Die like a fly or…

I watched a DVD of a concert the other night and one of the band members sang a powerful song and I could tell by his expression and the sorrowful inflection of his voice that it was very meaningful to him in a personal way. The lyrics of the chorus were: “I never felt so alone before”.

I’ve felt the same way on many occasions. I used to hitch-hike and hop freights across the country and if I could not catch a ride by nightfall I would find a place on the side of the road and that is where I would sleep until daylight. I would lay there in the blackness of the night staring up at the stars all alone and I was incredibly lonely. I could have sung those same lyrics with equal sorrowfulness on those occasions and many more during that period of my life.

At the time I was not a Christian and in fact was anything but one. I’m glad I found Christ, because now, I’ll never have to be lonely again. (Songwriters take note: those words would be a very nice chorus for a new song please send royalties to my plantation address.)

Unfortunately the band has now broken up and the member who sang those mournful lyrics is now dead. He became severely addicted to heroin and other drugs as did most of the other members of the band. The talented keyboard player of the band, who became a complete alcoholic, ended up committing suicide by hanging himself in his hotel room a couple of years later. Their lifestyle of being on the road as a rock and roll band with the fame and adulation, wild parties, women, drugs, alcohol, and depravity could not fill the lonely void in their hearts.

According to the Bible, King Solomon was the wisest and richest man the world will ever know. He also said that the void in mankind’s hearts cannot be filled by material things. He chronicles his exploits in Ecclesiastes and it could be said that he tried most everything the world has to offer. He had 1000 wives and 1000 concubines YIKES! He had people come from all over the world, including even the Queen of Sheba, to sit at his feet in wonder and listen to his great wisdom. He had great public works, some of which I visited when I went to Israel a couple of years ago that are still standing today. He had vast vineyards and the very best of wines. He had musicians, herds of the finest horses, ships, gold, jewels, lavish palaces, parties, and everything the world has to offer.

In the last few verses of Ecclesiastes he summed up his life and said that all of the fame, adulation, wisdom, tremendous public works projects, sex, song, money, and wine, are “meaningless”. In the end he said, “Fear God and keep His commandments. For this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil”.

King Solomon begins Ecclesiastes speaking of the vanity of life and he admits that he saw and tried everything during the vanity of his own life and it was like watching sand flow through his fingers. I wonder if that band member felt the same way. Did he sadly say to himself as he contemplated putting that noose around his neck, “Is this all there is to life?”

The Bible makes it clear that apart from God all of life is vanity and that we should not focus on it, or material things. All the “flash and the cash” of the world are temporary and will “vanish like smoke”, but the righteousness of God will last forever and never fail us. Don’t follow the world. It is as foolish as chasing the wind. Follow Jesus Christ who can fill the empty void in our hearts and heap treasures upon us that will last forever.

Isaiah says it so much more convincingly than me:

Isaiah 51:6
Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath; the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail.