REMEMBER THY CREATOR
“Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them”. (Ecclesiastes 12:1)
Men are forgetful creatures. Some of the things which we forget may be minor, but there are times when our forgetfulness may have long-lasting life-altering consequences. Therefore, men often need frequent reminders, especially of things which are important.
If there is one person that we must not forget, it must be the Lord. Thus, the Scriptures declare emphatically in Ecclesiastes 12:1 that we must remember our Creator. The creature must surely not forget the one who created him.
Alas, the men of the world hate God. They are rebellious against their Creator in their spiritual blindness. It is impossible for them to “remember” God because they do not even know Him.
However, the children of Israel have little excuse, for the LORD found it pleasing to call them His people and have committed to them His oracles. The LORD has made a covenant with them. He was also the One who gave birth to Israel, delivering them from the bondage of Egypt and leading them into the Promised Land. It thus befuddles the mind that any child of Israel should forget the LORD. Nevertheless, many years of the history of Israel were replete with acts of disobedience and idolatry.
Solomon, the writer of Ecclesiastes, was also guilty of forgetting the Lord. Rather than seeking the Lord, he tried to seek happiness from things under the sun. Using the power as king, he gathered many possessions and engaged himself in an epicurean and materialistic lifestyle. “I sought in mine heart to give myself unto wine, yet acquainting mine heart with wisdom; and to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was that good for the sons of men, which they should do under the heaven all the days of their life. I made me great works; I builded me houses; I planted me vineyards: I made me gardens and orchards, and I planted trees in them of all kind of fruits: I made me pools of water, to water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees: I got me servants and maidens, and had servants born in my house; also I had great possessions of great and small cattle above all that were in Jerusalem before me: I gathered me also silver and gold, and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces: I gat me men singers and women singers, and the delights of the sons of men, as musical instruments, and that of all sorts. So I was great, and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem: also my wisdom remained with me.” (Ecclesiastes 2:3-9)
His conclusion – “Behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no profit under the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 2:11) There is nothing to gain by forgetting the Lord.
It is also easy for us to forget the Lord as we go about our daily activities. As we seek to fulfil the duties of the day, we get sucked into the cares of the world and become drunk in the vain philosophies of this world. The focus becomes more on personal achievements and gaining possessions. We are no different from Solomon. And thus, Solomon, the Preacher, warning us from his experience, says, “Remember thy Creator.” It is impossible for the people of the world to remember God, for they do not know Him. However, we who profess to be Christians must not forget the One of whom we claim to have saving knowledge.
Why then did Solomon choose to address God as our “Creator” in his exhortation? The succeeding verses give us a clue. Solomon begins to lament of how this aging body of ours will begin to break down in this world of corruption. Our hands and legs begin to tremble. Our teeth will crack and drop. Our eyes grow dim. The ears become dull of hearing and yet, interestingly, become ultra-sensitive to the smallest of sounds, disturbing us out of our slumber. The things that we can do in our youth are no longer possible. Who is it then who has brought us into existence and gave us our health and strength? It is God, our Creator, who is also our Redeemer. Surely, we ought to spend our peak days in serving Him and to glorify Christ! There is not one day to be wasted. And yet, it is the time when men are at the zenith of their powers, that they tend to forget God. By the time they are aged and are limited in strength, they regret that they have not done enough for God.
If we had forgotten our Creator, it is now high time to start remembering Him. How then should we remember our God? The end of the chapter provides the answer. “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14) Thus, we want to spend this year in understanding deeply what it means to fear the Lord because we want to re[1]member our Creator.
God bless all readers.
Yours affectionately,
Pastor Clement Chew