"Living Through Adversity" Ecclesiastes 6:10–7:14

Father, we have been in Ecclesiastes for a few weeks, and we've been thankful to you that your desire for us through this book is to open our eyes to what real life is all about.

And yet, every week, we encounter days and hours and minutes of unreality, of lies, of untruths, half-truths, fake-truths.

Lord, we want to live in the truth, in reality, on your terms.

Father, sometimes that can be a very scary thing.

We would much rather be like the ostrich who sticks his head in the sand.

We would rather doom scroll, or watch the next episode, or whatever it may be that causes distractions that help us not to face truth.

But Lord, help us to be brave this morning.

Help us to look at your word and be thankful that even though it is difficult, it is for our benefit and for your glory.

We pray this in Christ's name. Amen.

We live in the modern age. You could say the post-modern age.

I think in some ways it's all the same.

One of the defining characteristics of the modern age that we live in is our obsession with using all of our resources to achieve progress.

Progress in every aspect of human experience.

Progress by any means necessary.

And often, this progress aims to eliminate inconveniences.

Small ones and hardships, big ones.

So that all inconveniences are eliminated entirely.

So that we can, as individuals, maximize our leisure, our recreation, our enjoyment of life.

Hardship, then, is seen as an obstacle to overcome.

But the issue is that hardship and adversity are unavoidable as human beings.

They're a fundamental part of the human experience.

So, yes, we do hard things.

But we don't want to live lives of hardship.

Even if we could resolve the issues of suffering and hardship,

such pleasures would be brief for death.

Also is the universal human experience.

So to the modern mind, to our minds, this is a problem.

And it may be the problem.

The problem of suffering.

The problem of pain.

The problem of adversity.

The problem of hardships.

Even for the Christians.

I'd say most of us are, or at least would confess that we're Christians.

We swim in post-modern waters.

We work post-modern jobs.

We enjoy post-modern media.

We buy post-modern things.

We are moderns.

We are post-modern people.

But what if adversity and hardship weren't problems to solve or avoid at all costs,

but realities to accept where we apply wisdom,

and then applying wisdom to such hardship and adversities, we grow in virtues.

In other words, instead of being obstacles to our happiness,

could life's difficulties serve as the means by which we flourish as individuals?

The sage of Ecclesiastes, far from being a fatalist or a nihilist,

he is guiding us to a sober understanding of life and how to approach and deal with,

in this case, adversity,

so that we may flourish and not fade.

So we're going to consider a few things.

The sage is going to help us to consider a few things.

And here's a bit of a challenge with this,

because the sage has,

up till now,

really observed a lot of what it means to be human beings under the sun.

And now he'll switch it to speaking a number of proverbs to us.

And a lot of them have themes.

Some of them kind of seem like they're a bit out of place.

So I've done my best to kind of organize them in such a way that helps us to approach them

with some understanding this morning in our short time together.

So the sage will help us to approach adversity and hardships

as we consider comfort in our death,

as we consider patience in our humility,

and as we consider wisdom in our limits.

Comfort in our death,

patience in our humility,

wisdom in our limits.

But before the sage gets into these considerations,

he sets the table for us,

for our considerations.

Look with me at verses 10 to 11 of chapter 6.

And we'll be on page 24.

By the way,

I think we have a few more of these scripture journals.

They're our gift to you.

If you don't have one, grab one.

If you're visiting, grab one for sure.

There's some Bibles as well.

Our hope is that you just follow along as we go through God's word.

So, chapter 6, verses 10 to 11.

This is what it says.

Whatever has come to be has already been named,

and it is known what man is,

and that he is not able to dispute with one stronger than he.

The more words, the more vanity.

And what is the advantage to man?

The sage here is describing our reality.

We see ourselves as in control of our destiny.

We can see ourselves as being the strong person.

There's nobody stronger than us.

I mean, there might be people stronger than us,

but humanity at its,

kind of if we're looking at humanity as a whole,

what is stronger?

