Our God of the Second Chance
Several people this week have mentioned how much they enjoyed hearing the Old Testament read out loud. Let’s face it some books don’t get much attention today. One of those is Ecclesiastes, which was written by Solomon. It’s really a journal of Solomon’s search for what really matters in life.
Solomon was an amazing man. His reputation is known not just in the Bible -- even secular historians are impressed with his unusual wisdom. He was a man who had all the money, all the power, all the time, and all the energy to make his dreams come true. He could literally have and do anything he wanted.
But, he was also restless. He wanted to figure out what life was all about. So he launched out on a no-holds barred, existential safari that cost him millions of dollars and many years of his life. He was on a search for ultimate meaning and satisfaction.
I want to give you the Readers Digest version of his diary this morning. I should tell you ahead of time that the journey he took, while mind-boggling, left him deflated, depressed and disillusioned. The best word to describe how he felt is empty. In fact, his motto appears right at the beginning of the book in Chapter 1, verse 2: “Meaningless! Meaningless!” Says the Teacher, Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless!”
In this type of literature, when the same word is repeated even once, it’s for the purpose of emphasis. It’s like our exclamation point. It’s as if he was saying, “Super empty. No substance. There’s nothing to it. Everything is blah!”
I want you to notice that the word for “Teacher” in this verse is the Hebrew word Qoheleth, which literally means, “the one who gathers, assembles, or collects things.” We can translate this word into English and call him “the Searcher.”
His diary has a lot to say to us today. Whether or not we are willing to admit it, deep within most of us there is a restless, adventuresome itch. We may want to experience all of life, but can’t seem to get hold of all that we want. Perhaps 1999 was a bit of a disappointment for you. Maybe it just wasn’t all you were hoping it was going to be. Maybe you did things you’d just as soon forget. Before we close the books on last year, it’s imperative that we hit the “Pause” button and take an inventory of our lives. I want to suggest that there’s a lot we can learn from the journey that Solomon the Searcher took.
Let me clarify something. When Solomon wanted to experiment with the different things that life had to offer, there was nothing to hold him back. As king, no one could question him. As one of the richest individuals in the world, money was not a problem. He was convinced that he could find something that would ultimately satisfy him -- if he just looked hard enough.
In verse 3, the Searcher asks a question, “What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun?” The word, “gain” literally means, “that which is left over.” He had sucked the delight, joy, and pleasure out of everything. And now he wanted to know what would be left over, what would he have to show for himself when it was all said and done?
The first thing he tried was pleasure. He decided that life was just one big party. He surrounded himself with people like Jim Carrey and Robin Williams. After all, if he could just laugh all the time, he would be happy, right? Listen to his admission in 2:2: I said of laughter, “It is madness,” and of pleasure, “What does it accomplish?”
His next stop was the world of alcohol. He experimented with the finest wines and liquor available from all over the world. But, when the buzz wore off, and the hangover went away, he was still empty.
His next layover was a massive building project. He designed and constructed several cities and homes. His own home took 13 years to build and became one of the 7 Wonders of the World!
He then purchased hundreds of servants and possessed flocks and herds that were larger than anyone had ever owned. He then moved into collecting precious gems and silver and gold. He even brought in the best musicians and soloists in the world to entertain him.
Wait, there’s even more. Next, Solomon turned to the pleasures of intimate relationships. In fact, we know that he had 700 wives and 300 mistresses. They were available to him any time of the day or night. Yet his boredom could not be described.
Listen to these honest words from his journal in 2:10: “I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure.”
This is hard to comprehend! Everything he coveted, he eventually owned. Every fantasy was fulfilled on the spot! And yet, it still wasn’t enough. He continues in 2:11: “When I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.”
When none of this brought him lasting satisfaction, he turned to something that is still very popular today -- his career. He threw himself into his job. Work became everything for him. None of his 700 wives ever knew when he would be home! He was always faxing something to the Queen of Sheba, sending emails, or surfing the Net. After keeping up the frenzied pace of workaholism, Solomon writes in 2:22-23: “What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless.
The Futility of it All
As the Searcher neared the end of his extravagant excursion, he realized that many of his fantasies had turned out to be nothing more than bad dreams.
Solomon was looking for something of substance in life. Nothing ultimately satisfied. It’s as if he woke up one day and looked around. There were beer bottles all over the floor of his beautiful home. Far Side books were lying on his coffee tables. Women were everywhere. Each room of his house was full of artifacts from around the world. As he looked out the window over his immaculately landscaped yard, he said to himself, “This is crazy. There has to be more to this life. I’m on a dead-end road here.”
I suspect that some of you feel the same way that Solomon did. As you look back on this past year, you realize that your life lacks meaning and purpose. Those things that you always thought would bring you happiness -- laughter, alcohol, partying, hobbies, buying things, relationships, and work -- have left you feeling empty. It’s like chasing after the wind. You can’t seem to get hold of that which will ultimately provide your life with meaning. Everything that you’ve tried has left you feeling blah and unfulfilled.
Solomon’s Conclusion
The good thing about Solomon’s journal is that it doesn’t end on a note of despair. After experimenting with everything he could think of, he realized that there had to be more to life. If life is only lived on the horizontal level we will be empty. In his wisdom, Solomon concluded that life is also meant to be lived on the vertical level. To use Solomon’s expression, nothing under the sun will satisfy because we have been created to live in an interactive relationship with the loving and faithful God of the universe.
