Enjoy Life

Really the theme of my message today could be summarized this way. Live life to the hilt. Get all the gusto you can. Doesn't get me better than this. Eat, drink, and be married. Who says you can't have it all? Here we go. You say, John, you watch too much of the NBA finals. You've seen too many beer commercials. Well, while all those are from beer commercials, the message could have come straight from the Bible. Believe it or not, the message could have come straight from the Word of God. In fact, some of those very words do come straight out of the Bible. No one wants you to enjoy life more than God. Look at this verse on the screen for you. 1 Timothy chapter 6. This is not our text for the day, but it helps to introduce the topic. Command those who are rich in this present world, not to be arrogant, Paul told Timothy, not to be arrogant, nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain. But to put their hope in God, now notice this next words, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. And you might have thought, well, certainly it would be for his glory, right? Yes, ultimately that's the theme of the Bible. But God also provides everything we have richly for our enjoyment. But he also tells us how not to enjoy it and how to enjoy what he gives us in this life. You see, the message of those beer commercials is not wrong in and of itself. The messages of those beer commercials at base is true. It's just the way they teach us to find that enjoyment is wrong. What I want to do this morning is begin a series of messages on the book of Ecclesiastes. God has given us this book a whole book to tell us how to enjoy life in the sense that we find real purpose and meaning and fulfillment in life. Now I know what some of you are thinking. Ecclesiastes, that sounds familiar. Haven't you preached Ecclesiastes before? And the answer is yes, I have. But there are three reasons at least why I feel the freedom and the fact of urging and pressure from God to go through Ecclesiastes again. First of all, God never tells us to read a book in the Bible one time and then forget it. And so I don't think there's anything wrong with going back and refreshing our minds with truths that we may have forgotten or have become old to us. Secondly, the composition of this church is much different than 19 years ago in 1993 when I first preached through Ecclesiastes and the majority of you will be journeying with us for the first time. Thirdly, I promise not to cheat. I promise that I will be studying and investigating this book again as though I were preaching it for the first time and hope to bring fresh up-to-date insights from the Word of God to you on a weekly basis. But the Lord has placed up on my heart a desire, a burden, I believe, a compelling conviction to go through the book of Ecclesiastes again because I know of no other book that is more relevant and compelling for the day in which we live. I am convinced this book hits our culture exactly where we are. It was written by Solomon almost 3,000 years ago. Solomon was the third of the Great Kings of the Kingdom of Israel following Saul and his father David. It was under Solomon's rule that the Kingdom grew to its greatest power and wealth and influence in the world. When Solomon was handed the kingdom from his father David, God told him to ask for anything he wanted and he would give it to him. Solomon asked for one thing, not wealth, not power, not fame. He asked for wisdom to lead God's people in the right way. And God was so pleased with that request that he said, I will give you the wisdom. I will make you the wisest man on earth and I will throw in those other things as well because that was not your heart's passion and desire. Well Solomon did not always live wisely. He ended up forsaking many of God's commands. One of the most grievous was to add many wives, some of them due to political alliances, some of them due to the lusts of his own heart and thus disobeyed God's primary command in regard to marriage. He was taken away from the Lord because of that and other sins and so he did not always walk in the wisdom that God had given him. But there is evidence in this book that this book is written late in his life at a time where he is reflecting upon how he has lived and what it has costing and what he knew about God's Word and God's truth and the person of God. And so he combines his experience and his wisdom to tell us basically, I messed up. I did not live as I knew I should. This is what it will do for you. I know I've been there. I've done that. I know. I'm going to warn you. This is where that kind of lifestyle will lead you. And I also want to remind you of what it means to truly find fulfillment and pleasure and joy and meaning and satisfaction in life. How to enjoy life if you will. That's the book of Ecclesiastes. What Kaiser in his commentary on the book of Ecclesiastes has said, there is no biblical book so maligned and so misunderstood as Ecclesiastes. And I would say a hearty amen to that. Most people, in fact most of the books I have on my shelf about Ecclesiastes would take this view of the book. It was written by a disillusioned old man at the end of his life who's tried everything and life has not been good to him and he's disillusioned about it. Or even worse, many would say that the book gives us a humanistic philosophy of life. That it gives us a view of life just from man's perspective and doesn't take God into account. So while it is inspired by the Bible, all of what it says is untrue. It's not good philosophy. It's not good. It's not good stuff. I couldn't disagree with that more. I am convinced that the book of Ecclesiastes was written by a man who did disobey God and did come out of that disillusion. But if the end of his life and his wisdom combined with his experience is writing to tell us that was wrong. And there is a humanistic philosophy of life that most people try to live