The Vanity of Self Absorption

Illustration:

When I was a kid we used to play a game called King of the Hill.

On top of a dirt pile

On top of the bed

Object of game: Get to the top and stay there.

Soon realize if you do make it to the top, you can only be there so long.

This chapter is about man’s desire to be number one and the vanity of that desire.

When I was a kid, I used to love to watch professional wrestling. It was a lot different in the 80’s. Ric Flair was the embodiment of self-absorption. He was the 16-time world champion.

Some people loved him.

Some people hated him.

But everyone watched him.

He would come out dressed in flashy robes, expensive suits, diamond rings, alligator skin shoes.

He’d say things like:

To be the man, you gotta beat the man.

I’m Ric Flair! The Stylin’, profilin’, limousine riding, jet flying, kiss-stealing, wheelin’ n’ dealin’ son of a gun!

“Wooo!”

It was all an act. He was a caricature.

In this chapter Solomon shows us the vanity of self-absorption. He should know!

He was the richest man in his day.

He was the wisest man in his day.

He was the most powerful man in his day.

He was the man on top of the dirt pile in his King of the Hill game. He was the Ric Flair of his generation. He learned the lesson that the meaning of life is not found in elitism. That’s what we’re going to consider this morning.

1. Self-absorption is often revealed in politics (1-3; 13-16).

A. Politicians are often great self-promoters.

What does it mean to be self-absorbed? It means to have an unhealthy preoccupation with yourself. Often it is revealed most obviously through one’s speech.

Have you ever known someone who always turns the conversation back to themselves?

I got a good deal at the store today- I got an even better deal, let me tell you about it.

I had the best lunch today- I had an even better lunch, let me tell you about it.

I was sick last week- I was even sicker, let me tell you about it.

The chapter ends with an illustration about the meaningless of self-promotion.

There was a man born into poverty.

He had a bad life.

He even spent time in prison.

He was able to pull himself out of the pit and rise to the position of being a king.

This man went from the bottom to the top.

He became stubborn. He would not take wise counsel. He became an old and foolish king.

Waiting in the shadows was another young man. This young man with political aspirations rose up and took the king’s place. Once he did, everyone soon forgot about the king who rose from nothing to the throne.

There is always someone waiting to take our place. It makes no difference if we are a king or a barber. Someone will take our position and we will be soon forgotten.

Politicians who promote themselves need to remember that Jesus says we are to deny ourselves.

Proverbs 27:2 says:

Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips.

B. Self-absorbed politicians love power not people (1).

Solomon recognized there were those in power who oppressed the people. Oppression is the result of selfishness.

A man in power has an agenda and he seeks to accomplish his agenda no matter what it costs the common people.

The agenda may lead to poverty.

The agenda may lead to injustice.

The agenda may lead to the stripping of basic human rights.

The person in power doesn’t care because their agenda is more important than people.

Illustration:

Record high gas prices in our nation. Some politicians bragging about how it doesn’t affect them because they are driving electric cars.

Equivalent of “Let them eat cake”.

Solomon saw one group of people who were shedding tears and had no comforter. The other group held power over them.

C. Corrupt politicians make life difficult on earth (2-3).

There are countries who are:

Trapped in poverty because of corrupt politicians.

In wars because of corrupt politicians.

Have no access to justice because of corrupt politicians.

Look what Solomon said about the people in these countries (2-3):

He praised the dead more than the living.

He praised those who had never existed at all even more than he did the dead.

One of the biggest arguments for the atheist is “If God is real, why do wicked governments exist?”

They point to the holocaust

They point to senseless and bloody wars

None of those things prove God does not exist. They prove evil does exist.

Politicians can ruin your life in an attempt to make their life better. Because politics is a place where money and power can be found some of those who seek political office are selfish and even narcissistic. When a selfish and narcissistic person is elected to office it is revealed through their policies.

2. Self-absorption is often driven by envy (4).

A. Solomon tells us what drives the self-absorbed person.

It’s envy. There’s two ways you can translate the Hebrew of verse 4:

1) A person works hard and is envied for what they accomplish.

2) A person works hard so that they may be the envy of others.

Envy means I want to be better than the other person. That could mean that I have more, or it could mean that they have less. Either one is fine.

A person may be fine without a new car…until the neighbor gets one.

Kids will use this logic to convince their parents to buy them the latest thing:

I’m the only one without one!

The reason this is vain is because there will always be something new. You will never be satisfied because there is always something newer, shinier, cooler.

B. Envy can lead to great evil.

Illustration:

Solomon approached by two women.

Children the same age.

Lived in same house.

One rolled over on baby and killed it.

Switched it.

Argument.

Solomon decides to cut baby in two.

Real mother said no the other lady could have it.

It wasn’t about having a baby for the envious mother. It was about the other woman not having what she did not have.

3. Self-absorption for some means to be consumed by laziness (5).

“The fool folds his own hands together, and eateth his own flesh” means that a person can be consumed by their own laziness.

Some people think so much of themselves they believe they shouldn’t have to work at all and others should provide for them.

Just because someone is poor it doesn’t mean they are humble. Some people are poor because they are proud:

Too proud to do a certain job.

