Today we’ll be looking at Ecclesiastes 1: 12-18:

12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I applied my mind to seek and to search out by wisdom all that is done under heaven; it is an unhappy business that God has given to humans to be busy with. 14 I saw all the deeds that are done under the sun, and see, all is vanity and a chasing after wind.
15 What is crooked cannot be made straight,
and what is lacking cannot be counted.
16 I said to myself, “I have acquired great wisdom, surpassing all who were over Jerusalem before me, and my mind has had great experience of wisdom and knowledge.” 17 And I applied my mind to know wisdom and to know madness and folly. I perceived that this also is but a chasing after wind.
18 For in much wisdom is much vexation,
and those who increase knowledge increase sorrow.

Yesterday we talked about how the Teacher (most likely Solomon) would journey across what he knew the world to be, in search of what would satisfy him.  What would give him life?  He looked everywhere and at everything.  And to everything he looked, he found this. Vanity.

Nothing. 

In Scripture, we often see wisdom as something to be highly desired and sought after. But today, we see the Teacher find wisdom and find that as great as wisdom is, it does not satisfy.  It does not give life.  It is a good thing, a thing to be desired.  A thing that you should want to have.

Proverbs tells us over and over again what gift wisdom is.  But Ecclesiastes tells us, yes, it is great. But it is not salvation.  It is not life.  It is to be treasured.  It is a good thing.

But it is not life. 

Ecclesiastes will teach us to look at many things, things that are good things, and they will teach us that as good as they are, they are not life.  We are taught seek them, but don’t build your life on them. They are good, yes, but they are not life.

Today, don’t seek to build your life on a good thing, like wisdom. Seek to build your life on the best thing, Jesus. For He is wisdom, He is life.  He is everything.  Remember where life is found. 

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