Life under the Son—Two2Grow, Friday, September 18
Life under the Son—Two2Grow, Friday, September 18
“Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” Ecclesiastes 1:2 NIV
When you read the book of Ecclesiastes, you might wonder, how could today’s verse really be in the Word of God? Would God ever inspire a writer to say that everything is meaningless? Obviously, God did. But why?
As you read through the book (if you haven’t, or it was a long time ago, I encourage you to do it), you will find how a life without God looks.
The writer, traditionally understood to be King Solomon, had achieved the greatest levels of wealth, wisdom, and status of his time. Yet his perspective was earthbound. Somehow, the eternal point of view was lost, and God was not part of the equation. So we can read Ecclesiastes to get an insider’s perspective of how empty even the most prosperous and successful life is when we lose sight of God.
Regardless of the level of success, living without an eternal point of view and hope in God will lead to the conclusion that “everything is meaningless”—because true meaning comes only from God.
Sin and the enemy want to get our eyes off God and get us so consumed by the things of this life that all we spend time thinking about is what is “under the sun” (1:3)—a key phrase in the book. When our perspective is taken captive by this world, we soon lose joy and hope, and a sense of meaninglessness creeps up on us.
If you, or someone you know, battles feelings of meaninglessness, join in prayer for a change of perspective—from life under the sun to life under the Son.
Heavenly Father, help me to lift my eyes away from the things of this life to you. Help me to live for you, fill me with an eternal hope, and fill this day with meaning. Amen.
Pastor Mikael Stenhammar, PhD
When you read the book of Ecclesiastes, you might wonder, how could today’s verse really be in the Word of God? Would God ever inspire a writer to say that everything is meaningless? Obviously, God did. But why?
As you read through the book (if you haven’t, or it was a long time ago, I encourage you to do it), you will find how a life without God looks.
The writer, traditionally understood to be King Solomon, had achieved the greatest levels of wealth, wisdom, and status of his time. Yet his perspective was earthbound. Somehow, the eternal point of view was lost, and God was not part of the equation. So we can read Ecclesiastes to get an insider’s perspective of how empty even the most prosperous and successful life is when we lose sight of God.
Regardless of the level of success, living without an eternal point of view and hope in God will lead to the conclusion that “everything is meaningless”—because true meaning comes only from God.
Sin and the enemy want to get our eyes off God and get us so consumed by the things of this life that all we spend time thinking about is what is “under the sun” (1:3)—a key phrase in the book. When our perspective is taken captive by this world, we soon lose joy and hope, and a sense of meaninglessness creeps up on us.
If you, or someone you know, battles feelings of meaninglessness, join in prayer for a change of perspective—from life under the sun to life under the Son.
Heavenly Father, help me to lift my eyes away from the things of this life to you. Help me to live for you, fill me with an eternal hope, and fill this day with meaning. Amen.
Pastor Mikael Stenhammar, PhD