“I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit.” (Eccl. 1:14)
“And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.” (1st John 5:19)
It can’t be made much clearer than that, can it? Everything done in this wicked world is done in vanity and causes vexation of spirit, rending truth to Psalm 2:1.
“Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?”
Vexation of spirit is caused when we realize a truth about something that we refuse to accept as truth, an oxymoronic statement, yet still truthful. How many people have you met in your life that live lives of lies, while knowing that is what they are doing, almost in a form of functional insanity.
Those who have only been born once fit into this category, striving for that which they will never truly receive and receiving that which can never fully satisfy, their spirits vexed continuously with a pursuit that will know no end. That vanity that arrives when a task has been accomplished, when a goal has been met, when the deed is done lasts for only so long, and then their spirit is vexed, for there is more, there will always be more to strive for.
That is why they rage, and their imaginations are vain.
For those of you who have been born twice.
“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32)
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28)
I do not know any vain Christians, and if I ever met one, that person would not be a Christian, dying to self will not allow it, the Holy Spirit within us would find a way to put a stop to such nonsense. Thoughts of vanity? Of course, at times. Are we not heirs to the Kingdom of heaven? Are we not chosen by God Almighty Himself, hid in Christ, given eternal life?
“But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” (1st Cor. 9:27)
“For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.” (Gal. 5:13)
Vain thoughts cannot exist for long in the minds of those who understand humility, who have been born again.
Vanity is the sister of pride, and pride always goes before destruction my friends. Vanity not only looks to lift ourselves up, but finds a need to denigrate others, and if it cannot do the latter, vanities sister will arrive, jealousy, along with her cousin, hatred.
The twice born, we who have been born-again, rarely find ourselves in a battle with only one foe at a time, our adversary is well aware of who our shield is, the Holy Spirit is always willing to stand with us, but we are expected to stand as well. This entire world lies in wickedness, there is no hiding place, our enemy will not take a break from us, and that enemy is not just our adversary, it is you.
Not conforming to the world does not only mean not seeking for its treasures, not attempting to gain all we can from it, it means keeping our old nature in check.
All of the verses offered here, all of the words of truth given, that vanity, that vexation of spirit, can be completed in this verse.
“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” (Mark 8:36)
How long must a man live to gain all he could ever want and be completely and totally satisfied, never seeking or desiring anything ever again?
To be honest with you my friends, the only true vexation of spirit that I have is in the knowledge that in this life I will never be all that my Father in heaven wants me to be.
We live in a wicked world, it is impossible to keep every form of vanity from entering into our lives, but we can recognize it when it appears. Doing something about it has been left entirely up to you.
