The Pursuit of Happiness Ecclesiastes 2:1-11 The challenge of ...

The Pursuit of Happiness
Ecclesiastes 2:1-11
The challenge of preaching Ecclesiastes.
Before we look at Solomon’s discoveries, I want to say a word or two about
the challenge of preaching from a book such as Ecclesiastes. As a preacher, I
face two special challenges in preaching systematically from this book. The first is
the challenge of thoroughness.
Challenge of Audience.
The root of the word disease is dis-ease. It means to loose your ease, your
comfort ability. As a speaker, I do things to help people stay with me as I speak. I
vary my tone and cadence, I keep eye contact, I mix story and argument, I even
throw in the occasional joke or two. As a preacher, I know those times when
people have lost their ease. They fidget, they loose eye contact, they stretch in
their seat, they yawn, and their minds wander.
Sometimes the material makes the task of keeping a congregation’s
attention more challenging. Solomon declares that one reason why life is
challenging is because of its repetitiveness. Nothing is new. And to emphasize that
point, Solomon repeats it. Again. And again. He drives the point home with
depressing forcefulness. The temptation for the audience as it listens to Solomon’s
observations is to grow tired and impatient. We say to someone who belabors a
point, ‘I get it, move on.’ We seek to deal with the dis-ease by changing the
subject. But Solomon’s point is that though we may say that we get the point, we
really don’t. We still do not see clearly that full repetitive sweep of things. We still
are tempted to place our faith in things under the sun.
We began this study series saying that we would be unblinking in our look at
Solomon’s message. For this reason, though it sometimes may tax our attention
span and staying power, we let each of his points have its allotted impact; we seek
to hear all that he has to say. That said; let me turn to the second, related
challenge in preaching from Ecclesiastes: the challenge of argument.
Challenge of Argument.
Many people in the modern world have forgotten (or never been taught) how
to argue. Modern Americans tend to bless or dismiss rather than engage and
discuss. Ask someone, “How was the movie?” and most likely they will reply that
they, “Liked it a lot;” or they “did not care for it.” Either / Or. Up or down. Black or
white. This was not always so. You are aware of the famous Lincoln / Douglas
debates regarding slavery. Did you know that the format provided three hours of
debate? And, the debates regularly ran longer than the allotted time! In the modern
world, people often substitute slogans and dismissal for sustained argument. There
is a lack of patience with those with whom we disagree.

If my assessment of the modern world is accurate, you can see the
challenge in studying a book such as Ecclesiastes. In it Solomon is presenting a
sustained effort to think clearly and insightfully on a single topic: where is
satisfaction and meaning in life to be found? Because it is a sustained argument,
we do not arrive quickly at Solomon’s answer. There is the getting through parts
that we have to get through. Solomon is going to look at all the possible answers
the world gives before he gets around to giving the answer he proposes. This
means we have to stick with it. We have to follow the argument patiently. This is
the third message in the series and so far each has been a series of demolitions as
Solomon has considered possible answers to his quest only to discard them as
vain, repetitious and unfruitful. Why does Solomon argue in this way? It is only
after a long walk in a desert that you begin to comprehend how precious and sweet
fresh water really is.
Solomon's search for life's meaning in pleasure
I thought in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.”
In the closing verses of chapter 1, in his quest for meaning, Solomon
explored the pleasures of the intellect. This week, in these verses from chapter 2,
he explores the pleasures of the senses. Many in our world believe that this is
where ultimate satisfaction will be found, in the pleasures of life. Many think that if
only life could be a never ending spring break; if we could only find a way to live at
the Magic Kingdom; if only life could be all vacation and no work; then we would
find satisfaction. So Solomon goes off on a systematic tour of the potential places
where pleasure can be found in life to see if an abundance of such experience
could bring joy and satisfaction to his heart.
The first place he stops is mirth, laughter, comedy.
Mirth
2
“Laughter,” I said, “is foolish. And what does pleasure accomplish?”
Someone once said that there are three types of discovery in life. There is
the discover of beauty – aaah. There is the discovery of science – ah hah! Thirdly,
there is the discovery of comedy – ha ha. This is the pleasure of our fancy, of
laughing at the world and seeing its folly. Laughter is an important thing. It has its
place in life.
But laughter alone cannot bring joy to life any more than a laugh track on a
television show means that what has been said or done is really funny. Sadly,
comedy today is increasingly crude and lewd; making clear that, when it comes to
a search for meaning and fulfillment, this option has died on stage.
Food and Drink
3
I tried cheering myself with wine,

