Welcome to Wednesday! Good to be with you, midway to Sunday!
We continue our exploration of the "in-between" blessing we can have in our relationships. Our theme verse, Ecclesiastes 4:9, puts it like this, "Two are better than one."
On Wednesday we look at the context of the text. What is the world into which the Word is spoken? What are some contrasting points of view?
Ecclesiastes brings forward the contrast in verses that precede our Scripture. Ecclesiastes 4:7-8 says, " Again, I saw vanity under the sun: the case of solitary individuals, without sons or brothers; yet there is no end to all their toil, and their eyes are never satisfied with riches. "For whom am I toiling," they ask, "and depriving myself of pleasure?" This also is vanity and an unhappy business.
In this Scripture, the teacher speaks of life as "vanity," emptiness, rather than blessing and fullness. He lifts up, "the case of solitary individuals." What isolates them is, they are "never satisfied with their riches." They question, "Why should I deprive myself of pleasure?" This makes living "an unhappy business."
What the teacher highlights is that we can make other choices about how we live than to be "in relationship as a blessing." If we emphasize the "one," ourselves, we won't get to "two is better than one." With that self-focus we forfeit the opportunity for "in-between" blessing.
In the examples the teacher lifts up, verses 9-12, there are also opportunities to think of contrasts. These serve as warnings. These are ways to rob relationships of the power they have to bless.
In verse 9 - we can work together, seeing others as colleagues, or be perpetually competitive, seeing others as opponents.
In verse 10 - we can lift others up or put others down.
In verse 11 - we can offer understanding and warmth or give the "cold shoulder."
In verse 12 - we can stand up for or tear down.
To claim the blessing of "two are better than one" we have to make healthy choices for positive changes in how we live with others.
The key to all lies in verse 12 - "a threefold cord," some translations say, "a cord of three strands." If two of the strands are you and the other, who is the third "strand?" For me, the image is an invitation to consciously "weave Christ" into our relationships. Jesus' presence is the decisive difference in "two being better than one."
Tomorrow we'll look into that further!
Until then, have a great day. And enjoy the relationships God is giving you!
Prayer: Gracious God, thank you for your words of truth. Thank you for how they highlight the truth about our lives. Thank you for how they can be a light that helps us see our lives more clearly. Thank you for how your Holy Spirit would guide us by Your word in the blessing that you would have our relationships to be. Two can be better than one as we weave You into each day. In that gift of grace, we give you thanks in Christ's name. Amen
In Christ,
Paul