The last couple days we’ve been discussing things passed on to us by our father, as we enter back into thoughts from the book of Ecclesiastes I’d like to mention one more thing my dad did for me, he helped establish my love of Albert Finney’s Scrooge. Now if you’re unfamiliar with the film, it’s the classical Christmas Carol, put in a slight musical form. (By the way if you think I’m crazy this film was nominated for 4 Oscars, and won a Golden Globe). Any way, by now your all wondering what the film Scrooge has to do with Ecclesiastes? Well let’s take a look at today’s scripture then you can tell me. Today we’ll be taking a look at a short passage Ecclesiastes 4:7-8:
7 Then I returned, and I saw vanity under the sun:
8 There is one alone, without companion:
He has neither son nor brother.
Yet there is no end to all his labors,
Nor is his eye satisfied with riches.
But he never asks,
" For whom do I toil and deprive myself of good?"
This also is vanity and a grave misfortune.
As I read these verses, I wonder if Charles Dickens was reading these exact verses as he came up with the idea for A Christmas Carol. As we enter today’s verses we again see Solomon viewing the futility of things in this world. He looks out and see’s the lonely man, the man with no family. This lonely man is wealthy, he works hard for his money, yet he never enjoys his money. He never asks himself why he does it all. Is this not an exact rundown of the fictional character Scrooge? Solomon describes this life not only as vanity, but a life that’s a grave misfortune.
So what, you may ask, well like Dickens, Solomon is offering a word of warning. And Solomon’s warning isn’t fiction. For this single solitary man we see no reason for great earthly gain. He cant even make the excuse he is doing if for his family, as he has none. All he has will pass away. It reminds of us the teaching’s of Christ that we’ve spoken about often during our look at Ecclesiastes. Matthew 6:19-20 says:
19 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Instead of an action point today, I’d like to look at the opposite side of Solomon’s "Scrooge". At a church I used to work at there was a man, lets call him Mike. Mike was in his 50’s and never married. Mike was a engineer, who did quite well for himself. Yet to look at him you would never know it. He lived in a small humble house, and did not overwork, as he kept his commitments to the church. He drove a church van Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday nights, sometimes multiple trips. He would bring those kids with mental and physical handicaps to youth events, helping them in all things they needed. He helped financially to those who needed it, and he was always full of joy. Mike’s work was not vanity. His life was no grave misfortune.
In a final thought today, several of you may still be thinking about the title "The Ministers Cat". Well, all I can say is it’s a delightful party game that always comes to mind when I think of Scrooge. I thought about relating it to Solomon, who refers to himself as the "Preacher", in 1:1. But I can’t think of any way to relate a cat. So, let’s just say a favorite memory of mine from the movie Scrooge, and if you want to know more, rent the movie.
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