The Worlds Okayest Pastor

Finding Meaning in a Meaningless World

• Jason Cline

Share episode

Send us a text

Have you ever achieved something you desperately wanted, only to feel strangely empty afterward? That nagging sense that there must be something more to life than this endless cycle of wanting and acquiring?

Solomon knew this feeling all too well. As the wisest and wealthiest king who ever lived, he had everything anyone could possibly desire—yet looking out over his vast kingdom, he declared it all "hevel"—a Hebrew word depicting vapor or smoke that disappears when you try to grasp it. "Meaningless, meaningless," he writes in Ecclesiastes, "everything is meaningless."

This powerful sermon explores Solomon's profound existential crisis and how it mirrors our modern pursuit of fulfillment through careers, possessions, and achievements. We're constantly chasing after the next phone, car, job, or relationship, convinced each new acquisition will finally satisfy us. Yet Solomon, who had it all, warns us that this pursuit is like "chasing after wind."

The wisdom of Ecclesiastes doesn't leave us in despair, though. While Solomon couldn't see beyond the cyclical nature of existence "under the sun," we now understand what gives life genuine meaning. Jesus offers us something Solomon couldn't fully grasp: "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." Our purpose isn't found in what we accumulate or achieve, but in who we follow and who we bring with us into eternity.

This message challenges us to evaluate what we're truly investing in. Are we sacrificing relationships for career advancement? Are we stretching financially for status symbols that won't ultimately satisfy? The only things worth pursuing are our relationship with God, accepting Christ's salvation, and helping others find Him—because everything else, as Solomon discovered, eventually turns to dust.

Join us as we wrestle with life's deepest questions and discover how following Jesus transforms our existence from meaningless vapor into a life of eternal purpose and significance.

Speaker 1:

Ecclesiastes 1. It says the words of the teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem. Meaningless, meaningless, says the teacher, utterly meaningless. Everything is meaningless. What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. The sun rises and the sun sets and hurries back to where it rises. The wind blows to the south and turns to the north. Round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full To the place the streams come from, there they return again. All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again. What has been done will be done again. There's nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say look, this is something new. It was here already long ago. It was here before our time. No one remembers the former generations, and even those yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow them.

Speaker 1:

I, the teacher, was king over Israel and Jerusalem. I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind. I have explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind. I have seen all the things that are done under the sun. All of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind. What is crooked cannot be straightened, what is lacking cannot be counted. I said to myself look, I have increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me. I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge and I apply myself to the understanding of wisdom and also of madness and folly. But I learned that this too is a chasing after the wind, for with much wisdom comes much sorrow. The more knowledge, the more grief.

Speaker 1:

If you were looking for an inspiring sermon this morning, this is not it. These words were written by King Solomon. It was David's son. There's a moment in Solomon's life where he's pleased God and God says listen, I'll give you anything that you want. Solomon thinks and he says give me wisdom, give me wisdom and the ability to lead these people. And he did. Smartest king who ever lived. And with that came incredible wealth God bestowed upon him. His kingdom was like none other, but he knew so much. And yet he came to realize that the life that he was living was repetitive. Nothing was new, everything was the same. When he died, the generation after him would not even remember who he was. Everything was the same when he died. The generation after him would not even remember who he was.

Speaker 1:

You know, we spend so much of our time asking the question what is my purpose in life? From a very young age, we wrestle with that. We actually kind of coach our kids what do you want to be when you grow up? I want to be a firefighter Cool. I want to be a vet. I want to be a doctor. I've said this before, but my kids all want to own Teslas. So I hope they're doctors, because Everett's still convinced when he's turning 16, I'm buying him a Tesla and I'm like that's not happening, buddy.

Speaker 1:

But we pride ourselves on fulfilling our life and we fill our life with things and purpose. The more degrees you have, the more letters behind your name, the more money you make, the bigger your house, the more cars you have. We define ourselves by the things that we have and we're in this constant cycle where we're chasing more and more. I think I know I've shared this before, but prior to coming back here, I was a logistics manager in a company that made candles for Bath and Body. That was the first time in my life. I was about to step into a six-figure salary and let me tell you, at 35 years old, I'm like this is cool. I don't know what I'm going to do with all that money, but I'm sure I'm going to waste it.

