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LEADER’S GUIDE

“God has set eternity in the hearts of men.” ECCLESIASTES 3:11

EcclesiastesFinding Meaning in Life

Revised

DISCOVERLIFE

DISCOVERLIFE

EcclesiastesFinding Meaning in Life

LEADER’S GUIDEby

James A. Meek

Grand Rapids, Michigan

Unless otherwise indicated, the Scripture quotations in this publi-cation are from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONALVERSION, © 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible Society. Usedby permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.

Faith Alive Christian Resources published by CRC Publications.Discover Life series. Ecclesiastes: Finding Meaning in Life, © 1992,2001 by CRC Publications, 2850 Kalamazoo Ave. SE, Grand Rapids,MI 49560. All rights reserved. With the exception of brief excerptsfor review purposes, no part of this book may be reproduced inany manner whatsoever without written permission from the pub-lisher. Printed in the United States of America on recycled paper. r

We welcome your comments. Call us at 1-800-333-8300 or e-mail usat editors@faithaliveresources.org.

ISBN 1-56212-585-0

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

Contents

How to Use This Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Lesson 1: Life Is Disappointing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Lesson 2: Work and Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Lesson 3: Time and Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Lesson 4: Wealth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Lesson 5: Justice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

Lesson 6: Suffering and Death . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

Lesson 7: Beyond Disappointment to Hope . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

Evaluation Questionnaire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51

How to Use This Guide

Discover Life is a small group outreach Bible studyministry. It gives spiritually mature members of thechurch a way to reach out to friends, relatives, neighbors,work associates, and others who need to come to Christ,grow spiritually in Christ, and enjoy the fellowship of thebody of Christ.

Following are ten strategy guidelines to keep in mindwhen organizing Discover Life groups.1. Meet at times that fit people’s schedules. Don’t

expect all the people you want to reach to come to-gether at the same time or on the same day. Personalschedules will vary a great deal. A church that wantsto reach many people should have groups meeting inthe morning, in the evening, on Saturday, at lunch-time, and even on Sunday.

2. Lead the groups with a team of at least two. Makesure you have leadership depth and strength. Groupleaders are busy people and do not have much avail-able time.Work and family activities usually take prece-dence over Bible study. Leadership will be stronger andthe group more likely to succeed with a leadershipteam. Leaders working together can share the load ofleadership, give each other mutual support, cover foreach other, and recruit from their acquaintances.

3. Meet at convenient, nonthreatening places. Peoplewho don’t go to church will feel more comfortable ina familiar environment such as a restaurant, board-room, or conference room than in a church. Try tomeet in “neutral territory” where people will feelcomfortable.

4. Invite prospective members for a definite short-term period. Many people are wary of long-termcommitments. After the first series of lessons is com-plete, take a break and then invite them again foranother series. Keep repeating this as long as mem-bers are interested. Discover Life material is designedfor short-term studies.

5. Require no advance homework or prior knowledgeof the Bible. Requiring homework will build a cycleof defeat. Busy people who are not able to preparewill stay home rather than risk embarrassment. Toavoid this, do not make advance assignments. Make itclear that the group will start fresh with the materialat the beginning of each meeting.

Tear the lesson pages out of the study guides andhand them out as single sheets at the beginning ofthe meeting. Begin with the approach question (thefirst question) to allow members to warm up to thesubject. Read the first Bible passage and then allow abrief silent study time so members can get oriented tothe material and prepare to answer the first inductivequestions. The AfterWord section provides optionalmaterial after the lesson.

Be careful not to assume members’ prior knowledgeof the Bible. Those without a church background will

soon feel left out of any discussion that draws on priorknowledge. Stick with the passage at hand and relate itto life. In this way everybody is on the same level.

6. Recruit by personally inviting friends andacquaintances. Very few people come to a groupthrough newspaper ads, posters, or flyer announce-ments. The most successful invitation is a personalone from a friend or acquaintance who offers to takethat person to the group meeting.

