Not sure if you’ve been reading through Ecclesiastes.
Did anyone else find it depressing?
All share a common destiny—the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the clean and the unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do not. (Ecclesiastes 9:2)
Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun—all your meaningless days. (Ecclesiastes 9:9)
As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so people are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them. (Ecclesiastes 9:12)
Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good. (Ecclesiastes 9:18)
However many years anyone may live, let them enjoy them all. But let them remember the days of darkness, for there will be many. Everything to come is meaningless. (Ecclesiastes 11:8)
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, “I find no pleasure in them”. (Ecclesiastes 12:1)
“‘Meaningless! Meaningless!’ says the Teacher. ‘Everything is meaningless!'” (Ecclesiastes 12:8)
Raises the question for me, ‘is this God’s Word’?
I would say ‘NO’, these are the Teacher’s reflections, and he was inspired to write them down!
God directed the recording of these hopeless reflections to show us our despair without Him.
There is important truth here, stuff we need to seriously reflect on.
Why are we living like we do, what are we living for, what do we hope for from life?
Are we living wisely, do our priorities and values and dreams make sense in the big picture?
Is our life meaningful, sustainable, reasonable?
These are deep, difficult questions; easier to just do the ostrich, bury our heads and ignore them.
But because God inspires these questions, they won’t go away.
The time will come when we will not be able to ignore them.
And God will be waiting there, offering Himself as our hope, our meaning, our answer.
God wants mean to experience the meaninglessness of life without Him, so that I might discover the meaningfulness of life with Him!
This is God’s Word to us today!