“Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.” (Ec 9:6 AV)
As the theme of this book goes, Solomon is examining the futility of those things that man prioritizes in light of a godless eternity. If God does not exist, then our lives mean nothing. If God does not exist, then the pursuits of life don’t matter either. If there is no eternity, then we should have no priorities. Nothing really matters if there is no afterlife. There are many things Solomon mentions as futile. Or, as he puts it, a vanity. Above, Solomon points to three emotions directed toward other people. There is love, hatred, and envy. One positive emotion and two negative emotions. These emotions are excessive in nature. They are more robust than other emotions like admiration, dislike, or aversion. Love, hatred, and envy are the strongest emotions that shape relationships we have with others. If there is no eternity, why bother? These emotions may make our lives more enjoyable to us for the moment, but in the long run, what difference would they make? That is if God does not exist. As I pondered this, the Spirit pointed out a conclusion appropriate for the saints. We believe God exists and in the eternity which we will enjoy. If hatred and envy do not exist in that life, why bother harboring them in this life?
God has allowed me a blessing that few truly enjoy. Growing up, I had few friends. There were several reasons for this, but the friends I did have were very close. In my early years, I had one friend in particular who was so close, we were tied at the hip. We went everywhere together. He taught me to love black licorice, garden, and own an aquarium. We spoke of Corvettes, walked the fields getting sick on wild onions, and he taught me how to sauté mushrooms. We went to Catholic schools together and if it were not for him, I would have been bullied far worse than I was. It wasn’t until eighth grade when he moved away that most of my bad memories of my childhood transpired. Over the years, we both accepted Christ as our Savior but lived worlds apart. He stayed relatively close to where we grew up, but I moved two hours away, then to the Midwest and South. The LORD put him on my heart and we reconnected after almost forty years of estrangement. As we spoke, we both agreed we would not live in the past, but relish in what God had done with both of us and where we would eventually be. All the memories we had (the bad ones that is) didn’t matter. Both of us went through similar childhoods and neither of us wanted to revisit those memories. The fond memories remained. But the bitterness and resentment were erased by our separate relationships with the LORD Jesus Christ.
Life is too short to harbor ill feelings toward others. After all, hatred and envy will all be gone when we step onto those golden streets of glory. All those things that happened to us (and all those things we did to other people) will be forgotten. There is a tree amid the river of life. That tree yields a different fruit every month. Twelve different fruits. These fruits and leaves of the tree, the bible tells us, are for the healing of the nations. I believe in eternity, this special place will be a place where one-time adversarial saints can fellowship in the light of God’s glory and remember what they have in common – the love of Christ. If hatred and envy will be non-existent, then why harbor them now? If forgiveness and love are the themes of glory, why not live in them now? I have seen too many lives ruined because the saints wish to hold onto emotions used to manipulate others. As I said, life is too short. Let it go, already. Remember, as hurt as you are, you have hurt others, too. Time to learn to forgive. Time to learn to forget. After all, this is the reality of eternity, so why not start now?
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