by. You will never find meaning fulfillment, purpose in life. What God has created you for that way. But there is a way you can find it. And I'm going to tell you that. That's what Solomon does in this book. The reason I believe that is that there is a common refrain that pops up over and over again throughout the book. Most of the times it occurs, it's at the end of a section of the book. It forms a summary conclusion. It forms the point that Solomon is really driving toward in that section. But it's the same refrain over and over and over again. So it serves as a thread that ties the book together and thus as he's writing gives us a clue as to the purpose of his book. It is that refrain of the enjoyment of life and how that is to be found. The meaningfulness of life. Let me give you a few examples. Chapter 2 verses 24 and 25. If you have your Bible open to Ecclesiastes, which by the way is right after Proverbs, look at chapter 2 verse 24. He is summarizing the first section of the book and he says it this way. A person can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in their own toil. This too I see is from the hand of God for without him who can eat or find enjoyment. Look over it. Chapter 3 verse 12. I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live that each of them may eat and drink and find satisfaction in all their toil. This is the gift of God. Skip down to verse 22. So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work because that is their lot. For who can bring them to see what will happen after them? You see this refrain occurring over and over again? Doesn't stop there. Chapter 5 verse 18. The conclusion of the second major section of the book. Chapter 5 verse 18 says, this is what I have observed to be good. That it is appropriate for a person to eat and drink and find satisfaction in their toysome labor under the sun during the few days of life. God has given them for this is their lot more over when God gives someone wealth and possessions and the ability to enjoy them to accept their lot and be happy in their toil. This is a gift from God. Chapter 8 verse 15. Notice it if you will. So I commend the enjoyment of life because there is nothing better for a person under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad. Then joy will accompany them in their toil all the days of the life God has given them under the sun. We are not done yet. Chapter 9 verses 7 through 9. Go eat your food with gladness and drink your wine with a joyful heart. For God has already approved what you do. Always be clothed in white and always anoint your head with oil. We'll talk about what those phrases mean when we get to that section but it is an expression of living life with enjoyment. Verse 9 says, enjoy life with your wife whom you love all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun. All your meaningless days for this is your lot in life and in your toil some labor under the sun. Now that may sound a little bit despairing and hopeless but when we see it in its context we'll see that it's not what he's saying is in the hard realities of life you can find joy. You can find joy. But that's not the end either. Look at the conclusion of the book in chapter 12 verse 13. Now all has been heard here is the conclusion of the matter. Fear God and keep us commandments. For this is the duty of all mankind. For God will bring every deed into judgment including every hidden thing whether it is good or evil. So that common refrain throughout the book of ecclesiastes serves as a thread to tie the book together. It takes each part and summarizes it by this common statement of here's how to find the enjoyment, the meaningfulness, the purpose in life. Now what I've done in your bulletin today on your sermon notes is on the back you'll find an outline of the book and the reason I've put this in we may do this from time to time at least when we come to each major section of the book is because the book is not completely understood unless you realize those threads tie it together and there's a common theme running through the book. So the whole book goes together when we take it apart passage by passage and I do want to make each message stand on its own but when we do that the book can become a little disjointed. So I want you to see it in its bigger context so that you really get the thrust and purpose of the book. What Solomon is doing in the first couple of chapters is he's basically saying people are searching for meaning in life. There is a gnawing emptiness that is due to the monotonous routine of life and people wind up waking up in the morning saying there's got to be something more to life than this. There's got to be more to there's got to be some purpose and meaning I haven't gotten yet. So I'm going to try I'm going to try to find it. Solomon says I'm going to give you a list of things I tried. I tried education. I tried philosophy. I tried pleasure, materialism. I tried pouring myself into work. All of those things and more I tried and he'll describe those in the first two chapters and he basically comes to the conclusion it was all meaningless. It left me empty that did not satisfy. It did not bring true fulfillment in life just like Jerry's saying earlier. It all ended up being like chasing the wind and so he says there's only one way to find it. He summarizes it in the end of chapter two and the verses we read earlier to have a relationship with God and see all of life as a gift from him and to live life in right relationship with him. That helps all the other pieces of the puzzle fit together and then he dives into this concept of okay if you understand that it's only by a relationship with God that you can find real meaning in life you need to understand God has a plan for life in chapters three through five he deals with that. God is involved in everything in the life and he talks about that plan. There's a time to dance and a time to mourn and