What It Means To Follow God
But beyond these, my son, be warned: there is no end to the making of many books, and much study wearies the body. When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is this: fear God and keep his commands, because this is for all humanity. For God will bring every act to judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil. (Ecclesiastes 12:12-14, emphasis mine)
In verse 13, the writer concluded that not only do we fear God, but we to keep his commands. To really understand this part of the phrase, it’s to understand this is more than just obeying what God has to say – that’s a big part of it.
We follow God by obeying his commandments and way of life.
But what this fully means here in this passage is that following the literal commands of God is just a reaction to a bigger principle and that is follow God is essentially living by faith, which is believing there is no other God but the God of the Bible and that your life is completely under authority and you are willing to go and do wherever and whatever he says!
And further we compound upon that by saying following God with absolute faith is having a dependency and trust in God alone! Faith in God is tangible trust in God. Why is this important in light of this passage?
Again, this book was all about the things underneath the sun and how they are the opposite of trustworthy. Your career, money, and life are all objects of fail-ability and will dissipate. So in light of that, what do you do? You run to the one who is the only thing that is reliable and unwavering – God.
And this was helpful for the writer because many things left him without meaning – issues like government and injustice. Working hard and acquiring wealth. People, fame, wealth–those things if we push them to the limits, we’ll find that they, too, are meaningless.
So he’s right, in light of many things that are hevel, what is one left to do? Live by faith.
We can trust that this to be true because our faith in Christ is assured not by works but by faith. It’s belief in the Triune God of the universe – nothing more and nothing less than faith? And to receive salvation, which is the key to all the other joys and pleasure in life, then, too, faith in Christ unlocks the contentment we require in the midst of living underneath the sun.
It’s wild how simple this is. We spend so much time complicating life and the answer is right there in front of us – it’s one move. It’s putting all our faith in Jesus Christ.
And here’s that simplicity:
That you and I have been created by God, we are children, and that in light of that relationship, it’s wired within us, whether we like or not, that our highest calling in life is to know Him and to be united with Him in faith. And realizing that, you are willing to go anywhere and do anything for the glory of God.
With all the “I don’t knows” in the world, it’s wild and radical to believe that the answer to all of that and everything is simple and elementary. Have faith in God.
If you’re anything like me, you need some practical action steps when a preacher or a spiritual book says something spiritual like what I just said with true way to live that out. Believing it is one thing but what does that actually look like throughout my day?
1. Intentionally become more aware that you can acknowledge God and actually talk to Him throughout your day.
2. It’s kneeling at your bed as soon as you wake up and praying – that posture can set a tone for your entire day.
3. It’s searching for all the verses that have to do you being a child of God and memorizing them or writing them down on a notecard and putting it on your dashboard and reading it while you drive.
4. During your lunch break, it’s taking a walk and talking to God. Take some time to just look up and out at sky.
Another way he exhibit and foster faith in our lives is through creating out space to hear from God. I’m not talking about a quiet time. I’m talking about a time once, twice, or quarterly where you take a whole day or a good portion of your day to listen to God.
You need to do this because this is where God radically speaks into your life. The heroes of our faith had incredible encounters with God and we can foster an environment to hear from Him when we create space.
I encourage to mark days in your calendar to turn off the phone and wrestle with God on some things. Ask him what risks do you need to take? Finally have the conversation you’ve always wanted to have but never have with God – an honest and real one. It’s where you ask God to bring order to your chaos.
There are some of you today that God is calling to take a step of faith. To do something bold that requires you to enter in arena where trusting God is all that you have.
What’s that step of faith in the midst of living underneath the sun you need to take?
Watch the full sermon here.