Draw Near – 365 Guides to Greater Intimacy with GodSample

SEARCHING FOR MEANING Ever since the Fall, man has sought some meaning for his life. Apart from God, there is no meaning; and man drifts along as a twig in the stream of time. This is the message of the doleful book of Ecclesiastes. Written by Solomon, this book outlines the various pleasures of sin then says none of them brings satisfaction. The title of Ecclesiastes comes from the opening word in the Hebrew which referred to "one who called an assembly." In the Greek and Latin, this became "Ecclesiastes" or "The Preacher." There are four basic propositions in the book of Ecclesiastes: (1) Labor, riches, success, and prosperity do not bring happiness. (2) Earthly possessions, instead of bringing happiness, become an obstacle to attaining it. (3) Although man knows what is best for himself, he seldom does it. (4) The only sure way to happiness is to fear God and keep his commandments. This is the basic message of the Bible as a whole. The key phrase in Ecclesiastes is "under the sun." Some scholars say the phrase in Hebrew means "apart from God." They suggest that this term should be inserted each of the twenty-eight times this phrase appears in Ecclesiastes. If this is done, one immediately sees the message of the book. Life apart from God is totally meaningless; it has an unsure beginning and an uncertain ending. Solomon captures the plight of the intellectual who struggles with a search for meaning apart from God. Such a person continually comes out the same door he went in because life just has no sense without divine intervention and direction. Thank God, as believers, we are not adrift on a sea of confusion. Our anchor holds in Christ.