time to kill and the time to heal and all of those things and he talks about God's plan and all of those things in life and then he says okay I know what you're thinking there are some things that don't seem to fit that plan and he will deal with eight challenges to the fact that God is in control of life and he has a plan in life and he'll come to the same conclusion at the end in chapter five real life meaning in life is found in a relationship with God then the pieces of life begin to fit together. So with that knowledge he says I'm going to give you God's perspective on life in chapter six through eight. He takes some of the big issues of life and says here's how God looks at them and if you understand that meaning in life is only found in a relationship with God here's the way you should look at life and then he closes the book in a beautiful fashion by tying it all together and he applies God's perspective in daily living in chapters nine through twelve and he basically says this is the way you should live and that's where those bees come in I've got eight of them one of them is repeated once so there's seven things he says be joyful be enthusiastic be involved be realistic be wise be bold be godly those seven things form a biblical philosophy of life this is how God wants you to live is a powerful message and then he concludes the book by saying I'll sum it all up for you if your God keep his commandments that's your whole duty that's life it is a great book it is a book which really addresses the deepest longings of people's hearts today the questions that people have in this postmodern age where people say there is no ultimate truth or meaning in life so I'm just going to live for the now and just do whatever pleases me or whatever I want to it doesn't matter in that kind of culture this book says aha you try that you will have a annoying emptiness in your heart I'll tell you why and I'll tell you how to fill it that's what Cleasy Astides is all about it's a great relevant book for our day and our times what I want to do this morning is basically give you an introduction to the book we're going to see that in the book of Ecclesiastes Solomon gives us four key elements to enjoying life this is if you like movies like I do this is the trailer this is the preview I can't promise it will be as short as the trailer but this is the trailer okay this is going to introduce you to the book this is going to what your appetite this is going to give you some of the key themes you'll see saying hey man I want to go watch that movie I hope this will I hope this will cause you to say I don't want to miss this series I don't want to miss this book because this is so relevant for our age and for where I'm living Solomon gives these four key elements to enjoyment in life number one face life as it really is face life as it really is now we'll see how he does that in the book in just a moment but let me set it up this way every one of us in this room has a dream world not everybody will admit that but everybody has a dream world the kind of world that when you're restless and adventurous some you'd really like to live and you'd like to live out that dream part of us long to live that life for some of you your dream world may be to travel across the back roads of America and just see the country with no deadlines no pressure nobody calling you and that's your dream and when you face times of high stress that's where your mind goes to you have a dream about what you'd really like to do for some of you your dream world is to have all the money you could possibly have and all the things it could possibly buy to not have a budget anymore not to have any financial pressures anymore to be able to have everything your heart could desire for some of you that's your dream world that you go to for some of you your dream world is to take on a different identity I really would like to be that person I wish I could be so and so or like so and so I wish I could have that person's lot in life that's your dream world that's where you escape to for some of you you escape to this kind of dream world if only things were different if only I had a different job if only I had a different schedule like that person does if only I had a different family for some of you that's your dream world it's the curse of the greener grass looking and seeing that someone else's grass your neighbor's grass looks greener than yours and you're long to cross the fence and live in their world by the way the greener grass is a myth doesn't exist the reason your neighbor's grass is greener is because it's over his septic tank that's the reason why it's greener that just doesn't exist that's a myth you get over there and somebody else's grass looks a little greener Solomon is going to bring us face to face over and over again in this book with the fact that we must must face life as it is we must live life in reality life is not that dream world remember the last perfect vacation you had I mean that's how most people say I'm going to get a little slice of that dream world I'm going to have the perfect vacation do you remember that last perfect vacation the one where the air conditioner broke down in the car and the reservations got mixed up and you forgot your swimsuits and then you got sunburn real bad and you got sick at the salad bar at the restaurant that night you remember that perfect vacation remember that there is no such thing as the perfect vacation or the little perfect slice of life life is hard there are hard realities in life and Solomon will tip them off one after another and you'll be shaking your head saying yeah yeah that's what that is true of my life that's true of life in general and he's going to say you've got to face life like it is and find joy in the midst of that stop dreaming for a different life you will never find enjoyment in life until you learn to enjoy life as it is and face it in all of its hard