Eccl 3:14-15 (NIV) I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere Him. Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before; and God will call the past to account.

• I know that everything God does will endure forever: There are people who know this and are glad about it; and, there are those who know it and hate it. If you find yourself knowing things about God that agitate, frustrate, or depress you, then you need to take them to Jesus. The attitudes and philosophies of Solomon may be starting to creep into your heart. If you start feeling negative toward God, it may be because your body may be wanting to do something and God won’t allow it. The world may be giving you philosophies that you are listening to. Or, Satan may be lying to you and you think it is you thinking it.


• Nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it: It is true that God is inflexible. Since He is already perfect, any change He would make would be wrong. It isn’t in your best interests to change God’s mind about something you want. And, it isn’t in your best interest to do it anyway. God loves you more than you love yourself. God knows everything and takes everything into consideration before He directs you. Don’t try to add anything or take away anything from Who God wants to be in your life.


• God does it so that men will revere Him: There are two ways of looking at this. There is the Solomon way and there is the TRUTH way. You can think that God needs your reverence and is manipulating and pressuring you into feeling that way. Or, you need to revere God so you will see that His ways are the ways that work in real life. God’s ways produce true happiness in your marriage, family, friendships, career, business, and life in general. But, if you don’t revere Him, you won’t yield to His ways.


• Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before: As you saw with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and Moses, life wasn’t just some repetitious circle. God was progressively leading them into their part of the big picture. God was developing a nation that was trained and empowered to live righteous lives. He showed them what to do so they could treat each other with fairness, justice, and love. As they gradually developed, God finally got a woman, Mary, Jesus’ earthly mother, to agree to let the Holy Spirit put Jesus in her womb.
  
  Solomon had stepped out of God’s plan and was no longer listening to Him. He didn’t see how his building the Temple helped the children of Israel to settle into a worship of God. Rather than them admiring, being impressed with, and falling into the trap of false god’s, they had the very best Temple in existence. He didn’t see that God wanted him to teach these people and lead them into godliness. He didn’t understand that all that wisdom could be used for getting the people ready for bringing the Messiah down to earth. He just saw what he liked and wanted.


• God will call the past to account: Solomon had already said that God laid a heavy burden on mankind. He had already said that God put him in a life that was meaningless and a chasing after the wind. Now that he sees God in this light, he sees an unfair God making us accountable for failing at a life that we couldn’t help failing at. Without God’s truth pouring into your life, you won’t be able to resist these kinds of thoughts either. You are getting a wonderful opportunity to be led by Jesus into the greatness of God.
  
  Heb 1:3 (NIV) The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. Jesus, demonstrated God’s feelings for you by giving up His positions, place, and comfort and coming to earth to die. Rom 5:8 (NIV) But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Eccl 3:18-19 (NIV) I also thought, “As for men, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals. Man’s fate is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; man has no advantage over the animal. Everything is meaningless. Solomon developed this opinion himself; he has no Biblical basis for saying this. Job 7:17 (NIV) What is man that you make so much of him, that you give him so much attention.

2 Cor 5:1 (NIV) Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. We know we don’t die like animals because Jesus’ words are more powerful and true than Solomon’s. 2 Cor 5:8 (NIV) We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. God cares a lot for us and our eternal destiny because He made us in His own image.

Eccl 4:1-3 (NIV) 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 he who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.

This was a king that had unlimited resources, power, and wisdom. He saw the tears of the oppressed, he saw they have no comforter, he saw that the power was on the side of their oppressors, and all he could come up with was that they would be better off dead. God gave him all those things so he could take good care of the people under his care. But, because he gave up truth, he couldn’t resist all the debilitating evil that came into his life. It doesn’t matter how much wealth you have if you don’t have God and His truth.

Eccl 4:8 (NIV) There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless-- a miserable business! Since Solomon believes the same thing, he can’t help the man. Mat 15:14 (NIV) Leave them; they are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.” Solomon’s wisdom led him into blindness.

When you turn inward and start only seeing things from your perspective, your world collapses in on you. Since you are concentrating on yourself, you can’t feel the needs of those around you. When you can’t feel their needs, exchange of benefits become difficult. You need others to help you get your needs met and they need you to help them. But, you can’t identify with their needs. You can only let them know what you need. This closes down any win/win situations. So, these people who could have exchanged with you move on to others.

Mat 7:12 (NIV) So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Love, care, compassion, and win/win situations start with your needs. It is a simple process of realizing that those around you feel like you do. You have needs; they have needs. You have feelings; they have feeling. You want love and respect; they want love and respect. You don’t want to be cheated; they don’t want to be cheated. Once you allow your eyes to start looking around you, Matthew 7:12 will help you move into the world of win/win situations.