THE RAT RACE IS FOR RATS!

Ecclesiastes 9:1-12
Bob Bonner
May 16, 1999

The “rat race” is for rats! But I have a hard time remembering that. Sometimes, I can’t remember why I am running let alone where I am going! Have you ever felt that way?

As most of you know, we are in the process of looking for a new staff person to fill the position of Director of Children and Family Ministries. This past week, our leading candidate came to an agonizing decision. As far as the rat race goes, he wanted to come here, but the Lord told him that it is not time for him to move on from where he is. So, he wisely chose to stay where he is.  But for me personally, because I’m in hurry to build into children’s and family’s lives here at Crossroads, I was disappointed, because now it means that we have to continue the process of interviewing potential candidates, when I want to get on with the race! How quickly one can forget why we are here and whose ends we serve. We are here to equip the saints to do the work of His ministry, His way, with His chosen servants, and not mine. God is never in a hurry.

I gained some perspective of the situation when I providentially came across a list of characteristics of a live church versus a dead church. Allow me to share them with you. I find them interesting.

• Live churches have space problems--parking, classrooms, offices, storage; dead churches have no worry about space.
• Live churches are always changing things; dead churches don’t have to--they just stay the same.
• Live churches have noisy children and young people; dead churches are fairly quiet and serene.
• Live churches have a shortage of staff; dead churches usually have a surplus.
• Live churches are always overspending their budgets; dead churches maintain large bank accounts.
• Live churches struggle to remember new names; dead churches...everybody knows everybody...for years!
• Live churches have a problem developing new leaders; dead churches don’t...they just use the same ones over and over.
• Live churches spend much on “missions;” dead churches keep it all at home.
• Live churches are filled with givers; dead churches are filled with tippers.
• Live churches operate primarily on faith; dead churches operate totally on sight.
• Live churches strain to learn and serve; dead churches seek rest and comfort.
• Live churches evangelize; dead churches fossilize!

Whether you are talking about churches or individuals, people are either on the move or they are dead. However, one does not have to be a rat in the rat race to be alive and on the move. Actually, I see two possibilities for those who are alive and on the move. A rat is one possibility. A rat typically runs from corner to shelf to dark hole at a frenzied pace, but does not know ultimately why or where it is going. Its only goal is simply to stay alive as long and as well as it can. It’s the “looking out for number one” philosophy. A rat is impatient and does everything it can to keep its own demise at bay.

On the other hand, one can be on the move and not be a rat, but a sojourner. Webster’s defines sojourner as one who is a temporary resident. In other words, a sojourner is someone who is on the move, a traveler, who knows where he is going, but also realizes that where he is, is not home. Although there may be work to be done right where he is, that place is not his ultimate destination.

For those of us who know Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior, we live as sojourners moving through this world, temporarily here to serve King Jesus’ purposes. We know that this earth ultimately is not our home. Therefore, we don’t fear death. We choose to live today on the basis of what we know to be true about eternity, and in accordance with what Jesus wants for us today. We as saints, are people set apart for Jesus, and are to live like sojourners. We are here temporarily to serve the purpose of Jesus our King, then when He deems it time, we go home to be with Him.

Having been reminded of that this week, I had to take off my rat suit and put on the more suitable attire of a saint, that of being a sojourner, living for Christ’s purposes, not my own. His perfect timing and His chosen staff member for us will be revealed to us when it is the right time.

Are you a living like a sojourner or a rat? From time to time, we need to look at the suit of clothes we are wearing, to make sure that we are not wearing a rat’s suit. This morning, that’s what we want to do as a result of looking at our passage of Scripture. When we are finished, we want to consider our own lives and answer the question: “are we really living like sojourners or rats?”  If you have your Bibles with you, please open them to Ecclesiastes 9:1-12. 

Allow me to interject right here, that if you know Jesus as your Savior and Lord, you were designed to live as a sojourner, but there is no guarantee that’s what you are doing. Living as a sojourner rather than a rat is not automatic, when you come to Christ. It requires that you continually make choices to obey and serve the King and His purposes over your own. So, take some time to evaluate yourself this morning, in light of God’s Word. What kind of choices are you making as to the investment of your time, energies, wealth and possessions?

