From the Beginning Even to the End

 The Journey, the Road, the Path, We Were Not Created to Go It Alone.

“He has made everything appropriate in it’s time.  He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end.” Ecclesiastes 3:11

 J.R.R. Tolkien wrote for one of his characters these words…

“The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began,
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say”

This life is a mystery… but ever think why it’s such a mystery?

Wouldn’t it be great to know someone who knew all the mysteries of life? Who knew which path we were to take and what we were suppose to do?

Oh but WAIT… GOD DOES!

I don’t know about you but if I saw all what God wanted to do in my life from beginning to end, I would probably become overwhelmed and want to give up.
 
For those who like to be controlling over their life…  (Does anyone have any real control over his or her life?)  We find the more we try to control the more messy life gets.

Others only considering the mortal sense of life become a killjoy or a cynic, thinking they know all there is to life.
  

“’Meaningless! Meaningless!’ says the Teacher.
‘Utterly meaningless!
    Everything is meaningless.’
 What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?” Ecclesiastes 1:2-3 

Solomon was only looking at things horizontally- in his human understanding.

  
The truth is LIFE is MEANINGLESS without God in it.  Life is pretty stale without God in it.

Every once in a while I get a good dose of what that feels like.   They are usually days, that in my haste to get things done, I don’t seek God’s guidance.  Not only do the tasks take LONGER but also there is no pleasure in the tasks of life.  It is just lonely work.  The challenges that arise only make the work more burdensome and the energy level within me weakens.

That is same for all the aspects and facets of life when we don’t walk with Jesus.  For us as Christians, we must not just have a horizontal perspective on life but a vertical perspective as well. 

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13

God wants us to seek him.  He is the only one who knows what we are going to face each day and how to handle each situation.  Being receptive to God’s direction improves our life even with challenges.   Life is not always rosy but with a bit perspective and insight from above, we can appreciate this temporary life a bit more.

We can find the joy of what it means to walk with God and grow in that life changing perspective and be light to others - without that perspective we are just as hopeless as everyone else in this world.

The Good work of God…
“being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6

I am reminded of a mountain river with stones and how the stones have all been rounded by the life of the river.  In a symbolic way we are stones in a river of life.   We all experience stormy days, difficult days and days of bliss but don’t think God doesn’t know where each of those stones are in the river of life.

 “As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 2:4-5

 As I thought about the verse from Ecclesiastes…
”…  yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end,”

 I was reminded of another verse.  “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!”  David wasn't looking horizontally but vertically.  

Let’s look at this verse in Psalm 139:1-6. David says, “O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.  You know when I sit down or stand up.  You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.   You see me when I travel and when I rest at home.   You know everything I do.  You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord.  You go before me and follow me.  You place your hand of blessing on my head.  Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand!” Psalm 139:1-6

The mystery of life and how God uses that mystery to transform our life - is too great for us to understand.

How God knows exactly where we are and what we are thinking, does that sound like a God that doesn’t want anything to do with his creation? Does that sound like a God that doesn’t want to work in our lives?

David says God places a hand of blessing on his head, is the same true for us?

“I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.  Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.  And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.  May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.  Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.  Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.” Ephesians 3:16-21

Ephesians 1:3-5 says,  “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.  For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—“
 
I know I need to consider more that its God’s will to take pleasure in us and our lives - just as we find hope, peace and encouragement in Him.   

David continues with, “You watch me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.  You saw me before I was born.  Everyday of my life was recorded in your book.  Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.  How precious are your thoughts about me O God.  They cannot be numbered!  I can’t count them: They outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me.”  Psalm 139:15-18

God’s precious thoughts for us outnumber the grains of sand.  Ever go to the beach and pick up a hand full of sand? Just in my hand there are more grains of sand than I can count.   Ever pick up a bag of sand from the hardware store?  If you were to transfer God’s love into sand bags, the weight and size would be more then enormous.

The Spirit said, “Longsuffering”.

“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 KJV

We will never love God more then he loves us but God wants us to have a relationship with Him.  A relationship, that grows into a deep love, trust and unyielding acceptance of his guidance for our life.   A relationship, with Him knowing he has planned the best pathway for our life. 

We can’t have this unless we ask God to forgive us for all our wrongs (sins) and ask Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our life and fill us with His Spirit. 

This goes for professing Christians as well… we can’t have the best path or have a maturing relationship with Christ unless we humble ourselves and let God guide us each and everyday.  We must look upward instead of just horizontally.
 
 The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.
    I will advise you and watch over you.” Psalm 32:8

David ends the Psalm with: “Search me, O God and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  Point out anything in me that offends you and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” Psalm 139:23-24

Are you asking him to search you? Are you looking for his daily fellowship?

Only God knows the path from beginning to end and he made it so both you could walk this life together into eternity.   Again, there is no way to make it into eternity in heaven without Him- Jesus Christ.

The question is do we see that?  Do we realize our daily need to take hold of his hand as his children and have him lead us to what is a mystery- from the beginning to the end?

"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..." Hebrews 12:1-2
 
May God help us to look vertically to Jesus who is the author and finisher of our faith.