What is better?

What is,

what is,

sits higher,

who sits higher than mankind?

So we see ourselves as in control of our destiny,

as the king of our existence,

the queens of our existence.

Yet we cannot truly invent or even reinvent ourselves.

We might be able to tweak human life

or make slight improvements,

but we cannot re-engineer who we are

or change our fate as those under the sun.

Now, if you've been tracking with us,

this will be familiar to you

if you're new or visiting.

The sage uses this term under the sun

to describe mortal life.

We are people that live under the sun.

And under the sun is a life of frustration

and difficulty,

what the sage also calls vanity,

like a vapor.

It's here today and gone tomorrow.

Early this morning,

if you went outside,

you would have breathed out mist

out of your mouth.

That is what this life is under the sun.

We are subject to so many forces

beyond our control.

Weather,

politics,

conflicts,

health,

the market,

a flat tire.

I mean, you name it,

there are so many factors

factors

that we experience

that

lay very clearly to us

that

our control

is a fallacy.

We can control some things,

but not everything.

And far less things than we think.

Our life is both finite and fragile.

And the best we can do,

as verse 11 tells us,

only leads to more vanity

since all our efforts result

in little more than a fleeting

moment of improvement,

but result in nothing eternal.

This is what it means

to live under the sun.

What is the point of our mortal life?

The sage poses this question

to us like this,

verse 12.

For who knows

what is good for man

while he lives

the few days

of his vain life

which he passes

like a shadow.

For who can tell man

what will be after him

under the sun?

It seems like a very,

again,

like a

dark question,

like the sage

has come to the end

of his rope.

He is

a terribly

dark

and negative person,

but again,

we have to remember

that

the sage

is helping us

open our eyes

to what reality

is all about.

Okay?

If we live in

a lovely,

beautiful fantasy land,

it is better

for us

to be confronted

with the reality

that is

more like

dark gray clouds

than remain

in a fantasy land

that doesn't

truly exist.

So the sage

asks these questions.

For who knows

what is good for a man

while he lives

the few days

of his vain life

which he passes

like a shadow?

For who can tell man

what will be after him

under the sun?

And then he begins

these considerations.

Look with me

at our first consideration.

A consideration

of comfort

that we ought to take

comfort in our death.

Verses 1 to 4.

It's on page 24

and 26

in the Scripture Journal.

A good name

is better than

precious ointment

and the day of death

than the day of birth.

It is better

to go to the house

of mourning

than to go to the house

of feasting.

For this is the end

of all mankind

and the living

will lay it to heart.

Sorrow is better

than laughter

for by

sadness of face

the heart

is made glad.

The heart of the wise

is the house

of mourning

but the heart

of fools

is in the house

of mirth.

Death,

mourning,

sorrow,

and sadness.

I would never talk

of these things

in a positive light.

I don't think

you would either.

Yet the sage

is suggesting

that these things

are more beneficial

than birth,

than feasting,

than laughter,

than merriment.

Somehow,

in the sage's mind,

going to a funeral

is better than

going to a wedding.

It seems very

counterintuitive.

But again,

remember,

the sage

is speaking

in a type of way

to shake us

out of our

fantasy life,

to direct our gaze

to what real life

is about.

So he uses

jarring words

to jar us out

of our malaise.

The thing with

birth and feasting

and festivities

is that as we

engage with them,

life feels endless

and expansive.

And so it should.

There are no

boundaries to what

the future could hold.

You hold a young

child in your hands,

a newborn,

and it's like

all of potential

goodness is in your arms.

This child's life

is just open.

You wish the best

of a child.

You don't hold a child

and somehow think

this kid's going to

really screw it up.

Instead you think,

wow,

life is ahead of this

wonderful little

bundle of joy.

Happiness and abundance

seem infinite.

Yet adversity,

like death and mourning,

remind us

that life is fleeting.

It's truly fleeting.

