Sermon Nuggets Mon March 23
Theme- Seeking Satisfaction
Verses: Eccl 6:1, 2 I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on men:
God gives a man wealth, possessions and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires, but God does not enable him to enjoy them, and a stranger enjoys them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil.
Seeking Satisfaction in Things
As we have been going through Ecclesiastes I am reminded how often Solomon addresses the emptiness of materialism. Perhaps it is for a reason, since it has such a grip on our society. We do re-evaluations of things in our lives at economic downturns like what are experiencing, or end life issues when we reflect on what is really important.
When we used to take our kids to McDonalds they always wanted the same thing. There were not so interested in the food as the prize. The prize in those colorful boxes was worth maybe 20 cents but for the moment getting it was all that mattered. McDonalds called this a Happy meal. You were not just buying hamburgers fries, and a dinosaur stamp. You were buying happiness.
When they tore into the bag and ripped open their prize the happiness didn’t last very long. It was over in a matter of seconds. I thought of suing the company for false advertising. Happiness was an illusion. Not one child says, “Remember that Happy meal? What great joy I found there.”
I did the same thing when little prizes were put in cereal boxes. I told Mom how much I loved the cereal only to leave it on the shelf after the prize was obtained.
When you get older you don't get any smarter; your Happy Meals just get more expensive. All day long the advertising industry wants to highlight discontentment and lure us into buying their product that will change our lives and bring satisfaction. TV actors smile with renewed energy after they used the product. We seldom smile.
Last week as we studied about wealth the wise King concluded it does not bring satisfaction. All that people strive to accumulate in this world will eventually be taken away. We concluded chapter 5 by reminding ourselves happiness is a gift from God. All your money as well as your ability to enjoy it is a gift from God. But in chapter 6 he reflects on five other ways people continue the treadmill of seeking satisfaction.
Solomon was in the unique possession having anything he wanted. There was nothing that his heart desired that he couldn’t get. The lure of the lottery is that one can finally be rich enough to get whatever they wanted, cars, vacations, new homes, education, sex, clothes- then they will be satisfied.
Too often self esteem is wrapped up in things. But the more things people consume the more they are dissatisfied. Until our piles grow beyond our house and we build larger storage buildings to keep it all in.
The evil, Solomon says, is when you get all the things that you thought would make you happy and they don't. Even though he was wise enough to know the Lord allowed him to have these things, satisfaction was not found in those things. God did not give him that.
"Millionaires seldom smile" said Andrew Carnegie. John D. Rockefeller said, "Great wealth is a burden destroying the real zest of life and burnishing peace from the heart." Solomon said it thousands of years before. Satisfaction is not in things.
Pastor Dale
Sermon nuggets Tues March 24, 2009
Verses- Eccl 6:3-6 A man may have a hundred children and live many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he cannot enjoy his prosperity and does not receive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he.
It comes without meaning, it departs in darkness, and in darkness its name is shrouded.
Though it never saw the sun or knew anything, it has more rest than does that man--even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?
Seeking Satisfaction in Family and Retirement v.3-6
I wasn’t sure if I should highlight Retirement or Family. Prosperity seems to mean enjoying life as an older person.
When I wrote this sermon I was a younger man and enjoying my family at home. Now that I have turned a corner I think ahead of how to “finish well”. When the children leave it is an adjustment again to daily activities. Solomon had well over 100 kids. I wonder if he could keep all their names straight. But he reflects over what is must be like living 2,000 years on earth, that thought does not appeal to him. He is discovering these latter days are not that much fun. Death ends it all and at the time of burial what difference does it make how nice the casket looks or the beauty of a floral display except in the memories of the loved ones? Funerals are for the living, not for the dead. Rich and poor, family filled or by one’s self death ends all relationships and all we have is left behind. In his despairing thoughts someone never born or dying as an infant means he does not experience the pain of this fallen world.
Solomon certainly sees life from the dark side when his heart is troubled. He tells us that satisfaction is not always found in families. Family certainly is more satisfying than things. A man rich with family is blessed if there is love. But did you ever really stop to think that is a gift from God? It is not something we produce ourselves.
I feel frustrated when after all I try to do to warn Christian young people not to marry non Christians, and they still look at immediate emotional desires instead of God’s word which brings wisdom for the long view. An innocent relationship soon turns into something deeper and more involved. Faith in Jesus is the spiritual glue for bonding of hearts.
Another misconception is thinking a wife or a husband will make us fulfilled. “And they got married and lived happily ever after.” That is great for fairy tales, but all good marriages take a lot of work, patience, forgiveness, and learning to give, give and give some more. No spouse can meet all your needs. It is a wonderful thing to have a mate who helps you face the realities of work, kids, stress, tension and financial challenges. Love is an emotional support but must be based on long range commitment even when days are not so happy. Trust is earned when one proves trustworthy during the hard times as well as the fun ones.
