Finding Satisfaction in Work (Ecclesiastes 2:18-26)

Preached on Sunday, 9 March, 2014

The Scenarios

Every weekday, several million people make their way to work. In the bigger cities, the journey begins early in the morning and they follow the same activities each day. They wolf down some food, jump in the car and join a traffic queue. Others after devouring their thoughtless diet make their way to the train station and squash the other travellers even further into uncomfortableness, perhaps for an hour or more. Eventually those in the traffic queue and those in the overcrowded department reach their destination, which in many cases is the same desk at which they have sat each day for the previous twenty years. When they sit down, they switch on their computers, observe that there are several emails requiring instant action, and immediately begin to think of their next holiday. If we were to ask them, are you enjoying tour work, the answer would be no.

Of course, some manage to escape from this regular routine. They may simply drop out and set up a studio somewhere and hope that the only people who come along are those with a sufficiently strong plastic card who can pay for the items being sold in the studio. If we were to ask them what they are doing they might say that they are trying to find a way by which they can express who they are as individuals.

Others may set up a larger kind of personal business, one which may grow eventually into a multi-diverse company employing lots of people who will get up in the morning, have their breakfast.... Yet the entrepreneurs keep on going and eventually amass huge fortunes, ones that are so large that the figures are meaningless. They have plenty spare time which they can use for a variety of reasons, including charity works and special events. If we were to ask them what they are doing, they might say that they are using their talents and resources for the benefit of other people and for society.

Of course, the range of scenarios is endless and will differ from culture to culture. The three I have just described come from the western, developed world. In other parts of the world, the daily routine involves a struggle for survival, where work is not an add-on but a necessity of life. Many of them may not begin their day with a breakfast and if they do not find an activity they may not have an evening meal either. If we were to ask them about what they were engaged in, they would reply survival.

So we see that some think work is significant for self-expression or for society cohesion, others think it is a regular activity which enables other more interesting activities and for some it is a necessity for basic living.

I suppose Solomon could have understood those scenarios. Life can be quite boring as a king, with all the mundane, repetitive instructions and decisions to make. He had engaged in self-expression, except he did not have a studio in which to experiment; instead he had a whole country in which he could create his projects. And he could have made life more significant for his subjects as he conquered surrounding nations and gave a feel-good outlook to his people.

The sorrow

Yet as we look at what Solomon has to say about his experiences we see a note of extreme sadness and sorrow. What causes him to so emotionally disturbed? He gives several reasons.

First, he did not know, and could not know, what kind of person would continue the various projects he had begun. We could describe this feature as the problem of uncertainty. Of course, we know what kind of person inherited Solomon's place. It was his son Rehoboam and he certainly was not wise and lost the kingdom that his father had won.

Second, even if the person who inherited it was wise, the fact is that he would inherit something that he had worked for. This may seem like the problem of unfairness, yet I think Solomon is saying something else. More than unfairness, he is suggesting that to inherit something one did not work for is inappropriate. He is saying that work is valuable and not just its benefits.

Third, his sorrow is there because of the effect his enterprises have on him: his work only adds to his other sorrows and his achievements only cause worry (he cannot sleep at night). I suppose this is the problem of anxiety. But it is permanent anxiety. If we shift it to today, what if the stock exchange collapses? What if the current problems with the Ukraine increase and affect the financial system? ‘What if...’ is an expression of our frustration and an evidence of our frailty. If Solomon had been a car, he would have started off with a full tank, but now he was empty.

It is important to note that Solomon feels the dilemma he faces. He knows that work is good, yet he also knows that it is connected to unfairness, inappropriateness and personal frustration. But as he looks at himself and at what he sees happening around him he cannot respond with stoicism. His heart is involved and he laments because he knows that this is not how it should be. The effects of sin disturb him and distress him.

In addition, we should note that he faces up to the dilemma he faces. How can he do this? The answer to this question is that he thinks about what God can do about the situation. Of course, some would say that he was looking for a crutch to take him through his problems, but actually he was looking for one who would simultaneously be his guide and the provider. We can see these two aspects in his reference to the hand of God. A hand points, a hand protects, a hand caresses, and a hand provides. 

The Secret

Solomon provides us with the key to obtaining divine blessing, which is to please God. The way to please him is to obey his commandments because we love him. Solomon lived in Israel and his nation had a covenant relationship with God that linked his blessing with their obedience. As long as they obeyed him his hand worked for them. But we do not live in Israel. So how can we discover the way to please him?

The answer to this question is twofold. First, we please him by obeying the gospel. We hear the message of grace that promises to us forgiveness and acceptance and adoption if we respond to the invitation to believe in Jesus. If we don't do so, sooner or later we will discover that our work and many other aspects of life will not bring permanent satisfaction.

Second, once we believe in Jesus we come into a relationship in which we discover that the enjoyment of many of his promises are conditional on our obedience. There are some promises that are unconditional such as justification and adoption, which cannot be undone by our sins. Yet there are other aspects of the Christian life that are linked to our obedience such as answered prayer or assurance of salvation. If I disobey God on purpose I need not expect to enjoy his smile until I repent.

Solomon here describes God's contribution to a satisfied life. It is threefold. He gives wisdom, knowledge and joy. What does Solomon have in mind here? First, he reminds us that there is heavenly wisdom as well as natural wisdom. Heavenly wisdom lives according to the rules of God's Word. So for example, we can take the Ten Commandments and apply them to the area of work. Work cannot be our idol (1 and 2), our work cannot dishonour God's name (3), our work cannot ignore the Sabbath (4), our work cannot take control of family life (5), our work cannot be cruel (6),  our work cannot be theft - what this might say about competition is interesting (7), our work cannot be immoral (8), our work cannot be false - what this says about adverts is interesting (9), and our work cannot be jealous of others (10).

Secondly, God gives knowledge, and by this Solomon means that we should get our understanding of work from the Bible. Of course, this is a big topic. But here are some thoughts. (1) Work existed in Eden and will exist in the new heavens and new earth, (2) Jesus worked for many years at a poorly paid job. (3) Paul says that an idle person should be disciplined.  (4) Elsewhere we are told to work in order that we will be able to support Christ's cause. (5) Moreover we are told to work so that we will be able to share with others.

Third, what happens when a person lives according to divine wisdom and knowledge? He discovers joy. This joy comes from the sense he has of the ungrieved Spirit in his heart. This joy comes from knowing that we are imitating God because after all he is a worker and likes to be called a potter and a metalworker and a songleader and a shepherd and a guide. This joy comes from knowing that everything that is done for God has meaning, no matter how mundane the world might think it is.

In addition to God's condition for work and God's contribution in work we also have here God's consolation, which is that he will give to the righteous the benefits that the wicked are worried they might lose. I think Solomon's comment here has both temporal and eternal applications. With regard to the temporal, God in providence will ensure that what people use against him will yet be used for him. I recall reading that Voltaire's house, where he had his atheistic discussions and wrote against Christianity, later became a warehouse for a Bible Society. The future distribution of the assets of the wicked are under the control of Jesus and he will ensure that in way or another they will be of help in the development of his kingdom.

There is also an eternal aspect of this consolation. Think of the parable of Jesus in which he speaks about the use of talents, which in the meaning of the word refers to money. One person in the parable did not use his talent. What happened to the man and his talent? Sadly, the man was punished eternally and his talent was taken from him and given to the faithful man who had served his master best. I suspect that these Jesus is saying that nothing good will be lost. There is nothing in hell that can give joy because its inhabitants have lost what could have provided it. And there will be nothing missing from the heavenly experience.