Isn’t there more to life? With all that there is to bring me pleasure why do I hurt so much? This question was raised in the Bible by a guy named Solomon in the book of Ecclesiastes. We are continuing our series called “Chasing the Wind”
Solomon was so wealthy, he could afford life’s most luxurious pleasures. And that’s exactly what he did. Solomon attempted to fill his life with every possible pleasure he could think of. Solomon decided he was going to conduct an experiment. Listen to what he says,
1 I said to myself, “Come on, let’s try pleasure. Let’s look for the ‘good things’ in life.” But I found that this, too, was meaningless. Ecclesiastes 2:1
Solomon tried to live for pleasure but found it to be lacking. As I mentioned before this is one of our gods in America: pleasure. Our mantra: “If it feels good do it!” I’ll say this right from the beginning; there is nothing wrong with pleasure. God wants you to have pleasure, the problem is when we try to make it the GOAL of our lives. When we make pleasure the MAIN THING we live for it will let us down.
Like Solomon, Do I Live for …
· Alcohol or Drugs
3 After much thought, I decided to cheer myself with wine… Ecclesiastes 2:3
Solomon began his experiment with alcohol. I wonder how many of us have given alcohol and drugs a test drive or two? I won’t ask for a show of hands! Practically ever hand would be up. The latest statistics from show that there are 19 million Americans addicted to alcohol. One out of every 12 adults is addicted to alcohol or abuses alcohol. Everyday 12,000 people are trying alcohol for the first time! Every single day, fifty-two people die due to alcohol abuse and addiction. [1] I think of my own stupidity with alcohol and how I could have died on my 21st birthday party from alcohol poisoning.
What about drugs? Listen to these headlines from just one year in Time Magazine, Study: Teen Drug Use Worsening Prescribed Narcotic Abuse Spreads The Newest Addictions on Campus Study: Rock Stars Do Die Young The Science Of Addiction
Then there’s trying to live for
- House and Garden
4 I also tried to find meaning by building huge homes for myself and by planting beautiful vineyards. 5 I made gardens and parks, filling them with all kinds of fruit trees. 6 I built reservoirs to collect the water to irrigate my many flourishing groves. Ecclesiastes 2:4-6
Solomon built homes and created magnificent gardens and parks that were majestic in beauty, color, and smell. He even implemented his engineering expertise by building intricate irrigation systems to water his vineyards, parks, and gardens. This is the way the rich and famous would live and Solomon immersed himself in them. Yet, at closer inspection Solomon says these things didn’t ultimately satisfy. The same is true for us. We spend billions on homes. Real estate and home building are at a fevered pitch. Notice how the Home Depots and Lowes keep popping up, they are cashing in, this is big business in the U.S.! The American dream consists of owning our own home. Most Americans own their own home and can fill it with stuff but we are not happier. Living standards keep rising year after year in America but personal, family and life satisfaction has not![2]
I think of my own attitude toward this, when Niki and I first got married we lived in a 900 square foot house with no dishwasher, central heat or air, yet we were happy. We later moved into another house in Fort Worth that was smaller, one little bathroom that you better have your pants down and before you get in there! We look back at those times with wonderful memories as a newly married couple. Now we have been blessed so much and have more than we could ever want, yet in moments of weakness we find our selves wanting more.
- Possessions and Money
You would think by now Solomon would start getting the picture, especially since he possessed the most brilliant mind the world has ever known. But, unfortunately, Solomon is like many of us, he’s determined to try something else to make pleasure work. So…Solomon tries possessions and money.
7 I bought slaves, both men and women, and others were born into my household. I also owned large herds and flocks, more than any of the kings who had lived in Jerusalem before me. 8 I collected great sums of silver and gold, the treasure of many kings and provinces… Ecclesiastes 2:7-8a
Solomon had Bill Gates kind of wealth. He had more money at his disposal then he knew what to do with. Gold and silver were as common as stone during the days of Solomon. Unfortunately for Solomon, even in the midst of fortune and wealth beyond our wildest dreams, he still found the pleasure of wealth lacking, and empty.
Actor Jim Carey was quoted saying, “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.”
· Entertainment
Solomon moved on to America’s favorite pastime, entertainment.
…I hired wonderful singers, both men and women… Ecclesiastes 2: 8b
2 So I said, “Laughter is silly. What good does it do to seek pleasure?” Ecclesiastes 2:2
- SexXX
You will notice as we read about Solomon his life was doing well until women entered the picture! He was coasting along fine in the Bible and then bam! The women took him down.
