BIBLICAL ADVICE FOR LIVING UNDER OPPRESSION
Ecclesiastes 7:7-10 (ESV)
We live in oppressive times where canceling of free speech, including religious speech is no longer tolerated by its citizens and most notably the government. Today, I am going to show you from Godâs Word that we are not supposed to look back at the âgood old daysâ in comparison to the present, and we certainly are NOT to become angry. For God has allowed for both, and there is âa timeâ for everything. Letâs get started.
Ecclesiastes 7:7-10 (ESV) says:
â7 Surely oppression drives the wise into madness, and a bribe corrupts the heart.
8 Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. 9 Be not quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the heart[a] of fools.10 Say not, âWhy were the former days better than these?â For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.â
In our current state of decline in the United States and the West in general, I can see Godâs wisdom playing out loudly in the world. The bottom line is that when we ask WHY the OLD days were so much better than the PRESENT, we are questioning Godâs wisdom and plan for the world and our individual lives. Itâs true. The world is always changing and itâs in Godâs control-not ours. Letâs break down Ecclesiastes 7:7-10 in an effort to gain some better clarity as to what God is saying.Â
1) FIRST: (Verse 7/Opening says)Â
âSurely oppression drives the wise into madness, and a bribe corrupts the heart.â
A. Government oppression drives the law abiding, biblically wise citizen in the United States into âMADNESSâ.
B. As God makes clear through Solomon, Bribes corrupt the heart. This is the current state of our Corporate/Marketplace and governmental leadership-including our Executive, Congressional, and some of our Judicial system. Bribes have become much the norm in society now through âCrony Capitalismâ and âJudicial pay-offsâ. But, SO WHATS? Itâs all temporarily and these folks are digging an eternal hell hole for themselves. As such, we ought to be praying for them and for ourselves as God takes us through and not FROM this trial.
2) SECOND: (Verse 8 says) âBetter is the end of a thing than its beginning,â
A. This was baffling for me to ingest and i'm confident that it is baffling from a human perspective, in general because the beginning of vacation, the start of a career, and the beginning of a marriage are always better than the âENDâ. Beginnings are exciting, fresh and new. The END of things are sad, sobering.
B. But, from Godâs perspective, the BEGINNING is the start of something NEW. The end of LIFE in the flesh on earth is the beginning of LIFE in ETERNITY with God. The birth of a new born baby represents fresh life yet untained by the world-full of innocence and love. Death represents the opposite. The END is better than the BEGINNING because something new is right around the corner. For the old thing or older-person, it seems selfishly like the end. But, didnât we as an older person get to live our lifetime and to enjoy it? I would suspect that those of us with very little would agree with this verse more than those of us with more.
3) THIRD: (Patience is better than pride)
ââŠand the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.â (Vs.8b).Â
I find verse 8b fascinating. It seems like people want friends who are âcoolâ, but what makes a person cool? Guys and girls like hard to get person to court, date or to marry. But why? Doesn't that amount to "playing games out of pride?" This is the modern attitude of our culture. In the end, itâs much better to be patient and selfless than to be selfish and prideful. (They both go together) I would assert that for the Christian, being patient and selfess is necessary to hear Godâs will.
4) FOURTH: â9 Be not quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the heart of fools."
When I was in Portugal, I mentioned the fact that anger and âroad rageâ has become such an epidemic that in the United States, there is an entire real life dash-cam television program on it (road rage). They were shocked. Verse 9 tells us to: â Be not quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the heart of fools.âÂ
We are (and look) foolish when we lose our patients (remember the previous verse 8). Losing our patients leads us to say things and do things we cannot take back and soon wish we hadnât. We would be wise to learn the biblical discipline of patients and practice it daily.
5) FIFTH: (Itâs a sin to look back to the âGood Old Daysâ)
Lastly, verse 9 tells us:Â
âSay not, âWhy were the former days better than these?â
IF we are honest with ourselves, we will admit that while the past had some incredibly great times-which were much simply times, there are as many exciting and meaningful times to be had in God's will-in the present. Thatâs if we allow God to have His way and not push forward with our own.Â
A) In C.S. Lewisâ book âThe Screwtape Lettersâ, the chief demon âWormwoodâ tells his underling demon to keep the new Christian looking to the âgood old daysâ of the pastâ, or things yet to come âIn the futureâ, but whatever you do KEEP that believer OUT of the PRESENT. WHY? Because God has no past and has no future. He is a simple, infinite, omniscient and all power God. As such, He is âI AMâ as one moment. And for us to be in the present is for us to be closest to God.
B) The bottom line is that the temptation for us to glorify the past at the expense of the present must be resisted. The pleasures or advantages of those DAYS may be more imaginary than real.
6) SIX AND LASTLY: (Asking God WHY the good old days were so much better than the present is not only futile but âunwiseâ.)
THE SECOND HALF of 10(b) says:
âFor it is not from wisdom that you ask this.â (Vs. 10b)
A) This verse is the second part of vs. 10 which tells us not to look at the good old days or days yet to come but to stay in the present-âFOR it is not from wisdom that you ask thisâ. In other words, this verse exposes the fact that we live for the temporal pleasures in this life while Godâs wisdom tells us that we are to live with a much broader view of reality and eternity for and in Him.Â
As such, it is unwise for us to live with some romantic notion of what life was like in the past or what life is going to be like when the next turning in history comes. We are to embrace the present, however difficult and full of trials that might be. We must strive to understand and accept what God is doing and trust in that God is in control. And through this we will find that God will give us a JOYFUL (not necessary happy) heart. While it may seem like the world is falling apart, God has many things for you and for me to do for him in the PRESENT if we only look for it and ask God what He wants of us..
IN REALITY
This may entail some SUFFERING, TRIALS, GOOD TIMES and BAD. If we joyfully accepted so many decades of good times, we must be ready for some trials in life. God has a mission for you, me and our children in how we are to live out our lives in this crazy world.Â
As such, should embrace that truth and avoid the APATHY trap of throwing up our hands and doing nothing-proclaiming that âJesus is returning and overly focusing on trying to figure that out (speaking of the return of Christ) while a dying world void of hearing the Good News of Jesus Christ passes by. By doing so, we risk living a life of disobedience and the failure by decision to neglect fighting the good fight-against what God has for us in the present.
As I awoke this morning, I made the decision to look at life differently. Itâs a choice. YES, we live in oppressive times where canceling of free speech, including religious speech is no longer tolerated by its citizens and most notably the government. God tells us that we are not supposed to look back at the âgood old daysâ in comparison to the present, and we certainly are NOT to become angry. God has one special thing for you and for TODAY. And that is His plan for each of us in the present. I pray you will all embrace this truth as Godâs plan unfolds.
Ecclesiastes 7:7-10 (ESV)
â7 Surely oppression drives the wise into madness, and a bribe corrupts the heart.
8 Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. 9 Be not quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the heart[a] of fools.10 Say not, âWhy were the former days better than these?â For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.