Part 14 - The Quest for Joy (Ecclesiastes 11:1-12:8)

Pre-Introduction

Introduction

Post-Introduction

[leave the big idea until the end this time]

Q. How can you find a life of true joy?

The Quest for Joy

(1) Take a risk (11:1-6)

“Embrace opportunities with humble realism.”

Transition: We see this in verses 1 through 6.

Ecclesiastes 11:1–6 (ESV)

1 Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days.

2 Give a portion to seven, or even to eight, for you know not what disaster may happen on earth.

3 If the clouds are full of rain, they empty themselves on the earth, and if a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie.

4 He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap.

5 As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

6 In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good.

Illustration -

What’s your “Risk tolerance?”

In the world of investment, your risk tolerance is the amount of risk that you’re willing to handle in the hope of a good return.

If you have a high risk tolerance, you’re more likely to put all of your money in Apple or Amazon or Nike or Walmart.

If you have a low risk tolerance, you’re more likely to spread out your money across a broad range of investments.

Or, if you’re younger, you can probably afford to a bit more risk, so maybe you invest in more stocks, which are a bit riskier, but if you’re older, with retirement coming up, maybe you invest in more bonds, which are a bit safer.

“Risk tolerance” isn’t just for the world of finance or investment. It applies to other areas of life.

Some people just jump in. They see an opportunity, or they have an idea, and they’re all in, all the time. They see the glass as mostly full. They’re optimists and dreamers and go-getters.

And when I just said that, others of you cringed. You don’t like risk. You like things neat. And tidy. And predictable. And very, very safe. Because if you go all in, what happens when the inevitable bad things happen and you’re disappointed. The glass isn’t as full as the optimist sees.

So, what’s the right amount of risk tolerance that you should have if you want to find true joy?

That’s the question the Teacher’s getting at here.

And his answer, in typical Ecclesiastes fashion, brings the two extremes together (1) Take a risk: Embrace opportunities with humble realism.” (11:1-6)

Transition: How does he get there?

Explanation

He starts by laying out the pros of taking risks, jumping at opportunities when they come.

One Old Testament scholar says this section is: “A call to bold action in whatever sphere God has placed you.”

We see this especially in verse 1, 4, and 6:

Ecclesiastes 11:1 (ESV)

1 Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days.

Another way of saying that might be: “If you throw something into the water, chances are the tide will bring it back to you!”

Like a message in a bottle that washes up on shore, if you go all in on something, and throw something out there, someday it’ll come back and help you.

“Just do it!” Throw it in! Jump in!

It’s an optimistic approach toward taking risks.

Verse 4:

Ecclesiastes 11:4 (ESV)

4 He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap.

But, verse 6

Ecclesiastes 11:6 (ESV)

6 In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good.

Explanation

Even under imperfect conditions — whether its a storm or if it’s the inherent uncertainty that comes with making decisions, just do something.

Take action, even if the circumstances around you are less than ideal.

Sow some seeds.

Work hard.

Take a risk! Take some action. Make some decisions. Move forward.

But the Teacher isn’t naive about the real possibility of loss.

So he gives the other side of the argument: you need be very humble and realistic.

We see that in verses 2, 3, and 5:

Ecclesiastes 11:2 (ESV)

2 Give a portion to seven, or even to eight, for you know not what disaster may happen on earth.

Ecclesiastes 11:3 (ESV)

3 If the clouds are full of rain, they empty themselves on the earth, and if a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie.

You need to be very humble and realistic about the possibility that a disaster might come, something outside of your control, and wreak havoc in your life

He talks about a storm that brings floods and wind that knocks down trees.

Be aware that something might go wrong.

So, in light of that, be wise. Be thoughtful.

Don’t just give a portion to one, give a portion to seven or eight. Split up your belongings or your investments or your ventures, because you don’t know when or where the trouble will come.

Be humble and realistic.

He says something similar in verse 5:

Ecclesiastes 11:5 (ESV)

5 As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

Illustration

Thanks to modern science, we now have more knowledge than ever before about when and how human life begins.

Maureen Condic, Professor of Neurobiology at the University of Utah, with a PhD from U.C. Berkley, writes about what modern science has discovered about the beginnings of human life:

“Based on universally accepted scientific criteria, a new cell, the human zygote, comes into existence at the moment of sperm-egg fusion, an event that occurs in less than a second. Upon formation, the zygote immediately initiates a complex sequence of events that establish the molecular conditions required for continued embryonic development. The behavior of the zygote is radically unlike that of either sperm or egg separately and is characteristic of a human organism. Thus, the scientific evidence supports the conclusion that a zygote is a human organism and that the life of a new human being commences at a scientifically well defined “moment of conception.” This conclusion is objective, consistent with the factual evidence, and independent of any specific ethical, moral, political, or religious view of human life or of human embryos.”

