Ecclesiastes

Passage: Ecclesiastes 3:9-15

We learned in seminary that in preaching pastors are allow two finallys and three in conclusions.  Tonight is our third of three in conclusions to the book of Ecclesiastes.  We started in February and have heard 26 sermons on this remarkable and unique book.  I am very grateful to Pastor Mike and Elder David Watson for their excellent contributions along the way.

The two of them convinced me to do this series, I am not sure I would have done so otherwise.  It is one of the harder books to understand.  It reminds me of the late, great Winston Churchill’s famous quote defining Russia as “a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.”  That’s Ecclesiastes.

The book of Ecclesiastes is a profoundly unsettling book.  It is devastating to our pride concerning the meaning of our lives and our work.  It is a devastating blow to all that we hold near and dear as Americans, our strong sense of independence, our strong sense of self-achievement, self-advancement.

Our grand emphasis of success and accomplishment.  Success in our world is defined with setting goals and then achieving them.  This is how we measure worth, value, importance.  Our self-worth depends on what you have to show for ourselves.

It challenges everything we use to measure our self-worth in what we have, what we have done.  In our world the most important thing is to do something.  We are bound up in finding efficiency, effectiveness, the right methods.  We are on a hamster wheel of ceaselessly striving for relevance and importance.

When we introduce ourselves to others, the first thing is always what do you do?  Our worth is in our utility, in our usefulness.  We have lost an understanding of what is worthwhile and useful, what truly promotes joy and peace.

Ecclesiastes blows up our whole world, especially our western American mindset and mentality.  If Ecclesiastes hasn’t rattle you to the core of where you get your identity and self-worth, then you have missed it.

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Passage: Ecclesiastes 12:8-14

This evening we come to the end of the Book of Ecclesiastes.  Let me fill you in on where we will go from here.

Then in the first three weeks of October Pastor Mike, David and then I will each offer a sort of overall wrap up of our own experiences of preaching through Ecclesiastes.  I have given each of them freedom to do whatever the Spirit puts on their heart to do.  This book has touched each of us in different ways, and it is good sometimes to step back and reflect on what has been significant for us in preaching this great book.

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Passage: Ecclesiastes 10:1-20

Qoheleth, the Preacher, King Solomon has been extoling the virtue of wisdom over everything else in this life under the sun.  Seeking to become wise and mature in negotiating the ever changing and fleeting challenges of life has been his mantra.

But this is not as easy as it sounds, and the Preacher is not about quick or easy fixes.  He has made much work of observing all of life from every angle and he sees contradictions, irony and paradox, as normal parts of life.

Happiness is vanity, fleeting, and yet happiness is the only thing a reasonable person can pursue in this life.  Eat, drink and have pleasure and live as happily as you can while you live.

Toil is vanity, fleeting, what does it profit in the end, yet whatever your hand finds to do, do with all your might.

Wisdom and folly are the same in the end, both come to the same end, yet wisdom is precious and to be pursued, it gives more strength than ten rulers.

He has explored what wisdom can and can’t do in chapter seven, in chapter eight he reminded us of why we must remain humble regarding wisdom since our wisdom can’t understand or comprehend God and His ways.  Chapter 9 once again declares when all is said and done, wisdom is better than folly, every time, all the time.

Solomon has tried to make this point as clear as possible.  To drive the point home we now takes out his hammer and a big fist full of nails to hammer the point home, 20 nails actually.

He gives us an onslaught of proverbial wisdom.  These proverbs are meant to spur us on toward wisdom and away from folly.  Solomon shows his wisdom in how he can see things in common, daily live and make moral and ethical applications from them.  This comes off as a random sampling of practical advice, but in it is great wisdom.

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Passage: Ecclesiastes 9:7-10

We have heard these words before from the lips of the preacher in Ecclesiastes, but they are always a welcome breath of fresh air because in between each of those times there has been a fair bit of handwringing over the vanity of life under the sun and the brevity of life and the swift approaching leveler of all life, when we all die and go the way of all men.

Solomon is calling us to a joyful religion, and of all religions, Christianity is the only one with true reason for joy.  Melancholy is a false statement about our God and our faith.

A gloomy Christian is an oxymoron.  The Christian in the most dire of circumstances still and always has reason for joy.  Consider for one minute who Jesus and what He has done, it is enough to dispel the darkest cloud.  Is not the Gospel good news of great joy?

A Christian who is heir to the greatest possible riches of the most glorious inheritance with God’s strength, wisdom, and favor, having a deep sense of the Father’s most undeserved love in the light his own unworthiness, has no justifiable reason to complain.

In this life under the sun, here is some real sunshine, a bright remedy in a gloomy book.  Solomon’s07-24-2022 PM Eccl. 9.7-10 Your Portion in Life
recommendation is to live more like Tigger than like Eeyore and he gives us four ways to do it.

Passage: Ecclesiastes 8:1-9

Two weeks ago we looked at Solomon’s searching out folly, now we come to his searching out wisdom.  Who is like the wise?  This is a comparative statement, “Who can compare with the wise man?”

The implication is there is no comparison, no one like the wise man.  You can be rich, good looking, smart, strong, but without wisdom it doesn’t matter.

Wisdom is the first thing, the best thing, nothing compares to it.  Pursue it, pray for it, start young and never stop.  It is worth everything you invest in it.  Wisdom makes us useful to others, a true benefit and blessing to those around us.

Verse one is a general statement regarding the wisdom of wisdom, the benefit and blessing of wisdom, the joy and peace of wisdom.

By interpretation he means one who rightly understands the times and what to do and how direct others in the right way.  By interpretation he means that person who can explain the words, ways, works of God.

Like Joseph interpreting Pharoah’s dreams.

Like Daniel interpreting the handwriting on the wall.

Wisdom changes a person, they are less anxious, more at peace, settled, slow to anger, slow to speak, courage in the face of trouble.

It makes the face shine brighter as one who has been in touch with a brighter, higher world.  Like Moses’ face when he came down from the holy mountain after meeting with God, and the face of Stephen with he saw the Lord as he was being stoned to death.

Make the book of Proverbs your close companion.  It is filled with wisdom personified as Lady Wisdom