For a description of the (Y2) reading plan, see the “About” page.
Heb. 2
Interestingly, the author of Hebrews seems to make the argument that Jesus is not an angel. Rather, Jesus is both greater than and lesser than the angels. That is to say, Jesus is both God and human. Angels are merely messengers of God’s word. Jesus is God’s word. Also, according to Hebrews 1:14, angels are ministers sent to serve us. Jesus, on the other hand is God’s sacrifice sent to save us.
Ecc. 3-4
What do 4:9-12 suggest about your relationships? What can you do today to strengthen those bonds? All of the emptiness and lack of substance the Teacher talks about seem to me to stem from a focus on self. Wanting to be important, to make a name for yourself, to be bigger and better than the next guy, to have and be more are all futile efforts and desires. If you do reach such goals, you find that they don’t satisfy. There is really nothing to them; they have no real substance. The world doesn’t really change because any of us were in it. It may seem to for some, but it does not last. Somebody comes in after and undoes it all, or it simply fades away like smoke over time. And the world goes on…and on…and on…
My conclusion, from all that the Teacher said, is that we need to take self out of the equation. We need to recognize that our life is a gift from God. So rather than constantly seeking for something more, we can give back to God by enjoying what He has given us to have and to do. Also, we can make it easier to enjoy the ups and downs of this gift of life when we share it with others. So could it be that God’s law does more than reveal our sin and need? Perhaps it also tells us how to find substance in life. Let go of self so that we can love God and love people.
Ps. 100
Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise! Begin your prayer time today with praise and thanks rather than asking. This Psalm echoes the eternal nature of God that the Teacher wrote about in Ecclesiastes. It also echoes the point that life is a gift from Him. “It is He who made us, and we are His” (From Ps. 100:3). How then are we to respond to the gift of life from an eternal God? With joy, worship, gladness, thanksgiving, and praise!