It's generally assumed that the more you know, the more you can control the things that happen in your life. The idea is that if you get the right knowledge and know the right techniques, you can shape your life into what you want it to be. But the Preacher in Ecclesiastes shows us that this is playing pretend: as human beings, we don't have access to enough knowledge to get control over life or create meaning for ourselves. But when we see God's wisdom in the gospel, it shows us that we don't need to use knowledge to grab control. God's love teaches us that we can enjoy learning as humans beings, the way we were created to be.
Application Questions
1. How do you look at knowledge as a way to find meaning and success in your life? Are there ways you see yourself trying to“get into the control tower” in your life now?
2. What are some ways you've seen the inability of human wisdom to get control over life or bring lasting significance? Are there ways you've tried to hide those things under the wood chips?
3. How does Jesus show us true wisdom? How does the gospel free us to enjoy learning for learning's sake, instead of trying to leverage it for our own gain?
05. Wisdom vs. Reality
“The gospel frees you to look at knowledge as a gift to enjoy, not something to leverage for persona
August 12, 2018
04. What the World is Like
July 29, 2018
Ecclesiastes asks hard questions to show us what life is really like—and to show us the way to have joy in it all. It opens with an explanation of how fleeting and uncontrollable life really is. While we might pretend we know how to make things happen in the world, the truth is that outcomes are out of our control. Instead of coping by trying to make life obey our will, or by trying to find meaning on our own terms, we find joy by knowing there is someone above the sun who loves us and is in control of all things. Seeing Jesus come below the sun to live as one of us and die for us shows us that we can enjoy the gifts of life until he returns. Application Questions 1. What are some ways you“play pretend” about the world and your life in it? 2. What do you think about the opening 11 verses of Ecclesiastes? Do they encourage you or discourage you? Why? 3. Are there ways you have experienced life as a vapor? Are there ways you have tried to“gain” from life and found it to be like chasing after the wind? 4. How do you finish the sentence:“There's nothing better than _______” ? How do you think Jesus would finish that sentence? 5. What about the gospel frees you to embrace being human instead of trying to“get above the sun” ?
06. Pleasure vs. Reality
August 19, 2018
After having evaluated the wisdom of the world, the Preacher of Ecclesiastes next searches out earthly pleasure as a possible source of joy and fulfillment. Unsurprisingly, he also finds pleasure lacking the ability to truly satisfy. He tests entertainment, alcohol, work, possessions, and sex and finds that they are all fleeting and“vanity.” None of them truly last or satisfy. However, each one can be still be enjoyed as gifts from God when they are understood in light of his perfect design. Application Questions 1. In what ways do you try to get joy and fulfillment out ofentertainment, alcohol, work, possessions, and sex? 2. How can you be ultimately satisfied in Christ? What practical steps might help you pursue true joy in God alone? 3. How would your engagement withentertainment, alcohol, work, possessions, and sex change if you were more fully satisfied in Christ and freed to truly enjoy them?
07. Work vs. Reality
August 26, 2018
The Preacher is at the end of his tour of failed attempts to control life as a human being. We can't know enough to shape our lives, and we can't experience enough to shape our lives. Now, he shows us that we can't achieve enough to shape our lives. The various things we are working on day to day and week to week don't provide a soul-level satisfaction for us. Only God though Jesus Christ can put our hearts at rest. It's from that internal rest that our eyes are opened to the good gifts God gives us amid the normal stress and frustration of life in a fallen world. Application Questions 1. In your life, what is the thing you are working towards? What is the main thing you'd like to accomplish in your life? 2. How have you experienced the promise of satisfaction and significance from hard work? What parts of that promise are particularly tempting for you? 3. How have you experienced the problem of work in your life? What does it look like when you“strive in your heart” for achievement? 4. How might the gospel free you to receive your work as a gift instead of looking to it for gain? What would it look like for you to work hard and also be at rest because of the gospel?