<\/p>\n
\nEcclesiastes 12:13-14<\/strong> \u00a0<\/sup><\/span>Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span>Fear God and keep His commandments, <\/span>For this is man\u2019s all. <\/span>For God will bring every work into judgment, <\/span>Including every secret thing, <\/span>Whether good or evil.<\/span><\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n
People will try many different things in an attempt to bring themselves happiness and fulfillment. Some pursue philanthropy, good deeds, mentoring, or positive social work. Others throw themselves into hobbies, jobs, or relationships. Unfortunately, there are many who pursue destructive vices that only bring suffering.<\/p>\n
While many follow the world\u2019s path in seeking fulfillment, the Bible gives instruction from one of the wisest men who ever lived\u2014King Solomon. Philosophers, kings, rulers, and sages would come, sit, and listen to his wisdom.<\/p>\n
Solomon searched for true happiness and meaning in life, and he gives us his conclusions in Ecclesiastes 12:13-14.<\/p>\n
Fear God:<\/strong>\u00a0Surprisingly, Solomon does not say to get more education or to acquire more wealth. He has all of this and has concluded that it is all vanity. Rather, Solomon\u2019s first and primary conclusion is to fear God (v. 13).<\/p>\n
The fear of God is the sense of awe that emerges when we see our lack of holiness, since we are broken sinners, and we are met with God\u2019s perfect righteousness. It is not a sense of being scared or timid, but that of reverent awe.<\/p>\n
Keep God\u2019s Commandments:<\/strong>\u00a0Solomon\u2019s second conclusion is to keep God\u2019s commandments (v. 13), which\u2014by the way\u2014is a natural result of fearing God. Once we are in awe of God, we will follow Him.\u00a0 Often in life we think that God\u2019s commands steal our joy and happiness. However, the opposite is true. The commandments are given so that we can enjoy life and live it to the fullest.<\/p>\n
Those two points\u2014fearing God and keeping His commandments\u2014encompass everything in a person\u2019s life. Solomon says in verse 13,\u00a0\u201cFor this is man\u2019s all.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Nothing else.<\/p>\n
Now, why does Solomon say that this is man\u2019s all? It is because we will be judged by the Lord (v. 14). I believe that the reason people do not fear the Lord (stand in awe) or keep His commandments is because we often forget about God\u2019s judgment. However, like it or not, we will be judged\u2014both believers and non-believers.<\/p>\n
Not only are\u00a0we<\/em>\u00a0judged, but\u00a0our works<\/em>\u00a0will also be judged. Solomon says that both our good and bad will be judged, and all the things done in secret will be judged as well. Nothing is kept from God\u2019s judgment.<\/p>\n
The good news is that Jesus became the perfect sacrifice, taking our judgment. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says,\u00a0\u201cFor He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Christ paid\u00a0\u201cthe wages of sin\u201d<\/em>\u00a0on our behalf, giving those who call upon Him as Savior the gift of\u00a0\u201ceternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord\u201d<\/em>\u00a0(Romans 6:23).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 \u00a0Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:\u00a0Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man\u2019s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil. People will try many different things in an attempt to bring themselves happiness and fulfillment. Some pursue … Continue reading “Will Graham – Devotion”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-194625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-daily-prayers"],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194625"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194625\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":194628,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194625\/revisions\/194628"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.prayingpint.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}