realities and find joy in the midst of those I love what Chuck Swindall says in his book on Ecclesiastes living on the ragged edge I want to quote he says this in recognizing the same theme through the book he says the good life the one that truly satisfies exists only when we stop wanting a better one do you hear that that's profound the good life the one that truly satisfies exists only when we stop wanting a better one it is the condition of savoring what is rather than what rather than longing for what might be the itch for things the lust for more so brilliantly injected by those who peddled them is a virus draining our souls of happy contentment have you noticed a man never earns enough a woman is never beautiful enough clothes are never fashionable enough cars are never nice enough gadgets are never modern enough houses are never furnished enough food is never fancy enough relationships are never romantic enough life is never full enough wow that's where a lot of you are living this morning Swindall goes on to say satisfaction comes when we step off the escalator of desire and say this is enough what I have will do what I make of it is up to me and my vital union with the living Lord he says that in essence is the message Solomon announces in this book and I would agree that's a big part of the message I love what Jamie Parcel wrote in her her column in the paper a few weeks ago when she talked about the best days of your life did you see that she said some people will tell you that your best days are your teens best days of your life are your 20s the best days of your life are whatever midlife although I cannot for the life of me understand by anybody would say those are the best days of your life anyway some people do midlife or retirement years she made the point so eloquently in that article the best days of your life of the days you're living right now you can find joy and satisfaction that's exactly what Solomon Solomon is saying in this book stop living in your dream world wishing things were different face life as it really is with all of its hard realities and find joy in the midst of that one example from the book will suffice we'll see it often as we go through but look at chapter 7 verse 10 this is a very pertinent and direct example of this theme of the book chapter 7 verse 10 do not say why were the old days better than these for it is not wise to ask such questions oh I just wish we could have the old days the good old days weren't they wonderful well in your forgetful mind yeah but the good old days were not as good as they were old Solomon says don't ask those kind of questions it's not good it's not wise to ask those kind of questions in other words deal with what you've got now live in the reality of the life you have now and find meaning fulfillment and purpose in the life you have now that is possible and Solomon will show us how to do that in this book face life as it really is stop living in your dream world Solomon says that's a key element to finding joy in life second key element that comes up over and over again in this book is this there is recognize there is no ultimate satisfaction in life apart from God recognize there's no ultimate satisfaction in life apart from God even if you could live your dream world even if you could live in that world it would not satisfy you you'd say I'd sure like to give it a try Solomon is here to tell you I did I did I gave it a try will you please listen to me I did everything you're dreaming about I had the time and money to do it and I did it all and I'm here to tell you it left me empty there's no need to repeat the mistakes Solomon made under God's wisdom Solomon is telling us I'm warning you this will not satisfy you in the first two chapters he talks about that he tells us the things that he tried first of all he tried human philosophy and wisdom verse 13 of chapter one he says I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens what a heavy burden God is laid on mankind we'll see what that means when we get there but the idea is I tried education I tried the ultimate in gaining human philosophy and wisdom the ego trip of all the degrees and the brilliance and the the recognition that goes with that and the the perks that go with that I tried that I've been there I've done that leaves you empty if that's all you're striving for if you think that's going to fill that knowing emptiness in your heart go forward if you want to but I'll tell you I've already done that it didn't work nothing wrong with that in and of itself but it will not fill that emptiness in your soul so he says I thought well try something else so chapter two verse one I said to myself come now I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good notice the next phrase but that also proved to be meaningless so Solomon says I'll try pleasure I'll try pure pleasure I mean the whole gamut laughed it laughter comedy booze women travel entertainment whatever whatever pleases you I've done it I've had it was meaningless got done with all those parties and I was still empty so I think I'll try something else I'll try material things chapter two verse four I undertook great projects I built houses for myself and planted vineyards and on through the rest of the next few verses he talks about all the things he had not only a palace but houses we know from archaeology Solomon had at least a winter home and a summer home in addition to his palace in Jerusalem probably more scattered throughout the nation of Israel not only did he have houses he had all kinds of real estate he had gardens and parks he talks about those he said I surrounded myself with servants you do that too you just call them appliances he said I had all of that everything at my fingertips I had I had the latest transportation he talks about chariot said he had I I visited an archaeological dig in Maghito in the northern part of Israel where they have discovered Solomon's