Day 159, Chronological Bible Study Timeline. Map. Go to today’s Bible reading (use your browser arrow to return): Ecclesiastes 3–6
Time Well Spent
How do most Americans spend their time? The answers vary greatly, but according to a 2013-2014 Gallup Poll most of them are working an average of forty-seven hours per week, and some much more. This pandemic has been difficult for our world economy to recover from.
If you are working, do you like your job? Many Americans do not enjoy their jobs (according to another Gallop Poll). In bad economic times, they may be glad they even have a job, but how can they enjoy it? How can we enjoy ours? King Solomon offers some perspectives on the use of time and effort in today’s Bible reading.
Searching for Fulfillment
King Solomon wrote the book of Ecclesiastes in the latter part of his reign. He was powerful and gathered vast amounts of wealth through alliances and trade, planted beautiful gardens, and built the temple, his palace, and many other projects. King Solomon accumulated horses and chariots for war. He had 700 wives and 300 concubines and wine for his pleasure.
Solomon still had great wisdom, but like many of us, he tried to sample the ways of the world to see if he could find any fulfillment in them. Solomon’s conclusion about his pursuits was that everything was meaningless (or profitless) and had no lasting value (Ecclesiastes 1:2).
Earlier in his reign, Solomon wrote in the book of Proverbs that the fear of the LORD is wisdom, and God’s blessing is upon the righteous. Instead, he is disobeying God by accumulating excess wealth, women, horses, and chariots (for war). Perhaps, we are wondering why Solomon is not following his own advice. The answer is that he was as human as we are.
In Ecclesiastes, Solomon writes from a disillusioned heart. He has made a lot of mistakes and wants his readers to get the right focus so they will please the LORD and enjoy their lives. Real purpose and joy begin with a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. (more)
Examining our Priorities
Although negative in tone, Ecclesiastes is a good book because it stimulates us to examine the priorities of our lives. What are the most important things? As Solomon says, there is a time and season for everything (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8).Sometimes events in our lives are unavoidable, and we must give our time and attention to them. Other times we use at our discretion.
How will we spend our discretionary time? Will we spend it on leisure, with family, internet surfing, social media, entertainment, exercise, or more work?
Work and Wealth
Work is a priority in our lives. Sometimes, however, it is too much. Solomon writes, “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This, too, is meaningless.” (Ecclesiastes 5:10, NIV). He also writes, “Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint” (Proverbs 23:4, NIV). A person who chases wealth not only wears himself out but often loses his family.
Besides the danger of losing his family, with much wealth comes much responsibility and the constant management of it. How much responsibility do we want, and how much time and money do we want to spend managing it?
We may make a lot of money, but we cannot count on it; if we hoard it, there is always the possibility of losing all that we have saved or invested through some misfortune. Therefore, if God has blessed us with wealth, we should use it for his glory.
Work is a Gift
So, is there any value in work? Solomon says there is a temporal value in working. He encourages us to be happy; to enjoy the work and life God has given us as a gift (Ecclesiastes 2:24-26 and 5:18-20).Benefits of Working
- Work can make us feel good—it exercises our muscles and brains.
- We are like God when we create things (although we cannot create something out of nothing as he can).
- We are accomplishing some things in this life, using our gifts and talents, and however temporal the results might be, there is some satisfaction in that.
- Work gives us compensation so we can meet the needs of our family, and work provides us with the ability to help others.
- Work allows many of us to make human connections in a digital world.
The gift of work is appreciated when we like what we are doing. If we dislike or hate our duties, we should pray that God will help us find other work. In the meantime, however, we can seek to enjoy the work we now have by focusing on whatever is positive (Philippians 4:8), and praise the LORD for the strength and the opportunities we have.
A Higher Pursuit
How else should we spend our discretionary time? There is something, actually, someone who is better than any endeavor we might pursue—God. He is Sovereign, Eternal, and Almighty. He is our Creator and Sustainer, and he gives life meaning (more...). Therefore, our primary pursuit in life should not be human endeavors but godly ones. We should go to church and read his Word (the Bible) so we might know more about him and how he wants us to live. We should learn to fear the LORD and walk in his ways so he might give us joy in whatever we do (Proverbs 22:4). God is a counselor and friend to all who obey him (John 15:14; John 16:13).
Three things God wants us to exercise in this world are justice, mercy, and humility (Micah 6:8). As our Bible reading indicates, there is much injustice and wickedness in the world. We should not hoard our resources but help others as we are able (Ecclesiastes 4:7-12).
Discussion
What are our priorities? How should we spend our discretionary time, which God has given us on earth?
Work is a priority in our lives, but too much is dangerous. Why?
How is work a gift from the LORD? What are some of the benefits?
Focus Verses
Ecclesiastes 3:13-14 (NIV) “That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.”
Write a private prayer response to today’s Bible study:
Please send your comments to mtbiblestudies@gmail.com
Looking Ahead: It is not enough to consider how we spend our time; It is also important to Consider our Destiny. Learn more about this in our Next Lesson.
Back to top of page
Return to Chronological Bible Studies main page
Go to Scriptures main page
Go to Topics main page
Go to Home pagepage last re-edited 6-6-2020
COPYRIGHT @ 2019, MASTER'S TOUCH BIBLE STUDIES