Learning Life’s True Purpose

The world is full of people, perspectives, ideas, stories, science, and so much more that you will never be able to hear let alone understand it all. The internet and the “web” have given us the illusion that we know more, see more, experience more. Do we really? Perhaps we are so busy acquiring information that we don’t have time to seek to understand it.

You have access to a source of wisdom that gives understanding… it’s the word of God. Almost everyone has access to the bible…its even online. But to many it’s a book filled with superstition, ancient and irrelevant to modern life, culturally conditioned and not applicable to us

Those who revere the word mostly don’t know what it really says. Many know what they think it says… but do not understand salvation, know the way of salvation, or know the goal and purpose of salvation.

Deut 30:19 God’s word is presenting you with a choice.

1. You can chose a way that leads to blessings, everything good, fullness, happiness, freedom from fear, freedom from worry
2. You can reject the foundational laws of living that are built into, and are currently at work in the universe. Breaking them is like breaking the law of gravity.
   1. Rejection brings with it misery, barrenness and desolation… not at first but it will definitely come. In fact, the first taste of rebellion, or selfishness, of lust, is a sweet taste. It’ exhilarating, a thrill… but give it time and it will lead to sad results. Eccl 8:11
   2. Applies to individual, nations, even the globally. Rejecting the foundational laws of life is leading us to the edge of a cliff where we will be ready to annihilate ourselves… nuclear, bio weapons etc.

If the Bible is superstitious, impractical, not in tune with real life, not to be considered or applied too seriously… what about the things we do consider as practical, realistic… all of them are meaningless and don’t lead to happiness or satisfaction.

• Money & power - obvious
• Social justice – people can say their end goal is justice… but can go about trying to make it happen in ways that are grossly unjust. Using unjust means to pursue the end goal of justice leave a churning wake of damaged lives… unhappiness, and misery.

Solomon Was a Great Achiever

Great public works, temple, palaces, irrigation canals (practical)… through wisdom and diligence he accumulated incredible wealth.

Mentally he was great… wisest man ever… internationally famous for his judgments… he ruled effectively and gave his entire nation prosperity. But he says it left him empty Eccl 1:2-3, 2:17

You might think… what did Solomon know? That was so long ago. We have accomplished so much since then. Why I can simply ask my phone any question and it will give me the answer. I have access to as vast a sea of facts that Solomon could never even imagine… but access to information is not wisdom.

Figuring out life

Eccl 1:9-18 Solomon launched on a quest to use his God given blessing of wisdom… to figure out the ins and outs of human life in the flesh… or under the sun as he put it. We have many of his observations (spoken under inspiration) for our benefit today.

Eccl is a book for young people. (stuff you won’t know until you are too old to do much about it)

What is your quest? What are you trying to figure out? Everybody’s looking for something… that’s simply the way you are made. (God has put eternity into the hearts of men)

For many people their quest is for material gain, physical pleasure, mental emotional pleasure… whatever it takes to get the dopamine receptors firing in your brain. Wine, women, song, sex, crack, heroin, entertainment, laughter, wealth, power, building things etc.

Note: other people seek heaven, nirvana, paradise etc. but have this weird notion that whatever it is they are headed to is a destiny involving having nothing to do… a life of idleness, gazing into limpid pools, playing a harp, lazing about on a couch nibbling on grapes peeled by 70 doe eyed virgin, or floating about as a mere cloud of being… spend our physical life doing stuff so we can have eternal bliss doing nothing.

That idea is contrary to the principles of life that God has put in place. They are not biblical. Throughout God’s word we learn, know, understand, perceive… by doing and experiencing.

Joy comes from accomplishment… from active effort with purpose and direction. But you want your effort to be focused in the right direction… not chasing after wind as Solomon said.

What is it that makes your doings under the sun… in this flesh and blood life… what makes them accomplishments filled with purpose and joy rather that grasping at the wind, or a wearisome burden?

I’ll give you the answer to that one at the end of the sermon!

Build a business  retire  no one cares (George’s garden paved over)

Eccl 2:1-11 Solomon tried various ways to apply his God given wisdom towards accomplishments. Note how focused on himself he was. He could do whatever he wanted. (heavy taxes, forced labor… violation of God’s laws of life, bible does not endorse or enforce slavery).

