To be honest with you, I have not really dwelled into the old testament of the bible much, but after coming across the first little bit of the book of Ecclesiastes, I've gotta say i've been blown away..
“Meaningless! Meaningless!”
says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless.”(Ecclesiastes 1:2)
Ok so let's put this into some sort of context here. These are the words of Solomon. The great, King Solomon. Now this guy asked God for one thing and that was wisdom. He was incredibally smart, and also rich. He owned the gold deposits, much like those that dictate our modern economy and finance today. he literally owned the wealth of a country. He had 700 wives, and 300 concubines. That's 1000 women in his life, heck knows how he managed them all. He had everything!
Yet he still claims life is meaningless, how could this be?
Reading on, he goes on about how working throughout the day is meaningless, how generations will just come and go, the sun will still rise and set, the wind will continue to blow, and how streams flow on forever, yet seas are never full.
Things will just go on and on, in some sort of eternal cycle, yet we are only on this earth temporarily. so then, whats the meaning in our lives then? if we were to leave this earth without finding meaning in our lives, then what misery, what waste.
Solomon then goes on to pursue meaning in his life through all sorts of places.
- The first one being Human wisdom. academics. study study and study. God even made him wise, and yet, Solomon's like nope. you can study all you want, but life's going to still be meaningless no matter how smart you are.
- The second place he looked for meaning was pleasure. And still he's like nope, just meaningless.
- He then goes through a list of alcohol, getting drunk, laughter, and still, no meaning found there.
- He then goes on to indulgences, like spoiling himself with the best of everything. in the case of Solomon, it was building houses, mansions, estates, vineyards, gardens, parks, reservoirs.. that's a great deal of real estate i tell ya, yet still he's like nope, no meaning found with indulgences.
- At this point i'm thinking farout! already he has everything one needs to live a very, very luxurious, laid back lifestyle, yet Solomon still claim's it is meaningless!
- So then, he goes onto finding meaning in riches of the world. he owned heaps of gold, like the deposits and the mines full of gold. he could afford anything, and everything in this world, yet superior wealth still is meaningless.
- Next he goes onto Music. meaningless.
- Hard work and labor, meaningless.
- Marriage, to like 1000 women!?! still, meaningless.
- Fame? meaningless.
- Education, lifestyles? meaningless.
- Military power? meaningless.
So what is the meaning of life? Of course Solomon doesn't leave it there, he goes and tells us I've found it!!
The meaning of life is knowing God. Drawing closer to him and developing a precious, loving relationship with him. Still, you can indulge in earthly pleasures, but putting God first, makes a huge difference in placing meaning into your lives.
You will find meaning beyond measure.
Other people try to find meaning in their lives through other ways alone, like motivational speeches, life's mottos, loyalty, achievements, horoscopes, quotes, dramas, games, television, magazines, music, facebook, hobbies.. not to say these things are bad or anything but in the end there is an emptiness about it. But knowing God through music, through photography, though reading, through listening, there is this eternal truth that underlays that screams out to us: This stuff is real. This stuff is meaningful.
I have got to be honest, I completely understand where Solomon is coming from. Infact most of us should. In life we do our things, go to school, go to work, play, listen to music, and still we feel whats the point? Its just meaningless, everyday work.
If you have found meaning in your life then that's great.
But if you haven't, pursue God.
You will find meaning beyond measure.
In Christ Alone,
In Christ Alone,
-Wilks
No comments:
Post a Comment