Yeah, but....I'm special!!!

In Ecclesiastes1:9-11, Solomon continues with his discourse on the "vanity" of life.  He now focuses on how "there is nothing new under the sun."  "Certainly there is happiness and satisfaction in new discoveries and inventions!" you say.  Solomon differs.  He plainly says, "Nope...there's nothing new."  Others have had our experiences.  Maybe not surrounded by the same circumstances, but the lessons, emotions, etc that accompany those circumstances are not new.

We pride ourselves on the newness and singularity of our experience.  We derive our self-esteem from the fact that we are "different", our experience is CERTAINLY more involved, more painful, more exciting, more "you-name-it".  But, if examined carefully, the lesson and emotions have all been experienced by others before us and will be experienced by others after us.  So...why base our happiness and satisfaction on being "new" and "different"? when it will be shown that our strength, not only as a human race but particularly as the Body of Christ lies in our commonality of experience and our sharing together from it?  We are NOT an "army of one"!  In fact, I believe that our fleshly desire to "rise above the rest" puts us in a precarious position as it relates to temptation (I Pet. 5:9).  

Since "there is nothing new under the sun," and since we "crave" newness amidst the routine, what shall we do?  We are to look "above the sun" where God promises to "make all things new"  (Rev. 21:5)  It seems that God, who made us, understands us well.  He has purposefully equipped us with a deep desire for "newness" that cannot be met here.

"What a cruel God!" you say.  Oh no! "What a merciful God," I say.  He who knows not only what is best for me, has also wired me in such a way that my continuously doomed search for satisfaction in the "new" here "under the sun," will eventually lead me to Him!  Satisfied at last...

Been there, done that, now I pass it on...

Some thoughts on Ecclesiastes 1:1-3...

*Solomon calls himself "the Preacher", as he writes Ecclesiastes.  He had, until now, been"the Gatherer" of life and experiences, but now it's time to "show and tell."  All of us, from the moment we are born, will begin our own "gathering of experiences" but for what purpose?  A student gathers facts and information regarding a subject.  He then looks for an outlet to "tell" others what he has found...so he writes a paper or gives a talk.  So it is with us...life experiences have a way of pressing us to "tell" and so Solomon does here.

*Solomon also calls himself:

         "son of David" - a godly heritage does not guarantee a godly walk and might even prove more "damning" to our own shameful souls.

         "king of Jerusalem" - position, wealth and power do not guarantee a fulfilled life either, but might add the shame of failure to be a good example.

We must beware of what we put our trust and reliance on, for  heritage, power, fame, etc...will become snares around our feet when devoid of a relationship with God Almighty.

*If, as Solomon states, "All is vanity," meaning the whole of it, the totality of it is a vapor...like a breath, then satisfaction and fulfillment must come from beyond this world.  He had tried everything, he knew more than anyone else and yet this world proved to be unsubstantial...empty fodder devoid of true nutrition...vapor...

*In earlier times Solomon had said, "In all labor there is profit..." Prov. 14:23.  As "profit" that will aid us in survival in this world, it is true.  Now, years later, as he writes Ecclesiastes, Solomon says, "What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun?" Ecc. 1:3.  Soul hunger cannot be satisfied with fleshly trifles.  This world is full of fleshly trifles...true soul food and substance must be beyond it.  

"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world."  C.S.Lewis