Speaker 1:

And I remember that when I started this job and here's the crazy thing is, when I took this job, I came in as a supervisor because I was working five days a week on night shift and I had two boys at home about to have a third, and so I took this other job. There was three 12 hour shifts, monday through Wednesday because it was going to give me more time with my family and a little bit more money. Within a month, I was working five days a week because the manager of the office that I was in was quitting and she had asked me if I was interested and I said yes. Within two months, I was sitting in a logistics manager position and my phone and my email never shut off 24-7. And one day my wife and I are having this conversation and we're talking about my promotion and she kind of nods and says congratulations, but it's not going to be enough for you and I'm like I don't know why you would say that she's like I know you. She's like you. Have this progressiveness about you where you have to keep chasing the next biggest thing. She's not wrong.

Speaker 1:

I find myself in life sometimes not satisfied with what I have because I feel like I have to be doing more. Rest is hard for me because if I'm resting I feel like I'm being lazy. Money I like money, I like things. I'm being honest. But we chase after these things and we convince ourselves that somehow, if I just get another job, if I just make a little more money, if my house is just a little bigger, whatever that might be, if I can just do one more thing, it's going to satisfy me. And here you have a man of great wealth and wisdom. Solomon had everything that he could ever want. You and I will never see that kind of wealth. And yet he opens this book by saying all of it is useless, it's a chasing after the wind. It's kind of funny.

Speaker 1:

But the book of Ecclesiastes is actually considered a wisdom book in the Bible. So you have Job's, you have the Psalms, proverbs, ecclesiastes, song of Songs are all considered wisdom books. They teach us something. And so you have Solomon, who is living life to the fullest. He's the guy who's doing everything. He's the Elon Musk, if you will, of his time. You know, I read recently that he's expected Elon Musk is expected to be a trillionaire within two years. Can you imagine that kind of money? And yet I guarantee he has nothing on Solomon.

Speaker 1:

And Solomon realized that none of that mattered, because at the end of his life he dies. It's repetitive, it repeats itself. The only thing that lasts is the things around us. The mountains will still be there, the grass will still be there. The grass will still be there as kingdoms fall, as we fade away, as we become non-existent. Because here's the truth someday you and I will die and if we're lucky enough, they'll remember us for a while, but someday we won't. No one's going to know who we are.

Speaker 1:

And so Solomon starts out with this book of wisdom in a very downtrodden tone. He said it's all a chasing after the wind. The word that he uses for meaningless it's a. It's a hebrew word and in the word. So the word is hevel, so it's hevel. It's kind of a, an emphasis on the e and the v. The word doesn't necessarily mean meaningless, but, but it kind of represents like, um, like smoke, right, like when you see smoke coming out of a fire, like it looks like it's a substance you can grab. And you grab it and there's like nothing there. So he's saying and then you grab it and there's nothing there. So he's saying that everything that he's reaching for, there's nothing, it goes away, it fades, it's non-existent. Because all of this has been done before, because in my life, these things that I chase after will never, ever fulfill me.

Speaker 1:

Imagine having the kind of wisdom where you look out over your kingdom and you're like, well, this is just junk, I don't like this anymore. I mean, imagine never being satisfied and we live in a culture that feeds us that we're never happy. There's always something bigger, better. Listen, it drives me nuts and I know people there's always the phone war, like the phones and everything are crazy because every like six months is a new phone and I'm like why do we need another one? Well, this one has AI. I'm like, why do we need another one? Well, this one has ai. I'm like and what? Okay, but, but. But you see, like we're constantly. We need bigger, newer, better things. We, we chase after these things and and and they're, they're never going to be enough. I can tell you, danny and I I had conversation and our anniversary was a couple days ago and we were I was kind of reflecting back on our life of all the things that we've owned, which is kind of, by the way, that's very humbling but also kind of weird.

