THE BIBLE MEETS LIFE
One of the many great privileges of living in the United States is the ability to begin a business in your garage (Apple® computers), your home (Etsy®), or even out of the trunk of your car (Under Armour®). For many of these companies it was a roller-coaster ride from the struggle of having nothing to the success of a multi-million dollar company.
Yet, there is a harsh reality that—no matter your success or product—you will have to leave your hard work in the hands of others after you’re gone. Sadly, “70% of wealthy families lose their wealth by the second generation, and a stunning 90% by the third.”2 What’s the point of all that work if you’re just going to leave it to those who will squander it?
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
Ecclesiastes 2:18-23
18 I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. 19 And who knows whether that person will be wise or foolish? Yet they will have control over all the fruit of my toil into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. 20 So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. 21 For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. 22 What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? 23 All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless.
Apart from God and an eternal, kingdom perspective, Solomon grew to hate all he labored to make and achieve: the building projects, the gardens, and even the great accumulation of wealth (Eccl. 2:4-8). He gave two reasons:
1. You can’t take it with you. Solomon was king for forty years (1 Kings 11:42). And while his father David managed to bring rest from all of Israel’s enemies (5:3-4), it was Solomon who took advantage of the peace to build Jerusalem into a great city with a glorious temple for the worship of God (chs. 6–7). Yet, for all he did, Solomon realized he couldn’t take it with him.
When you don’t have an eternal perspective about your work, you will be tempted either to idleness or idolatry. When your work doesn’t have a purpose beyond this world, you may be tempted to get by with doing as little as possible, making just enough money to survive. Why work harder if you can’t take it with you? A person living from this perspective will hate his work because it feels boring or pointless.
Idolatry is the opposite mindset from idleness; this happens when you idolize your work and make it your god. If this life is all there is, work long hours so that you can accumulate as much wealth as quickly as possible so that you can live in leisure and self-indulgence during your short life. The person living from this perspective grows to hate his work because it becomes his master and controls his life.
2. You can’t trust the kids when you’re gone. One of the tests of leadership is what happens when we’re gone. Does everything continue smoothly as if we were still there or does it become better (or worse)? If we have focused only on building success ourselves, we likely won’t take time to prepare others to take over.
With that mindset, we’re also not likely to trust others to do as well as we’ve done. After years of investing in our life’s work, we tend to see it as “my baby.” Whoever comes after us surely won’t see it that way, and they also most likely won’t be as conscientious or skillful as we were.
That’s where Solomon found himself. He knew he must leave all he labored for to those who came after him, but he asked, “Who knows whether that person will be wise or foolish?” This lack of confidence in those who follow can make us despondent as it did with Solomon. “So my heart began to despair.”
On the other hand, when we approach our work from an eternal, kingdom perspective, we’ll sense a responsibility to help those who come after us. We should equip our successors to be good stewards of all the blessings God has entrusted to us. A kingdom perspective helps us avoid a skeptical attitude toward those who carry on our work. And we will remember that our work is not simply labor “under the sun.”
Only when we work to honor Christ by working as unto the Lord will our work gain meaning (Col. 3:23-24).
Ecclesiastes 3:9-13
9 What do workers gain from their toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 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. 12 I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 13 That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.
Solomon asked a question that perhaps we’ve all asked at one time or another: “What do workers gain from their toil?” Struggles are more than just the toil of a typical daily workload. The word carries the meaning of hard, miserable work.
This struggle has led to frustration and even hatred of work. But Solomon now introduced an eternal, kingdom perspective. In this passage are truths and principles that help us regain a proper perspective of our work as a gift from God. These truths can transform our miserable labor into God-honoring work.
- God is in control. We like to be in control of our lives, but only God is sovereign. Earlier in Ecclesiastes 3, Solomon highlighted the seasons and cycles of life (vv. 1-8). We can’t control these events, such as the day we’re born or the day we die.
Instead of the secular viewpoint that time and life are meaningless, we trust the sovereign Lord over all. As we trust the hand of God we should be encouraged to persevere through trials and difficulties.
Because we can trust God, we can trust that “the burden God has laid on the human race ” is a good gift. And because God is sovereign, the work we do has come from Him as a good gift. In turn, His people can do good with His gift by providing for our families, meeting our needs, and taking care of those in need.
- God has created us for more than this world. “He has also set eternity in the human heart.” He has hard-wired us to long for more than just this world. We can’t help but wonder, “There must be more to life than this!” Have you ever felt that tug for your work and your life to have significance, something that will last beyond just this present life? God placed that “tug” there!
We want to know our place in this world and in God’s plan, but He has not revealed to us everything He has done or is doing from beginning to end. God reveals to us what we need to know; we can trust Him with the rest. We must be content with what God has revealed to us:
- Though Adam sinned, bringing the curse of toil to our work, God gave His Son Jesus for our salvation and to redeem us from this curse.