7. Put a lot of effort into building relationships. Theconcern of those who come will not be “How muchcan I learn here?” but “How well am I accepted as amember of this group?”They will not so much ask “Isthis true?” as “How does this group make me feel?”Respond to their concern by reaching out to them andbecoming a channel of Christ’s love to them. Investtime and energy before, after, and between meetings;get to know those who come. Good meetings are notenough; you need growing relationships too.

8. Use appropriate materials. Most people are used todealing with letter-size, black-on-white pages.Discover Life material is designed with this in mind.Including the Bible passage as part of the lesson givesnonchurched people, who may not want to be seencarrying a Bible, the option of carrying a pad holder inwhich they can keep the single-sheet lessons.Including the Bible passage also avoids embarrassingthose who do not know their way around the Bible,and it gives everyone a common version to work from.

9. Help group members discover truths from theBible for themselves. People don’t like to be toldwhat to think. They prefer to make up their mindsafter examining the evidence. They are also morelikely to believe what they discover for themselves.The inductive questions in the Discover Life lessonsmake it possible for group members to discover forthemselves what the Bible says. The leader’s materialencourages the leader to keep asking questions as thegroup moves more deeply into the passage and ap-plies the truth to their lives.

10. Make sure that Bible truths are related to life.When studying the Bible, people are usually con-cerned about knowing what it means for their life.They tend to lose interest in an abstract discussion. Tohelp keep the discussions life-oriented, we have in-cluded a number of application questions in theleader’s guide.

Optional Study ElementsDepending on the goals and makeup of your group,

the Optional Prayer Time and Optional AccountabilityQuestion may be incorporated into your Bible study.These two elements are for establishing a more relationaldynamic in your group.

5

Optional Prayer Time. In the leader’s guide, each ses-sion includes a suggested format for group sharing andprayer. Be sure you create an environment where individu-als don’t feel forced to share prayer requests or to prayaloud. Never ask someone to pray without checking first.You may experiment to find an approach that works bestfor you. In some cases you may ask individuals to pair offto pray. If you meet in a public place such as a restaurant,you may want to distribute index cards on which groupmembers can write their prayer items and then have mem-bers swap cards for individual prayer throughout the week.

Optional Accountability Question. For spiritualgrowth to occur, it is essential that group members applylessons learned to their own lives. That is the purpose ofthe Optional Accountability Question. Don’t feel that youmust use the suggested question if one of your own betterfits your group. However, accountability suggests follow-up. There are several ways you might follow up on theAccountability Question. One is to have individuals writetheir accountability issue for the week on an index cardand hand it to the leader. The next time you meet, thesecards are distributed to the group members, who pair offfor a few minutes to discuss how things went. Anotherapproach is for each group member to hand the card toanother individual. The next week those two will pair upto share for a few minutes.

And FinallyWhether you are leading a group in your workplace, in

your home, or in another setting, the following guidelinesshould assist you in your leadership role.1. Pray. Nothing will prepare you for leadership more

than prayer. Pray for God’s direction in making organi-zational decisions. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s directionin whom to invite and for a positive response fromthose invited. Pray faithfully for group members, andpray for your eyes to be opened to the truths in God’sWord and how those truths can best be communicatedto your small group. Remember: “More things arewrought by prayer than this world ever dreamed of.”

2. Prepare. First, prepare yourself. The leader’s guide foreach discussion is thorough and reinforces the discov-ery method of Bible study. We suggest highlighting keyphrases or questions for easy reference as you prepare.Take your leader’s guide with you to the group and berelaxed and informal about using it while you are lead-ing. The perforated discussion copies, located in thestudy guides, are to be removed and given to groupmembers each week. If you freely show you have extrahelp in preparing for the discussion, your group mem-bers may dare to ask their questions more readily.They’ll see it’s not that you’re smart and they’re igno-rant, or that the discussion is just an unguided free-for-all, but that it is planned and focused. Be sure youfocus on the discussion element, rather than become ateacher with the “answer book.”

Second, prepare your group. State the ground rulesbefore you begin. You may need to repeat them as newmembers join. This will help group members knowhow the discussion will proceed and what will beexpected of them. Here are some basic guidelines:• We’re here to see what the Bible has to say, not to

argue opinions.

• No previous experience in studying the Bibleis needed.