The next thing Solomon considers is his palate: the possibility of food and
drink bringing fulfillment. He may have in mind not just the taste of food and drink,
but the ambiance that can accompany the enjoyment of such pleasures: the
backyard grill out; the five star restaurant; popcorn and peanuts at a ball game.
Nearly everyone, I think, has certain comfort foods: food we eat when depressed,
foods that remind us of home or happy times.
Food is a good thing. It is remarkable the manner in which we humans can
take the raw food God provides us in nature and, through preparation, spices,
cooking, sauces and artistic presentation create works of culinary art. We do not
just eat, we create through our cooking. For this reason, the best chefs can make
an occupation based upon their cooking skill. But making a living and defining
ultimate reality are not the same thing. Solomon knows that, in spite of all the
pleasure eating and drinking can provide us in life, meaning will not be found there.
Those who seek to find fulfillment in food and drink simply become gluttons.
Frivolity
and embracing folly—my mind still guiding me with wisdom. I wanted to see what
was worthwhile for men to do under heaven during the few days of their lives.
Some folk embrace life by not taking it seriously. The Atkinson family are
great fans of the stories of P. G. Wodehouse, especially those revolving around the
characters Jeeves and Bertie Wooster. At the same time, a legitimate criticism of
Wodehouse’s stories can be made from the fact that out of the ninety plus books
he wrote during his life, not one ever deals with anything serious. In the end,
Wodehouse is guilty of approaching life frivolously. Some people deal with life by
not taking it seriously. These folk live on the surface of life. For these folks, the
spiritual and unseen world is a complete unknown. They never talk about deep
subjects, never engage in spirited debate. These folk know how to talk only about
themselves, what they have done or what has happened to them. Solomon
considered the possibility of leading a life of whimsy. Maybe the solution to
satisfaction is to not take life seriously: to whole heartedly embrace lightness and
fluff.
The difficulty, of course, is that sooner or later, the trauma, tragedy and pain
of life must be seen. It must be acknowledged, and the verdict will be rendered
that this too was vanity.
So far Solomon has pondered laughter, food and drink, and whimsy as
possible sources of fulfillment. Next, he considers duty.
Duty
4
I undertook great projects:
In a James Bond movie there is a scene in which Bond, off on one of his
many improbable adventures, takes the initiative, going beyond what his handlers
had asked of him. One supervisor sneers out the question, “what does he think he

is doing?’ Bond’s boss, M, replies simply, ‘his job.’ This is a popular movie myth
that doing one’s job, doing one’s duty, is all that is needed to find meaning,
fulfillment and satisfaction in life. Solomon tells us in this phrase that he pursued
‘great projects.’ The idea is that he gave himself to the pursuit of accomplishment,
seeking the sense of profound satisfaction that arises from knowledge of a job well
done. It is the pleasure that accompanies a soldier when he hears the words
‘mission accomplished.’
Solomon knows that it takes more. In addition to duty, he also builds
memorials.
Monuments
I built houses for myself
Ambrose Bierce, in his Devils Dictionary, points out that a mausoleum is the
final and funniest folly of the rich. One of the primary functions of colleges and
universities these days is to provide opportunities for the rich to name things after
themselves. Moving to Pennsylvania three years ago I met clergy colleagues who
had graduated from Palmer Seminary. I had never heard of Palmer Seminary.
Then I learned that the Palmer family gave a lot of money to Eastern Baptist
Seminary – which I certainly had heard of – and so they renamed the institution.
You give the money and the university will be happy to slap your name on the
outside. Solomon understood the desire. He built things too. All of the things he
built lie in ruins and are gone.
Gardening and Water Works
and planted vineyards. 5 I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees
in them..
6
I made reservoirs to water groves of flourishing trees.
It is hot in the Middle East. Shade trees, reservoirs and flowing water are
precious things that provide relief from the heat, escape from the sun and water for
the parched and thirsty. Solomon is not writing about water parks, log flume rides
or beaches. He is talking about public service, planning ahead on how to gather in
reservoirs precious rainwater when it comes and how to plant and water precious
shade trees to provide relief from the long summer sun. Maybe satisfaction will be
found in pursuing public works, doing good deeds, putting in the effort to make the
world a better place.
I read the story of a man who had a truly outstanding flower garden, full of
ornamental plants and exotic flowers, arranged in patterns pleasing to the eye and
satisfying to soul. He was working in it one day when a neighbor happened by for a
visit. The neighbor, looking at all the patterned beauty around him in the garden,
declared, “what a great job you and the Lord have done with this garden.’ His
friend thought for a moment and said, ‘well, you should have seen it when the good
Lord was watching out for himself.’ Solomon understood: the fruit trees must be

