The Worlds Okayest Pastor

Grasping at Smoke: Why Only God Gives Meaning to Our Seasons

• Jason Cline

Share episode

Send us a text

What happens when the wisest, wealthiest man who ever lived concludes that all earthly pursuits are meaningless? In this profound exploration of Ecclesiastes 3, we journey through Solomon's poetic reflection on life's unavoidable seasons and discover the timeless truth that gives purpose to our existence.

Solomon captures life's rhythm through contrasting pairs - birth and death, weeping and laughing, war and peace - using a literary device called merism to illustrate that no one escapes these cycles. After chasing wealth, knowledge, pleasure, and power, he describes these pursuits as "hevel" - like grasping at smoke, appearing substantial but proving empty without God.

When facing life's painful seasons, platitudes like "everything happens for a reason" often fall flat. Solomon offers something deeper: the recognition that God "has set eternity in the human heart." This innate longing for meaning explains why we all search for purpose beyond our temporal existence.

The discussion takes a powerful turn when we view Solomon's wisdom through the lens of Christ. While Solomon didn't have the New Testament revelation, he understood that only God gives meaning to our seasons. For Christians today, Jesus provides the ultimate answer to suffering - not by eliminating it, but by entering into it. As Romans 8:28 reminds us, "in all things God works for the good of those who love him."

When people question how God could allow suffering, the answer isn't a theological argument but a person - Jesus Christ. God's response to human brokenness was to send His Son "at just the right time" (Galatians 4:4-7). Through Christ, we gain not only eternal salvation but purpose within life's challenging seasons.

Are you wrestling with finding meaning amidst life's unpredictable seasons? Join us as we discover how Solomon's ancient wisdom points to the eternal purpose that can transform even our most difficult moments.

Speaker 1:

so ecclesiastes, chapter three. By the way, if you don't know, here's some pop culture references. So ecclesiastes, chapter three is actually used a couple times in pop culture. The most notable is the song by the birds called turn, turn, turn've never heard that song, but it's almost word for word, right? So that's a unique version of it. And then the movie Footloose, which came out in 1984. I wasn't even born yet Came out in 1984.

Speaker 1:

There's a moment when good old Kevin Bacon is trying to defend his cause for dancing and he actually reflects on Ecclesiastes 3. If you've ever seen the movie, the funny part is it's really the preacher of the town who's against it and then he uses scripture and that guy's not too happy about it. But it's something that this particular chapter, at some point we've probably heard it or we've referenced it. And so Solomon, for the last two chapters he's been chasing after some kind of purpose. He's been chasing money, he's chasing women, he's chasing power, even knowledge, and he reflects on two chapters. And the word that he uses and I've said this a couple times now and I'm probably going to keep saying it is that the word he uses is hevel, which means it's useless, it's meaningless. So hevel when you look at it it's kind of like grasping at smoke Like it seems like it has substance, but when you grab smoke there's nothing right. And then so he keeps reflecting and says listen, everything that I have, everything that I've pursued, is useless. It's heavy, it has no purpose. And the Bible tells us that he was the smartest, richest man who ever lived and he chased everything that you could ever want and he still found no purpose. Now listen, that in and of itself preaches, because we live in a world that tells us that if we get more things we'll just be happy. And Solomon's like nope, you won't, that won't happen, because outside of God all of these things are heaven, they're meaningless. So now we get to Ecclesiastes 3, and he's going to reflect. So this type of poetry is called a merism. It's actually it uses two contrasting points that the first eight verses. It contrasts this point to kind of signify a whole right, like, kind of like the birth date and the death date on a tombstone captures someone's entire life. Now, it doesn't. But we understand when you give a birth date and a death date, that you're speaking of someone's existence. So Solomon does a similar thing with this poem.

Speaker 1:

He says there's a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens A time to be born, a time to die, a time to plant, a time to uproot, a time to kill, a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build. A time to weep and a time to build. A time to weep, a time to laugh, a time to mourn, a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them. A time to embrace and a time to refrain from everything. A time to search and a time to give up. A time to keep and a time to throw away. A time to tear and a time to mend. A time to be silent and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate. A time for war and a time for peace.