Our passage of Scripture begins the second part of the second half of the book of Ecclesiastes. It covers 9:1-11:6. This part of the book is characterized by the phrase “man does not know” or “man knows.” Throughout this section, it stresses things we can know for sure, and some others that we can’t know or things that are unpredictable. In our passage, Solomon points to two things we can’t know or things which are unpredictable and one thing we can know for sure. 

He begins our passage with something we can’t really know. He says in verse 1, “For I have taken all this to my heart and explain it, that righteous men, wise men, and their deeds [or “the outcome of their lives here on earth] are in the hand of God. Man does not know whether it will be love [blessings or happy things] or hatred; [sorrow or unpleasant things] anything awaits him.” First of all, Solomon is making clear that there are going to be events in the believer’s life that they cannot predict. Some of them are going to be fun and exciting and some are going to be downright miserable.

Being “in the hand of God” is an expression that means that we are “at the disposal of” “under the supervision of” or “in the care of God.” Solomon is making it clear that we are not passive actors in a cosmic, fatalistic drama, in which we have been handed a script by an uncaring director. Throughout Ecclesiastes, Solomon has emphasized human responsibility to make choices, to use discernment. But what he is trying to tell us here, is that just because you commit your life into the hands of a loving and caring God, that will not guarantee that you will be economically prosperous, physically healthy, protected from emotional trauma, trouble free and beloved and appreciated by everybody. In short he is telling us that even for those of us who commit our life to Jesus Christ, life is still unpredictable even for the believer. But what does help is that, even in the midst of the hardships that fall on everybody, there is the knowledge for the believer that behind it all, there stands a God who cares. He hasn’t been surprised by the event or injustice that has come into your life. He hasn’t lost the handle to the controls. He is, in fact, still in charge.

Yet, having said that Solomon adds something that we can know or predict. He says, in verse 2, “It is the same for all. There is one fate [that’s a poor translation of the term here. Some of your translations have the word “destiny”. Why these translations choose to use those English words for the Hebrew word used here, I don’t know. But the best word to translate the original is “event.”] there is one event for the righteous and for the wicked; for the good, for the clean, and for the unclean; for the man who offers a sacrifice and for the one who does not sacrifice. As the good man is, so is the sinner; as the swearer is [meaning the one who makes a commitment to follow the Lord], so is the one who is afraid to swear [meaning the one who is afraid to swear loyalty to Christ because that person doesn’t know where Jesus will take him]. This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that there is one fate [event] for all men. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil, and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead.” The event that Solomon is focused on here is death. Simply put, he is saying that death is inevitable for all of us. Short of the rapture when Jesus comes again, we are going to die someday. We can’t avoid it. Life as we know it on this earth will come to a screeching halt, and that’s all there is. It’s over, finished.

The late Joseph Bayly wrote about death, “We may postpone it, we may tame its violence, but death is still there waiting for us. Death always waits. The door of the hearse is never closed. Dairy farmer and sales executive live in death’s shadow, with Nobel Prize winner and prostitute, mother, infant, teen, old man. The hearse stands waiting for the surgeon who transplants a heart as well as the hopeful recipient, for the funeral director as well as the corpse he manipulates. Death spares none.” [Joseph Bayly, The Last Thing We Talk About, rev.ed. (Elgin, Ill.: David C. Cook publishing Co., 1973, pp. 11-12]

Knowing the truth about death brings two different responses. The first we have already started to read about in verse 3. It is the response of the one who denies that God exists or one who refuses to accept the gracious offer of the Lord Jesus Christ, but yet this unbeliever still realizes that he can’t avoid death. Let’s reread verse .3. “This is an evil [“disaster or calamity”] in all that is done under the sun, that there is one fate [event] for all men. Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of men [not “children of God” or “sons of God,” but “sons of men” which refers to unbelievers]. Furthermore, the hearts of unbelievers are full of evil [disaster], and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. Afterwards they go to the dead.” 

When God is left out of the picture, or the consequences of having to answer to God for what we do here in life is unlearned or ignored, unbelievers can wreak havoc and disaster in the world. They can do insane things throughout their lives, such as “ethnic cleansing,” the “Columbine massacre,” abandoning children, killing parents, becoming a workaholic, cheating, lying, anything to serve their selfish interests, the looking out for number one philosophy. Why? There are two explanations. First of all, within each human heart is this private polluted pool of evil, Solomon says here. It’s a reservoir of insanity. Everybody has it, but if we are not individually delivered from it by Jesus, it has limitless possibilities for disaster. The New Testament calls it the “flesh.”