But Solomon tried to make his family his way, not God's way and he was very unhappy. In his day the foreign nations around him showed their wealth by having lots of things, but they also showed off, by having lots of wives. So Solomon thought, “I'll show them, whose greater”, and took 1,000 wives as an object lesson to them of his extreme wealth and you can image how many children he had. He did not follow God's direction for marriage. He did not marry only one believer. He married for physical attraction; he married for sexual stimulation; he married for political alliances. He married to show his power and his greatness and found family life did not bring to him satisfaction.
I know there are many men who leave work and absolutely dread going home. There are many women who dread when their husbands come home. There are children whose worse times are when they have to be with their families.
Now let me say this. My family means more to me than anything in this world, next to Jesus Christ. There is nothing that can cause more joy but also more hurt and disappointment as one's family.
Many a young wife thinks having a baby will help regain the love of a husband, but find after a baby comes more stress is added to an unhappy relationship. As parents get older there are obligations and responsibilities that adult children take over. In-laws will also be affected with these life changes that can be draining in family relationships and resources. Love takes commitment in all stages of life.
As a couple looks forward to retirement there are unexpected events that are thrown their way. Retirement accounts are no longer there to enjoy the “good life”. Financial difficulties of adult children sometimes demand help which can drain a bank account. Many a grandparent finds the need to raise the grandchildren after they thought their child rearing days were over. There is no better robber of joy than ill health and unexpected disease. And there stark reality comes that no matter how much family means to us we must leave each and every one of them. Death comes to us all. Kids grow up and marry. Some get divorced, Some have broken relationships some move out of the area. But eventually all my family will leave me by death or I them. I cannot keep them here forever.
When we lay to rest our loved ones the greatest pain is the grief of sorrow of separation. Love is worth it. But the pain of death and adjustments will affect us all our days and the longing for heaven becomes stronger. The desires of this earth lose more of their meaning. Happiness here becomes a short lived illusion. That is why faith in an eternal God and knowing life is ours beyond the grave, give hope.
The only thing you can take to heaven with you is your children, if they know the Lord. There is a forever family that is also greater than our blood relatives. We find the rest of the story in the person of Jesus Christ. When one comes to faith in Jesus Christ life takes on a different purpose. One is part of a new family. There is a love that is beyond even family love. But outside of Jesus Christ we can say, It is better never to have been born at all than never to have been born again! Christ brings meaning to our relationships now and forever. Joy comes when He is at our center of families and prosperity.
Pastor Dale
Sermon nuggets Weds March 25, 2009
Verse- Eccl 6: All man's efforts are for his mouth, yet his appetite is never satisfied.
Seeking Satisfaction in Food
Now we come to some proverbs. We work to eat and eat to stay alive to work and the cycle continues. No matter how good or how much a meal we have, in just a short time we want to eat again. Hunger is only satisfied for a few hours at the most. We constantly need food. Satisfaction is short lived.
More times than I wish to admit I was so full I didn't want another bite. I had to take food home from restaurants. I skipped dinner because lunch was so much. But by 10 pm I was hunting around the refrigerator looking for morsels. I skipped and skimmed on some days when I knew that a pot luck is coming up or we were going out to eat, or having someone over for dessert.
I was watching the Biggest Loser program a week ago when some contestants were allowed 24 hours of luxury. They could go off their diets. But temptation was too strong. They not only ate some food they longed for they also binged in drinking and eating resulting in feelings of remorse afterwards when some gained wait and others didn’t lose anything in spite of all the work outs they did other days. The sin of gluttony is a temptation that gives in to the lusts of my stomach.
But God lets people like me discover in various degrees the consequences of thinking food will satisfy. Many who are grossly overweight eat to cover up troubles, or tension or worry or anxiety. If I have a particularly stressful day I want to eat more and reward myself with goodies that are only to be used sparingly. "I deserve it" I say to myself. I owe it to myself, I lie. Then instead of doing things according to the wisdom of my mind, one yields to gluttony.
Look at Prov 16:26 "The laborer's appetite works for him; his hunger drives him on." If one is hungry he learns to work. It is a great motivation against laziness.
Now in Hebrew poetry hunger and appetite probably means the hunger of the soul which is not satisfied, which may mean that work doesn't bring satisfaction to an empty life. Hard work doesn't bring relief from depression if there are conflicts that feed the soul with discouragement.
Food does not satisfy. It is pleasurable for a time but unless there are life changes, we pay the consequences for unhealthy eating habits.