Speaker 1:

In my lifetime, between the two of us, we've had like 13 cars. We've had like 13 cars. Now, some of them were bad. We shouldn't have been driving it, to be honest, but we managed. But in all my life I'm a car guy. I love cars. Every car that I bought, every new car that I get within a month, I don't want it anymore. If I had more money, I would definitely be someone who leases cars, because that would be my thing. But like I chase after these things and like I get these things that I think are going to make me happy, and then a month later, I'm not satisfied and I want something else.

Speaker 1:

And I think that if we're honest that's probably most of us that if we're really looking at our life, we're probably not content with where we are. Listen, that if we're really looking at our life, we're probably not content with where we are. Listen, that's not necessarily a bad thing, because that can be motivation. But again, you're talking to the man who has all of the wisdom, all of the kingdom, all of the power, and he's looking at the world and he says this is just, it's not, it's not enough. He looks out over his kingdom and he's underwhelmed, says everything is meaningless. And the good part about this book of wisdom is he doesn't stay there. But I can tell you that the next several weeks we're going to be here and the next 11 chapters are pretty much the same thing. He reflects on different areas of life and he comes to the same conclusion it's just not enough, it's a waste. It's a waste.

Speaker 1:

But I love the realness of Solomon in this moment because I think he is wrestling with what most of us wrestle with what is my purpose? Why am I here? Why does any of this matter? Why do I continue to pursue these things that are but a vapor? So Solomon doesn't shy away from life's toughest questions. In fact, he leans into them. He looks at wisdom, wealth, pleasure, work and legacy and concludes that none of these can ultimately satisfy. As one commentary puts it this way, solomon makes several poignant observations about how the world works. These observations force us to face the unsettling but undeniable truth that life truly is meaningless apart from God. Our clever attempts to make life meaningful apart from God are ultimately futile. Ecclesiastes 12.8,. So this is near the end of the book.

Speaker 1:

Again, solomon reflects back on everything that he's written. He says meaningless, meaningless, says the teacher. Everything is meaningless. We live in a country that tells us what Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness we live from the outset their consumer mentality of we're supposed to do what makes us happy, and the problem with that is not everything we do that makes us happy is good for us. It's not. Most of it's not good for us.

Speaker 1:

I remember a couple years ago we took a group. We took a group of high school kids to Tennessee and so when Jonathan some of you know Jonathan Absher, some of you don't, but when Jonathan Absher was here, he would always take a group to Tennessee and they would go to Johnson for the weekend and they would always go hiking. Jonathan was like an avid hiker. He tried to convince me to hike Johnson for the weekend and then always go hiking. Jonathan was like an avid hiker. He tried to convince me to hike. Listen, I realize I'm a big guy, but even when I was a small guy I didn't hike.

Speaker 1:

To me, walking to a destination just to turn around and walk back the same way doesn't make a ton of sense, right? I'm not against it If you love it, if you love to do it. Jesse's your guy because he will hike all over the place with you. And if Jesse tells you it's an easy hike, he's lying to you. I just want to clarify that he's not here right now, but he's a liar when it comes to his hiking stuff, right? So we went down to Tennessee and we took this group up and we went down to Rainbow Falls. That's where we wanted to go. That's where we wanted to go. And so I convinced these high schoolers that instead of staying in town and getting ice cream, we were going to trek up this mountain two and a half miles because that's what Jonathan did to see Rainbow Falls.

Speaker 1:

I have never been more disappointed in nature in my entire life. We get to the top of this thing and there's like this little trickle of water and in my head I'm thinking God, this is not funny. I don't know like you could have brought rain, like I don't know why, but you could have figured this out. But I remember getting up to the top of it and feeling like this was totally pointless. I came up here and we accomplished nothing. Now we did hike up a mountain, which is a huge accomplishment, and the kids all had fun. They enjoyed the walk back down. I was hoping to just lay down and roll down the hill. That was my plan. My wife didn't let me do that. It's already a good thing.

