Ecclesiastes 1-12

Solomon wrote the book of Ecclesiastes to describe that life apart from God is meaningless. Solomon was the wisest man ever known; he studied, taught, judged, and wrote. Kings and leaders traveled from afar to learn from him. Solomon had Godly wisdom and insight on life, but he failed to take his own advice and began a downward spiral in his own life. Solomon looked back on his life with an attitude of humility and repentance. He was hoping to spare his readers the bitterness of learning through his personal experience that life without God is empty and meaningless. In this book, Solomon affirms the value of knowledge, relationships, work, and pleasure, but only in their proper place according to God’s will.

Isn’t it interesting the amount of searching we do? True happiness is not in our power to accumulate or attain because we always want more than we can have. People continue to search, yet the more they try to get, the more they realize how little they really have. Without God, satisfaction is a lost search. Human wisdom doesn’t have all the answers. Knowledge and education have their limits. To really understand life and purpose is to seek the wisdom only God can give you. In order to have God’s wisdom in our lives, we first need to get to know him and honor him.

“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”(1:9) Many people feel dissatisfied and restless. People wonder and worry; If I am in God’s will, why am I so tired and unfulfilled? What is the meaning of life? Why do I feel burned out? What is to become of me? Solomon tests our faith challenging us to find true and lasting meaning in God alone.

“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 toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.”(2:10) Solomon highlights two kinds of wisdom; 1)Human knowledge, reasoning, or philosophy and 2) the wisdom that comes from God. Solomon summarizes that attempts at finding life’s meaning as “chasing after the wind”. In all our accomplishments, our good feelings are only temporary. Security and self-worth are not found in these accomplishments, and can easily feel like we are “chasing after the wind.” True enjoyment in life comes only as we follow God’s guidelines for living. Those who really know how to enjoy life are the ones who take life each day as a gift from God, being grateful and serving him.

“Again I saw something meaningless under the sun; there was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth….two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work...if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?”(4:8, 9, 11) Life is created for companionship; not isolation and for intimacy; not loneliness. We are not placed on this earth to serve ourselves; but to serve God and others. Beware of isolating yourself and going at life alone. Becoming a team player and having good companionship make our time here meaningful.

“Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.”(5:10) Do you find yourself constantly wanting more than you have? Solomon observed that those who love money and seek it obsessively never find the happiness is falsely promises. Money in itself is not wrong; but loving money leads to all types of sin.

“The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.”(7:8) To finish what we start requires hard work, wise guidance, self-discipline, and patience. Anyone with vision can start a project; but vision without wisdom often results in unfinished projects and goals.

“Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love…whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.”(9:9) How sad it would be to be married and not appreciate the enjoyment and companionship God has given you.

“Whoever watches the wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not reap.”(11:4) Waiting for perfect circumstances will lead to inactivity. Have you had someone tell you that their life is on hold until this or that; or before making a decision, they are waiting to have a certain amount of money in their bank account? If we wait for the perfect time and place, we may never begin. Take steps to do something today. Don’t wait for conditions that may never exist and waste your life. It is important to approach your decisions from God’s perspective; approach life with an attitude that although our lives are short; we will live with God forever.

“Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, whether it is good or evil.”(12:13) Our time on earth is so short, we should use the time to learn important truths that will affect this life and eternity. No matter the mysteries and contradictions of life, we must work toward the single purpose of knowing God. We should enjoy our lives as it is a gift from God and love him with all our hearts, minds and souls by following his commandments. In order to live properly, we must, recognize that human effort apart from God is futile; put God first now; receive everything that is good as a gift from God; realize that God will judge both evil and good; know that God will judge the quality of every person’s life. People strive for the very enjoyment that God gives for free, as a gift; isn’t that ironic?