My wife and I are 70 and 71. We’re still vibrant and engaged, but life at this stage takes its toll. Today, my wife has Parkinson’s, so her life is more limited than it has ever been. At age 50, she played #3 on the local college tennis team—yes, you heard that right—Queens University in Charlotte. But life moves on and 20 years passes so quickly. She had to retire from her nursing career 6 years ago due to the Parkinson’s. I am still working full time at Reformed Theological Seminary and loving it. I teach and spend time with the students. Student ministry probably does keep you young, but their lives—and loves—are not necessarily mine. I’m old…! We age and we can’t stop it, no matter how much we try to do so or how strongly we deny it.
In the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon (who certainly appears to be the author) wrestles with the emptiness (or vanity) of life. And of course, as we approach the latter years of our lives, we appraise where we are, what we have done, and whether we made any impact anywhere, or if anyone even cares that we will be gone soon.
Solomon: Remember Your Creator
In chapters 11 and 12 of Ecclesiastes, Solomon is concluding his grand quest for meaning. (I might suggest that you take a moment and look at the biblical text). He has tried many streets for the answer to life—knowledge, pleasure, riches, and work—but he hasn’t found the road to meaning, success, and joy. He now focuses on the path to our eternal home—the presence of God—and the means to joy in this life.
He begins with the theme… “enjoy life but consider the consequences (11:7-9, 12:14). In verse seven of chapter eleven, Solomon mentions “light.” This is a symbol of both blessing and joy. The word “sweet” speaks of a child sucking milk or honey. I don’t know about you, but I love to see the sun rise in the morning (not that I am always up in time to see it). Sunshine brings pleasure to our lives. Solomon is writing about the pleasure of living life with light. In other words, in verse eight, Solomon is declaring that God has designed life to be enjoyed—every day should be a joyful, walking with Him. But, of course, darkness comes. My wife and I are seeing this—in addition to the Parkinson’s, she has developed some heart issues. We don’t know what tomorrow brings (remember when Jesus said that about our worries?) Life includes trials, illness, and eventually death (and I’ve been thinking about mine more often lately, even though I am still very healthy). But the point is that without God these events—as “life under the sun”- become meaningless. I once heard television pastor (and a great one), the late Ben Haden, say, “The blessing of God does not equal money; it is health—money cannot buy the joy of health.” We might wish it could, but good health is difficult to put a price on.
In verse nine, Solomon mentions “rejoicing” in life (remember the song from the late 1980s, “don’t worry, be happy”? That is a philosophy of life without God). What Solomon is saying is you can be glad, merry, feasting, “partying” and seemingly enjoying life, but a young person better count the cost and consider the risks. We do know the inevitable: youth and vitality will end; illness and death will come. Control your joy/pleasure by the knowledge of God’s judgment (i.e., by the consequences).
Lionel Pew was coach of the 1972 Canadian Olympic Team in Munich. His team did very poorly. When he returned to Canada, reporters asked Pew, “What went wrong? Why did we make such a bad showing?” Coach Pew had a ready answer: “The kids were tourists and couldn’t prepare their attitudes for competition of the various events.” We must remember: when we behave like tourists in the world, we are forgetting that our journey will eventually end and we will one day meet God.
Long ago, an older man in my church in Clearwater, who was in his early 60s, experienced the death of a relative. At a breakfast meeting, he asked me, “How can we be so poorly prepared for the inevitable?” Good question. (Note: he is still alive at age 92 today!)
Verse fourteen of chapter eleven is stating a most sobering reality about life under the sun, “Every deed—even the hidden acts and secret thoughts—things no one else knows—will be judged.”
Solomon then launches into a reality check—a lesson—for both the young and the old: enjoy your youth and strength but remember your creator (11:10-12:8).
We must accept our old age realistically—don’t let your heart worry and the pains of body trouble you—you can’t be young forever. Of course, our culture is fascinated with youth (television, ads, music, social media). The mantra now is “Okay Boomer”—you and your opinion are irrelevant! But, remember what it is like to live “life without God!”
Chapter twelve gives us a vibrant (and very relevant) word to all: Remember, i.e., call to mind frequently, celebrate, commemorate (used of sabbath worship), be affectionate toward…. your Creator. He is telling young people to start honoring God while still young. Avoid trouble which brings bitterness, and even callousness toward God.
It is said that eighty percent of people who come to Christ do so before age eighteen, ninety percent by age twenty-one. Solomon says, “Start young!”
The story is told that the great 19th century evangelist, D.L. Moody held meetings in England. When he returned to the home where he was staying, his host asked him, “How many people were converted tonight?” Moody replied, “Two and a half.” The host, smilingly, said, “Two adults and one child I suppose.” Moody replied, “No two children and one adult—the children had their whole lives to give to Christ; the adult had only half of his life left to give.”
A woman in my church in Clearwater gave her testimony to the elders. She said, “I wasn’t raised in a Christian home. However, at age nine, I thought, “God made me—I owe him something—I owe him my life—I want to find him; go to him—she found a church that believed in the Bible, heard the gospel and became a Christian. She is still serving Christ today in her 70s.
