Ecclesiastes chapter two. Notice what is said beginning in verse one. I said in mine heart, go to now, I will prove thee with mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure. And behold, this also is vanity, breath, vapor. I said of laughter it is mad, and of mirth, what doeth it? I sought in mine heart to give myself unto wine, yet acquainting mine heart with wisdom, and to lay hold on folly till I might see what was that good for the sons of men, which they should do under the heaven all the days of their life. I made me great works, I builded me houses, I planted me vineyards, I made me gardens and orchards, and I planted trees in them of all kind of fruits. I made me pools of water, to water therewith the wood that bringeth forth trees. I got me servants and maidens and had servants born in my house. Also I had great possessions of great and small cattle above all that were in Jerusalem before me. I gathered me also silver and gold and the peculiar treasure of kings and of the provinces. I got me men singers and women singers and the delights of the sons of men as musical instruments and that of all sorts. So I was great and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me. And whatsoever mine eyes desired, I kept not from them. I withheld not my heart from any joy, for my heart rejoiced in all my labor, and this was my portion of all my labor. Notice verse 11. Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do, And behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no prophet under the sun. If you were present last week, you may recall that the key truth that Solomon sought to impress upon our hearts and minds was the truth that the acquiring of knowledge alone cannot bring true lasting satisfaction in this life or the life to come. Looking back to what is said in verse 17 and 18 of chapter one, we are reminded that during the 40 year reign as king in Jerusalem, king over Israel, Solomon endeavored to be the most knowledgeable person he could be. Notice what he says. He says, I gave my heart. I threw my energy into, I worked hard. to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly. In other words, to know the nature and the difference between truth and error. I perceive that this also is vexation of spirit, or grasping after the wind. For in much wisdom is much grief, and he that increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow. Now let me take you back to last week's sermon just for a moment. Last week, Solomon tells us that among his life, among his reign as king, he gave himself to intellectual pursuits of every kind. Solomon dedicated himself to academics. And this was a noble cause. Solomon wanted to be the best king he could be for the honor and the glory of God and for the good of those he was serving among the nation. But at the end of that pursuit, The pursuit of secular knowledge, Solomon tells us three things. First, everything is temporary. Everything. He studies zoology and he finds that animals are born and animals die. He studies philosophy and he finds that philosophers are born and philosophers die. There are new ideas introduced to the world and new ideas fade away. He studies technology. And he finds that there are new technologies that do help man for a season, but those new technologies are often replaced by other new technologies, and they too vanish away. He studies politics and history, reading about rulers and kingdoms, and the same conclusion is there. One king in one kingdom rises up only to be conquered by another king in another kingdom. Everything is temporary. Everything is habel, that's the word for vanity. Everything is like a breath. It's like steam from a cup of hot coffee or a cup of cider or tea if you would like. You see it just for a fleeting moment and then gone. You try to put your hands around it and you can't. Everything is temporary. And then Solomon noticed that everything is twisted. That which is crooked, he says, cannot be made straight. As he gave himself to intellectual pursuits, as he gave himself to know everything he could possibly know, he realized that there are enigmas that cannot be solved by the human mind. There are unanswered questions in every sphere of life. There are abnormalities that man cannot remedy. You look at this world and things seem crooked and they are crooked and man on his own cannot make them straight. So this leads to Solomon saying that everything is tiresome and trying. The more Solomon gave himself to learn everything he could about life, the more he realized what he didn't know. And the more he knew, the more he saw that there is more to be known. So the quest, the cycle never ends. And this produced mental, emotional, physical unrest. This produced Solomon to say, there must be something more to life, more than just intelligence. And this brings us to the first point of the message this morning. The first point is found in verse number one, and I've titled it Solomon's Exploration. Solomon's Exploration. As an observer of life, as one who has lived many years in this world, he is telling the reader of his exploration in the various pathways of this life. after bringing us into his library, so to speak, he walks out of that library, that school of academics, and he now points to the world at large and the world filled with its pleasures. He says, I said in mine heart, go to now, I will prove thee with mirth, with amusement, with fun, with enjoyment. Therefore enjoy pleasure and behold, let me just give you the summary here before I begin. This also is vanity. It's a bell, it's breath, it's a vapor. It does not satisfy the soul. So the first truth I want us to understand this morning is the truth that we as human beings have the tendency to journey on various paths to find satisfaction for our soul. Oftentimes, man has a tendency to jump from one God to another God, from one idol to another idol, from one pursuit to another pursuit in hopes that the end of that pursuit will bring everlasting meaning to this life. And that's where we find Solomon. Solomon is turning from