The Whole Duty of Man

June 04, 2015 | By Chuck

"Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man."(Eccl.12:13) If everyone could just get this what a different world we"d live in. Mankind has tried for ages to figure out what this life is all about. In other words, what are we doing here? People have tried everything from good to evil and even illegal, just looking for a purpose for our existence. Even Solomon, who wrote the book of Ecclesiastes, in all of his wisdom tried everything in search of purpose before he found the real answer. "I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun."(Eccl.2:10-11) So what's the secret? What's the purpose of life? After trying seemingly everything, good and bad, to find purpose and fulfillment in this life, Solomon concluded it's about obeying God. "Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man."(Eccl.12:13) From both his wisdom and experience Solomon is teaching us that the purpose of this life is living for God. Like many others before him and after him, Solomon searched everywhere for fulfillment but only found true purpose and fulfillment in God. True lasting fulfillment will never be found in money; Solomon had plenty of that. True fulfillment will never be found in sex; Solomon had 'seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines."(I Kings 11:3) The conclusion of the matter is true fulfillment and purpose is only found in a relationship with God.