It is the striving
after something that is the vanity of vanities that the Preacher in
Ecclesiastes talks about; whether the striving after what is good or not so
good, wisdom or pleasure; it’s the striving that is like chasing after the
wind. God created everything to simply
BE what it was created to BE; nothing more, nothing less. He created all things good and provided all
things with whatever was needed to be and remain good, healthy, and whole. The fall from grace was and is wanting more
than is given and providing it for ourselves.
Jesus’ mission was
to return people to God and to restore the relationship they each had with God
at creation. Those who came to him
empty, he filled; those who came to him filled came to realize they needed to
be empty.
John 4 tells of a
woman who came to draw water at Jacob’s well.
She brought her empty water jar.
There she met and encountered Jesus who told her, “Everyone who drinks
of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I
will give him will never be thirsty again.
The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water
welling up to eternal life” (Jon 4:13,14).
The woman went back to the people in her town, leaving the water jar
empty, by the well.
Luke 7 tells of a
woman who came into the house of a Pharisee who was dining with Jesus. “She brought an alabaster flask of ointment,
and standing behind Jesus at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with
her tears and wiped them with her hair on her head and kissed his feet and
anointed them with the ointment” (Luke 7:36-50). She left the house filled and whole.
Matthew 4 tells of
four fishermen who were busy at their livelihood, mending their nets and
casting for fish. Jesus came and said to
them, “Follow me…and immediately they left their nets, their boat, and their
father and followed him” (Matthew 4:18-22).
Matthew 19 tells
of a rich man who had kept all the commandments and had great wealth and
possessions who came to Jesus asking for the key to eternal life. Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect,
go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in
heaven; and come and follow me. When the
young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions”
(Matthew 19:16-22). He was full but
empty and he knew it; how sad.
Luke 18:9-14 tells
us about two men who went to worship God, one man who was full of himself and
proud of all his good deeds; the other came as an empty sinner who didn’t even
feel worthy enough to lift his eyes to heaven.
The one who was empty received God’s attention and blessing.
In my approach to
God I need to be empty of all I am and have, believing that he will fill my
emptiness with himself, and that is truly all I will ever need.
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