stables where he kept his horses unbelievable the expanse of those stalls where he kept his horses that wasn't even in Jerusalem that was near his summer home amazing I had all those things I had everything money could buy it was the most wealthy man on earth he had the latest sound systems so wait a second John that's going a little too far when we get to chapter two we'll see they had all the entertainment that he wanted it was live entertainment but he had all the entertainment he wanted empty empty got done with all the material stuff I was still empty he had fame chapter two verse nine I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me and all this my wisdom stayed with me he had fame but that did not satisfy and so he saw okay I'll pour myself into my work surely a man finds meaning in his work right and so he did that chapter two verses 18 to 23 and he said you know what I realized I was just building up an empire to leave to someone that wouldn't know what to do with it how futile is that in the end where is it going to get me what I'm going to be able to take with me so Solomon will tell us I've done it all I've tried it all and the conclusion is it's meaningless that's the NIV word in the first two chapters King James words vanity of vanities all this vanity remember that that statement the word is a very important word in ecclesiasties it occurs 38 times in this book it has the idea of meaningless or empty literally it means a puff of smoke or a wisp of vapor that's gone as quickly as you see it if you pursue purpose joy meaning fulfillment in life to fill that gnawing emptiness in your soul with any of those things we've just talked about that Solomon tried you will come out just as empty probably more empty than before with life still feeling meaningless like a puff of smoke where did it go what is life I tried everything and there's no meaning in life it's empty many have come to that conclusion Carl Sandberg famous American poet also known for his biography of Abraham Lincoln said this and I quote life is like an onion you peel it off one layer at a time and you cry a lot the Jewish writer sholem al-Aqim whose writings became the foundation for the fiddler on the roof play said this life is a blister on top of a tumor and a boil on top of that who that's a pretty negative assessment of life isn't it that's painful what he's saying is life is painful it's painful and when you've tried everything and that's the conclusion you come to you're beginning to understand where Solomon's coming from but wait a second he's not done he's not going to leave you there and that's where most people misunderstand the purpose of the book in those sections where he deals with that especially in the first section of the book he's going to conclude it by saying I'll tell you where true meaning and fulfillment is it is in a relationship with God and when you establish a relationship with God and we know that that's through the Lord Jesus Christ through the fact that he died for our sins on the cross to to to forgive us of our sins and to restore us to the relationship with God that we were created for God created you with that need and that longing for relationship and there's an emptiness there till you have it you try to fill it with everything else and you still got the whole the emptiness there it can only be filled by a relationship with God through Jesus Christ the Savior and Solomon will come to that at the end of these major sections when you do center your life around a relationship with God when that is the core of your life then all the pieces of the puzzle begin to fit together and it is only then that you can enjoy the education the material things God gives you the legitimate pleasure is God gives you the work that God gives you all of those things are good in and of themselves but they only find their true purpose and meaning in life if they are spokes emanating out from the hub of your life which must be the Lord Jesus Christ so a relationship with God helps all of those other things come into focus all the pieces of the puzzle fit but only if the center of your life is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ that is the thrust of the book and so Solomon says if you really want to find meaning fulfillment purpose in life that emptiness to be filled to find joy in life you got to face life as it really is forget about the dream world that's not going to happen recognize you will have no satisfaction in life apart from God and that leads me directly to the third key element of joy in life and that is fear God and keep his commandments fear God and keep his commandments if it's true that you can only have true meaning and purpose in life with a relationship with God at the core of your being then the only way to do that is to fear God and keep his commandments that is a common refrain throughout this book again I want to show you how often it appears in the book chapter 3 verse 14 3 14 I know that everything God does will endure forever nothing can be added to it nothing taken from it God does it so that people will fear him and as he's summarizing this whole idea of the purpose of life that God has a purpose and everything that happens he says God does that so that people will fear him that's the that's the result he's looking for God wants you to fear him notice also if you will chapter 5 in verse 7 much dreaming and many words are meaningless therefore fear God chapter 7 verse 18 it is good to grasp the one and not let go of the other whoever fears God will avoid all extremes we'll see more what that means when we get the chapter 7 but the concept of the fear of God comes up as basic again chapter 8 again verses 12 and 13 of chapter 8 he says although a wicked person who commits a hundred crimes may live a long time I know that it will go better with those who fear God who are reverent before him yet because the wicked do not fear God it will not