• This discussion will not require homework or out-side preparation.

• Respect the confidentiality of the group and affirmeach group member. “What we say here must stayhere.”

3. Persevere. It takes time to build relationships. TheHoly Spirit will already have been at work in some ofyour group members, and they will respond eagerly.Others will be wary. Still others may be in such pain,they’ll come because they are desperate. Accept thepeople God gives you—unconditionally. Often God’stimetable is not the same as ours, but be confident thatGod will use your efforts. Modeling Christ’s love maybe the most important thing you do. Relax and watchthe Spirit work!

6

Introduction

Is life really worth living? Most of us wonder that fromtime to time. Sometimes life seems full and satisfying, butother times it seems pointless. We long for satisfactionand for a sense that we are significant, but these longingsoften go unfulfilled. We feel cheated, like victims of a bait-and-switch advertising scam.

It happens so often. Your friend gets the promotion hewanted, only to learn the job isn’t what he expected, orthat his work doesn’t excite him as it used to. Or yoursister looks forward to the rewards of having a family,only to find it seems to bring more stresses than bless-ings. A couple looks forward to retirement, but poorhealth or financial problems keep the golden years frombeing as golden as they had hoped.

It may surprise you to learn that faith in God does notprevent a person from having such feelings of disappoint-ment. In fact, this unfulfilled longing for significance andsatisfaction in a disappointing world often drives peopleto consider the spiritual side of life for the first time.

Many people in the Bible experienced a similar lack ofsatisfaction in life. One such man was the writer of theOld Testament book called Ecclesiastes. The title means“Preacher,”“Teacher,” or “Leader (of the Assembly).”Theauthor was most likely either the Israelite king Solomonor someone writing as if he were Solomon. Solomon, wholived more than nine hundred years before Jesus Christ,was the son of Israel’s greatest king, David, and was by allaccounts the wisest and richest of Israel’s kings. In anycase, this Teacher had been around. He’d had the time,money, and opportunity to sample the best life had tooffer—but he too found life to be disappointing.

The message of Ecclesiastes is timely for North Ameri-cans today. Never in history have so many people enjoyedsuch a high standard of living. Yet we realize that moneycan’t buy happiness. Endless seminars on self-fulfillmentreveal how unfulfilled and dissatisfied many of us are. TheTeacher can identify with our frustration and we with his.

The Teacher also can help us. After dealing with mostof life’s greatest disappointments, he learns to place com-plete trust in God. While his musings envision theredeeming work of Jesus Christ only from afar, his con-clusion will guide every serious seeker down the onlypath of ultimate satisfaction in this life and beyond.

Before you begin . . .Ecclesiastes presents special challenges to small group

leaders. On the surface, the book’s theme is gloomy; itreveals the futility of living with misplaced priorities.Even people of strong faith experience feelings of disap-pointment with life.

As you lead your group through these lessons, avoidending your time together on a “downer.”With each les-son’s preparation, seek to discover and reinforce God’suplifting message of hope in Christ Jesus. Be sure to useand expand on the “Good News” paragraph and the sug-

gestions for prayer and accountability at the end of eachlesson to further illustrate, summarize, and conclude yourdiscussion with a positive focus.

7

1. What do you think most people want out of life?Do you think most people get what they are looking

for? Why or why not?Do you think most people’s expectations of life are

realistic? Why or why not?What do you think people should expect to get out of

life? How can they get it?

Transitional Comment

The book of Ecclesiastes (in the Old Testament) isabout the search for meaning in a disappointing world.It is remarkably contemporary. Like us, its author hadmany opportunities to seek enjoyment in life. Heworked hard and played hard, gaining much wealthand many possessions. But like many of us, he foundthat these things don’t satisfy a person’s deepest de-sires. In the end, however, the writer discovered the onething that makes life worth living. In this series oflessons we will explore this new way of looking at lifeto see if it holds true for us today.

2. Ecclesiastes 1:1-111The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in

Jerusalem:2“Meaningless! Meaningless!”

says the Teacher.“Utterly meaningless!

