THE VANITY OF WEALTH AND HONOR (Part #2) - "There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it lies heavy on mankind: a man to whom God gives wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God does not give him power to enjoy them, but a stranger enjoys them. This is vanity; it is a grievous evil. If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with life's good things, and he also has no burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he. For it comes in vanity and goes in darkness, and in darkness its name is covered. Moreover, it has not seen the sun or known anything, yet it finds rest rather than he. Even though he should live a thousand years twice over, yet enjoy no good—do not all go to the one place? All the toil of man is for his mouth, yet his appetite is not satisfied. For what advantage has the wise man over the fool? And what does the poor man have who knows how to conduct himself before the living? Better is the sight of the eyes than the wandering of the appetite: this also is vanity and a striving after wind. Whatever has come to be has already been named, and it is known what man is, and that he is not able to dispute with one stronger than he. The more words, the more vanity, and what is the advantage to man? For who knows what is good for man while he lives the few days of his vain life, which he passes like a shadow? For who can tell man what will be after him under the sun?" (Ecclesiastes 6:1-12).

As we established previously in part #1 of the vanity of wealth and honor, money is not inherently evil but the love of money is. The same argument can be made of contentment, which is the primary focus of Solomon's attention in Ecclesiastes 6.

Contentment in many ways is the true measuring stick of our spiritual maturity, for it reveals the perspective with which we look at life and make decisions. For example:

• ETERNITY - Am I content with full assurance that I know where I will spend eternity when I die?

• SALVATION - Am I content with my decision to accept or reject Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior?

• PROVISION - Am I content with my personal finances and material possessions (whether rich or poor)?

• ATTITUDES - Am I thankful to God for His provision or consumed with complaining and grumbling over what I don't have?

• HEALTH - Am I content with the blessings and limitations God has given me health-wise throughout my life (past and present)? Am I willing to accept health-limitations that will come my way in the future, no matter how difficult and challenging?

• MARRIAGE - Am I content with my decision to marry or remain single? Am I content with who I have chosen to spend the rest of my life with in marriage?

• LEGACY - Am I content with my decision to have children and the legacy I am passing down to them based on how Godly or ungodly a parent I have been?

• FORGIVENESS - Am I content to forgive others regardless of the sins committed against me? 

• REPENTANCE - Am I content with my decision (or lack thereof) to seek the forgiveness of others for wrongs I have done?

• CONSEQUENCES - Am I content to accept the consequences of my actions (sinful or righteous), no matter the cost?

• TRUTH - Am I content to accept and believe God's Word is absolute and inerrant? Am I content with any semblance of relative truth that has undermined God's Word in my heart?

No matter the issue or circumstance, contentment remains at the core of our happiness. Our hearts long for peace that transcends all understanding, making us vulnerable to idols as well though. An idol is simply anything that takes the place of God in our lives which we worship, serve and pledge our heart's allegiance to. For instance, idolatry can easily be found in various forms of materialism but also in relationships that promise contentment but inevitably deliver disappointment.

In many ways, idolatry can be masked under layers of self-protection. A woman who places her emotional security in her husband rather than God will be rocked to the core if he ever breaks his marital covenant. Similarly, a man who finds his identity in the attainment of job status and title will be tempted to compromise his faith and family if he values himself more than those he is responsible to shepherd. Who or what we worship is of grave importance to God. 

"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:2-3). 

The apostle Paul writes, "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:4-7).

Where we invest the majority of our heart's attention reveals how content we are in placing complete faith and trust in the Lord. Keep in mind, we invest the majority of our "time" either sleeping, working, eating, doing chores, parenting children, etc.

But in those functions and situations, who or what has the attention of our heart? For we can perform physical or mental functions all day long, but for whom are we living: self or God? Scripture reminds us, "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him" (Colossians 3:17).