Someone asked me an interesting question. “Pastor, is it wrong to ask God to bless the meal when you know it is unhealthy junk food?” What do you think?
Pastor Dale
Sermon Nuggets Thurs March 26
Verses- Eccl 6:8,9 What advantage has a wise man over a fool? What does a poor man gain by knowing how to conduct himself before others?
9 Better what the eye sees than the roving of the appetite. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
Seeking Satisfaction in Ambition v. 8 & 9
I certainly am glad I don’t have to live those teen years over again. The insecurities of self doubt, seeking acceptance by others, and wanting to be liked is seeking too often to live up to others expectations. Ambition can be good, but how often what I want is influence on what others have. How to get what I want isn’t always the best for me.
It is naïve to think those days are over when we are older. We constantly compare ourselves with others looking for acceptance, and especially self acceptance. Our ambitions motivate us to do better. Our frustrations and depression come too often by situations over which we have no control or say. Fame and popularity don’t last. Embarrassments come when we don’t think we are accepted by what we say or do or wear or how far we come to meet the expectations of others and especially our own expectations.
The Lord knew what he was doing when he gave us that 10th commandment, “Thou shall not covet.” We compare ourselves and judge ourselves by what they have, their status, their positions, and their abilities. If we are poor we dream what it would be like to be rich. We might see someone who is smart and want to be like them. We listen to someone musical and dream about those talents. If we have a small house we envy those with bigger ones. Many times our dreams make us dissatisfied with the reality.
Soren Siebold wrote this parable: The Terribly, Tragically Sad Man. I am condensing it.
"Once there was a boy who lived in a big house on a hill. One day the boy said to God, "I've been thinking and I know what I want when I become a man." "What?" asked God.
"I want to live in a big house with a porch across the front and two St. Bernards and a garden out back. I want to marry a woman who is tall and very beautiful and kind, who has long, black hair and blue eyes and who plays the guitar and sings in a clear, high voice. I want three strong sons to play football with . When they grow up, one will be a great scientist, one will be a Senator and the youngest will be a quarterback for the 49ers. I want to be an adventurer who sails vast ocean and climbs tall mountains and rescues people.
"That sounds like a nice dream" said God. "I want you to be happy."
One day playing football the boy hurt his knees; he couldn't climb tall mountains or even tall tress, must less sail vast oceans. So he studied marketing and started a medical supplies business.
He married a girl who was very beautiful and very kind who had long black hair, but she was short, not tall and had brown eyes, not blue. She couldn't play the guitar or sing. But she prepared wonderful meals and painted magnificent pictures of birds.
Because of his business, he lived in a city near the top of a tall apartment building. He didn't have room for two Saint Bernards, but he had a fluffy cat. He had three daughters, all very beautiful. The youngest, who was in a wheelchair, was the loveliest. They loved their father very much. They didn't play football with him, but sometimes they went to the park and tossed a Frisbee-except for the youngest who sat under a tree strumming her guitar and singing lovely songs.
Then one morning the man awoke and remembered his dream. "I am very sad." He said to his best friend. "Why?" asked his friend.
"Because I once dreamed of marrying a tall woman with black hair, and blue eyes who would play the guitar, and could sing. My wife can't play the guitar and sing. She has brown eyes and she's not tall. "
"Oh But your wife is beautiful and very kind," said his friend. "She creates splendid pictures and delectable food." But the man wasn't listening.
"I am very sad.” The man confessed to his wife one day. Why?
“Because I once dreamed of living in a big house with a porch and having two St Bernards and a garden out back. Instead I live in an apartment building"
"Our apartment is comfortable. We have love, laughter, paintings of birds and a fluffy cat-not to mention three beautiful girls.” But the man wasn't listening.
"I am very sad," the man said to the therapist. "Why? "
“Because I once dreamed that I would grow up to be a great adventurer. Instead I'm a bald business man with a bad knee."
"The medical supplies you sell have saved many lives”. Said the therapist, but the man wasn't listening. So his therapist charged him
$110 and sent him home.
"I am very sad" the man said to his minister. "Why?"
Because I once dreamed of having three sons, a great scientist, a politician and a quarterback; instead I have 3 daughters and the youngest can't even walk."
“But your daughters are beautiful and intelligent.” Said the minster, “They love you very much and they've all done well. One is a nurse, the other an artist, and the youngest teaches music to children." But the man wasn't listening.
He was so sad that he became very sick. He lay in a hospital room. Tubes and wires connect his body to blinking machines that he once sold to the hospital. He was terribly, tragically sad.
Then one night when everyone except the nurse had gone home. The man said to God. "Remember when I was a boy and I told you all things I wanted? "
"It was lovely dream." said God.