Everything is meaningless.”3What does man gain from all his labor

at which he toils under the sun?4Generations come and generations go,

but the earth remains forever.5The sun rises and the sun sets,

and hurries back to where it rises.6The wind blows to the south

and turns to the north;round and round it goes,

ever returning on its course.7All streams flow into the sea,

yet the sea is never full.To the place the streams come from,

there they return again.8All things are wearisome,

more than one can say.The eye never has enough of seeing,

nor the ear its fill of hearing.9What has been will be again,

what has been done will be done again;there is nothing new under the sun.

10Is there anything of which one can say,“Look! This is something new”?

It was here already, long ago;it was here before our time.

11There is no remembrance of men of old,and even those who are yet to come

will not be rememberedby those who follow.

Questions

a. Why does the author say that everything is“meaningless”? (List as many reasons as you can.)

What do you think “meaningless” means? What isanother word that has the same meaning?

Why does the author view human labor or activityin particular as “meaningless”?

How does the ongoing cycle of birth and death sup-port this idea?

How do the rhythms of nature bear out his claim?b. Why does he say that everything is “wearisome”

(v. 8)?

Is that true in your own life? In what ways?What does it mean that “the eye never has enough

of seeing, nor the ear . . . of hearing”?c. Why does the author say that there really isn’t

anything new?

What about jet planes, computer technology, andbioengineering? Aren’t these things new?

What are some things that people think of as newthat really aren’t?

How does the fact that nothing is really new add tothe sense of meaninglessness?

How does the repetitiveness of life add to itsemptiness?

d. What difference does it make whether “men ofold” are remembered?

What are some things people do (or have donethrough history) to try to keep their memory alive?

Why do you think that people want to be remem-bered?

What evidence have you seen that what the Teachersays here is true?

The Teacher seems to be saying that we don’t reallymatter very much. Why is that thought sounpleasant?

Helpful Notes

• the Teacher. Or “Preacher.”The Greek word used totranslate the Hebrew gives us the title “Ecclesiastes” or“Leader of the Assembly.”

• son of David. David was Israel’s greatest king. His onlyson to follow him as king was Solomon, who wasknown for his wisdom. Tradition holds that Solomonwrote this book. However, there is no indication thatSolomon wrote it (or even that Solomon was the“Teacher” whose words are recorded). “Son” can mean“descendant” or even “disciple” (follower). While we donot know for sure who wrote the book, it does seemthat we are to identify Solomon with the “Teacher.”

• meaningless. Useless, futile, empty, vain.

LEADER’S GUIDE

Life Is DisappointingLesson 1

DISCOVERLIFE

9

• under the sun. In the world as we normally experienceand think of it. This phrase views life apart from thework of God in and through nature. It parallels theexpression “under heaven” (v. 13).

3. Ecclesiastes 1:12-1812I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem.

13I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdomall that is done under heaven. What a heavy burdenGod has laid on men! 14I have seen all the things thatare done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, achasing after the wind.15What is twisted cannot be straightened;

what is lacking cannot be counted.16I thought to myself,“Look, I have grown and

increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruledover Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much ofwisdom and knowledge.” 17Then I applied myself to theunderstanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly,but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind.18For with much wisdom comes much sorrow;

the more knowledge, the more grief.

Introductory Comment

Most people do not easily accept the idea that life ismeaningless—at least without first trying to find somemeaning in it. The Teacher had resources available tohelp him find satisfaction and he used them. Still hecame away disappointed.

Questions

a. What qualifications does the Teacher have tospeak about the meaningfulness of life?

What advantages did the Teacher have in his searchfor satisfaction?

Would you say that he worked as hard as most peo-ple to find satisfaction?

Why do you think he failed to find it?Why do you think that people with a lot of advan-

tages are often bored or even miserable? (Suiciderates, for example, are higher among those withmore money and education.)

b. Why does he conclude here that all ismeaningless?

What do you think is the “heavy burden” that theTeacher says God has laid on people?

Why do you think God has done this?Is God responsible for the whole weight of this

“burden,” or do we contribute too? Explain.In what ways is the search for satisfaction like “chas-

ing after the wind”?Can you think of people you know whose search for

satisfaction seems especially like chasing afterthe wind?

