Thinking about the end of life is something that we spend a lot of time and energy avoiding. In Ecclesiastes chapter seven Solomon tells us that this is something we should consider in order to live wisely, and Jesus takes that one step further in Mark by teaching us that laying down our life for his sake is the way for us to experience eternal life.
As Solomon continues to teach on money, he talks about how not being able to enjoy the blessings of life is a great tragedy of our experience under the sun, and he asks questions that help us to look beyond the sun.
Solomon goes back to money this week. He discusses how obsession for more leads us into places of injustice. He also talks about how once we begin to cultivate a desire for more it is difficult to experience satisfaction in life.
Solomon takes a break from looking at the meaningless nature of much of the human experience and he begins to tell us how to approach God.
This week Solomon will instruct us about the relationships that we have in this life and the way that we can either attempt to use other people for our gain, or we can pursue meaningful relationships with others.
Solomon has come to the realization that even a man of his status, with wealth and power at his disposal, is not in control. This recognition of God’s control is something that can either cause us frustration, or bring us to a place of hope.
Chapter two ends with the bleak observation that all people, regardless of their wealth, status, accomplishments, or wisdom will pass from this life. While this notion causes hardship for Solomon, it helps to reveal what is important for us as we live this life.
Solomon’s systematic pursuit for meaning under the sun takes off as we begin looking at the second chapter of Ecclesiastes.
This week we are going to begin a study of the book of Ecclesiastes. In this book we will see the pursuit of meaning from the perspective of someone that had a lot of pretty impressive experiences. As Solomon describes the things that he learned in his life, there are valuable lessons for us to learn from him today.
Most people have at some point asked the question, what is heaven really like? Do we sit around on clouds playing harps? Is it so peaceful that it is eerily quiet? Is it like a church service that drags on for eternity? If we are honest, when we think about these questions what we are really trying to determine is whether or not we think heaven is boring. This week we are going to look at Scripture to see how the Bible describes eternity with God.