- Through the work of Jesus—His perfect life and willing sacrifice—we can have salvation if we repent of our sins and believe in Jesus for eternal life.
- Because of our relationship with Christ, our work has purpose and our life has eternal significance.
- The work we presently do is preparing us for the rest we will enjoy one day in the presence of God.
- We are to carry out our work in the name of Jesus and with thanksgiving to the Father (Col. 3:17).
- God has created us to enjoy the life He’s given us. We are to enjoy the success God gives us through work that glorifies Him.
LIVE IT OUT
- Be thankful. Acknowledge that the job you have and the work you do is from God. Give Him thanks.
- Rest. Balance your work with rest. Your work is important, but it should never consume you. Block out time daily for rest, and set aside a day for rest.
- Work for Christ. Consider the ways you can honor Christ and bring an eternal perspective to your work. Don’t consider just the things you do; consider the people you interact with. Look for ways to point to Christ in your work-related relationships.
If we view our work only from a secular perspective, it will frustrate us and leave us empty. But when we view our work with an eternal, kingdom perspective, we understand it is a gift from God. Let’s put this kingdom perspective into practice!
Hope to see you on Sunday!
In His Love,
David & Susan
Teacher's Notes:
Hope to see you on Sunday!
In His Love,
David & Susan
Teacher's Notes:
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What do you want to be said on your tombstone?
Benjamin Claude Inabinet was born in Columbia, S.C. in 1934. He was the son of Benjamin Claude Inabinet, Sr. and Sarah Abrams Inabinet. Inabinet was an All-State football player at Dreher High School in Columbia, S.C. and led his team to a State AA Championship his senior year. Inabinet played football at Clemson for Coach Frank Howard from 1953-1955. Standing nearly 6 feet 7 inches tall and weighing over 260 pounds, Inabinet was believed to be the largest football player ever to attend Clemson at that time. As a senior Inabinet earned an honorable mention All-American recognition and was chosen to play in the North vs. South College All-Star Game held at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Fla. on December 26, 1955. He received a degree in Textile Management from Clemson in 1956. Inabinet was a fourth round draft choice of the Baltimore Colts but opted to sign with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League. His career was abbreviated by injuries. Inabinet turned to the world of business by founding Defender Industries, which became one of the largest, full service industrial maintenance firms in the United States. B.C. Inabinet was an active community leader. He was a member of the Clemson Alumni Association; Chairman of the Richland County IPTAY Club; President of the Greater Columbia Clemson Club, founded in 1958; member of the Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce; and the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce. In addition, Inabinet involved himself politically by assisting Strom Thurmond's campaign staff as a finance chairman, and assisted the campaigns of Governor James B. Edwards and Congressman Albert Watson. Inabinet married the former Kathryn Caughman. They had three children: Kathy, Dixie, and Benjamin Claude Inabinet III. Benjamin Claude Inabinet died on August 7, 1983.
A young man eager to make it to the top went to a well-known millionaire businessman and asked what was the number one reason for his success. The businessman answered without hesitation, “Hard work.” After a lengthy pause, the young man asked, “What is the second reason?”
A correlation exists between work and success. But herein lies a problem. In a national survey of 180,000 American workers, 80 percent indicated a dislike for their jobs. That’s a sad commentary, especially since people spend so much of their life at their jobs and those who dislike their work are rarely successful at it. It’s a lose-lose situation.
Solomon had a similar experience. After delighting his senses with pleasure and testing the capabilities of his mental capacities, he turned to his work.
I. Solomon looked back at his labor to find frustration. (2:18-23) Why?
Ecclesiastes 2:18-23
18 I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. 19 And who knows whether that person will be wise or foolish? Yet they will have control over all the fruit of my toil into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. 20 So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. 21 For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. 22 What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? 23 All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless.
“I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun”
Why did Solomon hate his work?
Like with the other experiments, he studied his toil intensely. He made a close and complete examination. He disdained his work for two reasons.
· There was no permanence to his efforts (v. 18). He could not take it with him. He would have to leave it all behind. The American aphorism agrees: You’ve never seen a hearse pulling a U-Haul.
· He had no control over what he accumulated or accomplished after he died (vv. 18-19). He would have to hand his life’s work over to someone else. He did not know what they would do with it. They very well might squander it all.
This knowledge of what would happen to his life’s work resulted in several emotions.
· He hated all his toil (v. 18). Interestingly, he used the word hate about his experimentation with wisdom (v. 17). It depressed him that his life’s work would come to an end with him.
· He was in despair (v. 20). This word means “to be void of hope” or “to be without hope.” As he looked at his work, it led to hopelessness.
· He was full of sorrow (v. 23). Sadness and mourning were associated with this reality.