Why is it that “the twisted cannot be straightened”(or “what is lacking cannot be counted”)? What isthe Teacher talking about?

c. Why does wisdom fail to bring satisfaction?

In what ways does wisdom bring sorrow and grief?In what ways today do people expect increasing

wisdom and knowledge to solve human prob-lems? Do you think these expectations will befulfilled? Explain.

Helpful Notes

• chasing after the wind. Trying to achieve what is unat-tainable in this life.

• What is twisted. This refers to the many things in lifethat we simply cannot change.

4. Ecclesiastes 2:12-1612Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom,

and also madness and folly.What more can the king’s successor do

than what has already been done?13I saw that wisdom is better than folly,

just as light is better than darkness.14The wise man has eyes in his head,

while the fool walks in the darkness;but I came to realize

that the same fate overtakes them both.15Then I thought in my heart,“The fate of the fool will overtake me also.

What then do I gain by being wise?”I said in my heart,

“This too is meaningless.”16For the wise man, like the fool, will not be long

remembered;in days to come both will be forgotten.

Like the fool, the wise man too must die!

Introductory Comment

While it is better to be wise than foolish, the Teacherconcludes that neither is of lasting value in this lifebecause “like the fool, the wise man too must die!”

Questions

a. Wisdom is of great value in life, but what canwisdom not do?

Why is wisdom better than folly (v. 13)?What do you think the Teacher means when he says

that “the wise man has eyes in his head”?How does “the fool walk in the darkness?”The Teacher asks, “What then do I gain by being

wise?” How would you answer his question?b. Why doesn’t wisdom provide an answer to the

search for satisfaction and significance?

How would you like to be remembered by yourchildren, friends, or coworkers?

The Teacher says that, in death, both the wise andthe fool will be forgotten. However, his point ofview is strictly “under the sun.” Note the con-trasting point in Proverbs 10:7 and Psalm 112:6.

10

11

5. Ecclesiastes 8:16-1716When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to

observe man’s labor on earth—his eyes not seeingsleep day or night—17then I saw all that God has done.No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun.Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot dis-cover its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows,he cannot really comprehend it.

Introductory Comment

The Teacher’s quest for wisdom eventually turns outto be a dead end.

Questions

a. What in particular has the Teacher tried tounderstand?

How does the author describe human labor andactivity on earth?

Is this a fair view?b. Why is the search for wisdom ultimately

doomed?

Why can we not discover the meaning of it all?c. Why is the meaning of life incomprehensible

even to the wise?

Why do you think God keeps us from understand-ing it all?

Does it help to know that there is a point to it all,even if God knows what it is and we do not?Explain.

Helpful Note

About verse 17, commentator Michael Eaton writes:“The Teacher’s conclusion is that we must be contentnot to know everything. Neither hard work, persistentendeavor, skill or experience will unravel the mystery.Wise men may make excessive claims; they too willbe baffled.”

Main Ideas• The book of Ecclesiastes is the account of a man of

wealth and experience on his quest for meaning andsatisfaction in life.

• When a person views life without God in the picture,as the Teacher does in Ecclesiastes, it seems that there isreally nothing new in the world. Our existence, hopes,dreams, and actions do not seem to make all thatmuch difference.

• Knowledge and wisdom are not the keys to satisfac-tion. All the wisdom in the world cannot keep a personfrom eventually dying and being forgotten. In the end,the wisest man must confess he cannot really under-stand life at all.

Good News• Though life in this world (“under the sun”) cannot in

itself provide meaning and satisfaction, the fact thatlife is under God’s control ensures that life is ultimatelymeaningful.

Optional Prayer TimeDon’t allow your group members to leave this lesson

feeling defeated and without hope. Use the prayer timeto reassure them that God is, indeed, in control of ourlives. Ask group members if they have specific con-cerns to share at this time. Then close the session in aprayer for all the needs mentioned.

Optional Accountability QuestionIdentify one area in your life (a relationship, a respon-

sibility, a hope, or a dream) where you are experiencingdissatisfaction and despair. How might God provide thesatisfaction and meaning you are looking for?

