July-September
It is natural for a person to desire to own something valuable. We all have something that belongs to us, and we’re glad to work for its improvement. Today the world teaches about human rights. Among the rights declared in writing in 1948 in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 17 states that “Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.”
People work very hard to own something for themselves. As a result, many own companies, firms, industries, and various estates. They realize it is fulfilling to work for what they own. They cultivate means to make their businesses more productive, thereby encouraging others to do the same.
But unfortunately, there are also some that use wicked methods such as deception, prostitution, murder, etc., to get ahead. Sadly, today many youth are working hard to pursue careers to be able to succeed in owning more and bigger things without pausing to think where it may take them—even if it leads into areas that are not morally upright. Some may spend excessive hours misusing social media in heavy pursuit of evil paths of gain. If we are not vigilant, any of us could get caught up in such snares.
“Satan is constantly presenting inducements to God’s chosen people to attract their minds from the solemn work of preparation for the scenes just in the future. He is in every sense of the word a deceiver, a skillful charmer. . . . He is wide awake, busily engaged in leading the world captive, and through the agency of worldlings he keeps up a continual pleasing excitement to draw the unwary who profess to believe the truth to unite with worldlings. The lust of the eye, the desire for excitement and pleasing entertainment, is a temptation and snare to God’s people. Satan has many finely woven, dangerous nets which are made to appear innocent, but with which he is skillfully preparing to infatuate God’s people. There are pleasing shows, entertainments, . . . and an endless variety of enterprises constantly arising calculated to lead the people of God to love the world and the things that are in the world.”—Testimonies for the Church, vol. 1, p. 550.
In contrast, as we focus on the value of wholesome work, the Bible calls us to consider the behavior of ants. “Go to the ant, … consider her ways, and be wise.” “The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer” (Proverbs 6:6; 30:25). Ants, though seemingly weak and perhaps easily crushed under one’s foot, nonetheless make use of wisdom to protect and preserve themselves in this world. They also work freely as people do. It is in fact because of their wisdom that they are able to be so prosperous and cover the earth just like humans. In summertime, one will find that ants are working diligently to collect and store as much food as they can for winter in the underground cities they have built. Ants ensure that they accumulate food. They generally hibernate in winter, and prepare and gather in summer.
Using tiny organs like antennae and their legs, these little creatures move around laboring until they accomplish great things. They prosper because they work hard. They have time to work and time to relax or hibernate. When it is time to work, they work. They don’t spend all they earn; they keep some for future use.
“Solomon presents to the world the industry of the ant as a reproach to those who waste their hours in sinful idleness, in practices which corrupt soul and body.”—The SDA Bible Commentary [E. G. White Comments], vol. 3, p. 1157.
If we are to succeed like the ants that work freely and honorably, we need to follow God’s directions of working, knowing that we have nothing of ourselves in this world. (See Job 1:21.)
1. Ants work to take care of themselves and their little ones.
• They care for one another.
• They are always looking out for one another.
• They protect each other and openly display love towards one another.
• They are known to defend and die for one another.
2. Ants support each other to succeed in their missions.
• They work constantly together.
• They are faithful to one another and to the queen. There are no protests, shootings, or boycotts; they just continue laboring as one within the colony.
• They have fellowship with one another—sharing everything they find with all in the nest.
3. Ants are organized and follow order and system.
• They break bread with one another, sharing all the food that is gathered and brought into the nest. They have a doctrine, an “operating system” within the nest that God ordained right from the time He created them. He spoke once and they have been doing what they were told to do ever since. Humanity, on the other hand, has been disobedient in what God originally instructed us to do.
• They obey God’s Word. Ever since their creation, they have just kept on doing His will. John 14:15.
4. Ants build their nests.
• They build and repair together. Matthew 18:20; Ecclesiastes 4:9.
• They have constant fellowship with each other within the nest.
5. Ants leave a story for others to use and follow. They leave a legacy.
• Ants traveling on a shorter trail between the nest and food can make more trips in an hour than ants traveling along longer trails, leaving more pheromone. Therefore, over time, the shortest trail has the strongest pheromone scent and becomes the preferred pathway. That explains why you see ants marching in a straight line directly toward your picnic.
• They adopt one another whenever the opportunity arises.
• They dwell in peace with one another within the nest. Galatians 5:14.
• They laboriously protect the queen (symbolic of the church) and each other with their lives. Romans 12:10–13.
6. Ants are adaptive. They can survive in harsh seasons by adopting survival skills.
• If there’s plenty of food nearby, the foraging ants return quickly and recruit more workers to help gather food. When food is scarce, the foragers have to travel further, so they return more slowly. In this case, fewer ants are sent out to join the hunt. This coordination of worker ants’ efforts is a good example of adaptive ant behavior.
In contrast to the ant, whenever someone devises wicked ways to gain a livelihood, typically the benefits of that labor end up solely for selfish purposes. Such persons don’t remember their Creator by returning the tithes and offerings that belong to Him and they seldom share with others what they earn. The Sabbath is not remembered to honor God. Life is treated like a competition. There is a desire to look better than others, to drive fancier cars than others, use better smartphones than others, and finally everything is about rising higher than anyone else. (Isaiah 14:13, 14.) We as young people are in danger of being tempted to be drawn into such an attitude. So, let’s keep foremost in mind three directions from God:
a. Six days of work
“Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates” (Exodus 20:9, 10).
“All labor necessary to provide for the sustenance of the body is to be done in the six working days.”—The Review and Herald, September 6, 1898.
b. Resting on the 7th day
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8).
“At the very beginning of the fourth commandment the Lord said, ‘Remember.’ He knew that amid the multitude of cares and perplexities man would be tempted to excuse himself from meeting the full requirement of the law, or would forget its sacred importance. Therefore, He said: ‘Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy’ (Exodus 20:8).
“All through the week we are to have the Sabbath in mind and be making preparation to keep it according to the commandment.”— Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6, p. 353.
c. Tithing
“Thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day” (Deuteronomy 8:18). “Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year” (Deuteronomy 14:22). “And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s: it is holy unto the LORD” (Leviticus 27:30). [Emphasis added.]
“For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” (1 Corinthians 4:7).
“He who gives men power to get wealth has with the gift bound up an obligation. Of all that we acquire He claims a specified portion. The tithe is the Lord’s.”—Education, p.138.
Job was a great man who possessed a lot of wealth. He lived a life to bless others, especially those in need. Job 29:11–16. Just like ants, we can do the same thing.
God is love. His law is good. It is the law of liberty. We are all called to obey His law and be free to work for what we need, to return to God what is His, and to share with others as He directs. May we each keep in mind the reality that yes, we are free—and that we will ultimately give an account to our Maker for whatever we have done. Like the wise old ant, let us freely make our choices in wisdom!