Speaker 1:

But again we chase after these things and we convince ourselves that somehow we can find ways to satisfy us. Some of us, it might be that Spend time in nature. We're chasing career opportunities. Listen, maybe we're convinced that we're satisfied in relationships that we're in. That happens right. We try to find other people to satisfy us Money, cars. Growing up, it was always. I remember the music I used to listen to when I was young. It was all about the rock star life, right, living it up, doing everything you want. And then you get to like 30 and you realize that is really bad for your health.

Speaker 1:

But again, we spend our life chasing after things and here you have the wisest man who ever has lived and said listen, none of that matters, it's meaningless. At the end of my life I die, at the end of this very short time. None of it goes with me. No one will probably even remember my name. So what's the point? What's the point of living in this world if the sun rises and the sun sets and there's nothing else? What's the point of chasing after all these things if eventually, money fades and cars rust and people die? Why do we try so hard to satisfy things that are temporary? We live in a culture that is on to the next thing as fast as they can breathe. The technology changes so much. We're constantly chasing the newer, bigger, better, and we spend our life chasing the newer, bigger, better, and then, by the time you realize it, you're sitting in a nursing home and your life's coming to a close. I know it's not a big deal to you, but I turn 40 next year. That's a big deal to me. Where has 40 years of my life gone?

Speaker 1:

I have a kid who's about to be 10. He outgrew the clothes he had halfway through the school year like his, like pajamas. He can't fit them. And danny's like. I can't believe he's growing. I'm like, are you serious? He's massive, he's gonna be me like we should just buy stock in whatever clothing company like we like, because we're about to supply them, right.

Speaker 1:

But but you see it right? We're constantly growing, constantly moving. Life doesn't stop. It doesn't. That clock on that wall will continue to move forward. You can unplug it, but time doesn't stop. The world is constantly moving forward and so many people have decided to live this way until they die and they've convinced themselves that that's their purpose To collect as much money as I can, to build as many houses as I can, to own as many things. As long as my name will be remembered, as long as my kingdom will be remembered, they sweat and they break themselves and they destroy themselves for things that will not last ever.

Speaker 1:

Name me three of Alexander Great's generals. You know them, you know what they did, you know what their legacy is. I don't, we don't talk about them, no one cares. I mean, that's the reality for most of us is we live a life that at the end, we die and, if we're lucky, people remember us. But this is where Jesus steps in. This is why this matters, right, because people say well, what's the point of my life? I'm going to tell you what the purpose of your life is, and some of you might be there, some of you are still trying to figure it out, and that's okay. The purpose of your life is to follow and serve God. That's why you were created. Everything we have at our disposal, this entire existence, everything we do, it has one goal in mind and that's to follow the God who created us.

Speaker 1:

Jesus says in John 10, verses 1 through 10,. He says Verily, truly, I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber, and right now they're talking about eternity. It says the one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and he leads them out. He's talking about himself here. He's talking about you and I as sheep. I don't know if you knew that or not, but you're a sheep. When he has brought out all of his own, he goes on ahead of them and the sheep follow him because they know his voice, but they will never follow a stranger. In fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize the stranger's voice.

Speaker 1:

Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them. Therefore, jesus said again very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers. But the sheep have not listened to them. Jesus says I'm the way, I'm the entrance, I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that you may have life, and you may have life to the full. Jesus says I am your purpose. I have come into this world to give you a reason. Not only am I the gate, not only am I going to sacrifice myself, but you as my sheep, as my creation. I have come for you so that your life is not meaningless. You have to think back to Solomon. Solomon had no idea who Jesus was. There was no Jesus for him. There's some representations in the Old Testament. We see some figureheads that represent Christ, that are Christ. But he didn't understand that Jesus was coming yet. He didn't understand that there was a purpose, that there was someone who was coming to save them from themselves. And Jesus says I have come to give you life, and not only life, but the life to the full. You know, I think people think we're crazy sometimes.