STUDY GUIDE

EcclesiastesFinding Meaning in Life DISCOVERLIFE

“God has set eternity in the hearts of men.” ECCLESIASTES 3:11

DISCOVERLIFE

EcclesiastesFinding Meaning in Life

STUDY GUIDEby James A. Meek

CRC PublicationsGrand Rapids, Michigan

Unless otherwise indicated, the Scripture quotations in thispublication are from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNA-TIONALVERSION, © 1973,1978,1984, International BibleSociety. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.

Discover Life series. Ecclesiastes: Finding Meaning in Life,© 1992,1999 by CRC Publications, 2850 Kalamazoo Ave. SE,Grand Rapids, MI 49560. All rights reserved. Printed in theUnited States of America on recycled paper.rWe welcomeyour comments. Call 1-800-333-8300 or e-mail us ateditors@crcpublications.org.

ISBN 1-56212-503-6

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

Contents

Introduction

Lesson 1: Life Is Disappointing

Lesson 2: Work and Play

Lesson 3: Time and Change

Lesson 4: Wealth

Lesson 5: Justice

Lesson 6: Suffering and Death

Lesson 7: Beyond Disappointment to Hope

Evaluation

Introduction

Is life really worth living? Most of us wonder that fromtime to time. Sometimes life seems full and satisfying, butother times it seems pointless.We long for satisfaction andfor a sense that we are significant, but these longings oftengo unfulfilled.We feel cheated, like victims of a bait-and-switch advertising scam.

Your friend gets the promotion he wanted, only to findthat the job isn’t what he expected, or that his work doesn’texcite him as it used to. Or your sister looks forward to therewards of having a family, only to find it seems to bringmore stresses than blessings. A couple looks forward toretirement, but poor health or financial problems keep thegolden years from being as golden as they had hoped.

It may surprise you to learn that faith in God does notprevent a person from having such feelings of disappoint-ment. In fact, this unfulfilled longing for significance andsatisfaction in a disappointing world often drives manypeople to consider the spiritual side of life for the first time.

Many people in the Bible experienced frequent lack ofsatisfaction in life. One such man is the writer of the OldTestament book called “Ecclesiastes.”The title means“Preacher,”“Teacher,” or “Leader (of the Assembly).”Theauthor is most likely either the Israelite king Solomon orsomeone writing as if he were Solomon. Solomon, wholived more than nine hundred years before the time ofJesus Christ, was the son of Israel’s greatest king and wasby all accounts the wisest and richest of Israel’s kings. Inany case, this “Teacher” had been around. He had the time,money, and opportunity to sample the best life had tooffer—but he, too, found life to be disappointing.

The message of Ecclesiastes is particularly relevant forNorth Americans on the edge of a new millennium. Neverbefore have so many people enjoyed such a high standardof living.Yet, more than ever, we realize that money stillcan’t buy happiness. Our endless seminars on self-fulfillment reveal how unfulfilled and dissatisfiedmany of us are much of the time.The Teacher who wroteEcclesiastes knows firsthand how we feel. He can identifywith our frustration and we with his.

The Teacher also can help us. After dealing with most oflife’s greatest disappointments, he arrives at a place of com-plete trust in God.While his musings envision the redeem-ing work of Jesus Christ only from afar, his conclusion willguide every serious seeker down the only path of ultimatesatisfaction in this life and beyond.

Helpful ToolsEcclesiastes: An Introduction and Commentary (Tyndale Old

Testament Commentaries) by Michael A. Eaton(InterVarsity Press,1983).

The Message of Ecclesiastes (The Bible Speaks Today) byDerek Kidner (InterVarsity Press,1976).

Ecclesiastes 1:1-181The words of the Teacher, son of

David, king in Jerusalem:2“Meaningless! Meaningless!” says

the Teacher.“Utterly meaningless!Everything is meaningless.”

3What does man gain from all hislabor at which he toils under thesun?

4Generations come and generationsgo, but the earth remains forever.

5The sun rises and the sun sets, andhurries back to where it rises.

6The wind blows to the south andturns to the north; round andround it goes, ever returning on itscourse.

