● Overview.
○ Solomon conducted his search for life’s
meaning as an experiment. He first
tried pursuing pleasure. He undertook
great projects, bought slaves and herds and flocks, amassed wealth, acquired
singers, added many women to his harem, and he became the greatest person in
Jerusalem. Yet, none of these gave
Solomon satisfaction. Solomon sought
some wrong and some worthy pleasures, but he still felt the worthy pleasures in
life were futile when he pursued them for himself only.
■ Solomon tested life. He examined everything from the sublime to
the ridiculous. As he experimented, he
used the wisdom GOD had given him.
Solomon explains his 3 stages of his experiment in Chapter 2.
○ Solomon had built houses, a temple, a
kingdom, and a family. Through the
course of history, they would all be destroyed. (Psalm 127:1).
○ Solomon refers to all his attempts at
finding life’s meaning was as “chasing the wind”. You can feel the wind as it passes, but you
cannot hold onto it nor can you keep it.
○ Wisdom cannot guarantee eternal
life. Wisdom, riches, and personal
achievement matter very little after death.
We should not build our life on perishable pursuits. If GOD is our foundation and all our
pursuits are taken away, we still have GOD.
○ Hard work bears no lasting fruit for
those who work solely to earn money and gain possessions. Everything we had will be left behind at
death. It is uncertain if it will be taken
care of by those who receive it after our death. It is possible for all that was gained will
be lost. Joy will only be reached if we
work to serve and please GOD.
● Verses.
○ Verses 2: 1 - 11 Solomon Tested Life - Pleasures are
Meaningless
■ Hedonism - the pursuit of pleasure.
● We instinctively feel that if we have
fun, we will find happiness.
● Solomon went forth in worth, laughter,
and pleasure. Solomon concludes that
laughter is foolish. After laughter is
released and we go to bed, we can still feel empty.
● Solomon concludes pleasure consumes our
resources, resources acquired through hard work. How often can we afford the cost of
pleasure?
■ Solomon had the means and authority to do
anything his heart desired. He tested
his heart in 2 common experiences of life: enjoyment and employment.
■ Enjoyment (verses 1 to 3).
● GOD made man to enjoy the blessings of
creation. (Psalm 104, I Timothy 6:17)
● Solomon encourages us to enjoy the life
of our youth before old age sets in and the body begins to fall apart. (Ecclesiastes 12:1)
● Harvest time was a joyful season as the
people reaped the harvest from the blessings of GOD upon their labor. Wine and laughter are mentioned as 2 sources
of pleasure for Solomon. This included
a splendid hall, eating choice food, drinking the best wine, and watching
gifted entertainers. When the party was
over, King Solomon’s heart felt dissatisfied and empty. How many of Solomon’s servants envied the
King. (Proverbs 14:13)
● How much money do we spend to buy
“experiences to escape the temporary burdens of life?” Nothing is wrong with seeking innocent fun,
the person who lives his life seeking pleasure only is bound to be dissatisfied
at the end. Pleasure-seeking becomes a
selfish endeavor as selfishness destroys joy.
● Enjoyment will decrease unless the
intensity of the pleasure increases. We
then reach the point of diminishing returns, where there is little or no
enjoyment, which turns into bondage (addictions).
● Pleasure appeals to only part of the
person and ignores the total person.
True pleasure (Godly) builds character by enriching the total person.
● Through all of this, Solomon was still
able to find fame. He concludes the
more fame he acquired, the enjoyment was lessened.
■ Employment (verse 4 to 11).
● Solomon was involved in many projects,
something that would help him discover something that would make life worth
living. He built his many houses,
cities, gardens, vineyards, orchards and forests, water systems, and the Temple
of Jerusalem.
● Solomon had many workers. He had slaves he purchased and slaves born
in his household. He drafted 30,000
Jewish men to work his various projects (I Kings 5:13-18), which his people
hated. (I Kings 12)
● Solomon accumulated great wealth in
flocks, herds, gold, and silver. He was
the wealthiest man in the world, yet, he was unhappy. His activities did not bring him lasting
pleasure.
● What happens when the project is
finished? Solomon only saw vanity. The journey bought pleasure, but the
destination bought only pain.
● Work is a blessing from GOD. (Genesis 2:15, 1 Corinthians 10:13, Isaiah
55:2)
● Much of the wealth of David came from his
military exploits.
○ Verses 2: 12 - 23 Solomon Hated Life - Wisdom, Folly, and
Toil are Meaningless
■ “I turned myself to behold” means “I
considered things from another viewpoint.
■ Solomon looked at his wisdom and his
wealth in light of the certainty of death.
What good is it to be wealthy and wise if one is going to die? Death is one of the obvious facts of life.
■ Solomon considered his wisdom.
● Solomon concludes that both the wise and
fool men die.
● Solomon concludes that we leave our
wisdom for the next generation.
