Ecclesiastes 1:1-11

You may have seen the classic film It's a Wonderful Life in that the character George Bailey struggles to believe that his hometown of Bedford Falls can give him the wonder that he desires in life.

The same enemies causes George Bailey to fidget with the mundane. He is restless to leave it all behind him. And he feels that he must travel to some other patch of this world, somewhere else, to do something worthwhile.

He's ruled by those two words, if only. He says in the film, he says, I couldn't face being cooped up for the rest of my life in this shabby office. I wanted to do something big, something important.

Satisfaction is never quite now, is it? It's never quite here in this moment.

We are a society obsessed with the new. We are a people obsessed with change, with invention, with the novel.

As someone once said, somewhere else, doing something else, is the model of our advancement.

If only I could get there, somewhere over the rainbow, my life will be alright.

If only these things could change, I would finally be happy.

Somewhere else, doing something else, being someone else.

As we open up the book of Ecclesiastes, we're going to go through it over the next few Tuesdays.

We'll probably take a break, and then maybe come back to it next year.

But what we find in this book is a teaching of a wise, godly man who is about to burst our bubble.

He's about to take us on a grand tour of the world, to make us face things that perhaps we don't want to about the world.

That there is no yellow brick road.

That there is no end of the rainbow somewhere else.

There is no shortcut to a wonderful life in this world.

But he also holds the keys for showing us the enjoyment and satisfaction in this world as a gift from God.

For where you are, whenever you are, and whoever you are, right now.

It's a grand world tour of realism, but also of rejoicing in this life.

So firstly, listen to the words of this tour guide.

The words of the tour guide.

Now the name Ecclesiastes, it's not a word we use often, is it?

It's a word that is from a Greek word that is used to translate a Hebrew word.

Meaning a collector, or a compiler, or a preacher, or a teacher.

It's named after the preacher who is featured in the book.

And we're introduced to him in verse 1, aren't we?

The words of the preacher.

The son of David, king in Jerusalem.

Now we're going to learn more about this preacher as time goes by.

But right from the beginning we are given his sermon text.

The words of this preacher's sermon.

And it's probably one of the shortest sermons that I've ever seen.

It's just three words long.

In verse 2.

Vanity of vanities, says the preacher.

That's his text.

A very, very short lunchtime talk.

He is going to unpack those three words over the whole book.

But that's his sermon.

Vanity of vanities.

Now again, vanity is not a word we use often, is it?

Some English translations of the original word there use the word meaningless.

You might find that in your Bible at home.

Others use the word breath.

Breath of breath.

That is helpful.

Anyway, vanity stands for something that is vaporous.

Like a breath.

Something that is futile.

Gone at their one minute, gone the next.

Something that is ephemeral and vacuous.

Something that is pointless and meaningless.

This preacher's text sounds odd, doesn't it?

All is vanity, he says.

As we begin on this tour, with this tour guide,

we might think somehow we have bumped into a madman

who is shouting out crazy things on the street.

He is shouting out nonsense here, isn't he?

All is vanity.

Really?

Marriage is meaningless.

Friendship is pointless and vacuous.

Really, preacher?

Is all vanity?

Come on.

He takes us on this tour, though.

And we realise as he does that,

he is not the madman,

but he is the wise man.

And he is going to show us a world

that we know, deep down at heart,

is a complex place to live in.

It is a world full of loose ends.

Where there are rules,

but there are exceptions to the rule.

Where things that should not happen, happen.

A maddening world.

A frustrating world.

Where all, at one level, is vanity.

And he is going to peel back the curtains,

as it were,

to help us to see

what is going on backstage in the world.

To see the true reality.

It's like our tour guide,

the preacher,

he is like one of those magicians

who gets kicked out of the magic circle

for revealing all of the secrets.

Now, you hear those stories, don't you?

A magician who has learnt

all of the arts and the tricks.

He's learnt the sleight of hand

and the distraction.

He is in the know

about how all of the tricks work,

but he breaks away from the system

and he reveals all.

He tells the audience

the secrets of all the tricks.

Where does the hat actually come from

when it comes out of the hat?

The rabbit.

How do they saw the person in two?

He gives us a revelation of the world.

Behind all of the smoke

and all of the mirrors.

Behind the party line

of materialism

and consumerism

and atheism.

And he gives it us straight,

undiluted,

honestly.

And we will see that

he is a brilliant,

brilliant preacher

as he does this.

Because he is like a magician

who gets off the stage

and sits with the audience.

He is a preacher

who gets down

and sits with the congregation

and asks the questions

about the world

that they are asking.

He will avoid the trite

and sentimental,

standard preacher's answers

and the dishonest answers

to bring us a healthy dose

of realism.

So he says,

on my tour of the world

I am going to give you

two things.

The first thing I am going to give you

is the genuine story.

I am going to give you

the genuine story.

Now in our little section

on our sheets this afternoon,

verse 3 to 11,

we see that the story begins

showing a world

of inscrutable repetition.

A world that goes round

and around and around

as if it's stuck on repeat.