7All streams flow into the sea, yet thesea is never full.

To the place the streams come from,there they return again.

8All things are wearisome, more thanone can say.

The eye never has enough of seeing,or the ear its fill of hearing.

9What has been will be again, whathas been done will be done again;there is nothing new under thesun.

10Is there anything of which one cansay,“Look! This is somethingnew”? It was here already, longago; it was here before our time.

11There is no remembrance of men ofold, and even those who are yet tocome will not be remembered bythose who follow.12I, the Teacher, was king over Israel

in Jerusalem. 13I devoted myself tostudy and to explore by wisdom allthat is done under heaven.What aheavy burden God has laid on men!14I have seen all the things that aredone under the sun; all of them aremeaningless, a chasing after thewind.15What is twisted cannot be

straightened;what is lacking cannot be counted.

16I thought to myself,“Look, I havegrown and increased in wisdommore than anyone who has ruledover Jerusalem before me; I have

experienced much of wisdom andknowledge.” 17Then I applied myselfto the understanding of wisdom, andalso of madness and folly, but Ilearned that this, too, is a chasingafter the wind.18For with much wisdom comes

much sorrow; the more knowl-edge, the more grief.

Ecclesiastes 2:12-1612Then I turned my thoughts to con-

sider wisdom, and also madnessand folly.

What more can the king’s successordo than what has already beendone?

13I saw that wisdom is better thanfolly, just as light is better thandarkness.

14The wise man has eyes in his head,while the fool walks in the dark-ness; but I came to realize that thesame fate overtakes them both.

15Then I thought in my heart,“Thefate of the fool will overtake mealso.What then do I gain by beingwise?” I said in my heart,“Thistoo is meaningless.”

16For the wise man, like the fool, willnot be long remembered; in daysto come both will be forgotten.Like the fool, the wise man toomust die!

Ecclesiastes 8:16-1716When I applied my mind to

know wisdom and to observe man’slabor on earth—his eyes not seeingsleep day or night—17then I saw allthat God has done. No one can com-prehend what goes on under the sun.Despite all his efforts to search it out,man cannot discover its meaning.Even if a wise man claims he knows,he cannot really comprehend it.

Questions

1. What do you think most peoplewant out of life?

2. Ecclesiastes 1:1-11a. Why does the author say that

everything is “meaningless”?(List as many reasons asyou can.)

b. Why does he say that every-thing is “wearisome” (v. 8)?

c. Why does the author say thatthere really isn’t anything new?

d. What difference does it makewhether “men of old” areremembered?

3. Ecclesiastes 1:12-18a. What qualifications does the

Teacher have to speak about themeaningfulness of life?

b. Why does he conclude herethat all is meaningless?

c. Why does wisdom fail to bringsatisfaction?

4. Ecclesiastes 2:12-16a. Wisdom is of great value in life,

but what can wisdom not do?b. Why doesn’t wisdom provide

an answer to the search for sat-isfaction and significance?

5. Ecclesiastes 8:16-17a. What in particular has the

Teacher tried to understand?b. Why is the search for wisdom

ultimately doomed?c. Why is the meaning of life

incomprehensible even to thewise?

DISCOVERLIFESTUDY GUIDE

Life Is DisappointingLesson 1

STUDIES IN THIS SERIES

Lesson 1: Life Is DisappointingLesson 2: Work and PlayLesson 3: Time and ChangeLesson 4: WealthLesson 5: JusticeLesson 6: Suffering and DeathLesson 7: Beyond Disappointment to Hope

afterWordDon’t Worry—

Be Happy!Those words from a popular song

offer good advice, but they don’t saymuch about how to get there. Howdoes one “be happy”?

“Happiness” comes from “hap-penings.” In other words, it’s notsomething that’s hinged on the innerlife, but on external circumstances.And since what happens outside ofus is often beyond our control, happi-ness remains an elusive goal.

