Ecclesiastes 2

Bringing the sermon home:

Further wrestling with the certainty of death and of being forgotten, Ecclesiastes asks, “what is good for the children of man to do under heaven during the few days of their life?” Do pleasure and possessions make life worthwhile? Do they dull the pain of being a vapor? After a grand experiment, the verdict is in: No.

Turning away from the self-indulgence of the frivolous fool who is always in search of a quick fix, he then instead devotes himself to the life of a wise worker. While hard work and a wise use of resources proves to yield a better life, the knowledge that death is still just around the corner to strip away everything he gains from wise living proves to be unbearable.

If our reason for toiling day after day rests upon the shaky foundation of our hopes for what tomorrow will bring, we will be plagued by fear and anxiety throughout all the days of our vapor-like life. You can’t live for tomorrow, or you’ll never find any rest today. What makes life worth living is not what you’re living for, but who you’re living for. Are you living for yourself, or for the God who made you? Joy is found in living for Him! May each one of us discover this wisdom of Ecclesiastes.

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are

pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:11)