Speaker 1:

Why do you go to church on Sunday? Why are you always telling me about Jesus? I get those eye rolls a lot. Those are my favorite. Those are the people that I keep talking to, because eventually I'm hoping they're going to come to church and check it out. The people asking why do you do this? And my answer is simple Because what I'm doing is the only thing that's eternal.

Speaker 1:

I can chase jobs, I can chase money, I can chase all those things. When I left my warehouse job, there was a new me in less than a month. They replaced me. Now, if you would have asked me, I'm like no one can do this job like I did. No, they did, they found someone. That happens. People are like, well, you're a minister in a pulpit. It's really good, you're leading a church. I'm like, yeah, but listen, you guys can replace me too. There's someone out there. But what people can't replace is they can't replace the impact I have on those around me. They can't stop me from sharing the gospel and they can't stop me from fulfilling my purpose in life, and that's to bring people to Jesus, because Jesus not only gives me purpose, but he gives them purpose. He gives us something to chase after that's forever.

Speaker 1:

I don't know if we grasp that sometimes Eternity is a really long time. You and I live what? 80 years, if we're lucky on this earth, 80. Because I've got 40 left. All right, god, whatever you're going to do, it's fine, but I have 40 years in this place, which means I have 40 years to take as many people with me into eternity as I can, because when I leave this world and I step into the next, I want them with me. Because Jesus gives me purpose. My purpose is to serve him, to build his kingdom, to give people the opportunity to respond to the message of the gospel, to find salvation and to enter into eternity with me. And to enter into eternity with me.

Speaker 1:

Ecclesiastes is a reminder to us that this world is fleeting. Solomon had everything you could ever imagine under the sun and it still wasn't enough. You and I have Jesus. We have the opportunity not just to have forgiveness for our sins, not just to have the Holy Spirit in us, which is making us better and sanctifying us. I know that's a big word, but it's transforming us into being like Christ. We have purpose. Following Jesus gives me purpose.

Speaker 1:

Without God, I've got nothing. What am I chasing? Things that'll fade, things that'll die, things that'll rust. But in Christ our purpose is to build a kingdom. Our purpose is to build a kingdom.

Speaker 1:

So the question is what's my purpose? What am I living for? What am I sacrificing my time and my energy and my money? What am I spending all of this thing all of my time? What am I spending all of this thing all of my time? What am I spending all of this on, and does any of it have any eternal impact? So I'm not saying you can't have nice things. I'm not saying that. But what I'm saying is maybe it's time to reevaluate. What you're investing in really has merit. Is it really worth it? Listen, is it really worth making six figures if your kids never see you? Is it really worth having that new car if you're living paycheck to paycheck because really you're broke and you shouldn't have bought it anyway? Is it really worth chasing that job and sacrificing your marriage? Is it and the things we pursue.

Speaker 1:

The world has convinced us that we need everything but God to be satisfied. You know when Paul talks about I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. I love that verse, by the way, but, man, I think it is misused miserably. All these athletes are shooting threes and making millions. I can do anything through christ, who gives me strength? No, you can. But if you read the rest of that, paul says that in want, in need and in plenty, I find rest because god gives me strength to overcome anything, whether whether I'm in prison, whether I'm out here preaching the gospel, wherever I find myself, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. And that's not a call or a battle cry for success. That's a battle cry to realize that in Christ I have everything I need, even if the world doesn't feel that way.

Speaker 1:

Solomon lived for everything. He had everything. I can't even imagine having that kind of money. And he looked out over his kingdom and he just said Hevel, hevel, hevel, hevel. It's all but a vapor. But those of us in Christ, being in Christ is not heaven, it's not meaningless. There's a purpose. My life was bought for a price and you and I get to spend the next 40 years, if I'm lucky, helping other people find their purpose, and I'm telling you they're not going to find it out there Ever. All of that stuff will fade. The only thing worth investing in is a relationship with God. The only thing worth accepting is the salvation that Christ offers, and the only thing worth chasing after is people you can take to heaven with you, because outside of those three things, everything else is heaven. Let's pray.