pruned; the bugs must be sprayed; the plants arranged; the rows weeded; and the
work is never ending. Fulfillment will not be found in growing things.
Next, Solomon wonders if maybe the search can be fulfilled more closely to
home.
Household Management
7
I bought male and female slaves and had other slaves who were born in my house.
There is a sense of satisfaction that comes from successfully managing a
household. It follows that the larger the household one manages, the more
satisfaction one can obtain. Households today, especially in Europe and North
America, tend to be single family. In nations where the cost of labor is cheap, a
household may include a maid, gardener, or nanny. The rich today manage
households of multiple people. Every newly minted rock star wants his own retinue,
that group of flunkies and hangers on who accompany him and who, by their
presence, show to the world the rock star’s importance. The successful
management of a household is an important and challenging skill, but it is not a
road to fulfillment. Solomon looks upon this and says, ‘been there: done that.’
Next, Solomon considers if fulfillment can be found by being the best, by
being number one.
Being Number One
I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem before me.
The accent in this phrase falls upon the word more: Solomon had more
possessions, more of the obvious evidence of accomplishment in life, than any
who had come before him. I saw a bumper sticker one time that said, ‘He who dies
with the most toys wins.’ Wins what, I wondered? Some think that satisfaction will
be found in winning the race to acquire things; to keep up with the Jones’, or to rise
to the top of your game. Yet in our world the frequent reports of celebrities
checking themselves into rehabilitation clinics makes clear that fame is not all it is
believed to be. There was a movie in the 80’s titled Fame. The words of the title
song, sung by Irene Cara, declared “Fame! I’m gonna live forever.” No, you are
not. Ask Michael Jackson, Farah Fawcet, or Karl Malden.
Solomon next considers wealth.
Wealth and Rarities
I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces.
Solomon did not just have cattle and flocks, he had gold and silver too.
Gobs of it. In James Clavel’s novel Nobel House several characters talk about their
desire to have ‘drop dead money.’ What they mean is to have so much money that
they are independently free from all restraint or obligation: free to say ‘drop dead’
to anything or anyone who fails to please them. Some believe that life’s fulfillment

will come with complete, total, and absolute financial freedom. This too is a myth.
Some people have their drop dead money. They have complete financial freedom,
possessing more money than they know what to do with. Some of the richest
individuals in our world are richer than some nations. When you get to that level of
wealth, is there anything more you can possible desire? Solomon knew. Wealth
alone, even great wealth, does not finally satisfy. You begin to look for other things
upon which to set your heart. The reference here is not just to the number of toys
you die with, but their rarity: the Faberge egg, the original Rembrandt, or the
Lamborghini. Solomon knows that money does not change the inward person.
There are many who have all the wealth they desire, and the rarities to accompany
it, yet are still inwardly unfulfilled and spiritually empty.
Lastly, Solomon looks towards music.
Music
I acquired men and women singers, and musical instruments as well
Solomon filled his home with musicians and singers and musical
instruments. The food, the riches, the accomplishments, the precious things he has
listed so far have not filled the void in his heart. Perhaps what was needed was a
different sensory vehicle: the ear. Music has the ability to carry emotion and
provoke memory. Perhaps music would fill his soul and satisfy its longing. He
brought into his household the finest musicians and singers to inspire and distract
him in his days. Today we might seek to buy the best home theater system. This
too, proved ultimately unsatisfactory, for music, even great music, ceases to exist
as soon as it has ceased to sound. Like looking in a mirror and then turning a way,
when the music stops, it ceases; neither can it fill the vacuum in the soul.
Solomon’s thought, effort, and actions lead him to pronounce a verdict on
the possibility of finding meaning and satisfaction in the sensory pleasures of life.
Solomon's verdict
10
I denied myself nothing my eyes desired;
I refused my heart no pleasure.
My heart took delight in all my work,
and this was the reward for all my labor.
11
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
nothing was gained under the sun.
Do you know the Legend of the Wandering Jew? As the legend has it, there
was a Jewish man who, while watching the Lord Jesus carry his cross, mocked
him. This man is then condemned to wander the earth until Judgment Day. In the
version I know, the wanderer’s name is Ahasuerus. The punishment he bears is
not what we might at first think it to be. Ahasuerus is the ultimate expression of the
attitude – “been there, done that.” He wanders the earth, aimlessly, having been

