Time to Laugh and Dance

(Back to Study Home Page)     (Sermon April 19, 2009)
(Back to Sermons Home Page)     (Back to Shultz Home Page)

April 19, 2009 - Ecclesiastes 3:1-22

Open It

1.      Why do you believe or disbelieve the idea that, deep down inside, most people believe in God?

2.      For what other reasons than to make a living do people work?

3.      What sort of things make you happy?

Explore It

4.      For what sort of activities is there a time? (3:1-8)

5.      What topics did Solomon explore in these verses? (3:1-22)

6.      What has God set in the hearts of people? (3:11)

7.      What can we not understand? (3:11)

8.      What's the best way we can spend our days while alive? (3:12)

9.      What is described as a gift from God? (3:13)

10.    What did Solomon say about everything God does? (3:14)

11.    What will God call into account? (3:15)

12.    What did Solomon see in the place of judgment and the place of justice? (3:16)

13.    Whom will God bring to judgment? (3:17)

14.    Why are we tested? (3:18)

15.    What fate awaits both people and animals? (3:19-21)

16.    What should we enjoy? Why? (3:22)

Get It

17.    What did Solomon mean by his statement that "there is a time for everything"?

18.    When is it hard to be sensitive to the appropriateness of the timing of our activities?

19.    Why is it important to be sensitive to the timing of our activities?

20.    How is the fact that God has placed eternity in our heart manifested in our society?

21.    How do people in our society wrongly seek to fill their longing for God?

22.    In what way is finding satisfaction in eating, drinking, and working a gift from God?

23.    How should the fact that God will bring judgment to both the righteous and the wicked affect the way we live?

24.    In what way are the fate of animals and people similar and dissimilar?

Apply It

25.    In what one way can you seek to be more sensitive to the timing of the things you do this week?

26.    What is one way you can enjoy your work or what God has given you?

27.    Who can help you remember your accountability to God? How?

NOTES

Ecclesiastes 3:1-5:20: Solomon's point in this section is that God has a plan for all people. Thus he provides cycles of life, each with its work for us to do. Although we may face many problems that seem to contradict God's plan, these should not be barriers to believing in him, but rather opportunities to discover that, without God, life's problems have no lasting solutions!

3:1-8 Timing is important. All the experiences listed in these verses are appropriate at certain times. The secret to peace with God is to discover, accept, and appreciate God's perfect timing. The danger is to doubt or resent God's timing. This can lead to despair, rebellion, or moving ahead without his advice.

3:8 When is there a time for hating? We shouldn't hate evil people, but we should hate what they do. We should also hate it when people are mistreated, when children are starving, and when God is being dishonored. In addition, we must hate sin in our lives-this is God's attitude (see Psalm 5:5).

Ecclesiastes 3:9-13: Your ability to find satisfaction in your work depends to a large extent upon your attitude. You will become dissatisfied if you lose the sense of purpose God intended for your work. We can enjoy our work if we (1) remember that God has given us work to do (Ecclesiastes 3:10), and (2) realize that the fruit of our labor is a gift from him (Ecclesiastes 3:13). See your work as a way to serve God.

3:11 God has "set eternity in the hearts of men." This means that we can never be completely satisfied with earthly pleasures and pursuits. Because we are created in God's image, (1) we have a spiritual thirst, (2) we have eternal value, and (3) nothing but the eternal God can truly satisfy us. He has built in us a restless yearning for the kind of perfect world that can only be found in his perfect rule. He has given us a glimpse of the perfection of his creation. But it is only a glimpse; we cannot see into the future or comprehend everything. So we must trust him now and do his work on earth.

3:12 To be happy and do good while we live are worthy goals for life, but we can pursue them the wrong way. God wants us to enjoy life. When we have the proper view of God, we discover that real pleasure is found in enjoying whatever we have as gifts from God, not in what we accumulate.

Ecclesiastes 3:14: What is the purpose of life? It is that we should revere the all-powerful God. To revere God means to respect and stand in awe of him because of who he is. Purpose in life starts with whom we know, not what we know or how good we are. It is impossible to fulfill your God-given purpose unless you revere God and give him first place in your life.

Ecclesiastes 3:16ff: There is wickedness in the place of justice. It even affects the legal system. Solomon asked how God's plan can be perfect when there is so much injustice and oppression in the world (Ecclesiastes 4:1). He concluded that God does not ignore injustice, but will bring it to an end at his appointed time (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14).

3:16ff Solomon reflects on several apparent contradictions in God's control of the world: (1) there is wickedness where there should be justice (Ecclesiastes 3:16-17); (2) people created in God's image die just like the animals (Ecclesiastes 3:18-21); (3) no one comforts the oppressed (Ecclesiastes 4:1-3); (4) many people are motivated by envy (Ecclesiastes 4:4-6); (5) people are lonely (Ecclesiastes 4:7-12); (6) recognition for accomplishments is temporary (Ecclesiastes 4:13-16). It is easy to use such contradictions as excuses not to believe in God. But Solomon used them to show how we can honestly look at life's problems and still keep our faith. This life is not all there is, yet even in this life we should not pass judgment on God because we don't know everything. God's plan is for us to live forever with him. So live with eternal values in view, realizing that all contradictions will one day be cleared up by the Creator himself (Ecclesiastes 12:14).

Ecclesiastes 3:19-22: Our bodies can't live forever in their present state. In that sense, humans and animals are alike. But Solomon acknowledged that God has given people the hope of eternity (see the note on § Ecclesiastes 3:11), and that we will undergo judgment in the next life (Ecclesiastes 3:17; Ecclesiastes 12:7, 14)-making us different from animals. Because man has eternity set in his heart, he has a unique purpose in God's overall plan. Yet we cannot discover God's purpose for our lives by our own efforts-only through building a relationship with him and seeking his guidance. Are you now living as God wants? Do you see life as a gift from him?

(Back to Study Home Page)     (Sermon April 19, 2009)
(Back to Sermons Home Page)     (Back to Shultz Home Page)