Why am I here? Part 1

So how do you answer that question in the title? Welcome and good evening. It has been a wonderful Lord's day here in the panhandle. I also want to say Happy Memorial Day to all of you and a big thanks to the U.S. men and women serving in our arm forces. So why are you here? It seems like a simple straight forward question and yet it is another one of those questions that philosophers have debated for millennia. And of course there is the "world's" answer and there is God's answer. So lets look at part one of this study. 

Ecclesiastes, Psalm 139

In July of 1999 Barry Sanders shocked the football world by announcing his retirement at the height of his career. Lacking only 1,400 yards to eclipse the all-time NFL rushing record, many considered him the greatest running back of all time. Naturally, coaches, commentators, and football fans around the country tried to lure him back. While some said he should return for the record, others suggested he come back for the money, the fame, or the fans. But in a fax to a local newspaper, the low profile running back simply stated, "My desire to return to football is less than my desire to leave." With that, he boarded a plane and flew to Europe.

Why would a man pass up millions of dollars, a place in history, the adoration of thousands, and a high profile lifestyle? After all, isn't that the American dream? It wasn't for Sanders.  Like others, he found those pursuits to be empty, temporary, and meaningless.

 

 And he is not alone. A 1999 USA Today poll posed this question:  "What would you ask God if you could get a direct and immediate answer?" By far the number one response was "What's my purpose here?" Or, as we consider it today, “Why am I here?”

Do you go off to work every day only to return to eat and sleep? Is your life as predictable as a hamster on a wheel in a cage? Do you some times feel like you are just running in circles but going no where? Does this existence forces us to ask, “Why am I here?” In our text, Solomon tells us how to find meaning beyond the monotonous.

I. Our original plan: God has a plan for your life—Eccl. 12:1&11, Psalm 139:13-16, Jeremiah 29:11. God’s Word reveals His plan for our lives.

According to Psalm 139:16, God knows: [1] The beginning of your life; [2] The length of your life; and [3] The plan for your life. In Ecclesiastes 12:1, 11 we see how God’s Word guides us.  It motivates us like “goads,” or prods us into action. As we study God’s Word we learn that we can know God’s will – in that way it motivates us. If you study His Word you discover two aspects of God’s will:

• His general will for all people

• His specific will for you.

It anchors us. The truth is a stabilizing force in your life if you will let be that. If you discover God’s plan and you are doing it to the best of your ability, then you can weather all of life’s hardship because the anchor (God’s Words) holds.

God has a plan for us, but we do not always follow it. We by far are interested in:

II. Our trivial pursuits: God warns us against wasting our lives on trivial pursuits—Eccl. 12:12.

Instead of seeking God’s plan for our lives, we often pursue substitutes to add meaning to our lives. Although some of these pursuits are not all bad in and of themselves, these pursuits are “empty.” In fact, Solomon tried to find meaning to life in seven common pursuits that distract us. Enlightenment: He wanted to know something – Eccl. 1:7.

We have rightly elevated higher learning in our culture. But knowledge does not make a person better in a moral sense. What’s more, some people spend their lives gaining facts while failing to grasp and apply the truth. Paul, a brilliant thinker, wrote in 2 Timothy 3:7 that some are “Ever learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth”

Pleasure: He wanted to enjoy something – (Eccl. 2:1-3). This substitute is the search for happiness or the pursuit of self-indulgent pleasure. Our culture has an unhealthy obsession with pleasure. We say, “Entertain me, thrill me, and stimulate me.” This has seduced many into obsessive behaviors and addictions.

Vocation: He wanted to do something – (Eccl. 2:4). We, especially men, have defined ourselves by our work. Unfortunately, if we lose our job or retire we diminish our sense of meaning.

Materialism: He wanted to have something – (Eccl. 2:7-8). Although we have more than any other nation in history, we still cry, “More, more, more.” Of course, the accumulation of things never produces satisfaction or meaning. We are like Rockefeller when asked, “How much is enough?” He replied, “One dollar more.”

Power & fame: He wanted to become something – (Eccl. 2:9). Solomon recognized that he had become “great.” Did that make him happy or feel complete? No, he whined, “I hated life.”

Humanitarianism: He wanted to help someone – (Eccl. 4:1-3). For those that reject the reality of God, doing good deeds for fellow humans is the only noble pursuit of life. This, however, is meaningless if we are just doing for our gratification. 

Relationships: He wanted to belong to something [his wives]. Although he was known as the wisest man to ever live, how wise can a man be that has 1,000 wives? Even a good thing like loving relationships can create stress and disappointment. 

Solomon is the great example here. He bows his gray head and mourns five times that it all was “empty.” He tried it all and realized that all those pursuits were unfulfilling. He was left asking, “Why am I here?”

Without God, you like Solomon will never fully be able to answer that question. Without Christ Jesus as Lord and Saviour of your life there will always be something lacking. 

Next week part two and a biblical answer to why you are here.