Reading your Bible for Today February 11

February 11: Ecclesiastes 8:5-8 

KJV Key Verse: Ecclesiastes 8:8
8 There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; neither hath he power in the day of death: and there is no discharge in that war; neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.

Devotion:
Solomon had been given extraordinary wisdom by God, wisdom which he had asked God for so he could rule effectively over Israel. He knew as long as he continued to obey God, he would be given guidance by Him and he would therefore have a heart that knew both time and judgement. This did not mean he knew the time that he was going to die or when Christ would come, but rather that he had the concept they would happen and that he had to be prepared.

For those who do not know Christ, they have an uncertainty which eats away at their hearts day by day. Not only do they not know Christ, but they do not know if this Christ will return and hence do not know what will happen to them when they die. Their future is uncertain; whereas we know we do have a future but we do not know when that future will happen. We know for certain our life will not stop when our bodies pass on. People who do not know Christ do not even know what is to happen. People who refuse Christ are told they will face untold punishment, yet they choose not to believe it – for if they did, they would most certainly turn to Christ!

Despite all the people who say they can tell your future, nobody has been given control over time or control over what will happen in the future. There are things we can change in the future by doing things now, but we cannot go into the future to find out what is going to happen. People who talk to spirits may well be told things by them which may well be going to happen, but who can trust a spirit that is not of God? Nobody but God has control over when you will die for He alone has the power to allow you to live or die at any time. When we are fighting wars, both Christians and non-believers have equal chance at being hit by those bullets! There is no way we can go to war against death, for it is a certainty. The hope we have is the knowledge we attain eternal life in heaven when we do die here on earth!

Points to Ponder:
Do you know when you or your friends are going to die?

Do you see why God has chosen to hide this information from us?