education to enjoyment, from the mind to the body, from informing himself to enjoying himself. He turns his thoughts, his affections, his endeavors, another direction. There's a new quest in this chasing of bubbles. You've seen children chasing bubbles? We were at Knott's Berry Farm this past week. There was a bubble machine throwing out hundreds of bubbles every couple seconds. Kids just love to chase them, don't they? Well, adults do the same thing in their pursuits. They chase after this flashy thing and this cool new idea, hoping to find happiness in these bubbles. When they go to grasp it, it pops in their face. Sometimes it gets soap in their eyes. They leave disappointed and blinded. That's what Solomon is doing here. He's jumping from one earthly pleasure to the next. Notice the second point, which I've entitled Solomon's Enjoyments. Solomon's Enjoyments, verses two through eight. In verses two through eight, he tells us what the exploration consisted of. What were the various things that he pursued in hopes that he would find happiness? Well, let me list them for you. In verse three, he tells us that he sought in his heart to give himself unto wine. And we could interpret this as not only the alcoholic beverage, or in those days, I would say, that it was not the alcoholic beverage that it is to us today. In those days, it was more similar to grape juice than it is to the alcoholic beverage that would bring drunkenness in just a few drinks. Solomon is saying he gave himself to the most delicious and wonderful foods and drinks. Think of the most famous steakhouse that you can go to in our country and put it into Solomon's kitchen. That's what he's saying. He had the best of the best foods, the best of the best beverages, and he had the best of the best chefs working for him. He could snap his fingers and order anything he wanted whenever he wanted. Solomon gave himself to the pursuit of wine. Solomon gave himself to the pursuit of work. Verse four, he mentions the building projects. He builded great works, built houses, built vineyards. No doubt you recall that Solomon was used of the Lord to build the temple of the house of the Lord. Took him seven years to build. And beyond the temple, the place where God's name was lifted up and adored, where God's people came and worshiped, Solomon was involved in building the royal palace, the place where he lived. And when I think of Solomon's palace, I think of the Buckingham Palace on steroids. I think of the White House times 20. The royal palace was the place where the hall of judgment was, where Solomon held court. So he's bringing you in, he is saying, look, look at my house, look at what I've done, look across the way and see the temple that I've built. And then he points you beyond the city of Jerusalem to the country at large. And he is saying that he has built fortified cities throughout Israel. He has built houses for himself, houses for his wife, houses for his servants, he's built vineyards and gardens and orchards, verse five, trees of all kinds, he's built ponds and canals, not necessarily for sport, but for the use of these trees. He's enjoying wine, he's enjoying work, he is enjoying having people work for him, verse seven. Servants and maidens, I gathered me servants and maidens, and had servants born in my house. When you have great works to be accomplished, you need great workers. Solomon did not do this on his own. Solomon enlisted the best of the best architects, the best of the best builders, so that he could build the best of the best in the kingdom. Notice verse seven, he mentions also the pursuit after animals. Farm life, we can call it. To those who enjoy horses, we could say, Solomon had the most beautiful, strong horses a man could own. Horses for riding, horses for working the gardens, which means that he had the most stunning barns and stables. He had cows for steak, fresh milk, leather products. He had sheep for wool. He had chickens for eggs and fried chicken. He had his own cracker barrel. He pursued after riches, verse 8, silver and gold, presents from foreign leaders, art, jewelry, verse 8, unique possessions, peculiar treasure, priceless items brought from other nations, various types of precious metals and gems, royal gifts of swords and shields and chariots, costly textiles. Verse eight, and don't forget about the musicians. If you have musicians, no doubt you have a theater in your palace for the musicians to play in. Modern day equivalent, Solomon had the Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl in his own backyard. He had John Williams and Andre Bocelli come perform for him. You dream it, Solomon had it. But look thirdly to Solomon's evaluation, verses nine through 11. Solomon says, so I was great and increased more than all that were before me in Jerusalem. Also, my wisdom remained with me. So he, in one sense, is just reaching back to his previous pursuit of knowledge and he's reaching with the other hand and reaching to pleasure and said, I have them both. I withheld not my heart from any joy, for my heart rejoiced in all my labor, and this was my portion of all my labor. Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought, and on the labor that I had labored to do, and behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit, and there was no prophet under the sun. Summary, he was well known. He was great. He was famous. Men gloried in him. People knew him. People wanted to be like him. People respected him for his work. He was well known. He was wealthy. He was more wealthy than Elon Musk in his day. He was wise. He did not lose the knowledge that he once obtained, and whatever he wanted, he could possess. I was great, I had everything, I enjoyed it for a time, and Solomon says, and yet, it was all temporary. It was all an empty bubble, it was all a bell. He went on a new search and came to the same exact conclusion. The same summary is there. So I bring you to the application of this message. Does the autobiographical declarations of Solomon relate to what we experience in this