Solomon had many wives… violated God’s active living laws of life and happiness (one man/one woman). These wives were his undoing.

Remember that the bible records only a few highlights of a small number of people who God interacted with. People who were struggling with life: circumstances beyond their control, their own bad choices, the consequences etc. God tells you that people He loved and was working with struggled with sin. This is not an endorsement of their sin… He’s trying to teach you lessons from their problems. The men who multiple wives all suffered grief in their families… because they violated God’s eternal laws of life and happiness!

People like to say that those laws are done away with… and that if I teach or preach about them I’m somehow against Christ – WRONG.

Others say that these laws never came from any god… they came out of the imagination of mere men to control others, and oppress them. They made up their own laws to define their world… so can we.

But God’s laws… take the law of adultery for example, and the teaching that a man should only have one wife and remain faithful to her, and her to him. It’s a good law. We’ve been busy writing our own laws on the subject and our ways do not lead to happiness… they leave people lonely, isolated, feeling used and abused. We are witnessing the results.

Breaking God’s laws is going to break us.

Pray for Wisdom and Understanding

You might think “wisdom didn’t seem to make Solomon happy”… so why should I pray for wisdom?

Eccl 2:12-26 Solomon set out on an experiment. To explore fully the possibilities of life in the flesh… or life under the sun… and find meaning in these things… and all the while maintaining the wisdom God gave him as if he were doing all this but at the same time detached, watching, looking on as an observer.

Note: I think he was overly confident that he could maintain that detachment without getting swept away by it… his many wives lead him into idolatry. Surely he started off thinking “I can control this”... I’m just an observer… then, “I’m just going through the motions I don’t really believe this stuff” … and then it was too late. (read account in 1 Kings 11:1-43)

Perhaps you have started messing around with stuff you shouldn’t… stuff that compromises or bends God’s law. Maybe you just want to check it out, maybe you think you are just testing it out… I still believe the truth… I can get back to it anytime.

You don’t have to use the wisdom God gives you the way Solomon used it. He used his God given wisdom to explore and see if there were alternative ways to achieve meaning in life. In the end (we’ll get there in a bit) he comes back with his report. Solomon is a bent and jaded man, perhaps even too bent and jaded to be salvaged (only God knows), Solomon tried it all, saw it all, and he tells us… THERE ARE NO OTHER WAYS. All of them are meaningless.

Praying for wisdom and understanding is a prayer that pleases God… and a prayer He is eager to answer. True godly wisdom will have a side-effect… similar is some ways to Solomon’s experience. Godly wisdom will put you out of sync with the world and its priorities.

With Godly wisdom you will learn more about people. And the more you learn about them the more disappointed in them you will become. But in order to get along you have to act toward them with understanding… according to the true Godly principles of life 1 Corinthians 13.

Solomon’s Wisdom Does Have Practical Advice to Offer

• Chpt 4 – appreciate friendship
• Chpt 5 – Honor God
• Chpt 7 – keep a sober & humble outlook on life… avoid extremes (seek balanced life)
• Chpt 8 – don’t expect life to be fair
• Chpt 9 – consider the end of your allotted time
• Chpt 11 – practice generosity
• Chpt 12 – enjoy life but realize its ultimate purpose cuz it only last so long

Learning Life’s True Purpose

Solomon found pleasure in his efforts and hard work. And He says its good to work/do/accomplish. But what was the lasting value of what He had done? Where are Solomons’s buildings, his armies, his cities and high towers? All gone… he had to leave them to others.

You can work, work, work… strive, strive, strive… and its good. Hard work and diligence is generally rewarded with good things in this life. That too is a principle of the universe but one that we personally cannot control beyond the working hard part. So, work hard but ask yourself… what is my goal? Am I putting sufficient effort into the things that are permanent and do last?

The meaning of life… is to learn how to live.

If your goal is anything less than to attain to the resurrection of the dead in the kingdom of God as a glorious child of God in His universe ruling family… then you are striving after the wind.

You have a shot at the better resurrection. So look at yourself and ask… what am I working towards?

There is no reward worth working for except to attain salvation and the kingdom of God. Your work is to surrender yourself to the living God and let Him rule over your life… to receive the divine nature of the eternal God and let Him build in you… His righteousness… his character so that you may be born of Him.

Eccl 11:9 … 12:8,13