Feasting on God's Word (One Year Bible)

“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 men will revere him” (Ecclesiastes 3:14). God’s salvation - It’s a permanent salvation: it “will endure forever”; - It’s a complete salvation: “nothing can be added to it”; - It’s a secure salvation: “nothing” can be “taken from it”; - It’s a salvation which leads to worship: “so that men will revere Him.”

“Here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep His commandments” ( Ecclesiastes 12:13 ). There are many matters which are secondary. Living in accordance with the Gospel is the all-important thing: “We put up with anything rather than hinder the Gospel of Christ” ( 1 Corinthians 9:12 ). “For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; He is to be feared above all gods” ( Psalm 96:4 ). The fear of the Lord is directly related to worshipping Him. To fear the Lord is not to cower away from Him. It is to come to Him in worship. Together with the fear of the Lord, there is rejoicing in Him ( Psalm 96:11 ).

“Do not be over-righteous, neither be overwise” ( Ecclesiastes 7:16 ). This is not a protest against wisdom and righteousness. It is telling us that, in our wisdom and righteousness, we must not become proud like the Pharisees. “Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up” ( 1 Corinthians 8:1 ). Without love, everything else is nothing. We must never forget this. “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” ( Psalm 95:7-8 ). Where our wisdom (or knowledge) and righteousness become centred on ourselves - ‘How wise and righteous I have become’, we have closed our hearts to God. Listen to God. Learn from Him. Live for Him. Real wisdom has nothing to do with self-centredness. It’s all about learning to be Christ-centred. Real wisdom leads to true righteousness. It’s about learning to become like Jesus. We look to Him and we learn to live for Him.

“Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income” ( Ecclesiastes 5:10 ). This is the world’s way. The Lord’s way is a better way. We are to “use the things of the world” without being “engrossed in them” ( 1 Corinthians 7:31 ). What we must remember is this: “The fear of the Lord leads to life; Then one rests content, untouched by trouble” ( Proverbs 19:23 ). When our relationship with the Lord is the most important thing in life, we do not get unduly anxious about how things are going, in terms of material prosperity.

“I know that everything God does will endure for ever” ( Ecclesiastes 3:14 ). In the constant flux of life in this world, here we have something which must never be forgotten. There are many circumstances in life which are confusing - “How do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or, how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?” ( 1 Corinthians 7:16 ). In the face of life’s confusing circumstances, there will be times when we will say, “My foot is slipping.” In times like these, we must learn to say, “Your love, O Lord, supported me” ( Psalm 94:18 ).

Life “under the sun” is depressing (Ecclesiastes 1:3,9,14). When life is seen in an earthbound way, with nothing above and beyond it, there is no hope, no glimmer of light. The preacher is not saying that this is the only way we can look at life. He is saying that this way of thinking about life is a dead-end street. He is inviting us to see the meaninglessness of a life that is no more than life “under the sun.” He shows us the hopelessness of life “under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 2:17,20,22). We can never be satisfied by life “under the sun.” There is always a sense of something more. This dissatisfaction, this longing for something more, comes from God: “He has put a sense of eternity in people’s minds” (Ecclesiastes 3:11). Life “under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 4:1,3) offers nothing to those who are searching for a real sense of meaning, purpose and direction.There is an emptiness at the heart of life “under the sun.” Attempting to find something more, through our own efforts, is a never...

Life “under the sun” is depressing (Ecclesiastes 1:3,9,14). When life is seen in an earthbound way, with nothing above and beyond it, there is no hope, no glimmer of light. The preacher is not saying that this is the only way we can look at life. He is saying that this way of thinking about life is a dead-end street. He is inviting us to see the meaninglessness of a life that is no more than life “under the sun.” He shows us the hopelessness of life “under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 2:17,20,22). We can never be satisfied by life “under the sun.” There is always a sense of something more. This dissatisfaction, this longing for something more, comes from God: “He has put a sense of eternity in people’s minds” (Ecclesiastes 3:11). Life “under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 4:1,3) offers nothing to those who are searching for a real sense of meaning, purpose and direction.There is an emptiness at the heart of life “under the sun.” Attempting to find something more, through our own effor...

Ecclesiastes 1:1-2:26 Life is empty without You, Lord. You fill our lives with Your blessing. You give to us new life, abundant life, eternal life (2 Corinthians 5:17; John 10:10; 1 John 5:11-12). All of these blessings come to us through Jesus, Your Son. He brings us out of emptiness. He brings us into a life that has meaning, purpose an d direction. We thank You, Lord, for Jesus, our Saviour. Ecclesiastes 3:1-4:16 We look, Lord, for happiness, but we cannot find it. Why do we keep missing happiness? We’re looking in the wrong place. We try to find happiness in ourselves. You’re saying to us, “You’ll only find happiness when you come to Jesus. Only Jesus can fill the God-shaped blank in your heart.” Teach us, Lord, to listen to Your voice, speaking to us of Jesus, calling us to come to Him and receive from Him Your gift of salvation. Help us to rejoice in Jesus, to be glad that He is our great Saviour.   Ecclesiastes 5:1-6:12 Lord, there’s something hollow at the he...