Beginning with the End in Sight

Ecclesiastes 9:1-10

I. Introduction

II. You can’t predict the world’s reactions

A. Explanation

1. I laid all this to heart – All that he is said up to this point. He has examined a great deal of life and come up empty.  So, what does he do with a life like this – That is what he will be sharing with us through this passage

2. He has examined it all – The word there is to make plain, to give clarity

3. His conclusion – it is all just in the hands of God – It is all under his control.  We can only trust in Him and seek to please Him

4. Then he takes his eyes from God’s realm and brings them down to our level. He then says whether we receive love or hate for our actions, no one knows. 

a. Notice that he is talking about the righteous and the wise – Those seeking to do God’s will

b. And yet, though we seek to be righteous and wise, under the son we do not know if we will receive love or hate from it – Both are before him.  You could receive either under the sun

B. Application

1. This is why we find ourselves happy to be in the hands of God – He is always just and righteous. He is not like the world

2. Ultimately, He is the judge, not fickle men. We should seek His approval above man’s. We should seek to pleas Him alone

3. You may not be able to predict man’s actions, but you can know how to trust in Christ and find the favor of God!

III. You can’t avoid death (2-3a)

A. Explanation

1. It is the same for all – Everyone will face death

2. No matter what you have done

a. Qoheleth goes through 6 Merisms – It covers everyone

b. It is for the righteous and the wicked

c. So, it is not a punishment for the sinner or the saint – But, still, Qoheleth sees it as an evil that all must be resigned to death

d. But that evil is only seen under the sun

B. Application

1. The problem in this section is that Qoheleth is giving his argument through a secular perspective – This would be an awful thing in a materialistic world

2. Death is not an evil above the sun – It is a part of God’s plan.  We live a life with an end in sight and after that we find ourselves under the mercy of God through grace or the judgement of God for sin

3. Through death God is bringing the story to fruition – Through it God is bringing reconciliation to this broken world

4. We must put our trust in God for a far greater life after this one

IV. Therefore, live your life while you can (3b-6)

A. Explanation

1. The reality – We are all sinners – the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, madness is in their hearts.  So ultimately, there is nothing unjust about our death

2. But while we live, we have hope –

a. hope of future life, hope for more to come

b. Remember, that Solomon is talking from a secular perspective and he is not speaking of hope for salvation

c. A living dog is better than a dead lion – The dog was thought of as a scavenger while the lion was seen as noble.

3. The living know they will die, but the dead know nothing

a. Again, showing that life is better than death

b. No more reward

c. The memory of them is forgotten

d. Love hate and envy have perished – While we would see the death of hate and envy as good, he is seeing it as the loss of all emotion and feeling

e. They have no share of all that is done under the sun – they can’t do anything else in life, after death

B. Application

1. His point is to live life while you can – Appreciate life and each day that you have to feel and love, and make a difference

2. While we have hope from above the sun, we should still see that there is something joyful and hopeful in this life as we prepare for the next

3. What are you doing to make the most of this life?

a. Are you preparing for the next

b. Are you glorifying and honoring our God through your short life?

c. Are you helping others find the joy of salvation in Christ?

V. And live your life intentionally (7-10)

A. Explanation

1. Carpe Diem passage – Eat, drink and be merry

2. God has already approved what you do – This is the closest Solomon comes to Justification by faith – This is a word for those who have chosen to accept life as given by God and trust Him with it.

3. Allow yourself the simple joys

a. Feasting –

i. Enjoy your food and drink,

ii.garments of white (not mourning garments)

iii. oil on your head – This is contentment in God’s blessings, not hedonism

b. Marriage – Enjoy your life with your wife

c. Work. -and in your toil

4. Live life fully –

a. Whatever your hands find to do, do it with all you might

b. For there is no work in Sheol – This is a product of life, This is also a materialistic perspective

B. Application

1. While Qoheleth is giving us these thoughts from a materialistic perspective, there is truth in it.

2. We are given a life to live to the glory of God

3. Many of us squander it on ourselves, someone much less glorious

4. We should live our lives to the full enjoy the simple pleasures and not to the things that do not matter in life

VI. Conclusion

A. Seek to please God and not man – You will never be let down by His grace

B. Relax and enjoy your life

C. Make the most of your life for the glory of God – This is where real joy resides

1. Grow in your faith

2. Spend time with the one who loves you unconditionally

3. Tell people about Him