has said. Yes, for those of us who follow Christ, our judgment will be one of an evaluation of how obedient we were to His perfect will, and to both His Living Word and to His written Word. And, that’s quite enough judgment for which any of us should be concerned.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Without God - Part 10: Time to Pay the Piper

 

“Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before; and God will call the past to account.”

—Ecclesiastes 3:15

In every situation of life, there comes a time when we must give an account of what we’ve done. We may do something over and over for a long time. But, eventually, if that “something” has caused harm to someone or is constituted of an action that is morally or spiritually wrong, then the price of doing that “something” will sooner or later come due. Please permit me to illustrate my point:

You no doubt know the story of the Pied Piper. The city was overwhelmed by rats. The leaders were beside themselves. No matter what they did, they couldn’t get rid of the rats. A piper came along who offered to rid the city of the rats for a specific price. The leaders readily agreed to pay that price. The piper proceeded to pipe his magical and enticing tune. And, sure enough, the rats gathered behind him. He marched them to the water’s edge, where they entered the water and promptly drowned.

Now, if the story ended there it would be a wonderful tale of triumph over evil. But, the leaders refused to pay the piper. And so, the piper began to pipe an even more magical melody.

Soon, all the children of the city gathered behind the piper. He led them to the water’s edge where they, too, entered the water and promptly drowned.

“How horrible!” you may say. “How awful! What a despicable man that piper was!” But, you have misplaced your disgust. You should direct your horror at the leaders of the city who failed to pay the piper after agreeing to his price.

Life’s like that parable. Sin has a price attached to it. We may enjoy the pleasure of that sin for a season. But, eventually, we will have to pay the price for such a sin.

In this life on earth, we often have to pay the temporal price for sin. In other words, the harm that sin causes others and ourselves extracts a price in the here and now. Fortunately, the ultimate eternal price for our sins has already been paid by Jesus’ life on earth, by His suffering and death on the cross, by His resurrection from the grave, and by His ascension to heaven.

We sometimes think that, no matter what we have done, we have gotten away with it. But, sin always extracts a price. We should bow to the ground in thankfulness that the only price we have to pay is the temporal one. Because of Jesus, the eternal price for our sin has been paid. King Solomon wrote of this reality, as recorded in Ecclesiastes 3:15:

Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before; and God will call the past to account.

One of the reasons that the Holy Spirit leads those of us who believe toward holiness is so that, by becoming what God wants us to be, we will avoid sinning as much as possible. Yes, we most certainly do remain stained by the sin curse of Adam until we pass from this life to the next. So, we will always have the pull of sin on our lives. But, the more we yield our lives to God, the less we will desire to sin. It’s a long process, what the late author Eugene H. Peterson has called “a long obedience in the same direction.” ¹ But, it is a road worth traveling.

As disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit is our guide and our companion. He will help us learn about how to move toward holiness. And that, dear ones, is what the walk of sanctification is all about.

 

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1 Peterson, Eugene H. A Long Obedience in the Same Direction. Madison, WI: InterVarsity Press, 2024. Citation of Copyrighted material is made on this blog post strictly for Educational Fair Use illustration purposes only. All Rights Reserved by the original Copyright Holder.

 

_{Copyright © 2025 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}