S56P6 – Ecclesiastical truths: all created equal
Ecc. 5:15-17
As he came naked from his mother’s womb, so he will return as he came; and he will take away nothing from all his labor that he can carry in his hand. This also is a grievous evil—exactly as he was born, so he shall die. So what advantage has he who labors for the wind? All of his life he also eats in darkness, with great frustration, sickness, and anger.
He was led to the room where he would receive his final treatments. Of course, he did not know at that time that this would be the end of the road for him. The nurse was surprised that he took issue with the man who would be sharing his room with him and receiving the same treatment. He thought that he was much better than to have to share a room with anyone, let alone someone clearly below him. When he later found out that his hospital roommate had died, he thought perhaps the poor man was better off. Only weeks later would he discover that his own prognosis was just as bleak. All of a sudden, he did not see such a big difference between him and the poor man with whom he had shared that room. As much as he had thought they were different, he realized that their lives would begin and end just the same.
It has been said that death is the great equalizer. In life, we devise different categories and classes to distinguish people. Whether we look at money or education or lineage, there are many ways that one might think he or she is better than someone else. This world has hierarchies, and they are usually governed by what one has or has been born into. We might fail to realize that a name, status, or possession does not change the condition into which we all have been born. These things do not bring about a different end for those who have them. No one will be saved by his or her accomplishments or worldly wealth. Each body will return to the dust from whence it came, and that is the same for all of us. This speaks of the equality in God’s creation of mankind.
When we die, everything of ours that is of this world stays in this world because it does not matter beyond here. Our futures are not determined by worldly gain, and we are not defined by it. When God distinguishes one person from another, it is on the basis of the spiritual life. Those who live by the ways of this world cannot hope to gain anything more than what they had when they entered into it. That would be nothing, and it is the fate of each one who places his or her trust in this world instead of the Lord. But as much as death is the great equalizer, so is the opportunity that we all have to come to redemption and be saved. Let us pray for others to realize that access to that hope is also common among us. Father, thank You for making us equal to one another, and reveal your plan of salvation to the lost people in our lives.