Secondly, from the godless point of view, if there is no God, and the good man dies just like the bad man dies, then the godless person reasons, “Why not be selfish? Why not walk all over people to satisfy my bitterness? Life ends at the grave, anyway (they think). There is no after life. So, I’ll do whatever I wish.”

The godless teenager reasons, “What difference does it make if you cut your life short 50 years through suicide or drug abuse, in comparison to billions of years of your body turning into compost? Fifty years doesn’t mean anything, if this is all there is. So, better to live hard and fast and selfishly than long, slow and be a doormat.”

However, what some of those who hold God off forget or don’t realize, is what Solomon says in verses 4-6. Living does have its advantages, even for the unbeliever. Solomon says, “For whoever is joined with all the living, there is hope;...”  Hope for what? Hope that the reader will stop and consider his or her life, turn from rebelling against God, and instead, welcome Jesus with open arms and allow the King to be the ruler of that person’s life. 

Solomon continues, “...surely a live dog is better than a dead lion.”  This is a quote from an Arabic proverb, familiar to Solomon, but not to us. A dog here, does not refer to our pampered pets who live in the lap of luxury in this country, and are treated by many to be on the same level or better than human beings. In Solomon’s days, dogs were diseased mongrels that ran in packs. People feared them. They were far from being the majestic king of the jungle, the lion. Nevertheless, Solomon says, it’s better to be a live mongrel than a dead king.

He continues, “For the living know they will die; but the dead do not know anything, nor have they any longer a reward, for their memory is forgotten. Indeed their love, their hate, and their zeal [or their “passions” for life, like cheering on their favorite sports team] have already perished, and they will no longer have a share in all that is done under the sun.”

There is no clear explanation here as to what takes place after the grave. It is simply stating that life as we know it will cease when we die. When those who stiff-arm God, or continue to hold Him away until they die, that will bring for them the close to lost opportunities to serve God and to know Him and His gracious gifts. 

In addition, with the words “reward” which refers to that end product of human endeavor, and the word “perished” which refers to someone else permanently destroying any trace of that person, these words are a serious warning of impending judgment. Damnation or eternal separation from God, which was the non-believer’s wish, not God’s. Contrary to what some believe, God does not unjustifiably send people to hell. People choose that end when they continue to stiff-arm God until they die. They can put their trust in Jesus, that He has accomplished what it takes to forgive, save and create a new life in them, or they can choose to reject Him. Based on their choice, they will face eternity either with God or without Him.

But since Solomon began writing these words to those who are seekers of God, or to believers, he now returns to them in verse 7, and explains what should be our response to the knowledge that life is indeed unpredictable even for believers and that death is unavoidable, even for believers. As we face today and the rest of our unpredictable days, days filled with the promise of death and events of sorrow and gladness, Solomon tells us to do four things

First, he says, “Go then, eat your bread in happiness, and drink your wine with a cheerful heart; for God has already approved your works.”  Don’t deny the realities of difficult times, but also, don’t dwell in those sorrows. Instead, move on from the injustices and losses you suffer and enjoy community meals together. Meals in the Jewish community were seldom consumed alone. They were a family or community affair. Hence, Solomon’s exhortation to the believers is don’t stop enjoying those leisurely times with friends and family around the table. Those times that lead to a sense of peace and contentment.

But when difficult times come and sorrows hit close to home, the hardest thing in the world to do is to enjoy a meal. So, how can we do that in the midst of our pain? Solomon explains how. It all has to do with keeping the bigger picture in view. What’s that bigger picture? Solomon says, “for God has already approved your works.”

This almost sounds like the Apostle Paul speaking here, for the subject has to do with approval or justification by faith. For those who have put their trust in Jesus Christ have been made righteous, forever approved of by God.  They have been justified.  Therefore, when we stand back to get the bigger picture of eternity, although we have had losses and injustices in this life, when we die, we won’t be like the lost, who have no hope. We will stand fully approved and completely accepted by God. We will have our ongoing relationship with the living God forever, with no more pain or sorrow. By then, all wrongs will be righted and all pain will cease. This suffering today is real, but it won’t go on forever. It will cease and according to Revelation 21:4, there will never be any more tears. As sojourners, when we move on the pain will be gone with it. In the meantime, enjoy the good gifts of the Lord, such as fellowshipping with other believers over a good meal.