William Hurbult, Professor of Neurobiology and Medical Ethics at Stanford says it this way:

“Fertilization initiates the most complex chemical reaction in the known universe.”

Modern science gives us a window into the mechanics of unborn human life in a way that the ancients in the time of Ecclesiastes didn’t have.

Explanation

But even with all our scientific advances, there’s still so much we don’t know. Yes, we can now describe what’s happening, but why does it work that way?

How exactly does a male sperm penetrate and fertilize a female egg such that they combine with a flash and a new organism is instantly created? How exactly does that work? Why does that work?

How exactly do all the stages of development get triggered within the zygote, this new little one-cell human being? Why does that work?

There are other questions we have about new human life.

How does that little baby get his or her personality built in? How does that work?

Or, we have even more personal and agonizing questions.

Why is it that some unborn babies don’t make it to term?

Why do some babies end up with physical abnormalities or incurable health conditions?

Or, why is it that even though on paper, everything looks healthy, some couples struggle with infertility?

All of these questions surrounding the when and how and why of new human life aren’t new. And no matter how advanced our scientific knowledge gets, we will still be faced with the many unanswerable questions surrounding the mysteries and complexities of human life.

In the end, after all of all our questions, we arrive at the only place we really can: humble awe in the presence of God, the Creator and Sustainer of every human life and the Ruler of history.

The Psalmist sings about it this way:

Psalm 139:13–17 (ESV)

13 For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.

14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.

15 My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

16 Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

17 How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!

When you think about the mysteries of the world like storms and disasters and the wonder of human life, let that inform the decisions you make. Don’t be arrogant or self-sufficient or proud. Don’t be reckless.

Yes, (1) Take a risk. Embrace opportunities.

But do it with humble realism, accepting the limits God has placed on your life.

Application

Concrete example #1 - Some need to hear “take a risk. Embrace opportunities” (examples?)

Concrete example #2 - Some need to hear “humble realism” (examples?)

Q. How can you find a life of true joy?

Transition: First, (1) Take a risk:“Embrace opportunities with humble realism.” (11:1-6)

Second,

(2) Take a walk:“Enjoy God’s gifts for God’s glory.” (11:7-10)

Transition: We see this in verses 7 through 10.

Ecclesiastes 11:7–10 (ESV)

7 Light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun.

8 So if a person lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember that the days of darkness will be many. All that comes is vanity.

9 Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.

10 Remove vexation from your heart, and put away pain from your body, for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.

Rejoice! The Teacher says. Have joy. Find joy. Take a walk! (2) Enjoy God’s gifts for God’s glory.”

Look at what he points to:

Enjoy the beauty and warmth of sunshine.

Enjoy the gift of living for many years. Being fully alive. Experiencing the wonders of creation.

Enjoy the potential of youth, with opportunity and energy bursting at the seams.

Enjoy the heart that beats quickly and feels deeply.

Enjoy the sensations of living as fully embodied beings in God’s world.

God has given us many, many gifts.

And he hasn’t just given these kinds of gifts to religious people. Not just to His own people. He gives these kinds of gifts to everyone!

These are gifts of common grace.

God has given us many good gifts to enjoy.

But, the problem is that we often take these gifts and try to build our identity on them.

We take good things and try to turn them into ultimate things.

Illustration

So we take a good thing like pleasure and we try to build a life on it, only to find that when we try to make pleasure our identity, we’re more dissatisfied than before.

We end up like an addict, trapped in a cycle of wanting this thing or this substance or this experience or this feeling to satisfy us, and when we get it, we feel good for a while, and then our craving gets worse, and we have to ramp it up to the next level to get the same feeling as before.

Before long, what promised pleasure only brings misery, and now we’re enslaved.

We can’t actually enjoy God’s gifts, because we’re enslaved to them. We’re on a downward spiral that will ultimately destroy us.

This is one of the ways the Bible talks about sin.

My sin was this, that not in [God] but in his creatures—myself and others—I sought for pleasures, honors, and truths, and so fell headlong into sorrows, confusions, errors.

Saint Augustine of Hippo

Gospel Call

The rest of the Bible fills out what the Teacher sketches here.

The only way you can really enjoy God’s good gifts is if you enjoy the Giver more than the gift.

And that’s what Jesus came to do.

Jesus came to release you from the slavery of lesser loves by dying on a cross in your place.

