Dear Family at Christ Community,

       This Sunday we will hear from Ecclesiastes 2:1-11 and partake of the Lord’s Table. One of the lessons of this section of Ecclesiastes is the impermanence of the things we do to create lives filled with earthly goodness and beauty. Consider how David Gibson puts it in his book, Living Life Backward:

“We long for lives of permanence in a world of constant change, and we strive to achieve it. We long for change in a world of permanent repetition, and we dream of how to interrupt it. The same idea is present in this section of Ecclesiastes, for one of the striking features of the vast projects undertaken in 2:4-9 is how the language evokes the garden of Eden, as if the Preacher were trying to re-create God’s good and perfect world. But it cannot be done. The world in which we live is now fallen and cursed—God has placed a fracture in the fabric of the universe, and things are now not what they should be.”

       This is a sobering thought. But it helps us to fix our gaze on what God has done in Christ to redeem us and the whole of His good creation. Yes, things are now not what they should be; but in Christ Jesus, this is not the final word. In the broken bread and poured out cup we see Jesus’ body and blood, broken and poured out for us. This helps us to see that the brokenness within us, and the futility of our experience, is replaced by eternal life to the full in union with Him. So, as we prepare to come to the Table this Sunday, let’s prepare our hearts by asking the Spirit to keep our minds and affections focused on Jesus and the life we have in Him.  May the Spirit use this means of grace to nourish our faith so that we more consistently look to and receive from Him the life that only He can give. 

In Christ,
Robby