A View From The Sycamore Tree: Above the Line Under the Sun

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Above the Line Under the Sun - Ecclesiastes 8:17

"And I saw every work of God

and I concluded that man canot discover

the work which has been done under the sun.

Even though man should seek laboriously,

he will not discover;

and though the wise man should say,

'I know,' he cannot discover."

(Ecclesiastes 8:17)

Several weeks ago I had lunch with a good friend from another town. Our conversation was broad,covering a variety of topics, yet all framed within the context of our God and Savior and of His providential dealings in this world that we currently inhabit.

In the midst of discussing life we ended up reminding each other that, truth be told, there are just a lot of things in this life that don't make sense. Under the sun there are many secret things and this side of heaven much remains mysterious.

I found myself quoting Deuteronomy 29:29 (as I often do when things puzzle me and seem beyond any reasonable explanation). There, Moses reminds us that "the secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law."

My friend shared with me that she knew of a seminary professor who, when asked obviously unanswerable questions in class, would quote that very verse and then would draw a line on the classroom board. Above the line were the "secret things" that belonged to the all-knowing and infinite God. Below the line were the "revealed things" that belonged to the small-knowing and finite us. He would simply answer his students by pointing atop the horizontal line he made and saying "Gentlemen, THAT is above the line."

Solomon, in Ecclesiastes 8:17 is telling us that we need not trouble ourselves with striving to grasp that which "above the line" here under the sun. It is above the line for a reason. It is secret for a reason and that is part of the faith journey that we are on. Faith has not yet been made sight. Secret things have not yet been revealed. Let us not put the cart before the horse but ride patiently in the wagon while looking at the back-end view! The day is coming when questions will be answered and when we will see things as they truly are.

"The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law." (Deuteronomy 29:29)

"And I saw every work of God and I concluded that man cannot discover the work which has been done under teh sun. Even though man should seek laboriously, he will not discover..." (Ecclesiastes 8:17)

Friends, God is God and we are not. Were we able to understand and comprehend all of His ways and means and thoughts and actions then He would not be very "God-ish" and therefore not very worthy of our reverant awe. The "secret things" and the things that we "cannot discover" are honestly the very things that make God most amazing and the impossibility of His existance the REAL imposibility!

Now, to shoot perfectly straight with you, I must confess that I am one of those people who far too often likes to attempt to venture above the line. I try to jump the hurdle of divine wisdom and seize it as my own. I want all of the pieces to fit and when they don't I can tend to freak out a bit - OK, so perhaps a bit more than a bit!

Those who know me well know that I am a chronic doubter and the quintessential questioner. I am a woman who loves logic and reason and who believes - despite my doubts and questions - that the Christian faith is not merely some blind-faith crap shoot but is truly the most solid, reasonable, and firm foundation for the understanding of anything. Those reasoning characteristics can be both good and bad. They are good when, by grace, I use them "beneath the line". They are bad when I try to use them to force my way "above the line".

Knowing my tendancy to "cross the line" is perhaps the thing that makes Solomon's admonition so good for me. With him, I have "concluded that man cannot discover the work which [He] has done under the sun." It is a vain waste of my time to even try to step across "the line" into the secret regime. Besides, is there not MORE than enough that has been "revealed" here beneath the line that I still don't know?

I suppose the bottom line of it all is that I need to master what has been made available to me beneath the line and practically apply it here under the sun before even bothering to reach beyond the stars to that which my puny finite brain can't contain anyway.

With Job I once again find myself covering my mouth with my hand. A fool without knowledge, daring to darken the counsel of the all-knowing and just-enough-revealing God.

The time will come when secrets will be revealed. Lord, help me to be willing to wait and make me a wondering worshipper in the meantime while I live under the sun.

Marveling at the God who is above, while I am here below,

Lori

No comments:

Here We Go!

This is a blog about the goodness and grace of God, even amidst the angst of autism.

So ... how did this whole thing start?

Well, I said I'd never do this but obviously here I am. After being challenged, encouraged, goaded and double dog dared, several years ago I began to blog.