And not just fleeting,

but extremely limited.

We don't have

boundless bounty

at our fingertips.

We don't have

infinite happiness.

Besides,

even when we

encounter something

that brings us

happiness,

that seems almost

too good to be true,

these feelings

tend to diminish

over time.

Our experiences

are temporary.

And when we

continually pursue

these experiences

that seem to

bring us joy,

they do not

provide the same

joy as they did

the first time.

It's similar to

how a fragrance,

this is what the sage

is getting at in verse 1,

how a fragrance

smells wonderful

for a few hours

before fading away.

And all too often

as modern people,

we seek out mirth

and laughter

and happiness

not as something

to necessarily enjoy,

but as a way

to distract ourselves

from life's difficulties.

We embrace

entertainment

not merely as leisure,

but as a form

of survival

because we have

believed the lie

that reality

of this mortal life

is too hard

to face.

But again,

the sage is telling us

consider death,

consider the end

of life

to see what reality

is all about,

that there are

ups and downs

and hopefully

if we are shaken

from

our fantasy land,

we will see that

yes,

there is enjoyment,

yes,

there's happiness,

there is laughter,

but it is vanity,

it is vaporous.

And hopefully

the idea would be

as we see

that life is

brief

and fragile,

that we will

begin to live

a wise life,

we will begin

to reform our ways.

I'll give an example,

it's very personal.

My father died

a couple of years ago

as many of you guys know

and we were not

on good terms

when he passed away.

It was

a pretty sad situation

but in my mind

I just thought

I have

infinite

opportunities

in the future

to reconcile

with him.

Now it wasn't

all on me,

okay,

but in my mind

tomorrow

was always

going to happen

with my father.

I took

the future

for granted

and with his death

I was shaken up.

I thought

what I had

would be there

for the taking

and it was

snatched away.

And with his death

I reconsidered

my approach

to a few areas

in my life.

I won't get into it

but it shook me

out of a false sense

that I would have

unlimited

second chances

not just for

reconciliation

but in other areas

of my life.

The whole idea

of a guaranteed

silver lining

is not

a guarantee

at all.

Growing wiser

from that experience

is an ongoing journey.

I am far

from there.

I still

in many ways

take for granted

tomorrow

but realizing

that life

is much shorter

than I believed

it to be

and far more

fragile

than I'd like

to admit

friends

it's genuinely

genuinely

it's been a gift.

It's been a gift.

It's been a gift

from God

to me

and

in some ways

to my family

as well.

we see things

like new life

and feasting

and celebrations

as gifts

to cherish

this is the way

we should see them

not as goals

to chase

such things

cannot bring

eternal happiness

because we live

a mortal life

under the sun

but they can

certainly be

appreciated

for the gifts

they are.