"Why didn't you give me those things?" asked the man.
"I could have" said God, "But I wanted to surprise you with things you didn't dream of. I suppose you've notice what I've given you; a kind beautiful wife, a good business a nice place to live, three lovely daughters, one of best packages I've put together."
"Yes interrupted the man, "But I thought you were going to give me what I really wanted."
"And I thought you were going to give me what I really wanted.” Said God."
"What did you want?" asked the man. It had never occurred to him that God was in want of anything.
"I wanted to make you happy with what I'd give you." said God.
The man thought. Then he decided to dream that he wanted most were the very things he already had.
And the man got well and lived happily on the 47th floor, enjoying his children's beautiful voices, his wife's deep brown eyes and her glorious paintings of birds."
Pastor Dale
Sermon Nuggets Fri March 27
Verses- Eccl 6:10-12 10 Whatever exists has already been named, and what man is has been known; no man can contend with one who is stronger than he.
11 The more the words, the less the meaning, and how does that profit anyone?
12 For who knows what is good for a man in life, during the few and meaningless days he passes through like a shadow? Who can tell him what will happen under the sun after he is gone?
(NIV)
Seeking Satisfaction in Philosophy v. 10-12
There is value in all pursuits when one seeks meaning and satisfaction in who he is and what he does. It allows life to be examined and as the philosopher Socrates said to Plato, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” The search for meaning, some will say, is more important than the conclusion. Just to discover more of truth and expose falsehoods is of value, the philosophers will argue.
I minored in Philosophy at the University. I enjoyed listening to various arguments but I was more interested in the conclusions rather than the process of arguments. Yes, I learned the faulty reasoning when I studied logic. But I confess, I was frustrated reading volumes of writers and thinkers who were going down the wrong path. Of course, the bases of such education was there was no absolute truth. Find what people say makes sense and follow truth for you. It is all relative.
The value of it, I confess, was minimal. It did help me sort out thought process, and helped me to see how other people arrive at some conclusions in their dialogues and exploration of meaning. But since I experienced Jesus Christ and discovered truth didn't come from my conclusions but rather His revealtion, I decided to devote my life to answers, not just the questions which leave people floundering.
Solomon is wise. He brings people down the path of both experiencing life and thinking about it. As he presents the various answers to satisfaction, he reveals the inward emptiness when faced with death and no hope. If that is all there is, what is the meaning of all this endless search? Man left to himself is finite. He does not know the future, he cannot second guess God. He cannot make his life better doing things his own way.
I see a vast number of people running after meaning in man-made philosophies, spirituality, and political pursuits.
The nation is at a deadlock when various political powers are at odds to solve the world problems and financial principles that will bring us out of the economic crises. The reason they differ is their philosophy of financial recovery.
But Solomon argues that meaning for anything within ourselves is insufficient. We were made to have a relationship with God not a religion. Going through man made rituals to appease God don't work and even religion leaves us dissatisfied.
vs. 10 whatever exists has already been named. This observation tells us God is sovereign. One poet said it, "Not til the loom is silent and the shuttles cease to fly. Will God unroll his canvas and explain the reason why.. The dark threads are as needful in the weaver's skillful hands. As the thread of gold and scarlet in the pattern He has planned."
What is man? He is the clay. God is the potter. God is infinite; we are finite. God is all powerful; mankind is limited in strength and ability. God is faithful; we are unfaithful and inconsistent. The point is clear. (Ish 45:9-12) Clay pots don’t argue with their maker.
What about the future? Are you fearful? Who knows what the future
holds? The satisfied person is not the one who gets everything he or she wants. It is the person who has stopped wanting.
If you devote your life only to the pursuit of happiness you will be miserable; however if you devote your life to doing God's will you will find inner peace in the purpose for which He made you. The preacher reveals that satisfaction is a gift that comes by faith in Him.
The apostle Paul wrote, “I have learned the secret of being content”. It is learned behavior, an acquired skill. Satisfaction comes not in religion or philosophies of man, but in the relationship we can have with our creator. Faith points to Jesus who began his kingdom at his revelation the first time and promises that at His return it will be revealed to the entire world. That forever hope in the Almighty gives us the power to endure all things. That faith in truth from God is what allowed Abraham to be willing to offer his son Isaac. That hope allowed Paul to say while in chains, "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength" God allows us to hunger and thirst, to be discontented so we will be hungry enough and thirsty enough to search for one that can truly satisfy.
As we looked last week, Eccl 5:19 Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work-- this is a gift of God.”
This gift brings salvation, which we now know is by faith and trust in Jesus Christ as He was revealed to fulfill what Old Testament saints longed to understand.
Pastor Dale