world today? Well, let me ask you this. What does our nation and world value more than anything? What are most people passionately pursuing? What does the average American spend their time, money, and effort delighting in? Are they not delighting in the same exact things that are listed in Ecclesiastes chapter two? Look at the list again and match it to our modern day pursuit of pleasure. All right, put your thinking caps on. The world is seeking after laughter. among the comedy clubs and the comedy specials on Netflix. The drinking of wine has become a needed must-have beverage at every meal and every social occasion, making it a socially accepted form of escapism, a symbol of belonging, and a necessary source of satisfaction. Have you seen the memes? Mommy needs wine. Have you heard of the new paint and sip, wine and paint trend? Do you see how wine is highly valued among people's social media posts? How about the pursuit of building, specifically as it relates to people's homes? More than ever, we are bombarded with a craving after the most beautiful homes with enough land to have a flower garden, a vegetable garden, a fruit tree garden, and perhaps some sort of entertaining family-friendly garden with a patio to host a meal when other people come visit. Better homes and gardens is a long-standing American brand centered on home, gardening, cooking, and lifestyle. We're living in a culture that thinks owning and wearing certain brands of clothing and jewelry somehow makes you cool and in with the in crowd. You know, Gucci, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Prada, If you wear clothes from Walmart or clothes, you are looked at as a dirty peasant. But if you wear clothes that the celebrity wear, you can be a prince and a princess. You can be great in the eyes of men. Stay with me. What else does the average person live for in this world? They live for work. They work hard to build a name for themselves so that they might be esteemed as a successful person in the eyes of men. How many give themselves to start their own business working 70 hours a week so that they can do as Solomon did, they can have as Solomon had. They give themselves to their work so that they can rub shoulders with the rich and famous. They can obtain silver, gold, expensive jewelry, expensive artwork, rare coins, fast cars, beach homes, mountain homes, desert homes, with servants to work and take care of their homes when they are gone. Yes, even among the rich and famous, there are servants that are hired to take care of those who have many things. Are you seeing it? The pursuit of pleasure found in various kinds of entertainments and employments is what people live for. Theme parks, sports, sporting events, video games, television shows, movies, theaters of different kinds, cruises, bars, casinos, restaurants, weekend trips, elaborate vacations, festivals of different kinds, painting, drawing, crafting, baking, yoga, going to the gym, going to the spa, romantic relationships, drugs, music, concerts, YouTube videos, TikTok videos, cars, motorcycles, dirt bikes, ATVs, UTVs, firearms, yachts, boats, golfing. It's all habel. It's all vapor. It's all a bubble. It looks satisfying from the outside, but it's hollow in the inside. We've been deceived to think that all of this in the world is connected to finding the quote, good life. We are being led to believe that all of what we see with our eyes will lead to lasting satisfaction because everyone living for such things on social media seems to be happy. And I say, as I read on a sign once, may your life be as happy as you pretend it to be on Facebook. It's all a mirage. While sin may be pleasurable for a season, listen, it always leads to ruin and regret. Listen to me. Do you want to know where living for earthly pleasures and sensuous entertainments lead to? Well, the obvious sinful pursuits will lead you to being the victim of abuse of different kinds. getting sexually transmitted diseases, unwanted pregnancies. It leads to quick Las Vegas marriages followed by a fast track divorce. It leads to financial debt. It leads to strained relationships with family and friends. It leads to wasted time and opportunities. It leads to legal trouble. It leads to permanently damaging your mind and body. It leads to greater and greater darkness and depression and it can lead to death. And the quote, not so obviously sinful pursuits, which are sinful because they are idolatrous in nature, will lead you to a life filled with emptiness. I mean, this is the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, is it not? In the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, we do not find Scrooge flying to the Maldives in a private jet. We do not find him at the dance clubs seeking after women with his homeboys. That's not what we read of Scrooge. We find Scrooge, catch it, married to himself, intoxicated with his work, lusting after riches just for the sake of being rich, and yet he is just as miserable as those who've ruined their lives with scandalous sins on Skid Row. Doesn't make any difference if you call your sin sinful or not. Anything that is not pleasing to the Lord is sinful. Anything that is not in unison with the truths of God's word is anti-God. Social media doesn't show you the devastating end of people's ruined lives, but the Bible does. Living for pleasure, living for yourself, will only lead you to greater degrees of loneliness, misery, and emptiness. Seeking after the good life without God in the picture, without Christ as your master, will only lead to an eternity of hellfire. So in our hearts we must be crying out. there must be something more. In light of this, let me leave you with a few words of application. Number one, everything you see in this world under the sun is a mirage and will soon pass away. Look around you. Everything will pass away. Everything will be burned with fire. 1 John 2, 15 through 17. Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father. It's not of God, but it's of the world. And the world passes away and the lust thereof, but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever. Everything in this life that promises happiness outside of Jesus Christ is a mirage. Don't pursue it. You know what a mirage is. We live in the desert. You've driven by Amboy. It looks like something's there. No, it's a shadow. We're really good at chasing shadows. Social media is nothing but chasing shadows. It's all a mirage. So this leads us to sub-point two. If pleasure is an unsatisfying mirage that will soon pass away, my second application would be quit seeking after it. Listen to what Paul says in 2 Timothy 3, Here's the last he says, he says, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God. Does this apply to us today in our narcissistic pleasure-seeking culture? Now let me ask you, are we as a people, are we as a culture better off for pursuing earthly pleasures more than God? Are we better off? Are homes better off? Politics better off? Churches better off? Yeah, I'll poke the churches for a moment. We have churches today who've taken the carnal gimmicks that seek to satisfy the flesh and have used them to dress up Christ's church as a prostitute. We don't go to church to satisfy the flesh. The purpose of worship is not to have fun. It's not a carnival. And yet, sadly, there's too many, quote, pastors that are not pastors who are clowns entertaining goats. Don't seek after that. Quit living for fun. Quit living for the weekends. Stop chasing the wind. You might as well just drink a glass of sand. It will lead to the same thing. So the third application is this. If everything in life under the sun is a mirage that will soon pass away, and we are to quit seeking after that which will pass away, what then should we seek? Here it is. Seek after God. Seek after God, the eternal one, the one who is in yesterday, today, and forever. Jesus says, seek ye first the kingdom of God and Christ's righteousness. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness. Paul says, you and I need to set our affections on things above. We need to look above the world, and above the world is where Christ is, where he is ruling and reigning from his throne. And we remember that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, can give us life, meaning, hope, peace, and satisfaction when we come to know him. This is the message of the gospel. What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? The rich young ruler had riches, and yet he turned away from the greatest treasure, Jesus Christ himself. So what? The rich man in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus lived the good life for a few short years and then he found himself in the place of torment. So what? Put it on the scale, was it worth it? One author said, the world is entertaining itself straight to hell. The world seeks to numb the mind of thoughts of death, judgment, eternity, and God. We try to drown our cares in fun. So I ask you this morning, where do your affections lie? What do you live for? Truly, What do you devote your time, money, energy, and attention on? How you answer the question will demonstrate who or what your God really is. Christians, don't be pulled into vanity fair. Come out from the world and be separate. Paul says in Romans 12, I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service, and be not conformed to this world and all of its pleasures, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. In other words, don't invest your time, money, and energy on things under the sun. Invest your time, money, and energy on things above the sun. Invest it in the kingdom of God, for the kingdom of God will always be, but the kingdom of men will fade away. Christian, let me also remind you that Christ did not die so that we can live for ourselves. And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him who died and rose again. Paul said, for me to live is Christ, to die is gain. Christ did not die and shed his blood so that we can enjoy the carnal pleasures of this sinful, evil, satanic world. Those two are contrary one to the other. So if you claim to be Christ's disciple, if you claim to be God's child, you must understand that this world is not a playground, it's a battlefield. We are soldiers, not little children jumping on roller coasters. or not to be entertained with trivial nonsense. Fight, the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life. We'll get there in a few sermons. Ecclesiastes 3 will tell us that everything that God does will last forever. Everything man does is temporary. Here one day, gone the next. Everything we do with our physical bodies will have no eternal value. But if we do that which our physical bodies, in unison with our souls, connected with God and Christ and the kingdom, it will last forever. If we follow His word, in his ways, seeking to please him in this life, it will be used beyond the grave. Isn't this what God says of Abel in Hebrews 11, he being dead, yet speaks. His work goes on, his testimony still having an effect on people's lives. So I say fight. Live for something worth living for. And Christ is our example of living life in this world. Christ did not come to pursue pleasure. Christ came to serve the Father. He came to influence others spiritually, not just physically. Now, did Christ help people physically? Yes. He fed them with physical food. He helped them in their bodies, physical healings, but he did so to preach the gospel, to point them to life above the sun. So I say if we would be like Christ, we must walk as he walked, we must live as he lived. And yes, there's application for the children too this morning. Life is more than school. Life is more than two plus two equals four. Life is more than just George Washington was the first president of the United States. Life is more than toys and Legos and Play-Doh and Paw Patrol and video games and dolls and board games and movies. That's not what life is about. Life is about fearing God, in keeping His commandments. And if that's what life is about, then you need to pursue that life. Pursue Christ, for He is that life.