Speaker 1:

It says what do workers gain from their toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart. Yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live, that each of them may eat and drink and find satisfaction in all their toil. This is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever. Nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that people will fear him. Whatever is has already been and what will be has been before. God will call the past to account.

Speaker 1:

So these first 15 verses he really captures the nuance of life. He's talked about it the last two chapters that everything has a purpose, everything has a time. Life is on this cycle. It's always kind of a running joke, but they said there's only two things in life that are for sure death and taxes. Taxes might change, but I can tell you that death won't. Death is inevitable. No one escapes it. There are people who try, but no one has escaped it yet. And so Solomon is reflecting on this. He's saying there's a season for everything in life, there's a purpose for it.

Speaker 1:

We kind of saw this earlier in the summer as a family we actually went camping with our Boy Scout, our Cub Scout troop, and the first time we went camping it was a downpour like the first day. So we're like setting up the tent and this incredible like we have this like covering over our heads and we're trying to set up our tent underneath all of what's happening, and like it's raining on us. I mean, I don't know if God was mad, but it was just a downpour. And it's funny because our kids are over in the van and you're trying to put your tent up but also listen to make sure your kids aren't killing each other, because I don't want them out in the rain. But we did, and so we finally got the tent up and started a bunch of other people around us and we all looked like a bunch of wet dogs that were miserable. And then we ended up camping a second time and it was hot the whole time and you're like, okay, I could have used a little bit of rain.

Speaker 1:

But I remember I had this conversation and you know I'm old enough, I've been through enough things seasons, like actual seasons that Griffin says to me why is it have to rain? I'm like, buddy, that's how it works. I was like you see all the trees and the grass and the fruit, like all the stuff that we eat, like all of this it's seed. Like it has to. Like God doesn't call us and say, hey, what's your calendar Because things they flow like they're supposed to. Sometimes we have seasons of drought. I think right now we're in a drought. My grass has been dead for two weeks.

Speaker 1:

Sometimes we're in seasons, but we look at the world around us and we understand that seasons are a normal part of life, except when it comes to us. We want everything to be good all the time. We don't want to go through challenging things. We don't want to have hard days and listen, I get it. That's completely understandable. No one likes hard things.

Speaker 1:

But in writing, ecclesiastes 3, solomon puts it into perspective. He says Solomon recognizes that life is a series of seasons. Again, this type of poetry is called a merism, he said. For some, knowing God controls these seasons is comforting. For others it's challenging. You and I don't like suffering. We don't want to face war, hunger, brokenness. Those realities push us toward doubt, even questioning God's existence or goodness.

Speaker 1:

There's a book that I've been reading and I've actually read it a couple times called Dinner with Skeptics, and it's written by a man named Jeff Vines and he captures the struggle like this. He says such loss inevitably leads to meaningless and despair. Unless that which is loss is recovered, any sort of satisfaction will be temporary at best. And in this moment he's having this conversation, he's sitting around a table with people who are asking questions, really hard questions like why do bad things happen? Why do people die? Why do wars happen? Why is the world falling apart? And his reflection says that a lot of times. In his reflection says that a lot of times we experience the good only because we've experienced the bad. They go together, it says when everything feels out of control, life can slip into that kind of despair.

Speaker 1:

Solomon's insight a time for everything. It's not a superficial answer, but an admission, a humble one, that you and I are limited in our understanding. So often we try to make excuses. I told you one of my least favorite statements in all of humanity is everything happens for a reason. By the way, I don't disagree that everything has a purpose, but I think telling people that everything happens for a reason ignores the fact that some things are really hard to deal with. I've talked about this. When we lost our babies, I had people look at me and tell me that everything happens for a reason, and I looked at them and I said will you tell me why? Again, I don't like that statement. It doesn't mean that God doesn't have a purpose, but it means that when we're confronted with humans, when we're dealing with emotionals emotional side of people, sometimes the answers that we provide are not enough and as Christians, you and I have to be okay with that. We talked about Job last week, him asking God why, and God shows up and said I'm sorry, were you there when I made all of this?

