SERIES: Ecclesiastes
TEXT: Ecclesiastes 11:1-6
MESSAGE: “What If?”
“Uncertainty is all around us, never more so than today.. as human beings, we crave security. We want to feel safe and have a sense of control over our lives and well-being. Fear and uncertainty can leave you feeling stressed, anxious, and powerless over the direction of your life. It can drain you emotionally and trap you in a downward spiral of endless “what-ifs” and worst-case scenarios about what tomorrow may bring.” — HelpGuide.org
Q: How does the preacher tell his readers to live in life’s uncertainties and uncontrolled outcomes? By…
- Giving Generously (v2)
- Knowing What You Know (v3-4)
- Knowing What You Don’t Know (v5-6)
1. Giving Generously (v2)
20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” — Luke 12:20-21 ESV
“Here is wisdom you will not hear anywhere else: take the best of what you have and the best of what you are and give them to others.. Worldly wisdom builds bunkers and barns to prepare for disaster. Biblical wisdom instead throws open the windows and doors of our homes and builds schools and hospitals and churches and sees rich Christians become poorer than they might otherwise have been.” — David Gibson
2. Knowing What You Know (v3-4, 1)
“This parable applies to all who are determined to avoid risk and change in their religion — to all who refuse to trade with the responsibilities the Master gives them.” — Michael Green
3. Knowing What You Don’t Know (v5-6)
4 “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. 5 Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?” — Job 38:4-5
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” — Isaiah 55:8-9 ESV