· He was vexed (v. 23). This realization provoked him, leading him to anger.
Solomon looked back at his work and was beside himself. He had to be asking, What’s the point? Here was a man who had labored hard and long and accomplished great feats and had amassed a fortune, but realized that it must be left to someone else who did not work for it. They would enjoy the fruit of his labor. It did not seem fair or right.
The same reality confronts all people. All our possessions, financial accumulation, and social standing may add value to our sense of self-worth while we are alive, but their power ends with our dying breath. The title of John Ortberg’s book, When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box, is a fact. Ortberg wrote, “Life, no matter how we play it, will not go on forever. When the game is over, it's all going to end up in the same place.”
Why is work an important part of our lives as human beings?
Workers Want to Care: Ask a C-level executive what makes employees happy, and the response will likely start with salary and perks and end with Hawaiian shirt Fridays.
What that corporate decision-maker may be missing, however, is an understanding of what really energizes passionate staffers: the ability to spend their time doing meaningful work.
Research shows that while professionals want more money and better benefits and will leave jobs because of bad managers, the quest for meaningful work drives job satisfaction for many workers.
In fact, C-level managers may be surprised at just how much their employees value meaningful work. According to a study by Better Up Labs, 9 out of 10 career professionals told researchers that they would sacrifice a significant portion of their future earnings—an average of $21,000 a year—for “work that is always meaningful.”
Do you know the real reason you are working so hard?
When you don’t have an eternal perspective about your work, you will be tempted either to idleness or idolatry. When your work doesn’t have a purpose beyond this world, you may be tempted to get by with doing as little as possible, making just enough money to survive. Why work harder if you can’t take it with you? A person living from this perspective will hate his work because it feels boring or pointless.
Without a kingdom purpose, our work can feel futile.
· If our labor is to have lasting meaning, it needs to be connected to an enduring purpose; a kingdom purpose.
· Hard work bears no lasting fruit for those who work solely for money and possession.
· Hard work done with proper motives (caring for your family, serving God) is not wrong. We must work to survive, and more important, we are responsible for the physical and spiritual wellbeing of those under our care. But the fruit of hard work done to glory only ourselves will be passed on to those who may later lose or spoil it all. Such toil often leads to grief, while serving God leads to everlasting joy.
2:18-23 Solomon continues to show that hard work bears no lasting fruit for those who work solely to earn money and gain possessions. Not only will everything be left behind at death, but it may be left to those who have done nothing to earn it. In addition, it may not be well cared for, and all that was gained may be lost. In fact, Solomon’s son who inherited his throne, was often foolish – see 1 Kings 12.
II. Solomon looked within his heart to find eternity. (3:9-11)
Ecclesiastes 3:9-11
9 What do workers gain from their toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 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.
Solomon turned from looking back at his work to looking within his own heart. Deep within his heart lay a spiritual longing, an eternal capacity that prompted him to probe, to question, and to search.
Within all of us is an eternity—an extension of time, as far back and as far forward as one can imagine—that creates a desire to know the eternal significance of what we do and wants to know about tomorrow. And since that is true, since we will not find out about tomorrow without God, our pursuits must be of him. Meaning we are not ready to handle life until we are ready to face death. When we get eternity securely in place, it is remarkable what it will do to time on earth.
III. Solomon looked outside himself to find joy (3:12-13).
Ecclesiastes 3:12-13
12 I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. 13 That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil—this is the gift of God.
Looking at his work and at eternity led Solomon to gaze outside himself with a new perspective. Since he could not expect permanent changes to come out of his work, the best he could do was to enjoy the fruits and find some satisfaction in the work itself. Seven times Solomon advocated the wholehearted pursuit of enjoyment (2:24, 3:12, 3:22, 5:18-20, 8:15, 9:7-9, 11:7-12:1). Warren Wiersbe wrote: “Solomon is not advocating, ‘Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die!’ That is the philosophy of fatalism, not faith. Rather, he is saying, ‘Thank God for what you do have, and enjoy it to the glory of God.’”
Enjoying the time God has given us, no matter how difficult that may be, is a key. We need to enjoy the minutes as they come. Anne Ruth Schabacker offers a fitting reminder: “Each day comes bearing its gifts. Untie the ribbons.”
See your work as a gift from God.
· Everything that God does is appropriate and fits into His purpose and plan for creation.
· Work is also a part of God’s appropriate design for humankind.
· Our desire to understand all that God has done and to know what He will do ought not to frustrate us and prevent us from enjoying what we have before us, even our work.
· God is good and gives us good things to enjoy, especially when we do it for His glory.
· Our work may not define us, but it does give us an outlet for expressing ourselves and for serving God.