To proud to admit they need help.

Too proud to submit to training.

Some people are poor because they are lazy. Laziness is never to be rewarded. It’s condemned in Scripture.

If you are able bodied and you think someone else should:

Pay your bills

Buy your food

Take care of your kids

Give you a house

Mow your grass

Then you think far too much of yourself.

4. When we are self-absorbed, we isolate ourselves (6-8).

A. It is foolish to work too much (6-7).

This is in contrast to the lazy person of verse 5. There are two extremes:

1) You don’t work at all.

2) You work too much.

Both can lead to self-isolation. If you are lazy and always living off of others no one wants to be around you. If you are always working, you don’t have time to be around others. Both are examples of being absorbed with oneself.

In verse six Solomon tells us you can have one hand filled in this world or two.

Solomon had both of his hands full. He doesn’t recommend that. If you have both hands filled, you have trouble. Solomon says it’s better to have less in the world than to have more.

Don’t be like the lazy person and have nothing.

Don’t be like the workaholic and have so much you can’t enjoy life.

The middle is the place to be.

B. To die alone is worse than to die poor (8).

Verse 8 is a picture of the self-absorbed workaholic near the end of his life.

He has worked hard his entire life, but he is not satisfied.

He has money.

He has things.

The text says he does not have family.

He never slowed down long enough to consider the question

“For whom am I working?”

“For whom am I depriving myself of pleasure?”

Notice the family mentioned is not a spouse. It mentions children and siblings. Most likely you and your spouse will not die at the same time. God gives extended family. He gives us friends who are like family.

You’ll probably not make many new friends after 65. Most of the friends you have will be made by then. If you wait until after you retire to make friends and to develop close relationships with your family you may be waiting too late.

You’re never going to make enough money. God has promised to take care of those who belong to Him.

Spend your time making memories, not money. Memories don’t get spent up.

Invest in people, there is a better return.

Friend, ask yourself the question of verse 8. “For whom do I labor?”

If you are forsaking your family, you’re not working for them.

If you are forsaking your church, you are not working for God.

If your labor keeps you from the Lord and those who love you then you are working for yourself. You are self-absorbed. Open one of those hands and drop what ever is in it.

5. The Benefits of godly Relationships (9-12).

The cure for the disease of self-absorption is godly relationships. Solomon gives us four benefits of godly relationships in verses 9-13. Let’s look at them.

A. A better return on their work (9).

We accomplish more together. There is no greater application for this principle than the church.

There is a lot of work to do for the kingdom of God.

Evangelism

Discipleship

Service in the church

The preacher cannot do it all.

One person cannot do it all.

When God saves you, He expects you to join yourself to a body of believers and help with the heavy load of work that is yet to be done for the glory of God.

B. A safer environment (10).

This past week I read stories of people who died alone in their homes and were not discovered for years. I can’t imagine that.

Solomon warns of the danger of falling alone.

Fall into a ditch

Fall into the water

Fall and hit your head

There are all types of ways to fall. If you do fall you need someone to help you. It’s not safe to be alone.

Spiritually speaking it’s even more dangerous to fall alone.

Accountability is a great benefit of the church. When you isolate yourself from the people of God you put yourself in spiritual danger.

Illustration- Lady wouldn’t go back to church because someone from church saw her at grocery store and wouldn’t speak to her. The ironic thing is she continues to go the grocery store…which is where the person did not speak to her at. It really is silly.

Satan wants to isolate you. He doesn’t want you around the people of God. He wants you around people who do not care if you live an immoral life.

C. Protection from the cold (11).

Nights were cold in the desert. Travelers would often sleep close to one another to stay warm. The single traveler would have no one to keep him warm. The principle is that it is easy to grow spiritually cold without godly relationships.

Spiritually cold means you are becoming numb to spiritual things.

Illust._ Guys using an ice cube and piercing ears when I was a teen. No feeling.

When you are spiritually cold it doesn’t bother you:

That you are not in the Word anymore

You’re using ungodly language

Looking at ungodly things

Missing church

We need folks around us who will warm us up.

Illust. In January of this year a 10-year-old girl managed to survive 18 hours overnight in a freezing winter blizzard in Russia. You know how she survived? She hugged a stray dog.

That little girl had enough sense to know she’d freeze to death alone. Listen to me, you will freeze to death spiritually alone. You need Christians to warm you up.

D. Strength to overcome (12).

A lonely traveler would be an easy target for thieves. Traveling in groups was much safer. The threefold cord that is not easily broken reminds us that we are stronger together. We need people who will help us fight.

We are an assembled army for the Lord.

We are not hitmen for the Lord.

We are not independent contractors.

We fight this war together.

We need people praying for us.

We need people sharpening us.

We need people looking out for us.

It is meaningless to try and do life alone. God did not make us to be alone. He made us to be together.

Don’t fall into the temptations of:

Power- to be elevated above everyone else.

Elitism- to be better than everyone else.

Laziness- to take from everyone.

Isolation- to be rid of everyone.

Life has meaning when we have:

A relationship with Jesus Christ.

A relationship with His people.

Those are the two things we should be sure we have. When we have those two thing life is much better.