Teen Challenge - Meaningless Series
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Intro
Intro
Opening Illustration: We have been doing a series on the book of Proverbs. Tonight we want to shift gears and I thought a good followup would be the next book of the Bible - The Book of Ecclesiastes. Proverbs is about Wisdom and Ecclesiastes is about meaning and purpose.
Illustration - I’ve brought in several items tonight and I want you to tell me their purpose.
How do you know when an item is broke? (When it fails to do what it was created to do)
How do you know when it is working correctly? (You know what it is supposed to do, and it does it!)
Knowing what an item is supposed to do - knowing it’s purpose, gives you a sense as to whether or not it’s working right.
How do you know when a person has lived their life right?
How do you know when a person hasn’t lived their life right?
How do we know a person’s purpose?
What is the meaning of life? Why are you here?
Imagine with me, if you would, that an old, wise grandfather is sitting on the back porch. It’s Florida, so he’s sitting around the pool with his grandkids. One of the kids asks the age old question - Grandpa, what is the meaning of life? Old grandpa, being the wise old man that he is, knows that these kids will learn more if he puts the question back on them. So he asks the grandkids - What do you think the meaning of life is?
One answers - I know what it is, my mom and dad work really hard all the time, so It must be about hard work.
Another one says, no, that can’t be it - they work hard so they can get money. So it must really be about getting as much money as you can.
Still another one says, No, all work and no play make for a boring life. It’s all about having fun and loving relationships.
The old grandpa laughs and begins to tell them about his life...
The key word in this book is “Meaningless.”
Be careful when reading this book. Much of it contains thoughts of a depressed old man who is talking a bit crazy. What he has to say is true, but it needs to be balanced out. In the End he comes to this conclusion:
Biblical Background: The book of Ecclesiastes is set up like much like this.
Picture grandpa on the back porch sipping his sweet tea and telling you about the meaning of life.
Solomon, who is considered to be the wisest man alive, is pondering what life
actually means. He’s apparently towards the end of his life and he’s reflecting on
what was really meaningful.
The book of Ecclesiastes is all about how to find purpose and meaning in life. It’s honestly a very, very, very depressing book. The key word in this book is “Meaningless.” Be careful when reading this book. Much of it contains thoughts of a depressed old man who is talking a bit crazy. What he has to say is true, but it needs to be balanced out.
Ecclesiastes 12:8-14
8 “Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless.” 9 Keep this in mind: The Teacher was considered wise, and he taught the people everything he knew. He listened carefully to many proverbs, studying and classifying them. 10 The Teacher sought to find just the right words to express truths clearly. 11 The words of the wise are like cattle prods—painful but helpful. Their collected sayings are like a nail-studded stick with which a shepherd drives the sheep. 12 But, my child, let me give you some further advice: Be careful, for writing books is endless, and much study wears you out. 13 That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. 14 God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad.
1 These are the words of the Teacher, King David’s son, who ruled in Jerusalem. 2 “Everything is meaningless,” says the Teacher, “completely meaningless!” 3 What do people get for all their hard work under the sun? 4 Generations come and generations go, but the earth never changes. 5 The sun rises and the sun sets, then hurries around to rise again. 6 The wind blows south, and then turns north. Around and around it goes, blowing in circles. 7 Rivers run into the sea, but the sea is never full. Then the water returns again to the rivers and flows out again to the sea. 8 Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content. 9 History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new. 10 Sometimes people say, “Here is something new!” But actually it is old; nothing is ever truly new. 11 We don’t remember what happened in the past, and in future generations, no one will remember what we are doing now. 12 I, the Teacher, was king of Israel, and I lived in Jerusalem. 13 I devoted myself to search for understanding and to explore by wisdom everything being done under heaven. I soon discovered that God has dealt a tragic existence to the human race. 14 I observed everything going on under the sun, and really, it is all meaningless—like chasing the wind. 15 What is wrong cannot be made right. What is missing cannot be recovered. 16 I said to myself, “Look, I am wiser than any of the kings who ruled in Jerusalem before me. I have greater wisdom and knowledge than any of them.” 17 So I set out to learn everything from wisdom to madness and folly. But I learned firsthand that pursuing all this is like chasing the wind. 18 The greater my wisdom, the greater my grief. To increase knowledge only increases sorrow.