Speaker 1:

There's some times that we just have to understand that there's seasons and right. So Solomon is reflecting. He says there's good and there's bad and it all comes together. You and I don't get to escape it. I think that's one of the dangers I think we see in a lot of modern theology today is we tell people, if they just have faith, that it's all going to work out, and listen, I believe that it will, but it doesn't always work out the way you and I want it to. That's the challenge of it. You and I don't get to avoid the struggles of life simply because we follow Jesus. In reality, we actually have hope in those moments and so, as Solomon reflects on this, he comes to the conclusion that ultimately, god is in control, and I like what he says in Ecclesiastes 3.11. He says that eternity is built into the human heart.

Speaker 1:

Whether or not you follow God, there is this drive for every single person to try to fill the void of life with something. That's why chapters 1 and 2 reflect on the meaningless pursuit of things. Right, we are all longing for purpose. At the end of the day, everyone wants a purpose, everyone, from little kids to grown adults. It's interesting the psychology behind it a little bit. But as people get older, there seems to be a correlation between people passing away and them feeling like they lost their purpose. It's a thing Because we're all striving for a purpose, right? So as we look and we understand that seasons come and seasons go, the question has to be so if that's true, if these things are unavoidable in my life, then why does it matter that I follow God?

Speaker 1:

So Acts, chapter 1, verses 6 and 7. So then they gathered around him and asked him Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom of Israel? And he said to them it's not for you to know the times or the dates. The Father has set on his own authority this conversation they're having with Jesus. He's reflecting back through the reality that they don't know what's going on.

Speaker 1:

Ephesians 2, 8-10 says For as by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works so that no one can boast, for we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do. Romans 8, 28 says we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Listen, solomon didn't have the New Testament. He only knew that a Messiah was coming, but he didn't fully understand. But he didn't fully understand, but he did understand that his purpose was only because of who God was. And so we see this in the New Testament that you and I might not know what's happening, but if we put our faith and our hope in God, he does 100% he's aware.

Speaker 1:

Every time I read these passages, I think about what it's like to be a parent. I have three kids who cannot tell time correctly. They might get it right every now and then. They know what the numbers mean, but they don't really understand the concept. That's why the time change messes us up, because my kids are like it's not dark outside, it's 10.30, we're going to bed. It's not dark. I'm like I don't care if it's dark Like this is how this works, right. But I think about that Like, as a parent, I know so much more than my kids do. For those of you who are teenagers, guess what your. For those of you who are teenagers, guess what your parents actually know what they're doing. I'm just saying they're not all crazy.

Speaker 1:

But as a parent, I know what I'm doing and my goal is to facilitate my life for my kids. So Danny and I have a calendar in our phone and we keep track of things and we tell them when we get them up. The other morning they went somewhere yesterday morning and they had to wake up at 7.30. They and we tell them when we get them up. The other morning they went somewhere yesterday morning and they had to wake up at 7.30. They didn't want to wake up at 7.30, but they had to leave the house by 8.30. So they don't know this, but my kids trust us. They trust that the things that we're doing, the things that we're allowing to happen in their life, are for their good.

Speaker 1:

Now, I'm not God, I'm a human. I'm flawed. I mean, my list of flaws is crazy. I'm telling you I'm not perfect, but if I as a parent an imperfect parent have the best intentions for my kids, then why wouldn't we believe that God has the best intentions for my kids and why wouldn't we believe that God has the best intentions for us? And listen, sometimes that means hard things. Miles, recently one of his fingernails was coming off it's gross, by the way and he had ripped it. He had hit it on like two or three things and every time he hit it it would get further and further off right and so, and every time he hits it he's crying, he's losing his mind a little bit. And so one day we're sitting on the couch and Danny's like let me just rip it off, and Ma's like no, and I'm like in my mind, I'm like if you only knew like this short pain is going to save you a lot of pain down the road. And I was like when we do stuff like that with our kids, because you rip it off, and almost instantly the reaction is, oh, that wasn't too bad. I know it wasn't. I've been here Because we allow our kids to go through hard things, sometimes Because you and I know there's a better purpose. So if you and I are able to do that.