go well with them and their days will not lengthen like a shadow and then we saw the conclusions of the matter the end of the book in chapter 12 in verse 13 this is the conclusion of the whole matter this is summing it all up fear God and keep his commandments he says now we oftentimes hear the phrase fear God and it may conjure up a wrong image in your mind so I want to camp on this for just a few moments what does it mean to fear God does it mean to cower in the corner of the room afraid of him afraid that he's going to strike at it you no it's not what it means the fear of God basically if I could summarize it means this that you understand who God is and you live accordingly you understand who God is you have a clear picture of what the Bible teaches about the awesomeness of God and who he is and it changes your life you respond to him on the basis of what the Bible teaches about him yes it begins by understanding that he is a holy God who cannot allow sin into his presence and thus the only way you can have a relationship with him to start with is through the provision he's made to take care of your sin through Jesus Christ and his death on the cross that's where the fear of God begins it grows as you understand more about who God is and you respond appropriately we give you a few examples if you really understand what the Bible teaches about the fact that God is sovereign that he rules over all things and he has a purpose and plan that he's fulfilling in this world if you really understand that then you will learn to respond by trusting him completely that's the fear of God I know who he is I know he sovereign in this situation I will trust him completely that's the fear of God if you understand that God is holy absolutely holy without any paint or thought of sin then your response must be my response must be that I will hate sin and want to live in a way that stays away from sin and pleases him that will be my response and if I do that I'm fearing God it's not that I'm afraid of him but I'm living in response to what I know the Bible teaches about him if I believe that God is a just judge that will judge right just sleep taking everything into account he knows all the situation then I will live with an eye toward eternity and I will live with the knowledge that I will stand before him someday if someone wrongs me and that never comes out and I look bad for that I realize God will handle that in eternity so I need to live in that perspective if I'm trying to hide something that is wrong in my life I realize God knows about that I'll answer to him someday so I'm going to live in response to what I know about him is a just righteous judge so it's going to make me live in the way that I should live if I realize that God is loving and compassionate that he wants what is best for my life and I'm going to respond to him with a loving obedience if I realize that God is omniscient that he knows all things I'm going to obey what he says because when God says this is the way I want you to live you know God knows God knows what will happen if I choose another path I better trust him on that even if I think that other path looks appealing I better trust he knows if I understand who God is it will change the way I live that is the fear of God it is a proper respect and understanding of who he is and thus it changes my life and so I live all of life from that perspective and what Solomon is saying is that is the essence of my book yes yes I'm telling you you got a face like like it really is and I'm telling you that you try everything else in life to find meaning and purpose and fulfillment and it will hit you in the face there will be like a chasing after the wind I'm telling you that but I'm also telling you the ultimate result the way to go the path to choose is to fear God and keep his commandments that relationship with God that changes the way you live changes everything about your life will give you true meaning and fulfillment and purpose in life but there's one other piece to the puzzle here there's one other element that Solomon deals with not directly in the book but this is key to finding enjoyment in life because it reflects what Solomon himself was doing and that is this share this truth with a disillusioned world share this truth with a disillusioned world that is exactly what Solomon was doing here's what I believe is the purpose of the book I believe Solomon was writing this book as a missionary tract to the nations under his influence he was at the height of his power and influence worldwide people were coming to Jerusalem to meet him to see and hear his wisdom we hear the Bible story we know the story of the queen of Shiba who had heard of his wisdom and was coming from a far land to just meet the guy and hear about him he has trading partnerships with other major nations in the world the influence of Israel is at its ultimate height maybe quite possibly I believe it is that Solomon realized this is our opportunity to fulfill what God intended for Israel in the first place that was to be a light to the nations and so he wrote because of his own experience and his wisdom and looking back on his life he writes this tract this missionary epistle if you will to other people I think that explains the nature of the book this is an evangelistic appeal really the form of right relationship with God and see all of life from that perspective but it's it's really very low key because of its audience and thus I serve I think it serves as a model of the kind of evangelism that is most effective in our day where we are dealing with people who have no concept of the teachings of the Bible it's not like 40 or 50 years ago where everybody kind of had a common understanding and knowledge of the teaching of the Bible people reject that today don't want it and thus don't have that background don't have that understanding they're pagan just like the culture Solomon was writing to so