Secondly, even though the believer will face inevitable sorrows, Solomon encourages us in verse 8, “Let your clothes be white all the time, and let not oil be lacking on your head.”  “White clothes” and “oil on your head” have two simultaneous meanings each. First, they both point toward festive times, times of celebration and joy, where you get dressed up and put on the dog! They refer to a time of fun and relaxation. 

In a spiritual sense, “white clothes” symbolized purity or right living and “oil” was a reference to the power of the Holy Spirit in one’s life. 

Together, these two sets of meanings refer to the Holy Spirit taking control of your life in such a way, that as you turn to Jesus, and flowing out of the realization that you stand approved by Him, you can enjoy Him and serve Him by the power of His Spirit indwelling you. Or, briefly stated, this is Solomon’s encouragement to enjoy times of celebrations and righteous living all the time being empowered and controlled by the Holy Spirit.

Thirdly, out of the joyful relationship with Jesus, you not only can enjoy friends, your ministry here on earth, but also key relationships with people you love, like your wife, men. Look at what Solomon says in verse 9, “Enjoy life with the woman [literally, the wife] whom you love all the days of your fleeting life which He has given to you under the sun; for this is your reward in life, and in your toil in which you have labored under the sun.”  Life is hard and harsh at times. When harshness comes, oftentimes loneliness is not far behind. So, God designed marriage to help ease the pain of loneliness. When a man and a woman hang in there for better or for worse, till death do them part, they discover that when hard times come, they are not alone. They have their life partner to bring comfort. That is one of God’s greatest gifts in life. So husbands, wives, treasure your spouses, for they will bring great joy to you in tough times, as you seek the Lord together. 

When Jesus is head of the marriage, and both husband and wife seek after Him, then Jesus brings joy to life, even in the midst of hard times. When Solomon says “enjoy life with your wife” the literal Hebrew word is to “see life with your wife.” It has a much broader meaning of experiencing the fulness of life together, all of the passions and range of emotions one can know as they explore the world in which they live and serve the King together as they sojourn through life.

There is a final response that the believer is to have, as one gets the bigger picture, following unpredictable tragic events. Knowing that we stand once and for all approved and loved before God, Solomon tells us in verse 10 to enjoy hard work and enterprise  He says, “Whatever your hand finds to do, verily, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going.”

As we sojourn on this earth, we have a unique opportunity to serve the Lord with our talents and abilities at our jobs. When we die, this form of unique service will be over. So, while you can, here on earth, serve the Lord with gladness. That’s his point.

To summarize what he has said about the believer’s response to the unpredictable good and bad times of life, Solomon says, that knowing that the biggest issue of life is solved, namely that God approves of you and your eternal destiny is guaranteed, you go on to live a life of contentment with friends (verse 7), celebration in righteous living (verse 8), companionship with your helpmeet (verse 9) and confidence in your work (verse 10).

What a far cry that is from those who don’t know the Lord or seek to serve Him. That is a far cry from the rat who seeks a modern societies’ formula for happiness. One author put it this way: “Fast food and a full schedule, the addictive pursuit of everything new, “live-in marriages,” and shortcuts guaranteed to help you avoid work but still get rich quick.” [Wiersbe, p.110].

Which leads us right to the last two verses 11-12, where the first two words, “Again I saw” take us right back to the unbelievers approach to life, the “rat race.” Solomon declares, “I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift, and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise, nor wealth to the discerning, nor favor to men of ability; for time and chance overtake them all.”  Again, we need to clarify two terms here. The word for “time” used both in this verse and the next clearly refers to judgment when it is connected to the second key term, “chance.” This word for “chance” simply means an “occurrence” and usually when it is used, refers to a negative situation. The “occurrence” being focused on in this paragraph is the event that is common to all people, death. It is not this idea of destiny, fate or misfortune as though our world is spinning out of control. 