Speaker 1:

Why do we doubt that God has a plan? Why do we get so caught up in when bad things happen? And listen, they do. Why do we get so bent out of shape? Almost Because we feel like God has abandoned us? If you and I would never do that to our kids, then why would we believe that he would so?

Speaker 1:

Solomon reflects on this. Listen, there's seasons in life, but through it all, I know that God is in control. God has everything that I need. My job is to live my life and enjoy it, but it's also to understand that my life as it is has a purpose. So to understand that my life as it is has a purpose One of the hardest questions that I think. It's not a hard answer, but it's something that I think most of the world struggles with, and if you pay attention long enough, you'll notice it that a lot of people who don't have faith, one of their biggest struggles is when bad things happen. Let me just tell you, someone who stands in this position, that I struggle with that too. It's not that I don't trust God, but sometimes I don't think life is fair and it's not Right, and so a lot of people. They struggle with that. How do you serve a God who lets this happen? I trust him. How do you serve a God that and again?

Speaker 1:

Jeff Vines talks about it in his book that a lot of times the things we blame on God are actually people's fault, because people are wicked and people do wicked things. So how do we serve a God who looks at the world as it is? And how do I continue to serve him? And I'm telling you, I'm going to give you the most Sunday school answer you've ever heard coming from this place, and the answer is Jesus. That's it. And I say that because I was in student ministry for about 11 years and whenever a kid couldn't find an answer to a question, they said Jesus. Where you guys want to go eat? At Jesus, that's the wrong thing. We're not talking about that. Or you guys remember this story in the Old Testament oh, you had Jesus. Nope, wrong place, right, but it's funny.

Speaker 1:

But the reality is, the answer to all of life's problems is God saw the brokenness of this world, he saw the brokenness of humanity and he sent Jesus. That's the answer. When people ask me how can I serve a God who allows bad things to happen. My response to them is because he sent his son to save me from this brokenness. When Solomon writes that eternity is in our hearts as we long for purpose, and he reflects, he says that only God gives me purpose, only Jesus makes my life matter. Only Jesus makes my life matter. If there is no Jesus, there is no church. If there is no sacrifice, if there is no death, if there is no resurrection, there is no hope for anyone. And so I stand here and I wrestle with this and I look at the world and I live in the same world that you do. I go through the same seasons and sometimes I ask myself why, and I ask God why. In moments of grief, I ask Him why, and His simple and profound answer is my son. That's the solution to the problem.

Speaker 1:

Now I don't understand. I don't understand why people fight that so hard. Listen, I know that they fight religion. I know they've had bad experiences with Christians. I get that. Listen, not everyone who says they follow God are God followers. I just want to clarify that Just because someone does something in the name of God doesn't mean it was godly. Plenty of people in this world have used God's name improperly, but for those of us who understand who Jesus is. We're just trying to get people to understand that the only hope that can be found is in the one name under heaven. We live in a world. We toil, we struggle, we live under the sun and we try to find purpose, and the only one who's ever going to give us purpose is Jesus.

Speaker 1:

Galatians 4, verses 4 through 7 says but when the set time had fully come, god sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law that we might receive adoption to sonship because you are his sons. God sent the spirit of his son into our hearts, the spirit who calls out Abba, father. So you are no longer a slave but God's child. And since you are his child, god has made you also an heir. Romans 5, 6-8 says you see, at just the right time, when you and I were still powerless, christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die, but God demonstrates his love for us in this. While we were still sinners, christ died for us.