Main Idea: Life without God is meaningless
Bridge - Over the next few weeks we are going to look at some of the places people find their purpose - and where we should find out purpose.
Points
Brains without God is meaningless
Solomon had searched for wisdom (1:13)
He was wiser, smarter than anyone else before or since.
He is remembered as “The wisest man who ever ruled”
1 Kings 3:9-12
9 Give me an understanding heart so that I can govern your people well and know the difference between right and wrong. For who by himself is able to govern this great people of yours?” 10 The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for wisdom. 11 So God replied, “Because you have asked for wisdom in governing my people with justice and have not asked for a long life or wealth or the death of your enemies—12 I will give you what you asked for! I will give you a wise and understanding heart such as no one else has had or ever will have!
1 Kings 3:16-28
16 Some time later two prostitutes came to the king to have an argument settled. 17 “Please, my lord,” one of them began, “this woman and I live in the same house. I gave birth to a baby while she was with me in the house. 18 Three days later this woman also had a baby. We were alone; there were only two of us in the house. 19 “But her baby died during the night when she rolled over on it. 20 Then she got up in the night and took my son from beside me while I was asleep. She laid her dead child in my arms and took mine to sleep beside her. 21 And in the morning when I tried to nurse my son, he was dead! But when I looked more closely in the morning light, I saw that it wasn’t my son at all.” 22 Then the other woman interrupted, “It certainly was your son, and the living child is mine.” “No,” the first woman said, “the living child is mine, and the dead one is yours.” And so they argued back and forth before the king. 23 Then the king said, “Let’s get the facts straight. Both of you claim the living child is yours, and each says that the dead one belongs to the other. 24 All right, bring me a sword.” So a sword was brought to the king. 25 Then he said, “Cut the living child in two, and give half to one woman and half to the other!” 26 Then the woman who was the real mother of the living child, and who loved him very much, cried out, “Oh no, my lord! Give her the child—please do not kill him!” But the other woman said, “All right, he will be neither yours nor mine; divide him between us!” 27 Then the king said, “Do not kill the child, but give him to the woman who wants him to live, for she is his mother!” 28 When all Israel heard the king’s decision, the people were in awe of the king, for they saw the wisdom God had given him for rendering justice.
He tells us that wisdom alone does not bring fulfillment.
The pursuit of wisdom or brains alone will leave you empty, feeling meaningless.
Ecclesiastes 2:12-17
12 So I decided to compare wisdom with foolishness and madness (for who can do this better than I, the king?). 13 I thought, “Wisdom is better than foolishness, just as light is better than darkness. 14 For the wise can see where they are going, but fools walk in the dark.” Yet I saw that the wise and the foolish share the same fate. 15 Both will die. So I said to myself, “Since I will end up the same as the fool, what’s the value of all my wisdom? This is all so meaningless!” 16 For the wise and the foolish both die. The wise will not be remembered any longer than the fool. In the days to come, both will be forgotten. 17 So I came to hate life because everything done here under the sun is so troubling. Everything is meaningless—like chasing the wind.
You can pursue wisdom and good grades
You should pursue wisdom and work hard in school
Working Hard in school and being smart is a good thing
God wants you to do this - You are to make the best use of the brain he has given you!
If this is the only goal for your life - your life will be empty
If your whole life is wrapped up in being smart - and this defines who you are - it’s meaningless and empty
Illustration - How many of you know kids at your school that are known as “The smart kids.” Not just known as the smart kid, but who they are is completely and totally wrapped up in this.
Illustration - Who is the smartest man you can think of? Whoever they are, they still die - and their brains goes with them.
If they didn’t know God - what did all of it matter?
You can be smart - but in your pursuit of being smart, don’t forget God. If you forget him, all your genius is meaningless.
Some of you think that the big goal of your life is to go to college and graduate - but one day you will graduate from college and you know what will happen - You will feel this empty, “Now what do I do with my life” feeling.
Conclusion:
Don’t define yourself by how smart or dumb you are or by your educational achievements- find yourself in God. If not, you will end up feeling meaningless.
So what? Where are you in your walk with God? What things are you putting before him? What other things have you pursued instead of him? This week, look at your time, how much time do you spend with God? We can tell a lot about your pursuits by where you spend your time.
Now what? Let’s find a place to Pray.