A Poetic Picture of Old Age
Chapter twelve, verses two through five, is a poetic picture of old age. Read closely and you might see yourself or parts of yourself if you are aging. The metaphor is of a decaying house in disrepair. The house is our body; this writing is called pessimistic literature.
Verse two, speaking of the “darkened skies,” indicates that the bright days of youth are gone. The “clouds” signify an approaching storm—these clouds are the trials of life which increase with age. Verse three addresses our bodies: the “keepers” are the arms for protection (they are now beginning to tremble). “Stooping” speaks of the back, spine, and legs which are bent. The “grinders” describe loss of teeth; eating becomes a drudgery. The “windows” are our eyes. The eyes are dim; we are experiencing a loss of sight. The “doors are shut,” meaning that we are losing the freedom to go outside (reduced movement and access) and enjoy life; we fear going out. The songs of the “birds” suggest that we are unable to sleep peacefully (have you ever arisen early when you didn’t want to but heard birds singing heartily at the rising of the sun—that’s early!?) The “daughters of song” means that the voice, ears, and lungs are weakened and we can’t engage in singing music like we once did. The “heights” indicate that we have reached a stage of feebleness in our feet; we have a fear of falling. “Almond blossoms” indicate hair that goes from grey to silver. The “grasshopper dragging itself along” speaks of a loss of spring in the step or walking with a limp. “Desire failing” addresses the loss of appetite or sexual drive, leading the person into death.
When I was a campus minister at the University of Florida with Reformed University Fellowship, I played a lot of sports with my students. Of course, I was ten years or so older than the younger ones and in time, they nicknamed me, “Rod ‘Constantly Hurt’ Son.” Yes, high impact sports were hard on the body! However, we had a ten-year RUF UF reunion in Gainesville, and those now older students candidly stated, “Now we understand why sports hurt you so much!”
And speaking of sports, I grew up a Johnny Unitas fan. He was the NFL Hall of Fame quarterback of the Baltimore Colts. I personally think he was the greatest of all time because the game was more brutal in those days. Unitas took abuse on the field for years. I was told by a friend who knew him late in life that every day it took Johnny U. half an hour to get out of bed. He was nearly a cripple from all the hits he endured over time.
Three Analogies
Verses 6-8 are pictures of death and the final act of dying. Solomon provides three different analogies:
First in verse six, a valuable (gold) oil lamp fails because of broken cord; the light is extinguished.
Secondly, the well (or cistern) pitcher (or bucket) is shattered and therefore useless. The well wheel is broken and there is no more water.
Thirdly, in verse seven, our bodies have turned to dust; we have reached our finality “under the sun,” a disgraceful end….
When we forget that whatever we do can bring glory to God, we must reflect. Remember, life without God is meaningless. Solomon returns to his initial cry in chapter one: “vanity of vanity; all is vanity.”
What is our hope? Return to God and remember your creator! Enjoy knowledge (Solomon has provided much of that!)—as well as life in this world—but live with a proper fear of God and in humble obedience. In your attempts to discover meaning in life, you might read many books; knowledge is okay but will end in weariness (just ask our seminary students!) Rather, find true meaning.
Fear and Obey
The final nails in his message are to fear and obey. And the final message is an alert to all of us facing the latter days of life. It is a warning that must be heard.
Growing up, I remember seeing television commercials presenting “the Marlboro Man.” His name was David McLean, who passed away in 1995. For Americans, he was a symbol of rugged individualism, strength, and courage. He was handsome and macho. He rode the range on his horse, punching cows. The sponsor required him to actually smoke the cigarettes on the commercials. But in time, he experienced emphysema and eventually lung cancer. He spent the last three years of his life warning others of the dangers of smoking.
Similarly, Solomon ends his writing about life with a final warning: “Fear God—don’t waste your life on an empty search for meaning.” Love God and serve Him in whatever stage you find yourself.
What might that look like when you have slowed down later in life? First, you can pray! You can be a prayer warrior for your pastor, your church, missionaries, neighbors, etc. I have a friend (now deceased) who lost his job when late in years, so for a while he spent three hours a morning praying for revival in America—start with three minutes and see where it goes.
You can write letters or emails to encourage others—those serving on the mission field, those who are in prisons or drug recovery houses (be careful there), those raising children in your church (you could write the children as well—send them some special Bible verses). You can visit those who are homebound or living in nursing homes (my mother did this into her 80s).
You can serve in your church in whatever capacity you are able. My wife is the missions committee chairperson at our church. It’s not easy. She used to lead the annual trips to Haiti. Now, she just runs the meetings with the help of others—they love for her to lead!
You can look out for your neighbor (start by being friendly to them if you don’t know them). Can you feed their cat when they go out of town? Can you check their mail? What else can you do?
In 1788, Charles Wesley, the great hymn writer of the Methodist Church, at age 80, wrote these dying words: “In age and feebleness extreme, who shall a helpless worm redeem? Jesus: my only hope thou art; strength of my failing flesh and heart. O let me catch a smile from thee and drop into eternity.”
May you cause Jesus to smile upon your feeble efforts to please him in some way and then pass on into eternity, knowing that because of his death on the cross and his resurrection, his smile is already upon you, and he will love you to the end!