Now throughout the book

of Ecclesiastes

there are two refrains

that the preacher uses

for his two main messages.

And the first refrain

we see in the title

for his genuine story

of the world

in verse 3.

What does man gain

by all the toil

at which he toils?

Under the sun.

Under the sun.

That's shorthand

for life in this world

as it really is.

Everything that is

from a human perspective.

And life under the sun

he says

is fundamentally

repetitive.

It is ultimately

fading

and futile.

Look at verse 9 there.

What has been

is what will be

and what has been done

is what will be done

and there is nothing new

under the sun.

It is a world

where people

and their achievements

are endlessly

being rehashed

and re-photocopied

over and over again.

In the film

Edge of Tomorrow

Tom Cruise

plays the character

of an army officer

who is captured

by a strange

alien power.

I don't know

if you like sci-fi.

But it forces him

to relive

the same day

over and over again.

And it is the day

when humans

plunge themselves

into a war

with another race.

Now at first

Cruise

tries to fight.

He uses this day

to try and learn

and train.

He uses this one day

to advance

his combat skills.

One day

to defeat

his enemy

to develop.

only to wake up

and have to do it

all over again

the next morning.

The catchphrase,

the catchline

of the film

is live,

die,

repeat.

He is living

and dying

and repeating.

And in the film

it's a harrowing

and weary

experience

that he has to

find a way

to escape.

Now spoiler alert,

he does find a way.

So it's a good ending.

But the preacher

shows us here

that there is

only escape

from the living,

the dying

and the repeating

in a Hollywood film.

Because that is

exactly how

this world is

under the sun.

Listen to him

in verse 4.

A generation

goes

and another

comes

but the earth

remains forever.

Lifetime

after lifetime

we live,

we die

and we are

forgotten.

Think about that.

The vast majority

of people

who have ever

lived in this world

we have never

known one

single one of them.

How many of us

know our

grandparents

by name

or our

grandparents?

And the few

people that we

have known

are soon

forgotten.

In a clever

use of language

the preacher

shows our

transience

in comparison

with the earth

that we live

on,

doesn't he?

In verse 4,

the earth

remains forever.

The constancy

of the earth

shows our

repetitive life.

The same

earth

lived on

by generation

after generation

swept away

by the tides

of time.

the same

earth that

Socrates

walked on.

Constantine

has been

here.

Shakespeare

and Leonardo

da Vinci.

Michael

Jackson.

The earth

has seen

them all

come and

go.

They've all

walked on

the same

earth

and they've

all seen

the same

sun that

we see

that rises

and goes

down and

hastens to

the place

where it

rises in

verse 5.

We see

that sun

every day

don't we?

But the

sun won't

necessarily

see us

every day.

We will

die

and the

whole thing

will start

all over

again.

Moses

writes in

the Psalms

we bring

our years

to an

end like

a sigh.

The years

of our

life are

seventy

or even

by reason

of strength

eighty

yet their

span is

but toil

and trouble

they are

soon gone

and we

fly away.

The preacher

tells us

that even

inanimate

nature

itself

feels the

futility

of this

repetition

in verse

7.

All

streams

run to

the sea

but the

sea is

not full.

To the

place where

the streams

flow

there they

flow

again.

Even

the sea

is constantly

being filled

but is

never full

it's never

satisfied.

Round

and round

and round

emptying

and filling

emptying

and filling

and we

know this

is real

don't we?

We feel

this

inscrutable

repetition

in all

that we

do.

Just think

of the

events that

have shaped

our lives

the events

that we

remember

events that

children now

can only

learn about

in a

textbook

the flight

of the

Concord

the handing

over of

Hong Kong

back to

China

September

the 11th

and those

children

will have

the same

conversations

and the

same

elections

and the

same

constant

debating

and the

same

problems

to solve

over and

over.

The

constant

search for

the new

is itself

an ancient

and much

repeated

search.

Verse

10

Is there a

thing of

which it

is said

see this

is new

it has

been already

in the

ages before

us.

Now don't

get the

preacher wrong

here he is

not wearing

Nike trainers

is he

and he has

not written

this on

an iPad

he is not

saying that

there will

never be

any

inventions

or

technological

advances

but he

is highlighting

the absence

of any

real game

that these

inventions

provide us.

We often

hear those

words quoted

in verse

10 don't

we?

