Pastor’s Corner

A collection of articles written by Pastor Matt Leopold that appear in the monthly Connection newsletter.

British author Harry Patterson, who writes under the pseudonym “Jack Higgins,” has written more than 60 novels.  Since he wrote the book The Eagle Has Landed in 1975, most of his books have become bestsellers.  Patterson was asked what he would like to have known as a boy.  His answer: “That when you get to the top, there’s nothing there.”

Patterson’s sentiments have been echoed by countless people who have achieved greatness in this life.  Yet the vast majority of them, even as they obtain everything, they remain so unhappy.  This underscores a central theme in the book of Ecclesiastes that life apart from God brings emptiness, a fact that is repeated thirty-seven times in the book.

Solomon describes throughout the book that seeking pleasure in life apart from God is vanity.  Now Solomon was the wisest man to live (next to Christ).  He had many plans and ambitions in life but later would come to see the emptiness and wastedness of the life he lived.

Having observed “life under the sun,” that is, the daily repetition of life on earth, Solomon learned several lessons that are beneficial for us to remember.

Lesson 1.  Satisfaction cannot come from life under the sun because nothing really changes.  Eccles. 1:1-11 indicates that nature and science really don’t change.  The sun rises and sets (vs. 5) and hurries to its place so it can do it again tomorrow.  The wind circles about the earth (vs. 6) only to return.  Rivers flow into the sea but the sea never fills up (vs. 7).  The human experience of seeing and hearing (as remarkable as this is), does not bring satisfaction but can result in a boredom and unsatisfying life (vs. 8).  Even history tends to repeat itself (vv. 9-11).  The unchanging life becomes an unsatisfying life.

Lesson 2.  Pursuing human knowledge leads to emptiness.  In Eccles. 1:12-18, Solomon is somewhat critical of God by saying that He has given men the pursuit of wisdom to keep them busy.  Even the pursuit of knowledge results in emptiness due to the fact that something is fundamentally wrong with life on earth following the curse (Gen. 3).  The more knowledge and wisdom you have the greater the pain you experience (tree of knowledge of good and evil).

Lesson 3.  Satisfaction cannot be found in hedonism.  Hedonism is the pursuit of pleasure and making that your highest goal.  In chapter 2 Solomon defines those areas that he once thought would bring him great pleasure.  Things like drinking (2:1-3), building for one’s self great works (houses, vineyards, gardens, parks, irrigation pools), and accumulating possessions (servants, flocks, herds, gold & silver, treasures, a choir to entertain himself, sexual gratification).  His conclusion about pursuing pleasure in life was, “I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun (2:11).

Lesson 4.  Satisfaction cannot be found in wealth.  In chapter 5 he says that the pursuit of money is endless.  No matter how much one has, there is always the possibility and desire for more.  But there is an often over-looked truism about wealth: when income increases, so do the bills (5:10-16).  Solomon tells us that the rich do not sleep because they worry about losing their wealth.

Lesson 5.  Satisfaction does not come from the pursuit of a moral life.  Solomon prizes death over life (7:1-2).  He says that no one escapes this final destiny.  He also says that no matter how much one desires wisdom it is out of human grasp (7:23-24).  He has sought diligently for meaning in life but finds out that humanity is only seeking its own desires (7:26-29).  Seeking to live morally only brings about the same fate as others.

From the human perspective, Solomon observes that time and chance rules over the lives of everyone (9:10-12).  He says life is not always fair (10:6-7) and that there are dangers in life that we aren’t even aware of (10:8-10).  In the end, his conclusion is “vanity of vanities” (12:8).  You can almost hear him say, “see what I mean…”

You might say, “wow, what a disheartening message.  If there can be no satisfaction in life under the sun, what’s the point of living?”  That’s exactly Solomon’s point.  The book of Ecclesiastes is not written to give us the impression that there is no point in life, but that living our lives apart from God brings nothing but emptiness.  Solomon was a living illustration of this important truth.

Solomon was a wise man who learned from his ways.  His advice to those seeking meaning in life (12:1-7)?  “Remember the Creator.”  Think seriously about who He is and what He requires.  Seek the relationship with Him so as to discover the greatness and glory of God before its too late.  To remember God is to relate to Him, to walk with Him, to discover Him, and to learn to know Him.

The last two verses of this book sum up life not apart from God but the necessity of life with God, “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil (12:13-14).

Fear God and keep His commandments and you will discover the deep and abiding joy of living life with God.

Pastor Matt

Last changed: Feb 21 2012 at 3:06 PM