So you see

the sage

when he is saying

consider death

consider mourning

being greater

than laughter

and death

being

the day of death

being greater

than the day

of your birth

what he is saying

to us

is that it affords us

the opportunity

to orient

our life

our hearts

our minds

our priorities

our money

the things

that make us

us

so that we can

treasure our days

and

to look

towards a future

to take advantage

of the opportunities

that we have

and to not assume

that the future

that is in front of us

is a given

it also helps us

to fight the pride

that blinds us

to the reality

of life

so it's not just

that we think

tomorrow is guaranteed

but we

we have a pridefulness

within us

where we think

that we can live

on our terms

as opposed to God's

and this brings us

to the second point

the sage is helping us

to consider

humility

over pride

verses 5 to 10

it is better

for a man

to hear the rebuke

of the wise

than to hear

the song of fools

for as the crackling

of thorns

under a pot

so is the laughter

of the fools

this also is vanity

surely oppression

drives the wise

into madness

and a bribe

corrupts the heart

better is the end

of a thing

than its beginning

and the patient

in spirit

is better

than the proud

in spirit

be not quick

in your spirit

to become angry

for anger

lodges

in the heart

of fools

say not

why were the former

days better

than these

for it is not

from wisdom

that you ask this

the sage

again

he is trying

to show us

a better way

you'll notice

that he is

he is constantly

saying

better is

better is

better is

he wants to help

us to understand

that

the life of pride

is not a better

way to live

but rather

the life

of humility

listen

there are no

and maybe

there's some

actually

but I'm sure

that there are

hardly any

self-confessed

fools amongst

us

you might not

think you're

overly wise

or smart

but a fool

I doubt it

yet verse 5

envisions a

single wise

person offering

tough but godly

admonition

compared to a

crowd of fools

singing sweet

nothings that

lead others

astray

the wise are

always a

smaller group

than the fools

and it serves

as a warning

for us to

humbly consider

whether we are

either singing

along with fools

or listening to

their song

it's hopefully

pushing us

towards listening

to the wisdom

of the wise

and what does

the wisdom

of the wise

look like

often times

it's constructive

criticism

it's

sometimes

it's

unsolicited

advice

although

often times

we are

harder to

accept that

nevertheless

constructive

criticism

unsolicited

advice

it's not

always pleasant

to hear

in the moment

certainly not

as pleasant

as the sweet

words of

flattery

and praise

but they stand

up much better

under the weight

of hardship

especially

compared to

the foolish

words that

as we see

in verse 6

are described

as insubstantial

as insubstantial

as ash

okay

it does not

do us

any good

when suffering

in

when we are

suffering

and struggling

to hear a

massive

load of

flattery

that only

worsens

our hardship

sometimes

the hardest

words to

hear

are the

ones that

bring

life

will we

be humble

enough to

consider them

the sage

is asking

us

will we

embrace

pride

and be

counted

as

amongst

the fools

or will

we heed

the wisdom

of the wise

in a humble

way

and yet

even if

we avoid

foolish

advice

how do

we deal

with the

problem

of oppression

and corruption

we see this

in verse 7

and following

such issues

are unfair

and they

undermine

the sound

advice

of the wise

because with

corruption

one tries

to enjoy

all the

benefits

of a good

life

without any

of the hard

work

that's entailed

with it

it's like

cheating

so that you

run the last

kilometer

of the marathon

and you claim

to have run

the previous

41 grueling

kilometers

it's a way

of cheating

a corrupted

soul

arises

within us

when we

bribe

and cheat

or oppress

as these

actions

compromise

our integrity

or they

impair

our judgment

we begin

to see

that pride

although

feels good

it starts

to deaden

our soul

instead of

seeking the

truth

we become

attached

to our

biases

and not

the truth

we do

not

become

calm

and considerate

but unfair

and angry

this is the

nature of

pride

there is no

goodness

in pride

sages

teaching us

to avoid

such pride

and anger

we must be

patient

and self

controlled

by the way

this isn't

telling us

not to be

angry

the sage

isn't a

zen

sage

but what

he is

telling us

is not

to nurture

or nourish

anger

we cannot

allow

anger

if our

life