…and had many beautiful concubines. I had everything a man could desire! Ecclesiastes 2:8c
3 He had 700 wives of royal birth and 300 concubines. And in fact, they did turn his heart away from the Lord. 1 Kings 11:3
Here’s what a concubine is. It was a legal form of a mistress, a wife was to have legitimate children and a concubine was for sex. We read of it as early as Genesis. This is not God’s plan, it was a sin that the people picked up from surrounding nations. It was spoken against in the Old and New Testament. Solomon knew better. So we see that Solomon had over 1000 women. He had enough women to have 3 different women a night for a year! So that we don’t become overly judgmental towards Solomon; the following statistics should sober us up.
- The pornography industry generates about 60 billion dollars of revenue worldwide.
- The pornography industry generated more revenue than the “combined” revenues for professional football, basketball, and baseball.
- Child pornography generates 3 billion dollars worth of revenue every year.
- The largest consumer demographic of pornography is 12-17 year olds.
- The average age of a person’s first exposure to internet pornography is 11 years old.
- There are 2.5 billion pornographic emails sent out every day.[3]
Our culture is every bit has sexually charged as Solomon was. Everywhere we look, men and women are trying to find satisfaction and meaning with sexual gratification. Pornography addiction is at epidemic proportions. Why? Because people are desperate for pleasure. Solomon tried – boy did he try – to find his pleasure fix in sexual intimacy. At the end of the day, sexual pleasure left him bone dry.
What is the Result of Living for Pleasure?
10 Anything I wanted, I would take. I denied myself no pleasure…11 But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere. Ecclesiastes 2:10-11
- It is empty and costly.
17 Those who love pleasure become poor…. Proverbs 21:17
Towards the end of his life, Solomon looked back and came face-to-face with the sobering realization that worldly pleasures will leave you spiritually, emotionally, and physically bankrupt. Solomon lived the best years of his life as an empty, bankrupt, and unfulfilled man. Why? Because he chose to live for the wrong things. In this case, Solomon tried to seek and find pleasure apart from God. God says that seeking pleasure apart from Him is a futile and hopeless way to live.
How Do I Spell Relief?
· TRUST – Let Pleasure Come from Living God’s Way
24 …Then I realized that these pleasures are from the hand of God. 25 For who can eat or enjoy anything apart from him? Ecclesiastes 2:24b-25
Solomon tells us that life’s pleasures come from God’s hand. True enjoyment in life comes only as we follow God’s guidelines for living. Without him, satisfaction is a lost search. Those who really know how to enjoy life are the ones who take life each day as a gift from God, thanking him for it and serving him in it. Those without God will have no relief from toil and no direction to guide them through life’s complications.
Solomon thought that pleasure could be attained apart from the God. Finding pleasure is all about the “source.” In our pursuit of pleasure, we have a decision to make. We can chose to pursue pleasure in the One who created it – God. Or…we can choose to pursue pleasure in the world – where sinful people have modified and corrupted it. You have been created for pleasure. God created you because you bring him pleasure. He created you to know Him, follow him and honor him. As we do he provides what we need.
17 Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. 1 Timothy 6:17
How else do can I have relief?
- CHURCH – Encouragement and Accountability will Keep Me Balanced
25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another.. Hebrews 10:25
16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. James 5:16
- SAVIOR – I Need the Freedom and New Life that Christ Can Give
3 Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. 4 But—“When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, 5 he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. 6 He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Titus 3:3-6
As I have talked to other men who are believers and we agree that Christ is the only thing that got our attention in this area. We were slaves to our passions, we were as the scriptures said, “foolish, disobedient, misled” until God came into our lives and began to change us.
Are you seeking freedom? It is in Christ. Do you want to change? It is only Christ that changes our lives. Promises and good intentions will not do it, only the power of God in our lives.
Message Audio/Video and Outline: https://upwards.church/leander-campus/watch-now-message-videos
Watch Messages: YouTube-Upwards Church
Read Along Daily Bible Reading: You Version
Sources:
All Verses are from the New Living Translation of the Bible)
[1] What Hooks Us, 2007 Time Inc
[2] A Whole New Mind, pg 35, Daniel H Pink
[3] Statistics taken from www.familysafemedia.com.
Upwards Church 