In 12:11, Solomon concludes by saying that only Scripture can point us in the right direction: “The words of the wise are like goads…” A goad was a rod about 8-foot long, with a sharp point on it that was used for guiding oxen. Scripture is like a goad it prods us and pokes us; we cannot get it out of our mind. Sometimes it guides us gently; other times it stings a bit.
Verse 11 continues: “their collected sayings are like firmly embedded nails given by one Shepherd.” Like a nail that is hammered deeply into a 4x4, you can hang onto Scripture and hold fast in times of danger and temptation. When we read His word, it sinks deeply into our minds and hearts like a sharp nail that is embedded in the wall. God’s Word is trustworthy and dependable because it is given by one Shepherd. The Bible is inspired and God-breathed. The heart of God is the heart of a shepherd; He sees us as wandering sheep in need of a shepherd’s care. He knows we need a fresh start and He will give us one if we ask Him.
Verse 12 challenges us to not go beyond the Bible. While there are books everywhere, and they will never end, Ecclesiastes reminds us that God is the secret of life, and He is the answer to the reason for existence. Until we discover God, our study and the reading of many books will never be of any lasting value to us.
Solomon’s bottom line is really just a simple statement recorded at the end of his diary. Take a look at 12:13: “Now all has been heard: here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”
The meaning here is this: Respect God and keep his commandments, for this is the wholeness of man. This is how we learn to be a whole person. It can also be translated this way: “This is what man was made for.” None of us want to be easily upset, unstable, wigged out, maxed out, or stressed out. Who wants to go through life being unsatisfied and unfulfilled? To be whole is only possible if we honor God for who He is and obey what He tells us to do. Period.
To fear God is not to be afraid of Him. Rather, we are to stand in awe of Him. Remember when Israel crossed the Red Sea? Listen to how they responded in Exodus 14:31: “And when the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in Him…”
This fear was not a sense of panic or terror of God. Instead it was awe, respect, and reverence for Him. They were not hiding from God in fear but were standing in amazement at the wonderful things the Lord had accomplished in their lives. And because they feared God, the text says that they put their trust in Him. A proper understanding of God always leads to greater faith and trust and obedience. Always.
After experimenting with all life has to offer, Solomon is convinced that there has to be more. His insight applies to us just as much as it did to his own situation. When you shake everything down, there are really only two things that matter. First, we need to take God seriously. We need to hold Him in the highest regard, to respect and revere Him because He is holy, majestic and awesome. Hebrews 12:28-29 says “...let us be thankful and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.”
Friends, God expects us to give Him the rightful place He deserves in our lives because He knows that if we don’t worship Him we will find something else to worship -- whether it be a job, a family, money, a sport, or ourselves.
That’s why we’re kicking off a new series this week. As we head into 2000, the most important thing we need to do is to get to know God. If you’ve been busy looking to other things for your satisfaction, and have hit bottom like Solomon did, you need to know that God will give you a second chance. Do you want to get to know Him like you’ve never known Him before?
Solomon’s second conclusion is that we need to do what God says. Because He is God, we need to obey Him. Verse 14 challenges us with these closing words from his journal: “For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”
Friends, let’s learn from Solomon’s experience. We need to revere God and respond to Him. We are to honor Him and obey Him.
A Do-Over
In the movie City Slickers, Billy Crystal plays a radio-advertising salesman going through a mid-life crisis. Like Solomon, he realizes that there has to be more to life. He and his friends deal with the predictability and emptiness of their lives by going on a cattle drive. At the end of the movie as they prepare to return to New York and the familiar routine, Billy Crystal explains the concept of a “do-over” to one of his friends:
“Do you remember when you used to play ball as a kid? Sometimes when you fouled things up, you would get a “do-over.” It was a second chance to swing at the ball. That’s what is happening to you now. You’re getting a “do-over” in life.”
Wouldn’t it be great to be able to have a second chance? Some of you might want to do 1999 over again. Others of you may want to do your life over again.
I have good news for you this morning. You can have a “do-over”, a fresh start, a new beginning through Christ. It’s like George Sweeting, the former president of Moody Bible Institute, used to say all the time: “The Christian life is a series of new beginnings.”
2 Corinthians 5:17 puts it this way: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.”
You matter to God more than you can ever know. He cares deeply for you -- no matter what you’ve said, what you’ve thought, or what you’ve done. You and I can count on His consistent faithfulness. With His enablement, and with your resolve, 2000 can be one of the most significant years of your life.
What would someone find if they read your journal at the end of this coming year? Would they discover conclusions similar to Solomon the Searcher -- or would they read that you are still chasing after the wind?
Communion
When Jesus died for us, he erased our sins [ Hold up “Magna Doodle” and demonstrate ]. He wants us to both revere Him and respond to Him. Our view of Him should dictate how we live.
He’s given us the Lord’s Table as a reminder because we tend to forget so easily. Jesus knows that you get to know someone better by having dinner with them. He invites you to this meal today so that you get to know God better through His Son Jesus.
Friday night, we concluded the Bible reading with the Book of Revelation. It was incredible, wasn’t it? Many of you have heard Revelation 3:20 quoted in the context of sharing the gospel with someone. Actually, the words are directed to the church to people just like you and me who may have more in common with Solomon’s search for significance than we care to admit.
Jesus wants to dine with you today. He wants to have a meal with you. The table is set. The invitations have gone out. Will you respond to Him?
“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”
