The Pursuit of Pleasure

Intro

New bible..

My joy was more in a physical book than the Word of God itself

I like things, we all like things

Our problem is not the things we like; our problem is that we search for joy and contentment in the wrong thing(s)

He is not our Lord sometimes

He is not our Lord sometimes

King

King Solomon:

A man of fame, success, fortune

He became deeply suspicious with life

Instead of purpose he found futility

Instead of meaning he found vanity

So he turned to pleasure

Recap of Ch.1

Solomon looked back over all the wealth he had, his accomplishments, and his possessions.

To him it all seemed meaningless

Even though he had everything, he was still unfulfilled and dissatisfied

v.16-18

Ch.2:1-3

He tries to cheer his heart with folly/foolish things

We spend so much of our time & money trying to make ourselves happy and satisfied..

But Solomon sees that it was was futile (pointless)

How long will it take for us to realize this? How much money do we have to spend? How much time must we take away from what is important to see this? How many relationships?

Ch.2:4-6

Solomon had parties to fit thousands

Spent over a decade to build a mansion\

Solomon had the ability to have anything and everything

The houseS

The gardenS

The poolS

The TVS

The carS

He didn’t need any of this. He did it to see what he could do to find satisfaction. He was testing his heart in the pursuit of pleasure.

Ch.2:7-8

He has the slaves

The women

The pleasure of power (2 Chronicles 153,600 foreigners)

None had as much as King Solomon

300 concubines

700 wives

Hugh Hefner looked like a nun

Ch.2:9-10

He had it all. He had everything.

Solomon has everything our selfish flesh desires, the things we live for.

Solomon served a similar trinity that we sometimes serve- Me, Myself, and I

Yet Solomon saw that all of these achievements and possessions were worthless

Solomon, who had more wealth than Bill Gates, more knowledge and wisdom than Stephen Hawking, more power than Donald Trump, more followers than Justin Bieber, and far more women than you can imagine

Look at what he says next

Look at what he says next

Ch.2:11

That word consider in the Old Testament literally means to look something in the eye, to confront it, to face it, to ask the big, deep question.

It’s in that moment that he says, “Vanity! Vanity! All is vanity!”

Solomon definitely enjoyed everything but in the end he found vanity & futility.

He saw that none of this actually gave him the contentment and fulfillment his soul longed for.

There was no purpose or meaning.

Russell Brand:

Russell Brand:

“I thought it would be good to be rich and famous. It would be good to have stuff. It would be good to have money and be invited to the party.

Well, I’ve been invited, and I’ve been in, and we’re having this chat in this swish private men’s club in east London. It’s super cool. There are bare brick walls, and everyone is double good-looking. I’ve been inside now. I’ve seen the other side of the looking glass, and it ain’t flippin’ worth it! It ain’t flippin’ worth it! It doesn’t feed your soul. I still feel empty inside.”

Jim Carrey:

“I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it's not the answer.”

We all grow up with a false thought of, “If I could just have (blank), THEN I will be satisfied.”

When you are on your deathbed you aren’t going to be thinking about how many Benz you have in the garage or how many followers you have

First, did you notice the most dominant word in our text today? It’s actually the word I.

“I searched. I made. I bought. I had. I became. I surpassed.”

King Solomon uses the word I 40 times. Forty times!

Now admittedly it’s an autobiographical work, but it does hint at just how self-seeking and self-orientated he became.

“Whats the problem with that?” WE can never give ourselves the satisfaction, and fulfillment we search for.

Ch.3:11

“Whats the problem with that?” WE can never give ourselves the satisfaction, and fulfillment we search for.

In Ecclesiastes, chapter 3, he pens some of the most beautiful words in the entire book.

Verse 11. He says, “[God] has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart…”

Think about that. On one hand, he is saying, “There is beauty in this world. God has made a beautiful world. God has made us to enjoy the beautiful things of this world. There’s beauty in food. There’s beauty in wine. There’s beauty in work. There’s beauty in sex. There’s beauty in friendship. There’s beauty in family.”

There are beautiful things God has made for us to know and enjoy. Yet at the same time, he recognizes God has also placed eternity in our hearts. In other words, we were created with eternal desires. We were created for eternal beauty. We were created for eternal pleasure. We were created for eternal joy, and ultimately we were created for eternal love.

This is something only God can provide

Psalms 63:3

“My lips will glorify you because your faithful love is better than life.”

CSB

“Who do I have in heaven but you? And I desire nothing on earth but you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart, my portion forever.”

CSB

“in your presence is abundant joy; at your right hand are eternal pleasures.”

CSB

“Better a day in your courts than a thousand anywhere else.”

CSB

IVE BEEN IN ALL THOSE ROOMS

“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His faithful love endures forever.”

CSB

^they got it

Be a church that is so satisfied & fulfilled with God that lost people look at us weird and inquire

It’s not to say they had life easy. It’s not to say they didn’t struggle in life. It’s not to say they didn’t face suffering, brokenness, despair, distraction, or doubt. It is to say that in the midst of all of that, they had their anchor in God.

So here’s tonight’s question again:

What do you do with what you do and what you have?

Super Summer students

Jesus came to earth as one without riches, servant