Speaker 1:

I'm not going to sit here and act like that makes every question easy when you're dealing with loss and you're dealing with grief and emotions are running high and when it seems like the world's been unfair, I do think Jesus is the answer. No, I know that Jesus is the answer, but I know sometimes it's hard for people to grasp that, because when we say stuff like that, it sounds like a cop-out almost, and I promise you, from me to you, it's not. We still have to live in the world. We still have to deal with people that are struggling. We still have to deal with those things, and so that's where the church comes in. That's why it's important that we come alongside each other and we pray for each other and we support each other and we walk through life together.

Speaker 1:

You and I were never meant to do this alone. Jesus saved us from our sin, saved us from an eternity of being separated with him, and he created the church so that we could come alongside each other and support each other and love each other and pray for each other and take care of each other, and then to go into the world and tell others that what they're missing is Jesus. That is our purpose. That is why you and I exist. Solomon says that only God, all of the pursuits of life, that only God makes it matter. And I'm telling you all the things that you pursue in this world, all of the pursuits of life, that only God makes it matter. And I'm telling you, all the things that you pursue in this world Jesus is the only thing that's going to matter, because when you die and you will nothing will save you but him.

Speaker 1:

Solomon continues at the end of Ecclesiastes 3. It says in verse 16, and I saw something else out of the sun. In the place of judgment, wickedness was there. In the place of justice, wickedness was there. I said to myself, god will bring into judgment both the righteous and the wicked, for there will be a time for every activity, a time to judge every deed. I also said to myself as for humans, god tests them so they may see that they are like the animals. Truly, the fate of human beings is like that of the animals. The same fate awaits them both. As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath. Humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless.

Speaker 1:

By the way, I disagree with Solomon. I'll tell you why in a second. All go the same place, all come from dust and to dust all return. Who knows that? The human spirit rises upward, the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth. So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work, because that is their lot, for who can bring them to what will happen after them?

Speaker 1:

And I disagree with Solomon because, again, I don't think he understood Jesus, because you and I, our fate is different. Yes, our bodies return to the soil and to the dust, but there's a spirit in us that has an eternity. There's something more that comes after this world. We don't just go back into the ground, but there's judgment that comes. And then there's the reality that you and I are either in and under the grace of Christ or we're not. So at the end of our life, it matters. The decisions we make matters. So I'm not just trying to get people to follow Jesus because I want to put butts in our seats. That's a useless endeavor. There's churches all over this place that have people sitting there that have no idea who God is. I'm glad they're there, but my goal is not just to pack this place out. Our purpose is to help people see that their life and the decisions they make have an eternal impact.

Speaker 1:

Solomon writes that at the end there will be judgment, justice will come, god will call to account all of humanity and everyone will stand before the creator of the universe and the simple question will be asked Maybe not so simple, but I think we see it reflected when Jesus says, talking to the disciples, says who do you say that I am God's going to want to know? Who am I to you? Did you accept my sacrifice? Do you understand that I loved you and that I still love you and that my whole purpose was to save you? Do you understand that I see the brokenness, I see the wickedness, that it makes me mad, that I can't stand it? People defile my name, people defile me. This is not what I created, but I fixed it. I provided a way for people to get back to me. I sacrificed. I loved you so much that, even before you knew who I was, I was willing to die for you, because this life might be hard, but the one I promise you next won't be.

Speaker 1:

Revelation talks about no more fear, hunger, pain. God has made a way. So when people ask me, how do you deal with, how do you serve a God who has allowed the world to get to this place? My answer is Jesus. Because humans are broken, humanity is broken. Sin has destroyed everything. This was not how it was supposed to be, but at just the right moment, just the right time, when the world needed it. God sent his son and he died. For me Doesn't mean my life's easy, doesn't mean I don't go through highs and lows. Solomon says that Wealthiest man in all the world understood that life comes in seasons. That's unavoidable. But where you spend eternity, there's an answer for that. That's a choice you have to make. We can't make it for you. So you can put your trust in things of the world. Solomon says they're all hevel, nothing but smoke. Or you can put your faith in the one who promises eternity, who looks at the brokenness, who looks at the pain, who looks at humanity and says come to me, I'll give you rest. It's your choice.