Sermon Schedule – Ecclesiastes: What is the Meaning of Life?

How should we live in a fallen and broken world? Our lives are spent in the constant shadow of sin and death. Oppression and injustice are a sad fact of life. We struggle with frustration, disappointment, and discontentment. Life is messy, uncertain, and confusing. The incomprehensibility of it all leaves us grasping for answers. Nothing seems to work the way it should or go according to plan. We labour and toil without any lasting gain. Then, we die. What is the meaning of life? 

Ecclesiastes takes a hard and honest look at life “under the sun”. It exposes the absurdity, emptiness, elusiveness, fleetingness, and futility of man’s existence in this world. Seeing through the illusory facade of worldly success, Ecclesiastes concludes that all is hebel or vanity. What do we gain by all the toil at which we toil under the sun? 

Ecclesiastes is a realistic book, but the darkness of its subject matter does not result in utter pessimism. Here and there, light pierces through the gloom. Ecclesiastes lays us low that it might lift us up with genuine hope. The Creator God still reigns. All of life is a gift from Him. Therefore, we live wisely in the world by fearing God and trusting in Him. Remember our Creator while we still can. Only He gives meaning and hope to life. Ultimately, God will send His Son to make all things new. Although we groan now, we can look forward to the hope of glory in Christ Jesus. Through the risen Lord, our life and labour will not be in vain.

The songs that we have been singing at our services can be found at this Spotify playlist: