No More Holding Back - Ecclesiastes Ch. 11

In the book of 2 Kings chapter 13 we come across Joash, the king of Israel at the moment. He goes to meet the dying prophet Elisha who tells him some particular orders to follow. Joash grabs a bow and arrows, opens the window, and is told to shoot at the ground. “And he said, ‘The arrow of the LORD’s deliverance and the arrow of deliverance from Syria; for you must strike the Syrians at Aphek till you have destroyed them (2 Kings 13:17).” Joash then struck the ground three times which angered Elisha. He prophesied that shooting the ground only three times meant striking Syria only three times. If Joash shot the ground five or six times it would’ve resulted in the destruction of Syria, Israel’s oppressor. The Bible doesn’t specify how many arrows Joash possessed, but he had the capacity to shoot more. He held back.

“Can you imagine a life with no fear? What if faith, not fear, was your default reaction to threats?” - Max Lucado

Well… can you imagine such a life? What if Joash’s trust in God were higher than his own thoughts, fears, or whatever specifically caused him to hold back? Imagine what could’ve happened to the children of Israel if Joash didn’t hold back.

Ecclesiastes 11 starts off with a call to not hold back in our giving, as verse 1 refers to Deuteronomy 15:10, “You shall give to him, and your heart should not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing the LORD your God will bless you in all your works and in all to which you put your hand.” I love the imagery the author inputs in verse 3 of clouds being full of rain to then empty themselves upon the earth. They give fully and freely, not expecting to receive in return, just as we ought to give. Look at Jesus leading up to and being on the cross. Jesus freely and fully gave up His physical body for all.

Is God telling you to get rid of safety and run into danger? Not quite. But if God is telling you to do something, will you hold back? Verses 4-6 of Ecclesiastes 11 reminds readers to not let what you see affect what you do.

For we walk by faith, not by sight (2 Corinthians 5:7).

Truly at the end of the day we don’t know if the seeds we plant will sprout or how abundant they will become. What we see in the physical can easily cause us to hold back. Think about Joash. Remember the spies who gave a pessimistic report when seeing the giants in the land of Canaan. Can we forget Peter drowning in the ocean after taking his eyes off of Jesus and focused on the storm? Will we be obedient to what God tells us to do in spite of what we see?

Verses 7-8 and 9-10 go hand-in-hand with one another. As we reflect on life, we love the good old days. We can’t help but go back to that dream wedding, the family trip to Joshua Tree, or even the first time you and your wife tried Matiki’s Island Grill for the first time (if you don’t know, now you know). But a good friend once said, “Too much sunshine makes deserts.” A balance of remembering the good and bad times helps to always be mindful of what God delivered you from and where He placed you. Those who celebrate the Passover hold both the oppression experienced in Egypt and the relief given by God to go to the promise land. Christians with their testimonies get to hold both the reality of being dead in their sin and experiencing new life with Jesus Christ. Also being aware that there will be dark days will keep us from getting sucker punched by them. To live ignorantly that days will always be bright, sunny, easy going would be foolish. Jesus in John 15:18-25 warns His followers the hatred they will receive simply for following Him. He did not lie about following Him will only result in love, happiness, and an easy going life all waiting ahead. Sure we get to experience those things with Jesus, but tribulation will come, persecution will happen.

Now verses 9-10 are directed toward younger readers. Most young people may not have gone through trials that people who have been on earth longer may have gone through. An arrogance can be created without tough experiences that all days must be trouble free. That “invincible” feeling. Or maybe you have gone through the wringer early in life. You had to grow up quick. Growing up is not only trying to recover from what you’ve gone through, but how can I never come remotely close to what I’ve experienced. Having parents that constantly yelled at each will make you turn away people that have vocal range difficulties so fast because it reminds you too much of what you grew up with.

No matter where you are coming from, how will you act? How will you move? But know that for all these God will bring you into judgement. We will be held accountable with what we do. To help, remove sorrow from your heart and put away evil from your flesh. Temptation and non controlled emotions will steer us away from God fast. Especially in age groups where going out drinking is normal, your happiness should be the number one priority, and the glorifying of hook up culture is at an all-time high. How are we ever supposed to combat a time such as this?

Don’t worry, with God, all things are possible.