is a

garden

I use

this analogy

a lot

with my

boy

if our

life

is like

a garden

we cannot

allow

weeds

to grow

up

not one

not one

square foot

of your

life

should be

devoted

to anger

or pride

do not

set up a

trellis

so that

it may

grow up

do not

water it

so that

it may

be

nourished

anger

is a

weed

pride

is a

weed

that

will

choke

out

all

other

virtues

bitterness

as well

it feels

justified

and satisfying

to engage

with an

angry heart

a bitter

heart

even if

you have

truly been

wronged

engaging

in sharp

words

or damaging

a reputation

behind someone's

back

it feels

good in

the moment

it feels

sweet

it's

justified

but allowing

resentment

to grow

between

spouses

and siblings

parents

and children

colleagues

and neighbors

it is

not a

recipe

for a

wise life

but a

foolish

one

one that

interestingly

will result

in death

relational

death

emotional

death

friends

the sage

is helping

us to see

that when

adversity

comes

and it

will

and we

are faced

with a

choice

between

a prideful

anger

or a

humble

patience

and

forbearance

only the

latter

will enable

us to

live

soberly

and wisely

finally

the last

bit

in verse

10

we must

resist

the urge

to long

for the

past

as if

it were

free

from any

difficulties

we currently

face

it's another

form of

impatience

and pride

we

become

unwilling

to confront

present

hardships

and find

ways to

overcome

or work

through

the things

that we

find so

difficult

this isn't

a complete

condemnation

of nostalgia

I think

it's a

wonderful

thing

to

reminisce

to think

about

wonderful

memories

but it

can also

cause

problems

for two

big

reasons

the

first

we

can

glorify

the

past

in such

a way

that forgets

or excuses

the sins

of the

past

the

1950s

weren't

somehow

a sin

free

existence

and then

the TV

came

and then

the sexual

revolution

came

and then

the smartphone

came

and then

that's when

sin really

took root

okay

I mean

listen

there might

be better

eras

than ours

ours might

be better

than others

the point

is when

we say

that

you know

I wish

it were

like

yesteryear

I wish

it was

like

my parents

generation

we are

failing

to see

that sin

is a

pervasive

thing

that can

take over

everything

and does

take over

everything

the second

it can

diminish

our

motivations

to live

wisely

and righteously

in the present

and the future

we can

become

self-righteous

we

look at

the

fantastic

life

and

of the

previous

generation

and somehow

stand morally

higher than

the generation

we are

currently in

but this

only

perpetuates

pride

okay

it perpetuates

pride

it does not

allow us to

take a

self-inventory

and deal with

our own sin

and our own

messed up-ness

this brings us

to our final

point

as those who

feel the

limitations

as those who

live under the

sun

verses 11

and 12

we'll read

together

wisdom

is good

with an

inheritance

an advantage

to those

who see

the sun

for the

protection

of wisdom

is like

the protection

of money

and the

advantage

of knowledge

is that

wisdom

preserves

the life

of him

who has

it

wisdom

serves

a

preservative

role

it certainly

does

much like

money

and even

and especially

surpasses

money

and its

ability

to safeguard

life

however

ultimately

wisdom

has its

limits

in protecting

our lives

indefinitely

it cannot

guarantee

a life

free

of hardship

or a

certain future

for the next

generation

mortal beings

who rely on

wisdom

in their

lives

do not

become

immortal

or even

superhuman

wisdom

is still

in this

realm

of

under the

sun

even

as we

grow

in

wisdom

we

still

are

living

lives

that

are

often

full

of

vanity

and

prone

to

frustration

and

confusion

and I'm

not saying

that you

should

then not

bother

with

wisdom

you should

totally

bother

with

wisdom

embrace

it

but just

know

that

the

life

you are

living

where you

are pursuing

wisdom

is

temporary

and it's

fleeting

and while

wisdom

certainly

can preserve

our life

making good

decisions

usually results

in a

better life

lived

a healthier

life

lived

it does

so only

in an

earthly

sense

not in

an

eternal

one

even

though

as we

saw

back in

chapter 3

verse 11

that God

has written

eternity

into our

hearts

going back

to the

beginning

bit about

us

moderns

we spend

billions

and billions

and billions

of dollars

trying to

fix

our

life

to make

straight

what the

Lord

seems to

have made

crooked

yet our

best efforts

have not