Hence, as Walter Kaiser, a Hebrew scholar explains, “The ‘time’ is a time of judgment to be directed by God, in which He may allow the events and situations of life to overwhelm and overthrow those whose endowment of abilities seems to deny the possibility of their ever failing.” [Kaiser, Ecclesiastes, p. 103, Moody]. 

In other words, in the world, people think that if you run hard and fast, and you are one of the talented in life, then you obviously will win the prize of life, you will succeed. But Solomon says, that this is not so. For he explains in the next verse, “Moreover, man does not know his time: like fish caught in a treacherous net, and birds trapped in a snare, so the sons of men are ensnared at an evil time when it suddenly falls on them.” 

Just when people think they have arrived to enjoy their retirement or glory years, suddenly they die, unexpectedly, and with their death comes judgment. The author of Hebrews says it well when he writes, “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.”

So, what is Solomon’s point? Simply put, we know that the time of death is unpredictable. Hence, we know that all of the plans of mice and men, or maybe we should say “rats,” fall short and silent in the hands of a Sovereign God, who is the only one who knows the day of what is unpredictable to us, the day of one’s death.

So what do we have here as we summarize Solomon’s points? We know that life is unpredictable as to whether we will see good or bad days. We know that it is predictable that all of us will one day die. But what is unpredictable is when we will die. Hence, as believers, the end of our time has a way of wiping away the fog of the incidental days of our lives. What clear perspective we do gain amidst the unpredictable days ahead, comes from looking at life from the eternal perspective, through the eyes of the Sovereign God who is in control.

Those who have Jesus as their Lord and Savior stand approved. As they continue to seek after Him, even though events don’t always go as hoped or planned, in the end God will make sure that all things add up for our good and His.

However, those who have not put their confidence and the control of their lives in the hands of Jesus Christ, still have hope to make Him their Lord and Savior as long as they have breath.

There are some questions each of us must consider. Obviously, if you have not placed your life in the hands of Jesus Christ, the Lord and Savior, do you wish to? If not, why not? If you do, I will show you how in a moment.

For those of you who have committed your life to Jesus Christ, are you living life like a rat, running from here to there without really stopping for an extended period of time to listen for the voice of God to maybe change your direction?  Is He in charge of your daily affairs?  Have you really asked Him to be the director of your life, whether you are a student, parent, spouse, employee or employer, working or retired? Are you meeting quietly alone with the Lord often enough to know if you are doing what He desires for your life? 

One can tell whether one is truly a rat, or a sojourner who is living here on earth temporarily, with the view to serve the King, when one’s plans dreams or expectations are radically changed and by how one responds. Do we get frustrated? How long does that frustration last? Does it fairly quickly subside as you look back to the Lord, knowing that you have done all you could, and go with His lead? Or do you continue kicking and screaming because your dream is not being realized? If you are continuing in the mode of frustration, you are living the life of a rat. You are not a Holy-Spirit controlled or filled Christian. 

If you don’t like the disappointment of failed dreams or expectations, but you willingly have given them back to the Lord and have respectfully said, “Lord Jesus, now what would you have me do to honor you through this thing?” now you are a sojourner. So, which are you? 

If I were to look at your schedule, your work time, free time, would it reflect a person who has a hunger to serve Jesus? Would it show scheduled times of accountability with other believers? Would it reveal occasions when you spontaneously told others what Jesus was doing in your life? Would it show times where you got alone with the Lord to be with Him in prayer and reading His Word and listening to His voice? If I looked at your checkbook, would it reflect that what Jesus considers to be important is a priority in your life? 

Jesus came to give you life, not mere existence, but life with a purpose and meaning. If you don’t feel like you have that kind of life, I suggest that you seek after Him, and receive His approval and guidance. For those of you who have never begun the journey of a sojourner, but would like to entrust your life to Jesus Christ, I would invite you to share my words as I pray in a moment. Remember, God is not so concerned about your words as He is with the attitude of your heart.

For those who are living like rats but you are sojourners and you want to return to living like a sojourner, then quietly in your hearts, tell the Lord that right now. Ask Him to place on your heart, if He hasn’t already, one area that He wants to move back into as Lord of your life—an area in which you will submit to His authoritative control today. Quietly, in your own heart, tell Jesus that He can have it back. Now is not the time to work out all the details of your commitment, so set a time or place right now for you and the Lord to get together and pray over what He would have you do in this area.

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