3:9 Solomon raised a question similar to the one he had asked in 2:22. “What does the worker gain?” However, he approached the topic this time with a much different attitude. Rather than focusing on the futility of what is lost through hard work, he emphasized the potential benefits. The difference is seeing work through the lens of God. If workers labor for their own benefit, they’ll end up frustrated—much like the king found in his earlier observations. But when work is done for the Lord, things change considerably. An honest day’s work could actually be a blessing.
3:10-11 God is the Author of work. In many ways, work is a reflection of the image of God found in His highest creations. Genesis doesn’t reveal a God who sat back and let things happen. Instead, He actively worked. He initiated life. He created something out of nothing. God continues to work in the lives and circumstances of His people. Solomon noted that God “has given” work to “the children of Adam.” While God’s work certainly differs from ours, we still imitate Him when we work hard at a worthy task. In verse 11, Solomon noted that God makes “everything appropriate in its time.” The Hebrew means more than simply “right” or “suitable.” It also includes the idea of beauty. So, even though work—and all of life, really—can be hard to handle at times, we can see its true beauty when we choose to view it through God’s perspective. Since God’s perspective isn’t limited to time, humans should also seek to view time with an eye toward eternity. That is where work finds its ultimate meaning and fulfillment. Solomon indicated this by saying God has even placed “eternity in their hearts.” The idea of forever means something to us because God has given us that inclination. We know there is more than life on earth, something of greater significance. This tension between here and hereafter takes readers again to the work God has done and continues to do in the world. He’s active in the affairs of humanity. And His work should motivate us to work on His behalf in this world.
3:11 God has “set eternity in the hearts of men.” This means that we can never be completely satisfied with earthly pleasures and pursuits. Because we are created in God’s image:
1. We have a spiritual thirst
2. We have eternal value
3. Nothing but the eternal God can truly satisfy us.
He has built in us a restless yearning for the kind of perfect world that can only be found in His perfect rule. He has given us a glimpse of the perfection of His creation. But it is only a glimpse, we cannot see into the future or comprehend everything. So we must trust Him now and do His work on earth.
3:12 To be happy and do good while we live are worthy goals for life, but we can pursue them the wrong way. God wants us to enjoy life. When we have the proper view of God, we discover that real pleasure is found in enjoying whatever we have as gifts from God, not in what we accumulate.
Solomon explained that “the good life” isn’t found in possessions or in our jobs that enable us to purchase more things. The “good life” rests in the peace and contentment found only in a relationship with God. In a sense, Solomon came full circle on the issue of work. On one hand, it has no real significance by itself because it’s temporary. No amount of work or the accumulation of wealth can pass beyond the grave. That’s why we need to filter our work through the plans and purposes of God. When we do, we find meaning—in Him, not in the labor—and that allows humanity to find a genuine sense of satisfaction.
3:13 Solomon’s summary can be expressed quite simply: Work is God’s gift to us. God intends our labor to be a blessing to us, not a burden. Again, the Genesis account of God’s own work can be instructive. After spending six days creating the world, God “stepped back” and took inventory of all He had done. He was pleased with what He saw. Everything was according to His plan and design. In the same way, humans who work hard for the right reasons—God’s glory and not their own—can discover similar satisfaction when they evaluate their own efforts.
3:9-13 Your ability to find satisfaction in your work depends to a large extent upon your attitude. You will become dissatisfied if you lose the sense of purpose God intended for your work. We can enjoy our work if we:
1. Remember that God has given us work to do (3:10)
2. Realize that the fruit of our labor is a gift from Him (3:13)
See your work as a way to serve God.
Point: Our work gains meaning when it’s done to honor Christ.
Conclusion
The problem with work may have little to do with the work itself but with the attitude and disposition of the worker. Solomon hated his work when he focused on himself and worried about what would come of all he had worked for. Later, he found joy in his work because he saw it as a gift from God rather than as a means to an end. No longer was his purpose to accumulate goods but to glorify God. His work was not his identity; neither was it intended to give meaning to his life.
Consider a New Testament perspective on work; how a follower of Jesus Christ is to approach work. Paul offered instructions to believers in Colossae concerning work, whether they were the bosses or the workers. First, he established a general principle. “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him” (Col.3:17). Simply, act like a follower of Jesus. When people hear you speak or observe your work, let them be reminded of Jesus and honor God the Father. Furthermore, workers are to do their work sincerely as if they were doing it unto the Lord not just to please the boss (Col. 3:23-24). The boss is to do his work of overseeing those assigned to him with a sense of justness and fairness (4:1). The Lord is watching and will bring blessing on those who bring honor to Him (3:24-25; 4:1). Our work takes on meaning and is a joy when it is done in Jesus’ name.
How has your attitude toward work changed over the years?
Was there a time when your work identified who you were to the point of it being emotionally unhealthy?
How did you overcome that feeling so that work became a joy?
How do you think your work is currently bringing honor to the Lord?