removed

adversity

or hardships

the problem

of pain

still persists

evil

endures

death

remains the

reality

for us

all

and here's a

consideration

with all

this

are we

really

on the

cusp

of cracking

the code

that would

let us

live

forever

are we

one

invention

away

from

eliminating

evil

what if

we

discovered

a way

to live

forever

but never

solve the

problem

of pain

we would

simply seek

out death

only to

find it

elusive

perhaps we

could eliminate

evil

and pain

but still

have to

face

mortality

it would

be like

tasting

heaven

for a

moment

and then

having it

stolen

away

forever

it's a

kind of

torture

therefore

at the

end of

this

investigation

the

sage

does

not

state

that

the

ultimate

goal

of

human

wisdom

is

life

is

wisdom

in life

to find

salvation

in life

through

wisdom

instead

he encourages

us

rather to

reflect on

the work

of God

he's saying

listen

wisdom

is fantastic

but it

has

even

wisdom

has

its

ends

he asks

us to

consider

two

things

verses

13

and

14

consider

the work

of God

who

can

make

straight

what

he

has

made

crooked

verse

14

page

28

in the

day

of

prosperity

be

joyful

and in

the

day

of

adversity

consider

God

has

made

the

one

as

well

as

the

other

so

that

man

may

not

find

out

anything

that

will

be

after

him

the

sage

tells

us

that

the

ultimate

goal

of

wisdom

is

to

know

God

and

especially

his

sovereignty

over life

his plans

his purposes

are ultimately

beyond our

understanding

as we cannot

fully grasp

them

he allows us

to face

hardships

that we

might seem

that might

seem unfair

or unjust

and we

don't

understand

why

he's

touched

on it

in

previous

sections

but has

not

somehow

offered

an

ultimate

reason

however

what the

sage is

trying to

help us

understand

is that

God

is

sovereign

sovereign

over

both

the past

the present

and future

not only

is he

wise

but he

is also

the source

of wisdom

recognizing

our limitations

in light

of this

in light

of God's

sovereignty

is incredibly

good news

for us

for it means

we will stop

relying on

our own

ingenuity

!

for salvation

our own

wisdom

for salvation

for there is

no salvation

outside of him

because we

can't somehow

transcend

a life

under the sun

and yet

we are

destined for

eternity

I'll wrap

it up

with this

will we

venture

to entrust

our lives

to the

sovereign

God

who

instills

in us

a longing

for eternal

life

with him

even though

we still

face adversity

and hardship

in this

life

will we

humble

ourselves

or will

we allow

ourselves

to get

bitter

towards

God

although

we can

never fully

comprehend

God's

character

or his

ways

we know

that his

desire

is to

resolve

our

dilemma

to save

us from

the hardships

and the

challenges

of this

mortal

life

to give

us an

eternal

home

with him

Jesus

in John

11

says this

verse 25

and 26

I am the

resurrection

and the

life

whoever

believes

in me

though he

die

yet shall

he live

and everyone

who lives

and believes

in me

shall never

die

and then

he asks

do you

believe

this

this

fundamentally

changes

how we

live

now

if we

live

with this

understanding

that

through

Christ

God

has made

a way

for us

to

endure

hardships

endure

adversity

and to

be rescued

from it

one day

by being

in his

presence

being with

him

forever

it will

change

the way

we live

in the

present

for we

can enjoy

life's

joys

and endure

adversity

and pain

in a

virtuous way

because our

hope

is in the

Lord

and he

is sovereign

the

apostle

Paul

after

quite

the

few

chapters

chapters

9

10

and 11

he

ends

this

kind of

mini gospel

within

Romans

with this

verses

33

and 36

friends

this is

a life

that

understands

the difficulties

that we

face

and yet

looks to

eternity

and can

endure

all

things

because

Christ

is with

him

let this

be our

cry

by God's

strength

let us

follow suit

to Christ

alone be

the glory

amen

let us

pray

father

when we

experience

hardships

and

difficulties

and adversities

!

Help us

not to

quickly

find

distraction

from them

but

Lord

rather

bring

them

to

you

and

trust

that

you

will

help

us

to

endure

that

they

will

through

the

consideration

of

death

and

and

the

foolishness

of

pride

and our

own

limitations

that

we

will

become

wise

unto

salvation

that

we

will

look

to

you

and

not

ourselves

Lord

help

us

we

believe

but

Lord

help

our

unbelief

in

Christ's

name

amen