If we are purchased by the blood of Christ and obedient to obey His Word, then every thought we have or action we perform should have divine perspective, righteous intent, and worshipful recognition that the Lord is our sufficiency in all things. Whether that is the case for us as individuals is an issue we must all wrestle with. For our hearts must be captivated with unwavering focus on our Creator, otherwise we are vulnerable to any method Satan chooses to expose our pride and selfishness.

The simple truth is this: "But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content" (1 Timothy 6:6-8). When we submit to God's authority and apply His Word in obedience, godliness is produced and contentment overwhelms the heart. But if our attitude and motivation are self-seeking, we undermine the work of the Spirit whose purpose is to sanctify us through our every thought, word and deed.

True contentment is bred in hearts fully devoted to Christ, sold out for the Gospel, and willing to endure pain, suffering and persecution for the advancement of God's salvation message. Therefore, Scripture encourages us, "Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.' So we can confidently say, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?'" (Hebrews 13:5-6).

When we trust in the Lord alone as our sufficiency, our faith is not destroyed when the storms of life come. Yes, pain, doubt and fear are close at hand waiting to envelop our time and attention, but the grace and mercy of the Lord is sufficient for us to survive. For when the Lord is our sufficiency, a man or woman who is the victim of adultery can survive because the Lord alone is his/her strength.

A parent can endure years of silence from estranged, prodigal children because he/she recognizes that children are a gift from God and ultimately belong to Him for better or worse. Moreover, seasons of illness, personal loss or unemployment are bearable because time is short compared to the infinite blessings of eternity. Keep in mind, Biblical perspective and contentment coexist in the heart of a believer when our focus shifts off our own sufficiency and onto the Lord.

We must pay particular attention that we do not muddy the waters concerning contentment, for as James MacDonald says, "Always be content with what you have; never be content with who you are." What this quote reveals is that sanctification is our primary purpose in life, not the attainment of worldly abundance. A limited view of eternity can easily cause us to be consumed by idols rather than Christ.

"Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you" (Matthew 6:31-33).

When we shift our focus off ourselves and our own well-being and onto the Lord and the application of His will, we are more likely to not panic when the storms of life roll in. Granted, it does not mean we're not tempted to worry, fear or stress, for we are all human and not machines whom God can program and forget about.

We have free will. We can choose whether we will react or respond to our plight in life. But we must embrace contentment in good times and bad, understanding that hearts sold out for Christ will be relatively immune to the ebb and flow fluctuation of joys and sorrows we encounter every day of our lives.

That is why Paul affirms, "Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:11-13).

If we desire to guard our hearts from false idols, we will seek righteousness at all cost. Solomon conveys in the vanity of wealth and honor that it is good to enjoy the fruits of our labor for that is a gift God gives us, but we're not to be consumed by them.

In God's eyes, being consumed by the things of this world undermines His authority and provision. Never were we intended to live for ourselves and find our identity and purpose in life apart from God, but we have become spiritually blind to our blindness in many cases. We have worshiped the created rather than the Creator, and will give an account on the day of judgment for our choices made.

That is why Scripture warns, "You felt secure in your wickedness, you said, 'No one sees me'; your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray, and you said in your heart, 'I am, and there is no one besides me.' But evil shall come upon you, which you will not know how to charm away; disaster shall fall upon you, for which you will not be able to atone; and ruin shall come upon you suddenly, of which you know nothing" (Isaiah 47:10-11).

"Choose to sin, choose to suffer" is the reality before us, and we are wise to not consume our thoughts with finding contentment apart from Christ. Both the rich and poor are susceptible to worldly contentment in their own way, however we as Christians know that our enemy is real and his desire is to lead us astray.

The apostle Paul wrote, "But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:3). However, Paul also affirmed that in Christ we have the power to resist the devil and his schemes.

"For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete" (2 Corinthians 10:3-6).

Therefore, we can rest confidently in our decision to follow Christ, for true contentment is found in the saving grace God offers to us every day of our lives. The question is: Will we accept His grace and trust His ways, or be led astray by false promises of contentment the world offers to temporarily appease our flesh?