There, on the cross, Jesus took the thing that enslaved you — your attempt to build a life of joy on your own terms without reference to God — and he rose again from the dead so you could go free and enjoy eternal life with God, if you’re willing to turn from yourself and trust in Jesus.

Psalm 16:11 (ESV)

11 You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

The way you get access to that kind of joy, that kind of life, only comes through Jesus.

If you’ve never turned from yourself and trusted in Jesus, that’s your next step.

If you have trusted in Jesus, the Teacher says learn to enjoy God’s good gifts as from God’s hand. Take a walk:“Enjoy God’s gifts for God’s glory.” (11:7-10)

Don’t live without reference to God. Don’t live for yourself. Live for God’s glory.

Application

Concrete example #1

Concrete example #2

Transition:

Q. How can you find a life of true joy?

First, (1) Take a risk:“Embrace opportunities with humble realism.” (11:1-6).

Second, (2) Take a walk:“Enjoy God’s gifts for God’s glory.” (11:7-10)

Lets look at the third:

(3) Take stock: “Remember Your Creator and the brevity of life.” (12:1-8)

Transition: We see this in Chapter 12, verses 1 through 8.

Ecclesiastes 12:1–8 (ESV)

1 Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”;

2 before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain,

3 in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows are dimmed,

4 and the doors on the street are shut—when the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low—

5 they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails, because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets—

6 before the silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern,

7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

8 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity.

Q. How can you find a life of true joy?

(1) Take a risk: “Embrace opportunities with humble realism.” (11:1-6)

(2) Take a walk:“Enjoy God’s gifts for God’s glory.” (11:7-10)

(3) Take stock: “Remember Your Creator and the brevity of life.” (12:1-8)

The Teacher moves from the opportunities of life to the simple pleasures of life. But he ends, yet again, reminding us what’s coming.

Life is short. Death is certain. Live accordingly.

Here at the end, the Teacher piles on the poetry to capture the feeling of life that’s unraveling.

Look at 12:2 again:

Ecclesiastes 12:2 (ESV)

2 before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain,

Or look down at verse 8:

Ecclesiastes 12:7 (ESV)

7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

Both of those images are referencing the Creation narratives in Genesis 1 and 2.

All of Creation is in the process of unraveling because of human sin, and your life is no exception.

The Teacher piles on more images:

In verse 3, he describes an ancient household, an extended family, that begins to deteriorate:

Ecclesiastes 12:3 (ESV)

3 in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows are dimmed,

Some scholars have suggested this might be an example of an allegory, where the Teacher uses the deteriorating life of a household to poetically represent the deteriorating life of a person.

Where once there was youthful strength, now, with old age, there’s trembling.

Where once there was clear vision through the windows of the eyes, now, with old age, the windows are dimmed.

However you take this, its clear that life as we know it is unraveling and death is approaching.

In verses 4-6, we have even more poetry, describing the terror and the feeling of life slipping away, leading to the certain conclusion that we all know is coming:

Ecclesiastes 12:5 (ESV)

5 . . . man is going to his eternal home.

You can live in denial, but eventually, the truth will catch up to you.

So what should you do, knowing that life is short and death is certain?

(3) Take stock: “Remember Your Creator and the brevity of life.” (12:1-8)

Ecclesiastes 12:1 (ESV)

1 Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”;

Remember Your Creator.

I was in high school when this verse caught me.

With all the opportunities all around you and a whole life ahead of you and all the simple joys of life that you can enjoy, none of it will matter if you forget your Creator.

It doesn’t matter the kind of life you live or the achievements or the great things you accomplish or create with your life - if you forget your Creator.

Big Idea: True joy isn’t found in what you create, but in Your Creator.

Joy in God is the happiest of all joys.

Charles Spurgeon

What if you know a joy that is far more deep and wide and rich and fulfilling than anything else you could ever accomplish and you knew it would last forever?

That’s what Knowing God through Jesus brings!

That’s the promise of eternal life with God.

That’s what you were made for. “To Glorify God and to Enjoy Him forever.”

So (3) Take Stock: “Remember Your Creator and the brevity of life.”

Application

Concrete example #1 - This

Concrete example #2 -

Q. How can you find a life of true joy?

(1) Take a risk: “Embrace opportunities with humble realism.” (11:1-6)

(2) Take a walk:“Enjoy God’s gifts for God’s glory.” (11:7-10)

(3) Take stock: “Remember Your Creator and the brevity of life.” (12:1-8)

Big Idea: True joy isn’t found in what you create, but in Your Creator.

Conclusion

[Helen Lemmel]