Read Ecclesiastes 12:8-14
“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (v. 13).
The phone rang. Answering it, I found a telemarketer offering a product/service that interested me. We talked about it for a little while, but I was in a hurry. I wanted to get to the bottom line. What would this cost me? The telemarketer had different ideas. His goal was to set up an appointment so I could spend twenty minutes online and on the phone talking to someone about the benefits of the product.
We ended the phone call with the telemarketer promising to email information, including prices, to me and to call the next week.
Reading Ecclesiastes can be a challenging assignment. The emphasis on vanity, emptiness, can be almost enough to bring discouragement to an optimist. Times were hard for Solomon. He had started his reign as king by doing the right things, but along the way he lost his focus. Now, coming down to the end of this book, he weighed what is really important.
Here is the bottom line; here is what is really important. “Fear God, and keep his commandments.” Finally, Solomon realized this. He had allowed his life to be full of emptiness. It was the wrong choice. Make a better choice than Solomon made. Give your life to God and do His will. “This is the whole duty of man.” (Mark Avery)
Fulfill your duty to God.
This week’s featured devotional is the Monday, August 11, 2014 entry of Opening the Word. Order your copy!
Photo credit: "Téléphone ancien" by zigazou76 used under CC BY 2.0 / Resized and cropped.