A Kingdom Established: The Meaning of Life

A Kingdom Established: The Meaning of Life  

Ecclesiastes 1:1-11

Tom Brady, New England Patriots Quarterback:

“Why do I have three Super Bowl rings, and still think there’s something greater out there for me? …gotta be more than this…”

 Psalm 39:5-6, 11 - “Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths, and my lifetime is as nothing before you. Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath [hebel] … man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather! …surely all mankind is a mere breath [hebel].  

Psalm 144:4 - “…Man is like a breath [hebel]; his days are like a passing shadow.”

Proverbs 31:30 - “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting [hebel].”  

Job 27:12 - “Behold, all of you have seen it; Why then do you act foolishly [habel]?”

Jeremiah 2:5 - “Thus says the LORD, "What injustice did your fathers find in Me, That they went far from Me And walked after emptiness [hebel] and became empty [hebel]?”

Zachariah 10:2 - “…the mediums…tell false dreams; They comfort in vain…[hebel].”

Augustine (354-430) - “You are matchless, O Lord. So, our praise of You must rise above our humanity…You awaken in us a delight at praising You. You made us for Yourself, and our heart is restless until it finds its place in You.”

I. Does life have meaning?            Ecclesiastes 1:1-11

Screwtape Letters - “The horror of the Same Old Thing is one of the most valuable passions we have produced in the human heart-an endless source of heresies in religion, folly in counsel, infidelity in marriage, and inconstancy in friendship.”

Psalm 103:15-16 - “As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more.”

1. Wisdom 1:13-14

2. Wine   2:1-3

3. Work   2:4-6

4. Wealth 2:8

5. Women   2:8

 II. Is there justice and goodness in this world?   Ecclesiastes 3:16–4:3

 III. Why are we here?                 Ecclesiastes 12:9-14  

1. Love and revere God

2. Walk in God’s ways

3. Prepare to die, so we can live

Psalm 90:10-12 - “As for the days of our life…they will soon be gone and fly away… So, teach us to number our days…”

John 11:26 - “Jesus said, ‘Everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die…’”

 Faith Sheet For families and Friends

 1. What does it say about our God that He would inspire Ecclesiastes (a book about meaninglessness) and preserve it for us in the Bible?

2. What are some different answers the world gives to the question “Why are we here”?

3. Why might people evade asking deeper questions about life, such as those found in Ecclesiastes? (Romans 1:18-21)

4. How does Ecclesiastes 2:24-25 enhance the understanding of our memory verse this month? (1 Cor.10:31)

5. How do the truths of Ecclesiastes 3:1-11 play out in our daily lives?

6. Why is it necessary for God to exist for life to have meaning?

7. How does Jesus and His resurrection provide a better answers than the world to life’s deepest questions? (Romans 5:6-11)