But quite different than happinessis joy. Joy comes from what is insideof us. Joy is a state of mind, and cancontinue despite the worst of circum-stances, no matter how far beyondour control. For the Christian, that isespecially good news because abid-ing joy is a by-product of life inChrist. Following are a few hints formaintaining joy on the inside, so lifeas a whole is truly happy:

Value what you already pos-sess. Get your desires under con-trol and be thankful for what youhave. If you work at being satis-fied, then happiness will comecrashing through.

Stop desiring more than youcan realistically look forward to.Don’t dream of “the perfect job”that you’re not gifted for. Don’tcontinuously wish for the sameabilities that so-and-so has, whenyou have your own complete setof gifts. Be happy with the giftsand abilities God has given you.

Forgive. Bitterness in the hearttoward someone is a slow death.Don’t be resentful. Forgivenessinvolves facing the pain and hurt,even though you’ve been unjustlywronged. By releasing the hateand anger, you give yourself a newlease on life and greater capacityfor joy.

Get control of your life. Bustthose procrastinating tendenciesand learn the joy of accomplishingtasks. Claim your right to makemistakes and learn from them.

God’s willingness to eat my cerealtoo—just as he had done that day onthe cross.

—APOSTOLIC OPTIMISM

Know YourselfOne of the last things which we

regard as an object of study is our-selves. But next to knowing God him-self, no knowledge is more importantthan self-knowledge.

One might say that a person whodoes not know himself is not reallyalive. An infant who is unaware ofhis name, sex, parents, or even exis-tence, may be said to be living, but hedoes not really come “alive” until theday when he becomes self-conscious.Socrates never displayed greater wis-dom than when he said that to knowoneself is essential to all otherknowledge.

Such self-knowledge means that aperson not only is aware that he hasan eternal soul, but that he is capableof responsible choices, accountable toGod for all that he does, and deserv-ing of eternal punishment unless hehas faith in Christ.

The psalmist David desired God’shelp in knowing himself. In Psalm39:4, he prayed,“Show me, O Lord,my life’s end and the number of mydays; let me know how fleeting is mylife.”

Nothing is harder for a person toknow correctly than his own natureand personality.We rarely think thatphotographs do us justice, becausewe rarely see ourselves as others (orthe camera) sees us, and we have inour mind’s eye a picture that does notsquare with the facts.We do not hearour own voice the way it actuallysounds to the outside world, which iswhat makes us so surprised and cha-grined when we hear it played backon a recorder.

Each of us must simply and sin-cerely ask God to show us what wereally look like in his eyes.This is thefirst big step in knowing our realselves.

—ROLF VEENSTRA

Once these steps become part oflife, joy and happiness won’t be soelusive. Go on and try them. Goon and be happy.

—CHURCH ADMINISTRATION

Lord, Eat My Cereal

Though I value the advice of childand family specialists, I admit thatI’ve learned some of my most impor-tant lessons on child rearing andspiritual growth from—who else?—my kids.

Case in point: Several years ago Igot into a spirited dispute with myfour-year-old at the breakfast table.Freddy was refusing to eat the bowlof cereal I had prepared for him—acereal that he had begged me to buyfor him the week before.

I pleaded, cajoled, commanded,threatened, but to no avail. My tacticswere only making matters worse. So Itried a different tack: “Freddy, let’spray about this.” Of course, my hid-den agenda was pretty plain: “God,you make him eat that cereal. Hechose it, he asked for it; it’s hisresponsibility.”

My son was willing to pray. I ledoff with something to the effect of,“Lord, show Freddy the error of hisways.”Then I waited quietly beforethe Lord.

Freddy prayed simply,“Dear God,eat my cereal.”

There was a silence as that prayerstruck deep into my heart. I suddenlyremembered the times when I toohad to pray,“Lord, eat my cereal.Takethe consequences of my wrong deci-sion. Bail me out. Lord, only you canbless this mess I’ve created.” I knewthat God was speaking to methrough my son’s prayer.

I looked at the bowl of soggy cornflakes with new eyes. I huggedFreddy and melted his steelydefenses with a father’s embrace.“Freddy, I’ll eat your cereal.Wouldyou like something else for break-fast?”

Freddy smiled and nodded. I don’tremember what cereal he chose, but Irecall my renewed appreciation forthe love in my Father’s heart and