Solomon was
wise alright. He knew and he understood
about the paths and the seasons of the One True God; and due to just a single
passage that he one day penned, many topics can be cleared up for we who
believe in the scriptures. The passage
that I speak of begins with one of the most popular verses in all of the Bible. Found in the book of Ecclesiastes it reads, “
To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.”
Solomon
starts out by telling us that there is a time for a man to be born. However, we most certainly know that it
doesn’t end there. For just as the God
of all the heavens and the earth appoints a time for a man to be born, He
appoints also a day for that same man to return back to his Maker. What we need to see in the writings of
Solomon, in the third chapter of the book of Ecclesiastes, is that no one thing
placed into existence by the spoken Word was ever meant to stand alone. In other words, everything that has ever been
ordained of God, was also designed to be a counterpart of something totally opposite
of itself.
Think about
it. After he writes about there being a
time for a man to be born, he then speaks of there being a time for that same
man to die – one matter completely contrary to the other. He continues on, telling us that there is a
time to plant, and a time to pluck what is planted. In this passage of Ecclesiastes Solomon goes
on to tell of twelve more like things; in each and every case there is the
counterpart of the thing he starts out with.
What we are speaking of here, no doubt goes all the way back to the
creation story. Do these words sound
familiar? God said, “Let there be
light.” But it was not very long after
that we read of the darkness. “The light
He then called Day.” “The darkness He
called Night.”
We may not
realize it, but the great numbers of angels in our Heavenly Father’s infinite
universe are no doubt incalculable; they are not as the number of we humans who
have lived our lives upon the earth.
Nevertheless, the God of all creation can number all their hosts in the
blink of an eye – those who are of the night as well as those who are of the
day – one group the counterpart of the other.
Well, we can
go on and on concerning the matter of counterparts. Solomon only brought to our attention a small
few, just to illuminate to us the ways of our most Holy God. But if David’s greatest and most outstanding
son wished to, he could have no doubt written a book the size of a dictionary
on the subject of counterparts.
When we read
the scriptures we ought not to just read them without seriously dwelling on the
meaning of what we have just read. After
all, there is all sorts of treasure under that there ground, just like the
early settlers of our country spoke of to one another. But they sought after that which perishes. We seek after the imperishable. And depending on how much our hearts are set
upon the discovery of all sorts of spiritual riches – to that same degree our
God will open wide our eyes to the meaning of His Holy Word. The conclusion will be that we will prosper
before Him always.
Do you know
why I believe that the church of Jesus Christ on earth is split into different
mind – sets on some issues? For the most
part this is because we do not read what is right before our eyes – through
hearts bursting to know truth. Instead,
we would just rather go along with whatever our denominations tell us.
Sad. Our Lord and Redeemer would have us
to get a grip on our shovels and dig and dig until our eyes are opened. Then one day we may even discover the riches
of this jewel: “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under
heaven,”
What I mean
to say is this: Some matters are not
always going to be about what is right and what is wrong. Instead, it may be a matter of a new season
that has come our way, coming into our lives and capturing our hearts.
Just to give an example, go to Philippians
3:10-11. There it reads, “that I may know Him and the power of His
resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His
death, if by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.” Let’s say that these two verses trigger a new
season in our lives. First, we will
dwell on the suffering portion. Now how
about if all of we believers, who daily walk this planet earth, open wide our
eyes for a bit. This I say because many
of us – believe it or not – are afraid to.
Many believe that as a Christian you should never have to go through
sufferings; however, they say that you need to have faith for this to occur. Beyond all doubt, it is these who need to
implore their God to open up their eyes to truth – to open their eyes to Philippians
3:10-11, along with other such verses on this matter.
When you
think about it, Philippians 3:10-11 speaks of seasons. What it is saying to us is that there is a
time to experience the resurrection power of the Holy Spirit; yet also there is
a time to come to know the beloved Saviour in his sufferings – one a
counterpart of the other. Our Father in
heaven, you see, has designed for all of His sons and His daughters – His
soldiers of the Kingdom – a balanced life in this world in which we now
sojourn. To know great joy and blessings,
and the Light and Love of the Spirit, is a most glorious thing. Yet if this was all we ever knew, then we
would become as spoiled children, whose parents continually grant them all that
their selfish hearts desire. But to live
in and experience all that the Spirit has to offer is no doubt something quite
special. However, to come to know the
Christian life in this fullness, then a counterpart by the Spirit would be
needed. Yes, and that counterpart would
be crucifixion with our Lord. You can
believe that Jesus meant what he said, when he spoke to us these words: “Take
up your cross and follow Me.”
Such words
do not speak of Resurrection Life, do they?
In fact, the very opposite is true, since the Son of the Living God
speaks to us of taking up a cross in the appointed season, thus coming to know
Him – now not in resurrection, but in crucifixion. Such is the warfare that the Spirit leads us
into on planet earth, even as He led our Saviour into his testing by Satan in
the wilderness. But the Lord defeated
him with the power of the Word. In the
same way does the Spirit lead us in the battle, that we may become the victors
by the infallible Word, while kept every moment by the whole armor of God. And even when we find ourselves crucified
with Christ upon the cross, yes even then while we share in His sufferings, do
we descend upon our cross as victors.
Is there a
time for crucifixion? You can believe
there is. But if there is a time for
crucifixion, then also is there a time for resurrection. Crucifixion, you see, was never meant to
stand alone, just as is true with a great multitude of matters.
Many are the
seasons that our Heavenly Father will bring our way. Yet, never did He mean for us to choose one,
though make every effort to escape its counterpart when suddenly the time seems
right for it. It is He and no other who
has formed for us our paths in a world that we but for a brief time
sojourn. Some paths will be beautifully
filled with His Light, while others are darkened by storms in the Night.
There is
going to come a Day however, when a single matter will stand alone. Surely will there come a time when the Light
will not have the Darkness following behind; when what has been built up will
never be broken down; when what has been forever healed will never see death;
when what has become to us gain will never become loss; when what we speak will
never need to be silenced; when the great peace that we come to know will never
be turned to war and hatred; and when the love that we become filled with will
reign throughout a new universe – forever and ever. All Glory be to the One and the Only God!
J. Pecoraro