○ Will the next generation value wisdom
from the past? There is nothing new
under the sun, as the future generations will experiment with the same things
of the past.
○ A wise man sees that death does
eventually come; the fool walks in darkness and he is unprepared. It takes a person a long time to learn how
to live and then life ends. Solomon
calls this futile, both the wise man and the fool die.
○ The healthy Christian believer does not
hate life, but loves life instead. (I
Peter 3:10, Psalm 34:12).
○ We may not enjoy everything in life, we
may not be able to explain everything in life, but we live by promises. (I Corinthians 15:58).
■ Solomon considers his wealth.
● Solomon also did not like his wealth as a
result of his toil. Solomon was born
wealthy and he attained additional wealth by being King. Below Solomon gives 3 reasons why he did not
like his wealth.
○ You cannot keep it, when you die it gets
passed down. (Luke 12:13-21, I Timothy
6:7-10)
■ Money is an exchange. Unless you spend it, it does little for you.
■ We are stewards of our wealth. GOD is our provider. We are to enjoy it and to use it to glorify
GOD’s name. We will one day give an account
of our stewardship before GOD.
(Deuteronomy 8:18)
○ We can’t protect it. The money we leave behind can be wasted
instead of used wisely. Learning to
cooperate with the inevitable, we can teach the next generation, but after our
death they can make their own choices.
(I Kings 11:41-12:24)
○ We can’t enjoy it as we should. If we worry about our wealth and what will
happen to it, our life can be miserable.
We have worked hard for our money, but after our death, it will go to
someone who has not worked for it or earned it. The heirs to our money will not suffer the
same griefs and sleepless nights that we have over our wealth that was passed
down.
● Through these verses, Solomon appears
very pessimistic, but he changes his attitude with the remaining verses from
this chapter.
○ Verses 2:24-26 Solomon Accepted Life
■ This will be the first of 6 conclusions
that Solomon will make in the Book of Ecclesiastes. Accepting life as GOD’s gift and enjoying it
in GOD’s will.
● Thank GOD for what you do have and enjoy
it to the glory of GOD. Our culture
tells us, ‘Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow may die.” (I Timothy 6:17)
● The enjoyments from GOD are also a gift
from GOD.
○ NASB Translation states “For who can eat
and who can have enjoyment without him.”
● We must seek to please the LORD and trust
him to meet every need we have in life.
● Sinner is translated from a Hebrew word
meaning “to fall short, to miss the mark.”
● A sinner can also become rich, but they
can never truly enjoy their wealth without GOD in their life. (Proverbs 13:22)
● Conclusion.
○ This chapter concludes Solomon’s 4
arguments that life is really not worth living. These can only be made from a human point of
view without GOD in the picture: The monotony of life, The vanity of our
wisdom, The futility of life, The certainty of death. Bringing GOD into the picture of life
changes one’s perspective on life. GOD
holds life, death, and wisdom. GOD
wants us to enjoy his blessings and to please GOD’s heart. We are idolaters if we forget the giver and rejoice
in our gifts from GOD.
■ The next chapters will look at each of
these 4 areas in greater depth. Solomon
will conclude by saying “Be thankful to GOD and enjoy life.”
● Solomon will address the injustices in
life.
● Solomon will not be pessimistic, nor will
he be optimistic. He will be taking a
balanced look at life.
○ Enjoyment is a gift of GOD. It is given from the hand of GOD to us. (I Timothy 6:17)
○ True joy will not come from people, it is
for those who please GOD and receive GOD’s gift of enjoyment.
○ Faith pleases GOD, believing that
everything comes from the hand of GOD.
This will also include pain, sorrow, bereavement, and
disappointment, GOD can also give us
gladness, happiness, and joy. He will
help us find the joy in our sorrow, pain, and grief through the hands of
GOD. (Romans 8:28, Proverbs 3:5-6)
○ Is our goal in life to search for its
meaning or to search for GOD who gives meaning to our life?
○ As we examine our goals and projects,
what is the starting point of our motivation?
Without GOD as the foundation, all of our living will be meaningless.
○ Where do we place our time and efforts in
life?
○ What we do here has a great impact upon
our eternal reward.
○ Those without GOD will have no relief
from toil and no direction to guide them through life’s complications. Without GOD, satisfaction is a lost
search. Enjoy life as it is a gift from
GOD. Take pleasure and enjoyment from
the things GOD has blessed us with.
○ It is good to have the things that money
can buy, provided we don’t lose the things that money can’t buy.
■ According to Solomon, it is vanity for
sinners to heap up riches and ignore GOD.
Apart from GOD, there is no true enjoyment of the blessings of life.
○ Life is 2% choices and 98% consequences
based upon those choices.
○ Quote from Chuck Colson: “Life isn’t a
book, life isn’t logical, or sensible, or orderly. Life is a mess most of the time. And Theology must be lived in the midst of
that mess.” Some will provide this
theology, “Be Satisfied.”
No comments:
Post a Comment