Pastor Josh concludes his series through the book of Ecclesiastes with this sermon:

“This is the essence of wisdom then: learn to live joyfully and take pleasure according to the reality which actually exists…anything else is self destructive. As humans we veer one way or the other. We tend towards the self-vandalism as ascetism, which denies our self pleasure in God’s good creation. Or we foolishly sabotage ourselves with the unbridled hedonism which leads to catastrophe. We go our own way. We foolishly think we can live however we want without repercussion. Ecclesiastes calls us to a third way: to enjoy life, to embrace all the pleasures which God has freely given – while we fear him.”

Pastor Josh continues his teaching through the book of Ecclesiastes.

“We don’t know what will come tomorrow. But we are assured that there are both good days and bad days ahead. So wisdom humbly prepares for both…”

Pastor Josh continues his teaching through the book of Ecclesiastes.

“Though wisdom is far better than folly, a little folly mixed in will outweigh wisdom and honor…Just as the presence of rot in expensive oil or perfume will ruin the entire vat, so can the presence of just one fool cause the entire project to fail. And this can be true even in the life of the individual. In a moment, through one act of foolishness, a career is finished. No matter all the past good that has been done. No matter how much trust has been built, it can all come to nothing through one moment of folly. O God, lead us not into temptation.”

Pastor Josh continues his series through Ecclesiastes:

“At first brush, Ecclesiastes can come off pretty pessimistic, and the beginning of chapter 9 is among the most pessimistic messages of the entire book: Death comes to all.  It doesn’t matter if you act righteously or religiously, it will not save you from death, which, in the cynical tone of Ecclesiastes, “is a fate worse than life…But for all its cynical realism, Ecclesiastes does not counsel despondency, but demands joy!”

Pastor Josh continues his series through Ecclesiastes:

“Where every other book of the Bible emphasizes God’s potent sovereignty, which is good news for those who love him, Ecclesiastes pairs that emphasis with an unflinching look at human inability…In the final assessment, the author commends that we should live in joy:  We should fear God and keep his commandments, and eat, drink, and be joyful in the few days God has given us to live, because lasting gain does not rely on our ability to scrabble it together by excessive striving, even striving for wisdom.”

Pastor Josh continues his series through Ecclesiastes this Sunday:

“Wisdom is a good thing, especially when contrasted with folly, but Ecclesiastes has been insistent that human wisdom and understanding are limited, and are therefore insufficient to produce a lasting profit, thus the final assessment that it is all hevel (vanity, mist, temporal and fleeting)…While Ecclesiastes keeps acknowledging that certain ways of behaving are better and wiser, and generally lead towards goodness and life rather than death, its purpose here is to teach us enough wisdom to know that ‘wisdom is not magic.’”

Pastor Josh continues his series through Ecclesiastes:

“So when is the day of death better than the day of birth?  When is mourning better than feasting and sorrow better than laughter?  When the living see that death is the end of all mankind, and lay it to heart.  Psalm 90:12 asks God: ‘...teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.’ The author is not depressed or suicidal.  He is not recommending that we love death more than life or dress like goths and be obsessed with funerals.  He is saying that there is a certain context in which these things are better.  In this limited context, “Sorrow is better than laughter, for by sadness of face the heart is made glad”! Part of the wisdom required to enjoy the good life is to recognize the reality of death and live accordingly…Humans cannot determine what is good for them. We would never pray and ask God to give us sorrow instead of laughter.  We don’t know when, by sadness, our hearts will be made glad. The wisdom taught here is not that bad things are good things, but that we can’t even know.  Human wisdom, though good, has severe limitations.”

Pastor Josh continues his series through Ecclesiastes:

“Wealth, long-life, and many children were the primary hallmarks of a life blessed by God in the ancient near east and even in much of the old testament.  Ecclesiastes does not deny that these could be blessings, only that they are not blessings at all without the added gift of contentment; the ability to be thankful and enjoy what you have.”

Pastor Josh continues his series through Ecclesiastes:

“Once again, Ecclesiastes stares unblinking into the human heart.  You see, the only way for us to know our own hearts is for the word of God to lay them bare.  Our hearts have sociopathic tendencies…God, and God alone, knows the hearts of men….You say that you work hard to provide for your family; the word of God says that you work hard because of covetousness…Exposing the human heart, Ecclesiastes sees only a selfish motive: getting ahead of your neighbors…The hopeless situation of the human heart, steeped in sinful self-seeking, finds hope in Christ Jesus, who grants us a new heart and a new spirit.  You can’t change your envious heart, but in Christ we are given a replacement.”

Pastor Josh continues his series through Ecclesiastes:

“Not only can we fall into the rut of mindless religious expression, but we can also easily fall into the mind-set that our religious rituals will somehow gain us God’s favor.  Not only is this wrong-headed, it is evil. This is an attempt to manipulate God!  It is a form of paganism or witchcraft to perform rituals for God so that He will give you what you really want in return.  If God is a means to an end as you try to gain the desires of your heart, you are a practicing pagan!  That is not the gospel.  That is not authentic Christianity… Just because you go to church and worship God does not mean you are not a fool. The fool supposes that worship, or a sacrifice or service covers up unfaithful living, but such foolish sacrifices achieve the very opposite of their intended effect; they anger God and add to the separation.  Your worship may actually be making things worse!”