See this

is new

we hear

those words

all the

time

every day

a new

car

a new

phone

a new

way of

travel

travel

but the

very

repetition

of that

statement

every day

proves that

even new

things are

not really

new

they are

just updated

versions of

things that

we already

have

looking for

the genuinely

new under

the sun

is an

old

mistake

the man

who thinks

he has

found something

new

is actually

being

something

very

old

making

the same

old

mistake

of using

the new

to validate

our repetitive

existence

people do

that don't

they

I do

that

I love

the pleasure

of opening

a new

box

of something

that I've

just bought

even if it's

just a table

a table

from Ikea

last Friday

and I love

that feeling

of opening

the new

smelling that

fresh pine

smell

people record

videos on

YouTube

of unboxing

stuff

don't they

have you seen

that

the thrill

of the new

because somehow

the new

validates

my existence

it helps me

feel like

I'm breaking

the repetition

a new

table

but the

preacher says

Chris

give me a

break

are you

serious

ideas

technology

fashions

ways of

ways of

thinking

the bad

and the

good

will

eventually

disappear

and reappear

and disappear

and reappear

and the

new

things of

today

will be

the

forgotten

things

of

tomorrow

and they

will be

the

hand-me-downs

of another

generation

he says

in verse

11

there is no

remembrance

of former

things

nor will

there be

any

remembrance

of later

things

yet to

be

among

those

who

come

after

amazingly

the Bible

tells us

that even

the works

of God

in this

world

can be

forgotten

by the

next

generation

even

the

miracles

of the

plagues

you know

that famous

story

and the

rescue

of the

Israelites

those

things

were

forgotten

just a

few

generations

later

by a

new

pharaoh

and a

new

generation

of

Egyptians

because

this

world

under

the

sun

is

simply

an

endless

cycle

of

same

old

same

old

and so

the

preacher

asks

therefore

what

is

the

point

what

is

the

point

really

in

verse

three

what's

the

point

of

toiling

and

achieving

and

developing

in a

repeated

world

with a

fading

people

full of

repeated

things

now do

you see

what the

preacher

is doing

here

as he

shows us

the reality

of the

world

he is

beginning

to

convince

us

that

our

love

for

change

and the

novel

and the

new

is not

the answer

to our

satisfaction

problem

we need

to understand

that there

is no

yellow brick

road

there is

no end

of the

rainbow

there is

no

somewhere

else

doing

something

else

being

something

else

there is

no

something

truly

new

that is

going to

make you

or me

happy

under the

sun

this is

the genuine

story of

the world

he says

so stop

believing

and trusting

in that

old saying

the old

old thing

see

something

new

don't

believe

that

don't

trust in

that

to make

you

happy

now

we could

be left

thinking

that our

tour guide

is just

a depressive

we've gone

on around

the world

tour

with

Leonard

Cohen

but

in his

realism

the preacher

actually

is the

ultimate

optimist

about life

because

secondly

and

more

briefly

the second

thing he

says

is

listen to

the joyful

story

there's a

genuine

story

about the

world

but there

is also

joy

in the

world

and

this

part

of his

message

comes

in

another

refrain

that

comes

through

ecclesiastes

from time

to time

there is

this

life

under the

sun

idea

but there

is also

enjoyment

under the

sun

which

is a

gift

from

God

later

in

chapter

3

verse

13

he

says

everyone

should

eat

and

drink

and

take

pleasure

in

all

his

toil

this

is

God's

gift

to

man

seems

contradictory

doesn't

it

he's

just

said

there is

nothing

to be

gained

from

all

of our

toil

under

the

sun

and

now

he's

saying

actually

the

wise

person

can

live

under

the

sun

and

enjoy

themselves

this

is a

gift

from

God

and

the

truth

is

that

if

we

are

constantly

looking

for

change

if

we

think

that

we

can

break

from

this

repetition

in

the

world

and

in

our

lives

if

we

think

that

we

can

gain

something

by

our

changes

whatever

it

is

that

we

think

we've

gained

will

soon

disappear

and

we

will

disappear

along

with it

as

well

but

the

preacher

wants

us

to

see

that

part

of

real

living

in

the

world

is

seeing

that

and

understanding

the

true

limitations

of

this

life

seeing

that

one

day

we

will

be

forgotten

might

actually

put

a

wry

smile

on

our

face

if

the

genuine

truth

is

that

we

live

in

a

repetitive

world

there

in

lies

the

key

to

enjoying

that

world

he

tells

you

that

you

will

never

find

true

gain

under

the

sun

so

that

you

won't

have

to

to

enjoy

this

life

because

he

wants

us

to

desire

something

bigger

and

truer

and

deeper

those

enslaved

to

finding

gain

under

the

sun

will

never

find

it

but

enjoyment

comes

under

the

sun

when

we

know

we

don't

have

to

find

it

and

be

enslaved

to

it

when

we

know

that

we

can't

do

that

on

our

own

the

preacher

gives

us

reality

so

we

can

really

rejoice

and

this

we

will

see

as

we

go

through

Ecclesiastes

is

a

gift

from

God

not

something

that

we

can

strive

to

get

the

preacher

gives

us

reality

so

that

in

the

end

we

can

really

rejoice

this

is

a

gift

from

God

at

times

it's

going

to

be

a

painful

journey

maybe

it's

felt

like

that

this

afternoon

it's

going

to

be

hard

work

this

tour

of the

world

is

not

going

to

be

easy

and

it

may

take

a

while

for

us

to

understand

and

take

the

fruit

from

it

but

he

is

going

to

jar

us

into

seeing

reality

so

that

we

might

receive

the

gift

of

God

not

somewhere

else

doing

something

else

but

here

today

right

here

in

this

world

right

here

under

the

sun

let's

pray

together