Sermon Tone Analysis

The American Dream

John Bunyan’s allegorical book, “Pilgrim’s Progress,” is set inside of a dream of a man in the 1600’s.

In this dream, Christian, a pilgrim on his way to the Celestial City.

On his way to this heavenly city, he finds himself in a town called Vanity.

Bunyan writes,

“Then I saw in my dream, that when they were got out of the wilderness, they presently saw a town before them, and the name of that town is "Vanity"; and at the town there is a fair kept, called "Vanity Fair"; it is kept all the year long.

It bears the name of Vanity Fair, because the town where 'tis kept is lighter than vanity; and also because all that is there sold, or that comes thither is vanity.

As is the saying of the wise, "All that comes is vanity."

It is in this ancient town that such merchandise is bought and sold "as houses, lands, trades, places, honors, preferments, titles, countries, kingdoms, lusts, pleasures, and delights of all sorts, as whores, bawds, wives, husbands, children, masters, servants, lives, blood, bodies, souls, silver, gold, pearls, precious stones, and what not."

At all times, one can see "jugglings, cheats, games, plays, fools, apes, knaves, rogues, and that of all sorts," as well as, "and that for nothing, thefts, murders, adulteries, false-swearers, and that of a blood-red color."

Bunyan describes a place where the meaning of life is sought and experienced in maximizing your pleasure.

The aim of your work is to maximize your pleasure and satisfaction.

The aim of your thinking and decision making regarding your life is geared around maximizing your comfort.

Whatever your heart desires can be experienced at Vanity Fair.

If John Bunyan were alive today I would contend that his Vanity Fair is realized in American culture, maybe even all of Western Society.

Consider for a moment what we aspire for our children.

America lives by the creed: “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.”

The pursuit of happiness is achieving the American Dream.

James Truslow Adams first coined the term “American Dream” in his highly successful book in 1931 titles Epic America.

According to Truslow, the American Dream is

"that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement."

What makes life in America better, richer, and fuller?

I believe many would say pleasure, prudence, and productivity.

By pleasure I mean comfort and contentment.

The American Dream is free from financial stress.

There is enough money in the checking and savings account for all your bills and vacations.

You have enough wealth to drive new high end cars, live in safe neighborhoods with high property values, and have access to the best healthcare.

By prudence I mean well worldly wisdom; educated and cultured.

Our children must have access to the best eduction that accelerates them toward the best colleges.

We want our children to be proficient in culture awareness in this new globalistic world, able to converse with anyone in any country at any time.

By productive I mean work.

College educated degrees put you in a position to have a high paying job to generate the wealth and keep the cycle going, even if it means you work eighty hours a week.

You need to work not only only support the American Dream, but you need to retire at fifty and have enough residual income to keep up that lifestyle until you die at a ripe old age of 85.

All of us want our children to have the American Dream.

When parents are talking at lunch or on break, no gloats about how mediocre their kid is.

If they are graduating high school, the expectation is, for now, they will go to college and get a good paying job.

Working at a fast food joint for the rest of your life is not a good talking point around the water cooler.

We make it their life goal to have a richer and fuller life by maximizing their pleasure, prudence, and productivity.

Solomon says this is all vanity.

Why? It’s all vanity, meaningless, hevel upon hevels because nothing in this world satisfies the human heart; there is not enough pleasure, prudence, or productivity that can fill the depths of human desire.

How many of us have said, “If I could just win the lottery I would be happy.

If I could be a superstar sports athlete or musician I would finally find my place, and of course I would be much wiser with my wealth and fame.

I would use it for good.’

How many of us have also heard how miserable people are who win the lottery?

How many of us have marveled at how many of them go broke after two years.

Do you know how many professional football players go broke after they retire?

Statistics suggest that up to 78% of NFL players go bankrupt or fall into severe financial stress within just two years of retirement (kiplinger.com).

Another odd reality of the richer and fully life of the American Dream is the suicide rate among people who achieve it.

When Robin Williams died I was somewhat beside myself.

I enjoyed his comedy and he always seemed like a genuine human being.

He had everything the American Dream could offer and suicide was his only way out.

What about celebrity chef Anthony Michael Bourdain?

He made a living cooking, eating, and talking about food.

He had wealth and fame and a glamorous lifestyle, and yet he came to the same conclusion as robin Williams.

The American Dream is not able to provide enough meaning in your life to adequately deal with your heart.

In Ecclesiastes 2, Solomon is disrupting the fantasy of the American Dream with this reality.

The hope and contentment you seek in pleasure, prudence, and productivity is meaningless apart from Christ.

The Dream of Pleasure is Meaningless Apart From Jesus (Eccl 2:1-11)

In verse 2:1, Solomon decides he is going to test himself to see if the dream of pleasure is a meaningful pursuit of life.

The verb “test” is to examine something in order to attain the nature of it.

In this case, he wants to examine pleasure to see if it is sufficient in satisfying his heart.

The philosophy that says ones goal in life is to maximize his pleasure is called hedonism.

A hedonist organizes and prioritizes his life around maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain.

A great example of a hedonist is Jordan Belfort (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) in The Wolf of Wall Street.

His extreme wealth allows him to indulge his insatiable hunger for all things pleasurable (The Conversation Sept 3 2017).

Hedonism is the idea that Solomon is shooting for in chapter two.

One commentator said

“Inside the house of Hedonism are many rooms, and Solomon tried to sleep in every one of them.”

He’s got three tests for pleasure beginning with wittiness.

Wittiness is meaningless (v2)

Mark Twain once said of laughter,

“Against the assault of laughter, nothing can stand.”

Mark Twain

Solomon seems to take issues with Twain in verse 2.

He says

Its not that humor does not have a place in this life.

Laughter is a gift of God to ease the burden of our misery.

Laughter lifts our spirits by taking our eyes off of the brokenness of our world giving you the opportunity to not take yourself or your circumstances too seriously.

Laughter actually has a physical effect on our bodies, releasing endorphins that bring the sensation of pleasure.

But humor, however, cannot be a philosophy you live by.

You cannot approach life solely through the lens of comedy.

The problem with wittiness is that like the endorphins, as soon as it comes it goes.

Also, as Alister Begg points out, comedy does not deal with the weighty matters of life (“Search for Satisfaction”).

Humor cannot adequately handle your pain or your fears.

it does not have a good answer for why bad things happen to good people or ridding yourself of the guilt you feel when you know you’ve done something wrong.

Think of it this way.

Contrast the difference between the time you went to a theater and watched a comedy verses when you watched the Passion of the Christ.

I was absolutely speechless at the end of that movie.

The entire room was speechless.

The Passion of the Christ had such a profound effect on movie goers that news agencies did stories on how people reacted to the movie.

People made professions of faith, converting to Christianity, after watching that movie.

That did not happen after watching “Caddy Shack,” or “The Handover.”

What is the difference?

The Passion of the Christ deals with weighty realties our hearts wrestle with: sin, unrighteousness, Injustice, suffering, death, judgement, eternal life, resurrection.

Humor falls short in satisfying these realities.

That is why Solomon says to put your hope in humor is madness (v2).

The madness of laughter is that it works like novocaine.

it numbs for a while but eventually wears off.

Being witty is not the solution to life’s difficulties.

Jonathan Akin says,