Solomon is more low key or takes a different approach he's not he's not in your face high pressure arm twisting kind of evangelism like maybe we've been used to in the past Solomon does not use the name for God that would be known to Israelites Yahweh which means the God who's made a covenant with Israel doesn't use that name he uses the name Elohim throughout the book the creator God the one who made you everybody can relate to that because God made us all he may not have made a covenant with other nations but he made you he is your creator and he created you to have a relationship with him and so Solomon appeals to people on that basis primarily throughout the book he doesn't talk about the mosaic law he doesn't give examples from Israel's history he doesn't talk about Abraham Isaac Jacob Joseph the patriarchs doesn't talk about the crossing of the Red Sea the great miracles that happen in Israel like most of the other authors of the scriptures do because that's not germane to his audience that would mean nothing to them he's appealing to a pagan audience and I think it becomes a model for what we call lifestyle evangelism relating to people where they are at their point of need with the real hurts and issues of life realizing that the people you rub shoulders with at work and in your neighborhood your friends have a gnawing emptiness inside and they're wishing for their dream world to come true that's what they're hoping for and it's not happening the pieces of puzzle aren't coming together and so they're working harder all the angles of their life to make life better and to make it work and they're exploring everything that is supposed to bring them happiness and finding that it's just blowing up in their face so they go out every morning put it on the mask of success maybe with great job lots of income and all the toys it will buy they put on that mask of success every morning but it only masks an emptiness in their hearts annoying loneliness and emptiness that says every day of their lives there's got to be more than this there's got to be more than this that's the kind of culture we live in a postmodern culture that has thrown out a far at the end truth and says basically i'm just going to live for whatever i want to today whatever will make me happy that's the exact thing Solomon addresses in this book there's no more relevant message in the Bible than this but we have to to reach people at that point we have to start with them there and help them to see that there is a god who created them who created them to have a relationship with him that's what they're missing and how do you get that relationship that's where we go to the cross that's where we go to the gospel but we've got to begin with people in this culture the way Solomon started with his culture and that is appeal to what we have in common you may not believe the Bible you may not understand the Bible you may not recognize the Bible is truth you may not even believe there is such a thing as ultimate truth what's going on in your life a knowing emptiness and loneliness because all of your plans for your life haven't worked out and you're working hard to try to make it work and it's not and so there's this knowing emptiness a hole in your soul that's where we've got to start with people that's where people will begin to relate to the message of the gospel but you see we've got to understand that first because so many of us as believers are caught in the same traps of thinking if I can just do this or if I could live in this dream world have more of this more of that that kind of life the green grass over there then I would really be happy and fulfilled no a thousand times no Solomon says that's not where life is and we believers ought to know that we've got to wake up and realize it first before we can ever be appealing to a pagan world that does not know the true meaning of life we've got to know that life's meaning is found first of all and facing it as it really is stop wishing for the dream world face life as it really is there are some tough hardships in life Solomon will help us find out how to find joy in the midst of those we have got to understand above all people that there's no ultimate satisfaction in life apart from that center that hub of our relationship with God that has to be our focus and thus we must focus on fearing God and keeping his commandments letting our knowledge of who he is direct the way we live the way we respond to everything that's the message we take and share with the disillusioned world that has emptiness in their soul are you living that way have you discovered these great truths of a biblical philosophy of life a biblical world view so that you can be a powerful compelling attractive testimony for Christ wherever you are that's what Solomon's going to hit us with and so here we go here we go I invite you on an exciting journey through this amazing book that really does connect the pieces in the puzzle of life it really does put it all together it's for us and it's for a lost and hurting world out there may God help us to grasp it so that we can share it with others let's join our hearts together in prayer father thank you for your word thank you that it is so relevant to our lives today that it touches where we really live and every part about where we live or what I thank you that Solomon and his wisdom under your direction many many years ago identified the very things our culture is chasing today I pray father that you would help us who have made maybe you've gotten trapped by those same things to realize that's not where life is that's not where true meaning and fulfillment is help us as believers to grasp that and then help us to live so compelling that our neighbors will ask a reason for the hope that's in us we'll be able to share with them the true source of meaning and purpose and fulfillment in life in a relationship with you through Christ we ask in Jesus name amen