STAND& COMFORT Newsletter
Email NEWSLETTER #40 (Vol 3 No 7)
By Ed Tarkowski

THERE IS NOTHING NEW UNDER THE SUN . . . OR IS THERE?

Ecclesiastes shows the futility of man's work on the earth. Just as the sun goes down in the evening only to rise again in the morning, such is the pattern of man's life. Man goes to sleep only to wake up the next morning to go to work to earn money to buy the bread, which is consumed, causing him to rest once again so he can get up the next morning to earn more bread:

Ecc 1:9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.

Eventually, man dies and meets the same end as all men, whether they be wise or foolish:

Eccl 12:7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
8 Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity.

Part of what Solomon learned was that man's wisdom concerning the things of this world is all vanity, especially if the things wisely acquired are then left to a fool when he dies:

Eccl 2:18 Yea, I hated all my labour which I had taken under the sun: because I should leave it unto the man that shall be after me.
19 And who knoweth whether he shall be a wise man or a fool? yet shall he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have showed myself wise under the sun. This is also vanity.

Solomon was noted for his wisdom because he sought wisdom in earthly things and the ways of man, yet he found that all was vanity:

Eccl 1:13 And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith.
14 I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit.
15 That which is crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.
16 I communed with mine own heart, saying, Lo, I am come to great estate, and have gotten more wisdom than all they that have been before me in Jerusalem: yea, my heart had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.
17 And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.
18 For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.

Although he fully surveyed the condition of man in Ecclesiastes - the phrase "under the sun" is used 29 times - Solomon concluded:

Eccl 1:9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
10 Is there any thing whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us.

There is no new thing under the sun. This was the result of Solomon's seeking wisdom. Though his wisdom brought a degree of happiness and also frustration in the things he had, at the same time, he saw the vanity of it all. Solomon concluded that "the fate of the fool" would overtake him at his own death:

Eccl 2:14 The wise man has eyes in his head, while the fool walks in the darkness; but I came to realize that the same fate overtakes them both.

Solomon pushed his wisdom to the point of man dying and still concluded there was nothing new under the sun. We can see that he lacked the spiritual wisdom that went beyond the grave to the happiness that God intended for His own. If there was to be something new under the sun, it would have to come from God, but God had not yet revealed this wisdom:

Eccl 3:11 He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.

THERE IS NOW SOMETHING NEW UNDER THE SUN

Solomon labeled every man either a wise man or a fool. A fool could become wise and a wise man could become foolish, but all were engrossed in the things of this world, and all would die the same death. But then, at the right time, God brought about something new under the sun. He sent His Son into the world as the wisdom that would be a light to the world:

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Solomon wrote,

1:15 That which is crooked cannot be made straight: and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.

Solomon discovered that the ways of men are hopelessly crooked and cannot be numbered, let alone any solutions that might be offered to bring about correction. Man's ways were crooked, yet by sending His sinless Son, God offered to humanity that which makes straight what was crooked. John the Baptist announced this salvation at the river Jordan:

Luke 3:5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth;
Luke 3:6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.

In 1 Corinthians, Paul speaks of Christ crucified as the wisdom of God:

1 Cor 2:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
8 Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.

The statement is simple: the wisdom of God is Christ crucified, which brings to naught the wisdom of men regarding salvation. Christ as the wisdom of God places the things of this world and man's labor and man's character in their proper perspective. Christ's coming exalts the providence of God in both earthly things and spiritual things. Solomon lacked the fullness of the latter because God could not reveal it to him at that time. Christ's coming showed the world that God's wisdom is based not in mental assent and knowledge and temporal power, but in the weakness of both the wise man and the fool before the Creator. Men say, acquire wisdom and gain shall follow. Christ says, give and it shall be given to you. Men say, use wisdom to gain power and rule all that is around you. Christ says, humble yourself as a lamb for the slaughter and God will exalt you, eventually to a place where you will rule the nations with Him.

The verses exalting God's wisdom hidden since the world was created are complemented by Peter's statement regarding Christ as the Lamb of God:

1 Pet 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,
21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

This is the capstone of God's wisdom. Israel expected a conquering Messiah who would put Rome under its feet, bringing about a nation that would surpass the wealth and reign of Solomon. It wanted a king to reign in power, but God's wisdom was the cross. The cross brings light to the frustration of Solomon: all man does is left at the grave and his future after death lies hidden in death's darkness. But now with the resurrection came new light and new life, a life that was new under the sun. The sun went down and Jesus, the first-born from the dead, ate fish with His disciples. The sun came up and the risen Jesus took a walk on the Emmaus road. There was something new under the sun: a resurrected man who would fulfill the hopes and dreams of all who wanted God to have His way in their lives. They would only have to accept the wisdom of God manifested in the person of God's Son, Jesus Christ:

Phil 2:5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

The preaching of the cross to most men in Jesus' time was foolishness. It is foolishness to most today. God certainly is not a fool, but there is a foolishness about Him that confounds the wise men of earth. It is a very serious foolishness.

God has absolute wisdom; He is all-wise. And in God's plan now revealed, it would seem that having a man die to set up His ultimate rule and sovereignty in a visible kingdom on earth is ultimate foolishness:

1 Cor 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.
20 Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:
23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;
24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.
25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

How can a man dying be the victory of God and the foundation of His future rule in a visible kingdom on earth? Because Christ, being the sinless Son of God come in the flesh, broke the power of sin and death and ushered in the righteousness of God through faith. It brought about a people who were also something new under the sun. One day, that sun will go dark and the sky will roll up like a scroll and Jesus will come back as the sign the Jews require in 1 Corinthians 1:22. He will usher in his visible kingdom, where there is no need for sun or moon:

Rev 21:23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it.

In his day, Solomon was correct when he declared, "There is nothing new under the sun." But when Jesus returns, the sun itself will be no more and all things will be made new. This will come about because of God's "foolishness" in allowing His Son to be crucified and placed in a tomb. But Jesus is no longer there. He is risen, and that resurrection will one day bring about the full manifestation of God's foolishness:

2 Th 1:6 Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you;
7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
10 When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.

Christ is risen! You can rejoice because you are a believer in the foolishness of God! If you're not, only believe.

==============

This newsletter will be sent out whenever I think there is something the body of Christ needs to consider, to build it up, to give it encouragement or comfort in hard times.

To sign up for this newsletter, email Ed at edju@velocity.net
Past issues may be read at The Newsletter Page

Newsletter Page