Stones Hill Community Church
The writer of Ecclesiastes undertook a hugely ambitious life experiment and he made himself the guinea pig, the lab rat. King Solomon had the time, money, and power to pretty much pursue any avenue of life he thought would bring pleasure or satisfaction. Solomon decided to conduct a massive experiment in human happiness and meaning. He became his own test subject, his own lab rat. “I know there is a God, but I’m going to live as if there isn’t and see what that’s like.” He became this mad scientist in search of serum, an antidote to fix him. But nothing was ever enough. He lost sight of the Giver of the Gifts. Have you lost sight of what's important?
The theme of the book is a virtual summary of the biblical worldview: life lived by purely earthly and human standards is futile, but the God-centered life is an antidote. Solomon tells us what he wants us to remember when life gets confusing, mysterious, unfair or as black as night - keep your trust in Creator God’s plan. Life in the world has significance only when man remembers his Creator (12:1).
Welcome to "A Season for Everything" - Finding Meaning in the Book of Ecclesiastes!
We welcome you to Stone's Hill today!
A typical Stone's Hill service has:
* music (so feel free to sing out);
* some announcements (things that are upcoming that you can be a part of);
* a message out of the Bible (God speaks to us through his Word);
* and an opportunity for you to respond to the message (either immediately in the case of a decision that needs to be made OR in the future as you live out the message in your daily life.)
So relax and enjoy your morning! We're so glad you are here!
Ecclesiastes 2:12-26 NIV
1 Kings 12:1-14 NIV
1 Kings 14:21-31 NIV
Message Text: Ecclesiastes 2:12-26
Introduction
You work hard and someone else gets all the credit. You struggle to be good, and bad people trample you. You accumulate money, and it goes to spoiled heirs. You seek pleasure and it turns sour. Is it any surprise that in the very beginning of Ecclesiastes in the very first verses, Solomon the author says: “Meaningless! Meaningless! Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”
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You’ll notice what he says is not that life is meaningless. He says life is meaningless under the sun. It says in 1:11, “…everything was meaningless … nothing was gained under the sun.” That’s also chapter 2 verses 17, 20, and 22. It actually happens 30 times in the book.
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Thirty times in the book of Ecclesiastes it uses the phrase “under the sun.” when he says, “I looked at life under the sun,” what he meant is, “I considered life here on earth without regard to eternity or God. Let’s make believe for a moment that this life is all there is.” Let’s find meaning in all aspects of this world, presumably without coming to know the world’s Creator, Sustainer, and Final Judge. To use a phrase from John Lennon, let’s imagine there’s no God above us, no heaven, no hell. Just this life.
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Observation
All the commentators agree that what he means by under the sun is life here and now, considered in isolation from anything else. He says, “I’m going to look at the world as if this life under the sun is all there is.” This is a secular worldview or mindset. We have to find our comfort here. We have to find our happiness here. We have to find our meaning right here in this life. This is life under the sun.”
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Illustration
Pastor Stephen Davey lived under a lot of sun and near the beach growing up. He said that many coastline states and other countries around the world hold elaborate sandcastle contests every year in the summer months along their sandy beaches. There are sandcastle building tournaments that offer cash prizes of $10,000 dollars or more. Some of winners from around the country feature exquisite, beautiful artistry. Every year, thousands of people come to watch these contestants create their masterpieces and some of them are super elaborate.
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What is really remarkable, they can be built in such a short amount of time. Typically, the contest begins around 9:00 am and runs until late afternoon. The contestants choose their places on the beach and start from scratch. But they have to finish their creative masterpieces around 3:00 o’clock so their entries can be judged. And that is because someone else, or I should say, “something else” is going to show up to take a close look at these castles.
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When this thing shows up, and it never fails to show up right on time, and when it does, everything stops. We have a name for it. We call him, “The Tide”. Not the Crimson Tide of Alabama, but the Ocean Tide. The tide comes in where the water level rises up on the shore and then the tide falls back. When the tide arrives all these sandcastles and creative masterpieces are washed away.
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The tide is an expected event at the ocean and it’s always on time. And there isn’t anything any sandcastle can do to avoid it; no matter how beautiful or how elaborate or how creative or how magnificent it is. The tide is always on its’ way.
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Application
This is like life. We build our “sandcastles” under the sun. And if God doesn’t matter and this life is all there is, what is always setting at a low hum in the background noise of life is that the tide will eventually come in and the contest of life will be over. This happens to be the issue keeping Solomon up at night. Solomon describes his frustration right here in his journal. The fact that there is an event that is going to happen, and it is going to happen to everybody. It is an expected event, and for Solomon the hour was growing late. The event is as predictable as the ocean’s tide. And it doesn’t matter if people spend their time making sandcastle masterpieces or just pour piles of sand out of a plastic pail – this event cannot be rescheduled. The tide is going to come in. Solomon wrestles with yet another question.
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Proposition
So here is the question in Solomon’s mind - is living a moderate, prudent, moral life any better than living the wild party life? Which commercial is right? “Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise” or “You only go around once in life so grab all the gusto you can.” Which direction is going to be better? Which path will prepare someone to take all you’ve worked for and use it wisely after you are gone? Solomon gives his answer in Ecclesiastes 2.
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Solomon makes THREE COMPARISONS. These COMPARISONS will help prepare you for the time when the tide comes in for your life. Solomon does this in the hope that his son who will replace him as king someday would have a better finish than him when the tide comes in.
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Ecclesiastes 2:12-26
The Wise and the Foolish (12-17)
The Immediate and the Ultimate (18-21)
The Workplace and the Homeplace (22-23)
Conclusion (24-26)
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OUTLINE
Ecclesiastes 2:12-28
The Wise and the Foolish (12-17)
“Son, don’t confuse the spirit of a boy with the wisdom of a man.”
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The Immediate and the Ultimate (18-21)
“Son, don’t sacrifice the ultimate on the altar of the immediate.”
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The Workplace and the Homeplace (22-23)
“Son, don’t replace your focus at home with projects at work.”
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Conclusion
Should the "tide" come in for you, are you ready? Is your family ready? Why don't you come to Christ today?