everywhere and done everything; nothing satisfies; nothing is new. Like the cursed
pirates in the movie Pirates of the Caribbean, he cares for nothing, he feels
nothing, and he enjoys nothing.
At the end of the six days of creation, God looked out upon all that he had
made and he declared “behold it was very good.” Solomon, after searching through
all of God’s creation, looks out upon it and he declares, “behold it is all vanity.”
Nothing met his expectation. Nothing satisfies his soul. Nothing brings fulfillment.
Put him up on the stage to sing a duet with Mick Jagger: “I can’t get no
satisfaction.”
Where does Solomon's search take place? “Under the Sun”
Before we grow too depressed over where Solomon’s quest has taken us, I
need to add a contextual word about jurisdiction. Jurisdiction refers to the sphere in
which an authority is valid. It refers to the limits of a territory. We live in the
commonwealth of Pennsylvania, part of the United States of America. This is our
jurisdiction. This identifies the laws we live under and the loyalties we affirm.
Where does Solomon’s search take place? What jurisdiction is he under?
He tells us explicitly. Solomon’s jurisdiction is ‘under the sun.’ This is where his
verdict is rendered: ‘under the sun.’ This is the jurisdiction in which his verdict is
true: “under the sun.” Solomon declares that if you search in creation, this is what
you find: all is vanity. There is no profit under that sun. No satisfaction or fulfillment
will be found in creation.
What is missing?
What is the limitation in Solomon’s jurisdiction? What is missing from his
observation? Or better, who is missing? God. Solomon’s inquiry has been a wholly
secular inquiry. All he has done so far is apart from and independent of God. It is
independent of any and all spiritual truth or guidance. Solomon has described for
us what you get if you try to search for life’s meaning without God. Carl Sagan, the
atheist physicist asked of the universe, ‘is it Cosmos or Chaos?’ Without God, it is
chaos. Chaos is what you get if you seek to construct the meaning of your world
without God.
The most famous song out of the classic movie The Wizard of Oz is
Somewhere over the Rainbow. Lost in the chaos of the Land of Oz, Dorothy knows
that there must be a place that will bring the fulfillment and satisfaction she longs
for in life. Dorothy wants to go home. She knows that home will not be found in Oz.
Is there a place beyond what she sees? Is there a place that is not under the sun
of Oz? Is there a place beyond this?
The Christian answer is that this world is not all there is to life. In the Nicene
Creed we confess that we believe in all that is, seen and unseen. An important
confession that. The world is not all there is to life. Life under the sun is not all that

matters. There is an unseen world that provides the spiritual nourishment we need
to find hope, purpose and meaning in our world. This is the world that is pointed to
in the message of the gospel of Christ. As Paul writes in the opening chapter of his
letter to Ephesus, 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who
has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even
as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and
blameless before him. 1
As we close, let me ask, ‘whose jurisdiction are you living under today?’ Are
you living simply ‘under the sun,’ in a world where God is missing, unimportant,
ignored? You can try to live there. Many do. But Solomon makes clear that in the
end, that jurisdiction is a dry and parched land.
If you want to find meaning and purpose in life, look to God. Turn to God as
he is revealed to us in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the key. He is the
one who gives life its meaning. He is the one who, through faith in him, enables us
to claim and enjoy all the true pleasures of life.
Say 'Amen' Somebody
1
The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Eph 1:3-4). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.

I thought in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.”
But that also proved to be meaningless. 2 “Laughter,” I said, “is foolish. And what does
pleasure accomplish?” 3 I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing folly—my mind
still guiding me with wisdom. I wanted to see what was worthwhile for men to do under
heaven during the few days of their lives.
4
I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. 5 I made
gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. 6 I made reservoirs to water
groves of flourishing trees. 7 I bought male and female slaves and had other slaves who
were born in my house. I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem
before me. 8 I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I
acquired men and women singers, and a harem a as well—the delights of the heart of man. 9
I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me. In all this my wisdom stayed
with me.
10
I denied myself nothing my eyes desired;
I refused my heart no pleasure.
My heart took delight in all my work,
and this was the reward for all my labor.
11
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
nothing was gained under the sun.
a The meaning of the Hebrew for this phrase is uncertain.