Near the end of 2008, I found myself with renewed passion for God's Word, Kingdom, and people and I was stirred, through nothing other than the simple means of grace, to a hunger and thirsting for righteousness unlike any other time in my 20+ years as a Christian.

During that period, I began typing out the things that were striking me the most in my quiet time each morning. Honestly, I started because I wanted to have a written record that I could pass along to my children one day - lettered Ebenezers reminding them of how much their Mom loves God and His Word.

While doing that I found myself so excited on certain days that I began to email my musings to some of my girl friends, hoping to encourage them even as Christ was encouraging me. Many of those gals challenged me to put these things online in a blog form so others could have access to them. That's how this site started.

Now, to shoot really straight with you, that personal "revival" of mine has pendumatically ebbed and flowed over the course of the days, months and years since 2008. For a prolonged period after that initial renewing surge I actually found myself in an utterly antithetical place. God, in His wisdom, was pleased to grant me a substantial season in the dark dungeon of "doubting castle" - those days were some of the hardest of my life post-Jesus but were providentially ordained days ultimately used for my good and for my God's glory.

"Through many dangers, toils, and snares I have already come" by nothing but the amazing grace of an amazing God.

I've learned that even in the midst of the darkest of days there's just something about the light of God's Word that is powerful. The Scripture has been an anchor for me in the storm surge of life. Even when my eyes have seemed to be rather veiled and my vision somewhat dimmed, there has still been a re-focusing force that has risen when I have gazed long and hard upon the Word of God. Thus, even as a saint who struggles, I continue to write of my God, my Redeemer, His promises, and His truth.

I'm not always very regular at posting here because there are many more important duties in my life right now than blog uploads - ie. being wife, mom, housekeeper, cook, taxi service, chief bottle washer, and laundry lady - along with that music thing I do as a side gig! But, as time allows I'll be cutting and pasting from Joshua and Elizabeth's future journal gift and sharing some of it with you as well.

Thanks for stopping by!

Who's Doing This?

Lori Sealy is daily amazed at the grace of God in her life. Adopted as an infant and raised in an evangelical church, she rebelled against the things of Christ during high school and considered herself an atheist. Upon entering college, the God who ordains our steps ordained that her path would cross with several students who loved Christ and loved His Word. During that first year of college, she set out to destroy the faith of these young Christians. They set out to pray for her salvation.

Knowing that "faith comes through hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ," six college students daily confronted her sin and challenged her with the truths of God's glorious Word. Their obedience in proclaiming the good news of the gospel of Christ bore fruit in August of 1988 when by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, she was adopted for the second time in her life - this time into the family of God.

Lori is now the wife of Phillip Sealy. They live in Sylva, North Carolina where Phillip has been called to plant a new church for the Presbyterian Church of America (PCA) - Redeemer Church Sylva. The Sealys have two children Joshua (14) and Elizabeth (12). Lori and Joshua both live with autism.

In her spare time (what little there is) Lori masquerades as a part-time songwriter/singer and performs on a limited monthly basis. Lori's newest CD, "The Strife is Over," has recently released. Hard copies of it, along with her last release "Begone Unbelief", are available through CD Baby and Lori's own website. Digital downloads are available through iTunes, Google Play, and Amazon mp3!

Be sure to visit http://www.lorisealy.com/ to learn more!

Why the Sycamore Tree?

Zaccheus, the wee little man, wanted to see Jesus and so he climbed into the sycamore tree in order to get a good look. Lori, the wee little wife and mom, longs to see Jesus as well. I realize that the place where I will catch a true glimpse of Him is in the pages of His Word.

The Bible is my sycamore tree and I find myself longing more and more to climb up into its branches that I might see Christ more clearly. This blog is simply a record of what God is teaching me as I spend time in "the tree" of His glorious Word. If anyone reads it I'll be amazed; if anyone profits from it I'll be humbled; and if anything good is found in it Soli Deo Gloria!

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Above the Line Under the Sun - Ecclesiastes 8:17

No comments:

Post a Comment